Chapter 21: Finding Evidence

“It’s me, Your Highness.”

Li Rong looked into Pei Wenxuan’s eyes and heard him inquire in a half-genuine, half-joking tone. After a while, she softly laughed: “Pei daren asks such a strange thing, how could I have never been wholeheartedly devoted? Bengong has always been wholehearted to all good-looking men.”

“Does Your Highness know what it means to be wholehearted?”

Pei Wenxuan proceeded to ask. Li Rong tapped the palm of her hand with her small fan and only said: “Then according to Pei daren, what is wholeheartedness?”

“This humble official thinks that this so-called wholeheartedness is to have that person in your heart and mind. To trust him, love and protect him while not asking for anything in return, nor worrying about the future. Always one in heart and soul, without the slightest bit of deceit in your heart, and for the rest of one’s lifetime, there will only be one person. Your Highness said that you were once wholeheartedly devoted, so I wonder who has Your Highness given your heart and soul to?”

Hearing this, Li Rong pursed her lips and smiled. She lowered her head like she just heard something amusing.

Pei Wenxuan frowned: “What is Your Highness laughing about?”

“Pei Wenxuan,” Li Rong raised her head and used her golden fan to conceal the lower half of her face. Her eyes were full of amusement and teasing, “I didn’t expect you to be so old yet still holding onto this kind of youth-like dream.”

Pei Wenxuan’s expressions stiffened when he heard this, then he put his smile away. He calmly turned and laid on his side, placed his hand on the back of his head and nonchalantly said: “It’s because Your Highness has never thought about this before.”

“Yes,” Li Rong said with a smile, “Bengong does not have Minister Pei’s leisurely frame of mind nor refined thoughts and hence could not have thought of these things. As one would expect from a person who has protected his feelings for a lifetime,” Li Rong nodded, “Bengong admires such a pure and innocent heart.”

Pei Wenxuan heard her ridiculing him and wanted to say something, but he felt that regardless of whether he explained or refuted it, he would be the one who would fall short. So he held back for a while, swallowing all the words down. He turned away and stopped talking as if pretending to sleep.

Seeing that he had turned his back to her, Li Rong lightly tapped her small fan, her smile slowly fading away.

She and Pei Wenxuan had completely different views when it came to matters of the heart. She had to be strategic and decisive when it came to feelings. Up until now, no matter how much the other person has given her, she can only reciprocate with a little less but never more. Between the two parties involved, there would only be you and me. She was stingy with her feelings and also had high demands, afraid to give yet she still wanted them to devote their heart and soul to her.

But Pei Wenxuan was much more generous. He only needs to confirm that he likes that person, and once he has, he can give the other person everything. He could like Qin Zhenzhen for a lifetime, even if the other person married, becoming someone else’s wife, and did not give him any sort of response. He could silently hold onto these feelings and wholeheartedly devote himself to her, even if Qin Zhenzhen had been dead for almost 27 years, he could keep himself as pure as jade for that one person in memory of the deceased.

She had decisively severed all ties with Pei Wenxuan back then because for one, she could not accept that her feelings had been tarnished in the slightest, giving her feelings away had been a mistake. Secondly, she also vaguely felt that Pei Wenxuan might have actually had some feelings for her, but since Pei Wenxuan had previously vowed to love Qin Zhenzhen, he could not accept the fact that he had come to like someone else.

They both had their own stubbornness, but now that she thought about it, this kind of stubbornness was ingrained deep in their bones and has long been a lost cause. Even if there was no Qin Zhenzhen, they still would not be together.

She had very few heartfelt emotions. Even if she takes everything she has and offers them to Pei Wenxuan, it would forever be an injustice to Pei Wenxuan. Even if Pei Wenxuan actually accepted it, it would be difficult for her to feel at ease.

She and Su Rongqing were different. She and Su Rongqing were the same kind of people, born in families enshrined in wealth, honor, glory and splendor. Their true feelings were hard to come by in this world. In their eyes, there was power, the clan and family, and life and death, so for them to slip a bit of sincerity between those gaps, it could already be considered giving their all. Li Rong doesn’t need to know how much someone can give her, as long as they give her everything they have, it would be enough.

So even if she was fully aware that Su Rongqing might kill her and that perhaps there was a rift between them, where Su Rongqing’s schemes, hatred and grudges had accumulated, she never resented him because Su Rongqing had given everything he could with all his heart.

And even if Pei Wenxuan didn’t do anything for her in the previous life and never actually betrayed her, she still felt that Pei Wenxuan fell short when it came to matters of the heart.

