After the Cold and Aloof Husband's Mask Falls - Chapter 20

The hour of the Rabbit (5:00 AM) had just passed, and the sky was still pitch black.

Eleven, dressed in night-traveler’s gear and damp with dew, arrived silently at Autumn Mountain. As he drew closer, he noticed that the lamp in Cui Jue’s room was still lit; it seemed he had not slept all night.

Knock, knock, knock.

Eleven knocked on the door. “Master, I have found the information.”

“Cough… come in.”

Eleven pushed the door open, met by the thick scent of herbal medicine and the warmth of a charcoal fire. Stepping onto the thick velvet carpet, he approached Cui Jue’s desk and immediately spotted a porcelain bowl filled with dregs.

Since the day he started following Cui Jue, Eleven knew his master’s constitution was weak. It was said he had suffered a severe illness in childhood, leaving him with deficient qi and blood. He was particularly sensitive to the cold, which was why he disliked going out in winter—and when he did, he always wore warm fox furs.

Yet yesterday, his master had worn only wide-sleeved robes and stood in a pavilion facing the freezing wind for several hours…

Eleven was worried but dared not say much. He simply bowed. “The Prince of Huai’s Heir has a penchant for abuse. His previous fiancée died at his hands, though the matter was suppressed by the Prince.”

“Did the family receive benefits?”

“The younger brother was promoted to Palace Commandery General.”

Cui Jue’s hand paused. His expression was indifferent. “The Prince of Huai’s manor… let us begin there, then.”

Eleven did not find it strange at all to go up against a Prince of the realm. He lowered his head further, his attitude increasingly submissive. “As you command.”

Like a gust of wind, Eleven vanished, leaving Cui Jue alone in the room.

Cui Jue added the ink to the eyes of the beauty in his painting and let out a soft breath, setting down his brush. Since he had promised to capture yesterday’s grand scene for her, he would not break his word. Gazing at the painted Gu Wanlan, dressed in her magnificent finery, his gaze softened involuntarily.

She deserved to be this radiant forever, possessing the best of everything in the world. She should not be framed or imprisoned as she was in their previous life…

A flash of pain crossed Cui Jue’s eyes. He stood up and felt for a hidden compartment in the bookshelf, pulling out a small notebook. When he opened it, the handwriting varied in age. It was a list of names; some were crossed out with vermilion ink, while others remained untouched.

His finger slid over the crossed-out names. He San, Li Mao…

It stopped at the very last name. Xiao Sun.

In the previous life, the people of Great Xia had only heard this name six months ago when Xiao Sun successfully took the throne of Rouran through a bloody coup. Rumor had it that because his mother was a Great Xia slave, he had been raised in a sheepfold despite being a prince, living a life no better than a slave.

It was likely during that time that he and Gu Wanlan, who was trapped on the plains, met. Childhood friends, sharing life and death, bonded in their time of hardship.

They had met much earlier than he had met Wanlan.

Cui Jue’s fingers suddenly tightened, wrinkling the page. BANG. He slammed the book shut and closed his eyes, forcing down the bitterness in his heart.

This life is different.

Cui Jue’s slender figure stood by the shelf. The flickering candlelight cast overlapping shadows across his jade-white face. He opened his eyes in the darkness.

Xiao Sun had failed his coup six months ago in this timeline and his current whereabouts were unknown. And as for Gu Wanlan… He had originally intended only to watch over her and clear her path in this life. But since she had proactively walked toward him, he would never let go.

The sun rose; it was a new day. Old things ought to be destroyed entirely.

Following that bizarre dream, Gu Wanlan spent the rest of the night tossing and turning. She ran through every man she had ever met, but if the dream were true, she couldn’t guess who would have the power to imprison her with chains.

Even if she had stayed at Changping Pass as she did in the dream, she still held the identity of General Ji Lin; ordinary people wouldn’t dare touch her.

As soon as dawn broke, she got up and practiced a set of spear techniques in the courtyard. Her thoughts gradually cleared. Regardless of who the man in the dream was, it certainly wasn’t Cui Jue, so it didn’t affect her current plans. If the future truly came to pass, she would just use her fists to break through it.

She wiped the sweat from her forehead. A few plum blossoms fell from a branch, grazing her cheek and carrying a faint, elegant scent. It made her think of Cui Jue. She sniffed her sleeve; she didn’t smell bad, but she decided to bathe anyway.

“Prepare some hot water. I want to soak,” she told her maid. “And add some flower petals.”

