After all, Imperial Father listened to Crown Prince Brother.

“Yu Jiejie, how about tomorrow I take you to find someone — she can absolutely help you and Brother Duan stay in Xuanzhao.”

She would go and gather information today, then bring her and Brother Duan to Yuanjing Manor tomorrow.

She had heard Mother Empress mention it — Crown Prince Brother was currently at Yuanjing Manor.

“Yes, yes, yes.” Yu Xi’s anxious heart finally settled.

Ye Jian’s heart thumped wildly. Surely the Fifth Princess wasn’t talking about Second Miss Yan?

Who else but Second Miss Yan could persuade His Highness?

If Second Miss Yan were to find out what he had done, would she be left cold toward him?

……

Yuanjing Manor.

Yan Yunning angrily tugged on Xuan Yanyu’s ear. “Xuan Xixi, how can anyone be this insufferable?”

Pretending to faint was one thing, but then she had to drag her elder sister into it — her sister had been so stifled that Xiao Shi infuriated her into fainting again.

“Tsk.” Xuan Yanyu pinched the tip of her nose. “Didn’t you use incense to knock her out and slap her across the face several times? Still not satisfied? Now you’re tugging on this Palace’s ears to vent?”

Were it not for the fact that Xiao Shi was Mu Shiqing’s younger sister, he suspected Yan Yunning wouldn’t have stopped at just slapping her.

“How did you know?” Yan Yunning was mildly surprised.

She had been so, so careful.

“Yan Yunning, how could anything concerning you slip past this Palace?” The man leaned back against the soft couch, the corners of his mouth curving upward. “Next time, let Ye Chen do the hitting for you.”

“Second Miss Yan, bring me along next time.” Ye Chen patted his chest.

It was his first time encountering a woman who left him so thoroughly speechless.

“She is someone close to Fifth Prince Qi Qingxian, and she knows martial arts — keep your distance from her in the future.” Xuan Yanyu said with a faint smile. “This Palace suspects Xiao Shi’s visit to Yuanjing Manor is connected to Qi Qingchen.”

After all, Emperor Qi had yet to name an heir, so the princes competing and scheming was perfectly normal.

He had been listening to stories of how his Imperial Father had fought his way to the throne since childhood — he’d heard it so many times he’d gone numb to it.

His Imperial Father envied him: no need to fight, no need to scramble — Xuanzhao would be his in time.

“Keep an eye on what she’s after. For now, let her stir things up — don’t touch her.” The man tapped Yan Yunning on the bridge of her nose. “Do you hear? This Palace has no desire to go looking for you in Qi Qingxian’s quarters.”

“Connected to Qi Qingchen? But why would she acknowledge Mu Brother as a brother, and then target me and my sister?” Yan Yunning’s mind couldn’t quite turn fast enough.

Xuan Yanyu looked at her with an amused smile, saying nothing.

After a moment, Yan Yunning’s eyes lit up. “Xuan Xixi — could it be that Qi Qingxian doesn’t know Emperor Qi has already issued a decree that daughters of the Chancellor’s household are no longer to marry princes? He’s afraid that either me or my sister might end up marrying Qi Qingchen, which would affect his own bid for the crown.”

“So he sent Xiao Shi to frame us, and Mu Brother just so happens to carry weight with Emperor Qi. A younger sister long thought lost has been wronged, and the person who wronged her is of no low standing — Mu Brother would have no choice but to seek justice from Emperor Qi.”

“If Emperor Qi punishes my sister and me, it would inevitably damage our reputations, and Qi Qingchen would think twice before pursuing any marriage with us — am I right?”

The man said languidly, “Qi Qingxian is the Fifth Prince. There is no way he doesn’t know of Emperor Qi’s decree.”

Yan Yunning: “???”

“Fool — then that means the decree carries no weight in front of Qi Qingchen.” Xuan Yanyu hooked his arm around her waist and pulled her onto the soft couch beside him.

“Is Emperor Qi a second Prince Xuan?”

“Second Miss Yan, not even close.” Ye’an interjected.

“……Then is Xiao Shi really Mu Brother’s sister or not?”

“Probably not — though possibly yes.” The man lowered his head and pressed a kiss to her forehead. “Not entirely foolish. This is your reward.”

Yan Yunning made no effort to hide it, rolling her eyes right at him.

Xuan Yanyu had just opened his mouth to say something when a drop of blood seeped from the tip of the girl’s nose and landed on the back of his hand.

