“We’ve known each other hardly two weeks,” I said dumbly.
“True,” he said. “But we’ve also gone through more together in these two weeks than most people do in a lifetime.”
“But you’re a prince,” I said. “And I’m a priestess. What would people think?”
“A slothful prince,” he said, smiling wryly. “Too insignificant for anyone to think anything.”
“Stop saying that.” I scowled. “You’re not insignificant.”
His smile softened, and he reached for my hand again. “And that’s one of the reasons I like you, Siying. You see me, and you don’t hold back your words with me.”
The fire inside me had grown, scorching my neck and cheeks. “Ren…”
“You know,” he said, looking down, “it’s not lost on me that you’re still letting me hold your hand. And you have yet to tell me you don’t care for me.”
I realized he was right, following his gaze to our interlocked fingers. The room was so warm, as warm as his skin, and my thoughts were a haze. The only sensation I could latch on to was the loud pounding of my heart—and Ren’s tea-black eyes swallowing everything else around me.
He leaned forward, and the air between us flared like a firecracker roll about to combust. My pulse shot to my throat, and I whispered, without thinking, “Do you want to kiss me?”
A faint laugh escaped his lips. “Yes, very much.”
In that moment, I realized I wanted the same—had wanted him for longer than I’d realized.
I held my breath as he grasped my braid and ran his fingers down the length of it, gently tugging me closer. With his other hand, he cradled my chin, steady yet tender.
Just as I was squeezing my eyes shut, the thud of a door sliding shut somewhere in the house startled us both. Anshi’s disapproving face flashed, unwelcome, in my memory, and I jerked back.
“Ren, we—we can’t,” I stammered. “There’s something I have to talk to you about. I know you’ll hate what I have to say, but I must say it, and you must listen. It’s too important.”
Worry drained the blush from his face. “Are you really going to tell me you don’t care for me?”
“It’s not about that.” I shook my head. “In fact, I can’t think about that right now. It’s about your brother.”
His eyes went flat. “Siying, I already told you—”
“Stop.” I started to play with my hair, then caught myself. “First listen to me, all right?”
Listening was clearly the last thing he wanted to do. But seeming to read the anxiety in my eyes, he nodded slowly and said, “All right.”
“You can’t give the seal to your brother or have Anshi give it.” Sensing his protest, I continued, “I already told you I saw him in Yuyan’s memories at Jing Mansion. You were right—what I saw could’ve been a misrepresentation. But what if it wasn’t? Yuyan wasn’t the only one who had a bad impression of your brother. Master Zhang told me that Liqin personally led the attack against the men of Xiatang. He murdered his own people for simply disagreeing with the crown.”
“No,” said Ren, his quiet expiring. “During that time, he was touring the state to learn more about each settlement. How do you know Master Zhang didn’t lie to you too?”
“Both spirits happen to lie about the same person? Besides, you met Master Zhang, Ren. You witnessed his rage, his desire for justice. Do you think he’d lie?”
“No,” Ren admitted, his expression softening as he remembered Xiatang’s former town leader. “But he could’ve been misinformed. He wasn’t involved in the battle himself, so it’s possible, no?”
I resisted the impulse to sigh in frustration. We were wasting precious time by debating. But losing my composure would only antagonize Ren further. Worse, I might say something I’d regret.
“If you’re so confident,” I said, “let me ask you this: Why did your brother not inquire after your talisman? Why didn’t he assume you were a reanimated corpse?”
“He knew I was alive.”
“Yes, through his spies.” It took effort for me to bite back the venom in my throat. “They must’ve watched us during the length of our travels, which means your brother knew exactly where you were. So why didn’t he tell everyone youweren’tmissing? Why did he allow the governments of both states to view each other as guilty, thus straining the precious peace that remains?”
“He… he was likely worried the governor would want to use me as collateral should he know I was in Wen.”
“The governor was already searching for you, and Anshi eventually found you. Your brother could’ve easily defused the situation by telling everyone you were alive and safe. Instead, he let everyone believe you’d vanished, as if he wanted them to assume you were dead.”
