Chapter 333: Chapter 331: Stirring People Up into a Frenzy
Lu Ying lowered his gaze to look at her. "Was it you who did that to Gan Tangwei?"
Shen Yinning felt her scalp tingle under his scrutiny. "It seems... it might have been."
Lu Ying’s jawline tightened as he suppressed his temper. "What do you mean, ’it might have been’?"
"If Your Highness believes it was I who did it, then it was I who did it, wasn’t it? Anyhow, no matter how I explain, you won’t believe me."
Lu Ying’s brows pressed down as his expression darkened.
The way she said it sounded so insincere.
Anyone not in the know would think he had wrongly accused this fox spirit.
He demanded, "Why?"
Was she upset at the thought of his favor toward Gan Tangwei?
Considering the love letters Shen Yinning had sent to the Eastern Palace, an absurd thought occurred to Lu Ying—it was as if Shen Yinning was jealous, fighting for his attention.
But reason told him that Shen Yinning was not such a person.
Shen Yinning plucked at the grass on the ground distractedly.
Lu Ying’s interrogating tone made her quite displeased, though she admitted that her "狸猫换太子" trick of replacing Gan Tangwei did amount to a crime.
She spoke honestly, "She looked pitiful."
Lu Ying’s brows furrowed deeper.
Shen Yinning paused, then suddenly raised her head to look at him. "I know, throughout history, nations would send spies to each other. Many of them were women, who were often given to enemy states, becoming mere playthings for powerful men. Their endings are predictable—few came to a good end. Gan Tangwei is just a young girl from Yan Country, yet she has mastered the refined arts of the Central Plains so skillfully. She’s both talented and diligent. She hasn’t harmed anyone. She deserves to live under the sun, continuing to dance, rather than withering in the dark conspiracies of scheming plots."
Lu Ying’s frown deepened.
He stared at Shen Yinning, surprised that she would say such things.
In her eyes, he caught a hint of compassion.
So even someone as cunning and shrewd as Shen Zhaozhao could feel pity for others?
He remarked, "You sympathize with another woman. But out there, countless others serve as undercover spies, like the palace maids sent to my Eastern Palace by the Dowager Empress and Noble Consort Zhang. They live their lives in shadows, their identities perpetually hidden, waiting for the moment they might be sacrificed to serve their masters’ schemes. Shen Yinning, can you save them all?"
"No, I can’t," Shen Yinning admitted. "It’s just that I happened to meet Gan Tangwei and got to know her, so I felt an impulse to help her. But Lu Ying, even if I can save just one, it’s worth it. Across thousands of years of history, there are countless Gan Tangweis, and maybe among them, there are countless Shen Zhaozhaos. If I save one Gan Tangwei, then countless Shen Zhaozhaos might save countless other Gan Tangweis. The world is harsh, and I’ve been wretchedly unlucky. But there should be one less unlucky girl out there, shouldn’t there?"
She hadn’t delivered some grand moral speech.
Her words circled around, carrying a fatigue and irritation in their tone.
And yet, Lu Ying detected a rare kind of tenderness within them.
His teacher had imparted to him the Emperor’s Skill—principles of grand strategies and concern for the greater good. That was why he could disregard individual lives, sacrificing the few for the many.
But his teacher had taught Shen Zhaozhao something else entirely—benevolence.
Even after experiencing the destruction of her family, the massacre of her father and brothers, the confiscation of all her possessions, and exile to Gan State, she still chose to keep compassion for others.
She appeared so wicked, but the core of her heart wasn’t entirely dark.
Her teacher had taught her well.
Lu Ying was no longer angry about the matter with Gan Tangwei and said only, "Don’t let this happen again."
As Shen Yinning watched him turn to leave, she finally sighed in relief. But just as she relaxed and sat on the ground, he suddenly turned back to look at her.
Seeing her casual and unrestrained posture, his handsome face darkened further.
Shen Yinning cursed inwardly. This damned man was truly exhausting.
She quickly knelt upright again and forced a smile. "Does Your Highness have more to say?"
Lu Ying deliberated his words. "Those letters..."
Just as the words left his lips, he saw Shen Yinning’s innocent expression, her head tilted like a curious little fox.
His hands clenched tightly.
This fox spirit was completely unruly. Despite committing a grave mistake like colluding with Yan Zheming, she had dared to write him love letters, bold enough to put whatever came to mind on paper, stirring his heart into disarray while she feigned naivety and sweetness.
Still, as a young woman, it was natural for her to shy away from discussing those two letters openly.
If he warned her to conduct herself properly, he worried it might hurt her pride.
Lu Ying remained silent for a long moment before speaking in a low voice, "Forget it."
Forget it?
What did he mean by that?
Shen Yinning looked at him, puzzled, as he walked away.
Back at the Eastern Palace, Lu Ying worked on a few memorials but found his thoughts lingering on Shen Yinning.
He set down his brush, pressing his knuckles against his furrowed brow in frustration.
Shen Yinning felt like a poison.
The moment he uncovered her collusion with Yan Zheming, he was filled with intense hatred and disappointment. Yet, just a few days later, those feelings had inexplicably weakened.
And yet, he knew he shouldn’t feel that way.
As the Crown Prince of a nation, how could he compromise his principles for the sake of a woman?
But it seemed he couldn’t sever ties with Shen Yinning completely.
He had spoken harsh words to her, argued with her, and even offered her up to another man. He had resorted to using poisonous insects, yet none of it had any effect.
She was like fine, delicate spider silk. He might brush past branches and blossoms, pass through pavilions and corridors, yet somehow, she managed to wind herself around his fingertips, even hiding in the breeze, leaving him defenseless against her presence.
Lu Ying closed his eyes.
The events at the courier station on the outskirts of the city replayed vividly in his mind:
—That year, I climbed into your bed, not because I liked you or couldn’t part with you, but because I was betting that one day, you’d bring me back to the Capital from Gan State.
—Lu Ying, since you already know what a heartless and selfish woman I am, why do you keep pestering me? What is it, can’t bear to sever ties cleanly, so you try to guilt me into shame and repentance with your words? Well, Lu Ying, let me tell you this—I, Shen Zhaozhao, have never once regretted anything I’ve done!
In the darkness, that scene magnified infinitely.
At the time, he had been so deeply wounded that he hadn’t bothered to ponder whether her words were true or false.
But now, thinking back on it, he vaguely remembered how her voice had trembled slightly as she spoke, how her lips continued to quiver even after she finished, and how her snow-white, youthful face had lost its flush. Her exquisite Dan Feng eyes had betrayed a trace of regret.
Lu Ying opened his eyes.
Suddenly, he wondered whether Shen Zhaozhao’s feelings toward him weren’t entirely devoid of affection after all.
Otherwise, why had she chosen his bed and not Lu Zhengliu’s?
Though he was the Crown Prince, Lu Zhengliu clearly had a chance at succeeding the throne as well. From her perspective, aligning with Lu Zhengliu would have been the more advantageous and calculated choice.
This faint thought caused the thorn in Lu Ying’s heart to quietly shrink and dissolve.
He picked up his brush, intending to write a proper reply to Shen Yinning.
Gui Quan, holding the letter, headed out and, as expected, bumped into Lu Jiazhe.
Lu Jiazhe grinned and cheekily carried the letter out of the palace.
At the Seven Treasures Pavilion.
Wen Liluo read through the letter and hugged her horsetail whisk disdainfully. "He’s writing to a young lady, yet it reads as solemnly as an official decree?"