The First Jasmine - Chapter 154

Chapter 154 - Trapped in the Net

Han Mingyue examined Su Zhidie carefully, releasing a soft sigh of relief in his heart. Although she was slightly thinner, she did not appear to have suffered any mistreatment. The mark on her forehead was not particularly obvious either; even if it left a scar in the future, it certainly wouldn't be to the extent of affecting her beauty. Upon seeing Han Mingyue's arrival, Su Zhidie revealed a look of joy for only a single brief instant before quickly reining in her smile, asking, "Did you bring the Purple Pistil Dew?" Han Mingyue frowned and asked, "Did Princess Consort Ding not give you medicine for your injury? Does the wound still hurt?" Bringing up Ye Li clearly touched a sore spot for Su Zhidie. Flicking her sleeve in cold fury, she snapped, "Don't mention that wretched woman!"

Han Mingyue sighed, taking out an exquisite small porcelain bottle from his robes and handing it to Su Zhidie. Taking the bottle, Su Zhidie opened it, took a whiff, and turned around with satisfaction to enter the room, applying the medicine in front of the bronze mirror.

Han Mingyue followed her into the inner bedchamber. Looking at the furnishings in the room, which could only be described as modest, he understood where Su Zhidie's anger toward the serving maid earlier had come from. Pampered and raised in luxury from childhood, she had never been one capable of enduring hardship; if anything was even slightly inferior, she was unwilling to make do with it. Confined by Ye Li in such a simple and crude place, it would be a miracle if her mood were any good. Once the medicine was applied, Su Zhidie finally felt inclined to turn back around and look at Han Mingyue, satisfied to catch a trace of infatuation and admiration in his eyes. This instantly restored much of her confidence, which had been battered and frustrated over these past few days. Tilting her head slightly with a beautiful curve on her lips, Su Zhidie asked softly, "Mingyue, did you come to rescue me?" Han Mingyue's expression shifted slightly. Letting out a soft sigh, he nodded, "If not to rescue you, what would I be doing here? I've arranged for people to meet us outside. Wait a little longer, and we can leave this place."

Su Zhidie froze, hesitating for a moment before shaking her head. "No, we cannot just leave like this."

Han Mingyue frowned and asked, "What else do you have to do here?" Su Zhidie gritted her teeth and said, "Ye Li! That wretched woman... go and help me kill her." Han Mingyue offered a somewhat forced and bitter smile, gazing deeply at Su Zhidie as he tried to reason with her. "Zhidie, I promised... that I would no longer act against Ye Li." It was not merely because of Mo Xiurao, but even more so because of Han Mingxi. No matter how infatuated Han Mingyue was with Su Zhidie to the point of disregard for all else, Han Mingxi remained his only younger brother, his closest blood relative in this world. He knew full well his younger brother's feelings toward Ye Li. Though he knew it was merely Han Mingxi's unrequited affection, Han Mingyue knew that if he truly took action against Ye Li, Han Mingxi would absolutely never forgive him. He had never truly wished to become an enemy with the younger brother he had raised with his own hands since childhood. Su Zhidie's face turned pale as she let out a cold laugh. "A promise! A promise again! I knew that in your heart, I am nothing at all! Since that's the case, why do you still care whether I live or die? I don't need you, Great Master Han, to come to my rescue either. Even if I am killed by Ye Li, it's my own fault. You can just leave by yourself—there's no need to concern yourself with me."

"Zhidie," Han Mingyue said in a heavy voice, "now is not the time to act willful. It is already fortunate enough if we can escape safely right now; wanting to move against Ye Li is simply impossible. Over these past few days, you should have come to see clearly that Mo Xiurao will not stand on your side."

Having her sore spot poked, Su Zhidie choked on her words, also understanding that Han Mingyue's words made sense. Yet letting Ye Li off like this left her thoroughly unwilling. Her enchanting eyes turned, and she looked at Han Mingyue, asking coquettishly, "Then do you mean that once there's an opportunity in the future, you'll help me teach her a lesson, right?"

