Huang Yan held Yan Lingshang, letting out a light sigh. “Didn’t this young master say that since this maiden has delivered herself to our doorstep, I might as well play the hero and save the beauty?”

“Besides, just thinking about seeing the disappointed faces of that old ghost Black Robe and his people is interesting.” Huang Yan raised his eyebrows.

Mu Yunjin pursed her lips, not knowing what to say to Huang Yan.

Chu Li looked at Huang Yan, then glanced at the person in his arms, frowning. “Be careful not to bring trouble upon yourself.”

“I’m not afraid,” Huang Yan replied, then beckoned to the young maid from earlier, pointing at Yan Lingshang in his arms. “Take off her clothes for me.”

The young maid nodded.

Shortly after, Huang Yan was dressed in Yan Lingshang’s clothes, his face transformed into Yan Lingshang’s countenance, holding a brocade box as he walked before Chu Li and Mu Yunjin.

Mu Yunjin looked at his face, which was indeed identical to Yan Lingshang’s.

But this figure…

…

…

Might it be a bit too large?

And the clothes… might they be a bit too small?

“Go tell my father that I’m dining with the Princess and will be sent home later,” Huang Yan instructed the young maid.

Hearing this, the young maid hurriedly left.

……

Huang Yan stayed at the residence for more than an hour before being sent out in a sedan chair dispatched by the prince’s residence.

“Who knows what storms will be stirred up at the Prime Minister’s residence now,” Mu Yunjin sighed as she watched the sedan chair disappear into the distance.

“He knows his limits,” Chu Li said as he put his arm around Mu Yunjin and walked back.

Mu Yunjin tugged at the corners of her mouth. “So much commotion on our first day back; I fear the coming year won’t be easy either.”

“Don’t worry, this prince is here,” Chu Li said gently.

Mu Yunjin nodded.

Back in the room, Mu Yunjin looked at the small door inside the room, stepped lightly over, and opened it. The moment the small door opened, the mist inside drifted in.

“Emperor Ximing even restored the hot spring pool for you,” Mu Yunjin said in amazement.

Hearing this, Chu Li bent down and embraced Mu Yunjin, resting his chin on her shoulder, his tone languid. “It’s just a pity that you can’t join this prince in the hot spring right now…”

Hearing this, Mu Yunjin’s face reddened, and she gently pushed Chu Li away.

Chu Li chuckled, his warm breath falling on Mu Yunjin’s neck, causing her whole body to tingle with sensation.

“It’s getting late; we should rest,” Mu Yunjin felt that if this teasing continued, she, a pregnant woman, would lose her self-control.

Chu Li looked at her flushed face, his smile deepening. “Then give this prince a kiss.”

Mu Yunjin bit her lower lip, turned around, stood on tiptoe, and lightly pecked Chu Li’s lips.

Just as she was about to pull away, Chu Li seized her body and deepened the kiss…

A long while later, Chu Li reluctantly released her, licking his lips with lingering desire. “The feeling of not getting enough is unbearable…”

Mu Yunjin burst into laughter.

……

The next day, officials and wealthy merchants came to deliver gifts, nearly breaking the threshold of Prince Ning’s residence.

Most of these people had abandoned Chu Li when his background was exposed, but now they had to curry favor again due to the current situation.

At this, they couldn’t help but sigh at life’s vicissitudes.

In all matters, it was better to leave some room for maneuver and not be too absolute.

Toward noon, Grand Tutor Zhuang and Chief Justice Chen Pu arrived together.

Seeing these two, Chu Li, who had worn a grim face all morning, finally showed some pleasantness and ordered a meal to be prepared immediately.

At the dining table.

“With Crown Prince Ye about to ascend the throne, I wonder if that rebel Chu Qing will appear to disrupt during this period,” Grand Tutor Zhuang took a sip of wine and looked at Chu Li.

Chu Li smiled faintly, shaking his head. “Chu Qing’s group has recently suffered heavy losses. Even if they want to disrupt, they lack the means.”

Hearing this, Grand Tutor Zhuang raised his eyebrows and nodded.

“Recently, His Majesty has been unwell, often canceling morning court, and the court officials are already scattered in heart. This minister originally thought Crown Prince Ye alone would certainly be unable to cope, but now that Your Highness has returned, this minister is much more at ease,” Chen Pu said.

Mu Yunjin sat silently to the side, eating her meal. Though she had little interest in court affairs, when it came to matters concerning Chu Li, she had to prick up her ears.

Originally, she had wanted to be invisible and just eat by herself, but a moment later, the topic turned to her. “Princess Ning, why haven’t we seen that brother of yours recently?”

Brother…

Mu Yunjin was taken aback.

Indeed, now that Grand Tutor Zhuang mentioned it, Mu Yunjin realized she hadn’t seen Mu Yunhan for quite some time.

Even during her several visits to the Kingdom of South Garden, she had never seen Mu Yunhan.

If Grand Tutor Zhuang hadn’t suddenly brought it up, she might have almost forgotten about him.

Come to think of it, Mu Yunhan had once treated her very well.

“After Yunhan left Xi Yuan, he had no further contact with Yunjin,” Chu Li answered Grand Tutor Zhuang’s question when he saw that Mu Yunjin remained silent.

Grand Tutor Zhuang gave a light sound of acknowledgment, then sighed, “Pity my granddaughter Yuyan.”

As this topic was raised, the atmosphere in the dining hall became somewhat subdued.

Finally, Chen Pu broke the awkward silence. “Grand Tutor, haven’t there been many suitors lately? Are none of them satisfactory?”

