Qiqi pouted and shrugged, “That’s bizarre.”

Mu Yunjin couldn’t understand it either. Imperial Preceptor An’s array was so intricate and mysterious that Chu Li couldn’t break through it for many years, yet somehow that crazy woman Qin Muyue had managed to escape and even found her way here.

Impressive indeed.

After pondering for a while, everyone still felt uneasy.

Tomorrow would be Qu Xinyao’s wedding day. If Qin Muyue were to cause trouble tonight, it would be truly inauspicious.

Fortunately, Qin Muyue had left in the end…

It seems fools are easier to deceive!

……

“Yunjin, I had heard about Qin Muyue’s disfigurement before, but I never imagined it would be this severe,” Qu Xinyao said, feeling nauseated as she recalled Qin Muyue’s ruined face.

…

…

That woman truly never knew peace, and in the end, she brought about her destruction.

Hearing this, Mu Yunjin pursed her lips, “After she practiced Qiuye and Black Robe’s techniques, she became somewhat deranged. Now, being stimulated by her disfigurement, she’s completely lost her mind.”

Qu Xinyao sighed, “The current state of the Qin family is entirely of their own making. They have no one else to blame.”

“Exactly! That vile Qin woman did so many terrible things before. She deserves everything that’s happened to her—deserves to have her face looking like a wasp nest!” Qiqi chimed in.

“Enough about her. She’s making me feel sick. Let’s continue our conversation,” Mu Yunjin changed the subject.

Qu Xinyao nodded.

The women once again immersed themselves in their interests.

After chatting for a while, two figures entered the residence—Chu Li and Huang Yan.

Seeing Chu Li arrive, the women exchanged glances, all silently agreeing not to mention Qin Muyue’s earlier visit.

“What are you all talking about?” Huang Yan glanced at Huaying and the others, coming closer.

“We’re discussing that after Xinyao’s wedding is over, we should start preparing for Huaying’s next,” Qiqi said with a mysterious wink.

Upon hearing this, Huaying glanced lightly at Qiqi, “Cat girl, stop making things up.”

“Really? You’re going to prepare for my wedding with Huaying?” Huang Yan immediately picked up on the conversation.

Everyone fell silent!

After a moment, Chu Li walked to Mu Yunjin’s side, bent down, and asked gently, “Are you tired?”

“I’m fine,” Mu Yunjin smiled.

“It’s getting late. We should rest,” Chu Li said, looking at Mu Yunjin.

Mu Yunjin checked the time and indeed it was quite late, so she nodded.

Before leaving, Huaying and Qiqi, fearing Qin Muyue might return to cause trouble, decided to stay at Qu Xinyao’s residence. Huang Yan was also persuaded by Qiqi to stay.

On the way to the City Lord’s Mansion, only Mu Yunjin and Chu Li remained.

The two walked side by side, their slender shadows stretching long under the moonlight.

……

Early the next morning, the entire River Moon City was filled with joy and celebration. Crowds of common people stood at the entrances of both the City Lord’s Mansion and Qu Xinyao’s residence to watch the festivities.

Mu Yunjin had originally wanted to go to Qu Xinyao’s place, but was refused by Chu Li on the pretext that there were too many people. He told her to take care of her belly and avoid getting squeezed by the crowd.

Now, Mu Yunjin could only stand eagerly inside the City Lord’s Mansion, waiting for Xu Heyu to bring Qu Xinyao home at the auspicious time.

“Has the auspicious time arrived yet?” Mu Yunjin asked Chu Li after sitting idly for a long while.

Chu Li pursed his lips and shook his head, “Not yet.”

Hearing this, Mu Yunjin folded her arms and was about to stand up to go back to her room for a rest when she caught sight of a familiar figure entering through the main gate.

The City Lord of Zhangzhou, Qiu Tianhuai.

As soon as Qiu Tianhuai stepped into the City Lord’s Mansion, he sensed someone watching him. When he turned his head, he met Mu Yunjin’s inquiring gaze.

He then walked toward Mu Yunjin and Chu Li.

“Greetings to Prince Ning and Princess Ning,” Qiu Tianhuai approached and bowed slightly to Chu Li and Mu Yunjin.

“City Lord Qiu, no need for formalities,” Chu Li said calmly.

Qiu Tianhuai expressed his thanks and then revealed a smile, “Today, the City Lords of River Moon City and Xinyao City are joining in matrimony. It’s truly an honor for me, the City Lord of Zhangzhou, to be invited.”

“Did City Lord Qiu come alone?” Chu Li asked with an ambiguous smile, looking at Qiu Tianhuai.

“Of course. I’m over forty years old and still single. It’s quite embarrassing,” Qiu Tianhuai replied with an awkward smile.

Mu Yunjin rested her chin on her hand, examining Qiu Tianhuai. She recalled that the grass ghost woman Shen Wanning was a frequent resident at Qiu Tianhuai’s mansion. With Qiu Tianhuai standing opposite her now, Mu Yunjin instinctively became defensive.

After greeting Chu Li and Mu Yunjin, Qiu Tianhuai didn’t linger but left to join the other guests.

“This Qiu Tianhuai seems strange,” Mu Yunjin remarked.

“He is Chu Qing’s uncle. It’s normal for him to be a bit odd,” Chu Li replied, his lips curled in cold mockery.

Mu Yunjin tugged at the corner of her mouth, “Indeed, we should be careful of him today.”

Chu Li nodded slightly and said, “Today, the entire area is filled with hidden guards. Many of the guests in the audience are disguised guards.”

Hearing this, Mu Yunjin raised her eyebrows, “It seems City Lord Xu has made thorough preparations.”

“Yes…”

……

Mu Yunjin had been waiting all morning and finally saw Xu Heyu welcome Qu Xinyao through the door.

