Chapter 26: It Is I

"Why should I? I won't apologize!"

Qin Kaizhi’s voice rose, his face flushed with indignation, as if apologizing to Qin Hao were a grave humiliation.

"It seems I am truly unwelcome here. I’ll be going then," Qin Hao said, making a move to leave.

"Apologize to your brother at once, you scoundrel!" Count Kaiyang reprimanded him sternly.

Yang Suxin, standing to the side, was not so foolish as to miss that something was amiss. The Count must have had his reasons.

"Zhier, that is your brother. Apologize. Do not make things difficult for your father," Yang Suxin chimed in, prodding her own son.

Qin Kaizhi was furious, but with his mother’s command, he had no choice but to mutter, "I'm sorry." The sound was barely audible, like the buzzing of a mosquito.

"What was that? My ears aren't what they used to be; I didn't hear you," Qin Hao said, eyeing him mockingly while picking at his ear with a sarcastic smirk.

"Don't push your luck," Qin Kaizhi hissed, glaring at him.

"If asking for an apology is pushing it, then I really should be going."

"Apologize loudly!" the Count barked again.

"I'm sorry!" Qin Kaizhi gritted his teeth and shouted at the top of his lungs.

"Why are you shouting so loudly? My hearing is perfectly fine," Qin Hao chuckled, looking at Qin Kaizhi as if he were a court jester.

"You!" Qin Kaizhi was so incensed at being toyed with that he felt as if his heart might explode and his veins burst.

Yang Suxin pulled her son away, telling him to leave. Qin Kaizhi departed reluctantly, shooting one last venomous glare at Qin Hao before vanishing from sight.

"Haor, now that your brother has apologized, come walk with your father," the Count said.

"Why don't we just go to my place and sit for a while?" Qin Hao shrugged. He meant, *Let's see what kind of nonsense you have in store.*

The two left the main hall, heading toward a more secluded corner of the Qin estate. Watching them leave, Yang Suxin was uncertain of the Count’s intentions. This sudden shift in attitude was highly unusual; it was unlikely to be born of compassion. She decided not to follow. Besides, at this point, the Count would not believe a word Qin Hao said.

However, a moment later, she remembered something and hurried after them. But it was too late.

Qin Hao and the Count arrived at his small courtyard. Finding it reduced to ruins, the ground dug up and desolate, Qin Hao laughed, "Count Kaiyang, it seems we have no place left to talk." He stood there, waiting to see how the Count would react.

The Count hesitated, his expression awkward. He had just invited Qin Hao back to live here, yet the dwelling had been razed to the ground. There was nothing left to live in.

Just then, a servant happened to pass by.

"Who did this?" the Count demanded angrily.

The servant trembled, too afraid to answer. Just then, Yang Suxin arrived. The servant’s gaze flickered toward her.

Before the Count could speak, Yang Suxin cut in, "My Lord, it was my fault. When Dewu was beaten by Haor, I was so anxious that I..."

"Rest assured, I will have the courtyard rebuilt at once, better than it was before," the Count said, putting on a show of concern so transparent it was almost comical. "Indeed, let this be the last time. Angry or not, Haor is still a member of the Qin family. It wouldn't do for him to have nowhere to stay when he returns."

Qin Hao scoffed internally. He had hoped to humiliate Yang Suxin by forcing an apology, but she hadn't given him the chance.

With no courtyard left to discuss, the Count dropped the act, though his tone remained mild as he asked, "Haor, since you are currently staying at the Princess's residence, I have a question for you."

"Finally dropping the act? Spit it out. I've been curious what could make you sustain such a long charade of 'fatherly love and filial piety,'" Qin Hao said, narrowing his eyes at him.

"Do you know who it was that answered the Princess's couplet?" the Count asked.

This was his true goal. Before Qin Hao left, he had recalled a conversation with his father-in-law about recruiting the brilliant talent who had been advising the Princess. As Qin Hao lived at her residence, he might know something. Thus, the whole performance.

"Of course I know," Qin Hao laughed.

"Who is it?" the Count asked, his voice trembling with excitement.

"It’s me," Qin Hao said, shrugging nonchalantly.

"I am not joking with you!"

"And I am not joking either. It really is me."

The Count took a deep breath, staring at him. "If you are saying this to make me value you, you have succeeded. Tell me who it is, and I will treat you with the respect you deserve."

