It turned out that the several times she felt he looked familiar were not her delusions, but because they had met before!
They had met when they were children.
Eight years ago, not far from the former Wen Estate, lived an official family surnamed Liu. They had one son and one daughter; the daughter was the elder sister, sixteen or seventeen at the time, and the son was the younger brother, only seven or eight years old.
In the capital, where high officials and nobles were as numerous as ox hairs, a fifth-rank official was quite unremarkable and hardly considered wealthy. However, the master of the house was steady and generous, the mistress was gentle and kind, the eldest daughter was beautiful and sensible, and the youngest son was lively and intelligent. The family lived a very harmonious life.
The problem was that the eldest daughter was too beautiful.
While playing on the streets during the Qixi Festival, the eldest daughter went missing and was not found until the following day. The neighbors gossiped incessantly, spreading ill rumors about Miss Liu. On the very day she was found, Miss Liu committed suicide by hanging herself.
She was young then and did not clearly understand what had happened to the Liu family; she had even forgotten who had told her the story. The Liu family seemed to have reported it to the authorities, but before the officials could investigate, the father had died of a sudden illness. The case was left unresolved, and the mother took the young son and left the capital.
The Liu family's residence sat empty for a long time. As new owners moved in, the matters concerning the Liu family were gradually forgotten by the surrounding neighborhoods.
During the first two years after the Liu family's misfortune, she would occasionally think of that boy who was roughly her age.
He was a mute, and aside from his sister and his sworn brother Cheng Shu, he had almost no playmates. One day, while she was passing the time as usual by watching the people come and go from outside her door, the boy passed by and suddenly raised his hand to ask her if she wanted some candied haws.
Perhaps it was because the boy's smile was too bright, or perhaps because the candied haws in his hand were too enticingly red; even though they only knew of each other and had never played together, she nodded as if possessed by a ghost.
Using her mouth, which was missing a front tooth, she ate the candied haws while listening to the boy, who was also missing a front tooth, talk incessantly.
After that, they would occasionally play together. It was always her listening in silence, and him talking without end.
Not long after, the Liu family met with disaster, and they never saw each other again.
Lin Hao gazed at the youth, who was as quiet as a water lily, her eyes brimming with tears.
*It was you.*
Even though there were no deep feelings or significant intersections between them, a wave of heartache and regret surged through her, crashing against her heart.
She suddenly thought of that sprig of winter plum delivered to her by a red silk ribbon.
At that time, she thought the youth had done it casually, or perhaps because he remembered her once tipping him when he was performing on the streets. Thinking of it now, had he recognized her—his barely-considered playmate—all along?
Lin Hao lowered her eyes to hide the glint of tears, unaware that a pair of calm, clear eyes had been watching her all along.
"Does anyone know this youth's origins?" The one asking was a member of the Jinlin Guard, who had accompanied the Commander of the Jinlin Guard, Cheng Maoming, to join the drinking.
Because of the earth-shattering event of the Crown Prince's assassination attempt, Cheng Maoming had rushed into the palace, leaving several capable subordinates to gather men and stabilize the scene.
The Jinlin Guard's gaze was piercing as it swept over everyone present.
Everyone knew this youth was the assassin who had attempted to kill the Crown Prince. Upon hearing the question, they shook their heads like rattling drums.
A Jinlin Guard waved his hand. "Clear the corpse first. Lock up everyone alive from the Ruyi Troupe!"
Soon, men came to drag the body away.
Lin Hao watched as Xiao Feng was dragged off, leaving a long trail of blood on the ground.
In the hall, which was already somewhat stifling due to the large crowd, the smell of blood grew even thicker.
Never mind the ladies and noble daughters; even some of the male guests could not help but gag.
The presiding Jinlin Guard had a cold, frozen expression, showing no intention of letting these people leave.
Under normal circumstances, any one of the people here—even the Commander of the Jinlin Guard—would not want to offend them. But this was an assassination attempt on the Crown Prince; anyone even slightly connected to this matter would face dire consequences, regardless of their status.
