After seeing Han Yan off, Pei Rusong stood in the courtyard for a while, looking up at the clear, starry sky. He collected his emotions alone, digesting the news he had heard that night.

It was late spring, and the peony season was coming to an end. A faint fragrance drifted through the air. The warm spring night breeze gently swayed the flowering branches. All over the ground, peonies withered silently, and the steps were piled with petals like shattered jade and scattered pearls.

The moment the dust settled on many matters was often not a clap of thunder, but as silent and soundless as a falling flower. One thing Pei Rusong had always admired about Wen Chan was her ability to precisely capture the moment of the "falling flower." While others were still waiting for the thunder, she was already thinking about the next step.

All along, she had used such acuity and insight to plot silently, biding her time until she could strike with the force of wind and thunder. In his past life, those powerful ministers and arrogant generals who had fallen at her hands probably spent their last moments desperately trying to figure out when exactly the Princess had started targeting them.

But now, the once-oblivious prey was on guard, and had even bared its fangs first.

"You can be a thief for a thousand days, but you can't guard against one for a thousand days." With such a fierce beast prowling nearby, would there ever be peaceful days ahead?

Wen Chan sat on the long couch by the window, staring blankly at the flower-and-bird pattern on the thin silk lampshade. After an unknown amount of time, a faint fragrance suddenly wafted from behind her. She turned her head abruptly to see Pei Rusong, back from seeing his guest off, handing her a blooming peony.

Wen Chan took it, baffled. "What's this? You're not going to ask something like 'who is more beautiful, me or the peony,' are you?"

"...I'm not." Pei Rusong gritted his teeth, unable to hold back. "Just what kind of person am I in Your Highness's heart?"

Wen Chan answered with great gusto: "A beauty."

Pei Rusong: "..."

Wen Chan twirled the flower, smiling like a mischievous fox. "Ah, the Prince Consort's ears are red..."

"Hey, what are you doing... wait, the flower! It's getting crushed! Mmph..."

The double-petaled, translucent pink peony tumbled from her embrace onto the couch. Its fresh fragrance filled their overlapping sleeves as cool lips pressed down on hers. Wen Chan was held in Pei Rusong's arms, her palm resting right over his heart on his back. Through the thin spring clothes, she could feel the firm, pliant muscles of his back, and even the ceaseless thumping of his heart in his chest.

Her fingers gradually tightened, wrinkling the smooth, neat silk, as if she were also grasping that heartbeat firmly in her palm.

Pei Rusong could actually sense the well-hidden anxiety beneath Wen Chan's smile—she was the type of person who would never show a hint of vulnerability to others. Calmness was both her weapon and her armor. So Pei Rusong couldn't comfort her the way he would an ordinary person. He could only hold her tightly, trying to use his arms as sky-covering wings to place her completely under his protection.

Wen Chan slowly calmed down in his embrace and kisses. After their lips parted, she rested her forehead against Pei Rusong's shoulder. They leaned against each other, steadying their rapid breaths.

In this tender, water-like moment, she suddenly spoke out of the blue, "Whatever you fear comes true. This is going to be difficult. Xiang Guihai's death wasn't unjust, so on what grounds is that old scoundrel also reborn?"

Pei Rusong lowered his eyes to look at her. "Is Your Highness very afraid of Xiang Guihai? Is it because he lost to you in your past life, and you're worried he'll retaliate even more fiercely?"

"Because..." Wen Chan hesitated for a rare moment before saying gravely, "Perhaps because my intuition tells me that if this person is not eliminated as soon as possible, he will bring about an immeasurable disaster in the future."

After Lu Shuo's biological father, the Grand Governor of Yi Prefecture Lu Zhonghui, was assassinated, Yi Prefecture was divided into the three commanderies of Wuyuan, Tangshan, and Baoning. The majority of the Yizhou Army was converted into the garrison of Tangshan Commandery, led by Lu Zhonghui's great general, Governor Bai Shiluo of Tangshan.

