Xiaoying had little confidence that Feng Yuan could persuade Mu Hanjiang.

Initially, angry voices emerged from the study, but they didn’t last long before quickly subsiding.

That day, a full hour passed before Mu Hanjiang walked out of Feng Yuan’s study.

His steps were heavy, devoid of his former, elegant young master’s grace.

Xiaoying had been waiting outside the study. When she saw Young Master Mu emerge, fearing he might attack her again, she stood at a distance and said, “Young Master Mu, you must think I have malicious intentions. But except for concealing that one part of my identity, everything else I told you was true. I disguised myself as the Crown Prince to save my brother. You needn’t suspect me of ill intentions.”

Mu Hanjiang seemed to pull himself from another world. He coldly examined Yan Xiaoying, still a slender girl with a youthful appearance, her eyes clear as an autumn lake. Whether in male or female attire, she naturally evoked tenderness in others. It was precisely this kind, approachable exterior that had completely blinded him. He never imagined that someone who appeared so fragile could be the same person as that Little King of Hell who deserved to be sliced into a thousand pieces.

Yet the fact remained. For all this time, he had been acting like a fool in front of this girl who was younger than him.

Thinking of this, Mu Hanjiang asked with mockery: “You’ve been completely open with Feng Yuan. What is it? Did the scheming Little King of Hell find the Grand Prince easy to control, so you revealed everything to him? And he didn’t disappoint your expectations, becoming your puppet, bowing to your every whim, even securing an imperial decree for your marriage. How laughable—a wild bandit from the jianghu becoming a royal consort! Next, are you planning to help him ascend the throne so you can enjoy the rewards?”

How ridiculous that he once thought Xiaoying might have been coerced by Feng Yuan, forced to submit to him.

How could the woman who had commanded the rivers and lakes of Jiangzhe, who had played the officials and soldiers like puppets, be someone who could be manipulated at will?

Looking at it now, it seemed more likely that she was the one bewitching and controlling Feng Yuan. Even he had been enchanted by this woman, serving at her command, hadn’t he?

Xiaoying ignored his heavy sarcasm and said helplessly, “Don’t you know Feng Yuan’s character? How could I control him? He discovered everything himself. As for the marriage, why must it be related to power? I wouldn’t marry someone I didn’t like…”

If anyone was controlling anyone, it was Feng Yuan, who had been holding something over her head, clinging to her like sticky rice cake that couldn’t be shaken off, using every tactic and seducing her with his masculine charm until she agreed to marry him.

Therefore, Xiaoying refused to accept the accusation that she had used her charms to seduce the Grand Prince!

Hearing this, Mu Hanjiang laughed coldly, without emotion, disbelieving: “Are you mocking me for being so stupid that I never noticed your schemes?”

Not understanding what angered Mu Hanjiang most, Xiaoying guessed: “Are you angry that I told Feng Yuan but didn’t tell you?”

Mu Hanjiang, as if he had stepped in dog feces, looked at Yan Xiaoying with disgust. His expression froze briefly before he turned to leave.

As he left, Mu Hanjiang’s clenched fist never relaxed.

He would never admit that Xiaoying’s seemingly casual question had stabbed his heart. He could only turn away awkwardly, refusing to speak with her further.

As he turned, he discovered that Feng Yuan had been leaning against the study window all along, watching them.

Those deep eyes were full of warning, as if suggesting that if he made any move against Yan Xiaoying, Feng Yuan would show him no mercy, just as he had earlier when shooting the arrow.

Yan Xiaoying seemed to be his possession already, and he would not tolerate anyone else coveting or harming her.

This eldest imperial son was just like in his youth—always taciturn and expressionless, seemingly uncompetitive, yet always effortlessly snatching away what mattered most to him.

Just as when Xiao Tianyang had chosen Feng Yuan, rather than him with Xiao family blood, to impart martial arts.

And now Yan Xiaoying would rather seek refuge with the deep, unpredictable Feng Yuan than be honest with him.

The jealousy that had sprouted in his youth but never flourished was now growing wildly like weeds surviving the winter, causing Mu Hanjiang’s heart to nearly explode.

Now, he couldn’t go to His Majesty to expose Xiaoying’s identity.

Because, as Feng Yuan had said, Mu Hanjiang had been a participant from beginning to end, even a protector. He had known early on that the Crown Prince had been switched but had said nothing. To speak now would be to entangle himself.

