The Ancient Music Cavern was, after all, not a place one could simply wander into. The Prince of Nanzhao and the three clan leaders were still deliberating.

In the main hall, Jun Beiyue lounged leisurely on a bamboo couch, his fingers tapping absently against the armrest. He appeared relaxed, but Imperial Physician Gu could tell his lord’s patience was wearing thin.

Chu Tiange remained hidden in the shadows, as did Xuanyuan Lige—both eager to extract the secret of the Isolated Isle from the Prince of Nanzhao, with that totem as the crucial key.

Jun Beiyue, however, wanted more than just the secret from the Prince of Nanzhao—he wanted it from Xuanyuan Lige and Chu Tiange as well.

To this day, he still didn’t know whether it had been Chu Tiange and Consort Yi, or Xuanyuan Lige, who had first discovered that totem.

On the night of the Prince of Nanzhao’s wedding, someone had deliberately extinguished the dragon-and-phoenix candles—and whoever that person was, they were the same one capable of leading everyone to the Ancient Music Cavern. If it wasn’t Chu Feiyan, it had to be Chu Tiange.

At this thought, Jun Beiyue raised an eyebrow and glanced toward the Empress of Eastern Qin. He had always looked at people with open frankness, regarding them with cool detachment regardless of their status.

The Empress of Eastern Qin sat veiled beneath a white gauze hat, her face—still swollen and red from the “cold” she’d caught—not yet healed.

Women, whatever their age, always cared about their appearance. By all rights, this woman shouldn’t have wanted to show her face in public right now, unless there was some tremendous benefit in doing so.

Omens of ill fortune were something the people of Nanzhao genuinely feared, given how long this land had been shaped by the teachings of the Earth King’s religion. But to outsiders, this was nothing more than superstition—for the mighty Empress of Eastern Qin herself to be so superstitious, so anxious about it, was rather telling.

Without the Empress of Eastern Qin’s instigation, no one would have thought to follow the Prince of Nanzhao to the sacred site of the Ancient Music.

Jun Beiyue watched the Empress of Eastern Qin, his interest growing the longer he looked. His tapping fingers suddenly stopped, and a knowing smile curved at the corner of his lips. There truly were no eternal enemies in this world.

So the Empress of Eastern Qin had allied with Chu Tiange! No wonder there had been no movement at all from Chu Feiyan’s side—she’d been so quiet everyone had nearly assumed she’d given up entirely out of despair.

Very well. He was genuinely curious to see just what tricks they’d try to pull off in the Ancient Music Cavern.

Beneath her white veil, the Empress of Eastern Qin had, of course, long since noticed Jun Beiyue’s cold, appraising gaze. She glared back at him fiercely, though unfortunately, the veil kept him from seeing it.

Just then, Ziqing arrived.

Having heard Jun Beiyue’s instructions, Ziqing had left Shiliang behind to guard Wuzheng and their luggage, bringing only Guxi along with her.

The Empress of Eastern Qin, seeing no sign of Shiliang, immediately curved her lips into a cold smile, no longer bothered by Jun Beiyue’s earlier disdainful glance, turning instead to whisper something to Xuanyuan Zhaoxi.

Leaving Shiliang behind to guard the luggage was perfectly ordinary—this was, after all, precisely the kind of task that set Shiliang apart from Hongyi’s usual duties—so Ziqing harbored no particular suspicion.

Just as she was about to sit down beside Jun Beiyue, he pulled her straight into his lap—the man loved having her sit there, and even in full public view, he could act as though no one else existed.

Ziqing settled indolently into his embrace, no longer even noticing when she’d grown so accustomed to it, entirely unconcerned with anyone else’s gaze.

Situ Haonan rolled his eyes so hard it was almost audible—this fellow, for all his seemingly flirtatious, carefree air, was actually the most conservative man he knew. Yelu Qianqian, meanwhile, watched with sparkling eyes, hands pressed together at her lips, glancing toward Situ Haonan every so often with a lovestruck expression, heaven knew what was running through her head.

“Up so early, and already dark circles under your eyes,” Ziqing said with a smile, gently brushing over Jun Beiyue’s somewhat heavy eye bags, unable to help a small pang of admiration—this man was simply born beautiful; even with such heavy shadows under his eyes, he still looked stunning, the weariness only adding a certain worn, weathered edge to his cold features, making him even more devastatingly masculine.

