Pang Xiao had always been decisive. In the military camp, his were military orders that no one could disobey. Today’s willingness to discuss matters with Yuchi Yan for so long was already giving Yuchi Yan tremendous face.

Although he had come to maintain stability, he couldn’t just constantly yield and give ground, or else wouldn’t the other party take advantage and climb all over him?

Though Pang Xiao was smiling, his phoenix eyes narrowed slightly, creating invisible pressure.

Yuchi Yan harbored hatred toward Pang Xiao, but more than that, he feared him—that was the irresistible pressure of someone who had destroyed an entire dynasty, like a lone person facing an entire angry ocean.

Yuchi Yan forced himself to remain calm, but didn’t dare meet Pang Xiao’s gaze. “This… actually this is fine too, then…”

Gu Shixiong quickly interrupted Yuchi Yan’s words: “It seems Prince Zhongshun still harbors rejection toward our Prince Zhengnan in his heart.”

Pang Xiao’s eyes narrowed slightly as he smiled: “Elder Gu is advanced in years. Actually, returning to the capital to rest and recuperate according to His Majesty’s wishes would be good.”

This was clearly a blatant threat!

Gu Shixiong had followed Yuchi Yan all this way—how could he possibly abandon Yuchi Yan before the Great Yan Dynasty was restored? With Yuchi Yan’s brains, without him there, he could be skinned and dismembered in the blink of an eye.

Gu Shixiong changed his tune: “Then let’s follow Prince Zhongshun’s wishes. We’re all officials serving the same court and should naturally share common enemies. There’s no need to hurt our harmony over such a small matter.”

He changed faces faster than flipping through a book. He said everything there was to say, and he had the thick skin to pull it off too.

Qin Yining grumbled inwardly, then followed Pang Xiao’s suggestion and returned to the carriage. She lifted the window curtain to observe the city’s construction and the people’s lives all the way as they headed toward the imperial palace.

Before getting out of the carriage, Qin Yining quietly instructed Bingtang and Ji Yun: “After we enter the palace, you must be extra careful. I’m worried this is a trap that might harm the two children.”

“Don’t worry, Princess. We’ll definitely protect the young masters well and won’t give anyone an opportunity to take advantage.”

Qin Yining nodded with relief. “With you here, I’m naturally at ease.”

Besides, Qin Yining didn’t believe that with the elite Tiger Guards that Pang Xiao had brought, Yuchi Yan had the ability to do anything to their party. It was nothing more than entering the palace for a banquet and putting on an act.

The carriage moved forward with the procession. Listening to the rumbling sounds between the wheels and the ground and the creaking sounds when encountering bumps, the familiar streets and palace walls gradually appeared in Qin Yining’s field of vision.

She had spent most of her time living outside with her adoptive mother, and later went to the mountains. If she counted the time, she hadn’t actually lived in the capital for very long.

But the crisis-filled days after returning to the Qin Manor had also gradually helped her adapt to her new identity and integrate into her current life.

She remembered clearly every step of how she had survived in the Qin Manor and in the capital.

Pang Xiao didn’t have any particularly strong feelings about coming to the old capital, but Qin Yining felt only warmth and familiarity.

When Pang Xiao had been trapped in the underground palace, Qin Huaiyuan had once discussed with Qin Yining that if they were to leave the capital in the future, the place they most wanted to go was still their hometown.

Now that Pang Xiao was well and Zhao Ge’er and Han Ge’er had been safely born, her wish was still to return to her hometown and live a peaceful, stable life.

But Qin Yining also knew that placing such hopes on someone like Pang Xiao, who was destined never to be ordinary, would be very difficult to achieve.

There were no longer the rows of imperial guards that once stood before the palace gates—only two guards remained. The vermillion gates stood open, the palace road was silent and empty, everything displaying desolation and loneliness.

