“Change it?” Feng Jiu’er’s brow furrowed slightly.

How was one supposed to interpret that?

“Yes — change it.” Feng Jiang absentmindedly grabbed a few little snacks and tossed them into his mouth.

The Princess’s quarters were simply wonderful — there was always something good to eat.

Unlike them, these princes — because they were men, they never kept small snacks for themselves, and no one kept them on their behalf.

After all, such things were said to undermine one’s heroic bearing.

But the truth was, he enjoyed snacking too.

“You are the daughter of the Feng clan — the future ruler of this nation. Have you forgotten?”

In speaking of this, Feng Jiang showed not the faintest trace of resentment.

It seemed as though the fact that he had no claim to contend for the throne had never weighed on him at all.

Then again, with Third Imperial Brother’s personality, even if the throne were handed to him outright, he would likely refuse to accept it.

“Are you saying — that once I become Empress, I should reform the system?”

Feng Jiu’er had finally understood what he meant. But the problem was… “I have absolutely no desire to become Emperor!”

“I knew you would say that.” Feng Jiang gave a light laugh and leaned toward her. “You simply want to be idle, don’t you? You know being Empress would be endlessly busy and exhausting — isn’t that right?”

Jiu’er had no interest in answering that question. She simply didn’t want it — that was all there was to it.

What mattered most was that she always had the feeling she would not remain in this palace for very long.

“Actually, you could choose several court companions. If you know how to use talent wisely, you wouldn’t need to exhaust yourself at all, would you?”

“…”

Truly, pearls from the mouths of swine. He was simply telling her to take more husbands, wasn’t he?

Daring to even have such a thought — Ninth Imperial Uncle would certainly strike her down for it!

Feng Jiu’er turned her head, and her heart gave a sudden, violent lurch.

Ninth Imperial Uncle?

Why was it that this strange form of address kept surfacing in her mind, over and over?

“Third Imperial Brother,” she said, looking at Feng Jiang, her brow knitting deeper, “in our Feng clan — is there an Imperial Uncle who is ranked ninth?”

“Where would a Ninth Imperial Uncle come from? The youngest Imperial Uncle is Fourth Imperial Uncle. Originally there was also a Second and a Third Imperial Uncle, but they have been missing for so many years now — most likely they are long gone.”

“Missing?” How could there be two Imperial Uncles who had simply disappeared?

Jiu’er had heard of members of the imperial house falling in battle, dying of illness, or being done in by schemes — but disappearances were something truly out of the ordinary.

“Yes, they went missing many years ago and were never heard from again.”

Feng Jiang’s memories from that time were already very hazy — he had only been a child.

He shook his head: “But I can say with certainty — we absolutely have no so-called Ninth Imperial Uncle. Why would you ask about this?”

Feng Jiu’er had no way of explaining it clearly, but the three characters for Ninth Imperial Uncle felt as though they had been branded into the very depths of her heart.

She thought of it often, yet did not know who Ninth Imperial Uncle actually was. She was not even certain whether such a person truly existed in this world.

“Never mind. Third Imperial Brother — is there any way I can go out while ensuring the palace maids and eunuchs are not affected?”

“There is no way.” Feng Jiang grabbed another handful of peanuts and tossed them into his mouth.

Feng Jiu’er shot him a glare, pursed her lips, and said nothing more.

Seeing her ignore him, not knowing what was going through her mind, Feng Jiang thought for a moment before saying: “What is it? Wanting to go and see your little sweetheart?”

He considered it further and felt something still wasn’t quite right: “What kind of person is your little sweetheart exactly? Someone bold enough to dare to venture into the imperial palace — quite a nerve. Someone you met at the detached palace?”

That question was actually something of a reminder to Feng Jiu’er.

She looked at Feng Jiang with a completely serious expression: “The detached palace where I was kept — which detached palace was it exactly? Did I truly spend sixteen years living there?”

That question was enough to genuinely stump Feng Jiang.

“It seems…”

“Only Imperial Father knows — is that it?”

“Not quite — there is also Yanu.” Apart from the two of them, no one else had ever been mentioned as knowing.

“Yanu?” Last time, annoyed at being watched so closely by Yanu, she had had Yanu reassigned elsewhere. But in truth, Feng Jiu’er did not know where Yanu was now. She had only told Imperial Father she did not want Yanu to remain in the Princess’s hall. Where Yanu had been sent afterward — Jiu’er had no idea; it seemed Imperial Father had arranged everything.

“Yanu came back with you. From what has been said, Yanu was always at your side before. The details of your circumstances — Yanu would know them best.”

So in this matter, if not Yanu, who else could she ask?

But just now she had only just stirred Imperial Father’s suspicions again. If she went to find Yanu right now, Imperial Father would likely see through her intentions with ease.

She had no choice but to continue performing the role of a carefree, memory-less princess before Imperial Father — otherwise, far too many people could be caught up in the consequences.

She concealed the sharp gleam that had gathered in her eyes, and when she raised her face to look at Feng Jiang again, she was already that lighthearted, unbothered Princess Jiu’er once more.

“Third Imperial Brother — how is Fourth Imperial Uncle doing today?”

“Much better already. The only thing is, he’s not much in the mood for talking. Oh — when are you going to go and visit him? He’ll certainly be willing to speak once he sees you.”

In truth, the Fourth Imperial Uncle now resting in his quarters was the Fourth Imperial Uncle as he normally was.

The version from before, when he had been around Jiu’er — it had been as if he were a completely different person.

That said, Feng Jiang much preferred a Fourth Imperial Uncle who was willing to talk and willing to smile. That cold, lifeless Fourth Imperial Uncle had always been painful to look at.

Feng Jiu’er turned and headed for the door at once: “I’ll go and see him right now.”

……

The Night Prince’s manor today was as quiet as ever — but compared to other days, it carried a touch more warmth and life.

In a certain room of the side courtyard, despite the room being full of people, everyone sat in complete silence, still as hens — and for a long stretch of time, not a single word was spoken.

No one knew how much time had passed before Mu Mu, noticing that Zhan Qingcheng’s complexion had eased slightly, finally said: “She said — you are not to go looking for her yet.”

Every gaze in the room settled on Zhan Qingcheng.

His face was still very pale, but at the very least, he had come back to full consciousness.

It truly did require Jiu’er’s almost otherworldly medical skill to bring the Ninth Prince back around.

But the true energy within him was still not under his control. The moment he went out and engaged in combat, triggering a reversal of that energy, he would be wounded far more gravely than before.

Xue Gu, too, feared he might act on impulse, and said quickly: “Rest assured — Jiu’er is doing very well right now. By all accounts, the Emperor of the Feng clan holds her in extraordinary favor, a degree of indulgence that no one in the public eye can match. You need not worry about her at all.”

Zhan Qingcheng’s gaze swept over Xue Gu’s face, calm and expressionless.

His face was unreadable, and no one knew what he was thinking.

Would he listen to Feng Jiu’er’s words and stay quietly to recover for a few days — or would he storm the palace and bring Jiu’er back?

Again, time passed — how much, no one could say. Then Zhan Qingcheng suddenly stood up.

Everyone was alarmed. Mu Mu stepped forward immediately to stop him: “You cannot…”

“I only want to go outside and look at the surroundings.” Zhan Qingcheng’s voice came out somewhat hoarse — this was the first time he had spoken since waking.

The people around him couldn’t help but let out a collective breath of relief. But the Ninth Prince being this composed — was it truly as it seemed?