Chapter 12: Confrontation in the Peach Garden

Pei Su entered this secluded paradise once more — only this time, he made no attempt at Nirvana Concealment. He let his presence radiate openly as he flew across the valley and landed beside the bamboo dwelling.

In a short while, the old woman appeared before him.

She extended a finger toward him, studying his face as though recognizing something. Whatever angry rebuke had been rising in her throat, she swallowed it back down, her pupils trembling ever so slightly.

But the armored guards at her side lacked her discernment. Seeing Pei Su's aura flaring so boldly, they erupted in fury:

"Who are you?! We just sent one intruder packing, and now another thief shows up!"

"Exactly — outrageous! Looks like we need to change the concealment Array Formation on our gates again!"

"Another young upstart disturbing our peace — and even more brazen than the last one!"

"……"

Faced with Pei Su's abrupt arrival, everyone was furious, voices rising in condemnation.

Butterfly Dream Valley was a place of profound tranquility. To have outsiders intrude again and again — even the most patient of souls would eventually lose their temper.

"Silence."

The crowd instinctively moved to retort — then found the words lodged in their throats.

Because they suddenly realized the voice had not come from the outsider, but from —

The elder they all revered, the old woman standing at the forefront of the crowd — Senior Lingyao. Granny Ling.

"Granny Ling……?"

Someone called out timidly, as if asking: did you really mean that?

All eyes turned to the old woman's face — and watched as her expression grew darker by the moment.

Meanwhile, the young man standing across from them still wore that half-smile, gazing at the crowd without uttering a single word.

"Ha… the Heir of the Northern Marquis graces us with a sudden visit. Forgive this old woman for the poor reception."

The old woman's voice was flat and muffled, betraying neither joy nor anger.

But to the indignant young people of the valley, those words struck like a thunderbolt from a clear sky.

The… the Heir of the Northern Marquis!

This man who had barged into their valley was the Heir of the Northern Marquis?!

In an instant, every mouth snapped shut. Those who recalled their own rude outbursts began to tremble.

This world… belonged to Great Jin.

The Pei Clan was the most powerful noble house in all of Great Jin, while they were nothing but fugitive remnants of a fallen dynasty — the two sides were not even in the same league.

"There is no need to be so tense."

"The Pei Clan's power is vast. This old woman cannot help but be tense."

Pei Su smiled. "You flatter me, Granny. Several hundred years ago, our ancestors shared the bond of lord and subject. Why must we stand here with blades drawn?"

During the Xia Dynasty, the Pei Clan had also been a great noble house at court, with disciples and former officials spread throughout the government. The clan head of that era had very nearly risen to Chancellor and been enfeoffed as a king under the Xia.

Seeing Pei Su's gentle tone and composed bearing, many of the valley's young people quietly exhaled in relief.

From the look of things, the Heir of the Northern Marquis did not seem inclined to report them to the imperial court.

Had Pei Su not brought it up himself, they might have nearly forgotten that they were the imperial kin of a former dynasty — that hundreds of years ago, the Pei Clan had been the subjects, and they the rulers.

Only the old woman's expression remained grave, without the slightest relaxation.

"May I ask what brings the Young Lord here?"

"It's rather strange, actually," Pei Su said, furrowing his brow. "I had apprehended a suspect wanted by the imperial court, but through a moment of carelessness I let him escape into this place while gravely wounded. When I encountered him again a few hours later, he was perfectly hale and hearty…"

With every word Pei Su spoke, the faces around him grew a shade paler.

How could they not know — the person he was describing was the gravely wounded young man from before.

They had already been frightened upon learning it was the Heir of the Northern Marquis who had wounded him, yet they never imagined he would come so swiftly!

Pei Su swept his gaze around the crowd but did not spot that particular figure.

"No need to be nervous, everyone. I simply want to know — which kind and lovely soul nursed that fugitive, who should have been dead, back to full health?"

