Back at the royal court, a tense atmosphere hung in the air, as if a storm was brewing. News of the assassination attempt in the hunting grounds had clearly reached them; the guards were several times tighter than usual, the soldiers were wary, and the slaves and maids passing by hurried along, heads bowed, not daring to utter a word.

Su Nian was taken directly back to her courtyard. The blood belonging to Helian Jue on her lips had long since dried, leaving a dark red scab, but the eerie sensation of the cold fingertips touching her lips and the strong smell of blood lingered like a brand.

'He wrote it down…what does 'written it down' mean? Does it mean he's rewarding me for my service, or is it a charge to be settled later?' Su Nian sat on the cold stone bed, her heart far from calm as she appeared. 'Shouting out in that situation was purely instinctive! Who knows if I'd be mistaken for being in cahoots with the assassins!'

[Host, based on this system's analysis of the target's behavioral patterns, 'remembering' usually means he's included this matter in his evaluation system for you, but whether it's a bonus or a deduction is currently impossible to determine.] 088's tone was unusually serious. [However, the fact that he didn't react on the spot, and even let you return, is itself a positive sign... perhaps?]

Su Nian sighed and rubbed her still somewhat weak legs. 'Oh well, what's meant to be will be. I'll just have to take it one step at a time.'

She forced herself to stop thinking about Helian Jue's elusive attitude and instead pondered the snippets of conversation she had overheard at the hunting grounds. "Gray Rock Tribe"... this was clearly a key. She needed to learn more about this tribe and the internal power struggles within the Jie clan.

The next few days were surprisingly calm for Su Nian.

Helian Jue seemed busy dealing with the aftermath of the assassination attempt and did not summon her or issue any additional orders. She continued to do her daily tasks of tidying up the study, changing the water, and serving dishes, but her movements seemed to be invisibly restricted to the core area of ​​the royal court, and she was always "accompanied" by guards whenever she went to any slightly distant place.

Because of his previous dereliction of duty and framing, although Alai has recovered from his injuries, his status is not as good as before. He hates Su Nian even more, but he doesn't dare to openly cause trouble anymore. However, the venom in his eyes is almost tangible.

Madam Lan occasionally encountered Su Nian, and her attitude remained lukewarm, with a condescending scrutiny. However, she also seemed to have developed a subtle but noticeable apprehension towards Su Nian because of the hunting grounds incident.

This apparent calm only made Su Nian more vigilant. She knew that the undercurrents beneath the surface would only become more turbulent.

That day, as usual, she stood with her head bowed outside the hall waiting for Helian to decide the matter. The arguments coming from inside were more intense than ever before.

"...The Gray Rock Tribe harbors wolfish ambitions! This assassination attempt must have been orchestrated by them! Your Majesty, please allow me to lead my troops to raze their camp to the ground!" A gruff voice roared; it was the general Wuzhu.

“General Wuzhu, please calm down.” Another relatively calm voice rang out. It was an old man who looked like a civil official, named Guli. “Although the Gray Rock Tribe is at odds with us, the methods used in this assassination are strange, and the crossbows used are not their usual type. We still need to investigate whether there is someone else behind it. If we send troops rashly, we may fall into a trap.”

“Investigate? How can we investigate? The people are all dead! Who else could it be but them?!” Wuzhu retorted indignantly.

"Alright." Helian Jue's cold voice rang out, instantly silencing all the arguments.

The hall fell silent.

Su Nian held her breath and listened carefully.

"Guli, continue the investigation. Don't overlook any clues," Helian Jue ordered. "Wuzhu, strengthen border patrols. No one may launch an attack without my order."

"Yes!" the two replied in unison.

“Furthermore,” Helian Jue paused, as if flipping through some scrolls, “the amounts of furs and medicinal herbs submitted by various ministries this year are incorrect.”

The atmosphere inside the hall instantly became even more somber.

"Who is in charge of this matter?" Helian Jue asked, his tone calm but carrying an invisible pressure.

After a brief silence, a slightly apprehensive voice rang out: "Your Majesty...it is...it is Lady Lan's brother, Lord Kumoti..."

Su Nian's heart skipped a beat. Lady Lan's brother? It seemed that the power struggles within the royal court were far more complex than she had imagined.

"Make him sort out the accounts, and make up the missing parts tenfold." Helian Jue's voice was flat. "If he can't make up the missing parts, then use his head as collateral."

"Yes...yes!" The terrified voice was almost crying.

After the meeting, the generals and officials filed out, each with a solemn expression. Su Nian stood by the door with her head down, eyes downcast, seemingly lost in thought.

Helian Jue was the last to come out. He didn't even look at Su Nian and left straight away. But Su Nian keenly noticed that his gaze seemed to linger for an extremely brief moment when it swept over her.

Two days later, while tidying up the inner room of her study, Su Nian discovered a sheepskin map casually placed in a corner. She didn't intend to look at it much, but an area roughly circled in vermilion on the map caught her attention—it was a mountainous area located northwest of the royal court, near the border, with a name marked next to it in Jie script, seemingly a small tribe or place name.

A thought flickered in her mind. Connecting the dots between what she'd heard about the "Gray Rock Tribe" and the accounting issues, she vaguely felt that the map might be related. But she didn't dare linger, quickly putting the map away and continuing her work.

