Chapter 98

The hands resting on Jiang Yi's shoulders trembled slightly for a moment, instinctively clutching his clothes. Jiang Yi's arms around her waist seemed to pause briefly before tightening even more, pulling her firmly against him.
Jiang Yi had lived with Yan Yiming for four years. He remembered her lazy yet unyielding nature, her frail body was unexpectedly stubborn, but her heart was soft. Jiang Yi was clever; even as a young boy, he had learned to use vulnerability and coquetry to make Yan Yiming relent. With a temperament like hers, she always responded to softness rather than force.
However, these words were ones he had already rehearsed a thousand times in solitude. So even if his intentions were calculated now, the emotions were genuine.
He had never bowed his head in front of others, but for Yan Yiming, Jiang Yi felt there was nothing he couldn't do.
Yan Yiming suddenly felt a pang of sorrow and bitterness.
As far as she could remember, even the boy standing alone in the snow, whom no one cared to glance at, had always carried himself with pride. Never had she seen him display such humility in front of her.
Yan Yiming had never intended to entangle with him again after the game ended. But even if it was just a game, Jiang Yi was the child she had nurtured with care for four years, watching him grow up bit by bit.
Why had things come to this? Why did he have to find out? Why did her heart soften?
With a soft sigh, her slender fingers gently smoothed his slightly disheveled hair, just as she had done during the years they spent together. Yan Yiming lowered her eyelashes and said, “Young Master, you're drunk.”
A gentle smile bloomed on Jiang Yi's lips. “It's not the wine that intoxicates, but the person. Since the moment I saw you, I've never been sober.” Jiang Yi finally released Yan Yiming, suddenly standing up. Yan Yiming was taken aback and instinctively stepped back, but Jiang Yi swept her up in his arms.
His clear, melodious laughter still rang in her ears as they tumbled onto the soft bedding, their faces mere inches apart.
Yan Yiming's startled eyes met Jiang Yi's dark, intense gaze. Before she could decipher the emotions hidden within them, his kisses descended, first on her eyes, then the tip of her nose, and finally her lips. His tongue gently parted her teeth, carrying the faint scent of wine as he kissed her with earnest and meticulous care.
Yan Yiming pushed weakly against Jiang Yi's chest with the hand pressed against it, but it seemed to have little effect. Finally catching a brief moment to catch her breath, she covered Jiang Yi's face and urgently said, “Young Master, what are you doing...”
Jiang Yi reluctantly pulled away for a moment, a roguish smile playing on his handsome features. “Kissing you,” he said. “You said it yourself, I'm drunk.” With that, he took the opportunity to plant a kiss on her palm, then grasped her trembling hand as she tried to pull it back. Leaning down, he gently nibbled on the tip of her ear, his eyes crinkling into crescents as he smiled at her. “You took in a drunkard, A’Ming. Did you not consider the consequences?”
For a moment, Yan Yiming was at a loss, but she quickly regained her composure. Still, she made no move to push Jiang Yi away, allowing him to kiss her for a long while.
But now, hearing Jiang Yi's words again, Yan Yiming broke into a smile. With a clever twist of her hand, she freed herself from his grasp and, under his surprised gaze, deftly flipped over and sat up. “What consequences?” she said, narrowing her eyes and touching her still-tingling ear with a laugh. “A little scholar who even needs help climbing over walls, I don't take him seriously.”
“Is that so? So our A’Ming is both cultured and skilled in martial arts. Truly impressive,” Jiang Yi's surprise vanished in an instant, replaced by an even brighter smile. “So, just now, you clearly could have pushed me away but didn't refuse. Could it be that you enjoyed it?”
Yan Yiming's hand trembled, and for a moment, all she wanted was to cover Jiang Yi's mouth.
Jiang Yi took in her slightly stiff expression and, with great understanding, didn't press the topic further. Seizing the moment when she was off guard, he pulled her back, wrapped an arm around her waist, and tumbled with her onto the bed once more.
Although Yan Yiming had issued verbal warnings before, it was clear to Jiang Yi that she wouldn't actually take action against him, and he grew bolder, fearless in his demeanor.