Among them, the ones bearing the greatest pressure were the people of the Wuning Marquis Estate.
"Who invited the Ruyi Troupe?"
Tang Hua's face was as pale as a ghost. It took a long while before he could speak: "It was I..."
As countless gazes fell upon him, Tang Hua hurriedly defended himself: "I only invited them to add merriment to my mother's birthday because I saw them perform so well at another estate. Who could have imagined they would be so audacious!"
The Crown Princess managed to maintain her composure to bail out her brother: "The Marquis Estate is the Prince's in-laws' home; nothing is more important than His Highness's safety. Who could have imagined a mere troupe of acrobats would hide a traitor..."
These words drew nods from many people.
Who could have imagined it? A youth with such delicate features would actually dare to assassinate the Crown Prince. They were just here to drink; how did they get caught up in such a life-threatening matter?
*Please, just let them go.*
The person in charge of the matter also knew it was impossible to keep so many nobles here indefinitely. He had the Marquis Estate's manager lead people to tally the identities of the guests and check if anyone had left mid-way, allowing everyone to return home first.
As Lin Hao walked out with Madam Lin, she saw many men carrying spears and blades surrounding the Wuning Marquis Estate, moving in and out.
Snow began to fall outside. The snowflakes were wrapped in the cold wind, biting like knives.
Lin Hao looked up at the grey sky, and a flurry of snowflakes took the opportunity to pour down her neck.
"A-Hao, hurry into the carriage," Madam Lin urged, seeing Lin Hao standing still.
A voice came from the side: "Madam Lin, let me escort you. It happens to be on my way."
Madam Lin looked over.
The youth on horseback had snow on his hair and the hem of his clothes; his posture was as straight as a cedar tree.
Madam Lin, however, did not have the mind to notice the youth's physique. She waved her hand and said, "Young Lord, hurry back to your estate. Be careful not to catch a cold."
Qi Shuo fell silent.
In Madam Lin's eyes, he seemed exceptionally frail.
He looked at Lin Hao, only to find her distracted, lost in thought.
"Then please be careful on the road, Madam and Second Miss Lin." Qi Shuo cast one more glance at Lin Hao from the corner of his eye before galloping forward.
Madam Lin pulled Lin Hao into the carriage and stuffed a hand warmer into her hands. "A-Hao, are you scared?"
Warmth spread from her palms, and a bit of color returned to Lin Hao's pale lips.
"A little." Her mind was in disarray, and she had no energy to chat with her mother, so she simply admitted it.
Although Madam Lin was not afraid of death, thinking about the assassination attempt on the Crown Prince at the Wuning Marquis Estate made her heart tremble: "If even the Crown Prince can be assassinated, the world is becoming increasingly unstable. I wonder how the Prince is doing; I fear many people will suffer because of this."
"The Crown Prince should be fine," Lin Hao murmured.
Madam Lin's expression turned somewhat strange. "A-Hao, how do you know the Crown Prince is fine?"
Lin Hao's eyes regained their brightness, yet they held a trace of melancholy. "The Crown Prince has so many experts protecting him; it's likely at most a superficial wound."
In her past life, when she returned to the capital, the Crown Prince was acting as regent. No one mentioned this assassination; the most logical analysis was that the damage caused to the Crown Prince was minimal.
It was a pity that Xiao Feng had died in vain; she did not know what kind of grudge existed between him and the Crown Prince.
Lin Hao felt regret that the "dog Crown Prince" was fine, but the imperial physician currently treating the Crown Prince in the Wuning Marquis Estate did not think so.
"This is bad. The poison on the flying knife is too aggressive. I fear we will have to scrape the bone to treat the poison."
Another physician looked terrified and whispered, "That will be immense suffering. His Highness—"
The Crown Prince had already fallen into a coma, completely unaware of what he was about to endure.
(End of Chapter)