In the inner palace, some blades never need to draw blood… to wound the deepest.
⸻
Hour of Xu (7–9 PM).
A soft breeze of early spring swept through the palace—gentle on the surface, but carrying a quiet chill beneath every footstep.
The warning bell of the Hall of Oaths rang twice, a signal that an unauthorized guest had entered the restricted zone.
And yet… not a single eunuch dared report it.
Because that guest… belonged to Noble Consort Su Zhen.
⸻
Jiang Xinluo moved silently through the grove behind Xianyan Hall, her maid-like cloak disguising her form.
She had received a "rumor" from her own sources—tonight, a direct order from Su Zhen had sent someone to bury something beneath the white plum tree just outside Xianlan's residence.
What she hadn't expected… was that another shadow was already waiting.
"You're one step late…
My informant saw the parcel dropped off just after dusk."
The voice of Wen Yichen emerged from the shadows.
He tossed her a pale cloth bundle.
She caught it and opened it—
Inside was a small black vial, identical to the type used in the poisoning of several court officials years ago—
the same case in which Xianlan's mother had been accused.
⸻
Jiang Xinluo… turning her back on her former shadow
"What do you intend to do with this?" she asked quietly.
Wen Yichen's voice remained neutral.
"Pass it to the Tribunal.
But not through me—it needs to come from someone entitled enough to ensure the evidence doesn't vanish along the way."
She fell silent… then whispered:
"…I'm just a foreign envoy. I have no right to submit anything directly."
Wen Yichen locked eyes with her.
"You're choosing sides now, Xinluo.
And this time, there is no middle path left."
⸻
In the hidden study of the lesser palace,
Xianlan lit a single oil lamp and used a silver needle to open the seal of an old letter Wen Yichen had recently delivered.
"The seal… it's the key to my mother's case…" she murmured.
The letter mentioned medicinal requests made for Princess Jingfei (her mother's former title),
using the same seal that had just been forged in the current scandal.
Su Zhen's machinations hadn't started in Xianlan's time.
They had been set in motion long ago—
Only now did the strings begin to reveal their knots.
⸻
The next evening, Prince Su Yan entered the bamboo courtyard of Xianlan's residence.
His gaze was more resolute than before, but his voice still wavered in her presence.
"I… remembered something.
That day, when your mother… was taken away—
I was at Noble Consort Su's palace."
Xianlan paused her fan mid-motion.
"And what did you do that day?"
He bit his lip tightly, before answering:
"…I stood beside Su Zhen. And I said nothing."
She was silent for a long while before asking softly:
"Was it fear?
Or was it a choice to remain silent?"
He couldn't answer.
And that alone pierced deeper than any sword.
For though they were siblings… their memories stood on opposite ends of sky and earth.
⸻
After he left, Xianlan stood still beneath the plum blossoms.
"His blade may be unstained by blood…
but he watched it fall to the ground, without ever raising a word."
She whispered the words to herself.
A white blossom drifted onto her shoulder—
and the fading sunlight of dusk melted away into the silence of her heart.
⸻
In his own hidden chamber, Feng Yuhan flipped through documents newly delivered by Wen Yichen's agents.
After reading, he picked up a small metal signet ring, turning it slowly between his fingers.
"You're laying traps for everyone to walk into barefoot…
and you don't even realize that the one standing in the flames…
is you, Xianlan."
He whispered,
silently withdrawing the engagement still recorded in the royal registry.
Because he knew—
Even if he had to walk across a field of needles,
he would never let the shadow of the phoenix become another pawn in someone else's game.