See Jun Beiyue?

Whoever you were, Jun Beiyue was not someone you could see just because you wished it!

Ziqing was about to speak, but to her surprise, Jun Beichen suddenly spoke first, giving a cold snort. “Emperor of Xichu, you and I bear no grudge, no enmity. To frame me like this — are you not afraid word will spread and make you a laughingstock?”

Given the Emperor of Xichu’s attitude, if Jun Beichen were truly sent back to Xichu, would he even have any hope of surviving?

Though Jun Beichen bitterly resented being used by Jun Beiyue, compared to the Emperor of Xichu, he hated the emperor’s utter heartlessness and disloyalty even more.

“I demand to see Jun Beiyue. This is not something the two of you can decide!” the Emperor of Xichu said coldly, sitting back down again, wearing the posture of a man who would not leave until Jun Beiyue was brought before him.

“Emperor of Xichu, just a moment ago you were the one insisting, again and again, that this princess consort owed you an explanation. Now what is this fuss about? This princess consort truly cannot understand you — the real culprit has been handed to you, and yet you still want to make trouble for our Da Zhou’s Second Prince. Isn’t that going a bit too far?”

Ziqing paused as she spoke, then added, “Of course, if you can produce evidence proving the true culprit is the Second Prince, this princess consort will absolutely admit to bending the law for personal gain.”

Having said this, Ziqing looked at the Emperor of Xichu coldly, showing not the slightest timidity simply because she was merely a princess consort, merely a woman. Her commanding presence was in no way inferior to the emperor’s raging fury at that moment.

Evidence!

Where would the Emperor of Xichu get evidence from?

Even if he had some, he could hardly produce it now — if he did, wouldn’t that prove he had planted a spy within the Da Zhou army? That would be slapping his own face!

Caught between a rock and a hard place, the Emperor of Xichu had been eating one loss after another since last night — first bested by Jun Beiyue, and now made a fool of by Han Ziqing as well!

As a sovereign of a nation, he truly wished he could find a crack in the ground to crawl into.

“Princess Yao is quite the joker. This matter of the true culprit ought to be an internal affair of your own Da Zhou army — how could you possibly expect us in Xichu to produce the evidence? However, Princess Yao’s claim that this old man is General Baihu’s adjutant is nothing but empty words!” Chu Tiange, keeping himself relatively composed, spoke up on the emperor’s behalf.

“Do you want witnesses, or physical evidence?” Ziqing arched a brow, lifting her teacup and sipping unhurriedly, her manner infuriating enough to drive a person mad.

The moment she said this, even a fool like Chu Tiange understood at once!

All of this had been prepared by Han Ziqing long in advance. She had never had the slightest intention of letting Jun Beichen go — she had even meant to win Consort Yi over to her side!

This woman truly was beyond anyone’s expectations. Practically the entire world had believed she would push Jun Beichen into an abyss from which he’d never recover.

And since it had been prepared in advance, and this was an internal matter of the Da Zhou army, how hard could it possibly be to produce witnesses and physical evidence?

Asking would be pointless. Looking would be pointless.

Xichu had truly taken a great tumble this time!

Chu Tiange drew a deep breath and said, “Since Princess Yao says it is so, then it must be so. Guards, take this man into custody and bring him back to Xichu!”

Chu Tiange gave the order, and the Emperor of Xichu made no attempt to stop him. Furious as he was, he understood full well that the situation was already lost.

Since the founding of Xichu, they had likely never suffered such a heavy loss as this!

Jun Beiyue, Han Ziqing — you two had better remember this!

The Emperor of Xichu roared inwardly, glaring viciously at Jun Beichen once more, with not the slightest trace of dignity remaining. Without even a word of farewell, he stormed off in a fury, sleeves flung back!

Ziqing didn’t bother arguing with someone of such poor grace, and simply continued drinking her tea.

Once the men had left, Jun Beichen finally stepped forward, staring coldly at Ziqing. He seemed to want to say something, but remained silent for a long while.

“Is there a problem?” Ziqing asked.

“There is a ruin on the Lonely Island — located right in Xichu’s capital… at the very crown of the dragon vein!” Jun Beichen said, each word ringing sharp and clear, his voice ice-cold.

Ziqing was faintly startled. Though she had half-expected something like this, it still came as something of a surprise.

