A month passed by quickly with Shen Yao slowly recuperating while he had Xi Shu Investigate the assassins who had come to kill him. And feeling better he trained anyway despite everyone's opinion on the matter.
The recuperation was the easiest part — his body with the high-quality herbs he got and with rest, he was healing at a speed that surprised even Physician. Li, who had checked the wounds twice just to make sure he wasn't guessing wrong. Shen yao also noticed that since that incident his body felt better his movements during training became more fluid and fast as time went by that even the heavy exhaustion he felt before seemed irrelevant.
He remembered the mysterious pill fed to him after the attack by the masked man "Could it be it" He thought unable to think of anything else in specific he set the thought aside for now
The investigation went nowhere.
Xi Shu had used every resource available to him but still couldn't pinpoint the culprit. It's as if once the assassins died all relevant information about the transaction disappeared.
"Someone paid to have you killed," he said solemnly that's all I could no names or records no traces at all "
Shen Yao rubbed his temple.
"I knew this would be the result", he thought. The reason he still searched was because he hoped to find even a small clue one that he could use to track the attacker but turns out this person was very prepared and hadn't left any loose ends
Whoever had planned this was thorough in their preparations and clean up—"thiscan't be their first time if they were this though" thought Shen Yao
Li Chang, he thought, for what felt like the hundredth time after all he was the only person he fought after he got into contact with him
And for the hundredth time the thought spiraled — the Li family's influence in the capital was immerse especially in the civil bureau corrupt, incompetent and arrogant it's possible that they could be the masterminds. But then there's Li patriarch, old and shrewd no matter how much he favors his children he more or less doesn't value the useless and the matter of an assassination attempt especially when it comes to the general's heir who holds military power, in the capital, under the emperor's nose — that wasn't just careless. That was suicidal.
That old man wouldn't allow it, he thought. Which means either Li Chang acted without his father's knowledge or someone else was using this opportunity to act out
Both possibilities seemed to be the clearest he rubbed his temple again choosing to drop this topic. After all, if they really wanted to be found out they would have found but since they have chosen to remain in the dark, they shouldn't waste their resources looking for someone who doesn't want to be found
"Stop investigating," he told Xi Shu, "For now."
Xi Shu bowed. His expression still solemn though he felt that if they continue to investigate, they will find something, but he knew that was just a hunch and knew that if the real culprit didn't want to come into the light it was impossible to drag them out.
Shen Yao stood up and stretched he felt he needed some fresh air after sitting in his study all day.
Going out his destination were the gardens. Arriving there and talking a deep breath as he started his stroll, he felt that walking through them was different — the winding paths moving through arrangements of flowers and carefully maintained trees that someone had been tending to for years. Every time he came here, he felt that not only was the air but also the scenery was beautiful
These were gifts brought back from the border by the Shen couple when they came back trying to show him the beauty of the border, he brushed the thought away trying his best not to think about it
Xi Shu followed behind him — close enough for safety in case of emergencies and far enough not to hinder his young master's privacy. The morning air blew across Shen Yao's face making him instinctively squint his eyes as he walked forward
His body felt lighter an ease that still occasionally surprised him — the training for the past weeks had made more progress than it had before as if the wait that had been in his body had lightened
"Am getting better." he thought
He was still thinking about the investigation when the garden path curved and something soft and warm wrapped around his hand.
He paused his body stiffening as his gaze moved down
Delicate fingers he frowned though the grip gentle and light it still made him feel very uncomfortable. his gaze then looked up his eyes locking with the young woman who had materialized beside him. She was beautiful with pale skin a trait only those in the capital under favorable features had, refined features and long black hair that fell up to her shoulders loosely. Her hands were smooth with no sigh=ns of callouses signifying she had never done any for or hard work. She looked up at him with an expression of warm immerse affection that if Shen Yao hadn't figured out who she was he would have really believed her
Shen Yiyi.
The memories arrived like a door opening onto a room he hadn't wanted to enter.
His cousin and second uncle's daughter the one his second uncle had rumbled on about, but he just brushed it off not expecting he would meet her so soon. and here she was the girl who if he remembers correctly the original had doted on without reservation — indulged her every whim, protected and placed on a pedestal. In the original's eyes Shen Miao had been an unwanted presence selfish one who shows off in front of him a sign that his parents didn't like him and Shen Yiyi had shown him warmth and familial love someone more pleasing to the eye a complete angel in his eyes, but the current Shen Yao could feel the well-hidden calculation
She seemed to have long learned how to act fragile using her innocent looks like a tool, a costume designed to keep Shen Yao under her control so that she could get what she wanted.
"Brother " she called softly her hands tightening around his wrist his discomfort heightening
His frown arrived before he could stop it.
"I need to remove my hand", he thought.
But before he could act on his thoughts, he felt the air around him freeze.
It was the only way to describe it — a shift in the quality of the garden's atmosphere that made his body pause before his mind caught up. He lifted his eyes.
Shen Miao stood on the path ahead of them.
She had come quickly — that was evident in the slight unevenness of her breathing, the way Bai Yue and Bai Yin had arrived a half step behind her rather than in their usual composed orbit. She had heard he was walking alone and she had come with the small basket she'd been bringing every day for a month — bringing new snacks she asked the kitchen to make and some she made herself they were warm and always good to take with tea and so it had become a habit for the two siblings.
And right now, she was looking at his hand. That was still held by Shen Yiyi's wrapped tightly she could overlook that but the fact that he hadn't moved or tried to pry her hands off himself made her freeze in her steps
Bai Yu and Bai Yin who had finally caught their breath and where now standing behind their young miss seeing this scene glared at Shen Yao immediately.