Han Mingyue was taken aback. His intention was to have Zhidie stop provoking Ye Li altogether. But this was clearly not the time to reason with her, so he could only nod perfunctorily, "There will be opportunities in the future." Su Zhidie smiled radiantly, lowering her eyes as she said, "I knew that in this world, only you, Mingyue, are the best to me." How could she fail to hear that Han Mingyue was just humoring her? But it didn't matter. As long as Han Mingyue agreed, she would always find a way to make him act according to her words. When it came to Han Mingyue, Su Zhidie had always possessed boundless confidence and methods.

"If you want to deal with this Princess, why pick a time in the future? Is this Princess not standing right here?" An ethereal laugh laced with a touch of faint laziness echoed from the outer room. Han Mingyue's heart quaked as he grew secretly vigilant—he actually hadn't noticed someone entering the outer parlor! They heard Ye Li say with a soft smile, "Master Han, it has been a long time since we parted in Guangling. Will Master Han not come out to catch up on old times?"

Han Mingyue looked down at Su Zhidie, giving her a reassuring smile as he said softly, "Don't be afraid, nothing will happen. Let's go out and take a look."

Passing through the folding screen and stepping out of the room, Ye Li sat lazily leaning against the soft daybed in the parlor, looking at the two before her with a beaming smile.

Seeing Han Mingyue, she said with a smile, "Master Bright Moon has impressive methods indeed. This city of Xincheng and the Prefect's Estate seem to allow Master Bright Moon to come and go freely as if no one were around." If Han Mingyue still failed to understand by now, he would be unworthy of being the master of the Bright Moon Pavilion, which controlled the world's intelligence network. He laughed bitterly and said, "I fear it is Princess Consort Ding who showed mercy, right?" With such capable individuals under Princess Consort Ding, how could they possibly allow him to enter the Prefect's Estate for so long without detecting him? It was likely they had spread a net long ago, waiting for him to walk right into it. Ye Li pursed her lips in a smile and said softly, "Master Bright Moon's deep affection and heavy devotion make you worthy of being called a paragon of love in this age; this Princess admires you greatly. Since Imperial Noble Consort Bai is here, how could Master Bright Moon not come?" Han Mingyue caught the sarcasm in Ye Li's words, yet he merely smiled faintly without responding.

Ye Li rested her cheek on her hand, looking at the two indifferently as she said, "Originally, out of consideration for Mingxi, this Princess shouldn't make things difficult for Master Han. But current circumstances are somewhat special, so... I have no choice but to offend you." Han Mingyue cupped his hands, offering a composed smile as he said, "Falling into Your Grace's hands, Han Mingyue is thoroughly convinced and accepts it completely. I leave myself entirely at Your Grace's disposal." Ye Li nodded slightly, looking at the man before her who remained refined and elegant, her heart not without a trace of regret. Family background, appearance, capability, and methods—Han Mingyue lacked none of them, even excelling far beyond ordinary people. No wonder he was able to become Mo Xiurao's close friend in his youth. What a pity that someone who should have been a favored prince of heaven ended up in his current state simply because he couldn't pass the trial of love. Han Mingyue's days in Xiling were not easy either. Even though he possessed a force as vast as the Bright Moon Pavilion, as long as he could let go of Su Zhidie, no matter where he went, it would be enough for him to live a carefree and unrestrained life without misgivings. Yet he insisted on entangling himself with Su Zhidie. The Xiling imperial family certainly needed the power in his hands, but they guarded against him like an outsider even more. They even cast covetous eyes on the forces in his hands—after all, using other people's belongings was never as convenient as using one's own, was it not?

"Take Master Han down," Ye Li waved her hand and ordered softly.

Han Mingyue looked at her with a smile and asked, "Is Prince Ding not coming out to meet an old friend?" Ye Li looked at him calmly. "Does Master Han feel the Prince currently still has the free time to spare for meeting friends?" Han Mingyue pondered for a moment, then nodded gently to show he understood. Knitting his sword-like brows, he asked, "I understand why Your Grace went to such great trouble. If I hand over what Your Grace desires, what does Your Grace plan to trade in return?" Ye Li looked at Han Mingyue intently for a long while before letting out a light laugh, saying leisurely, "Does Master Han think this Princess intends to make a trade with you?" Han Mingyue raised an eyebrow, indicating that was precisely what he meant. Ye Li said regretfully, "Originally, if Master Han had come directly to make a deal with me, this Princess would indeed have agreed. But now, after this Princess spent so much effort to finally capture Master Han, it feels like a loss if it's merely an equal exchange. Furthermore, without making a deal with Master Han, this Princess can still obtain what is needed all the same."