She had driven Consort Yi to the very edge to obtain just two secrets. She had always suspected that what Consort Yi and Jun Beichen possessed went beyond just those — especially since they had earned such deep trust from Xichu, they surely must know some secret of Xichu’s own.

Just now, she had simply done a small favor in passing, letting Jun Beichen see clearly the true faces of the Emperor of Xichu and Chu Tiange. She hadn’t expected to gain this secret in return — and it wasn’t even about Xichu, but about the Lonely Island!

“Why are you telling me this?” Ziqing asked, brows furrowing.

“My mother-consort begged you, which is why you saved me. I am not doing this out of gratitude to you — I want Chu Tiange’s life!” Jun Beichen said sharply. He and his mother had helped Chu Tiange so much, and in return, they hadn’t received so much as a word of protection. When the whole world believed Jun Beiyue was about to sacrifice him, Chu Tiange, instead of trying to protect him, had been desperate to seize him for himself.

How could he not hate him for it?

“At the crown of the dragon vein in Xichu’s capital — the very peak position along the central axis of the Xichu imperial palace — there sits a stone Wolf King. Destroy the Wolf King’s foundation stone, and the ruins of the Lonely Island will be revealed,” Jun Beichen explained.

The moment he said this, Ziqing understood at once — Jun Beichen wanted to destroy the Xichu imperial palace, to sever Xichu’s very life-vein!

Every imperial palace on the Longyuan Continent had been built following its dragon vein, with a foundation stone placed at the dragon’s head. Once that foundation stone was destroyed, the entire palace would fall into peril — and by the laws of feng shui, the fortunes of the imperial house would plummet as well!

Ziqing was overjoyed. “Escort the Second Prince back to the palace!”

Jun Beichen drew a deep breath, flung back his sleeves, and departed.

At that moment, Situ Haonan, who had been standing off to the side, finally couldn’t hold back his laughter. “Ziqing, the two of you as a couple truly are… oh dear, oh dear, a person really ought to have some decency!”

This couple truly was cunning — one used the pretext of humiliating Xichu to get closer to Xijing, while the other likewise used Xichu to win Jun Beichen’s surrender.

“Decency? Can it be eaten? Will it make Xichu leave me alone and stop seeking revenge? Am I the one invading Da Zhou’s territory?” Ziqing shot back with a cold smile.

If the Emperor of Xichu and Chu Tiange knew that Jun Beichen had handed her such an earth-shattering piece of information, would they be so furious they’d cough up blood before even making it back to Xichu?

Just then, Jun Beiyue’s laughter drifted in from beyond the door. He strode in, holding an invitation in his hand.

“You got it?” Ziqing asked, delighted. That bright imperial-yellow envelope could only have come from the royal house.

Jun Beiyue walked closer, using the envelope to tilt up Ziqing’s chin, and said with a smile, “Next year, on the second day of the second month — the Day the Dragon Raises Its Head — at Mingsha Mountain in Xijing’s capital! Will you do me the honor?”

“Do I have a choice to refuse?” Ziqing shot back.

“No, you don’t!” Jun Beiyue laughed. Today he had given the Emperor of Xijing more than enough face — he hadn’t even had to open his mouth before the Emperor of Xijing extended the invitation himself!

Unlike Nanzhao, which had all manner of festivals for inviting foreign guests, Xijing had only the one — the Mingsha Mountain rites.

Ziqing smiled without answering, picked up a brush, and drew a circle on the map on the wall — right around the imperial capital of Xichu.

“What’s this…” Jun Beiyue asked, puzzled. On his way in just now, he’d happened to pass Jun Beichen heading toward the south gate.

“At the crown of Xichu’s dragon vein lies a ruin of the Lonely Island. I did Jun Beichen a small favor in passing by letting him go, and this was the unexpected reward,” Ziqing explained.

Jun Beiyue rubbed his chin, murmuring, “Now that is interesting…”

Looking at it now — the Xichu imperial palace, Xijing’s Mingsha Mountain, Nanzhao’s ancient music cave, Dongqin’s Yaoshun Island, Liuxian Island’s Qinse Valley — all of these held ruins of the Lonely Island. Did that mean Da Zhou should have one too? And what of the two remaining nations left on the Longyuan Continent — Xiliang and the Xiongnu?