The young man standing on that platform was the kind of handsome that could make an army lose its nerve overnight. He was not yet old, but he carried himself with the ease of someone who had already won everything worth winning. His arrogance was not empty — it was earned, and everyone present could feel the difference.
The women in the audience had forgotten to breathe. Working in the inner quarters as they did, they rarely witnessed anything like this. Previous verification ceremonies had their moments, but nothing compared to what Xie Jingxing was putting on display today. Girls who had always admired capable men found themselves drawn in without meaning to be. His bearing alone was enough.
The younger men in the crowd were not without envy, though most of them had settled into open admiration. From the distant pavilion, Su Mingfeng watched with a slow shake of his head and a quiet smile.
"So this is what he meant by something worth celebrating. The arrogant fool hasn't changed at all."
But Su Mingfeng also knew that what Xie Jingxing had shown today was only the surface of something much deeper. Xie Jingxing was not a man who exposed himself carelessly. If he was performing like this in public, he was sending a message — and it was directed upward. Su Mingfeng's smile faded. He could no longer read exactly what his old friend had decided.
"The Xie family's young lord truly is extraordinary." Feng Anning's voice carried a trace of genuine admiration. "I don't think there is a single person of his generation in this capital, or in all of Ming Qi, who can stand beside him."
Shen Miao said nothing to that.
What Xie Jingxing was displaying today was not even his real strength. His true edge was forged in combat — the kind of experience that only came from leading armies. In her previous life, had the Ming Qi royal family not eventually moved to destroy the Xie clan, Xie Jingxing's military prestige and the Xie family's power would have been enough to divide the country in half.
The manner of the Xie family's fall, though, had always remained unclear to her. She turned it over quietly in her mind. In that life, she had poured everything she had into serving Fu Xiuyi. She had never paid enough attention to what happened to the Xies. Now, facing those gaps in her knowledge, she felt the particular unease of someone who knows they are missing pieces they will need.
On the field, Xie Changchao and Xie Changwu looked ready to spit blood. Xie Jingxing's movements had appeared effortless, almost careless — but only the two brothers knew how serious their injuries actually were. The crowd, however, had no sympathy to spare. Everyone had witnessed Xie Changwu and Xie Changchao resort to a cheap ambush, attacking together when the rules demanded otherwise. In a verification field, fairness was everything. Their conduct had not only disgusted the spectators — it had disgusted the officials presiding over the event. Whatever reputation those two had built before today was gone.
A well-laid trap, Shen Miao thought, watching the young man in violet stand with his arms folded, completely at ease.
Xie Jingxing had led the two brothers by the nose from the beginning. He had baited them into losing their composure until they had no choice but to reach for underhanded tactics. They might have realized the mistake now. But now was too late.
With the entire court watching, the difference between the legitimate heir and his half-brothers had been made plain.
Xie Jingxing glanced lazily at the two of them. "The outcome is decided. Anyone else want to try?"
Silence.
Everyone had just watched him put down two of the most capable challengers on the field — simultaneously, with a single spear, using almost no visible effort. No one moved. No one spoke.
He tossed the spear aside without looking where it landed. "If not, I'll be going." His sleeve shifted, and he was gone, drawing a fresh wave of stunned exclamations from the crowd.
"His martial skill is not weak," the Zhou Prince remarked. "But a strong backbone won't get him far."
Pei Lang, listening quietly, felt something close to pity. The Ming Qi royal family thought themselves shrewd, but their judgment of people ran shallow. The young man's performance today had been deliberate — every move calculated. Whether it was meant to establish authority or to send a signal to the throne, Pei Lang could not say with certainty. But one thing was clear.
He glanced at the Zhou Prince and the Jing Prince.
If the royal family chose to make an enemy of Xie Jingxing, they would regret it for a long time. Because that young man was not what he appeared. He was something far more dangerous. The same, Pei Lang thought, was true of a certain young woman he had observed earlier.
The verification official, resigned to Xie Jingxing's abrupt departure, read out his first-place ranking as protocol required. The Xie brothers' attendants scrambled to help them off the field. Too embarrassed to acknowledge anyone, the pair retreated into their carriage and left without a word.
The matches that followed suffered for it. After what Xie Jingxing had put on display, everything else felt thin. The crowd watched with dwindling attention, some barely stifling yawns before the last bouts were finished.
In the women's seats, Shen Yue and Shen Qing had been glancing toward Shen Miao all afternoon. Of the Shen family present, Shen Miao alone had drawn any notice today — and both of them felt it. Shen Qing's resentment ran deep, tangled up with her feelings for Fu Xiuyi, sharpened into something she tasted like bitterness every time she looked at Shen Miao. Shen Yue's was simpler: she hated being outshone, and could not let it go.
Shen Miao paid neither of them any particular attention. She leaned toward Gu Yu and murmured a few quiet instructions. Gu Yu's expression steadied into something careful, and she slipped away without drawing notice.
At nearly the same moment, across the divider in the men's section, the Yu Prince made a small gesture. A guard materialized at his side, received his instructions in silence, and disappeared just as quickly.
Up in the distant pavilion, Xie Jingxing had returned to Su Mingfeng's side.
Su Mingfeng gave him three slow, deliberate claps. "So. Made quite a scene in the capital today, did you."
"Small matter," Xie Jingxing said, unbothered.
"You've decided to deal with those two brothers of yours?" Su Mingfeng asked. "Acting this openly isn't your usual approach."
"Someone gave me a push." Xie Jingxing's brow lifted slightly. "Some things are better handled early. I've waited long enough as it is."
Su Mingfeng frowned. He had the distinct sense that Xie Jingxing was saying something more than he was saying. But he was wise enough not to press. Years of friendship did not entitle him to certain questions, and he had always known it. His gaze drifted downward and stopped.
"That girl you helped earlier," he said. "She may be walking into trouble."
Xie Jingxing looked.
In the women's section below, a guard was delivering a folded invitation to Ren Wanyun, the Second Madam of the Shen household. The guard's eyes moved — just briefly, just once — toward the young woman in violet.
Ren Wanyun took the invitation with barely concealed excitement. "The Prince is far too gracious. Fifth girl, come and thank His Highness properly for his invitation."
Shen Miao's eyes sharpened.
She looked at Ren Wanyun for a long, still moment. Then one corner of her mouth curved — cold, and unhurried.
So. The same trick again.
Around her, Shen Yue and Shen Qing watched with open satisfaction, waiting to enjoy her discomfort. She stretched slowly, like someone with nowhere to be and nothing to fear. When she raised her eyes, there was something in them that had not been there a moment before.
"Of course," she said, her smile lifting. "I'll make sure to thank him properly."
Up in the pavilion, Xie Jingxing's eyes lit with quiet interest.
This should be worth watching.