In a dim room, Guo Shangzhong lounged in his chair, turning the jade ring on his thumb, his gaze lost in the flickering shadows.
"Eunuch Guo," a high-pitched voice called from outside, "Little Dingzi is here."
"Let him in." Guo Shangzhong sat up.
The door opened. Little Dingzi entered, carrying a red lacquer tray with both hands, his steps small and hurried. The door shut behind him.
"Patron." Little Dingzi shivered, cold sweat trickling down his back.
Guo Shangzhong's face was blank. He gestured to a side table. "What is this?"
"Fine tea sent by the Fifth Prince, Patron." Little Dingzi forced a smile.
Guo Shangzhong leaned forward, lifted the silk cover, and opened the jar. He pinched a few leaves, examined them, sniffed them.
"Indeed, good tea." He dusted his hands and looked at Little Dingzi. "Do you know why it is good?"
"This servant does not."
"Because it is not poisoned." Guo Shangzhong's voice dripped with malice. "Tea is simple. Good is good, bad is bad. Not like the human heart. You can never tell."
Little Dingzi's knees buckled. Thud. He knelt, head bowed, not daring to breathe.
"Well, Little Dingzi?" Guo Shangzhong's voice dropped, the pressure in the room suffocating.
"This servant's loyalty to the Patron is clear to heaven and earth! I have no other heart!" Little Dingzi kowtowed, his forehead banging against the floor.
"Alright, enough." Guo Shangzhong put a foot on the boy's head to stop him. "I didn't say you betrayed me. Why are you so guilty?"
"I… I…" Little Dingzi stammered, then an idea struck him. "I am in the enemy camp, but my heart is with Han. I fear villains have been whispering lies to the Patron, splashing dirty water on me."
"The clear will be clear. If you haven't wronged me, I won't mistreat you." Guo Shangzhong removed his foot. "Get up."
"Yes, Patron." Little Dingzi stood, wiping the sweat from his brow with his sleeve.
Guo Shangzhong paced. Suddenly, he stopped. "Tell me, besides the Murong family, has Xue Liulan cultivated any power of his own?"
"None, Patron. Even for that little bit of power, the Fifth Prince has suffered a hundred indignities from the Princess Consort."
"Oh?" Guo Shangzhong looked at him suspiciously. "Xue Liulan wants the throne. How could he fail to build his own base?"
Little Dingzi stepped forward, lowering his voice. "Patron, you don't know. The Fifth Prince looks impressive on the surface, but it's all secretly taught by the Princess Consort."
"You mean, Xue Liulan is just Murong Jin's puppet?" This was news to him.
"Pretty much. A man as romantic as the Fifth Prince, yet he brings home a concubine and doesn't dare touch her."
"Is Murong Jin that formidable?"
"Of course. She's a general. The Fifth Prince knows no martial arts. If they fight, he's the one getting beaten." Little Dingzi looked genuinely sympathetic.
Guo Shangzhong nodded slowly, staring at the shadows on the window. If this was true, Xue Liulan's plea for help made sense. In the future, he would have to rely on Guo Shangzhong to counter the Murong family. And then, the one holding the Emperor to command the lords would be Guo Shangzhong.
"Little Dingzi."
"Yes."
"Go back. Watch them closely. Report any movement immediately." Guo Shangzhong glanced at him. He had raised this boy. He held the boy's life in his hands. He wouldn't betray him.
Little Dingzi bowed and retreated.
Back at the residence, he checked left and right, ensuring no one had followed, then slipped into Xue Liulan's study.
"My lord, this servant has returned." He knelt on one knee.
Xue Liulan looked up from his chair, smiling. "From the look on your face, it went well?"
"Of course. You can trust me." Little Dingzi stood, grinning.
Xue Liulan gestured to a chair. "Sit."
"I wouldn't dare. Just a bowl of water, please." He gulped it down. He was parched from the cold sweat.
He recounted the conversation word for word.
"Does he suspect you?" Xue Liulan asked.
"I don't think so. He holds my life in his hands. He doesn't think I have the guts to betray him." Little Dingzi's smile faded, replaced by a steely resolve.
Xue Liulan looked at him. "It's not too late to pull out. I can send you to Wuchuan, to your mother. Don't do something you'll regret."
"I won't regret it. When the Xu family was destroyed, I swore revenge. I only followed Guo Shangzhong because he promised to help me."
"But Liu already avenged your family. He killed your enemies with his own hands."
"But in the end, he died because of Guo Shangzhong. And Miss Xing, who should have been my sister-in-law." Little Dingzi wiped away a tear. "I never got to acknowledge my brother when he was alive. Now that they are dead, I must avenge them."
Xue Liulan was stunned. The power of hatred could destroy the world. Was he right to drag this boy into the fight?
"Go and rest. I'll call you if I need you." He sighed.
The door closed. Hanlu stepped out from the shadows.
"My lord, aren't you afraid he'll betray you? A man without roots is hard to trust."
Xue Liulan shook his head. "Even if not for me, he will do it for Liu. The two sons of Vice Minister Xu… one became an assassin for the Murong family, the other a eunuch for Guo Shangzhong."
"Fate is cruel." Hanlu sighed. With their father's upbringing, they should have been the top scholars of the court.
"Enough. I called you for something else."
"Speak, my lord."
"Find the headquarters of Night Blade." Xue Liulan stared at him. "As soon as possible."
"You want to wipe them out?"
"Not yet. We need to catch them red-handed. And Deng Qinyao's power in the court is not yet broken. A centipede dies but does not fall down. It's not time to move against Night Blade."
"Understood." Bring Night Blade under control, then strike at the perfect moment. Only then would Xue Feiyan be truly crippled, unable to rise again.
Xue Liulan nodded, satisfied. Everything was going according to plan. Years of preparation were finally about to explode.
That evening, Murong Jin sat under the lamp, admiring the baby clothes Murong Yu had made.
"When you're a mother, you should learn to do these things," Xue Liulan said, sitting beside her and taking her hand.
She raised an eyebrow. "I suppose I should. Look at this. It's beautiful."
He took the small bib. "It is. Much better than what his mother embroidered. What was that last time? A lotus, or a foxtail grass?"
"Xue Liulan!" she roared. "How long are you going to laugh at me for that?"
"Hmm, depends on my mood." He caught her fist and pulled her into his arms. "Or until you make a new joke."
"Hmph."
"Alright, alright. Don't be angry. You already look like a ball. If you get angry, you might float away." He laughed.
"You'd better disappear before I can move freely, or I'll make you pay," she threatened, though her hand was trapped in his.
"Really angry?" He feigned surprise. "Then, my lady, how about I make it up to you?"
"How?" She glared at him.
"What if I invite your father, the great General Murong Yan, to visit?" He tilted his head, smiling.
She froze, staring at him blankly.
"You don't like it?"
"You mean it? I can really see my father?" she asked urgently.
He nodded. "Of course. I have a matter that requires someone of high standing and virtue. I thought my father-in-law would be the most suitable."
In truth, he didn't need to look far. He just knew she missed him.