Chapter 84: Han Yu

No matter how Bi Yushuang scolded her, this thought had still taken root in Liang Jiwen's mind. Liang Jiwen had her own plans in her mind; Jiang Changbai couldn't be counted as having treated her badly—at least, she treated her better than those who shared blood with her. If she were to cause trouble in the Great Li in the name of so-called supreme power, then that really would be being unable to recognise others' good intentions.

But if she were to return to Shejin, then that would be an entirely different matter. To speak of it properly, the grounds for her going to be the King of Shejin were more proper and grounded than Jiang Changbai's grounds for being the Great Li's Emperor. After all, according to the legal system of the Great Li, at most, Jiang Changbai could be counted as a collateral relative; if not for the fact that everyone else had died, then this position perhaps truly wouldn't have fallen to her.

But ideas were only ideas, and Liang Jiwen knew clearly that her current distance from being able to return and vie for the position of King of Shejin was far too far away. If she wanted to fight for the position, she'd most certainly need to draw support from the Great Li, and right now, the Great Li had only just arrested deeply-rooted corrupt officials, and itself was still, she feared, unsteady, unable to put aside energy to help her.

Everything still needed planing.

The evening of the day that Yang Zhuofei was placed under house arrest in the Palace, that imitation Jiang Mingyou was forced, under Xun Zhu's watch, to drink poisoned wine, and died. It could be counted as his fortune having been good, that he'd had the chance to pass on quickly, or otherwise, with Yang Zhuofei's disposition, he'd have been forced to live a few more days, and such a life would probably lead him to suffer who knew how much more.

Now, the person outside the Palace who was the most on edge, was, of course, Shen Yanyi. But thinking on it carefully, after the clandestine conversation of that day, Shen Yanyi truly hadn't done anything for Yang Zhuofei. At most, it was merely that she'd allowed her people to conduct their work more easily, and some things she'd seen that she'd pretended that she hadn't. Occasionally, Shen Yanyi was even quite self-satisfied, feeling that she wasn't at fault for either side, and that both parties could be curried favour with. Who knew if, one day, when Yang Zhuofei asked her for help with a great matter, she could regain the things of her mother's.

After all, regardless of if what Yang Zhuofei said was true or false, Shen Yanyi's mother had had a false jade pendant of the type that Yang Zhuofei had described.

But now, Yang Zhuofei had been imprisoned in the Palace, her end unknown, and the so-called Prince Yu's Shizi had passed on. Prince Yu's manor was a flight of headless dragons, and all the servants with other options had all already left, and it was only then that Shen Yanyi understood how great the mistakes she'd committed in the recent days were. As long as Yang Zhuofei were to reveal the slightest thing to Jiang Changbai, the official's hat she wore on her head would be plucked off just like that.

Just as she was growing as anxious as ants in a hot pot, there was another knock on the door of the Shen residence. Shen Yanyi couldn't guess at who the person at the doors was, and merely suppressed her heart, beating like a drum, feigning at calm as she waited in the parlour.

"Daren," a maid said, coming before her, "the person at the gates says she's from Prince Yu's manor."

"Chase her away, chase her far away!" Hearing the three characters of Prince Yu's manor now, Shen Yanyi felt her head ache. If not for Yang Zhuofei's harbouring of unknown motives, how could she be facing such a predicament right now? More than that, right now, with the rats abandoning the sinking ship of Prince Yu's manor, how could there be someone who could carry out matters?

As a result, Shen Yanyi unconsciously identified the person at the gates as a fraud, and insisted blindly that the maid chase her far away. But unexpectedly, that person stuck to her like a dog skin plaster, and no matter how Shen Yanyi's maid hurried her away or intimidated her, she wouldn't leave. In the end, it forced a malice to rise in Shen Yanyi's heart, and she ordered coldly, "Well, let her in."

Since she wanted to come through the Shen residence's doors, then she might as well not leave again.

Only now did Han Yu stagger into the parlour. Now, her figure had long since lost its former impressive aura of being the most favoured of Princess Yu's ladies in waiting, and replacing it was a demeanour of wretchedness. Because of the dispute at the doors of the Shen residence just now, her pinned-up hair had come free, and dust and dirt stained her lustrous, beautiful clothes.

