Chapter 75 - What To Do if You’re the Villain and the Heroine Likes You

It was nearing nine o'clock in the evening, the end of the shu hour. After a satisfying meal at Linxuan Palace, He Yunxiao stepped out. The warmth of Nanzhu's embrace lingered on his hands. Today, He Yunxiao had gained quite a lot. Not only did he discover the password to enhance Miss Zi Ruo's favor, but he also successfully confessed his identity to Nanzhu. Confessed, but not entirely. The thought of not fully disclosing his identity left He Yunxiao feeling indignant. What was Li Jin thinking, pretending to be me for no reason? Even more outrageous was Nanzhu's complete lack of suspicion toward Li Jin's impersonation of He Yunxiao. Wasn't "He Yunxiao" supposed to be the most profligate man in Yinjing, coupled with "extremely handsome"? Did Li Jin bear even a smidgen of resemblance to "extremely handsome"? This may be related to Nanzhu's willingness to believe in people's characters. When he deceived Nanzhu at first, she didn't have a shred of doubt. But He Yunxiao wouldn't blame Nanzhu for this; it was undoubtedly all Li Jin's fault. With Li Jin preemptively taking on the identity of "He Yunxiao," no matter how he explained, Nanzhu would remain doubtful. It was her excessive trust in him. As night fell, with no other choice, He Yunxiao had to say, "I'll bring Li Jin over tomorrow for him to personally identify." Thus, this matter came to a close. Following custom, Mafu waited for He Yunxiao in front of the imperial palace gates. Seeing He Yunxiao emerge, he considerately asked, "Young Master, the academy, Chunfeng Pavilion, or the riverside courtyard?" He Yunxiao replied wordlessly, "Can we just go home?" Mafu asked, "So, we're going home?" He Yunxiao smiled and said, "No, let's go to Chunfeng Pavilion." After not seeing each other for two days, he really missed Sister Jiang. Besides, he needed to discuss the matter of redeeming her. Even though he couldn't marry her openly due to his status, at the very least, he could ensure that Sister Jiang would live carefreely and happily in the Marquis's residence. With these thoughts, He Yunxiao let down the carriage curtain, allowing the carriage to leisurely move toward Chunfeng Pavilion. ... The owner of Chunfeng Pavilion was indeed a prominent figure. Just the fact that he could cultivate a courtesan like Jiang Wuyou and had the capability to buy Du Yinyun from the Music Bureau indicated his extraordinary strength. However, as a result, he often stayed out of the limelight, making him more of an absentee landlord. During the owner's absence, the most powerful, renowned, and experienced figure, Jiang Wuyou, took charge of Chunfeng Pavilion. This was the surface layer. In reality, a significant number of the Pavilion's courtesans were spies from Yan, and Jiang Wuyou was the chief spy for Yan in Yinjing. Hence, the entire Chunfeng Pavilion naturally deferred to Jiang Wuyou. In fact, Jiang Wuyou had never even met the owner. She was picked out from the Pavilion's orphanage, then quickly given the status of a special envoy and sent to Yinjing to manage Yan's espionage network. And so, many years passed. Today, a special guest entered Jiang Wuyou's room. Liang, the third-ranking official at the Qilin Temple, in charge of foreign affairs, Lü Liang. In the political landscape of Yinjing, Lü Liang and the Qilin Temple, which he represented, had always aligned themselves with Prime Minister Han Wensin. With his lofty third-ranking official's position and the Qilin Temple's influence, he didn't need to bow down before even Han Wensin. Yet, upon entering Jiang Wuyou's room, before the door even closed, he couldn't wait any longer and knelt down at Jiang Wuyou's feet with deep respect, saying, "Your subordinate pays respects to the Special Envoy, seeing the Special Envoy is like seeing our Emperor. Long live our Emperor! Long live Great Yan!" Sitting at the table, Jiang Wuyou remained remarkably calm, evidently familiar with this situation. "Where is the border map?" Jiang Wuyou asked directly. Lü Liang took out an envelope from his robes, kneeling before her and presenting it to her. Instead of taking it immediately, Jiang Wuyou asked, "How confident are you?" "I have spent the last