Chapter Text
Burning houses choked the sky with ash, and blood stained every corner of Lin'an. Bodies lay scattered across the streets, some crumpled against walls, others sprawled where they had fallen trying to flee. The acrid smell of smoke mixed with the metallic scent of blood until the air itself felt suffocating. Amid the chaos, terrified cries echoed from Xigu Alley, where a group of villagers had been dragged forward by a band of armed men and forced onto their knees.
Standing before them was Sui Yuanqing.
The Crown Prince of Changxin rested both hands atop the shaft of his spear as he leisurely surveyed the trembling crowd. The destruction surrounding him seemed to put him in an excellent mood, yet a faint impatience still lingered in his eyes. He had crossed mountains and rivers to reach Lin'an, only to discover that the person he sought remained frustratingly elusive.
"I was told there is a pig butcher among you," he remarked lightly, his gaze sweeping over the villagers one by one. Though his tone was almost conversational, it only heightened the terror etched across their faces. "Tell me her name."
No one answered. The alley fell silent except for the crackling of distant flames.
Sui Yuanqing's smile deepened, "Then tell me where she lives."
Still, no one spoke.
His spear slowly lifted, its blade glinting beneath the smoke-darkened sky. "Otherwise," he continued, as though discussing something entirely ordinary, "I shall start killing you one at a time."
Constable Wang's hands had been tied behind his back. Despite the bruise swelling along his cheek, he still sat straight-backed, shielding the trembling embroidery shop owner, Madam Chen, with his body as best he could. Beside them, Chef Li knelt with blood running down one side of his forehead, while Mrs. Li from the noodle stall clutched his sleeve, unable to stop shaking.
Further down the line, Cui Qianjin and Madam Song had been forced to their knees together. The usually talkative woman was deathly pale, and even Cui Qianjin's habitual grin had long since disappeared.
Before anyone could react, a figure dropped from the rooftops and landed directly in front of Sui Yuanqing. The impact was accompanied by a sharp pain in his abdomen. He sucked in a breath and lowered his gaze.
A heavy butcher blade was pressed firmly against his stomach. Another rested against his throat.
The alley fell completely silent. For a brief moment, neither side moved.
Then Sui Yuanqing laughed. His laughter echoed strangely through the smoke-filled street as he raised his eyes to the woman standing before him. Dressed in practical clothing stained with soot and dust, Fan Changyu looked every bit as dangerous as the rumors had suggested. Her grip on the twin blades was unwavering, and her dark eyes burned with barely restrained fury.
"It's you," he murmured, sounding almost pleased.
Fan Changyu ignored the amusement in his voice and pressed the blade at his abdomen deeper. A thin line of blood immediately seeped through the fabric of his robes.
"If you're looking for me, I'm here," she said coldly. "Let these people go. Harm one more person and I'll kill you myself."
Most men would have recoiled from such a threat. Sui Yuanqing did neither.
Instead, he studied her.
An entire city burned around them, yet there was not a trace of fear in her eyes. No hesitation. No uncertainty. Only anger and determination.
Interesting. So very interesting.
A smile tugged at the corner of his mouth as he leaned forward slightly, seemingly unconcerned by the blade resting against his throat.
"I came looking for you," he observed. "Is this how you greet me?"
"What do you want with me?" Fan Changyu demanded.
"A name." His gaze lingered on her face. "The maid Marquis Wu'an was so desperate to protect."
A flicker of confusion crossed her expression. "What does Marquis Wu'an have to do with me?"
The question sounded genuine enough that Sui Yuanqing paused. For the first time since arriving in Lin'an, he found himself uncertain.
Then amusement returned. "Still pretending?"
"I've never met Marquis Wu'an."
The certainty in her answer only deepened his curiosity. Either she was the finest liar he had ever encountered, or she truly had no idea why Marquis Wu'an had pursued him so relentlessly through the mountains.
Either possibility fascinated him.
"Tell me your name."
The request sounded almost polite, as though they were meeting at a teahouse rather than standing amid a city drenched in blood.
Fan Changyu tightened her grip on the butcher blades.
"No."
For the first time, a trace of displeasure crossed Sui Yuanqing's face. The smile remained, but it no longer reached his eyes.
"Then I shall kill them." His gaze drifted past her shoulder toward the kneeling townspeople. "One by one."
A murmur of panic rippled through the crowd, Madam Chen's face went white, Mrs. Li immediately burst into tears. Even Constable Wang's jaw tightened.
