With i Wuchang accompanying her, Jiu Yue toned down her usual deanor a little.
To maintain her act, she still asked a few trivial questions along the way.
"Since I'm so capable, wasn’t I supposed to be guarding Prince Ping personally before? How did I end up living in such a remote, rundown courtyard?"
At first, i Wuchang didn’t think much of it and answered casually, "Both of us used to be Prince Ping’s personal guards. It’s just that later, this courtyard…"
Mid-sentence, he suddenly fell silent.
Jiu Yue looked at him curiously. "What about this courtyard?"
i Wuchang scratched his head and replied vaguely, "A troubleso person lived here, so Prince Ping sent you to keep an eye on them."
"A troubleso person?" Jiu Yue stroked her chin and smiled. "I’m guessing… a woman?"
i Wuchang’s heart skipped a beat. Recalling past events, he instinctively wanted to avoid the topic—but when he turned to look at Jiu Yue, he couldn’t help asking, "Didn’t you lose your mory?"
Jiu Yue waved her hand dismissively. "It’s just common sense. Guarding Prince Ping is more important than watching soone else, yet he sent —the more skilled one—to monitor that person instead of you. So, naturally, I figured it must be a woman."
i Wuchang was stunned.
They say a woman’s intuition is terrifying—today, he witnessed it firsthand!
He forced a dry laugh to mask his discomfort.
Jiu Yue observed his reaction discreetly before changing the subject. "But for Prince Ping to lock soone up in a place like this… that person must have been a threat to him, right?"
"Yeah," i Wuchang replied cautiously. "But don’t worry, that person’s already dead. Once Prince Ping returns, he’ll definitely assign you a new residence."
"Dead…" Jiu Yue paused mid-step, lowering her gaze to hide the turmoil in her eyes. Unconsciously, she pressed a hand to her chest, where an inexplicable ache swelled.
The reaction was intense.
Jiu Yue was almost certain now—sothing had been hidden about the original owner’s relationship with that princess.
Even the Mute Girl didn’t know… perhaps even Prince Ping himself was unaware.
Taking a slow breath, Jiu Yue kept her expression neutral and caught up with i Wuchang.
Seeing her indifferent reaction and lack of further questions, i Wuchang was relieved, and the two tacitly avoided the topic.
Upon entering the courtyard, the Mute Girl erged at the sound of footsteps.
The mont she saw Jiu Yue’s face, her jaw dropped. If she could make a sound, the courtyard would have echoed with a shrill scream—
What shocked her wasn’t that Jiu Yue was alive, but that she dared to return, escorted openly by Prince Ping’s n.
But i Wuchang clearly didn’t know the two had already t several tis.
Noticing the exchange, his eyes narrowed, and he stepped between them, blocking their line of sight.
"This is the Mute Girl who serves here," he said, addressing Jiu Yue—but his venomous glare was fixed on the Mute Girl. "She won’t speak out of turn, so Prince Ping, in his rcy, let her live. Of course, if she bothers you, you can just kill her."
At first, Jiu Yue found it odd.
The Mute Girl had said earlier that she clung to life for Xue'er’s sake—so why could i Wuchang so casually suggest killing her?
Then, shifting slightly, she noticed i Wuchang’s sinister smirk again.
Ah, the words were ant for the Mute Girl!
The underlying ssage was clear: if she dared "speak," she’d lose her life.
The Mute Girl remained silent.
Because… she’d already "said" everything she needed to.
So she lowered her head, afraid that staring at Jiu Yue any longer would arouse i Wuchang’s suspicion.
To i Wuchang, this was simply her being compliant.
With the threat delivered, i Wuchang turned back to Jiu Yue with a friendly smile. "Take your ti settling in. Prince Ping will return soon."
Jiu Yue gave a faint "Mm" and wandered off, pretending to inspect the place.
i Wuchang didn’t leave either, keeping her within sight.
The Mute Girl sensed the strange tension between them but paid no mind, not even sparing Jiu Yue another glance as she went about her tasks.
Jiu Yue had already explored this courtyard multiple tis, so after feigning interest for another round, she climbed onto a beam and hung upside down, swaying slightly as she watched i Wuchang from a distance.
Even if she were slow, she’d have realized by now—i Wuchang was here to monitor her.
But Jiu Yue wasn’t annoyed. She patiently studied his reactions.
The Mute Girl had seen the original owner’s true face—they were clearly close. Yet now, under i Wuchang’s watch, the Mute Girl acted cold. That was how one should behave toward a "watcher."
This confird her suspicions.
The original owner had concealed her kindness toward the princess. Prince Ping surely didn’t know—from his perspective, the original owner had rely been a dutiful overseer.
i Wuchang’s reluctance to discuss the princess was obvious. But if they didn’t know about the original owner’s goodwill, why were they so wary of her bringing up the princess?
Jiu Yue tugged at her hair, her thoughts tangled—until Prince Ping stepped into the courtyard.
A sudden realization struck her, and she seized it.
How could she have forgotten the key word?
Betrayal!
The original owner’s betrayal!
Now that she’d lost her mory, Prince Ping had stopped hunting her—precisely because she no longer rembered her past betrayal, and he was satisfied with this outco.
So, what i Wuchang feared her ntioning must be tied to that betrayal.
Which ant—
In Prince Ping’s eyes, the original owner’s betrayal was linked to the princess.
And that was the truth.
But here was the twist: Prince Ping didn’t know about the original owner’s bond with the princess…
Jiu Yue’s eyelids twitched, and she sucked in a sharp breath.
Two won and one man… Ugh!
Don’t tell this is so ridiculous love triangle?
He loves her, she loves her, she loves him???
He killed her, so she killed him for her???
Jiu Yue’s eyes widened, her mind buzzing with absurd scenarios…
"It’s late. Why aren’t you asleep yet?" Prince Ping stood beneath the corridor, looking up at her.
The faint candlelight flickered in his eyes, but his gaze was piercingly bright, tinged with sothing resembling affection.
Jiu Yue: "…"
She dropped to the ground and bent over the railing. "Ugh—cough."
Prince Ping paused, then stepped forward to pat her back. "What’s wrong?"
"Nothing, nothing." Jiu Yue leaped two ters away, forcing a strained smile. "Probably just dizzy from not eating and hanging upside down earlier."
Prince Ping frowned reproachfully. "Why are you still so careless with yourself?"
Jiu Yue: "…"
She couldn’t hold back. "In this dump of a courtyard, with only a mute servant who can’t even fetch a cup of hot water—how exactly am I supposed to take care of myself?"
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