From childhood, Han Yu had grown up by Yang Zhuofei's side; though there were times she didn't agree with Yang Zhuofei's views, she had remained loyal and true to her. Even if, now, Prince Yu's manor was swaying and on the verge of collapse, like duckweed in the wind, not the slightest thought of running away had risen in her.

On the contrary, she'd been rushing all about, and even in a situation where Yang Zhuofei's own family hadn't thought of saving her, she'd been thinking of ways to save Yang Zhuofei from the Palace.

Han Yu had thought of it, that as long as Yang Zhuofei could leave the Palace with her life, she'd take her away from the capital, and go somewhere where no one recognised them. She'd shared so much good fortune with her highness, and she had to repay her a bit. In the future, though life would most certainly not be as comfortable as it had been in Prince Yu's manor, she had a pair of hands, and as long as she was willing to work, she wouldn't allow her highness to go hungry.

Even if it were hard and tiring, it was better than staying in the capital. Living far away, they wouldn't be convicted simply because of the Emperor's displeasure.

Naturally, Shen Yanyi recognised Han Yu, and hurriedly had someone help her sit down. Though just now malicious thoughts had risen in her mind, now, her rationality had returned, and Shen Yanyi knew that the two of them could, at this moment, be counted as locusts on the same rope. She couldn't help but be curious as to what it was that Han Yu was so stubborn in wanting to see her about today.

However, when she spoke, it was still a bit haughty. "My apologies, really; the servants of this official's residence didn't recognise Han Yu-guniang, and merely told this official that there was a beggar at the gates, using Prince Yu's manor as a pretext to come in. This official, thinking that Prince Yu's manor ought to be incredibly busy, without anyone able to come here, had them drive that person away, so as to avoid trouble. Only after that, hearing that you were excessively obstinate did I feel there was something wrong, and hurried to have someone welcome you in. It was my error just now, and I hope Han Yu-guniang can forgive me."

How could Han Yu not hear the meaning suppressed beneath Shen Yanyi's words? But right now, she had a request to make, and could only force down the displeasure in her heart, and reply, "Even if it were before, I'm merely a servant. More than that, with the current situation, that Shen-daren was willing to see me is already my luck. Han Yu naturally doesn't dare to blame you. It's just that Han Yu still has a matter to ask your favour about, and I hope that Shen-daren will agree."

Shen Yanyi's expression, hearing this, grew severe; she didn't need Han Yu to speak to know that the thing she was asking a favour for had to have something to do with Yang Zhuofei. But Shen Yanyi played at pondering, and said, "There's no hard in saying it."

Yet Han Yu didn't hasten to speak, but rather shifted her gaze to the maid standing by Shen Yanyi's side. How could Shen Yanyi not understand her thoughts? So, she waved her hand to the maid. "Go on, leave us."

"Understood."

The maid left slowly, and only Shen Yanyi and Han Yu remained in the room. With a pu-tong, Han Yu fell to her knees, and only now did she speak. "Han Yu begs Shen-daren to save her highness the Princess!"

Shen Yanyi felt her heart hammering. Who didn't know what place it was that Yang Zhuofei was under house arrest in now? And Shen Yanyi couldn't save her by simply saying so. But she feared what Han Yu would say if she were to back her into a corner, and so she could only placate her. "Han Yu-guniang, please, get up; you know where the Princess is now, too; you must think far too highly of this official. This matter, this official has no power to do anything about."

Yet Han Yu spoke confidently. "Yes, you can."

Shen Yanyi, who'd just picked up a cup to take a sip and suppress her surprise, startled and choked at these three words of Han Yu's, and could only cough a bit.

But Han Yu didn't give her any quarter. "I know some of the past matters of Shen-daren's as well. I know that almost all of Shen-daren's previous good friends are working for her majesty. Even the person acting as the current leader of the imperial guards in the Palace has the same origins as Shen-daren. As long as Shen-daren were to wish to get into the Palace, you most certainly would be able to find a way to enter.