Fan Changyu's grip clenched so hard her knuckles whitened. The blade pressed deeper into Sui Yuanqing's abdomen, drawing another thin line of blood that slowly spread across his robes.
"Don't." The word escaped through clenched teeth.
Sui Yuanqing glanced down at the stain and laughed softly.
"Release them," Fan Changyu demanded.
"Why would I?"
The ease of his response only fueled her anger.
"You wanted me." She seethed. "I'm here."
Smoke drifted between them, carrying sparks into the air. For a moment, neither looked away. Sui Yuanqing's gaze roamed over her face as though examining a rare curiosity.
"I wanted answers." A smile slowly returned to his lips. "You're merely a bonus."
Fan Changyu very nearly drove the blade straight through him.
Instead, she forced herself to remain calm. "Let them go and I'll tell you my name."
The alley fell silent, even the bandits exchanged glances. Sui Yuanqing regarded her for several moments, seemingly weighing the offer. Around them, the villagers held their breath, afraid to make even the slightest sound.
Finally, he chuckled. "A bargain?"
"Take it or leave it."
The Crown Prince tilted his head. There was something almost playful in his expression now, "I do enjoy bargains."
His eyes lingered on her face before sliding briefly toward the trembling villagers behind her.
"Very well."
Then, almost as an afterthought, he added, "Marquis Wu'an's woman."
Fan Changyu's brows furrowed, "I am not Marquis Wu'an's woman."
"Really?" The smile never left his face.
It has beginning to irritate her more than the spear pointed at the villagers. Fan Changyu hesitated briefly before deciding to use his assumptions against him. Lifting her chin, she met his gaze directly.
"So what if I admire him?" She remarked, the slightest curl of her lips lifted upwards. "What if I wish to become his woman?"
For the first time, Sui Yuanqing's smile faltered. Something darker surfaced beneath it. Something possessive. The change was subtle, but Fan Changyu noticed.
He took a slow step closer, "Then answer me this."
The butcher blade sank deeper into his stomach, he winced yet instead of retreating, he leaned even closer, "Between Marquis Wu'an and me..." His voice dropped lower. "Who is superior?"
Fan Changyu nearly laughed. Of all the questions he could have asked, it was this. His obsession was truly absurd.
"You're comparing yourself to someone who protects the Great Yin.”
The words landed like a slap. For a heartbeat, the alley became deathly quiet. The bandits froze, the villagers stared. Even the crackling of distant flames seemed to fade. Then Sui Yuanqing threw his head back and laughed. The sound rang through the smoke-filled street, startling several nearby horses.
"I like you."
The declaration made Fan Changyu's expression twist with undisguised disgust. "Unfortunately for you, I don't care."
His laughter only grew louder, "Good."
That single word made her skin crawl more than any threat. At last he raised one hand, "We're leaving."
The surrounding bandits immediately stiffened. One stepped forward uncertainly.
"Your Highness—"
"We're leaving."
"The Second Boss will not be pleased—"
"If he's unhappy, he may complain to me personally."
The amusement vanished from Sui Yuanqing's face, the shift was so sudden that several bandits instinctively lowered their heads.
"I am the Crown Prince of Changxin." The authority in his voice cut through the alley like a blade. "Release them."
No one dared argue further, knives cut through the thick rope that fell on the bloodstained stone and the released prisoners scrambled to their feet.
Madam Chen stumbled, Chef Li caught her arm. Mrs. Li was openly crying as Constable Wang hurried her toward safety.
Fan Changyu never lowered her weapons, not even for a moment, "Run." Her command cracked through the alley, her expression hardened.
"Now."
Her eyes found Constable Wang, "Uncle Wang, take care of Ningniang for me."
The old constable's face tightened, he understood exactly what she was doing. After a long moment, he nodded heavily.
"I will."
Cui Qianjin looked back several times, Madam Song was scared for her life and was the first to run away immediately. Chef Li had to practically drag Mrs. Li away.
Only after the last figure vanished did Sui Yuanqing speak again, a low laugh escaped him, "They are safe." His eyes met hers, "Now come with me."
Fan Changyu's grip tightened around the butcher blades.
The journey to the Sui Estate took nearly seven days, Sui Yuanqing had offered her a private tent each night and he had made her ride on the same horse as him, making sure that she wouldn't run away, not like she could because of the amounts of bandits that were with them. She accepted the privacy without gratitude and refused to mistake it for kindness. Her knives were gone — she had watched them disappear into a Sui Yuanqing's saddlebag on the first morning and had not seen them since.
