The study was dark. Even the lantern under the eaves was unlit. Murong Jin raised her hand to knock, then let it fall.
She hesitated.
The door opened. Xue Liulan stood in the shadows, startled to see her.
"What is it?" His voice was hoarse. He didn't move, his gaze fixed on her from across the threshold, cold and distant.
She bit her lip. "I… I wanted to ask if you were hungry."
He tilted his head. "If there's nothing else, go back and rest."
"Oh." She mumbled, lingering. But the door closed again. The silence returned, heavy and suffocating.
She stared at her shadow on the window paper, feeling a sudden, profound loneliness. Her chest tight, she sank onto the steps, hugging her knees, resting her chin on her arms.
Inside, Xue Liulan watched her shadow disappear from the window and gave a bitter laugh. In her heart, he was not someone worth waiting for. Only his brother had ever truly indulged him.
Thinking of the Crown Prince, his heart ached. Would he forgive me? Probably not. He was the one who had dragged Murong Yu into this. In the end, her death was on his hands.
He wanted to get drunk. He opened the door to leave—and froze.
Murong Jin was sitting on the steps, her back to him. Her head leaned against the pillar, her arms wrapped around her knees, curled into a small ball against the night wind.
In that instant, all his anger, all his resentment, vanished.
She felt herself being lifted. He was gentle, but the movement startled her awake.
"I woke you." He looked down at her, then set her down. "It's almost midnight. Go back to sleep."
He turned to go back into the dark room.
A tug on his sleeve. So faint he almost missed it. But it stopped him.
He looked down. Her head was bowed, her shoulders shaking slightly. A soft, muffled sob.
"What is it?" He cupped her face, lifting it to the moonlight. Her eyes were swimming with tears.
She didn't answer. She threw herself into his arms, burying her face in his chest, her tears soaking through his thin robe.
He panicked. He held her tight. "What happened?"
"Nothing," she said, her voice thick.
He chuckled. "Crying like this for no reason? Are you trying to get your father to beat me up?"
She shook her head, looking up at him with red eyes. "Xue Liulan, when you can't escape, what do you do?"
His smile froze. He looked away. "Face it. I never had a choice."
"You never let yourself off the hook." Her grip on his sleeve tightened.
"Have you?" He stared into her eyes. "You care so much about Murong Yu's death. Is it just because she's your cousin? Or do you blame yourself?"
"She was a sacrifice for the Murong family."
"Her death was her way of finding peace. She said she hated the Seventh Prince, but she hated herself more." His gaze drifted to the stars. "I hate her. But even Big Brother gave his life for her. What could I do?"
"So she found her ending." Murong Jin said quietly. But she had trapped Xue Liulan in guilt. "Xue Liulan, you're blaming yourself for her death, too."
"Big Brother told me not to avenge him. But I failed him." He took a step back, his sleeve slipping from her grasp.
Her hand was empty. Her heart sank.
He turned away, his hand on the door. Facing the emptiness, he could finally let his grief out.
"Xue Liulan." She took a step forward.
"Go back." He stepped into the room, starting to close the door. The movement stirred the cold air against his face.
Her hand pressed against the wood. He couldn't do it. He abandoned the door and walked into the darkness.
She stood at the threshold, her courage wavering. If she stepped in, what would become of them?
Slowly, she moved. Each step took all her strength. She stood by the desk, in front of him. Her body blocked the moonlight, casting his face in shadow.
Suddenly, his arm wrapped around her waist. He pulled her onto his lap, burying his face in her shoulder, breathing in her scent.
She reached up, touching his face. It was wet with cold tears. Her hand trembled. She lowered her head, kissing his eyes, tasting the bitterness.
He closed his eyes, accepting her comfort. Finally, he hugged her fiercely, his lips brushing her ear.
"Why did you follow me?" he sighed.
"I couldn't leave you alone in the dark. I didn't want to." She wrapped her arms around his neck. "Xue Liulan, you let me in. Don't push me out."
His heart was like this room. Dark. Since his brother died, before she came, he had never opened the door to anyone.
"Big Brother must blame me," he muttered after a long time. "He only asked two things of me. I failed both."
A king must be heartless. But he had given his heart to Murong Jin. Protect Murong Yu. But he had dragged her into the struggle, leading to her death.
"Since neither of us can forgive ourselves, I'll bear it with you." Her voice was a whisper, but filled with steel.
The night deepened. Clouds from the east swallowed the moon. While the Fifth Prince's residence slept, whispers began in the palace.
"Guo Shangzhong?" Empress Deng stared at the visitor, a chill rising in her heart. "What are you doing here so late?"
"Greeting the Empress, of course." He smiled.
"Greeting me? Or comforting yourself?" She sneered.
He bowed. "Your insight remains sharp, Your Majesty."
"Let's not play games." She sat up straight. "I didn't implicate you today."
"Thank you, Your Majesty." He hid the murderous glint in his eyes.
"You have the Emperor's ear. If you can save me and my family, that matter will never be spoken of again." She looked at her painted nails. "Otherwise, the fish dies and the net breaks. No one wins."
"I understand." He looked up. "But I am powerless."
She frowned. "What do you mean?"
"Rebellion is a grave crime." He said lazily.
"That was fabricated by the Murong family! With your skill, you could make it disappear." Her smile twisted with fear.
He turned his jade ring. "But I cannot change the Emperor's hatred. He is determined to destroy the Deng family."
"Impossible!" she shouted. "He built my family up with his own hands! He wouldn't destroy his own work!"
"Have you not considered that his 'work' destroyed his heart? A servant that bites back cannot be kept." A vicious smile appeared on his face.
Shock twisted her beautiful face into something grotesque. "He… he would destroy us for that bitch? Why? He was the one who drove her to death!"
"But the Deng family held the knife. Now that he regrets it, someone must pay." Guo Shangzhong spoke slowly.
"If he wants someone to pay, it should be you!" She pointed a trembling finger at him. "It was your idea! You bribed the physician! You gave me the poison!"
He didn't flinch. His face was as unchanging as the night.
"Even so, what does it matter?"
"I… I'll tell him." She started for the door.
Four eunuchs appeared, blocking her way. One held a length of white silk.
Guo Shangzhong turned his back. "See the Empress on her way."
In this world, the living could not keep secrets forever. Only the dead were truly silent.
The first light of dawn touched the bed curtains. Xue Liulan reached out and unhooked them, shielding her eyes.
"What time is it?" She stirred.
"Early." He pressed her back down and kissed her forehead. "Nothing to do today. Sleep."
She rolled her eyes. "You still have to find evidence to clear Xue Feiyan."
"I already have a candidate." He leaned back against the headboard, bare-chested. A scar ran across his heart, stark against his skin.
"Hm?" She opened her eyes, wrapping the blanket around herself and leaning on his shoulder. "Who would willingly take the blame for Xue Feiyan and pin it all on Deng Qinyao?"