“I have a portrait of Old General Long.” Xing Zizhou’s father had served under Old General Long back in those days, and his family had kept a portrait of the old general ever since.

In the course of searching for the old general’s whereabouts, he had long since commissioned many copies of both the old general’s portrait and the young master of the Long Family’s portrait, distributing them among his men.

The Long Family’s young master had been a boy of around ten at the time — after all these years, he would surely look nothing like he did back then.

But for an elderly man, even with age, the bone structure of the face did not change.

“I have the old general’s portrait right here.” Xing Zizhou reached into his sleeve and produced a small portrait.

Before he could hand it over, Feng Jiu’er snatched it from him, unrolled it swiftly — and went completely still.

She was foolish. She had been truly, genuinely foolish.

It turned out she hadn’t known — her grandfather was truly her grandfather, and her uncle was truly her uncle!

Was it not because her uncle knew that he had once had a real niece that he so despised being called by that name?

Feng Jiu’er sank into the chair, staring at the scroll before her, her eyes vacant and unseeing.

After a long moment, Xing Zizhou finally asked, “So… is it him?”

Feng Jiu’er let out a small smile — and then, without warning, she burst out laughing.

But as she laughed, tears slid down her face, leaving Xing Zizhou at a complete loss as to how to comfort her.

Still, judging by her expression… it was probably true.

The Old Manor Master of Tianxia Manor was Old General Long. And that meant the current Master Lanyue was none other than the Long Family’s young master from back then — her true uncle, the blood younger brother of Long Feiyan.

Who would have thought that the Long Family had not been wiped out in that catastrophe all those years ago — but had instead risen anew.

“In that case, is their coming to the imperial capital this time for the sake of revenge?”

It had been Emperor Qiwen who had brought the catastrophe down upon the Long Family. The moment Long Feiyan fell from favour, Emperor Qiwen had shown the Long Family no mercy.

Whether or not he had been misled by treacherous men, he himself had likely also wished to eliminate the Long Family’s power.

Otherwise — what manner of ruler, upon hearing a few words spoken against the Long Family, would have their entire household confiscated and every member of the family banished to the frontier?

Feng Jiu’er smiled coldly as well, that smile sharp and bone-chilling.

A man like Emperor Qiwen — he acted the obsequious subordinate before anyone who was of use to him, and the moment that use ran dry, he turned without a flicker of recognition.

After all those years of husband-and-wife devotion between Nanmeng Rong and him — what had been her fate in the end?

His greatest talent was making people believe he was nothing more than a spineless, easily manipulated emperor, and that everything was simply the result of being deceived by treacherous men. In truth, if something did not serve his interests, would he ever have agreed to it so readily?

A hypocrite of that nature was far more dangerous than an open villain.

You thought he was merely acting under duress. In truth, he was simply riding the current wherever it suited him.

Truly — he had all the makings of an emperor.

“Jiu’er, what do you intend to do now?” Only Feng Jiu’er and Xing Zizhou knew of this matter — not even Xue Gu had been informed.

Xing Zizhou was worried. He held no affection for Emperor Qiwen — the emperor did indeed command very little regard among the people.

But he was, after all, the emperor. The ruler of a nation. The actual command of military forces lay in his hands.

However formidable Tianxia Manor might be — however widely its influence spread across the whole of Bei Mu — could it truly compare to the emperor’s power?

Seeking revenge against the emperor was, in truth, not a rational course of action.

“Do you intend to acknowledge them?” Xing Zizhou looked at Feng Jiu’er, a measure of complex feeling written across his brow.

Feng Jiu’er did not answer directly. This was a question she herself had not yet resolved.

“Jiu’er, you need to think this through carefully. You frequently come and go near Emperor Qiwen these days. If he were to discover that you are Feng Jiu’er, things could become very complicated.”

“What’s more, I… I don’t believe it is rational for Lanyue to seek revenge against Emperor Qiwen. This is a matter of human lives. If Emperor Qiwen were to find out, everyone in Tianxia Manor would be implicated.”

“Formidable as they are, the situation as it currently stands means they have not yet reached the point where they can contend with the imperial house.”

Feng Jiu’er still said nothing, simply gripping the scroll, her expression cold as frost.

Xing Zizhou knew that she naturally harbored resentment toward Emperor Qiwen as well. But Jiu’er had always been a rational person — she would understand, wouldn’t she?

“Jiu’er, there are certain possibilities you must allow for.”

He pressed his lips together, hesitated a moment, then said, “You should know that the Ninth Prince’s willingness to return to court must certainly mean Emperor Qiwen has something in his hands that constrains him.”

He could actually make a rough guess as to the reason, though he genuinely could not fathom why the Empress Dowager was unwilling to leave the palace.

Both within and without the palace, within and without the city, Xing Zizhou had placed informants everywhere. Over the past half year, his intelligence network had grown enormously — it was incomparable to what it had been half a year prior.

He truly could not comprehend why, if the Empress Dowager cared even a little more for the Ninth Prince, she would allow things to reach the point where he was now held at another’s mercy here.

But the thoughts of the elderly — especially the thoughts of women — were beyond Xing Zizhou’s understanding. Incomprehensible, and so simply left alone.

He looked at Feng Jiu’er and said gravely, “Since the Ninth Prince still has to return, certain things will still pose difficulties.”

“If Tianxia Manor’s people were to attempt an assassination of Emperor Qiwen and it came to light, have you considered — it is very likely that Emperor Qiwen would dispatch the Ninth Prince to suppress them.”

Feng Jiu’er’s grip tightened further. It was precisely because she had already considered this that she now feared for her grandfather and uncle all the more.

The Ninth Imperial Uncle was the imperial court’s Ninth Prince. If an organized assassination attempt against the emperor were truly to occur, could he truly stand by and do nothing? What would the people of the realm think of him?

She did not want the Ninth Prince’s reputation to suffer the slightest blemish. She did not want her uncle and grandfather to face any danger whatsoever. And so, the assassination plan against Emperor Qiwen that Tianxia Manor was planning — it absolutely had to be stopped.

But the question was — how?

“Jiu’er, before a solution presents itself, I hope…” Xing Zizhou let out a slow breath, then said, “I hope you can remain calm, and for the time being… refrain from making yourself known to Master Lanyue.”

There were too many uncertain factors, too many things that could not be controlled. Revealing herself now carried too great a risk.

Feng Jiu’er finally spoke. “The ten thousand taels of gold from Emperor Qiwen should arrive in the next day or two. Take it. Go out and recruit some capable fighters for me.”

“That’s been the plan all along — you’re the one who kept refusing to act on it!” Xing Zizhou immediately grew animated.

“Did you have the money?” Feng Jiu’er shot him a look.

Xing Zizhou fell silent at once, then broke into a grin. “Well, now we do, don’t we? I’ll get on it immediately! I’ll absolutely bring in a whole crop of capable talents for you!”

Jiu’er was finally going to build her own forces — what could possibly be more cause for joy than this!

Very soon, their Tianji Hall would become a major organization in the jianghu. Very soon, they too would be able to do whatever they wished to do!