After freshening up and eating breakfast, she saw that Tianxuan hadn’t returned yet. She took a carriage to Autumn Mountain alone. Based on their interactions, she was certain that Cui Jue would take responsibility for yesterday’s “offense.” However, getting him to agree to a matrilocal marriage might require a bit more effort.

At his door, she was about to knock when it opened from the inside.

“Young Master Cui?” “Lady Gu?”

Cui Jue was stunned by her sudden visit. He hesitated, and the moment he met her eyes, he looked away awkwardly. He held out the scroll in his arms. “…I was just about to head to your manor to deliver the painting.”

Gu Wanlan looked at the scroll but didn’t take it. Her voice carried a hint of melancholy. “Aside from the painting, does Young Master Cui have nothing else to say to me?”

Cui Jue’s gaze darkened. A wave of burning emotion surged within him before vanishing instantly. He looked up, his expression serious. “I was not intentionally avoiding you. A grave mistake was made yesterday; I was planning to go to the Protector Duke in person to accept my punishment.”

“Why the Protector Duke?” Gu Wanlan stepped into the courtyard and closed the gate behind her.

Cui Jue looked at the closed gate. Before he could speak, she chuckled. “Unless we close the door, does Young Master Cui want to discuss this matter in public?”

Cui Jue didn’t respond to her teasing. He politely stepped back to maintain distance and bit his lip. “…It’s not that I didn’t want to apologize to you personally. I was simply worried that after yesterday, you would be angry and wouldn’t want to see me.”

His voice held a trace of trepidation, a far cry from his domineering aura in the cave. Gu Wanlan noticed the dark circles under his eyes and realized he had likely stayed up all night to finish the painting. Strangely, her heart felt a bit lighter.

She took the scroll from his arms, dragging out her words as she stared at him. “Well… I’m standing right in front of you now. Guess if I want to see you?”

Cui Jue’s lashes trembled. He still didn’t dare look up. “The Lady is like the moon in the sky, while I am but a speck of dust on the ground. I… I do not dare to speculate.”

What a fool, Gu Wanlan thought, but she put on a piteous expression.

“What ‘moon in the sky’ am I? Ever since I came to Xijing, my family smiles to my face and holds banquets for me, but behind my back…” At the mention of yesterday, her eyes turned red. “Actually, you were implicated because of me. You were an outsider, but you were forced into this. I should be the one apologizing—”

“Nonsense!” Cui Jue snapped, interrupting her.

Gu Wanlan looked up in surprise to see him frowning with actual anger.

“The malice of others has nothing to do with you. If we must trace the source, I was the one who was unprepared, and I was the one who accepted your invitation. Everything was my own doing.”

Gu Wanlan stared at him, stunned. Realizing he had let his emotions show and fearing he would scare her away, Cui Jue quickly stepped back and lowered his eyes. “Apologies. I simply feel… you are… very good. You should not have to bear the faults of others.”

“Then…” Her voice was soft, like a snail extending its feelers. “What if I said I allow you to speculate?”

She put her hands behind her back and kicked at the dust on the ground. “So what if you are ‘dust’? No one ever said the moon was perfectly clean and free of it.”

Cui Jue’s entire body shook. His blood felt as if it were burning again, just like yesterday.

He knew perfectly well that Gu Wanlan’s approach wasn’t because she loved him, but because she needed something. But he didn’t care. In the previous life, when his face was ruined, his hand disabled, and he was exiled to Changping Pass, she had been the one to accidentally stumble into his carriage when he had lost all hope.

He remembered the yellow sands of Changping Pass that day. His hair was matted, his appearance hideous, and he sat in that carriage like a pile of mud that everyone avoided. She, fleeing from danger, was malnourished with hair like withered grass—looking just as likely to die as he was. Yet, after a brief shock, she had smiled at him as if she had found a rare treasure.

“Big brother, your eyes are just like mine. They’re beautiful!”

He had not lied. She had always been the radiant moon, while he was the lowly dust. Even showing his true heart to her felt like a desecration. But at this moment, looking into her bright eyes, he couldn’t stop the “delusion” from taking root—he wanted her heart.

A long silence followed. Just as Gu Wanlan thought he hadn’t understood her hint and was about to be more direct, she saw him bow deeply before her.

“As long as the Lady does not mind my weak constitution… I shall obey your every command and never fail you.”

The words were ordinary, but his devout expression made them sound like a sweet, sacred vow. Gu Wanlan’s ears instantly turned bright red.