maidservant

As darkness fell, Yunshan lit a candle.

Zhanqian reached out and picked up the gleaming sword, realizing he wanted to leave.

His shadow was elongated by the candlelight, swaying slightly on the wall. He took a step, but suddenly stopped, as if pulled back by an invisible thread.

"Girl, don't blame yourself." His voice broke the silence in the room, deep and gentle, with a hint of comfort, falling directly into Yun Shan's ears.

Yunshan looked up at the sound, her eyes still wet with tears that shimmered in the candlelight.

On ordinary days, Zhanqian is like a silent mountain, taciturn, his words seemingly locked in his heart.

But today, he seemed like a completely different person, and for the first time ever, he spoke to her at length. Yun Shan never expected that Zhan Qian could see through her thoughts and offer words of comfort.

Yun Shan was indeed blaming herself for Lin Xiao's trip. This self-blame was like a sharp knife, piercing her heart again and again.

She was convinced that Lin Xiao had volunteered to do this dangerous thing so that he could marry her, Yun Shan, openly and legitimately, in order to get the emperor's permission.

"How can I not blame myself?" Yun Shan smiled bitterly, her smile full of bitterness and helplessness, her voice trembling slightly. "If anything happens to him, I will not be able to let myself off easily."

Upon hearing this, Zhanqian slowly turned around, walked to the table, and sat down. The candlelight on the table flickered gently, illuminating his face.

Yun Shan looked up at him, and this time, she saw a complex expression on Zhan Qian's face that she had never seen before. In that expression, there was worry, reminiscence of the past, and a trace of unspeakable heaviness.

"Young lady, the general's trip is not entirely because of you."

Zhanqian's voice was steady, yet carried an undeniable air of authority.

"The imperial favor that allowed you to ask for my hand in marriage was merely a stepping stone that the general offered himself, following His Majesty's wishes."

Yun Shan stared intently at Zhan Qian, her eyes full of inquiry.

Zhanqian paused, as if he was carefully choosing his words, and a hint of concern appeared in his expression, like the warm sun in spring gently shining on Yunshan's heart.

"How could the general bear to see you suffer because of this? But he has something he cannot say openly. Today, I will take the liberty of telling you some secrets. Remember, do not tell anyone."

“Alright, I swear.” Yun Shan’s expression was solemn. She slowly faced the direction of Cangzhou Road, raised her hand to swear, and her voice was firm and resolute:
"I swear by my mother's spirit that I will never tell anyone what happened today." The vow echoed in the room.

"The general has visited the brothel many times, and you should know this, young lady," Zhanqian said cautiously, his gaze never leaving Yunshan's face.

"I've only seen him once. Does he go there often?"

Yun Shan's tone was tinged with displeasure, her brows furrowed slightly, and a hint of barely perceptible disappointment flashed in her eyes.

She once bumped into Lin Xiao coming out of the brothel. Although there was no one in Lin Xiao's room, a seed of doubt was planted in her heart at that time. Now, this seed has begun to take root and sprout under Zhan Qian's words.

"The general often visited the place before the matter concerning the young prince."

Fearing that Yunshan might misunderstand, Zhanqian quickly followed up with an explanation, his speech becoming faster without his words: "The general is not a philanderer."

"Oh."

Yun Shan responded softly, her voice carrying a hint of doubt, her thoughts already drawn by Zhan Qian's words.

"The general had a close childhood friend who was also a first-rate martial artist, and the two admired each other."

Zhan Qian spoke slowly, his voice tinged with reminiscence, as if he had returned to his youthful days.
"That man was three years older than the general. When he joined the army, the deposed crown prince took a liking to his strategies and skills and recruited him into his ranks." "At that time, the situation was favorable to the deposed crown prince, and the general also congratulated him on his promising future."

Zhan Qian continued speaking, a hint of emotion in his eyes.
"Sure enough, he rose through the ranks and eventually became the commander of the deposed crown prince's personal guards. The general spent those years on the border and had no contact with him."

"So, Lin Xiao was later involved with him?"

Yun Shan tried to understand their relationship, and following Zhan Qian's words, she kept sketching out Lin Xiao's past with that childhood friend in her mind.

"Later, the deposed crown prince was defeated, and the entire family of that commander was executed, not even the one-year-old infant in the mansion was spared."

Zhanqian's voice was low and heavy, tinged with sorrow.

"When the army was defeated, he had already seen that the defeat was inevitable. At that time, when he was confronting the general, he secretly told the general that he had a confidant who was unmarried and should not be implicated. He hoped that the general would help him protect himself in the future."

"Then he died by the general's sword—the general did not intend to kill him—he himself used the momentum to rush towards the blade."

As Zhanqian recounted that tragic experience, his voice trembled slightly. Although many years had passed, it still seemed as if it had happened right before his eyes.

The tragedy in Kyoto, which stained the land with blood, also left a deep scar on Zhanqian's heart.

"Has a kindred spirit been found?"

Yunshan asked anxiously.

Zhanqian nodded. "The general later found the woman, who was several months pregnant. At that time, the campaign to eliminate the rebels was earth-shattering, and the entire capital was shrouded in a somber atmosphere."

Looking back, his expression was somewhat solemn.

"After much deliberation, the general concluded that the Jiaofangsi (a type of entertainment venue) could mislead people, so he arranged for her to live alone in the backyard of the Jiaofangsi."

Following these words, Yunshan recalled some suspicious points from the beginning and end.

No wonder there were no other women in his room when I saw him at the brothel;

No wonder there are rumors that he was a young and romantic general.

Yun Shan thought that Lin Xiao must have deliberately portrayed himself as someone who frequented brothels in order to properly settle the woman.

Why would the Jiaofangsi (a government-run entertainment institution) be willing to take in a pregnant woman for him? This question lingered in Yunshan's mind, and she couldn't help but ask.

"The official in charge assumed that it was the general's own affair with his mistress, and that the general had a mistress and illegitimate child before he was married, and asked him to hide them so that the marquis would find out."

Zhanqian patiently explained, "The general promised him some benefits, so he helped with this."

"Because of this reason, the general often needed to go to the brothel to 'privately meet' that woman."

Zhanqian's words gradually dispelled Yunshan's doubts, replacing them with admiration and love for Lin Xiao.

Having known each other for several years, Yunshan would always fall in love with him unexpectedly, time and time again, because of one thing after another. His kindness and his sense of responsibility shone like bright stars in her heart.

"And then what happened?" Yunshan asked eagerly, wanting to know what happened next.

"Later, His Majesty learned of this matter." (End of Chapter)