Though Pei Su still wore his smile, as warm and casual as a neighbor making small talk —

The faces of the valley's young people had already gone completely ashen.

One young man steeled himself and stepped forward two paces, bowing his head:

"Young Lord, please calm your anger. When we treated him, we did not know his identity. Her Highness only saw that he was…"

"Jiang Xiao."

The young man's voice was abruptly cut off by the old woman.

Her expression was as somber as ever, her gaze falling lightly on the young man called Jiang Xiao.

"Since you failed to distinguish right from wrong and treated a fugitive apprehended by the Young Lord, you will apologize to him."

The moment those words fell, the entire scene went dead silent.

The young man named Jiang Xiao stared blankly at the old woman, stumbling back two steps, his lips quivering.

"I… I…"

Every gaze in the crowd converged on him, each carrying its own tangle of emotions.

He looked around, and then his eyes met Pei Su's.

In that instant, Jiang Xiao felt his vision go dark, his hands and feet turning to ice, as though a wolf were tearing at his heart.

He opened his mouth, but no sound came out. All around him stood his silent friends and kin; above him sat Granny Ling, whom he revered and adored.

At last, his voice came out in a trembling whisper —

"This lowly one was foolish for a moment and… treated the imperial court's fugitive. I beg the Young Lord… to forgive this offense…"

"Was it you who treated him?" Pei Su asked.

The young man glanced around once more, shuddered from head to toe, then nodded with trembling uncertainty.

"Elder Wu — kill him."

The words had barely left his lips when a dark shadow swept out from behind Pei Su, crossing the distance to the young man in an instant and thrusting a palm forward.

At that very same moment, a young woman's voice rang out from the distance —

"Stop!"

But the voice of an outsider was no different from the wind to Elder Wu — it could not make him pause for even a single breath.

His hand drove straight through the young man's chest. Then Elder Wu leapt backward and vanished once more into the shadows.

The young man let out two muffled groans and collapsed to the ground. Yet the attention of everyone present had already shifted to the young woman running toward them from afar.

The old woman's expression changed drastically. Casting aside all decorum, she cried out —

"Go back! Who told you to come out here!"

But the young woman did not stop. She walked in a daze through the crowd to where the clansman lay dying because of her, and a grief like a surging tide welled up in her heart.

Her features were pure and breathtakingly beautiful, her eyes like stars — and now those eyes slowly misted over with a deep, heavy sorrow.

Behind her, two handmaidens came rushing after her, their faces stricken with panic.

"Granny, we… we couldn't stop Her Highness."

The old woman's expression grew even more strained. Her body shifted slightly, as though she were about to act.

But her eyes fell on the dark shadow behind Pei Su, and she suppressed the impulse — watching helplessly as the young woman passed through the crowd and came to stand before Pei Su.

"Why……"

Why did you kill him.

The young woman's gaze moved from the dying young man to Pei Su, a faint sob catching in her throat.

Pei Su's immunity to beauty was, however, exceptionally high. He gave her only a brief, indifferent glance.

"He aided a fugitive of the imperial court in escaping. That alone is a capital offense. Are you saying I killed the wrong person — that it wasn't him?"

"No… it wasn't!"

The young woman kept shaking her head.

"It wasn't him who treated him… it was me. You've wronged an innocent person. Please save him — he's dying."

As her words fell, the color drained from many faces in the crowd.

The old woman let out a low, urgent murmur: "Your Highness……"

The young woman suddenly turned to look at the old woman, swallowing back her sobs as she spoke —

"Granny Ling, I am a princess of the Jiang Clan, that is true. But even a prince who breaks the law is punished the same as a commoner. How can I allow another to bear the blame for my own wrongdoing? I beg your forgiveness, Granny."

Then the young woman turned back and looked Pei Su directly in the eyes. Tears still shimmered in her gaze, but her small face held far more stubbornness than grief.

"Heir of the Northern Marquis — you should save him. And you must not take your anger out on my clanspeople. It was I who treated that man. If you wish to deal with someone, then come for me."