Mountain Villa

Early in the morning, Mei Sheng did not see Tang Yun. After waiting for a while and seeing that she still hadn't appeared, she decided to go out for a stroll and observe the layout of the villa.

The guards at the gate respectfully handed Mei Sheng a token left by Tang Yun. The manor was heavily guarded by armed guards, and the rules were strict. Without this token, she probably wouldn't even be able to leave the courtyard.

To the east of Mei Sheng's courtyard was a bamboo grove. After chatting with the maids walking around the manor for a while and finding out in private that it was a sparsely populated area where people could come and go as they pleased, Mei Sheng dared to go there to find a quiet place to stay.

The air in early autumn was crisp and cool. Mei Sheng took a deep breath and felt refreshed.

She continued along the pebbled path towards higher ground, where she could enjoy a panoramic view and better understand the layout and building distribution of the mountain resort.

However, this bamboo grove is probably a bit remote, with its view blocked by layers of buildings.

Mei Sheng was truly helpless. Just as she was about to lift her leg and walk uphill, a man's angry shout suddenly came from the forest. Startled, Mei Sheng immediately crouched down quietly, held her breath, and dared not reveal her presence.

"You wretch, you're nothing but a lowly merchant's daughter, how dare you break a contract? Bah!" The man's arrogant words continued to reach Mei Sheng's ears, and she involuntarily leaned against the tree trunk, her mind racing.

"Lu Qiao, don't think you can escape me just because you've hooked up with that person, hah." The greedy and wicked voice was truly unpleasant, but the familiar woman's sobbing and name made Mei Sheng freeze in place.

In the blink of an eye, Mei Sheng made her decision.

She took out the flint from her pocket, rubbed it vigorously, and the few sheets of paper in her hand gradually caught fire. These were the drawings she had prepared to use for sketching. But then, Mei Sheng frowned and moved the fire to a clump of grass nearby.

Within moments, a thick, choking fire had broken out, and Mei Sheng had already retreated to a distance. She covered her mouth and nose, staring at the patch of grass that was trying to isolate herself from the rest of the area.

Don't wait until this place is burned down before there's any reaction over there.

Mei Sheng had no choice but to raise her voice, her sharp cry piercing the forest and startling the birds: "Fire! Help!"

Sure enough, through the gaps in the bamboo leaves, a man could be seen rushing out in a panic, and then disappearing into the forest.

The woman behind the rock had a flushed face and was weak and powerless. Her mouth and eyes were bound with strips of cloth. Mei Sheng hesitated for a moment, but still did not untie the cloth from her eyes.

His clothes were slightly disheveled, but still intact.

Mei Sheng cursed the man twice, then grabbed Lu Qiao's arm and struggled to help her back in another direction. There were three paths leading up to this bamboo forest.

Even if the fire behind her was about to go out, there was still a chance that people below would see it. Moreover, she had just shouted, and sooner or later someone would come from the direction she came from, and she might even run into someone.

Thinking that a woman's chastity was more important than her life in this era, Mei Sheng chose another path to follow.

Lu Qiao was half-conscious and half-dazed. The usually proud and self-possessed woman couldn't help but shed tears. She grabbed at the strip of cloth in front of her in anger, only to find that she couldn't pull it off no matter what she did. She felt powerless and angry.

Fortunately, the person helping her was a woman. She gritted her teeth, her steps were weak, and she gasped, "Take me to Xiangju Pavilion."

Having never suffered such humiliation, Lu Qiao could only plot revenge in her heart, engraving this thought into her mind so that she could stay awake.

In her hazy state of consciousness, the woman remained silent. Her heart sank. Was this another person who had come to harm her?

"Who are you?"

The woman beside her remained silent, so Lu Qiao used all her strength to push the man away, flailing her arms wildly.

Mei Sheng was not hurt by her strength. After a little thought, she realized that Lu Qiao was just scared. But how could she reveal her identity?

Before she could figure out how to explain, hurried footsteps appeared from the alleyway: "Miss, Miss..."

Mei Sheng hid behind a tree, frowning and thinking for a moment before she remembered that she was Lu Qiao's personal maid.

After seeing the maid frantically help Lu Qiao up and the two leave, Mei Sheng turned and left.

But when she touched her waist, she found that the token with the character "Pei" on it was gone, which made her quite frightened.

Meanwhile, the sky was suddenly covered with dark clouds, which wove together a gloomy expanse. Mei Sheng, who was searching for the token in the bamboo forest, couldn't help but feel a bit depressed. She looked around but still found nothing, thinking to herself, "What bad luck!"

The raindrops, initially silent, then becoming audible, all fell on a person in the woods. After this commotion, Mei Sheng was quite disheveled, looking like a real—

"Hey, caught a drowned rat."

Hearing the words she had been pondering spoken aloud, Mei Sheng abruptly stopped, hastily wiped her face a few times, and then turned around. The two looked at each other in surprise, both saying, "It was you?"

The highest pavilion in the mountain villa

The carpet, adorned with peony flower patterns and decorated with pearls and purple velvet, was magnificent and grand.

Two people sat facing each other on a rosewood table, each holding a chess piece.

The fourth prince, playing white, pondered deeply, hesitant to make a move. After a moment, as if he had finally found the opportunity, he placed his piece in the right position, and in an instant, the situation on the board changed dramatically.

