Xiao Rongyan’s palm tightened. The young Wei Emperor had indeed escaped, and despite Yan’s repeated searches, they hadn’t found him. No one knew where he was hiding.

For Yan, the young Wei Emperor’s continued existence was always a hidden threat.

“Is His Majesty… still safe now?” Xiao Rongyan concealed his emotions and asked in a low voice.

“What? Do you also want to restore the Kingdom?” Prince Xihuai said with a smile. “Forget it, Rongyan! Previously, my little nephew did intend for me to come find you, but I didn’t agree… Even though you’re the world’s richest merchant with vast wealth, there’s no reason to ask you to exhaust all your family fortune to restore the Kingdom just because you’re from Wei.”

Prince Xihuai’s smile looked worse than crying. As a member of Wei’s imperial family, how could he not hope for Wei’s restoration? He just knew… restoration was hopeless, and he didn’t want to implicate his friend anymore.

“Yan is powerful, and Wei is destined to have no hope of restoration! Now my little nephew’s current actions clamoring for restoration are all just childish play; they can’t amount to anything significant. Why burden you with exhausting your family fortune!”

Xiao Rongyan’s palm tightened slightly.

“Although I only know how to eat, drink, and make merry, with the capital gone and home gone, I can still think some things through clearly! Great Yan aims to unify the world… their goal is clear and definite, and their powerful steps will only become steadier! Great Zhou is the same now! Unifying the world already seems to be the general trend. In such circumstances, how difficult would it be for Wei to restore itself? Even if it could be restored… it would certainly be other countries wanting to use Wei as a blade in their hands!”

The hatred in Prince Xihuai’s eyes wasn’t intense, he only said: “I only hope that one day, Great Zhou’s female emperor can destroy Yan, which would count as revenge for our Wei!”

One should look at someone with new eyes after three days of separation.

Xiao Rongyan absolutely couldn’t believe these words came from Prince Xihuai’s mouth: “These words… did Your Highness think of them yourself?”

Prince Xihuai smiled with an expression of ‘you still understand me’: “It was my nephew’s teacher Liu Wanyuan who said this. Before leaving… Liu Wanyuan instructed me not to consider this assassination attempt the most important matter. No matter what, preserving my life is most important! This would also count as giving my little nephew an explanation.”

“Master Liu is a perceptive person!” Xiao Rongyan said sincerely.

“Indeed!” Prince Xihuai let out a long breath, his tone carrying some heartache. “But speaking of which, my nephew is still so young, yet he has the ambition to restore the Kingdom. He’s much… much stronger than me!”

Xiao Rongyan looked at Prince Xihuai, who held nothing back from him and trusted him completely, and said in a low voice: “You rest and heal well! During this time… I’ll have Yue Shi personally take care of you. If I can plead for the Ninth Prince to release you, I’ll have people escort you away!”

Prince Xihuai nodded, his heart full of emotion: “Even if you can’t plead for my release, in this lifetime… being able to make a brother like you, I’m not at a loss!”

·

After consulting with Second Madam Liu Shi, Third Madam Li Shi, Fourth Madam Wang Shi, and Fifth Madam Qi Shi, Dong Shi set the Grand Princess’s funeral for the 19th, the day before Bai Qingyan’s enthronement ceremony. This was to fulfill the Grand Princess’s wishes and also symbolized that the Jin Dynasty had completely turned the page.

Before the various Bai family madams returned, Nanny Jiang had already sent people to arrange their accommodations properly.

Late into the night, Bai Qingyan had Bai Jinxiu take Wang Ge’er back to rest first. Having not seen him for many months, Wang Ge’er was now clinging to Bai Jinxiu terribly.

Bai Jinzhao, Bai Jinhua, and Bai Jinse were at the age of rapid growth. Bai Qingyan also instructed them to rest first and come back to relieve her and Bai Qingjue in the second half of the night.

