The seductive princess is no longer being pursued; the aloof prime minister is facing a crematorium.

Chapter 10 He came to see her

Meanwhile, on the second floor of Nanfeng Pavilion, in a private room.

Curtains and beaded curtains, candlelight flickering.

The walls were not soundproof, and Jiang Jinshuang could even hear the giggling and trembling sounds of a man and woman making love in the next room.

At the table, Jiang Jinshuang coughed lightly, looking a little awkward, and picked up the teacup beside her, wanting to moisten her throat.

But before the teacup could reach his lips, a slender hand covered the rim of the cup.

Su Xiu spoke elegantly: "The tea at Nanfeng Pavilion has aphrodisiac effects. Would Your Highness like to try it?"

Upon hearing this, Jiang Jinshuang quickly put down her teacup and looked at the man beside her.

Su Xiu, oh no, he should be called Lu Xiao.

Lu Xiao, dressed in a snow-white robe, with hair as black as ink, slowly looked at her with a pair of calm and serene eyes.

Jiang Jinshuang took a deep breath, raised her eyebrows and smiled: "General Lu, it's been a long time."

Lu Xiao's long eyelashes trembled slightly, like beautiful raven feathers.

“General Lu…” he murmured, “This title is somewhat unfamiliar to me.”

His gaze shifted, finally settling on the young woman: "Your Highness, it's been a long time."

If you look closely at his hands, you'll see they're a bit rough, with thick calluses on the base of his thumbs—the result of years of martial arts training.

Jiang Jinshuang still remembers Lu Xiao from back then.

King Ruiyang was stationed at the northernmost tip of Wanjin Kingdom year-round, only returning to the capital to report on his duties at the end of the year.

That year, Jiang Jinshuang was still young. When she heard that her uncle, Prince Ruiyang, had returned to the capital, she happily went to greet him.

That's when she met Lu Xiao.

The young man sat high on horseback, following behind Prince Ruiyang. He was dressed in black armor, full of vigor and handsome.

He held a long spear in his hand, and the chilling aura of killing intent that had permeated the frontier for many years deterred anyone from approaching.

She walked up to him nonchalantly, crossed her arms, and asked him loudly, "Are you Lu Xiao, the one the Imperial Uncle mentioned in his letter?"

The young man had a sharp and stern look in his eyes. He nodded slightly to her and said, "This humble general, Lu Xiao, greets Your Highness."

—In her memory, Lu Xiao was a hero with a dignified and youthful spirit.

Now, the young man seems to have concealed all his sharpness, his eyes lowered, his demeanor cool and aloof.

If it were anyone else, they would have no way of connecting the handsome and refined man in front of them with the former deputy general of Prince Ruiyang who wielded a long spear.

Thinking of this, Jiang Jinshuang felt a slight tug at her heartstrings, leaving her with a bitter taste.

She composed herself and looked up at the tall, handsome man before her: "Lu Xiao, how did you get here?"

An emotion flashed in the man's eyes, and after a long while, he slowly spoke: "When I first learned of the general's news, I intended to lead my troops to attack the Forbidden City, but when I was gathering my troops, I was ambushed and fainted."

After a pause, Lu Xiao continued, "When I woke up, all my meridians were severed, and I had lost all my martial arts skills. I was thrown into a pile of dead bodies outside the city and was later picked up by the owner of Nanfeng Pavilion and brought here."

"Your tendons are severed!?" Upon hearing this, Jiang Jinshuang hurriedly stepped forward to check.

She placed her hand on Lu Xiao's wrist and felt his weak pulse.

In an instant, a murderous intent arose: "Who did this?"

Lu Xiao shook his head: "I don't know."

Jiang Jinshuang knew very well what meridians meant to a martial artist.

Such ruthless and vicious methods brought a name to Jiang Jinshuang's mind.

Taking a deep breath, Jiang Jinshuang calmed herself down and looked up at him again: "Lu Xiao, come with me."

The man's fingers twitched slightly: "What does Your Highness mean by this?"