Just as Yan Yiming turned her head to say something, Jiang Yi pressed her into the pillow, propping his head on one hand as he looked at her with an expression that seemed to say, “Alright, alright, I'll let you off.” “I'm a bit dizzy, don't move around,” he said, gazing down at her. “So, is this face your real one?”
The topic changed so quickly, Yan Yiming thought to herself. She nodded and replied, “Mm.”
Jiang Yi fell into thought for a moment before speaking again. “Back then, I was the one who brought you from Hangzhou to the capital.”
“Mm,” Yan Yiming responded again, wondering why he was bringing this up now.
“So, no matter who else there is, this time, I was the first to see you, the first to recognize you. Isn't that right?”
Yan Yiming parted her lips, her eyes lifting to meet Jiang Yi's earnest gaze. A pang of sorrow tugged at her heart. Would it be better to be cruel? But faced with such a look, how could she bear it?
“Yes,” Yan Yiming said. “It was all you.”
The first to see me, the first to recognize me, it was all you.
Yan Yiming suddenly understood why Jiang Yi had come here, why he had suddenly started drinking, and why he had said those words earlier.
He said that no matter who else there was, he was comparing himself to them.
Jiang Yi had never cared about the Crown Prince, so it couldn’t be because of him. Excluding the Crown Prince, that left only Jian Yuyan and Shao Jingyu.
Shao Jingyu was still on his way back to the capital, and aside from the emperor and Shao Jingyu himself, no one knew the real name of that female general. There was no way Jiang Yi could have guessed.
As for Jian Yuyan, Jiang Yi had recently collaborated with him on several matters. If Jian Yuyan hadn’t been cautious, it wouldn’t be surprising if Jiang Yi had discovered something.
She had never been one to hold back her thoughts, so once she figured it out, she asked directly.
“Shaojun,” Yan Yiming called out to him, “do you know something?”
“Yes,” Jiang Yi looked down at her, his gaze calm. “It turns out the actress Jian Yuyan has been pining for all these years is also named A’Ming, and she also has a red mole at the corner of her right eye. Is that a coincidence?”
“No,” Yan Yiming averted her eyes, “that was also me…”
“Your guess is correct.”
Jiang Yi’s hand, hidden in the shadows, clenched abruptly. His heart ached terribly, but he still tried his best to control his expression. “A few days ago, Jian Yuyan told me about the spies Chancellor Jian had planted. It was you who guided him to do that.”
Sure enough, Jiang Yi knew everything.
“I used my identity as A’Ming to persuade him to tell you about Chancellor Jian’s plans.”
“So it was you who begged for his life,” Jiang Yi’s lips clearly showed a smile, but his voice was bone-chillingly cold. “Why?”
“Why did you save him?” Jiang Yi asked. As he spoke these words, he was so overwhelmed with sorrow that his ears even felt a temporary deafness. His voice trembled, and his tone grew increasingly aggressive. “With his status, he was bound to die. Why save him? Do you love him?”
“I don’t love him,” Yan Yiming sighed and met Jiang Yi’s eyes again. “Not even a little bit.”
The deafening heartbeat in his ears seemed to vanish abruptly. Jiang Yi carefully replayed Yan Yiming’s words over and over in his mind before finally snapping back to reality. Only then did his deep, dark eyes gradually fill with boundless excitement.
Since she didn’t love him, Jiang Yi asked her,
“Then if he dies, will you be sad?”
“No,” Yan Yiming said, but then her eyes widened suddenly, and an inexplicable unease spread from the depths of her heart.
Jiang Yi’s gentle facade had lulled her into a sense of complacency. It wasn’t until this moment that Yan Yiming suddenly realized, he was the elegant young master who always wore a smile, but he was also the cold-blooded Chief Minister who had climbed to the second-highest position by stepping on countless others.
The more tolerance he showed her, the more cruelty he would inflict on others.
“Shaojun, what do you intend to do?”
“I want to send him to his death,” Jiang Yi said.
“I want him dead, A’Ming. You know the reason, and I also know what he once did.”