After the Cold and Aloof Husband's Mask Falls - Chapter 24

To be fair, Cui Jue’s behavior on the day of Gu Wanlan’s recognition banquet had been unremarkable; he had even been exceptionally polite. The most out-of-line thing he had said was, “I am Lady Gu’s man,” but even that had a reason—it was to counter the insolent Heir of the Prince of Huai.

Despite this, Gu Lehuan simply couldn’t bring herself to like him. It was an instinctual repulsion, like two similar species clashing.

“I might not have direct evidence right now, but this Cui Jue…” Lehuan’s head drooped in frustration, realizing that without proof, it sounded like she was just slandering him. “Anyway, that time I took him to your courtyard, the look in his eyes when he watched you… it wasn’t pure.”

Gu Wanlan arched an eyebrow. “I was a bit of a beauty that day. It would be more abnormal if he wasn’t captivated by me.”

Lehuan was amused by her sister’s tone, but she quickly suppressed her smile to stay serious. “If you don’t believe me… if you don’t believe me, just wait! I will definitely peel away his painted skin and show you who he really is!”

“Haha, alright. I’ll be waiting for that.” Gu Wanlan took it as a joke and didn’t give it much thought.

She did have one doubt about Cui Jue, but it wasn’t about his character—it was the dream version of him claiming they were “old friends.”

Back in her room, Tianxuan had still not returned. Gu Wanlan declined Qi Rong’s dinner invitation and had a meal brought from the kitchen. It wasn’t until the middle of the night that Tianxuan finally reappeared.

She looked battered. Her hair was disheveled, and blood seeped through the shoulder of her robe.

“Master! Tianquan is in trouble!”

Gu Wanlan’s expression sharpened, and a murderous glint flashed in her eyes. She pulled out her medical kit and stepped forward. “Who laid a hand on you? Tell me everything, slowly.”

The fabric had already stuck to the wound. As Gu Wanlan cut away the cloth, Tianxuan let out a sharp gasp of pain.

“It… it was bad luck for me and Tianquan.”

That morning, Tianxuan had gone to meet Tianquan to have him investigate the original choice for the supervisor at Changping Pass. Since Tianxuan had already shown her face in public, they met at a restaurant for safety. The investigation was easy, and they were about to leave when the Prince of Huai’s Heir arrived with friends. They were forced to hide in a private room to avoid him.

“He injured you?” Gu Wanlan frowned, applying medicinal powder to the arrow wound.

Tianxuan shook her head, looking shaken. “No. He’s the one who met with disaster tonight.”

Tianxuan had intended to leave once the Heir passed. However, within minutes, the sounds of crashing furniture and screams erupted from below. Someone had assassinated the Heir in broad daylight, and his arm had been severed in public!

The assassins fled, the restaurant was sealed, and the Prince of Huai arrived shortly after to personally interrogate everyone present.

Gu Wanlan closed the medical box. “So, to prevent your connection to Tianquan from being exposed, you fled?”

Tianxuan knelt, her eyes red. “Yes. The situation was urgent, so I jumped out the window. The Prince must have spotted something; he shot an arrow at me from a distance.”

“I failed my mission! Not only is Tianquan being held as a suspect in the dungeon, but I’ve brought trouble to you as well! Please punish me!”

Gu Wanlan sighed. “This isn’t your fault; it’s just bad luck. Don’t worry about punishment yet. Tell me about the assassination—is there anything else you noticed?”

Tianxuan wiped her tears and racked her brain. “Wait! Before the chaos started, I think I heard someone shouting at the Heir, calling him a ‘beast’!”

A beast? It seemed the assassination was an act of personal vengeance against the Heir’s abuses. But to get more details, Gu Wanlan would need to ask around using a different identity…

She helped Tianxuan up and wiped her tears. “Stop crying. I’ll get Tianquan out tomorrow. The Prince likely recognized Tianquan; his goal is simply to force Ji Lin to show his face. It has nothing to do with whether you fled or not.”

As for why he wanted to see Ji Lin? It was likely due to the Rouran hostage. A hostage meant peace was coming, which didn’t serve the Prince of Huai’s interests. He wanted to win Ji Lin over.

Gu Wanlan pressed her temples, exasperated. That old fox. His son is lying there bleeding out, and he’s still calculating how to manipulate people.

“Is… is that so?” Tianxuan blinked, forgetting to cry.

But Gu Wanlan’s face turned stern. “However, you were too impulsive today. Even if you wanted to distance me from Ji Lin, there were safer ways. For this, I sentence you to copy the Art of War twenty times! Do you accept?”

Tianxuan’s nose crinkled, nearly crying again—this time out of relief. “Your subordinate accepts the punishment!”

“Wait,” Gu Wanlan called out as Tianxuan was cleaning up. “About the Changping Pass supervisor…”

Tianxuan looked up. “The Emperor’s original choice was indeed the Censor Song Mingli. But Master Song fell gravely ill and couldn’t travel. They changed it to that Cui dog (Cui Qiong) at the last minute.”

“If Master Song hadn’t gotten sick, you could have stayed at the pass as a young general. You wouldn’t have to hide behind two identities like this.”

Tianxuan scrubbed the table hard, imagining it was Cui Qiong’s face. When she got no response, she looked up and saw Gu Wanlan frozen mid-motion, her face as white as a sheet, as if her soul had been snatched away.

“Master?! What’s wrong? You look terrible!”

Gu Wanlan snapped back to reality. She looked down at the drawstring of her robe, which she had accidentally tied into a messy dead knot. “It’s nothing…”

She stared at the knot for a long time before pulling one specific thread. If it’s a mess, you just have to find the key thread. With a shirr, the knot gave way and her outer robe fell.

The next morning, Gu Wanlan woke up late. After her morning exercises, she noticed the servants stealing glances at her. She caught a maid and questioned her.

She was shocked to find that Cui Jue had arrived early that morning. Qi Rong and Gu Lehuan, under the guise of having him paint, had invited him to Hanshan Temple.

This wasn’t Qi Rong’s style; it had to be Lehuan’s doing. Gu Wanlan remembered Lehuan’s words: “I will reveal his painted skin!” She was actually going through with it.

“Should I prepare a carriage, Eldest Miss?” the maid asked nervously.

“No, let them go.” Gu Wanlan’s eyes were pensive. Let Lehuan test his depth. If her dream was indeed a past life, then the biggest variable in this life was anyone with the surname “Cui.”

“Wait,” she added. “Hanshan Temple is far. Send an extra squad of guards to follow them.”

At the same time, the Autumn Mountain Villa—a place rarely visited—received a new guest.

The Prince of Huai, dressed in his full court regalia, sat with eyes closed inside his carriage. A guard stepped forward and hammered on the villa gate.

“His Highness the Prince of Huai has arrived! Order Ji Lin to come out and pay his respects!”