Feiyu pouted and walked out the door. Downstairs at the corner, the tall and short men approached her. The tall one snickered upon seeing her—though he said nothing, his face was written all over with “trying to steal a chicken but losing the rice.” The short one wore his perpetual frown, worriedly saying: “This master is incredibly formidable. Not only did we fail to probe anything, we nearly lost a brother. Master, perhaps you should send this person away early. I heard that side is almost ready—we need to collect the goods and guard against them making moves. It’s really inappropriate to keep such a person around. What if…”

Feiyu interrupted his ten-thousandth “what if,” asking: “Lao’er’s side is ready?”

“Tomorrow night. But when our people went to collect the goods, they said they’re afraid of alerting enemies, saying to wait until tomorrow night when everything has cooled and loaded before dividing it among us.”

“They’re planning to have us provide cover for them in case something goes wrong, then turn around and eliminate us afterward, right?” Feiyu smiled faintly. “Which route do they plan to take out of the city? Which road back to Liaodong? No matter how capable Li Yao is, he can only ensure smooth passage within Ziyang City. Once out of the city and into other prefectures, even leaving Haiyou, there are countless checkpoints. There must be high officials in Haiyou colluding with him to provide support—we just don’t know who.”

After thinking, she said: “Pay attention to the people around Li Yao. For such important matters, if there are still officials above coordinating with Lao’er, they definitely won’t trust Li Yao completely. There should be their people monitoring him.”

The two received their orders. Feiyu added: “You should still disguise yourselves properly and alter your builds to serve beside me, otherwise it’s inconvenient. Zhao San, you’re too short—get some height-increasing boots. The most conspicuous thing about you two is your height contrast. Change that and it won’t be so obvious.”

Zhao San said with a long face: “But short people have short people’s habits. What if…”

“There are no ‘what ifs.'” Feiyu cut off his pessimism. “Go prepare a table of dishes, and add some…” He hesitated before saying: “Bone-Soaking Fragrance.”

Both tall and short men were stunned. Then the tall one said: “Are you crazy? Using that? There isn’t much of it left!”

The short one also said: “The various medicines in this wine are difficult to collect, their effects rare. You live in hardship yourself, and this wine is saved for great use. How can you take it out now for… what if…”

Feiyu’s eyes flickered for a moment, then she smiled and waved her hand to indicate no need to say more, then returned.

The short one was left completely puzzled, muttering: “But why—”

Feiyu faintly heard and curved her lips.

There aren’t so many whys.

When you want to give, you just give.

…

Tie Ci had been regulating her breathing for a while when she suddenly opened her eyes.

Two figures had quietly descended into the room—Dan Shuang and Chi Xue had found their way here.

When she was taken away, during the intervals between unconsciousness and waking, she had dropped a bit of her unique tracking incense between her fingers. Dan Shuang had extremely keen smell and had trained for this over many years, so naturally she could track her down.

Seeing Tie Ci, both immediately rushed over. Dan Shuang’s eyes were red-rimmed, and Chi Xue hurriedly pulled out various medicines she carried.

Tie Ci looked both of them up and down, seeing that aside from some scrapes they were unharmed, and finally relaxed.

After Dan Shuang and Chi Xue examined Tie Ci, they were very worried. Dan Shuang suggested leaving to find a place to recover, but Tie Ci shook her head.

“If I’m not mistaken, something important will happen in these two days,” she said. “I must quickly root out that murderer and the shady dealings under the Cangsheng Tower.”

“In your current state, how can you handle so many matters!” Chi Xue said. “A person of great worth should not sit beneath a dangerous wall. Had we known this place was so dangerous and these people so bold, we should have stopped you from choosing here originally.”

“Since I came here and encountered this matter, this is Heaven’s will, intending for me to resolve it,” Tie Ci said. “Others can retreat in fear of difficulty, but I cannot.”

Both women fell silent.

Indeed, throughout the Crown Princess’s life, she would face the most difficult matters.

Anyone else could be a coward, but she could not. If she retreated, it would affect one life, one family, one country.

“Besides, these aren’t really two separate matters—the murderer and the Cangsheng Tower…” Tie Ci suddenly stopped speaking as the bead curtain lifted and Feiyu entered with two servants.