Now Mu Yunjin and Chu Li stood in the front hall, watching the couple prepare for the ceremony as the auspicious time arrived.

“First bow to Heaven and Earth!”

At the auspicious time, the ceremonial master began to call out the rites.

Xu Heyu and Qu Xinyao stood together, both bowing in unison.

“Second bow to the ancestors!”

Both were without parents, so when the call came to bow to the ancestors, they bowed toward four tablets placed in the main position.

Nearby, watching commoners sighed upon seeing this scene.

“Bow to each other!”

Finally, it was time for the last bow. Xu Heyu and Qu Xinyao turned to face each other and bowed without hesitation.

“The ceremony is complete. Send them to the bridal chamber!”

As these words were spoken, cheers erupted all around.

Watching the wedding ceremony, Mu Yunjin unconsciously tightened her grip on Chu Li’s hand, her eyes showing a touch of envy.

Chu Li noticed her hand movement and smiled slightly, drawing her into his embrace.

During the feast, Xu Heyu was making his rounds, toasting each guest. As he approached Chu Li with a cup of wine, a smile on his face and about to speak, a wedding attendant came running from the back courtyard.

“Terrible news! Terrible news! The bride has disappeared!”

The wedding attendant’s voice was very loud, and almost everyone heard these words. The banquet hall immediately fell silent.

Upon hearing this, Xu Heyu immediately dropped his wine cup and ran toward the room.

Chu Li, Mu Yunjin, and others quickly followed.

……

In the bridal chamber, Qu Xinyao’s red veil lay on the ground, and the room was empty.

“What happened?” Xu Heyu frowned, coldly scanning the wedding attendants.

The attendants, already trembling with fear, immediately knelt and stammered, “We don’t know! We just stepped out for a moment, and when we came back, the bride was gone!”

“Gone? Why don’t you all just die?” Xu Heyu was furious. The normally gentle man was at this moment so angry that he wanted to kill someone.

After entering the room, Mu Yunjin looked around. Who would kidnap Qu Xinyao at such a critical moment?

Qiqi stood by, activating a tracking technique to search for Qu Xinyao’s whereabouts.

But after a long time, there was no clue.

“Heyu, don’t panic. Let’s split up and search!” Huang Yan comforted Xu Heyu, then left the room with Ding Xian.

Qiqi and Huaying were not idle either, immediately running out to search.

Mu Yunjin was about to leave when Chu Li stopped her, “You stay here and wait for news. This prince will go out and search!”

Mu Yunjin was taken aback, then pressed her lips together and nodded, agreeing to Chu Li’s words.

……

After everyone had split up to search, Mu Yunjin left the bridal chamber and walked out.

After a few steps, she encountered Qiu Tianhuai.

Seeing Mu Yunjin alone, Qiu Tianhuai smiled and said, “What a coincidence to meet Princess Ning again. Where are you heading all by yourself?”

“I’ve eaten and am going back to rest,” Mu Yunjin said flatly, unwilling to engage much with Qiu Tianhuai.

Hearing this, Qiu Tianhuai raised his eyebrows, “Going back to rest? Not going to search for the person?”

“…” Mu Yunjin’s footsteps paused.

Although she detected something suspicious in Qiu Tianhuai’s words, the wedding attendant’s announcement about Qu Xinyao’s disappearance had been heard by almost everyone. Qiu Tianhuai might have been just testing her.

In all matters, it’s best to be cautious.

“City Lord Qiu seems to have something to say?” Mu Yunjin raised her chin, looking up at Qiu Tianhuai.

Qiu Tianhuai smiled, “What would Princess Ning like to hear?”

“Nothing,” Mu Yunjin couldn’t be bothered to continue the exchange with him. She stepped around Qiu Tianhuai and walked forward.

Qiu Tianhuai turned around, looking at Mu Yunjin’s back, and sighed, “It’s pitiful. Being kidnapped on her wedding day, missing out on her wedding night…”

“Qiu Tianhuai, you’d better not cause trouble for no reason!” Mu Yunjin turned around, narrowing her eyes in warning.

“It’s fun to watch the excitement, isn’t that right?” Qiu Tianhuai retorted.

Mu Yunjin clenched her fists. Seeing that there was a good chance Qiu Tianhuai knew some inside information, she was just about to use her Phoenix Tail Whip to bind him when Qiu Tianhuai quickly slipped away.

Before leaving, he threw back a sentence, “Without me, none of you will know where Qu Xinyao is.”

Mu Yunjin bit her lip, her eyes blazing with anger.

Who was pulling the strings, able to hide from the watchful eyes of the many hidden guards?

……

From noon until darkness fell, those who had gone out to search returned one after another, except for Xu Heyu.

“Sigh, not a single clue. Who’s behind this mischief?” Qiqi entered the room and flopped down, drinking several cups of tea in succession.

Huaying didn’t look well either. She sighed, “We’ve been to all the neighboring cities. No trace at all.”

“Who has such incredible ability to take Yaoyao away without anyone noticing?” Huang Yan was also full of worry.

Ding Xian tilted his head in thought, “Apart from Chu Qing and his people, I can’t think of anyone else.”

“What should we do? Heyu is still out searching. If we can’t find Yaoyao, he’ll go mad,” Huang Yan spoke again.

Listening to their conversation, Mu Yunjin clenched her fists, “Qiu Tianhuai was acting strangely today.”

At these words, everyone fell silent and looked at Mu Yunjin.

Mu Yunjin looked at them, moved her lips, and was about to speak when Chu Li walked in from outside with a grim expression.

“Your Highness, how did it go?”

Chu Li’s face was dark as he uttered three words: “Ping Feng Cliff!”