52 Interlude

In the dusk of a particularly cold day, Wei Hong Sheng returned to his estate. Upon his arrival, he headed straight for his personal study and flung off all of the retainers and servants who attempted to assist him. After pacing around the room several times in an agitated state, he finally sat at his desk, falling into his chair heavily with a thud. He then leaned over the desk and cupped his face in his palms. As he let out a prolonged sigh, his shoulders shook from the invisible weight pressing them down.

Nothing was going as he planned. He'd been forced to release information of the Minister of Revenue's illegal business ahead of schedule. While it did cause some ripples in court and some dirty water had been splashed upon Prince Rui for his personal association with the minister, it lacked impact. Prince Rui was like a fish that had slipped out of the net; he had managed to wipe his hands clean of the business and couldn't be held responsible whatsoever.

Wei Hong Sheng blamed all of his recent trouble on his brother. While he'd long known of Wei Tian Ao's existence, he had been hoping that his brother wouldn't enter the capital for another year or two. Wei Hong Sheng nearly had his power base fully established but had to cut off chunks of it when he left the Prince Rui estate. Certain people and resources were simply no longer available to him and the deals he was expecting to make after marrying Yan Qiu Yue had dried up, as well.

"No... Before Tian Ao, I should lay the blame at my good father's feet," he sneered. Someone had leaked information of Wei Tian Ao's whereabouts to Prince Rui. The years that Wei Hong Sheng had spent pretending to be a dandy wastrel now worked against him instead. His father had ousted him without batting an eyelid. He was ostracized and lost his status as Prince Rui-shizi. His plan that had been built up for years had suddenly collapsed. To top it all off, in a few days, Yan Qiu Yue would be married to another man.

Was there enough time to do anything? Certainly, he could throw his face to the wind and beg the emperor to give him back his fiancee. It might even work—the emperor would likely be all too gleeful to slap Prince Rui in the face by shuffling the marriage once more. But it would be a hollow victory. He would gain Yan Qiu Yue, but lose everything else. Besides, as merely a concubine-born son of a prince of first rank, there was no way Wei Hong Sheng as he was now could provide Yan Qiu Yue the life she was used to and deserved. Even calling himself a "concubine-born son" was being exceedingly generous.

No. He couldn't do that. But at the thought of his brother getting to have her... His blood boiled. Wei Hong Sheng took a deep breath to steady himself, leaning back in his chair. The chair tipped precariously backward towards the wall. "I must be patient... Life is long... I've waited this long. What's another year or two?" He'd seen the way Yan Qiu Yue looked at him and seen her complete lack of interaction with Wei Tian Ao. She loved him, not his brother; he was sure of it. The more Wei Tian Ao pushed her and tried to act as a husband, the more Yan Qiu Yue would be repulsed by him. Her unyielding spirit was one of the many things Wei Hong Sheng cherished about her. She would not turn back. And when the time was right and he had absolute power...she would be his.

So Wei Hong Sheng had to be patient. Releasing the information on the Minister of Revenue early had been a mistake made in desperation—a mistake he wouldn't make again. The person who had leaked information to his father would have to be dealt with, as well.

There was a sonorous knock at the door to the study. "Sir. I have a report to make."

"Enter."

The door opened to reveal one of his shadow people, an expert at gathering information. "Prince Rui-shizi has almost fully recovered. The arrow didn't hit any vital points. While he may have some lingering pain, the wound isn't expected to cause any lasting damage. The wedding will proceed as scheduled."

"The culprit?"

"Still unknown. However..."

Wei Hong Sheng raised an eyebrow. It was rare for his subordinate to hesitate like this. "What is it?" Even if they didn't have evidence as to the culprit, it was easy enough to guess from the narrow list of people who would wish Prince Rui-shizi—or Prince Rui—harm.

"I was able to have the original arrow smuggled out of Prince Rui's estate and replaced with another. We analyzed the arrow that shot Wei Tian Ao and found that the wood comes from Northern Xi."

Wei Hong Sheng immediately stood up in shock. "What!? Northern Xi...?" What did this mean? Was it all a ploy to mask the culprit or did someone in Northern Xi actually want Wei Tian Ao's life? And, more importantly, who at that hunt had ties to Northern Xi and could carry out such an order? The implications were staggering. "Who else knows about this?"

"Just myself and the other subordinate who carried out the analysis."

"You were able to take the arrow before Prince Rui's people could look at it?"

"Yes. We took it nearly as soon as it was pulled from Wei Tian Ao. Prince Rui is having our fake arrow investigated, but he will glean nothing of importance from it."

"Good. Very good! You will be heavily rewarded for this. Return now. Keep me apprised of any new developments."

"Yes, sir." The man bowed respectfully before disappearing out the door.

Wei Hong Sheng slowly sat back down in his chair. There was much he now had to consider, but overall this was a good thing for his cause. His mind drifted back to Yan Qiu Yue. She and Wei Tian Ao would be married in a few days. But... This, too, was for the best. If she was married once, no other man would want her after that. Even if Wei Tian Ao married another, even if Wei Tian Ao died... She'd be considered a widow. But what did her status matter to Wei Hong Sheng? Yan Qiu Yue would always be Yan Qiu Yue.

Everything he desired, the life he wanted... They were right there waiting for him if he dared reach out his hand to grab them.

And Wei Hong Sheng dared to dream.