Everyone rode directly through the palace gates. Following orders, Pang Xiao’s Tiger Guards left one person at regular intervals along the route. By the time they reached the side hall where the banquet was to be held, Qin Yining and Pang Xiao still had six Tiger Guards beside them, along with personal attendants, wet nurses, and servants.

Qin Yining observed the surrounding environment and confirmed this wasn’t one of the central palace halls, thinking to herself that Yuchi Yan still had some sense of propriety—at least he hadn’t been so muddled as to use the main hall to receive guests. If Yuchi Yan was going to live here with his limited servants, he probably couldn’t live in the original sleeping quarters either, could he?

“Your Highness, Princess, please!” Yuchi Yan and Gu Shixiong, leading several old ministers from the Yan Dynasty, enthusiastically led the way, pointing to a side room nearby: “This can be used as a rest area for the princess and young princes.”

How could Qin Yining be willing to leave Pang Xiao’s sight? She immediately smiled: “No need to trouble yourself so much. I also want to bring the children to broaden their experience.”

As if understanding Qin Yining’s thoughts, Yuchi Yan looked somewhat dejected and somewhat aggrieved at being suspected. He coughed lightly: “The guest’s wishes come first. Please.”

Yuchi Yan’s tone really treated this place as his own home.

Qin Yining shook her head inwardly, then beckoned to the wet nurses, Bingtang, and the others, following behind Pang Xiao’s party as they all entered the side hall together.

This side hall was naturally much simpler than the halls where emperors and empresses lived, and the lighting wasn’t very bright either. The slanting winter sun shone through the diamond-patterned windows covered with bright paper, and one could even see tiny specks of dust floating in the air.

When Yuchi Yan entered, the servants immediately sprang into action, lighting the hanging palace lanterns and bringing in warming braziers and charcoal basins. Before long, the interior of the hall became warm.

Qin Yining breathed a sigh of relief. She had also been worried that it would be too cold and might freeze her two sons.

“Your Highness, please.”

“After you.”

Yuchi Yan and Pang Xiao were already courteously yielding to each other as they took their seats. Gu Shixiong and the other old ministers from the Yan Dynasty also sat around the eight-immortals table according to their status.

As a female family member with children, Qin Yining naturally couldn’t share the same table. She took her servants to a retiring room separated by a pearl curtain. Huzi and the Tiger Guards naturally stationed themselves beside Qin Yining.

Pang Xiao exchanged pleasantries with Yuchi Yan. Though he had been stained with an aura of dominance and killing from his battlefield campaigns, when he genuinely wanted to befriend someone, he could also make people feel like they were bathed in spring breezes.

Pang Xiao didn’t actively discuss national affairs, nor did he speak of military formations or governmental matters that Yuchi Yan wasn’t proficient in. Instead, he discussed calligraphy and painting with him, talking about famous calligraphers and painters of the past, and mentioning whose calligraphy was good and whose painting was exceptional among contemporary artists.

Initially, Yuchi Yan was still thinking in his heart that he couldn’t fall for Pang Xiao’s tricks and couldn’t relax his guard against him. But since coming to the south, Yuchi Yan had been under constant pressure, struggling to do things he wasn’t good at. Now encountering someone he could talk with about topics that interested him, his words became somewhat uncontainable, and his enthusiasm for conversation grew increasingly high.

In the end, Yuchi Yan’s floodgates opened completely. His excited appearance made Gu Shixiong frown directly, and even the old ministers beside Gu Shixiong couldn’t bear to watch, frowning and shaking their heads without speaking.

Seeing that Yuchi Yan was in high spirits and had relaxed his vigilance, Pang Xiao smiled and raised his cup to drink with him, casually asking: “How is it that I didn’t see General Deng today?”

General Deng’s name was Minchang, and he was the original commanding general of the Pingnan Army.

Pang Xiao was the newly appointed Pingnan Grand Marshal by His Majesty. By rights, when Pang Xiao entered the city, Deng Minchang should have personally come to welcome him.