Upon entering and discovering two additional people, she couldn’t help being startled. Then recognizing Dan Shuang and Chi Xue, she smiled: “You came too.”

Dan Shuang watched her warily, her gaze falling on that table of dishes. Chi Xue smiled: “You gave us quite a search… Thank you, Miss Feiyu, for saving our master.”

She went to receive those dishes, her fingertips hooking at the plate’s edge. Silver light flashed in her nail crevice as a silver needle had quietly emerged.

Both servants were quite tall. She received the plate from the shorter one, who smilingly handed it to her. The taller one suddenly placed the soup bowl from his hands onto Chi Xue’s hands as well, saying: “Holding it is tiring. Since you’re so diligent, you can take it all.”

Chi Xue had already received one dish. With the soup bowl thrust at her like this, she had to use her other hand to catch it, but how could she manage? A hand suddenly reached over—Dan Shuang caught the soup bowl and glared at the tall man: “What a temper from this brothel manager!”

Tall man: “…”

He was so angry he almost rolled his eyes. After a long while, he said stiffly: “I’m not a brothel manager!”

Dan Shuang said coldly: “Right, you’re not qualified to be a brothel manager.”

Tall man: “…”

Seeing the tall man about to be devastated by Dan Shuang, Tie Ci suppressed her laughter, got out of bed, and personally helped arrange the dishes, saying: “Ah, so fragrant.”

She was always good at smoothing things over. Only then did the strange, stiff atmosphere between several people loosen up. The two maids, one on each side, squeezed out Feiyu to help Tie Ci arrange the dishes. Dan Shuang saw that wine pot and frowned: “Why is there still wine? Don’t you know injured people can’t drink?” She took the wine pot away.

Tie Ci frowned, put down her chopsticks, and looked at her coolly.

Dan Shuang’s hand paused, knowing she had overstepped. Tie Ci had always been kind and generous to people, never showing class distinctions, and didn’t allow her maids to abuse their favor or bully others. Dan Shuang usually wouldn’t be like this, but today for some reason, she felt constantly irritated.

She lowered her eyes and apologized, but still stubbornly took the wine away.

Feiyu wasn’t angry either, smiling faintly. The tall man laughed once, took the wine pot, and said to the short one: “Get a big cup.”

The short one brought a large cup, and the tall man filled it completely with wine for Feiyu. That cup was so large that two cups would probably finish the entire pot.

Feiyu laughed again, shook her head, and picked up the cup.

The moment she lifted the cup, Tie Ci faintly caught a strange, delicate fragrance. Her heart stirred, and she suddenly reached out to take Feiyu’s wine cup, saying: “This cup should be mine, shouldn’t it?”

With the wine cup near her mouth, she became even more certain that this contained Embroidered Golden Vine—a rare medicinal material with bone-strengthening and essence-cultivating effects, perfect for her current injuries. Moreover, this substance could neutralize poison, so as long as this was added, poisoning would be impossible.

Since it was good stuff, she wouldn’t be polite. With one tilt of her head, she drained the entire cup.

Feiyu: “…”

No, why drink so fast?

Though this wine was good, the medicines in it required the strongest liquor to extract their properties, and that liquor was so strong that even someone with great capacity could only manage one such large cup. And it had to be sipped slowly, little by little—once drunk hastily, drunkenness was inevitable.

Seeing Tie Ci drink it herself, Dan Shuang and Chi Xue weren’t anxious anymore. They had inexplicable confidence in Tie Ci’s choices.

As for that cup of wine, they didn’t even consider it—the Crown Princess could drink a thousand cups without getting drunk.

After drinking, Tie Ci felt a warm current rise from her internal organs, flowing through her extraordinary meridians, like warm wind making her feel intoxicated. At the acupoints that had been forcibly opened earlier and were aching faintly, she suddenly felt a sense of clarity. When she looked up, she suddenly saw a skeleton.

She was startled, almost thinking her eyes were playing tricks, but then she was certain they indeed were, because the skeleton vanished and across from her was still Feiyu’s bulging chest.

Tie Ci put it aside, only a thought suddenly flashed through her mind… that skeleton seemed a bit large?

Her thoughts were still on the wine—its effects were better than imagined. She picked up the wine pot and filled another cup to the brim.