Qin Hao almost laughed out loud. Even when he told the truth, no one believed him. "The Princess forbade me from revealing it," he said with a straight face.

"Name your conditions," the Count urged, sensing an opportunity.

"Return my mother’s remains, and I will tell you."

Yang Suxin’s expression shifted instantly. It was clear this answer was of great importance to the Count, and she feared he might actually agree. She stepped in immediately: "Qin Hao, you may have your mother's remains, but you are not to speak of this elsewhere. If you use the Princess's protection to cause trouble for your father and cost him his position as Minister of Revenue, I would rather be a villain than return those remains to you. After all, he is your father. Would you ruin him after beating your brother?"

Qin Hao sensed the hidden blade in her words and said calmly, "Fine, I will not talk." He looked at the Count. "Return my mother's remains now."

Yang Suxin also looked at the Count. She was gambling that her husband remained the power-hungry man she knew him to be. As expected, the Count hesitated. He had been reprimanded by the Emperor just that day; if Qin Hao spread rumors, his position would be in jeopardy.

Weighing the consequences, he said, "Haor, choose a different request."

Yang Suxin breathed a sigh of relief—she had won the gamble. Without another word, Qin Hao turned and left. They were truly a perfect match for one another—one evil to the core, the other consumed by an insatiable hunger for power.

The Count tried to call him back, but Yang Suxin stopped him. "Don't bother. Haor has too deep a prejudice against us. If I weren't concerned for your future, I would never have threatened him with his mother's remains. Let him hate me alone."

The Count sighed. "Forget it. Let him be from now on."

Yang Suxin nodded obediently, but in her heart, she knew that Qin Hao’s persistence in trying to reclaim those remains proved both how much he cared for his mother and his unwavering determination to seek revenge. With the Princess protecting him, she would need to find another way.

After leaving the Qin estate, Qin Hao knew he was safe for the time being. He realized there was only one way to get rid of Yang Suxin: he had to kill her as soon as possible.

Returning to the Princess's residence, he was greeted by Wu Tong with good news: he had been granted permission to participate in the imperial examinations this year. If he passed, he would become an official, granting him total security and the time needed to exact his revenge. However, he was unfamiliar with the format required for the examinations. He went to ask the Princess for help.

Li Qingyao looked at him in surprise. "With your talent, you don't know how to write an essay?" Now that she knew his true identity, she no longer treated him like a subordinate, and her tone was much more relaxed.

"I'm good at getting things done," Qin Hao replied helplessly. "But I can't write that flowery, bootlicking prose to show off. Do you have a good teacher who can instruct me?"

"What good is sharpening your spear on the eve of battle?" Li Qingyao retorted, refusing to indulge his self-aggrandizement.

"Half a month is all I need," Qin Hao said lightly. It wasn't bragging; he remembered countless masterpieces from his past life. He just needed to learn the format and adapt them.

"Half a month? Only a fool would believe that," she scoffed. He was far too full of himself.

***

The next afternoon, after Li Qingyao returned from court, Qin Hao was woken up by Wu Tong, who said the Princess had found him a teacher.

"I didn't think Li Qingyao was such a tsundere," Qin Hao muttered. "Told me to get lost yesterday, and today she's bringing me a teacher."

Beside him, Butler Wu broke into a cold sweat, though he was already accustomed to Qin Hao’s audacity.

Meanwhile, Li Qingyao asked the Emperor, who was standing nearby, "Father, if you are here, Qin Hao will likely be too intimidated to speak."

"Then do not reveal my identity," the Emperor said, sipping his tea.

"Father, let me find someone else to teach him. You need not lower yourself," she urged. She was genuinely panicked. With Qin Hao’s unpredictable nature, she was terrified he would offend the Emperor. She hadn't expected the Emperor to come in person just because she asked for a recommendation.

"What, the boy claims to have practical talent, and I cannot come to see for myself?" the Emperor replied. "Besides, you have matters from the court you need to ask him about. I shall listen from the side. Or do you think I am less capable of teaching him than those Confucian scholars? If you dare reveal my identity, I will have your mother find you a consort by tomorrow."

The Emperor’s stern tone silenced her. The threat of being forced into a marriage was particularly effective.

Just then, Wu Tong arrived with Qin Hao.