Without them she was not precisely a prisoner, but she was not free either. The distinction existed only in the framing, and the framing belonged entirely to him.
She hadn't spoken much throughout the journey but Sui Yuanqing, for his part, seemed entirely unbothered by her silence. That bothered her more than anything else.
She had thought long and hard about how to escape but truly, she had no idea where she was. She had never been outside of Qingping County, the places and forestry she did not recognise, the wilderness was vast and different. During the journey, she wasn't sure why but every morning, she felt nauseous and tired. Was it because she was taken away from her little sister and all the worries and anxiety that made her feel this way or the fact that she was with a man who massacred her home, it made her feel sick just looking at him.
The Sui estate emerged from the tree line on the afternoon of the seventh day — vast and unhurried, as though it had always known she would arrive eventually. High walls of pale stone stretched in both directions, and the gates stood open as though expecting them. Fan Changyu's gaze moved across the rooflines, the guard posts, the distance between the outer wall and the main hall. She catalogued it all behind an expression that gave nothing away.
They had barely passed through the gates when a figure appeared at the top of the entrance steps.
Sui Yuanhuai was thinner than she had expected. He descended slowly, one hand trailing along the stone banister, but his eyes were sharp and alert in a way that his careful movements belied. The moment he saw his brother, his face somehow held a double meaning which Fan Changyu could not place but there was subtlety behind it. Still, he smiled crookedly at Sui Yuanqing and welcomed him with open arms.
"Welcome back, brother.”
Sui Yuanqing swung down from his horse and crossed the courtyard in a few long strides. The brothers met at the base of the steps, and for a moment the Crown Prince of Changxin looked almost like an ordinary person.
Sui Yuanqing laughed — the same laugh from the alley, but warmer somehow, stripped of its performance. Yuanhuai's gaze drifted past his brother's shoulder. His dark eyes found Fan Changyu, his gaze sent her an unpleasant shiver down her spine. A single glance — brief, perceptive, unhurried. He took in her travel-worn clothes, her straight posture, the careful blankness of her expression. Whatever conclusion he reached, he kept it entirely to himself. His eyes returned to his brother without comment.
“I see that you got what you've been looking for.” Sui Yuanhuai remarked.
“Indeed. Let's go inside and I'll tell you.” Sui Yuanqing had a dark smirk plastered on his face.
The two of them moved toward the entrance together, Yuanhuai asking something low about the road, Sui Yuanqing answering with easy familiarity. Neither looked back.
A servant materialized at her elbow.
This way, miss."
Fan Changyu did not move immediately. She lingered in the center of the courtyard, committing every detail to memory—the gate behind her already swinging shut, the guard posts overlooking the grounds, the distance to the outer wall.
Guards stood at every vantage point. One glance was enough to tell her that escape was impossible, no matter how carefully she planned. With that realization settled in her mind, she followed the maid deeper into the residence, wondering what the Crown Prince of Changxin could possibly want with her.
After an hour of idling in the room assigned to her, it was no small room, it was bigger than her house in Lin'an, and yet even with all the lacquered decor and carved wooden furniture, it felt empty, desolate.
However, Fan Changyu found herself grateful for the solitude. At the very least, she was spared from sharing a chamber with that obsessive prince.
Even if circumstances had forced it upon her, she would never have allowed herself to sleep beside another man. That place belonged solely to her husband. Those fleeting moments—tender, breathless, and precious—were memories she held close to her heart. No amount of time or distance could diminish them.
Nor would she allow another man to tarnish what they had shared.
Her gaze hardened.
Whatever the Crown Prince intended, she would resist him with every ounce of strength she possessed. If he sought to force her submission, he would learn that she was not so easily broken.
Fan Changyu's expression darkened when she saw the door open, it was Sui Yuanqing, dressed in a dark robe embroidered with gold. His gaze swept over her as though she already belonged to him.
“You don’t look pleased to see me.” Sui Yuanqing said.
The door closed behind him.
“Should I be?” She remarked, the disdain in her voice was very apparent.
“You're my prisoner for the time being but you don't act frightened or scared… that's a good thing, I like women who are fierce and fight.” He commented, sitting across from her.
“If you lay your hands on me, I will break them.” She threatened.
“Feisty.”
He grabbed her hand, pulling her across from the table, she turned his wrist in an attempt to break them but he stopped her. And he kissed her knuckles gently.
“Enjoy your time here, Fan Changyu because I certainly will.”