“Once we’re back in Da Zhou, I really will need a few good days of rest,” Jun Beiyue said with a smile, letting Ziqing gently caress him, ignoring everyone else in the room entirely.

Guxi’s reminder had reached him, steeling his previously hesitant resolve—the matter of Shiliang was something he needed to tell Ziqing. Even if he had every confidence he could protect Ziqing from any harm Shiliang might cause, he had no confidence at all that he could deceive her for the rest of his life.

Sooner or later, she would be hurt by it—why keep dragging it out?

Unfortunately, with the Empress of Eastern Qin present now, this wasn’t the time to speak of it. He could only find some excuse to leave Shiliang behind.

“Have you told Shiliang everything she needs to know?” Jun Beiyue asked quietly.

“Mm. She’s guarding Wuzheng. I trust her,” Ziqing said seriously.

Jun Beiyue smiled and nodded, saying nothing more. How could he possibly let Shiliang actually guard something so important?

“This prince thought you only trusted me in this entire world!” Jun Beiyue teased, affectionately pinching the tip of Ziqing’s little nose. Ziqing frowned—she wasn’t foolish enough to miss the double meaning in his words.

Just as she was about to ask, the Prince of Nanzhao emerged with the three clan leaders. Ziqing immediately moved to rise, but Jun Beiyue only tightened his hold, saying with displeasure, “What are you afraid of?”

Ziqing sighed inwardly, thinking she would never in this life escape the label of “beloved consort”—Jun Beiyue never held back his affection for her in front of anyone.

Seeing the Prince Consort of Prince Yao lounging so indolently in his arms, the Prince of Nanzhao and the three clan leaders all pressed their lips together, expressions grave, clearly disapproving of Jun Beiyue’s manner of showering her with such open affection.

Even Consort Qin, beloved as she was by the Prince of Nanzhao, still had to sit obediently to one side in public.

“Everyone, that such a thing occurred is truly… ah, a failure of Nanzhao’s hospitality. This was originally an omen tied to Nanzhao’s Earth King religion, and this king assumed none of you were disciples of the Earth King faith, which is why we failed to inform you in time. This king has already discussed the matter with the three clan leaders—though the Ancient Music Cavern is forbidden ground under our sacred teachings, for the sake of everyone’s safety, this king will make an exception today and invite you all to the Ancient Music Cavern together, to listen to the sacred music and receive the cleansing of our great Earth King, warding off misfortune and blessing you all with good fortune!”

The Prince of Nanzhao had truly been left with no choice, cornered by the Empress of Eastern Qin—he hadn’t even had time to investigate who exactly had told her about the dragon-and-phoenix candles being extinguished.

For the sake of face, even though the Ancient Music Cavern was forbidden ground, he had no choice but to proceed this way.

“Heh, this king had actually come to bid farewell—fortunate that I didn’t leave too early, or I truly would have missed this.” Jun Beiyue said with a smile, and his words left the Prince of Nanzhao thoroughly embarrassed, muttering furiously under his breath to the attendant beside him, “Investigate immediately—find out exactly how this news got out!”

Seeing the Prince of Nanzhao’s flustered expression, a flicker of mischief crossed Ziqing’s eyes as she said seriously, “King of Nanzhao, will Consort Yan be joining us as well?”

Sure enough, at these words, the Prince of Nanzhao’s face flushed even redder. He cleared his throat a few times before answering, “Consort Yan is already at the Ancient Music Cavern. Let us set off as well.”

Ziqing nodded with a smile. She’d always found Chu Feiyan thoroughly distasteful, and now, oddly enough, she found herself rather curious to see what state the woman was in.

Soon, everyone set out. The Ancient Music Cavern lay on the outskirts of the capital. Along the way, the Medicine Clan leader briefed everyone on the taboos of the Ancient Music Cavern. Jun Beiyue had little time to speak with Ziqing, and this wasn’t the moment to tell her about Shiliang either—doing so now would only distract her.

Soon, they arrived at the sacred site. But the moment Jun Beiyue and Ziqing, hand in hand, stepped through the cavern’s gate, both of them froze.