Your servant is here

After finishing her letter, Wen Yunmian asked Yun Yang what time it was. It was almost time, so she changed her clothes and headed out of the Peony Pavilion.

Seeing that Wen Yunmian was going out, Yun Yang and Yun Fei hurried to follow. "Where are you going, my lady? To see His Majesty?"

Wen Yunmian shook her head. "I'm going to see someone. Only after I meet him can I find out why His Majesty has been neglecting me. Neither of you should follow me. I'll be back later. Don't let anyone know I went out."

At this, Yun Yang and Yun Fei did not know what to say, so they nodded. They had always known their mistress had a mind of her own. For now, they simply needed to obey her instructions.

Wen Yunmian took deserted paths toward her destination. Only after avoiding the Imperial Guards and reaching a palace walkway did she stop.

She reckoned the time. Judging by his habits in her previous life, he should arrive here soon.

Sure enough, just as Wen Yunmian had expected, after waiting a short while she saw a figure approaching from a distance, graceful as a clear breeze, with the bearing of carved jade.

He was different from Mi Yuheng. In him, Wen Yunmian saw coldness and reserve.

He was born aloof, refined, and upright, his very bones steeped in rigid propriety. Raised from childhood by a great aristocratic clan, he was thoroughly honorable, without Mi Yuheng's arrogant recklessness born of pride in his own talents.

He had been the moonlight in Wen Yunmian's heart in her previous life, and a man bound by the proprieties between sovereign and subject.

Seeing him again left Wen Yunmian dazed. It's been so long, Xie Yunjian.

In her previous life, he had risen to the position of chancellor and supported her all his life, ultimately dying of illness while personally delivering relief during a snow disaster.

In the end, they had never seen each other one last time. When his body was found, he was clutching an earring she had once carelessly dropped.

He had treasured it all his life.

Only when he reached her did Wen Yunmian abruptly come back to herself.

Xie Yunjian approached and raised his hands in a detached salute. "Your humble servant, heir to the Peaceful Marquis’s Residence, pays his respects to Noble Lady Yan."

Wen Yunmian froze for a moment before recovering and looking at the man before her, as beautiful as an immortal banished to the mortal world, so cold that one dared not draw near.

At this point in her previous life, they had not yet met. How did he know she was Noble Lady Yan?

"No need for such ceremony, Heir Xie." Wen Yunmian's voice was dry and hoarse as she spoke.

Her gaze fell on the distance between them. Once again, he kept nearly three bricks' worth of space between them, and she could not help curving her lips in a helpless smile.

With Xie Yunjian, Wen Yunmian could not remain as calm and composed as she did before Jun Chenyu and Mi Yuheng. Whenever Xie Yunjian stood before her, she grew so nervous that her lashes fluttered wildly and her thoughts would not settle.

"This spot is exposed to the wind. If you have no business here, my lady, please return. Your servant will take his leave."

"Please wait, Heir Xie!"

The instant her words fell, Xie Yunjian stopped. A layer of frost seemed to veil his exquisitely refined features, though his pale eyes bore a trace of mortal dust. "Is there something else, my lady?"

Standing in the wind in his thin official robes, his tall figure remained as straight as a pine or cypress.

Wen Yunmian drew a deep breath before walking up to Xie Yunjian.

Closer to him, she could smell the cool Tanxiang fragrance on his body.

Back when she had held the position of empress dowager, there had been times when she felt lost and helpless. Yet the cool scent of Tanxiang had always put her at ease.

For she knew that wherever the Tanxiang fragrance reached, his voice would follow as promised, telling her, "Your servant is here."

Wen Yunmian held back the moisture in her eyes and said gently, "I know the court is now beset by treacherous turmoil. The loyal Grand Preceptor Shang has been accused of treason, rebellion, and disrespect toward the sovereign, and His Majesty has ordered him confined in the Imperial Prison. Since there is no evidence, only rumors, His Majesty has yet to declare how he will be dealt with."

"You are a man who values loyalty and affection, and the grand preceptor is both your mentor and your friend. Naturally, you are desperate to plead on his behalf."

Xie Yunjian's back stiffened slightly. He looked at Wen Yunmian in astonishment. This was the first time she had ever seen surprise on his face.