Han Mingyue furrowed his brows, his face filled with disbelief. "That is simply impossible. If the Bright Moon Pavilion could be taken over so easily, this master wouldn't need to stay in this business anymore." Ye Li shook her head. "To be honest, this Princess has no interest in the Bright Moon Pavilion. A secret intelligence organization so massive—even if Master Han handed it over to this Princess on a silver platter, does Master think I would dare to use it?" Han Mingyue stared guardedly at the elegant and gentle woman on the seat. It seemed that ever since their very first meeting, he had never once correctly guessed this woman's thoughts, which caused an inexplicable sense of unease to rise in his heart. They heard Ye Li say indifferently, "Since it cannot be used by me, then this Princess's opinion is—destroy it!" Han Mingyue took a deep breath, shock finally appearing on his refined face. "You want to destroy the Bright Moon Pavilion?!" The Bright Moon Pavilion—a force coveted incessantly by countless formidable figures, heroes, and even emperors and generals across the world, a force whose control was equivalent to holding more than half the world's secrets—and the woman before him actually wanted to destroy it without even batting an eye.

"In fact, this Princess is already in the middle of destroying it," Ye Li said calmly.

Han Mingyue closed his eyes. When he opened them once more, his gaze was completely dead and silent. "You have your own person inside the Bright Moon Pavilion."

Ye Li gave an appreciative smile and clapped her hands softly. A man in gray walked in from outside the door, calmly sweeping a glance over the slightly pale-faced Han Mingyue and Su Zhidie beside him, before bowing respectfully to Ye Li. "Your subordinate, An Si, greets Her Grace." Ye Li smiled and nodded. "Rise. You've worked hard these past days." An Si said respectfully, "Failing to fulfill Your Grace's order, your subordinate is guilty of dereliction of duty and dare not speak of hardship." Ye Li said, "You did very well. Just like Zhuo Jing and Lin Han, starting today, you are no longer a secret guard." An Si bowed deeply once more. "Your subordinate, Wei Lin, greets Her Grace."

To the side, Han Mingyue's face turned ash-gray as he looked at Wei Lin and asked coldly, "You are a secret guard of Prince Ding's Manor?"

Wei Lin stood up, looking at Han Mingyue as he said, "Indeed. Thank you for your care over these past days, Pavilion Master."

Han Mingyue's smile was tragic and dismal. Had he not shown care indeed? In a short span of less than half a year, he had promoted an unknown, obscure person to become his most trusted right-hand man. While part of it was because the other party had once risked his life to save him, it was even more because he appreciated the other party's talent and capability. Turning back to look at Ye Li with a sense of powerlessness, he said, "I didn't expect the secret guards of Prince Ding's Manor to be so formidable already. Or is it that the people by Your Grace's side are particularly outstanding?" He had once been close friends with Mo Xiurao, so he naturally had some understanding of Prince Ding's Manor's secret guards. However, Wei Lin's capability and methods clearly exceeded those of a secret guard by far. In the beginning, he had also suspected whether Wei Lin was a spy sent by the Prince of Zhennan, the Xiling Bai Family, the Xiling Emperor, or other forces. Yet in the end, it was proven that he had absolutely no connection to any of those people, which was why Han Mingyue had given his trust—never imagining that Wei Lin would turn out to be a person from Prince Ding's Manor.

Ye Li said with a gentle smile, "Master Han flatters us. Please take Master Han down. Perhaps when the Prince has free time, he will chat with Master Han. As for Master's people in the Northwest... Master need not waste your thoughts on them. After all, wasting your thoughts won't do any good, will it?"

Han Mingyue was left speechless. Only after a long while did he say, "Your Grace is brilliant. Han Mingyue concedes defeat."

Ye Li smiled softly without speaking, waving her hand to have him taken down.