Chapter LXXVI - The Letter That Never Arrived
Snow fell heavily over the capital.
The kind of snow that swallowed sound.
The kind that made the world feel isolated.
Dangerous.
Very dangerous.
—
Shen Li did not tell anyone about the woman she saw beyond the estate walls.
Not immediately.
Because she wasn't certain.
Perhaps it had been a guard.
A traveler.
A trick of snow and darkness.
Yet somehow—
the image remained.
Black clothing.
Motionless.
Watching.
The memory lingered long after midnight.
Then the next morning brought something stranger.
No letter.
—
For six days—
Prince Rui had written every day.
Sometimes twice.
Ridiculous letters.
Hopeless letters.
Letters that included:
military reports,
complaints about camp food,
reminders to eat properly,
and increasingly shameless declarations of missing her.
Every day.
Without fail.
Until today.
Nothing.
—
By afternoon, Shen Li finally looked up from her book.
Qingyu immediately noticed.
"Princess Consort is waiting."
Shen Li calmly turned a page.
"This daughter is reading."
"Princess Consort has read the same page three times."
Silence.
Then Shen Li sighed softly.
Because unfortunately—
Qingyu was correct.
Dangerous habit.
Very dangerous habit.
Prince Rui had only been gone days, and already she measured evenings by his letters.
Hopeless.
Absolutely hopeless.
Then suddenly—
hoofbeats echoed through the estate.
Fast.
Urgent.
Everyone looked up.
A messenger.
Interesting.
Very interesting.
The messenger entered moments later.
Snow-covered. Exhausted.
And carrying military correspondence.
Shen Li immediately stood.
But the messenger's expression seemed strange.
Uneasy.
Then he knelt.
"Princess Consort."
"A message from His Highness."
Relief arrived instantly.
Only to disappear just as quickly.
Because the messenger continued:
"His Highness's personal courier was attacked."
Silence crashed through the room.
Absolute silence.
The messenger lowered his head.
"The letter intended for Princess Consort never reached the capital."
The temperature dropped instantly.
Because suddenly—
Prince Rui's instincts from earlier made terrifying sense.
Someone was intercepting correspondence.
—
Far north—
Prince Rui was furious.
Truly furious.
Not battlefield furious.
Worse.
Personal furious.
The surviving courier knelt before him.
Bruised.
Injured.
Ashamed.
Prince Rui listened silently.
Then:
"The attackers only wanted the letter?"
"Yes, Your Highness."
Silence.
Then:
"They ignored military documents."
"Ignored money."
"Ignored horses."
Prince Rui's expression darkened.
Because that meant only one thing.
The letter itself mattered.
Someone wanted information.
Or leverage.
Or proof.
Dangerous.
Very dangerous.
Then Prince Rui asked quietly:
"Did they read it?"
The courier hesitated.
Then:
"We don't know."
The command tent suddenly felt much colder.
Because Prince Rui knew exactly what that stolen letter contained.
Nothing military.
Nothing strategic.
Only:
Princess Rui,
This prince dreamed of you again.
The dream was peaceful.
Which is unfair because now this prince misses you more.
Silence.
The commanders nearby immediately looked away.
Because apparently enemy spies were now stealing love letters.
The empire had truly become absurd.
—
That night, Prince Rui wrote another one.
Longer this time.
Much longer.
Then at the bottom, he added:
If anyone steals this letter too:
Return it immediately.
It belongs to my wife.
The silver wolf guards nearly collapsed.
Hopeless.
Absolutely hopeless.
—
Meanwhile—
inside the capital—
someone else was reading the stolen letter.
A woman dressed entirely in black.
A scar beneath her left eye.
The Black Sparrow.
She sat beside a lantern while snow drifted beyond abandoned warehouse windows.
The stolen letter rested in her hands.
And surprisingly—
she smiled.
Not cruelly.
Not mockingly.
Amused.
Because after years of assassinations, conspiracies, and political warfare—
she had expected military secrets.
Instead she found a general hopelessly in love with his wife.
Interesting.
Very interesting.
Then she folded the letter carefully.
And looked toward the capital skyline.
Toward Prince Rui's estate.
Toward Shen Li.
Then softly—
almost thoughtfully—
she murmured:
"So you're the woman he would burn kingdoms for."
The lantern flickered.
And somewhere outside—
another shadow moved through the snow.
Because the game surrounding Shen Li had just become far larger than anyone realized.
Including Prince Rui. ??????