As the carriage swayed, Li Rong closed her eyes and napped for a while. After some time, the carriage suddenly stopped. A shadow guard lifted the curtain and leapt onto the carriage and said in a low voice: “Your Highness, the invitation card has been completed.”

Having said that, the shadow guard handed over the invitation card and a stack of detailed papers of their individual identities. At the same time, he presented them with sets of clothes and explained: “This was prepared by the Crown Prince. He said to pose as a wealthy merchant couple from Yangzhou specializing in the silk trade, as not to be recognized by too many people.”

“Alright.” Li Rong looked through the invitation card. After confirming the names, she nodded and said, “You may leave.”

“Your Highness,” The shadow guard spoke up after hesitating for a moment, “This Tuoba Yan’s network and connections are extremely complex, so his residence might not be particularly safe. Your Highness actually wishes to personally go to a dangerous place…”

“It will be alright.” Li Rong nonchalantly said, “I brought a signal flare. If something happens, all of you can just encircle the residence.”

Seeing that Li Rong was determined, the shadow guard obeyed and retreated. Beside her, Pei Wenxuan still had his head buried in his arms, fast asleep. Li Rong hit him with her fan and shooed him out: “I’m going to change my clothes, you go out.”

Pei Wenxuan blankly opened his eyes. He seemed to have been fast asleep just now when he was suddenly awakened, so he seemed to be in a daze. Li Rong couldn’t help but smile when she saw him like that.

When he was young, he was quite fond of sleeping in. When they were first married, it was extremely difficult to wake him up every morning to attend court.

Li Rong lightly fanned herself and gently said: “What? After so many years, Pei daren’s habit of sleeping in still hasn’t changed?”

Hearing Li Rong’s question, Pei Wenxuan was somewhat more awake. He turned over and sat up, shaking his head to clear his mind, then he nimbly lifted the curtain and said plainly: “Call me once you’re done changing.”

Then, he jumped out of the carriage.

After Li Rong changed her clothes, she got out of the carriage and saw that the attendants had already prepared a carriage nearby, the kind that merchants often use.

This carriage was not as luxurious and spacious as Li Rong’s carriage. Its style suited the identities of merchants that they would assume. After Li Rong got onto the carriage, she waited for a while before she saw Pei Wenxuan come up.

The two sat in the carriage. After Li Rong went over the official documents of the couple’s life with Pei Wenxuan, Pei Wenxuan said, “What should we do once we get to the villa?”

“Tuoba Yan’s secret room is built in the rear courtyard. After we get in, you will first approach Tuoba Yan and find a way to have him take us to the rear courtyard. I will use the excuse of going to relieve myself to make a detour to the secret room. After acquiring the account book, we will leave.”

“How can I get him to take us to the rear courtyard?” Pei Wenxuan frowned. Li Rong glared at him, “Come up with it yourself.”

The two of them talked until the carriage arrived at Tuoba Yan’s villa.

This villa was built on the outskirts of Huajing with the mountains and rivers behind it, and it was massive.

When the two got out of the carriage, they saw people coming and going all around them. Although it was rather late at night, it was still bustling. They could hear the sound of the qin and flute as well as various other instruments being played around them.

Li Rong followed after Pei Wenxuan. The two brought the invitation card and led the shadow guards disguised as servants to walk on ahead. The gatekeeper checked the invitation card and had someone lead them into the villa.

As soon as they entered the villa, they discovered that there were many people from all parts of society in the surrounding area with languages and clothing from various countries weaving through the crowd. There were female Persian dancers coming and going from all sides. Among them, there were even many women from Great Xia in the costumes of Persian dancers walking along the promenade.

Li Rong and Pei Wenxuan both walked in a proper and dignified manner, so they kind of stood out in such a sensual place.

Among the crowd of merchants, Pei Wenxuan himself looked too upright and strikingly handsome. On top of that, an alluring, heart-stirring beauty like Li Rong followed at his heels, which attracted quite a bit of attention.

Pei Wenxuan sensed that something was wrong and was about to do something about it when he felt Li Rong reach out and pull his arm. Her entire person was pressed against his body as she coquettishly said: “You walk so fast, how can people keep up with you?”

Pei Wenxuan’s being was slightly stiff, but he immediately reacted and smiled softly, appearing to dote on her as he said: “Madam is right. It is this husband’s fault.”