He then laughed arrogantly, his expression laced with disdain: "How about it?"

Sitting on the other side, Pei Jue calmly placed the black chess piece in his hand, cupped his hands, and said, "I, Pei, have lost this game."

"Losing this round is alright, Governor Pei. What do you think of what we just discussed?" Fourth Prince Zhao Yun flicked his sleeves, and immediately a maidservant straightened his sleeves and served him hot tea.

"Pah! Are you trying to scald me to death? You ungrateful servant! I was brought to this manor from my lowly status to be your maid, do you really think your life is different from others?" She launched into a veiled attack, but there was still no response from the other side.

Now, Zhao Yun narrowed his eyes slightly, full of smugness: "Governor Pei, a person still needs to know himself."

"Your Highness, why not wait for good news?"

A moment later, a guard in black rushed over, his forehead damp with rain, and he moved in a flustered manner. He whispered something into Zhao Yun's ear.

Upon hearing this, Zhao Yun's smile froze, and his gaze sharpened like a knife: "Governor Pei, you are truly cunning."

After Pei Jue left a message, he bowed and left.

Zhao Yun was furious and kicked the chessboard to the ground, spilling hot tea from the table all over the maids. But the maids didn't dare to utter a sound and knelt down to admit their mistake.

Zhao Yun's face was grim, his eyes burning with unquenchable anger. He glanced at the Crown Prince's residence, hesitated for a moment, then made up his mind: "Zhiyi, give the order to act tonight."

The rain grew heavier. My dear brother, may you perish in this downpour. Even though Pei Jue broke the agreement at the last minute and withdrew his men, Yuquan Manor was the burial place he had long chosen for the Crown Prince. How could he possibly let go of it?

Pei Jue walked along a narrow path and saw a girl dressed as a maid carrying an umbrella approaching. She respectfully said, "Governor Pei, the Crown Princess requests your presence."

Pei Jue paused in his steps, but did not stop, choosing instead to return to his residence.

Even though the girl behind him was sweating profusely with anxiety, wondering how she was going to explain this to her master.

Han Zhou arrived despite the rain, and the girl's eyes held hope. Han Zhou left with only one sentence, bowing respectfully: "The Governor has returned; everything is proceeding according to plan."

The maid stamped her foot and quickly left.

The guards at the gate took the umbrella, lifted the curtain, and Pei Jue patted the raindrops off his clothes, stepped over the threshold, and once inside, asked in a low voice, "Where is she?"

The maidservant outside hurriedly replied, "The young lady is inside."

Upon hearing this, Pei Jue finally relaxed. He was always the one seeking her out; she had rarely taken the initiative to seek him out. Thinking this, Pei Jue felt a surge of resentment.

Without saying a word, he went straight into the house, intending to give her a good talking-to.

To his surprise, there was no one in the room. He frowned, looked up, and saw a figure curled up on the bed, trembling slightly.

"you......"

As soon as Pei Jue lifted the curtain, before his hand could even reach the person, the woman gripped his hand tightly and pressed it against her cheek.

"It's so cool." The woman on the bed mumbled a few words, then drifted off to sleep again.

Before Pei Jue could pull his hand back, he felt an unusually hot temperature in his hand. Startled, he quickly pressed it to her forehead to test it, and sure enough, she had a fever.

"Someone come here!"

Outside, maids and guards knelt, enduring the torrential rain that pelted their bodies, shivering from the cold, but those inside showed them no pity.

Why is she doing this?

The imperial physician felt her pulse and hesitated for a while before saying, "Has this young lady ever been involved with... things of the erotic?" He was careful with his words, not daring to show the slightest disrespect, and also afraid that he might be wrong.

Pei Jue held her hand tightly, and after pondering for a moment, asked, "Yes, will it harm your health?"

"That's it. The medicine from before, though seemingly harmless, actually accumulates in the body and will cause an attack when exposed to cold." The imperial physician removed the silver needles and checked the pulse again: "Let me prescribe some medicine, and you should take good care of yourself."

Tang Yun handed the prescription to the person outside. The servant was quick-witted and went to the small kitchen to prepare the medicine despite the rain.

Inside the room, the woman was dressed in thin clothes. After acupuncture, her forehead was no longer as hot as before, but her face was still weak and pale.

Pei Jue felt that the woman was lying there, unusually quiet, and a certain string in his heart seemed to be pulled.

Where did she go just now?

Tang Yun's face turned deathly pale. She immediately knelt down and timidly said, "This servant...this servant does not know."

Pei Jue's face darkened. Without glancing at the ground or asking why she didn't know, he spoke calmly and unquestionably: "Go and be punished."

As soon as he tried to pull his wrist away, the woman on the bed pulled him back forcefully, making it even harder for him to get his hand back.

The woman rested her head on his pillow, occasionally nuzzling against him, like a soft, cuddly little animal.

Pei Jue sighed inwardly. If only they could be this intimate when they woke up. It was just a pity that this woman was always cunning. He wondered what had happened to make her act this way. He would definitely ask her when she woke up.

And then there's Bai Su, whose medical skills are lacking. He'll definitely be punished properly when he gets back this time, he thought to himself, frowning.