Prime Minister.

Chapter 3, Section 003: [Under the Mask]

If given a choice, Xue Huai certainly wouldn't want a direct conflict with this member of the imperial family.

He had only been in this world for two hours at most, and a vast amount of memories and information flooded into his mind like a tide. Now he desperately needed a quiet place to sort out his situation, roughly figure out who his friends and enemies were, and how to deal with the challenges ahead.

Who has the time or inclination to entertain a pampered princess's antics?

However, circumstances were beyond his control. Xue Huai thought to himself that if he turned away in a huff, and the other party became so angry that he actually went to the palace to complain, he would probably be severely injured, if not killed.

Being too forceful is not a good approach either. It is rumored that Princess Yun'an is arrogant and willful, and she may not really care about his status as a Hanlin scholar. Moreover, his image in the emperor's eyes is not as good as before, and his situation in the court is even more difficult.

Therefore, he stepped forward and looked solemnly at the young princess.

Upon seeing this, the guards by the door immediately stepped forward, but Jiang Li raised her hand to stop them, saying, "It's alright, I'm not so easily frightened by a scholar who can't even kill a chicken."

Xue Huai made no unnecessary movements and calmly said, "Your Highness is joking. How could I dare to be disrespectful to a superior?"

Jiang Li asked, "Then what do you want to do?"

Xue Huai seemed resigned, saying, "Your Highness, didn't you want to know about my conspiracy? I'm prepared to tell you the truth, but—"

He glanced at the guards not far away.

Jiang Li understood immediately, waved to dismiss the guards, and then said, "Now you can speak."

Xue Huai said solemnly, "The reason I came here to seek death is to frame Your Highness. I have a letter written in blood on my body, which fabricates many of Your Highness's illegal acts and the various ways Your Highness has bullied me in the past. In this way, after my death, the court can thoroughly investigate the case and make it impossible for Your Highness to protect yourself."

Knowing he was lying, Jiang Li still asked, "Where is the blood letter? Yesterday, the guards rescued you and had a doctor examine you, but they didn't find any blood letter on you."

Xue Huai thought for a moment and said, "Perhaps I forgot to write it down."

Jiang Li asked in surprise, "How could you forget to prepare such important evidence?"

Xue Huai controlled his expression and sighed, "I am only human, and I am bound to make mistakes and omissions."

Jiang Li then asked, "Then why did you frame me?"

Xue Huai quickly replied, "It's probably because of jealousy."

"envy?"

"Your Highness was born into wealth and honor, favored and cherished by the Emperor, and genuinely protected by the Crown Prince and the other princes. In terms of prestige, no one in the imperial clan can compare. The sons of powerful families in the capital all consider it an honor to show their faces in front of Your Highness. In contrast, I now have countless enemies in the court and am hated by everyone. Of course, I am jealous of Your Highness, which is why I came up with this foolish method that kills a hundred enemies but harms ten thousand of my own, in an attempt to cause Your Highness some trouble."

Hearing this, Jiang Li couldn't help but chuckle softly, then looked at Xue Huai curiously and asked, "Are you really Xue Huai?"

Xue Huai nodded and said, "It's genuine."

"Rare indeed, truly rare." Jiang Li clicked her tongue in amazement and exclaimed, "I originally thought you would be a man who would fly into a rage and spill blood, after all, judging from your past life, you are not lacking in such courage. I never expected that Xue Bianxiu, who is known for his uprightness and toughness, would also speak so carelessly like a scoundrel."

Although Xue Huai was making things up, his words revealed a very important piece of information: he had no motive to oppose the princess, so his falling into the water yesterday was indeed an accident.

Furthermore, if he really wanted to frame Jiang Li, he would have to make thorough preparations, rather than being completely unprepared like he is now.

Jiang Li was intelligent and perceptive, and clearly understood the unspoken meaning in his words.

Xue Huai secretly breathed a sigh of relief and explained, "To be honest, Your Highness, I have been on the brink of death these past two days and have finally come to understand some things. Regarding those things in the past, I do not think I was wrong, nor do I regret them. However, I feel that even if one cannot be outwardly flexible but inwardly principled, there is no need to always put on a tough stance."

This can be considered the premise for him to change his way of doing things.

"I see."

Upon hearing this reply, Jiang Li felt a slight ripple in her heart, but she remained stern in her words: "You had better not be lying. If I find out that you have ulterior motives, Minister Shen may not be able to protect you."

Xue Huai didn't press the matter and quickly changed the subject, saying, "I will never forget this life-saving grace. Your Highness owes me a tremendous favor."

Jiang Li's lips curled slightly, and her eyes held a hint of intriguing meaning: "Xue Huai, the favors I do are not so easy to repay."

Xue Huai said solemnly, "If Your Highness commands, I will do my best."

"Oh?"

Jiang Li raised her hand and stroked the white porcelain teacup on the table, saying leisurely, "Aren't you afraid that I will take advantage of your kindness and force you to do bad things? I've heard that Editor Xue is always righteous and intolerant of evil."

"I am not worried."

Xue Huai looked directly into Jiang Li's eyes and said, "Your Highness is righteous and often teaches those spoiled brats who do evil deeds a lesson. I have heard a lot about this in the past. Moreover, Your Highness is a princess of the royal family, so naturally you would not violate the laws of the court. Why should I worry unnecessarily?"

"I am now convinced that this accidental fall into the water has brought about a significant change in you, but it is also possible that you deceived everyone before."

