“Where is my son?” The Dongyi Empress clenched her fists, restraining her body’s trembling as she asked in a lowered voice: “What have you done to my son?”

Bai Qingyan smiled and gestured for the Dongyi Empress to look at Tuoba Yao, who wore a mask and stood beside Bai Jinzhi: “Isn’t this the Seventh Prince?”

Tuoba Yao bowed to the Dongyi Empress.

The Dongyi Empress didn’t even look at Tuoba Yao, only saying: “I’m not so foolish that I can’t distinguish my son!”

Bai Jinzhi raised her eyebrows, glancing at the person standing beside her, her heart drumming. Could this Dongyi Empress be mad? If this wasn’t Dongyi’s Seventh Prince, who else could it be?

Bai Qingyan stroked her sword hilt, not angry at all: “The Dongyi Empress’s scheming truly surprises me. You turned the Assistant Minister of Revenue, set up a trap… gave our Great Zhou envoys false information, claiming the Second Prince was plotting rebellion and wanted to kill our Great Zhou envoys, forcing our Great Zhou envoys to flee!”

She slowly walked down from the high platform: “Forging imperial edicts, even writing things like having you buried alive in the edict to establish the credibility of the imperial decree. Then, telling your Dongyi Second Prince… that the Seventh Prince was taken away by Great Zhou envoys, letting this mad Second Prince pursue and kill the Great Zhou envoys, giving your son time to escape! I estimate… You never expected that our Great Zhou naval fleet escorting fishermen would encounter the naval warships that the Second Prince sent to pursue the Great Zhou envoys. You didn’t expect Du Yulang would dare to fight Great Zhou, never expected Prince Hancheng and our Great Zhou naval elite would die in battle, and never expected Great Zhou would go to war at this time. You thought Great Zhou would certainly swallow their anger before the national wager was decided.”

The Dongyi Empress’s lips trembled as she tightly gripped her robes. Even the personal maid kneeling beside the Dongyi Empress trembled continuously, terrified that this Great Zhou emperor understood her Empress’s thoughts so clearly.

“After the national wager was decided, if Great Zhou won and wanted to attack Dongyi, the trustworthy Nanny Xiong and Jiangkou would bring your son to Great Zhou, using the Seventh Prince’s identity to negotiate conditions with Great Zhou, having Great Zhou conquer territory for your son! If Great Zhou lost the wager, Yan would naturally not pull down the Second Prince they had supported, so you would have them protect your son to live as an ordinary person, spending his life in peace… isn’t that right?”

As soon as Bai Qingyan finished speaking, she was already standing before the Dongyi Empress, forcing the Dongyi Empress to step back.

“As a mother, being able to plan so thoroughly for your child makes you a good mother!” Bai Qingyan’s eyes carried deep amusement. “However, our Great Zhou is not a chess piece in your hands that you can manipulate at will! Now… I have already arranged an emperor for your Dongyi…”

The Empress steadied herself and bowed to Bai Qingyan, then solemnly asked again: “I dare ask Great Zhou’s emperor, where is my son?”

Bai Qingyan said unhurriedly: “Whether the Seventh Prince is well in Great Zhou depends entirely on whether Dongyi’s emperor is well!”

The Dongyi Empress clenched her fists tightly, looking at that masked fake Seventh Prince, her pupils trembling slightly…

Bai Jinzhi’s hands behind her back suddenly tightened. Only now did she realize… the person beside her might be that Bai Yusheng whom Xiao Qi had picked up!

So Elder Sister was having Bai Yusheng become Dongyi’s emperor, which is why Bai Yusheng had said… he would fight Yan to mutual destruction!

Bai Jinzhi cursed that bastard girl Bai Jinse several times in her heart. That dead girl… even hid it from her! But what was the point of hiding it from her? Elder Sister still didn’t hide it from her in the end!

How infuriating!

Bai Jinzhi decided to properly teach that dead girl, Bai Jinse, a lesson when she returned.

“I advise the Empress not to entertain any crooked ideas. The ‘well-being’ I speak of… is not the kind of well-being you think you can ensure by sending messages!” Bai Qingyan’s eyes carried a gentle, shallow smile. “I wonder if the Empress knows of our Great Zhou’s Four Seas Pavilion on Compass Mountain? My Seventh Brother is the direct disciple of Gu Yijian from the Sword Pavilion of the Four Seas Pavilion on Compass Mountain! My Ninth Brother… even with broken legs, ascended Compass Mountain’s Four Seas Pavilion and learned a body of skills!”

Four Seas Pavilion on Compass Mountain was a very legendary place, said to teach students mystical arts and divination. Students who emerged from there all became famous figures of their time, such as the former Yan’s Minister Gongsun, who could read faces, the great water expert Master Sima Sheng, including this famous swordsman… Gu Yijian, who took lives with one sword and never missed, and countless other famous talents who were all students of the Four Seas Pavilion.

“Four Seas Pavilion has a type of poison called Mother-Child Gu. They say injury to the child’s body brings pain to the mother’s heart—I imagine the Dongyi Empress understands this feeling very clearly! This Mother-Child Gu… makes the mother gu suffer more severely when the child gu is injured. If the child gu’s life hangs by a thread, the mother gu will trade life for life… to keep the child gu safe!” Bai Qingyan’s features relaxed into a smile. Though she had an exquisitely beautiful face, the Dongyi Empress found her more terrifying than a blood-bathed demon. “Just such a pair of precious Mother-Child Gu—the child gu has been taken by Dongyi’s emperor, and the mother gu… I presume I need not say more about whose body it’s in.”

The outside world spoke of Four Seas Pavilion in mystical terms, and Bai Qingyan was now making full use of this. Deceiving the Dongyi Empress this way could make the Empress wary of harming her son while ensuring Tuoba Yao’s safety—she thought it was very worthwhile.

The Empress opened her eyes wide in terror. Just as she was about to speak, she heard Bai Qingyan continue: “If the Empress doesn’t believe it, you’re welcome to test it…”

Tuoba Yao knew that Bai Qingyan was deceiving the Dongyi Empress for his safety. So when he heard Bai Qingyan’s words, without hesitation, he immediately drew Bai Jinzhi’s sword from her waist and was about to thrust it toward his abdomen.

“No!” The Empress cried out in terror and lunged toward Tuoba Yao, catching the blade with her bare hands, preventing the sword from entering Tuoba Yao’s body.

Bai Jinzhi’s mind was full of thoughts about how to deal with Bai Jinse when she returned, so she was caught off guard and startled.

Fortunately, Bai Jinzhi had not expected Tuoba Yao would draw the sword, so she hadn’t had time to stop him. When she later reacted, she also understood the gravity of the situation. Pretending not to care, she didn’t intervene, looking down at the Dongyi Empress, who gripped the blade with both hands with great arrogance and disdain.

“Your Majesty! Your Majesty!” The Dongyi Empress’s maid was also startled, quickly crawling forward on her knees. Seeing blood continuously dripping from her mistress’s palms and the blade, she cried in fright: “Your Majesty, how are you?”

Bai Qingyan looked deeply at the masked Tuoba Yao. She knew this child was eager for revenge and could be ruthless with himself, but she hadn’t expected this child to be this ruthless.

However, this was good too… Tuoba Yao’s fearless appearance, as if he had another life waiting for him, ultimately made the Dongyi Empress believe.

After all, the Dongyi Empress’s son had only one life, and as a mother, she didn’t dare gamble.