That night, she lay on the hard bed, tossing and turning. Helian Jue's indifference, the undercurrents in the royal court, the unknown enemy... all of this weighed heavily on her heart like a boulder. She had to do something; she couldn't just wait passively like this forever.

'088,' she cried out in her heart, 'Is there any way for me to understand the situation in this world more quickly? Like... learning to read?'

[The host wants to learn the Jie script?] 088 was somewhat surprised. [That's a good idea! Knowledge is power! However, this system doesn't have a direct language input function; it can only provide a basic character table and pronunciation rules. The host needs to learn and master it on their own. It costs 50 points to exchange!]

Su Nian glanced at her pitiful points balance, gritted her teeth, and said: "Exchange!"

A stream of information flooded my mind: some basic Jie characters and their corresponding pronunciations and meanings. Though rudimentary, it was at least a start.

From that day on, Su Nian secretly studied whenever she had a spare moment. While wiping the bookshelves, she would quickly memorize the characters on the leather scroll labels; while standing in attendance, she would try her best to distinguish the place names and personal names mentioned by the officials; even while doing chores, she would secretly practice strokes with her fingers on the dust.

The days passed quietly amidst intense study and careful observation.

That afternoon, Su Nian was summoned to Helian Jue's study.

He sat behind his obsidian desk, with the parchment map she had seen before spread out in front of him, his finger pointing to the area circled in vermilion.

"Do you recognize this place?" He looked up, his sharp gaze fixed on Su Nian, and asked bluntly.

Su Nian's heart skipped a beat. He found out? He found out she had seen the map?

She forced herself to calm down, carefully looked at the area, and, combining the limited knowledge she had just learned with the scattered information she had heard before, cautiously replied, "Your Majesty, this servant... seems to have heard someone mention that... this place... seems to produce a special kind of iron ore?"

She didn't dare to be too certain, only offering a vague direction. This was her speculation based on the region's geography and the Jie people's need for weapons.

Helian Jue stared at her, his eyes deep, revealing neither his belief nor his disbelief.

"Oh? You know about this?" His tone was flat, revealing no emotion.

Su Nian lowered her head: "This servant only heard about it by chance and dare not be sure."

Helian Jue didn't press further, tapped his finger on the map, and suddenly changed the subject: "Who do you think orchestrated this assassination?"

Alarm bells rang in Su Nian's mind. This issue was even more dangerous! How could she, a slave and a princess of an enemy country, dare to discuss such matters!

"This servant is foolish and dares not make any wild guesses," she quickly replied.

Helian Jue, however, seemed unwilling to let her go. He leaned forward slightly, exuding a powerful sense of oppression: "I'll let you speak."

Su Nian's scalp tingled, and her brain raced. She couldn't say she was from the Gray Rock Tribe (there was no evidence, and it might backfire), nor could she say she was from within the Royal Court (she might die even faster).

She took a deep breath, raised her head, met Helian Jue's gaze, and said in as objective a tone as possible, "This servant believes that whoever is instigated, their purpose is nothing more than to undermine the King's rule. It could be an external enemy, an internal traitor, or... a collusion between the two."

She paused, then added, "Your Majesty might investigate who has recently suffered the most losses due to one of Your Majesty's decisions."

She didn't name names, but offered a suggestion—start with those whose interests have been harmed.

Helian Jue stared at her for a long time. The study was so quiet that the faint crackling of the lamp wick could be heard.

Just as Su Nian felt she was about to be crushed by that gaze, Helian Jue suddenly chuckled.

The laughter was soft, carrying an indescribable meaning.

"You've got a way with words." He looked away and returned to the map. "Get out."

Su Nian felt as if she had been granted a pardon and immediately bowed and withdrew. It wasn't until she stepped out of the study and was hit by the cold wind outside that she realized her back was soaked with cold sweat.

Just now, she felt as if she had walked on the edge of a bottomless cliff.

However, not long after she returned to her courtyard, a guard brought her two items.

It was a cotton dress of significantly better quality than the gray slave clothes she was wearing, with a simple color but exquisite workmanship.

The other item was a small box of wound medicine that emitted a bitter medicinal scent, the same kind the witch doctor had given her before, which was remarkably effective for abrasions and minor injuries.

The guard, expressionless, said, "This is a reward from the King."

Su Nian stared blankly at the dress and the box of medicine, her heart filled with mixed emotions.

What's this?

A slap followed by a sweet treat?

Or... some kind of more subtle approval?

She picked up the box of medicine, her fingertips tracing the cold lid. At least, this proved that he had seen the injury on her finger the whole time.

So, was his persistent questioning in the study just now a test, or... was he really asking for her opinion?

Su Nian found that she understood that man less and less.

Just then, a slight noise came from outside the courtyard gate, as if someone had lingered there for a moment before quietly leaving.

Su Nian's heart stirred. She walked to the door and looked out through the crack. She only saw a slender figure dressed as a maid hurriedly leaving.

That was... a maidservant of Madam Lan?

Su Nian's eyes instantly turned cold.

It seems that the undercurrents within the royal court have never ceased to surge.

She herself seemed to have been unknowingly drawn into the center of the vortex.

(End of Chapter 104)