Unfortunately, it was Prince Lu. And even more unfortunately, he wasn't alone. All three of them were standing there.
Prince Lu grinned, far too cheerful for the hour. "Good morning, sunshine."
Linyue blinked once, unimpressed, and walked away. She sat down on the nearest chair. The others silently followed and found seats around the round table in her chamber.
Song Meiyu, already bright-eyed and thriving on gossip and chaos, hummed as she poured tea for everyone. She tilted her head, her smile too innocent to be trusted. "Why did you all come so early?"
Shen Zhenyu spoke first. His voice low and careful. "There's a lot going on. We need a plan. Are we staying here, or are we going back east with Prince Lu?"
Linyue leaned back slightly, watching Shen Zhenyu with narrowed eyes. "What about you, Brother Zhenyu?" she asked.
He met her gaze, quiet as always. His face gave nothing away, but Linyue had known him long enough to read the silence between his words.
"I don't want you all to get involved in this," he said at last, his voice quiet but firm.
Song Meiyu tilted her head, curiosity sparking in her eyes. "Involved in what, exactly?"
He Yuying raised one lazy eyebrow. "Wait. Is something going on? Are we walking into a trap? Is this about the underground lab again?"
Everyone turned toward Shen Zhenyu expectantly.
He stayed quiet for a moment longer, then exhaled slowly. "Queen Shen… is my mother."
The room fell silent. Even Song Meiyu's teacup froze halfway to her mouth.
Prince Lu, who had been sipping his tea in perfect princely boredom, set his cup down very slowly. His eyes narrowed slightly as he stared at Shen Zhenyu. He was not surprised. Not really. After all, he had met Shen Zhenyu a long time ago, back when Shen Zhenyu was still a prince of Shenlin. Sharp eyes. Quiet posture. The kind of kid who probably had a dozen escape plans in his head. What he never understood was why someone like that would give up his position to hide away in Xuanyi Pavilion.
The teacup slipped from Song Meiyu's hand in slow motion. But before it could smash into the floor, Linyue's hand shot out and caught it. Not a ripple of emotion crossed her face as she set it neatly back on the table.
Song Meiyu's eyes were huge. "Brother Zhenyu… you're a prince?!" Her voice cracked halfway through, pitching high enough to scare a nearby bird.
He Yuying leaned back with a grin. "Oh, that explains the royal attitude. I always thought he just had naturally judgmental eyebrows."
Shen Zhenyu's lips pressed into a thin line, and for a brief moment, something unreadable flickered in his eyes. Something that might have been guilt, or maybe regret. It vanished as quickly as it came.
"Former prince," he said quietly. "I didn't mean to hide it. I just didn't think it mattered."
Song Meiyu shot to her feet, looking both horrified and betrayed. "Didn't matter? How could it not matter? You're a prince! A royal! A—" she flailed her hands wildly, "—walking scandal!"
Linyue calmly reached over and nudged Song Meiyu back into her seat. "Sit. You're scaring the tea."
But Song Meiyu was far from finished. "So what now? After what she did. Are you going to confront her? Join her? Hug her? Are we supposed to fight your mother? What if this is all just a huge misunderstanding and she's actually kind and soft on the inside and just needs someone to bake her cookies?"
He Yuying snorted into his cup. "Yes. Cookies will fix mass kidnapping."
Shen Zhenyu's voice cut through the noise, steady but heavy. "It's not a misunderstanding," he said. "What she did can't be forgiven. Princess Han already confessed that Queen Shen helped her kidnap people for experiments. Many lives were lost because of her greed."
The humor drained from the air. Even Song Meiyu fell silent, staring at him with wide eyes.
Linyue sat very still, watching him. The guilt in his voice wasn't loud, but it was there, quiet and heavy.
After a long pause, He Yuying sighed and set down his cup. "So," he said softly, "cookies are off the table."
Song Meiyu leaned forward, her voice soft this time, hesitant. "So… what now?"
Shen Zhenyu didn't even blink. "It has to be stopped."
"Right," Song Meiyu nodded slowly, her expression dead serious. "Of course. But… how exactly do we stop it? Do we sneak in? Cause an explosion? Bribe a pigeon to deliver a threatening letter?"
He Yuying snorted softly, muttering, "I vote for the pigeon."
Song Meiyu pointed at him like he had just said something profound. "Yes! A very large pigeon. With menacing energy."
Shen Zhenyu gave her a long, patient look and then turned to Linyue. His tone was calm, but his eyes held a faint amusement. "Linyue, you already have a plan in that terrifying little head of yours, don't you?"