If Cheng Kun wasn’t sent by his mother, then someone must have already infiltrated the Dragon Scale Shadow Guards. As their commander, he couldn’t escape blame. Only by purging the traitors could he restore the Guards’ integrity.

Now all the clues were with Feng Yuan. He needed to cooperate with Feng Yuan to track down the real culprit, rather than going to His Majesty and stirring up more confusion about the true and false Crown Prince.

And then there was the incredible story about his mother that Feng Yuan had told him, which he needed to confront his mother about.

Whatever the case, Feng Yuan had achieved his goal. Mu Hanjiang now needed to temporarily set aside the matter of Yan Xiaoying and sort out the chaos within the Dragon Scale Shadow Guards and the Mu family, rather than alienating himself from His Majesty while the Mu family was already in turmoil.

Yet walking through the prince’s mansion, he couldn’t help but notice the festive decorations everywhere, with red silk hangings draped along every corridor.

All of this reminded Mu Hanjiang that the wedding day of Feng Yuan and Yan Xiaoying was approaching.

The eyes hidden behind his disheveled hair seemed tinged red like the silk decorations. Blood appeared on his tightly clenched fist.

Just then, a voice called from the inner courtyard entrance: “You… how did you end up looking like this?”

He turned woodenly to see that his mother, Princess Anqing, had arrived at some point and was now looking at him with furrowed brows, surprised by his disheveled appearance and unkempt beard.

Anqing had always emphasized proper appearance, liking her son to wear spotless white. But when Mu Hanjiang was young, he was inevitably mischievous; if he soiled his clothes even slightly, his mother would scold him severely. So from childhood to adulthood, he had been extremely clean and neat, never appearing so disheveled.

Seeing his untidy state now, Anqing began to reprove him out of habit.

But after just a few words, her son, who had always been obedient, rudely interrupted: “Mother, did you come to correct my appearance? Would I only stop embarrassing you if I were dead?”

Anqing had never imagined her son would speak to her so rudely. Her brow furrowed even tighter, but Mu Hanjiang coldly asked: “Father and Mother have always had a strained relationship. He’d rather use the excuse of recovering from injuries to live away from home for years than return. I never understood before, thinking it was because Mother was too domineering, always interfering with Father’s official duties, giving him no room to breathe. But the Grand Prince just told me something that made me realize it might be because Father finds Mother too filthy…”

Recalling the other explosive story Feng Yuan had just told him, Mu Hanjiang’s eyes grew bloodshot again.

He still remembered how many children had bullied Feng Yuan when they were young, cursing him as an unwanted bastard.

Yet he never imagined that one day he would find himself in the same situation as Feng Yuan! If what Feng Yuan said was true, he might not be his father’s child, but rather the product of his mother’s affair with His Majesty!

So when he looked at his mother again, Mu Hanjiang, now full of self-loathing and self-deception, couldn’t help but mock her.

Before he could finish speaking, Princess Anqing had already slapped him: “What nonsense are you babbling! Have those many days in a coma addled your brain?”

Xiaoying, who had just walked over, couldn’t help saying from the side: “If you know your son was in a coma for many days, why don’t you ask about his injuries instead of criticizing his appearance? Does a person who’s been in a coma for days need to wash his face and dress up just to avoid embarrassing you?”

The Princess’s face darkened as she looked at the Crown Prince and coldly bowed: “This is a Mu family matter. The Crown Prince need not concern himself!”

Xiaoying felt she had a point. Currently, she had enough troubles of her own and could only give Young Master Mu a helpless look. Unfortunately, Young Master Mu seemed not to appreciate it, not even glancing at her.

Mu Hanjiang finally left the prince’s mansion. Princess Anqing had come to fetch him after receiving a letter written by Feng Yuan himself.

Of course, before taking him away, the Princess had also entered the study with Feng Yuan.

There had been many suspicious points about Swordmaster Xiao Jiumu’s death years ago, so Feng Yuan told the Princess what Chen and Fan had accidentally revealed on the martial platform.

Due to many emotional knots, he had previously avoided Princess Anqing whenever possible, never having deep conversations with her.

Feng Yuan never imagined that there would come a day when he would calmly talk with Princess Anqing. After spending time with Xiaoying, he seemed to have been influenced by her ability to adapt her speech to whoever she was talking to.

After speaking with the Princess, Princess Anqing took Mu Hanjiang away with her.