“I’m done for — I’m about to drop dead.” Yan Yunning’s heartbeat slowed for a few seconds. She joked, “Xuan Xixi, I’ll never see you again after this — what a bother.”

She had no idea why this kept happening lately. How many times was this now??

“What do you mean ‘drop dead’?” The man took the cup of water Ye’an handed him and gently cleaned her nose. “You won’t lose sight of this Palace.”

“Second Miss Yan, it’s fine — in this kind of weather, a nosebleed is completely normal. I get them too.” Ye Chen offered in comfort.

“Are you sure you’re not just…” Yan Yunning swept him with an up-and-down look.

Ye Chen’s face flushed red. “Second Miss Yan, I was being kind by comforting you — how could you… how could you…”

He should have kept his mouth shut!!!

Ye Chen fumed quietly under his breath.

Ye’an stood nearby, holding back laughter.

Yan Yunning lifted Xuan Yanyu’s arm and buried her little head inside his wide sleeve, biting her lip in mortification — she felt a bit embarrassed.

Xuan Yanyu looked at the girl hiding inside his sleeve, unable to suppress a soft laugh.

What on earth was she thinking about all day?

……

Yan Shiyao’s chamber.

The girl lay against the bed in low spirits. Qi Qingchen handed her a cup of water. “Would you like a drink?”

“No.”

“Who hit Xiao Shi?” Qi Qingchen sighed. “Which one of you did it — you or Lingning?”

“What do you mean me and Lingning?” Yan Shiyao bristled with indignation. “It wasn’t me, and it wasn’t Lingning either — she hit herself, and now she’s framing us.”

Qi Qingchen pressed his lips together. From the looks of it, the strikes had been quite fierce. She hit herself?

She could be that ruthless to herself??

“Get out, you’re annoying me to death.” Yan Shiyao flung a soft pillow at him.

“Yan Shiyao!” Qi Qingchen caught her wrist and bent down to press his lips against hers.

Yan Shiyao grabbed a fistful of the man’s dark hair and yanked.

Qi Qingchen released her with a hiss of pain, breathless. “Yan Shiyao, if you tell this Palace to get out one more time, this Palace will…”

“Get out!” Yan Shiyao pulled the thin blanket over her face and glared at him from behind it.

“You…” Qi Qingchen closed his eyes and forced down his anger. “Xiao Shi says you hit her. Mu Shiqing is asking you to go and apologize to her.”

Mu Shiqing had conveniently ignored the plural and decided it was Yan Shiyao who had done the hitting.

He truly couldn’t stand the sight of Yan Shiyao!

Yet where her sister was concerned, Mu Shiqing wouldn’t even bring himself to raise his voice at Yan Yunning.

Yan Shiyao pinched the area below her nose, on the verge of fainting from fury.

She had fainted in bed — how could she have hit Xiao Shi?

Couldn’t Xiao Shi have thought it through before framing her??

Was Xiao Shi truly not her father’s daughter???

“Mu Shiqing said that if you don’t go, he’ll enter the palace tomorrow afternoon after the midday meal.” Qi Qingchen watched as Yan Shiyao’s face flushed scarlet with rage, her eyes gleaming with tears about to fall, and felt an inexplicable heaviness settle in his chest.

“Aah!” Yan Shiyao shouted, and the tears she had been holding back spilled freely down her face.

She was going to be driven mad with anger.

Qi Qingchen pressed his lips together and stepped forward, wrapping his arms around the aggrieved girl, coaxing her gently, “It’s all right. This Palace will speak to Imperial Father, and there’s also Attendant Yan and the Chancellor — you don’t need to be afraid.”

Yan Shiyao bit her lip. The grievances of the past few days surged up all at once, and she smiled bitterly. She wasn’t afraid — she simply couldn’t understand it. Why? Why frame her?

She hadn’t done anything this time. She hadn’t done anything at all…

“You don’t have to go and apologize. Let Mu Shiqing make his fuss.” Qi Qingchen patted the girl gently on the back.

Yan Shiyao lifted her head and stared blankly at him. What had come over Qi Qingchen?

How could he be this gentle?

Was he trying to use her again — make her feel moved so she’d fall for him?

That would never happen again. Never, ever again. She would never allow herself to be emotionally entangled with Qi Qingchen.

In those fragments she had seen — he had been this same tender way when he told her that Lingning was also his little sister. And then, after conquering Xuanzhao, he had changed entirely.