Rain fell in a soft whisper.
Chilled droplets struck the edges of the tiled roof, tracing long silver threads along the shadows of the stone pavilion.
Jiang Xinluo stood beneath a willow tree, her eyes—hidden beneath a black cloak—locked steadily on the distant silhouette of the Hualan Residence.
She had once lived in the shadows,
Once been a shadow among shadows.
She had once believed that walking the path of a spy was the most honorable pursuit of her life.
But now, every command she received came echoing back—
with questions that no longer sprang from her orders, but from her conscience.
"Eliminate all witnesses before the alliance ceremony begins…"
The words from the Jianrong letter still echoed in her mind.
Xianlan—the woman she once thought must be brought down—
was now the one person she could no longer bear to erase from the board.
Jiang Xinluo didn't even remember when she had walked all the way to the front of the Hualan Residence.
She only knew her steps hadn't stopped since the moment her heart began to waver.
⸻
The palace guard stationed outside glanced at the cloaked stranger beyond the curtain of rain, hesitant.
He froze when the woman spoke quietly:
"Tell the Princess… that 'Lady Crescent Moon of Jianrong' seeks an audience."
The guard's eyes widened—
That alias hadn't been used in years.
It was a name Jiang Xinluo had once used while posing as a traveling scholar through the kingdom of Daxia.
And very few knew it…
⸻
Inside the Hualan Residence,
Xianlan stood beneath the overhanging eaves, her figure framed against the flickering candlelight from the inner room.
When their eyes met,
there was a moment of silence—no words spoken.
Until Xianlan offered a faint smile.
"You're brave to come like this… on a night when many are waiting to watch me 'slip and fall.'"
Jiang Xinluo pulled down her hood, revealing slightly rain-dampened hair.
"I used to hunt for information… but never realized that sometimes, 'silence' speaks louder than any command from above."
Xianlan gave a quiet nod.
"That's what I've known for years… staying so silent, people began to believe I had no voice at all."
⸻
They sat together on a bench beneath the eaves.
Raindrops tapped rhythmically against the wooden floor—like a quiet metronome to their thoughts.
Jiang Xinluo placed a small wooden box on the table.
"Inside is the ledger that should have been burned."
"But I chose not to burn it—because of you. Because of who you are now, not what the reports used to say."
Xianlan arched one brow slightly.
"I'm not sure whether I should be grateful… or cautious."
"I've ruined people before—just for assuming I wouldn't see through them."
Jiang Xinluo lowered her gaze.
"Do you realize… that your silence has become the most piercing reply of all?"
"I do."
Xianlan's smile was faint.
"But I'm not sure whether to thank you… or to remind myself not to trust you too quickly."
⸻
The rain began to let up.
Jiang Xinluo stood.
"I haven't come to join your side."
"But I will no longer be 'someone's pawn.'"
"If I make a move, it will be because I choose to play—not because I'm waiting to be pushed off the board."
Xianlan stood in silence,
watching the woman she had once met as an enemy
now stand beside her as a shadow… not behind, but alongside.
"I hope you don't disappear from the board too soon."
"I want to see what 'Jiang Xinluo without a master' can do… when she plays her own game."
⸻
As Jiang Xinluo's figure disappeared into the mist,
light footsteps approached from behind.
Feng Yuhan stood leaning against a wooden pillar, hands clasped behind his back, his expression unreadable.
"You let her meet you like this… Aren't you worried people might misunderstand?"
Xianlan didn't turn to face him.
She simply replied in a calm voice:
"I've never feared gossip as much as I fear missing the chance… to hear the truth from the mouth of an enemy."
Feng Yuhan let out a soft laugh.
"I'm beginning to wonder… which one of us is actually ahead in this game."