Jiang Jinshuang smiled and said, "It's exactly what you mean. I'll take you away from Nanfeng Pavilion."

Lu Xiao looked at her seriously and calmly: "Your Highness, are you going to help me?"

“Yes, I will help you,” Jiang Jinshuang said earnestly. “I will also investigate the matter of the Imperial Uncle back then.” Lu Xiao’s eyes remained calm: “Back then, the General was falsely accused of forming cliques and plotting rebellion. No one in the court or the country dared to speak up for the General.”

Even officials and members of the royal family who were once on very good terms with him bowed their heads and remained silent.

“Your Highness is merely a princess who has fallen out of favor; she can barely protect herself,” Lu Xiao said calmly. “Why should I believe you?”

Upon hearing this, Jiang Jinshuang's expression turned serious, and she pursed her lips slightly.

After a long while, she took out a jade pendant from her waist and handed it to Lu Xiao: "This is the jade pendant I have always carried with me. It was a gift from His Majesty when I came of age."

"My father promised me personally that if I ever commit a wrong, as long as I produce this jade pendant, he will pardon me and punish me leniently."

Jiang Jinshuang said earnestly, "Now, I'm handing this jade pendant over to you."

“If one day you no longer believe me and think I am incapable of overturning the verdict, then take out this jade pendant and I will let you go.”

Lu Xiao squeezed the warm jade: "Since Your Highness has such privileges, why didn't you use them when His Majesty was furious and issued an edict to demote you back to your fiefdom?"

She raised her eyebrows and said, slowly and deliberately, "I did nothing wrong about what happened back then."

"And no one needs to grant a pardon."

The Emperor said that if she did something wrong, she could be pardoned with the jade pendant.

But she never felt that she had done anything wrong.

Lu Xiao's palm seemed to have been burned by the jade pendant.

After many years apart, he found that Princess Zhaoming was just as she had been back then.

Lu Xiao finally smiled and said softly, "Does Your Highness know how much it would cost to redeem me?"

Jiang Jinshuang coughed lightly, somewhat embarrassed: "If you tell the madam that you're coming with me voluntarily, could you get a slightly lower price?"

Upon hearing this, Lu Xiao smiled slightly.

He was about to say something more when he heard a commotion downstairs.

"The Censorate is conducting a discipline inspection; everyone in your office, come downstairs!"

A loud voice came from downstairs, and Jiang Jinshuang and Lu Xiao exchanged a glance.

Before the two could speak, soldiers were already knocking on the door and urging them to come out: "Everyone inside, come out! Disciplinary inspection! The Censorate is handling a case!"

Why are people from the Censorate here all of a sudden?

Although Jiang Jinshuang was puzzled, she didn't think much of it and led Lu Xiao downstairs.

When they arrived on the first floor, the main hall of Nanfeng Pavilion was already packed with men and women.

The madam, clutching a handkerchief, stood trembling at the front: "Oh dear, sir, please don't scare us! We're just running a business, we haven't done anything wrong!"

Qiao Zhong, the Left Censor of the Censorate, glanced at the group of people and asked the madam, "Are all the people in the establishment here?"

"Yes, yes, yes, they're all here!"

Qiao Zhong spotted Princess Zhaoming in the crowd at a glance, and her heart jumped into her throat.

He coughed lightly, bowed slightly, and said to the man outside the door, "Prime Minister, everyone has arrived."

Grand Secretary?

Jiang Jinshuang frowned slightly: Why is Pei Du here too?
The officers and soldiers of the Censorate were divided into two rows, and a man in a white and blue robe slowly walked out from the ranks.

The man's features were too aloof, his gaze fixed ahead, exuding an air of superiority.

He stood beside Qiao Zhong, his gaze falling on Jiang Jinshuang for a moment before slowly shifting away.

"Your Excellency, what should we do next?"

Qiao Zhong lowered his head and asked Pei Du for advice.

The man, dressed in a blue robe and a black cloak, was exceptionally handsome; compared to him, all the other handsome men paled in comparison.

(End of this chapter)