A hand suddenly reached over, and Feiyu’s smiling voice sounded beside her ear: “Young Master mustn’t be greedy with drink. This cup should be my turn.”

Tie Ci couldn’t react in time, staring blankly as Feiyu took away her large wine cup, watching as her lips touched what seemed to be exactly where her own lips had just touched. She thought somewhat hazily: “Isn’t this the legendary indirect kiss?”

Thinking this way made it seem somewhat serious and unsanitary. Then she thought, oh, it’s a woman, so no problem.

She propped her chin and watched Feiyu drink wine, taking tiny, delicate sips. Tie Ci grew impatient watching and suddenly reached out to lift the bottom of the wine cup, saying: “Come on, bottoms up!”

Caught off guard, Feiyu gulped down the entire cup.

Both servants were so shocked they bumped into the table simultaneously.

Feiyu: “…”

Bottoms up your sister!

A moment of silence. The expressions on both servants’ faces were tragic.

Given our master’s drinking capacity…

Feiyu pressed both hands on the table, head lowered. After a long moment, she slowly raised her head.

Everyone present was stunned.

Like fresh snow falling on peach blossoms, dawn lit by the first ray of rosy clouds, a garden full of pear blossoms fragrant as frost, the red sun thinly gilding everything with a blush color.

Beauty’s flushed face intoxicated even the observers.

Her eyes weren’t hazy but clearer than usual, yet so bright they were arresting, making hearts tighten.

A faint blush on both cheeks swept into her dark temples. When she looked at people, her gaze flowed out from beneath thick lashes, leaving everyone present with only half their souls.

The tall servant seemed to draw a patient breath, then reached out to support her, saying softly: “Miss, you’re drunk…”

Feiyu nodded. She sat upright with a calm tone: “I’m drunk.”

The tall man, seeing she was still fairly lucid, had just relaxed when he heard her say: “I’m drunk and need to sleep. You all withdraw.”

The tall man tried to pull her: “Alright… let’s go sleep somewhere else.”

“Right here. This is my bedchamber—naturally I should sleep here.” Feiyu said with a giggle. “You may take your leave!”

The tall man rolled his eyes. The phrase “Leave your ghost!” stuck hard in his throat as he patiently said: “This place is lent to Master Mao to sleep. You can’t…”

Reminded, Feiyu leaned over, hooked her arm around Tie Ci’s neck, her whole body leaning against her, laughing: “Then I’ll sleep together with Master Mao! Master Mao, is that alright?”

Dan Shuang and Chi Xue had been somewhat surprised, but hearing this, Dan Shuang snorted with laughter, and Chi Xue smiled slightly.

This kind of invitation… their master had ten thousand ways to refuse and kill him.

Then they watched Tie Ci’s body tilt as she also hooked her arm around Feiyu’s neck, giggling: “Great!”

Dan Shuang and Chi Xue: “…”

Tall and short men: “…”

You want us dead.

Feiyu listened with beaming joy. Tie Ci was also very happy, reaching out to pinch Feiyu’s cheek: “You sleep on the outside, I’ll sleep on the inside.”

Then her eyes lit up as she held up her finger, showing them: “So smooth!”

Tall and short men: “…”

When the master is humiliated, the servants die. What do we do when our master is being molested?

The next instant, their master very admirably cupped Tie Ci’s cheeks, excitedly leaning over her head and giving her a loud “smack” of a kiss: “Good!”

Dan Shuang and Chi Xue: “…!!!”

What do we do when the Crown Princess is being molested?

Dan Shuang’s hand was already on her waist when Chi Xue grabbed her hand. The tall man sensitively looked up at her. Dan Shuang looked back with murderous intent, then slowly turned that murderous gaze toward Feiyu. The tall man stepped forward to block her gaze. The shorter one had been standing beside him, constantly tugging at his clothes, making the same gesture Chi Xue was making to Dan Shuang.

The two pairs of servants fought several rounds across the table before remembering their masters were still causing trouble. Dan Shuang and the tall man each went to pull their own master: “Master, let’s go…”

The result was both being simultaneously waved away by their respective masters.

The two embraced each other like sisters, waving outward together, shouting in unison: “Scram! Go!”

“…”