The two of them were pulling each other and smiling, immediately fitting in to their surroundings. Although Pei Wenxuan stood out in this environment, with the coquettish and charming Li Rong by his side, Pei Wenxuan’s expression slightly eased into a more suitable expression like that of a gentle and refined merchant who had brought his wife over to avoid attracting too much attention. After all, apart from merchants, very few prestigious families would marry such a woman who would make them lose face.1

[1] Upper class families have quite a few rules and taboos that are strictly enforced. A proper wife should be dignified, in contrast to Li Rong playing coy and her public display of affection.

The servant led the two into the room. As soon as they entered, they heard the sound of someone’s hearty laughter. Li Rong looked up and saw a man with thick eyebrows and a beard sitting in the center, hugging a dancing girl as he talked and heartily laughed with some other people. The servant led the two of them over and said to Tuoba Yan: “Master, this is Master Wang and the Madam, owner of the Wang clan’s silk business in Yangzhou.”

With that, Pei Wenxuan and Li Rong turned to face Tuoba Yan and saluted him at once, respectfully saying: “Sixth Master.”

Tuoba Yan was the sixth child in his family. His real name was something else in his native language but was difficult for the people of Great Xia to pronounce, so they called him the Sixth Master. Tuoba Yan looked at the two from head to toe. His gaze lingered on Li Rong for a while, then he laughed and said, “Young Brother Wang, I didn’t expect you and younger sister-in-law to be so young. Here I thought that you would be a rotten old man. Come, have a seat.”

With that said, Tuoba Yan pointed to a spot beside him and had someone fill the cup with wine, “Come, have a drink.”

The Rong people like to enjoy good wine, so Pei Wenxuan did not refuse and finished the cup on the spot. Seeing that Pei Wenxuan was so forthright, Tuoba Yan’s eyes lit up as he said: “Who would have expected Young Brother Wang to look gentle and refined yet also be a true man. Come, have another drink with this Elder Brother.”

Pei Wenxuan won Tuoba Yan’s favor and immediately started a lively conversation with Tuoba Yan. The two of them were drinking on one hand while chatting on the other. Pei Wenxuan could make people tremble with anger when he ignores them, always giving off the impression of an uninteresting person, but when he wants to deliberately approach someone, there was nothing that he could not respond to with his extensive knowledge.

The two had just met yet they seemed like old friends. Pei Wenxuan kept drinking while Li Rong poured wine for the two of them. After a few exchanges, Tuoba Yan and Pei Wenxuan declared themselves elder brother and younger brother. Li Rong saw that the opportunity had come and gave Pei Wenxuan a meaningful glance. Pei Wenxuan picked up on the cue in Li Rong’s eyes, but his facial expressions did not change. He continued to chat with Tuoba Yan with a smile, but as they talked, the topic ended up being about plants and flowers.

“This younger brother is fond of plants and flowers, especially peonies, and spent a lot of money in the past to acquire stumps of the Magnificent Purple to grow in the courtyard. When they are in full bloom, it is the beauty of the nation and heavenly fragrance. This younger brother is curious, what is Elder Brother fond of?”

Magnificient Purple Peony

Rare and exotic treasures is a topic that frequently comes up between merchants. Antique paintings, flowers, plants, rare birds—as long as a merchant has a bit of money, they will want to collect a few, let alone a powerful merchant like Tuoba Yan?

Tuoba Yan heard Pei Wenxuan bring up plants and flowers and laughed: “Younger Brother has never seen a good peony, what are the likes of the Magnificent Purple? Come,” Tuoba Yan stood up, “Let this elder brother take you to the courtyard to take a look and let you see what it truly means for flowers in full bloom to stir the Capital.”

“What kind of treasures does Elder Brother have?” Pei Wenxuan laughed and stood up. “Although this younger brother is not as wealthy as Elder Brother, this younger brother has also seen countless plants and flowers, and in fact, too many to name. Since Elder Brother said it so well, who knows if I will be fooled?”

“Such limited knowledge!” Tuoba Yan suddenly felt a little dissatisfied when he heard Pei Wenxuan’s words, so he grabbed Pei Wenxuan and immediately said, “Come. You come with me and see if I’ve deceived you or not.”

“Slow down, Elder Brother,” As Pei Wenxuan was dragged away by Tuoba Yan, he turned back to look at Li Rong, “Hurry and catch up with us, Madam. Don’t be so anxious, Elder Brother, we can go a little more slowly.”

Pei Wenxuan partly walked and partly chased after Tuoba Yan. Li Rong smiled and got up. She said to the maid beside her: “The Sixth Master is indeed quick-tempered.”

The maid smiled and softly said: “Master has always been like this.”

