This Prince Ning’s mansion had been her favorite place since she arrived here.

These people had burned it down!

This was intolerable!

Mu Yunjin’s face immediately darkened, her eyes narrowing. The Phoenix Tail Whip on her wrist was already gripped tightly in her hand, ready to charge at the black-clothed men before her at any moment.

Chu Li glanced sideways at Mu Yunjin, and noticing her emotional state, he grabbed her wrist that held the whip, preventing her from having the strength to use it.

Sensing Chu Li’s restraining grip, Mu Yunjin took a breath, suppressing her current anger.

“Stand still and don’t move,” Chu Li suddenly instructed Mu Yunjin in a low voice.

Mu Yunjin nodded. Through the firelight, she could see the coldness in Chu Li’s eyes, and the air around them suddenly became eerie and chilly.

Then, with a flick of Chu Li’s wrist, the fireballs on the black-clothed men’s arrows were instantly extinguished by a blast of cold air. Following this, a cold light flashed in Chu Li’s eyes, and a murderous aura emanated from his entire body.

…

…

Before those black-clothed men could react, a blue light flashed in the darkness, mingling with the distant flames to form an anomalous scene of ice and fire. A powerful cold air blast threw those black-clothed men dozens of meters away. They fell to the ground with their eyes wide open, but without a trace of breath.

In the chests of the black-clothed men were the very arrows they had been holding moments before.

Seeing this, Mu Yunjin exclaimed in shock.

“Let’s leave this place first,” Chu Li returned to his senses first, pulling her into the secret passage.

After the two entered the secret passage, Chu Li took out his jade pendant to light the way. As they walked a few steps, they could sense continuous vibrations coming from above.

“So the prince’s mansion is just being burned like this,” Mu Yunjin said with downcast eyes, her words filled with disappointment.

“That’s not important,” Chu Li gripped her hand tightly in his.

Mu Yunjin nodded, comforting herself and forcing a smile. “Right, as long as you’re here, nothing else matters.”

“But who sent those black-clothed men? How did they calculate that we would be in the mansion? Could they have been following us all along?” Mu Yunjin paused, then asked in surprise, looking at Chu Li.

Chu Li shook his head, lowering his eyes calmly. “They just happened to encounter us.”

“Today, the mansion was searched inside and out, but nothing disadvantageous to us was found. Some people couldn’t accept this, so they came up with this plan, wanting to frame us for destroying evidence and eliminating witnesses.” Chu Li spoke lightly, concluding with a mocking smile.

Mu Yunjin understood, recalling what Imperial Tutor An had said. The blank book was just the first step, and burning the prince’s mansion was the second. Who knew what would come next?

“Chu Li, what should we do next? We can’t keep being passive like this,” Mu Yunjin said.

Hearing this, Chu Li lowered his gaze to look at her, his eyes moving over her abdomen. “You should just stay peacefully at Fengyu Pavilion and take care of your pregnancy. I will handle everything.”

“That won’t do. I can’t push everything onto you. Fish Granny at Fengyu Pavilion can use spiritual energy to seal my belly. Then I can help you.”

As Mu Yunjin finished speaking, she tightened her grip on Chu Li’s hand, intertwining their fingers. “Chu Li, now we only have each other.”

Chu Li stared at her profile. For a moment, it seemed as if fragmentary scenes flashed before his eyes, causing a subtle pain in his heart.

But when he came back to himself, everything had returned to normal.

“What’s wrong? Are you feeling unwell?” Mu Yunjin noticed his frown and looked at him with concern.

“It’s nothing.”

Mu Yunjin pressed her lips together and nodded.

…

By the time they exited the secret passage, it was already the hour of Zi (11 PM – 1 AM), and the Water Cloud Temple was empty.

“Chu Li, didn’t they say the thousand-year-old tree was revived? Let’s go take a look…” Mu Yunjin looked around, her gaze finally settling in the direction of the ancient tree.

Could this be considered finding joy in suffering?

Chu Li nodded, agreeing to her suggestion, and holding her hand, walked toward the thousand-year-old tree.

As they stepped into the courtyard of the ancient tree, Mu Yunjin’s gaze immediately fell on a small tree in the center of the courtyard, and her eyes suddenly brightened.

After quickly moving closer, Mu Yunjin crouched down, examining the small tree. “It’s become a small tree. How amazing.”

Chu Li curved his lips slightly. “Sit down and rest for a while.”

“Mm,” Mu Yunjin nodded, sitting down beneath the small tree.

Chu Li also sat down beside her.

As soon as they sat down, both of them tensed, hearing two voices in their ears simultaneously—

“Huan’er.”

“Brother Qing.”

Hearing the name “Huan’er,” Mu Yunjin instinctively tightened her arms. Was it calling Fu Huan?

Chu Li similarly showed a hint of surprise in his eyes, carefully processing the three words “Brother Qing.”

For a while, neither of them spoke, just sitting quietly, hoping to hear if any more sounds would come. But after a long wait, apart from the sound of the wind, there was nothing else.

“Chu Li, Consort Rong is also here. Should we go see her?” Mu Yunjin turned to look at Chu Li.

Chu Li shook his head. “Not anymore.”

“Mm…” Mu Yunjin made a soft sound, lowering her eyes to look at the ground. “I found out about your background yesterday.”

“When I went to the Southern Court, I sensed that the Southern Court monarch might also have Sparrow Mist Eyes, so I deduced that you might be father and son. You probably already perceived this, didn’t you?” Mu Yunjin turned her head to look at Chu Li.

