Chapter 12 — Kneeling before the Queen and Duke

Three days after the shocking audience, Khinh Vu sent someone to invite Tu Bach Quan into the palace for an audience, under the pretext of wanting to inquire about the health of old lady Tu, her ex-mother-in-law whom she still held close affection for even though she had gone through many events. That invitation caused the whole Tu palace to be in chaos. Bach Quan and Nhuoc Lan discussed all night without sleep, trying to guess what the real intention behind this meeting was, whether this was a trap to accuse them immediately or not.

In the end, Bach Quan decided to still go to the audience, because refusing the invitation of a princess who had just been recognized by the Holy King was like admitting his guilt before the world. He put on his neatest long robe, along with a few precious gifts, telling himself to maintain a calm attitude and not reveal any loopholes in front of the woman he thought was lying still three feet under the ground.

When Bach Quan entered Khinh Vu's private palace, she was sitting next to a desk, holding a book in her hand, looking leisurely as if nothing had ever happened between the two of them. She raised her head, her eyes looking at him without any emotion, completely different from the gentle, loving eyes that he had become accustomed to during the three years of their marriage.

"Young Master Tu has arrived," she said, her voice calm, deliberately using a distant form of address as if speaking to a stranger. "Please sit down. I heard that your mother's health has not been good lately. I have some precious tonics from the royal hospital. Please bring it back to give to her."

Bach Quan sat down, confused at Khinh Vu's unpredictable attitude, not knowing if she truly cared or was setting some elaborate trap. "Thank you, princess," he replied, trying to keep his voice calm. "When my mother heard that the princess was safe and sound, she was so happy that she cried. Unfortunately, her health did not allow her to go to the palace to visit her personally."

Khinh Vu smiled slightly, that smile did not bring any warmth, only made Bach Quan even more uneasy. "I also miss my mother very much. She always treated me with utmost love, like a biological daughter in the family, that I will always remember in my heart, never to forget." She paused for a moment, then continued, her voice gentle but containing a profound meaning. "It's just a pity that not everyone in Tu Palace treats me so sincerely."

That sentence startled Bach Quan, his heart pounded, but he still tried to keep a calm expression. "What do you mean by that, princess? If I have been rude in any way, please tell me frankly."

"It's nothing," Khinh Vu replied, waving her hand gently as if dismissing something that wasn't worth worrying about. "I'm just reminiscing about the old days. During the three years of being the daughter-in-law of the Tu Palace, I always tried my best for my family. I thought everyone appreciated that heart. Who would have thought that someone was secretly planning other things behind my back."

Bach Quan was silent, not daring to answer, cold sweat began to drip down the back of his shirt. Khinh Vu observed his reaction, secretly satisfied, she knew clearly that she did not need to give any specific evidence, just planting a seed of doubt in his heart, a permanent insecurity, was enough to make him confused and make mistakes in his next steps.

Before leaving the palace, Bach Quan also tried to linger with a few questions about Khinh Vu's life in the palace, trying to find out how much she knew about the truth behind his fake death, but Khinh Vu only responded with general answers, without revealing any specific information, making him even more confused, not knowing how much to fear. She deliberately appeared like a woman who had let go of all resentment and only cared about adapting to her new life in the palace, making Bach Quan gradually believe that perhaps she did not grasp the whole truth, or perhaps because of her old love between husband and wife, she chose to silently ignore it, a wrong thought that Khinh Vu herself had deliberately planted in his head to make him let down his guard.

After Bach Quan said goodbye and left, Khinh Vu immediately sent someone to secretly monitor him, knowing that as soon as he returned to Tu palace, he hastily found Nhuoc Lan, recounting the entire conversation with a panicked look on his face. As expected, that short meeting sowed a deep suspicion in Bach Quan's heart, causing him to begin to probe and be wary of his own co-conspirator, wondering if Nhuoc Lan had accidentally revealed some loophole that made the princess so suspicious.

During the days of waiting for the next meeting, Khinh Vu continued to have butler Binh and guard Bang quietly closely monitor all movements at Tu palace, not missing any small details that could become important clues. She also spent her free time with Viet Khoi reviewing all the evidence collected over the past half year, arranging them in a reasonable chronological order, preparing them for the appropriate time to present them to the Holy King and the entire court, ensuring that when the truth is exposed, there will not be any gaps left for the two traitors to deny or reverse the situation.

A few days later, Khinh Vu again sent someone to personally invite Nhuoc Lan to the palace, this time not through Bach Quan but sent an invitation directly to the Tu palace, with the excuse of wanting to mend their relationship after many days of separation. When Nhuoc Lan received the invitation, she was both scared and curious, and finally decided to come to see her, because she understood that if she kept avoiding, she would make herself look even more suspicious in the eyes of others.

Before Nhuoc Lan walked in, Khinh Vu stood in front of the mirror for a long time, adjusted her shirt, and took a deep breath to maintain the necessary composure. She knew that facing her adopted sister who she had been close to for many years would be much more difficult than facing Bach Quan, because there was a long period of time between the two of them, growing up together, sharing joys and sorrows together, making her heart inevitably ripple with complex emotions every time she remembered. But she also clearly understood that it was that closeness that Nhuoc Lan took advantage of in the most cruel way, so she had to maintain her reason even more and not let any softening of heart shake the plan that had been painstakingly prepared for the past half a year.

The meeting between the two took place in an atmosphere of hidden tension. On the outside, it still remained as gentle as in the old days, but inside each sentence contained layers of deep meaning that were difficult to predict. Khinh Vu skillfully recalled a few childhood memories, then suddenly let out a seemingly unintentional question: "Do you still remember, when I was in Tu Phu, sometimes I saw Bach Quan mentioning you with more special attention than usual? I thought it was just brotherly love, but now that I think about it, maybe I was too naive."

Nhuoc Lan was stunned for a moment, trying to keep her face calm, but her eyes flashed with a flash of panic that she couldn't fully hide. "What do you mean by that? Me and Bach Quan only consider each other as brothers in the family, we have never had any strange feelings at all."

Khinh Vu just smiled slightly, didn't say anything else, leaving a meaningful silence. She knew that if she sowed enough seeds of suspicion on both sides, without any direct action, the two conspirators would gradually destroy each other's trust, each fearing the other would betray them first to preserve their lives, and that suspicion would become the sharpest weapon, more effective than any concrete evidence, gradually pushing both to the brink of collapse from within themselves.

After Nhuoc Lan left the palace, Viet Khoi walked out from the next room, still quietly observing the entire conversation through a small pre-arranged door. He looked at Khinh Vu, his eyes could not hide his admiration. "You really have changed a lot," he said, his voice admiring. "The way you just used to deal with both of them, without saying any direct accusations but still making them doubt each other, truly makes me admire."

Khinh Vu smiled slightly, but in her eyes there was still a hint of pain that was difficult to completely hide. "I have no choice but to be stronger and sharper," she replied, her voice low. "If I had continued to wallow in pain like before, perhaps I wouldn't have been able to survive the last half year, much less be able to stand here today. But I believe, once those two people start to suspect each other, the truth will gradually emerge from the cracks in the trust between them, faster than any other way we can think of." She stopped, looking out the window where the afternoon light was fading. "It's just that, once cornered, I fear that it won't be Bach Quan or Nhuoc Lan who will be the most dangerous. The person they will run to for help is the one we should be wary of."