With that said, Li Rong took her servants and followed the maid out and went into the rear courtyard along with Pei Wenxuan and Tuoba Yan.

As Li Rong entered the courtyard, her gaze quickly swept over the courtyard. The courtyard was exactly as she remembered, down to the last detail, and had not changed much. Back then, she was investigating Tuoba Yan and had turned every inch of the courtyard inside out, so she was very familiar with it. Seeing that there were still some people in the courtyard, she couldn’t help but ask, “There are other people in the rear courtyard too?”

“There are many drunken guests at the banquet,” The maid laughed. “If they are one of the Master’s good friends, they will be invited to the rear courtyard to rest.”

Li Rong nodded. She already had a plan in mind. As she was memorizing the route, she slowed down her steps. After a while, her facial expression became a bit unsightly. The maid beside her saw her face change and had to ask, “What’s wrong, Madam?”

“I wish to relieve myself, but I don’t know where…”

Hearing Li Rong’s question, the maid hastily said, “Please come with me, Madam.”

Li Rong nodded and turned around to give the other people instructions and told the servants behind her: “An Xiang can just follow me. The rest of you should go to the Master.”

The other three heeded the order, leaving just the maid An Xiang to follow and serve Li Rong. The two followed the maid through the archway of the eastern part of the courtyard. Li Rong calculated the distance from here to the rock garden as she walked. Once they reached the most suitable place, Li Rong gave An Xiang a meaningful glance. An Xiang raised both her left and right hands into knifehand strikes and knocked out the two maids walking in front of them.

Knifehand Strike

Li Rong and An Xiang dragged the maids into a dark corner, quickly changed into their clothes and then headed straight to the rock garden.

When they reached the rock garden, Li Rong went inside the rock cave and felt around based on her memory. When she reached a place with empty space below, Li Rong crouched down and pressed a button on the side. Then, she said to An Xiang: “Sword.”

An Xiang handed the sword to Li Rong. Li Rong pointed the sword downwards and pierced through a gap in the ground and used strength to press it down. An iron panel was pulled back, and underneath the iron panel was a staircase. An Xiang drew her sword: “This subordinate will go down first.”

Having said that, An Xiang nimbly jumped down. A few muffled noises could be heard below, then An Xiang said: “Your Highness, all is clear.”

Li Rong gave a monosyllabic response and went down.

There was a dungeon below. The guards had been knocked out, sprawling on the ground. Li Rong ignored the prisoners and went straight to the side door. There was a rotating lock mechanism on the push button of the side door, and there was Persian written to its side. Li Rong turned to An Xiang. She lifted her chin and said, “Go and bring me the tokens on the guards.”

An Xiang responded and went to collect the tokens from the guards.

A password is needed to open this door, and that password consists of the names of the guards on duty that day in Persian. After Li Rong got their names and translated them into Persian, she turned the combination lock to the right Persian words, and shortly afterwards, the door was wide open.

Once the door opened, it revealed a very small room with bookshelves on all sides, densely packed with account books.

Tuoba Yan arranged these account books in a certain pattern. Li Rong looked around and quickly found the Yang family’s account book based on what she knew about Tuoba Yan from memory. She opened the account book and turned through the pages for a few moments. Once she confirmed that they were the Yang family’s account books, she put it in her sleeve and said: “Let’s go.”

An Xiang responded with a single sound. Li Rong closed the door and returned to the rock garden. Not long after they stepped out of the rock garden, they heard a voice behind them: “It’s the two maids ahead, seize them!”

Li Rong knew that what happened with the two maids must have been exposed when she heard this, so she gave An Xiang an order: “Split up and run.”

She rushed off in the direction of the guest rooms while An Xiang stayed behind and briefly held those people off before rushing off in the other direction.

Li Rong finally reached the promenade, running like mad the entire way. She was urgently trying to run to the front courtyard, where she could slip away and leave. The sound of pursuing guards from behind rang out, making her heart beat faster. Hearing that the pursuers had almost caught up to her, she anxiously turned and ran in a different direction on the promenade. As Li Rong was running for her life, the door of a guest room nearby suddenly opened. Someone yanked her inside and slammed the door shut.

That person covered her mouth with one hand while the other hand was wrapped around her waist. Li Rong was pressed against him while he pressed himself against the door of the room.

Li Rong could clearly feel that person’s warmth. A cool, familiar scent brushed the tip of her nose, and she froze, not daring to move a muscle. The sounds of pursuing guards yelling and running by could be heard outside. That person lowered his head, hovering right over her ear as he said in a low voice: “It’s me, Your Highness.”