Xiaoying asked him what he had said to Princess Anqing. Feng Yuan said, “You reminded me before that while Princess Anqing is certainly not a good person, she’s ultimately just a headstrong, self-righteous fool. I only asked her about two things: one was whether she killed Chen Nuo… and the other…”

“The other was whether Fu Ansheng is still alive,” Xiaoying guessed before he could finish.

Feng Yuan nodded. It seemed they had indeed thought of the same thing.

Chen Nuo’s death was connected to events from over a decade ago.

And if Fu Ansheng were still alive, it would further prove that Princess Anqing had little to do with the massacre of the Meng family all those years ago.

At first, the Princess had admitted to both matters, but when Feng Yuan pointed out the many suspicious points about Swordmaster Xiao Jiumu’s death, she was shocked into silence.

Before leaving, she only said that she knew nothing about Chen Nuo’s death, and that Fu Ansheng was still alive, secretly hidden away by her.

Hearing this, Xiaoying slowly exhaled. If Fu Ansheng were still alive, her previous suspicions about Princess Anqing would have to be completely reconsidered.

If the Princess had been responsible for the massacre of the Meng family, how could she possibly allow Fu Ansheng to continue living as evidence against her?

Fu Ansheng’s survival proved one thing: Princess Anqing was not the perpetrator of the massacre, but someone who knew about it. She had deliberately concealed the true culprit, which was why she had intercepted him on the road.

And because she had misgivings, she had kept Fu Ansheng alive, wanting to use him to hold leverage over someone.

Xiaoying finally had a satisfactory explanation for her sense of inconsistency about Princess Anqing.

This princess, though hardly likable, rigid in manner, and with many petty thoughts of her own, was not the kind of great villain who could commit the atrocity of massacring an entire family.

The comforting words she had spoken when she accidentally met her adoptive father, Meng Zhun, on the road to the capital were not entirely insincere, but filled with the guilt of someone who knew the truth.

As for Cheng Kun trying to kill Mu Hanjiang, it was not under Princess Anqing’s orders. She had originally sent Cheng Kun elsewhere that day. It was Cheng Kun who had disobeyed her orders to accompany Mu Hanjiang to Five Mile Slope.

With things having reached this point, and Princess Anqing continuing to conceal the truth, the identity of the person she was protecting had become somewhat clear to Xiaoying.

“When you detained Young Master Mu at your mansion, and I replaced my brother in the palace, it was to draw out the snake. But there was no movement. The person who captured my brother seemed to know someone had been switched and didn’t contact him. I kept wondering who could have discovered the secret of the switch. Until yesterday, I realized that there was one person who had made contact with me early on, observing my words and actions.”

That person was… Mu Shi!

And there was only one reason he had detected the Crown Prince switch: he had seen Feng Qiyuan when he was the actor Zong Bao. So when he accompanied His Majesty to visit the Crown Prince and heard the Crown Prince speaking confidently, he immediately realized that the one who had entered the palace was not that timid actor!

Once she connected Mu Shi to Xiaoyin Mountain Villa, Xiaoyin’s hair stood on end.

This Mu Shi had always appeared as a caring elder figure before Feng Yuan, involved in many events from Feng Yuan’s childhood.

Even Feng Yuan’s accidental witnessing of Princess Anqing’s private meeting with His Majesty, which led to his misunderstanding and injury, might have been arranged by Mu Shi.

That seed of poison might have been personally planted in young Feng Yuan’s heart by Mu Shi.

And of those so-called letters Ye Zhanxue left for Feng Yuan, how many were real and how many were deliberately forged by him?

Thinking it through, how could Xiaoying not be alarmed and fearful?

Yet Mu Hanjiang had always deeply respected his father. Now that he knew about her secret, if he lost trust in his mother, he would surely tell Mu Shi, putting them in a passive position.

So Feng Yuan simply pulled the rug out from under them by telling Mu Hanjiang about witnessing Princess Anqing’s private meeting with His Majesty years ago, as well as the questions about his parentage.

And with Princess Anqing, the Grand Prince had brought up the suspicious circumstances of Xiao Jiumu’s death years ago.

Although Feng Yuan didn’t expect these two to take his side, these old entanglements would be enough to throw the Mu family into disarray for a while, driving a wedge between Mu Shi and the mother-son pair.

The master, so skilled at controlling people’s hearts, must be wondering how to respond to a completely chaotic chessboard, and Feng Yuan was quite looking forward to it.