Chu Li half-narrowed his eyes, his thin lips pressed tightly together.

Realizing she might have asked the wrong question and upset Chu Li, Mu Yunjin opened her mouth, wanting to explain, but feared making Chu Li even more displeased.

“You two are hiding here!”

A playful voice flew into the courtyard.

Hearing this voice, Mu Yunjin raised her head and saw that the person was none other than her master, Daoist Feng Xuan.

Daoist Feng Xuan stood before the two of them, his gaze first falling on Mu Yunjin. “Girl, I have been to the Ministry of Justice, and the situation doesn’t look good…”

“How are they?” Mu Yunjin thought of Zixiang and Mamma Shen being imprisoned, and her heart ached severely.

“They have all been severely interrogated by Chu Qing’s people. But the people from your mansion are quite tight-lipped—not one of them spoke ill of Prince Ning’s mansion. However, the consequence of being tight-lipped depends on how strong their lives are.”

Mu Yunjin’s pupils contracted.

“The eldest one, Mamma Shen, has been beaten till her skin split and flesh showed. I’ve secretly channeled true energy to heal her wounds, but whether she can pull through depends on her fate.” Daoist Feng Xuan sighed.

Mu Yunjin lowered her eyes, her hands tightly gripping her sleeves. “What about Zixiang? How is she?”

“That girl has also been whipped several times, but her life is not in danger,” Daoist Feng Xuan said.

“By the way, when I was returning, I saw Prince Ning’s mansion ablaze. The fire was fierce and affected a nearby street as well. Now the streets of Butterfly City are in chaos. I thought you might be at Water Cloud Temple, so I came here. Sure enough, you’re here.” Daoist Feng Xuan added.

The more Mu Yunjin heard, the more distressed she felt. Her lips were pressed tightly together, afraid that she would lose control of her emotions.

Since becoming pregnant, she had become increasingly sentimental. Even small matters could cause significant changes in her emotions, and the toughness she once had was gradually wearing away.

“Chu Li, you really can stay calm.” Daoist Feng Xuan turned to look at Chu Li, his tone carrying a hint of teasing.

Chu Li lightly embraced Mu Yunjin’s waist. After hearing Daoist Feng Xuan’s words, he slowly raised his head and smiled faintly.

At the same time, Mu Yunjin, who had her eyes open, felt a pain in her waist, and then her entire body lost consciousness, toppling sideways into Chu Li’s arms.

Seeing this, Daoist Feng Xuan gave Chu Li a profound look.

“I trouble the elder to send her back to Fengyu Pavilion. This junior still has important matters to attend to.” Chu Li’s voice was low and resolute.

“Alright.” Daoist Feng Xuan didn’t ask Chu Li where he was going, but simply nodded in agreement.

Finally, he added, “Take care of yourself.”

“Mm.” Chu Li acknowledged with a nod, turning his gaze to Mu Yunjin’s serene countenance.

…

When Mu Yunjin woke up, she was lying in a small wooden cabin in Fengyu Pavilion.

Wasn’t she at Water Cloud Temple?

How did she end up here?

And where was Chu Li?

Mu Yunjin immediately sat up in bed, put on her shoes, and just as her hand touched the door, her entire body was repelled back to the edge of the bed.

“What’s happening? Has an array been set up in this room?” Mu Yunjin bit her lip, a bad premonition flashing in her heart.

At this moment, someone knocked on the door.

“Naughty girl, are you awake?” Daoist Feng Xuan’s voice sounded from outside.

“Master, why are you here? Please help me remove this array!” Mu Yunjin stood in the room, pacing anxiously.

Daoist Feng Xuan sighed. “Girl, you should stay here peacefully for the next few days until Chu Li finishes his business and comes to find you. Do you understand?”

“Chu Li left?” Although Mu Yunjin had already guessed this possibility, when she heard the definitive answer, her heart filled with unpleasant feelings.

“Don’t be too upset. You’re pregnant now, and Chu Li is concerned for you, fearing you might come to harm. Besides, don’t you trust his abilities?” Daoist Feng Xuan stood at the door, comforting Mu Yunjin.

Mu Yunjin drew in a sharp breath. “Master, please help me remove the array first.”

“Promise me you won’t run around recklessly, and I’ll help you remove it,” Daoist Feng Xuan said at the door.

“Fine, I promise you.” Mu Yunjin nodded in agreement.

As soon as she finished speaking, the surrounding array was immediately withdrawn, and the door opened with a “creak.”

Seeing the door open, Mu Yunjin immediately ran out, swiftly running down the mountain toward the entrance of Fengyu Pavilion.

Daoist Feng Xuan walked slowly behind her, unhurried.

Mu Yunjin ran to the entrance but stopped before getting close. She turned around, looking displeased at the slowly approaching Daoist Feng Xuan.

“Don’t waste your energy. I knew this naughty girl would trick me, so I also set up an array here.” Daoist Feng Xuan stroked his beard.

Mu Yunjin immediately deflated, her body going soft as she collapsed onto the ground, lowering her head with a feeling of complete powerlessness.

“Master…” Qiqi and Flower Ying ran over, crouching beside Mu Yunjin, supporting her with worried expressions.

Mu Yunjin stared blankly for quite a while before raising her head, turning to look at Qiqi and Flower Ying, muttering, “How many days until the thirtieth?”