Xiao Qi refused. Having finally seen Bai Qingjue, she insisted on keeping vigil here together. But she didn’t ask where Bai Qingjue had been all these years. She knew that if Bai Qingjue hadn’t returned, there must be reasons for not returning. As long as Seventh Brother was safe now… that was enough.

Today, mourning the grandmother of Great Zhou’s female emperor… the Grand Princess of the Jin Dynasty, with the various Bai family madams returning to the capital, it had truly been a bustling day.

As the sun set in the west and dusk gathered on all sides, in this peaceful night with low chirping birds and insects, the capital finally quieted down.

Soon, rain began to fall from the sky. The rain wasn’t heavy, pattering lightly, moistening the continuous slate-azure roof tiles of the capital’s buildings.

The Imperial Guards surrounded the Bai residence inside and out, making it impenetrable. Ordinary people wouldn’t even dare to approach.

The door of the mourning hall was open, and the wind carrying moisture lifted the white silk gauze. The light in the mourning hall dimmed as it was buffeted, then swayed bright again with the sound of the copper bell hooks on the bamboo curtains hanging under the corridor.

Bai Jinse could no longer hold on and had fallen asleep leaning against Bai Qingyan…

Bai Qingyan had Chun Tao fetch a thin blanket to cover Bai Jinse. Chun Tao also brought soup that Nanny Tong had personally prepared from the small kitchen of Qinghui Courtyard, for Bai Qingyan and Bai Qingjue to drink some to feel more comfortable.

Seeing that Bai Qingyan and Bai Qingjue were talking, Chun Tao quietly covered Seventh Miss with the blanket, then served soup to her young lady and Seventh Young Master, before kneeling quietly behind Bai Qingyan.

Bai Qingjue lowered his eyes and took a sip of soup, then set the bowl aside. He looked solemnly at Bai Qingyan and said, “This time the clan leader came to the capital together, but Bai Qingping stayed in Shouyang, saying it was just in case. So I had General Shen Kunyang temporarily stay in Shouyang as well, to lead the army to the capital on the day of the enthronement ceremony, to ensure no one can cause trouble at Elder Sister’s enthronement ceremony.”

Night insects sought shelter from the rain, hiding in the dark corners under the corridor and chirping softly. Moths fluttered against the gauze curtains under the corridor that had been half-soaked by rainwater to keep flying insects out, making the Bai residence appear even more tranquil, and making Bai Qingjue’s voice sound even more resonant.

His gaze was firm, vowing to protect Elder Sister’s smooth enthronement and absolutely not allowing anyone to cause chaos.

“What news did you receive?” Bai Qingyan asked Bai Qingjue gently.

“When we were still in Nan Jiang, General Shen Kunyang received a letter from Third Sister, saying that on April 23rd, Western Liang had secretly sent Prince Yan Li Zhijie to Jin, but Third Sister was still too far from that position in the imperial court and hadn’t found out why Li Zhijie went to Jin! Coincidentally, after returning to Shouyang, we received a letter that Qin Lang had sent to Shouyang, stating that on May 16th… when the capital was in chaos, when he accompanied Second Aunt to burn incense and pray for peace, he saw Prince Baishui meeting secretly with Li Zhijie.”

As soon as Bai Qingjue finished speaking, they heard footsteps from under the corridor. He immediately stopped talking, his alert gaze looking toward the entrance.

Just then, it was Bai Jinxiu bringing Qin Lang over…

Qin Lang looked at Bai Qingjue sitting properly and Bai Qingyan, whose face showed fatigue but was forcing herself to stay alert, and bowed: “First Miss, Seventh Young Master!”

Bai Qingjue quickly stood and bowed: “Second Sister! Second Brother-in-law!”

Bai Jinxiu nodded and spoke: “I didn’t expect A’Jue had already told Elder Sister about this matter. I also just heard Qin Lang mention this, so I immediately brought Qin Lang to see Elder Sister… wanting Qin Lang to tell Elder Sister about this matter in detail.”

“Chun Tao…” Bai Qingyan turned her head to instruct Chun Tao, who was kneeling behind her, “Keep watch in the corridor. If someone comes, let us know.”