How rare. This block of ice finally has an expression.

"Was I right, Heir Xie?"

Xie Yunjian swallowed. Recalling how he had spent the past few days running from place to place for the grand preceptor and staking his life on assurances in court, he could not help feeling chilled and disappointed.

His Majesty had shown not the slightest intention of sparing the grand preceptor.

He simply had not expected news of this matter to reach the imperial harem.

"What you say is true, my lady."

Wen Yunmian smiled. "I can help you and keep the grand preceptor safe. At the very least, his family will not be implicated."

Xie Yunjian turned his pale, cold eyes toward Wen Yunmian. His gaze was icy to the extreme, yet the contours of his face were soft. "My lady, you know that the imperial harem must not interfere in state affairs. If you help me, what will become of you?"

Wen Yunmian raised an eyebrow. "You trust me?"

Xie Yunjian paused, an emotion flashing swiftly through his eyes. "Since you waited here for me, you must have come in good faith. Naturally, I trust you."

Wen Yunmian watched him. In her previous life, she had been able to step beyond the imperial harem and maneuver through the court as a woman only with Xie Yunjian's help.

Later, she had become mistress of the Palace of Tranquil Longevity, the Empress Dowager Xuande Shuyuan whom everyone revered, while he had taken his place supporting the emperor and become Chancellor Xie, whose power extended throughout the court and beyond.

Neither had ever doubted the other. Thus, the prosperous age of peace, when the treasury was full and the people lived and worked in contentment, had begun with them.

She had not expected to earn his trust again in this new life.

Wen Yunmian stopped beating around the bush and spoke plainly. "What I want in exchange is for you to become my eyes and ears at court."

She had to extend her influence gradually into the court. Otherwise, a woman who merely competed for favor in the imperial harem would forever be a night-blooming flower, gone as soon as she appeared.

Capturing the emperor's heart could certainly work, but it was no lasting strategy. She needed to keep abreast of developments at court, both to avoid being implicated by foolish acts committed by the Marquis’s Residence and to discern Jun Chenyu's thoughts, becoming the flower that understood his heart.

Her true aim was to enter the Imperial Study and attend him there.

Yet if word spread that the imperial harem and the court were exchanging information, it would be a grave crime.

She added, "Rest assured, I won't ask you to throw the court into disorder, nor will I use you to manipulate power in the imperial harem. I'm doing this only to protect myself."

Xie Yunjian fell silent for a moment. "May I ask what plan you have, my lady?"

Looking at his dispirited expression, Wen Yunmian could not help softening.

Though he was the heir, the marquis paid little attention to this son of his, while the grand preceptor had filled the void left by that missing paternal love. Otherwise, Xie Yunjian, always so proper and upright, who valued his principles and boundaries above all else, would never have compromised.

He had nowhere left to turn.

"The grand preceptor holds high office and great power. When the late emperor passed away, he appointed him regent to assist the new emperor. Now that His Majesty holds power firmly in his own hands, he naturally feels wary of the grand preceptor. By running about lobbying others and trying to remind His Majesty of the grand preceptor's merits, you only make His Majesty more wary of him."

Wen Yunmian's voice was gentle as she calmly spoke. The wind stirred her moon-colored skirt; her brows and eyes were dark as ink, her skin white as snow, her bearing tender and captivating.

Yet even with such a woman standing before him, he was not moved in the slightest. He only quietly considered what she had just said.

"You mean His Majesty needs to see a grand preceptor riddled with faults, rather than a perfect grand preceptor to whom every heart turns?"

Wen Yunmian's eyes curved in a smile. "Exactly. What you need to do is gather evidence of various offenses-for example, the grand preceptor's son seizing fertile farmland, his nephew abusing his influence to bully others, or his lax discipline allowing his grandson to behave improperly."

"These are all matters warranting a minor punishment to serve as a greater warning, nothing that truly hurts. But if His Majesty has an outlet for his anger through these lesser offenses, they won't gradually accumulate into the grave charge of colluding with the enemy and betraying the country. As long as none of the grand preceptor's descendants amounts to a formidable force, why would His Majesty need to harbor misgivings?"