Xiaoying didn’t return to the palace that night. The palace’s Chief Steward Li came on His Majesty’s orders to visit and reward the injured Crown Prince, while also urging Xiaoying to return to the palace.

After instructing Feng Yuan to take his medicine on time, Xiaoying followed Chief Steward Li back to the palace.

His Majesty had urgently summoned her back because of the mess left after the Wei Country martial arts platform had been overturned.

That Chen Xifan had been beaten to a pulp by the enraged crowd, causing the Wei diplomatic mission to completely lose face.

His Majesty intended that, although life and death on the platform were matters of fate, the proper formalities should still be observed afterward.

As the Crown Prince, Xiaoying naturally had to give the Wei Country’s master a decent farewell, sending him off with an appropriate funeral. Since Master Chen had enjoyed drumming, the funeral would need drums and suona horns—it should be lively.

After receiving His Majesty’s instructions, Xiaoying had a late dinner with him. Feeling somewhat bloated afterward, she and Jin Zhong walked about aimlessly, stopping occasionally.

As they reached a rock garden pavilion, twilight was falling, though it wasn’t yet time to light the lamps. Xiaoying and Jin Zhong walked silently. As they reached the back of the rock garden, they heard someone scolding in a low voice: “Nonsense! Do you want me to drag you to the Internal Affairs Department to be slapped?”

A female voice laughed in response: “I was merely talking about some amusing incidents from when your mistress was studying. Why would you need to drag anyone away? What’s the matter? Can’t your mistress’s friendships from her academy days be mentioned? If that’s the case, and these words reached His Majesty’s ears, it wouldn’t just be this servant who would be slapped. If your mistress has nothing to hide, this servant is willing to go before His Majesty and clarify matters!”

“Who do you think you are? You think you can approach His Majesty?” Xiaoying didn’t recognize the speaker’s voice and exchanged glances with Jin Zhong, silently asking who it was.

Jin Zhong, truly the palace gossip that he was, had already familiarized himself with the important palace ladies’ maids during their few days back.

After listening briefly, he immediately identified the speakers and wrote a large “Yi” character in the air.

It seemed that the one scolding harshly was Consort Yi’s maid.

As for the one making threats, Xiaoying recognized her voice—it should be Wen Qing, the head maid of Consort Shang from the Western Palace.

Just then, Wen Qing spoke again unhurriedly: “Indeed, the entrance to our Western Palace is not as busy as your mistress’s nowadays. But don’t be hasty to argue. Just deliver the message, and your mistress will understand the situation. If she comes to her senses, she might consider visiting the Western Palace. Our mistress is lonely and longs for sisters to keep her company.”

With that, Wen Qing laughed lightly, emerged from behind the rock garden, and left with measured steps.

Xiaoying and Jin Zhong hid behind a tree, watching as Consort Yi’s maid, Yun Dai, departed with a grave expression.

After everyone had left, Jin Zhong emerged from the shadows, looking excited: “Consort Yi has been compromised by Consort Shang! This will be interesting to watch!”

Xiaoying threw a golden melon seed, landing it in Jin Zhong’s big mouth: “Keep this to yourself. Not a word of what you heard today to anyone else!”

Jin Zhong loved his lord’s generous way of silencing him. He grinned, spat out the gold, put the golden melon seed in his pouch, and thanked his master for the reward.

Although she had only heard a few words, Xiaoying guessed the whole story. The Western Palace must have obtained some leverage from Consort Yi’s academy days and wanted to use it to make her do their bidding.

Given the Shang family’s methods, finding evidence that Tang Ru had been too close to someone during her studies would not have been difficult.

If people discovered that the man was Hu Buxun, the Prince of Fuzhou who had studied in Wei Country, and this reached His Majesty’s ears, Tang Ru would face only one outcome—death by the gift of a white silk cord.

Xiaoying frowned slightly. If Consort Shang exerted such pressure, Consort Yi would likely be forced to serve her interests, making the palace situation unpredictable.

She had previously met Tang Ru by chance and found her congenial, but now she was not Yan Xiaoying but Feng Qiyuan. Unable to reveal her identity to Tang Ru, she naturally couldn’t help her.

However, Xiaoying reconsidered: since she was Feng Qiyuan, it would be appropriate for her, as a cousin, to help her young stepmother cousin!

Having sorted out this complex web of relationships, Xiaoying began to consider how to assist her dear cousin.