The silence in the palace garden was broken only by the soft shuffle of leaves. Moonlight bathed the tiles in silver, and the night carried the crisp scent of osmanthus.
"You're late," Jin Xuan Yue said coldly, not turning his head.
Li Hua paused at the edge of the veranda, holding a porcelain tea tray that trembled only slightly. "Apologies, my lord. I got lost in the east wing. This palace has more hallways than my past lives combined."
He turned slowly, eyes narrowing. "You speak boldly for a mere servant."
She smiled, lowering her head. "Better to be bold than boring, don't you think?"
There was a beat of silence. Then, to her surprise, Jin Xuan Yue... almost smiled. Almost.
He accepted the tea, but didn't drink. Instead, his gaze roamed her face again, pausing at the corner of her lips, the curve of her cheek. There was something... painfully familiar about her.
"You're not from the palace," he said flatly. "Your accent. Your stance. Even your lies are too polished."
She stiffened. "I was trained well."
"By foxes?" he murmured under his breath.
She looked up sharply, heart skipping.
"Nothing," he said, sipping his tea. "Just a thought."
---
Later that evening, Li Hua walked through the candlelit corridor, trying to steady her breathing.
He suspects something.
But what troubled her more was that she had faltered. His scent, the tone of his voice, the glint in his eyes — everything reminded her of him. The man she loved. The man she hated.
She reached her room, ready to collapse… only to find someone already inside.
"Well, well, if it isn't the moon-blessed servant," came a cheerful voice.
She blinked. A man with tousled hair and half-unbuttoned robes sat cross-legged on her bed, munching on dried plums.
"Who are you?!"
"Me? I'm Rui Shen. General Jin's… emotionally burdened childhood friend and occasional bad influence." He grinned. "You're the famous new maid, right? The one who tripped into the ceremonial pond yesterday?"
"That koi was aggressive," she muttered.
He laughed so hard he almost choked on a plum. "I like you already."
---
Meanwhile, back in the main hall, Jin Xuan Yue stood by the open balcony, fingers gripping the wooden rail. His heart ached in a place he had long buried.
The scent from earlier still lingered — faint, elusive.
Peach blossoms… and foxfire.
He closed his eyes.
"Qing Yue… where are you?"