Jiang Li raised her voice slightly, "With just a few words, you've put me in a difficult position, while leaving yourself plenty of room to maneuver. Others say you're inflexible and lack adaptability, but I find you to be meticulous and cunning." Xue Huai calmly replied, "Thank you for your praise, Your Highness."

Jiang Li was amused by his five words and then said, "Do you really think that falling into the water yesterday was an accident?"

This is actually where Xue Huai still has doubts.

The original owner's current situation is indeed not good. The suppression and targeting of him by the Ning Party will continue, and the Qingliu faction is unwilling to get close to him because of his previous recklessness and aloofness. Even the emperor is displeased with his continuous impeachments over the past two years.

If we were to say who was the only person who treated Xue Huai with all his heart, it would probably be his mother, Cui.

But would such a predicament really drive the original owner to the point of seeking death?
Xue Huai vaguely felt that the truth was not so simple, but his memories of yesterday were too chaotic. He couldn't remember why the original owner came to this villa or what happened by the river. He could only be sure that the original owner had suffered a great shock at the time.

Jiang Li observed the changes in his expression and continued, "My villa isn't exactly remote, but it's still quite far from the capital, the Hanlin Academy, and the Xue residence. Even if you want to relax, you don't need to make a special trip here, right?"

"Your Highness is right."

Xue Huai agreed, and then frankly said, "To be honest, Your Highness, perhaps because I have suffered too much shock, there are some things I can't remember."

"That's fine, it's your business, I don't need to worry about it for you."

Jiang Li said seriously, "I'm just reminding you not to become someone else's tool again like before. Even if you don't care about your own life, don't involve me. If it happens again, I won't care whether you live or die."

Xue Huai said, "Yes."

Jiang Li glanced at him and said, "Just now you said you owed me a huge favor. Is that true or false?"

Xue Huai knew, of course, that such a promise was very tricky. With Jiang Li’s status and power, there were very few problems in the world that could trap her. What could a mere compiler in the Hanlin Academy do for her?
When that day comes, Jiang Li will send someone to demand a reward from him. I wonder if his life will be enough to repay her?

However, the fact remains that he was saved, and the other party is not an easy person to get along with, so Xue Huai can only take it one step at a time for now.

For him, the most urgent tasks are to familiarize himself with the world as soon as possible, repair his network of connections as soon as possible, change the public's perception of him as soon as possible, and build his own power as soon as possible.

Therefore, he carefully said, "Your Highness, I am a person who knows how to repay kindness. If Your Highness needs my help in the future, as long as it does not violate the laws of the court and my conscience, I will do my best."

Jiang Li looked at him calmly, without mocking the cautious foreshadowing in his words, and said, "You've been missing for a day and a night. Your mother must be extremely worried right now. I've already sent someone to the Xue residence to inform them, and I've also arranged for you to take a few days off at the Hanlin Academy. Now that you're out of danger, I'll have someone escort you back home. By the way, do you still remember the way home?"

This favor is becoming increasingly important.

A strange feeling welled up in Xue Huai's heart again. He couldn't understand what the princess was trying to do. Since she had already helped him resolve his worries in advance, why did she put on that kind of attitude just now?
Was it just a sudden urge to play a prank on him?
However, he only wanted to leave this place as soon as possible, so he suppressed his thoughts, bowed and said, "Your subject remembers, thank you Your Highness."

……

After an incense stick has burned, the waterside pavilion and wind pavilion on the southeast side of the villa.

Jiang Li leaned against the railing, gazing at the fish swimming in the pond, looking somewhat listless.

Light footsteps sounded from the side, and Su Erniang, the chief steward of the princess's residence, came closer and asked softly, "Your Highness, how is that person?"

Jiang Li thought for a moment and slowly said, "Xue Huai's talent is well known, his background is clean and his family is upright, and he has a sincere heart that hates evil as if it were his enemy. These are not rumors."

Seeing this, Su Erniang reminded him, "But this person has a strange and stubborn personality, I'm afraid..."

"not necessarily."

Jiang Li gently tapped the railing with her fair and slender fingers, and said thoughtfully, "After meeting him today, I feel that he is not quite the same as his previous reputation. I don't know if he deliberately suppressed his nature in front of me, or if he went through a cycle of life and death, which caused a change in his temperament. In any case, he seems to have learned a bit about human relationships and is not annoying as soon as he opens his mouth."

Su Erniang asked in surprise, "Is that so?"

Jiang Li turned to look at her, a half-smile on her face, and said, "Second Madam, do you not believe my judgment?"

Su Erniang quickly shook her head.

She was once the personal maid of the Princess Consort of Qi. After the Prince of Qi passed away, the Princess Consort struggled to raise Jiang Li until she was three years old before dying of grief. Then, Su Erniang provided a warm haven for the young Jiang Li. In a sense, the two were like mother and daughter.

"Your Highness, since Xue Huai is different from the rumors, we can look forward to his future performance."

"Let's wait and see." Jiang Li leaned against Su Erniang's side and said slowly, "Perhaps this person really had an epiphany at the critical moment of life and death. If he has such good fortune, he may well cause some unexpected commotion in the future."

Su Erniang became somewhat nervous, subconsciously glancing around as if wary of prying eyes.

Jiang Li simply smiled faintly, her gaze fixed on the towering wall in the distance, and murmured to herself.

"It's interesting."

(End of this chapter)