Impératrice douairière Xiaoxuan

Chapitre 24

"Perhaps it was a signal to Prince Ning that we could leave," Zhan Zhao recalled. It was at that moment that Ning Jin expressed his fatigue and said he didn't want to play chess anymore.

No wonder Ning Jin wouldn't let her out! Mo Yan frowned even more: Ning Jin only confined her and Zhan Zhao in the temple and didn't harm them, so there must be something he didn't want them to be there for.

At that moment, the two of them turned around and rushed back the way they came...

There's only one reason for this: they were in a hurry to get back to Hanshan Temple to eavesdrop.

The bell just now was the bell that summoned the monks in the temple for breakfast every morning. Almost all the monks gathered in the dining hall. Fortunately, Zhan Zhao and Mo Yan had been hiding and dodging along the way, but they hardly saw anyone.

In no time at all, the two arrived at the roof of the room where Ning Jin was staying.

To be honest, Zhan Zhao was a little worried about Mo Yan. Last time in the riverside town, he had to help her out of a predicament. He was just about to tell her to wait a little further away when he saw Mo Yan skillfully and quietly move a tile aside to create a small gap, and peer down through the gap.

Zhan Zhao sighed inwardly as was his habit; he realized he had been sighing a lot lately.

It wasn't quite appropriate for him to squeeze into that narrow gap with Mo Yan, so he found a more comfortable spot on the other side of the roof to lie down. Wu Zichu was standing in the side room, his shoulders slumped. He hadn't shown himself since bringing them to Hanshan Temple, and he was still wearing the same clothes as before… Zhan Zhao squinted, his expression obscured from the rooftop, but he could see that Wu Zichu's boots were soaked, indicating he had just returned from an errand. Ning Jin remained seated on the couch, head tilted to the side, deep in thought, unconsciously fiddling with a few chess pieces, making a clicking sound.

The two did not speak, or perhaps they had just finished talking.

Zhan Zhao was somewhat disappointed in himself. If he had turned back earlier, he might have overheard their conversation.

On the other side, Mo Yan's gaze also swept over Wu Zichu. This angle was slightly better than Zhan Zhao's; she could see a small scratch on the outside of Wu Zichu's sleeve, and scattered mud spots at the hem of his clothes...

Ning Jin pondered for a long time, then looked up, seemingly just realizing that Wu Zichu was still standing in front of him, and said, "You've been busy all night, go and rest first."

Upon hearing this, Wu Zichu bowed and was about to leave when Ning Jin called him back.

Ning Jin looked straight into his eyes: "Zichu, tell me the truth, do you not want to do this lousy job?"

"...This humble servant knows that Your Highness has your own difficulties."

Ning Jin was stunned for a moment, wanting to say something, but after opening his mouth, he finally said, "You may leave."

Wu Zichu left the room as instructed, closed the door for Ning Jin, took a few steps forward, and then stopped—it was daytime now, and if he turned around at this moment, he could see Mo Yan very clearly.

Mo Yan silently straightened up, staring intently at his back. She dared not move, because she couldn't be sure if Wu Zichu had already noticed her on top; she also dared not escape, because Wu Zichu's lightness skill was superior to hers. The only saving grace was that Zhan Zhao was on the other side, and Wu Zichu couldn't see him.

The two faced each other in silence. Mo Yan's legs, which were crouching, began to go numb, and she started to suspect that Wu Zichu had already discovered her.

Finally, Wu Zichu slowly turned around, with a hint of helplessness... When he saw Mo Yan, that helplessness turned into seven parts surprise!

The latter, looking resigned, slowly stood up, swayed unsteadily, and then slid and fell off. Several pieces of tile fell with her, making a loud clattering sound.

Wu Zichu's eyebrows furrowed in disbelief. He couldn't understand why such a commotion had arisen when he hadn't laid a finger on her. He hadn't intended to disturb Ning Jin, but now Ning Jin had opened the door and was staring incredulously at the person in the courtyard who was still nonchalantly tidying his clothes.

