Chapter 37: His Questioning

Guyu and Jingzhe cautiously stood before Shen Miao, shielding her. Shouting would be improper, and besides, the youth before them was dressed in fine clothes, noble and striking in appearance—his identity uncertain, yet his presence commanding. Still, he was a stranger, and the maids feared something unexpected might occur.

“Guyu, Jingzhe, keep watch at the entrance of the forest,” Shen Miao ordered.

“But, young lady…” they hesitated.

“Go.” Shen Miao frowned slightly. For some reason, her commands carried an authority that made refusal impossible.

Reluctantly, the two retreated to the forest’s edge.

“You’re quite interesting.” Xie Jingxing leaned against a tree trunk, amusement flickering in his eyes. Though a noble young master of gold and jade, his gaze was sharp as a blood-stained blade, his tone cold and piercing. He was clearly someone who had seen battle.

“What does Marquis Xie want to say?” Shen Miao asked evenly. His sudden appearance was not for idle chatter. Though young, he acted with bold determination, beyond even the old marquis’s control—reckless, unpredictable.

“Prince Yu’s household currently lacks a princess, and that cripple seems to have taken a fancy to you. I came to offer my congratulations.” His words dripped with contempt. Calling Prince Yu a “cripple” was audacious, but from Xie Jingxing it carried mockery, as if Prince Yu were nothing more than filth.

This man certainly held himself in high regard.

Shen Miao pondered silently, her face calm. Yet her composure seemed to mean something else in his eyes. Suddenly, Xie Jingxing stepped forward. Towering, he cast her in shadow. Bending close, his voice brushed her ear:
“You already knew, didn’t you?”

He smelled faintly of winter bamboo. His lowered voice was magnetic, intimate. His handsome face loomed close, lips curled in a wicked smile.

But Shen Miao was not truly a maiden at heart. She lowered her gaze slightly.
“What difference does it make whether I know or not?”

Seeing her unmoved, Xie Jingxing dropped the flirtatious act. With no regard for delicacy, he pushed her aside, waving a paper note with impudent ease.
“Knowing yet not concerned about your affairs, instead worrying about the second young master of the Jing Dianshi family?”

Shen Miao’s gaze sharpened, her tone fierce.
“Is Marquis Xie perhaps meddling too much in others’ affairs?”

“It’s just a piece of paper, yet you’re so nervous.” His devil-may-care smile returned.
“What connection do you have with Jing Dianshi’s second son to help him so? Or perhaps… Shen family girl, what are you planning?”

Shen Miao’s face remained still as water, her eyes fixed on the paper. Thin as it was, it weighed heavily on her heart.

It was the Governing Laws Strategy she had long pondered. In her previous life, Pei Lang had been discovered through this very paper by Fu Xiuyi, becoming his advisor and strategist.

Now, Shen Miao sought to cut off that possibility. Better that Pei Lang never serve the imperial family at all.

The Jing Dianshi family’s second son, Gao Yan, belonged to a newly risen aristocratic clan, distinct from the old hereditary houses. The imperial family favored new nobility while suppressing the old. Gao Jin, the eldest, was truly talented and later received Fu Xiuyi’s patronage, making the family domineering. Gao Yan, however, was vain, vindictive, and narrow-minded—a troublemaker.

In her past life, Gao Yan had not entered officialdom. In this life, with the family not yet at its peak, Shen Miao intended to push him forward.

She had Guyu bribe a servant to replace his examination paper with Pei Lang’s strategy. Fu Xiuyi, valuing talent, would recruit Gao Yan at all costs. Gao Yan, vain as ever, would never admit it wasn’t his work. Thus, a useless man would enter officialdom, and she would watch him clash with Fu Xiuyi.

Cutting off Fu Xiuyi’s right hand and replacing it with a fool—this was Shen Miao’s plan. Who could have foreseen Xie Jingxing’s sudden interference?

Her gaze flickered, filled with unspoken words. Xie Jingxing’s lips curled lazily.
“You need not show such hatred toward me. This letter was copied by my people; the original is still in the Gao boy’s hands.”

Shen Miao was stunned. She had not expected this outcome. After a pause, she said quietly:
“The young marquis is broad-minded.”

“Not broad-minded. This marquis has one praiseworthy quality,” his eyes chilled.
“I most dislike meddling in others’ affairs.”

Before she could reply, his voice pressed again:
“Now you can tell this marquis, why did you write to Jing Dianshi?”

Shen Miao sighed inwardly. She had intended to bind the Shen and Xie families together, but the discord ran deep, requiring time and careful planning. Encountering Xie Jingxing now disrupted everything.

She trusted no one. To her, Xie Jingxing and his family were merely pieces on the board of the world’s great game. No player explained their reasons to a chess piece.

“This marquis thinks you help him so much, unless you have a private relationship with him, helping your lover gain fame.” His smile was teasing, his gaze sweeping her.
“Then I thought, though Gao’s second son may be incompetent, his taste in women isn’t bad.”

He looked at Shen Miao—her beauty sharp as frost and wind from the northwestern desert.

“Also, you want to help Gao Yan, which means helping Jing Dianshi gain reputation. But you’re helping the useless Gao Yan instead of Gao Jin—it seems rather ill-intentioned.” His smile was malicious, his words precise.

“Shen family girl, does Jing Dianshi have a grudge against you?”

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