Bai Shiluo was originally one of the Chuohan people. He moved to Yi Prefecture when his mother remarried. After joining the army, he was recognized by Lu Zhonghui for his bravery and skill in battle and was promoted to deputy general. Being of foreign origin himself, he had a free-spirited nature and enjoyed befriending heroes. When employing people, he paid little attention to lineage or the distinction between civilized and barbarian, and he was skilled at persuading and winning over other tribes. Under his management, the Tangshan garrison, which was originally composed mainly of the People of Qi, gradually transformed into an army of mixed ethnicities.

Xiang Guihai, on the other hand, was from the Hukeyan Tribe. It was said that in his early years, he was sold into slavery in the Central Plains. After accidentally killing someone, he fled to the border and made a living as a shepherd in Huawen County. At that time, the magistrate of Huawen County, Zhao Tiancheng, was a perverse tyrant who imposed exorbitant taxes. The common people were destitute. Seeing that the magistrate was unpopular, Xiang Guihai led several thousand local farmers in a rebellion and occupied the Huawen County government office.

The Tangshan garrison received a message and rushed to suppress the rebellion. However, Xiang Guihai bound himself before the army and voluntarily surrendered to the reinforcements. After ordering him to be taken into custody, Bai Shiluo made inquiries around the city and found that Xiang Guihai had only led the people to storm the county office and distribute the magistrate's hoarded wealth among the populace. He had neither condoned looting nor killed indiscriminately. Therefore, Bai Shiluo deemed him a loyal and righteous man, reported to the imperial court to plead for him, and took Xiang Guihai under his command.

When Xiang Guihai met Bai Shiluo, it was like the Duke of Zhou meeting the King of Wen; he quickly showcased his talents and achieved brilliant military merit. He was particularly adept at currying favor and opportunism, skilled at feigning selflessness. The officials of Tangshan Commandery, the investigating censors, and the leaders of the various tribes under his jurisdiction were all on good terms with him. He also bribed court officials with hefty sums to speak well of him before the Emperor. In the thirteenth year of Yanshou, Bai Shiluo was transferred to Fengyi, and Xiang Guihai logically took over his position, becoming the new Governor of Tangshan.

After becoming governor, Xiang Guihai publicly claimed to be resisting the Tongluo, but in reality, he was lavishly winning over the various tribes of the Northern Border. He secretly supported the Hukeyan Tribe's invasion of Gu Prefecture, sparking unrest there. However, the imperial court dispatched generals such as Lin Xian, Gu Pinchuan, and Lu Shuo with a hundred-thousand-strong army to quell the rebellion. Pei Rusong and others devised a plan to persuade the Hukeyan general Mu Wen to defect. Within a year, the Qi Army recaptured Gu Prefecture. The Hukeyan Tribe's strength was greatly diminished, and the entire tribe submitted to the court.

After this battle, Wen Chan finally caught Xiang Guihai by his fox tail. She joined forces with Prime Minister Yuan Shuye to devise a plan. Under the pretext of bestowing hereditary privilege, she ordered him to send his sons to the capital. Then, using a marriage bestowal as an excuse, she summoned Xiang Guihai to the capital for the ceremony. Xiang Guihai repeatedly declined on grounds of illness, finally arousing the Emperor's suspicion. The Emperor sent Censor Yang Tingying to investigate. Xiang Guihai attempted to bribe Yang Tingying with a large sum of money and failed. He then sent assassins after him on his return journey, but Yang Tingying was rescued in time by the "Deep Forest" agents arranged by Wen Chan. Yang Tingying faked his death to escape and was able to return to the capital to report the truth to the Emperor.

The court officials who had accepted bribes from Xiang Guihai were still defending him at this time, claiming he dared not enter the capital for fear of being killed by slander. Furthermore, since Xiang Guihai guarded the gateway to the Northern Border and had close ties with various tribes, applying pressure rashly might provoke him into rebellion. Wen Chan thus advised the Emperor, mentioning that the Tangshan garrison was formerly part of the Yizhou Army. She suggested sending Bai Shiluo and Lu Shuo to persuade him to come to court and declare his loyalty.

