"What are you thinking about?" A clear voice suddenly sounded behind her. Shen Weiwan froze and turned around to see the Seventh Prince Xiao Yu leaning against the moon-shaped door, playing with a broken jade fan in his hand. The moon-white hem of his clothes fluttered in the wind, making him look indescribably handsome and elegant.
"Your Highness?" Shen Weiwan hurriedly stood up and bowed, wondering why this big Buddha came again, "How did you find time to come here?"
Xiao Yu walked over, his eyes falling on the grape seeds at her feet, and said with a half-smile: "I heard that the people made up a story that Li Xiu's limp was caused by his lover?"
Shen Weiwan blinked her innocent eyes and said, "I don't know. Maybe the common people just made it up when they have nothing to do."
"Oh?" Xiao Yu raised an eyebrow, snapping his folding fan open and tapping it lightly on his palm. "Then the people also said that someone saw your servant deliver an invitation to the 'Mianhualou' that Li Xiu often visited last month?"
Shen Weiwan's heart skipped a beat, but she remained innocent on the surface: "Your Highness, you are joking. How could a humble servant, a woman from a secluded place, know about such a place?"
Xiao Yu suddenly took a half step forward, the crisp scent of ambergris wafting across her face. He lowered his voice, his warm breath brushing against her ear. "I find the imaginations of the people quite interesting." He paused, his dark jade eyes fixed on her. "For example... what do you want to do next?"
Shen Weiwan raised her eyes and met his bottomless pupils. There was no mockery or calculation in them, only pure curiosity, like a child seeing a new toy. She suddenly felt that this Seventh Prince was not as simple as he seemed.
"Your Highness wants to know?" Shen Weiwan suddenly grinned, revealing two pointed little canine teeth, and raised the corners of her mouth in a signature "asking for a beating" arc, "Your Highness won't tell you!"
Xiao Yu was stunned for a moment, then burst into laughter, startling the kingfishers by the pond. "Interesting! Indeed!" He turned around, waving his folding fan. "I await your next move."
Watching his departing figure, Shen Weiwan was lost in thought. What exactly did the Seventh Prince mean? His repeated "chance encounters"—were they enemies or friends?
In the evening, the old housekeeper hurried to Qinghui Courtyard, holding a stack of yellowed account books in his hands. His beard trembled with excitement. "Miss, we've found it! We've found evidence that Liu was embezzling money! She secretly shipped out the brocade and Suzhou embroidery from the storehouse and sold them, and the names of the people who handled them are all recorded in the account books!"
Shen Weiwan took the account book and traced the ink across it with her fingertips, almost seeing Liu's greedy face. A cold glint flashed in her eyes as she closed the book. "Good, well done." She paused and said to the old housekeeper, "Go and prepare. The General's Mansion will issue its monthly allowance in three days. It's time to let some people have a taste of ruin."
The old housekeeper understood and bowed before leaving. Shen Weiwan walked to the window, watching the curling smoke from the Li Mansion, a cold smile playing on her lips. "Li Xiu, Liu, Shen Ruorou... Your retribution has only just begun. I will repay you for everything you owed me in your past lives, with interest."
Meanwhile, in the Seventh Prince's study, Xiao Yu listened to the guard's report and couldn't help but shake his head and laugh. He toyed with the jade chess piece in his hand, watching the chessboard gradually take shape. "This Chen Weiwan," he muttered to himself, a strange glint in his eyes, "is becoming more and more ruthless."
The guard whispered, "Your Highness, do you need a subordinate..."
"No need." Xiao Yu interrupted him, placing a white piece on the chessboard. "I want to see how much trouble she can stir up in the capital."
As the night deepened, rumors in the capital continued to ferment. Some talented scholar had come up with a new piece of music, which was sung by children all over the streets: "Mr. Li, lame, met his lover in a brothel. His lover got jealous and broke his leg. He cheated on his beautiful wife in the general's mansion—"
This catchy jingle, carried by the summer night wind, spread to every corner of the capital. Unbeknownst to the protagonists of the story, an even greater storm was brewing in the general's mansion. Shen Weiwan's road to revenge had just entered its most exciting climax.
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