Li Shu was momentarily lost in thought when he saw Li Mingyi fall before him.

He raised his head, squinting, and looked at the youth in the distance whose arrow pierced through the throat.

Li Mingyi was dead, and the overall situation was settled.

There were still battles around, but it became quiet around that young man.

He loosely held the reins, urging the steed to walk towards him unhurriedly, and the green jade mask on his face reflected a cold light.

Perhaps owing to the fact that he was on horseback, there was unprovoked a disdainful posture.

"Your Highness, Prince Jin." The young man dismounted, clasped his fists, and saluted.

His tone was calm and indifferent, neither arrogant nor humble.

"Qin Xiao?" Li Shu frowned.

"I am here."

"Not bad archery," Li Shu said.

"Your Highness flatters me." The young man lowered his eyes, his face unflinching.

Li Shu gave him a deep look, and coldly said, "Clean this place up." With that, he walked towards his mount.

"Your Highness, Prince Jin." The young man’s voice sounded behind him.

Li Shu involuntarily stopped his steps, resisting the urge to turn back.

The young man’s gaze fell on his back, light, yet made his spine shiver.

That arrow through the throat seemed to penetrate his throat as well, rendering him speechless, having to wait for the other to speak first.

When he spoke again, his tone was still calm and indifferent: "The Commandery Prince of Changshan committed treason and has been executed by us, I request Your Highness to oversee the situation—"

...

After the Commandery Prince of Changshan’s death, the Zhenzhou situation was beyond Li Shu’s ability to handle.

Only the Princely Heir Li Xingyuan could manage.

Li Shu only said a few words before handing over full authority to Li Xingyuan.

Walking out of the main hall of the Prince Mansion, he paused and looked back, only to see Qin Rong still standing beside Li Xingyuan.

Both of them were outstanding in appearance, standing together like a perfect match, complementing each other.

Jealousy surged wildly in an instant, almost uncontrollable.

It seemed every time Qin Rong was involved, he would become obsessed and unable to control himself.

Li Shu’s eyes darkened, he turned stiffly, striding towards the East Garden.

Qin Xiao and his subordinates were now in the East Garden.

In just a few short months away from the capital, Qin Xiao had already gathered his own subordinates.

This young man’s growth was astoundingly fast.

The Commandery Prince of Changshan, who had been feared for over a decade, was so easily killed by him.

Recalling the boy’s pervasive aura of death and destruction at that time, Li Shu felt his heart skip a beat.

If that young man were to take another arrow, it seemed it wouldn’t be too difficult to take his life.

However, when Li Shu saw him in the East Garden, he was holding a dagger, sitting on a stone, and carving a piece of bamboo still frosty with dew.

The setting sun was like gold, casting delicate contours on the young man’s face, the interplay of light and shadow like a gentle, well-behaved child.

Upon hearing the reminder from both sides, this gentle and well-behaved child raised his eyes to glance at him.

Those eyes were dark and indifferent, Li Shu felt as if he had seen them somewhere before.

His gaze fell on the tail of the young man’s left eye.

The injury was around the right eye, just revealing the left eye, with a faint red at the eye tail, as if dyed with rouge.

Otherwise, there was nothing out of the ordinary.

"Does Your Highness, Prince Jin, have any orders?" The young man did not stand up and salute, continuing to sit there, asking indifferently.

Just as Li Shu was about to speak, he suddenly saw him raise the dagger in his hand, causing his heart to skip a beat, and instinctively took a step back.

A flash of cold light—

The bamboo in the young man’s hand was split in two.

Li Shu’s face flushed alternately between blue and red.

The young man did not even look at him, lowering his head, continuing to cut the bamboo.

Li Shu watched him for a while, asking, "Did you come by the command of Prince Fengqing?"

"Yes."

"Which army do you lead?"

"The surrendered bandits from Longmen Village."

"The campaign in Longmen Village was well fought."

"Your Highness flatters me."

Li Shu stood asking these questions, feeling a bit awkward since the young man never looked up, he casually picked up a piece of bamboo, thinking to play with it too.

Unexpectedly, as soon as he picked it up, it was snatched away.

The young man grasped the bamboo in his hand, coldly looking at him, yet suddenly appearing youthful, like a mere fifteen-year-old boy.