With those two present to keep things in order, the Tangshan garrison was indeed obedient and did not act rashly. Seeing that all was lost, Xiang Guihai fled towards Tongluo with his personal guards but was intercepted by Lu Shuo and his troops in Wu Gorge Valley. With no way out, he took his own life with his sword.

This entire gambit, from beginning to end, was filled with Wen Chan's personal style: striking first before the opponent could act, nipping the risk in the bud. Without the two critical steps involving Yang Tingying and Lu Shuo, and without the clandestine assistance of the "Deep Forest" agents, the Northern Border of the Great Qi Dynasty would have inevitably been plunged into prolonged turmoil had Xiang Guihai raised his troops in rebellion.

However, in the previous life, Xiang Guihai's death brought Wen Chan not praise, but infamy. Court officials gossiped that she was suspicious of border generals, had forced a high-ranking official to his death without bloodshed, and used the opportunity to promote her own faction. After all, Xiang Guihai had never actually rebelled; at most, his was a suicide to escape punishment. No one could definitively conclude he had committed treason.

Among all of Wen Chan's enemies in her life, there was only one in Tangshan Commandery: Governor Xiang Guihai.

This was also why Wen Chan was certain that the key evidence discovered by Han Yan could only serve to close this case. The border commanderies were the most complicated of places, and the relationship between the imperial court and the border generals hung by a thread as fine as one supporting a thousand-pound weight. This evidence pointed the finger at Tangshan. Once it was linked to the Tangshan garrison, the waters would only become muddier, and no one would be able to tell right from wrong.

Xiang Guihai was just a minor general now, who had probably never even seen the Princess's face. Why would he assassinate a princess who lived deep within the palace year-round? Unless one was a fool, the matter of rebirth would never be made public. Since there was no grudge between them, was he instructed by someone, or was this a frame-up? Was it Bai Shiluo, or the old guard from Yi Prefecture?

Catching the mouse is important, but you can't break the jade vase while doing it, let alone tear down half the wall.

"Then... does Your Highness regret it?"

Wen Chan grunted, "Hmm?" a little slow to react. "Regret what?"

Pei Rusong: "Regret forcing Xiang Guihai to his death."

"Why should I regret it?" Wen Chan retorted, finding the question preposterous. "Shouldn't he be the one regretting not behaving himself with his tail between his legs? If he had been loyal and dutiful, why would I have bothered with him for no reason? Look at Lu Shuo, didn't he live cheerfully to the very end? Ultimately, the problem was his."

"Then isn't that fine?" Pei Rusong's eyes curved into a smile. "Just as Your Highness taught, if your conscience is clear, why waver? Even if Xiang Guihai is reborn, right now he's still just one of Bai Shiluo's garrison commanders, not the all-powerful Governor of Tangshan from the past life. To deal with him, you only need to block his path upwards. If he's stuck as a low-ranking subordinate for his entire life, how would he have the time to think about harming others?"

Wen Chan: "...Wow."

Her expression was like she had just seen a bear in a bustling market. Pei Rusong didn't understand. "What is it?"

Wen Chan: "Finally done pretending to be a Little White Flower? Tsk, Young Master Pei, you're quite skilled at these political power plays."

Pei Rusong: "..."

He was so used to being gentle in front of Wen Chan that suddenly saying a few harsh words with a faint smile created a unique contrast. While Wen Chan was very fond of his teary-eyed Little White Flower persona, she could also appreciate a rose with thorns—it was just that the rose himself seemed quite crestfallen, like a deflated pufferfish.

Wen Chan smiled and leaned in to touch the tip of his nose with hers. It wasn't a kiss, but it carried a deep and affectionate intimacy.

"As they say, 'plain clothes and messy hair cannot hide a nation-toppling beauty.' You're a beauty no matter what, don't be embarrassed."