“Most of these people want to marry into the Grand Tutor’s family; they’re all looking at my official position. How could I feel at ease letting Yuyan marry such men?” Grand Tutor Zhuang sighed.

After a pause, he took another sip of wine. “Well, let’s not speak of this.”

Chen Pu nodded awkwardly.

“By the way, Yan Qiuhuai has privately approached us several times recently. Since Chu Qing’s rebellion and the old traitor Qin’s death, he has lost his backing and seems interested in joining us. I heard that yesterday, he was among the first to visit Your Highness…” Chen Pu changed the topic.

“Such a fence-sitter, why should we pay him any mind?” Chu Li said disdainfully.

Hearing this, Grand Tutor Zhuang smiled. “Sometimes, one wrong step can lead to complete failure. After Crown Prince Ye ascends the throne, I fear Yan Qiuhuai’s official hat won’t be secure for long.”

“Grand Tutor speaks truly,” Chen Pu nodded in agreement.

As the atmosphere in the dining hall gradually improved, Ding Xian entered from outside and approached Chu Li. “Your Highness, an imperial verbal decree has arrived, summoning Your Highness to the palace to discuss Crown Prince Ye’s ascension procedure.”

“Grand Tutor and Justice Chen are also summoned to the palace,” Ding Xian added.

Hearing this, the three men nodded.

Chu Li looked at Mu Yunjin, seeing that she had only eaten half her meal, he reached out and gently stroked the back of her head, saying softly, “You continue eating. I’ll have Zixiang come keep you company.”

“It’s fine, you should go,” Mu Yunjin said, curling the corners of her mouth.

Chu Li made a sound of acknowledgment, then stood up and left the dining hall with Grand Tutor Zhuang and Chen Pu.

Shortly after, Zixiang entered the dining hall. “Young miss, this servant has arrived.”

Mu Yunjin put down her chopsticks and looked at Zixiang. “Is there anything interesting outside recently? It’s been a long time since I’ve had you accompany me for a stroll.”

“This servant hasn’t been to the streets for a long time either. Why don’t we go out for a walk later?” Zixiang suggested.

Mu Yunjin nodded in agreement.

……

After lunch, Mu Yunjin went out with Zixiang.

The weather was nice today, and there were many people in the market streets. However, upon seeing Mu Yunjin, they all cleared a path for her. Some commoners even ran away at the sight of her, as if they had seen some monster.

At first, it was still manageable, but after walking through one street, Mu Yunjin felt completely uncomfortable.

“Zixiang, is there something on my face?” Mu Yunjin touched her face.

Zixiang shook her head.

Mu Yunjin pursed her lips and continued walking forward.

As they walked, they came to the original location of Prince Ning’s residence.

Seeing the mansion before her, burnt beyond recognition, Mu Yunjin instinctively bit her lower lip, her emotions complex.

“Young miss, let’s go browse the rouge shop,” Zixiang, fearing that Mu Yunjin would be saddened by the scene, pulled her toward the adjacent street.

Mu Yunjin allowed Zixiang to lead her to the rouge shop.

As the two arrived at the entrance of the rouge shop, before they could step in, they heard several women gathered inside, chattering—

“I was so scared just now, meeting Princess Ning on the road. They say she brings calamity, dooming her father, mother, and husband. Who would dare approach her!”

“Exactly! I thought this harbinger of doom had left our Butterfly City, but after not too long, she’s back again…”

“I’ve heard recently that His Majesty is unwell. Do you think with this doom-bringer’s return, will he…?”

“Hush, you can’t say such things carelessly. It could cost you your head.”

“Right, right, right, just pretend I didn’t say anything. I’m just afraid of that harbinger of doom!”

Mu Yunjin heard all these women’s words and couldn’t help but reveal a contemptuous smile. No wonder everyone was avoiding her earlier; it turned out they regarded her as a harbinger of doom.

At this moment, someone in the rouge shop discovered Mu Yunjin at the door. After a scream, all those women who had been gossiping immediately knelt, greeting and paying respects to Mu Yunjin.

Mu Yunjin stepped into the rouge shop and didn’t ask them to rise, focusing instead on selecting rouge.

Without Mu Yunjin’s permission, those women naturally didn’t dare to stand up.

“Young miss, this peach pink color is your favorite,” Zixiang picked up a jar of peach pink rouge.

“Mmm, keep that one. And lip rouge and eyebrow pencils—we need to replace all of them,” Mu Yunjin said leisurely.

Zixiang nodded in understanding and went to select several lip rouges and eyebrow pencils for Mu Yunjin.

The mistress and servant spent nearly half an hour selecting these items.

The woman kneeling on the ground had long ago felt their leg bones growing cold and painful. The weather was already cold, and the jade stone floor of the rouge shop intensified the chill. If this continued, they feared they would all die there.

“Madam shopkeeper, wrap these up for me.” Mu Yunjin turned to look at one woman kneeling on the ground.

Hearing this, the woman immediately stood up shakily and began packing for Mu Yunjin.

A moment later, Mu Yunjin paid and headed toward the door with Zixiang.

As she passed by the group of women, Mu Yunjin paused, covered her mouth with a smile, and said, “I’m so sorry, ladies, but since I am a harbinger of doom, if I didn’t show you what’s what, I wouldn’t feel right about it.”

Finally, with her smile undiminished, she added, “Continue kneeling here for this princess. Without this princess’s command, whoever dares to stand up, beware—this princess might break your legs!”

With that, Mu Yunjin stepped out of the rouge shop’s main door.

Behind her, hearing Mu Yunjin say these words with a smile, those gossiping women from earlier were nearly frightened to the point of fainting…