"You...why haven't you left yet?!"

When Ning Jin saw her again, he was almost furious.

"Visiting a temple," Mo Yan chuckled, making it up on the spot.

Where is Zhan Zhao?

"He went back to sleep."

Ning Jin glanced at the broken pieces of blue tile on the ground: "You were wandering around on my roof?"

"The view is expansive and the scenery is delightful. Would you like to go up and take a look?" Mo Yan replied fluently, her smile wicked.

Ning Jin was now completely enraged: "Don't think that just because you're from Kaifeng Prefecture, I can't do anything to you! Zichu! Find a rope and tie her up!"

"Your Highness, this...isn't that inappropriate?"

Ning Jin glared at him: "Do you know how much she eavesdropped? Letting her go back would just attract that cat."

“She didn’t hear anything,” Wu Zichu said. “I only heard the noise just now; she just arrived.”

"You heard a noise on the roof?" Ning Jin raised an eyebrow, implying why he hadn't been informed.

"I thought it was a stray cat, so I didn't bother Your Highness."

Upon hearing this, Ning Jin snorted coldly, not pursuing the matter further, and turned to go back into the house: "Bring her in. You can then take a look around and see if there are any other stray cats."

Seeing Ning Jin go in, Wu Zichu let out a long sigh, walked to Mo Yan's side, and helplessly gestured for her to come in.

At this moment, Zhan Zhao had already silently leaped into the side room through the north window and hid on the beam when Ning Jin left. Zhan Zhao's cultivation was much higher than Mo Yan's, and his breathing was extremely soft. Wu Zichu could hear Mo Yan's breathing, but he couldn't hear Zhan Zhao's.

Just now, when Mo Yan was discovered by Wu Zichu, she waved one hand behind her back at him, signaling him not to come out. To be honest, in Zhan Zhao's mind, this didn't seem like something this little girl would do. He felt she should have run away quickly, or simply fought with him. But she actually willingly and so dramatically fell down, and he knew she did it on purpose, to attract more of Wu Zichu's attention.

In Zhan Zhao's heart, he undoubtedly believed that Mo Yan had put herself in a difficult situation to protect him. This rarely happened to him; usually, he was the protector. Therefore, Zhan Zhao couldn't help but be moved.

In Mo Yan's mind, the matter was extremely simple, with only three possibilities: she and Zhan Zhao were captured together; Zhan Zhao was captured and she rescued him; or she was captured and Zhan Zhao came to rescue her. Given the difference in their abilities, she chose the third option without even thinking.

Author's Note: Thank you all for your support! (The author bows deeply in gratitude.)

tohowyou: Thank you for your suggestions regarding "The Slanting Moon." Writing "The Slanting Moon" was a spur-of-the-moment thing; I wanted to write it like a side story to "Bing Xin," so it was very rushed, and I didn't even have an outline. It certainly has many shortcomings. If I have time, I will go back and revise it.

totata: In the original novel *Seven Heroes and Five Gallants*, Zhan Zhao originally possessed the Juque sword. After his engagement to Ding Yuehua, they exchanged tokens, with Zhan Zhao giving the Juque sword to Ding Yuehua, who in turn gave him the Zhanlu sword. In *Bing Xin*, Zhan Zhao and Ding Yuehua will not be engaged, so Zhan Zhao will always possess the Juque sword.

Chapter Eighteen

She had no doubt that Zhan Zhao would come to save her, but she hadn't thought about where this confidence came from.

Ning Jin remained seated on the couch, watching Mo Yan, whose hands and feet were tightly bound. The latter completely ignored him, her eyes fixed on the chair beside her, slowly moving towards it.

It's rare to see someone in such a predicament act as if nothing's wrong. Ning Jin patiently waited to see what tricks she could pull.

After finally moving to the chair, Mo Yan sat down, leaned back comfortably, let out a long sigh, and remained still.