Li Shu felt slightly relieved, continuing to ask: "Who taught you military formation and strategy?"

Li Mu paused in his actions, his tone subconsciously softening, "I read military books with Second Miss Tang."

"You have accomplished much in suppressing bandits and killing rebels, when you return to the capital, you should be directly rewarded with a rank above the Sixth Rank," Li Shu paused for a moment, "There is still a vacancy for a Vice Commander in Prince Jin’s Marriage Affairs Office."

The Prince Jin’s Marriage Affairs Office, that is, the guard of the Prince Jin Mansion, with the Vice Commander being of the Fifth Rank.

The vacancy for Vice Commander in Prince Jin’s Marriage Affairs Office had been left since Feng Pu’s death back then.

Li Mu responded without even thinking: "I will participate in the spring examination next year."

This was something said in front of the Emperor, so Li Shu couldn’t argue with it.

After a moment of silence, Li Shu asked again: "Did the Commandery Prince of Changshan recognize you?"

"He did not," Li Mu said. 𝒻𝘳ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝒷𝘯ℴ𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝑐ℴ𝑚

He and Li Mingyi had never met, but Li Mingyi could recognize him.

Before Li Mingyi fell, he seemed to have said a word, but it’s unclear whether Li Shu heard it, so he came to investigate.

"Does Miss Qin have a private relationship with Li Xingyuan?" Li Shu asked again.

"I don’t know."

"You don’t know?"

Li Mu said indifferently: "The time I’ve known her is likely even less than Your Highness, Prince Jin."

Though Qin Rong helped him significantly, she obviously still kept things from him.

For example, the whereabouts of the real Qin Xiao.

Qin Rong admitted she had a younger brother, yet never seemed to put much effort into looking for him.

Moreover, this time, it’s unclear what transpired between her and Li Xingyuan, with Li Xingyuan bringing her even to meetings with various generals in Zhenzhou, it was indeed a bit odd.

Should I tell Second Miss?

Li Mu thought to himself, but his hands never stopped moving.

Li Shu was also watching his actions.

He saw him stack and intertwine the carved bamboo sticks, binding them with thin rope, his movements as skilled as a craftsman.

"What are you making?" Li Shu couldn’t help but ask.

Li Mu didn’t answer, his long fingers deftly flying, in a few moments, he had finished the framework.

He took a section of candle from the side, and fixed it inside the bamboo cage he had woven, then pasted paper over it.

Even without being told, Li Shu knew what he was making.

Lighting the candle, he then pasted the final colored paper.

He lifted the newly made lantern, his face lifting as well, and smiled at Li Shu.

This was the first time Li Shu saw him smile; when he smiled, his lip corners curved, fine light sparkled in his eyes, the cold gloominess on his face vanished, like a genuinely innocent and understanding young boy.

"Today is the Lantern Festival," Li Mu said.

It’s also Second Miss’s birthday.

She turned twelve today...

...

For Tang Xiaobai, this twelfth birthday was not quite enjoyable.

The affairs of Liangzhou and Zhenzhou hung unresolved, and her little ancestor was not by her side, leaving her in low spirits.

It was supposed to be this way until she received a gift from her little ancestor.

"What is this?" Tang Jiaojiao also found it novel.

"Ah Xiao’s gift for me!" Tang Xiaobai eagerly invited her to help tie the slender bamboo tube to the inside of her forearm.

Once tied, she raised her arm—

"Whoosh!"

A short arrow shot out, embedding into the tree trunk in front of them.

Tang Xiaobai clicked her tongue in astonishment.

The power of this sleeve arrow was impressive!

Tang Jiaojiao also paused in surprise, then stated discontentedly, "He certainly has a mind for these things!"

Tang Xiaobai turned her head to smile at her: "Isn’t Ah Xiao’s interest in these things a sign that they hold the winning trump in Zhenzhou?"

-------------

Just a quick note to let everyone know the merchant only made a verbal threat, and didn’t show up. I have installed a surveillance camera at the entrance, and today was quite peaceful. I’ve also filed a complaint with Taobao’s customer service. Thank you everyone for your concern, I won’t reply to each individually, love you all~