three years under Han Wensin's command, interacting with military commanders daily, and these intelligence reports are the result of my daily efforts. I estimate a seventy percent certainty," Lü Liang replied. Jiang Wuyou took the envelope and said, "Our Emperor wants you to defect from Han and join Meng. Keep an eye on the activities of the Meng family in the court recently. If there are any developments, send someone to report. If not necessary, refrain from coming in person." Lü Liang obeyed the command. Jiang Wuyou instructed, "Go, stay in a different room tonight. Come back tomorrow morning." Lü Liang complied with a "Yes" before leaving the room. Once he was gone, Jiang Wuyou sighed, rubbed her face, and muttered to herself, "A group of people bowing to me as if I'm the Yan Emperor. How would they react if they knew that a mere Special Envoy like me hasn't even met the Yan Emperor?" Jiang Wuyou didn't think too much about it. Her job was, in fact, quite simple – relaying messages for the Yan Emperor and consolidating intelligence gathered by Yan's spies in Yinjing before sending it back to Yan. Though the title "Special Envoy" seemed illustrious, her actual authority was limited; she was just a puppet in Yinjing for the Emperor of Yan. Considering the disparity in national strength, with Qi being powerful and Yan being weak, Yan had exerted great effort to establish an espionage network in the hopes of triumphing over the stronger Qi. Today, the "Qi border maps" alone marked the third she had received. She opened the latest border map, comparing it with the previous ones. She needed to select matching areas, write the details with a fine brush on paper for urgent dispatch, and make three copies of the remaining original drafts, including various versions of dubious "detailed" border layouts, for slow delivery by spies returning to Yan. In modern times, this would be equivalent to sending emails. However, in the ancient times of unreliable information transmission, it was extremely troublesome. As Jiang Wuyou prepared to write, she suddenly heard He Yunxiao's voice from outside. "Uncle Lü, you're getting old but still lively as ever!" "You impudent boy. Do you dare me to complain to Master He Yuanhao?" "No, no! Let's just pretend we never met!" Hearing He Yunxiao's voice and looking at the Qi border map in her hands, Jiang Wuyou found no place nearby to hide it. Hearing He Yunxiao's footsteps drawing nearer, Jiang Wuyou gritted her teeth and reluctantly concealed the envelope in her bosom. As soon as she finished concealing it, He Yunxiao pushed the door open. He Yunxiao was surprised to see Jiang dressed neatly. Usually at this time, she would be wearing her nightclothes, ready to retire to her quarters. He smiled and said, "Did Sister know I was coming, so she didn't wear her moon-white nightclothes?" While harboring the concealed envelope, Jiang Wuyou, completely composed, responded, "If I had known you were coming, I should have been in my nightclothes instead." He Yunxiao's eyes brightened, exclaiming, "Sister understands me." He didn't bother with formality and strode over to sit beside Jiang, pulling a stool near her. Naturally, the stool was positioned exceptionally close. This made it easy for He Yunxiao to embrace Jiang like a sloth. Ordinary contact of this degree was within Jiang Wuyou's tolerance, but only when it was He Yunxiao. Others were forbidden. However, now, she dared not let He Yunxiao embrace her like this with the envelope hidden. Just holding her wasn't an issue, but this rascal had never been well-behaved; if he discovered anything, it would be hard to explain. "Yunxiao, let go of me." He Yunxiao:? Observing the writing materials laid out on the table, Jiang Wuyou quickly thought and suggested, "Yunxiao, how about teaching Sister how to write poetry?" He Yunxiao:? After He Yunxiao reassured himself of Jiang's affection for him at a staggering 93, he still couldn't fathom it. He assumed Sister's affection for him had decreased, causing the distance between them, never expecting that her affection hadn't diminished, but she suddenly seemed aloof. Write poetry? Shouldn't my Sister Jiang be an experienced person who prefers writing amorous verses, not poetry?