All eyes swiveled toward Linyue. She took her time sipping tea like the fate of the realm could wait another minute.
Song Meiyu leaned closer, whispering dramatically, "She's doing the tea pause. That means yes."
He Yuying popped a dried plum into his mouth. "Or she's ignoring us. Both are equally scary."
"Kind of," Linyue said at last, setting down her cup with a quiet clink.
Song Meiyu grinned. "Please tell me it involves the pigeon."
Linyue blinked once. "No."
He Yuying gave a slow, tragic nod. "Then we're doomed."
Linyue's gaze shifted to Prince Lu, who had been quietly sipping his tea. "We'll need Prince Lu's cooperation."
Prince Lu, sensing his moment for a grand, dramatic entrance, leaned in with a dazzling grin. "Will you marry me if I agree?"
Without even pausing to blink, Linyue replied, "How about I poke your eyes instead?"
Prince Lu froze. "Y-you didn't even consider it!"
Song Meiyu burst out laughing so hard she nearly fell off her chair, clutching her stomach. "Honestly, at this point you should just be grateful she hasn't poisoned your tea."
He Yuying hummed in agreement, lazily chewing on a dried plum. "That would've been faster," he murmured.
Shen Zhenyu let out a quiet laugh, trying (and failing) to hide it behind his sleeve.
Prince Lu stared at them all, horrified and fascinated at the same time. "You people are monsters."
Linyue calmly poured herself more tea. "We prefer the term efficient."
Song Meiyu wiped a tear from her eye, still giggling. "Efficient and terrifying."
Prince Lu sighed. "I think I liked it better when I was just drinking tea."
Linyue nodded once. "Good. You'll need to remember that peace when I tell you what we actually need from you."
He groaned quietly. "If it's more dangerous than marriage, I might reconsider the offer."
Linyue only raised one brow, calm and unbothered. "You already burned that, right?"
Prince Lu blinked. "That scroll in the underground lab?"
"Mhm." She gave a small nod, her face unreadable.
"Only the one you told me to burn," Prince Lu said cautiously. "The rest are still there. Some guards are stationed to keep watch and investigate further."
"Good."
Linyue stood in one graceful movement, brushing invisible dust from her sleeve. "We'll be busy for a while."
Song Meiyu leaned toward Shen Zhenyu, her voice low and full of wonder. "Why is she so terrifying when she says normal things?"
"She has always been like that," Shen Zhenyu muttered back.
"You are not going to poke my eyes, right?" Prince Lu asked, half pleading, half joking.
Linyue gave him a flat look. "Don't tempt me."
After settling everything down with the others (mostly by out-silencing them), Linyue walked through the corridor. Her steps were as measured and calm as always. She headed straight toward Shu Mingye's courtyard. Not to check on him. He'd survive. Probably. That wasn't her problem right now.
Standing guard at the door was Boyi, upright and stern as ever. The moment he saw her, he straightened even more and bowed deeply.
"Princess. The lord is still unconscious. Do you—"
"I'm looking for General Shanjun," Linyue said flatly.
Boyi blinked. "What?"
"Is he busy?"
Boyi opened his mouth. Closed it. Opened it again. He seemed to be trying very hard to figure out whether she was here to recruit Shanjun for a dangerous mission, assassinate him, or ask about the weather. In the end, he wisely decided not to ask.
"I… will inform him the princess wishes to see him," Boyi said carefully.
"Good. Please tell him to come to my chamber."
"Understood," he said automatically.
Wait. Wait—WHAT? To the princess's chamber??
By the time his thoughts caught up and panic started creeping into his eyes, Linyue was already gone, her robes swishing as she disappeared smoothly around the corner.
Linyue walked back and sat calmly in her chamber, sipping tea like a noble lady who definitely had no plans to cause trouble. Absolutely none. Probably. Though knowing her, trouble was already steeping in that cup along with the tea leaves.
Then—Knock knock knock.
That must be Shanjun, Linyue thought as the knock came again. She set her cup down and opened the door.
There he was. Shanjun. Tall. Proper. Immaculate uniform. And… already looking suspicious.
"Come in," Linyue said.
Shanjun blinked like she had just invited him to step into a tiger's den. "Princess," he said carefully, his voice a blend of politeness and alarm, "it's not appropriate. We can talk here."
Linyue's voice was calm but firm. "We can't. Come in."
He hesitated, clearly weighing his options: enter the room and risk social death or refuse and risk actual death, via cold glare.
First option won, barely.
Shanjun stepped inside carefully and the door clicked shut behind him with a soft thud.