"Prince Yu's manor has set aside a not insignificant amount of savings in these years. Now, the Princess is gone, and the Shizi has already passed. The Prince's manor is a flight of headless dragons, and some of it going missing won't be noticed by anyone. By coincidence, I know the location of these treasures, and I'll take charge to give them all to Shen-daren. You just have to agree to bring the Princess out.

"The affairs after that, Shen-daren needn't worry about; I naturally will stage a scene of the Princess having committed suicide, and slip away. After that, the world is large; there will no longer be the bloodline of Prince Yu's manor in the capital."

Han Yu's words were fervent, having laid out nearly all of the terms she could think of. She knew that the only opportunity to getting Yang Zhuofei out now was Shen Yanyi alone, and she couldn't give her the chance to refuse.

However, Shen Yanyi shook her head. "You know that I've grown used to living frugally, and I don't need any great wealth. More than that, too much wealth isn't a good thing, either; take a look at Liu-daren—he could have been said to have uncountable wealth, enough to rival a nation, but now, even he's fallen into such a state."

Han Yu, hearing this, was first disappointed, and then immediately seized on the thing revealed by Shen Yanyi's speech. Her eyes glinted brightly, and she said, "The matter of your mother, I really don't know anything about. As for what she left behind, I fear that now, the only person in the world who could find it is the Princess. But now, the Princess is under house arrest in the depths of the Palace, and the danger is hard to fathom. Presumably, Shen-daren doesn't wish for the Princess to say something…"

The threat in Han Yu's words was clear, but right now, with Shen Yanyi's mind so on edge, it was the moment in which she most ought not be threatened. This threat of Han Yu's simply fished the malice that Shen Yanyi had just suppressed back up. Her rationality was imprisoned in a cage, and she nodded faintly. "It's precisely as Han Yu-guniang says; it's best for you to stay and rest at this official's residence, and leave the rest of the matters to this official to deal with."

Han Yu's heart soared, but she still said, "Many thanks for Shen-daren's kindness, but the manor still has affairs for me to deal with, and so I won't trouble you. I'll wait for your good news."

Having finished speaking, Han Yu turned around to leave, but before she reached the door, she suddenly stopped. Her eyes widened disbelievingly, and her head fell stiffly. Her gaze focused where a sharp dagger had already pierced though her chest. The blood on the dagger still carried the warmth of her body, and, drop after drop, dripped down the blade and fell on the ground.

Han Yu opened and closed her mouth, as if having something to say, and at the same time, she exerted herself to turn her head, her eyes full of questions. But the blood flowed unfettered from her chest, and in the end, Han Yu had no more strength, and could only let out a raspy sound. The new moment, she collapsed to the ground, vitality gone.

Han Yu didn't have the means to say Yang Zhuofei, nor did she have the means to save herself.

Bang.

It was the sound of something heavy falling to the ground.

The maid waiting by the door, hearing this sound, assumed that Shen Yanyi and Han Yu had gotten into a tussle, and raised her voice to ask, "Daren, do you need any help?"

"It's nothing, you don't need to pay it any mind," Shen Yanyi feigned at calm as she replied. It was as if even Shen Yanyi herself hadn't expected she'd be so impulsive; that dagger, which she hadn't drawn for who knew how many years, had so resolutely been stabbed into Han Yu's chest.

She wasn't a warrior, but this time, she'd been so unexpectedly exact. Just like that, she'd stabbed the dagger into Han Yu's heart without erring, not giving Han Yu even the space to speak a single phrase.

In a daze, Shen Yanyi sheathed the dagger. Han Yu's unwillingness seemed to be mingled among the blood, and along with the sheathing of the dagger, it burst forth. The blood, carrying the warmth of a living body, splashed onto Shen Yanyi's face, and she knew she could no longer turn back.

Yang Zhuofei couldn't leave the Palace alive.

"Have this official's horse brought out!" Shen Yanyi called out the door.

The maid, hearing this, hurried to ready the horse. Only once she'd sent Shen Yanyi off and returned to the parlour once more did she find Han Yu, laying on the ground, eyes wide open, her face deathly pale.

"Ahhh!!!!" The shrill sound broke through the roof.

Btu Shen Yanyi had already rushed far away, and couldn't hear it.

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