Since receiving the message last night, Feng Yuan had been busy arranging for Feng Qiyuan to enter the palace. Now, he just wanted to see Xiaoying as soon as possible.

However, before seeing Xiaoying, he needed to straighten out her brother’s thinking to prevent this fool from suggesting something stupid and causing trouble for her.

Thinking of this, Feng Yuan took a deep breath and asked coldly: “Do you still want to die?”

Feng Qiyuan quickly shook his head and sobbed: “The Grand Prince is right. Xiaoying told me that the Empress Tang was cruel and only used me as a tool to seize power. It was my foolishness that made me still cherish our mother-son relationship…”

Only today, when Feng Qiyuan looked into Empress Tang’s eyes, did he see nothing but endless hatred.

So in the Empress Tang’s eyes, he was worse than a dog.

She had squeezed his neck so forcefully, even more terrifyingly than when the Grand Prince had choked him years ago. If not for the Grand Prince’s intervention, he might truly have been strangled to death by the Empress Tang.

“I was wrong, Grand Prince… no, Your Highness, please don’t blame me…”

He was not His Majesty’s son, so how could he still have the right to call Feng Yuan his royal brother? Of course, he had to change his form of address.

Feng Yuan didn’t speak, only walking around the Eastern Palace’s sleeping quarters looking for Xiaoying, not knowing where she had gone. His heart grew anxious again, and after a sleepless night, his temples were throbbing with pain.

When he entered the bedchamber, two old palace women were slumped by a wine table. The food looked quite good, causing them to accidentally drink too much.

Feng Qiyuan explained quietly: “These two are trusted servants of Consort Shang from the Western Palace, sent to search the Crown Prince’s body and to monitor him. Yesterday, when they examined Xiaoying, they also hit her. Later, Xiaoying put knockout drops in their wine…”

Feng Yuan’s expression grew cold, his eyes radiating murderous intent as he slowly turned his head to ask: “They examined Xiaoying’s body? How did they examine her?”

Feng Qiyuan answered honestly: “They were very strong. Xiaoying’s wrists and the back of her neck were bruised from their grip. Because Xiaoying didn’t cooperate, they also slapped her…”

Feng Yuan said nothing more. He reached for the remaining wine and splashed it on the two old women to wake them.

The two women awoke in confusion. When they saw the Grand Prince looming like a god of plague, their expressions immediately showed fear. They tried to get up and run for help, but Feng Yuan kicked them to the ground!

“Aiyo, Grand Prince, don’t be rude! We are highly regarded female officials in Consort Shang’s service! The Crown Prince is an impostor—this can’t be covered up anymore. You and all these Eastern Palace guards won’t escape, you’ll all lose your heads!”

The two women didn’t know how close to death they were, still shouting! They were completely unaware that their provocative attitude was like pouring oil on fire.

Feng Yuan’s eyes gradually filled with a blood-red color.

That precious treasure, whom he kissed and embraced with carefully controlled strength every time—yet these crude old women had manhandled her, subjecting her to utter humiliation!

Since these two women had seen Xiaoying’s true form, they could not be allowed to live!

Thinking this, he drew a knife from Shen Jing’s belt and said to Feng Qiyuan: “You are faint-hearted. You’d better leave…”

Feng Qiyuan was somewhat stunned as he timidly left. Then he heard two piercing, miserable screams from behind the tightly closed door.

Feng Qiyuan was dumbfounded, his legs trembling uncontrollably as he saw spatters of red on the door panels.

After a brief moment, Feng Yuan emerged.

He was covered in bloody stains, the bloodlust in his eyes even more intense.

Still not enough—the frustration in his heart could not dissipate. Thinking this, he held the knife and prepared to go to the Western Palace—he hadn’t killed enough. That cursed Consort Shang and Empress Tang remained.

Those who had humiliated his Xiaoying deserved to die; all of them deserved to die!

Shen Jing had seen Feng Yuan lose control in killing on the battlefield, just like now.

Those two old women in the room had become the trigger, provoking Feng Yuan’s long-dormant bloodlust.

“Your Highness, where are you going? You absolutely must not!”

Shen Jing was anxious but didn’t dare to block him too forcefully.

He knew that when the Grand Prince’s eyes turned blood-red, it was as if he had taken madstone powder—he was completely out of control.

But if he were allowed to kill his way to the Western Palace, it would cause a major disaster!

Beside him, Feng Qiyuan was stunned. He hadn’t expected that the Grand Prince, who had appeared so calm and composed since leaving the wilderness palace, would suddenly go mad like this.

For a moment, the image of the Grand Prince who had once choked him and pushed his head underwater when they were children seemed to return. Feng Qiyuan was so frightened that he sobbed again, too weak even to run away.

They watched as Feng Yuan strode away with the dripping knife.

Shen Jing finally gritted his teeth and reached out to stop him. As expected, the sharp blade sliced through the air as Feng Yuan, with bloodshot eyes, coldly said to him: “Get out of my way!”

Shen Jing was forced to step back repeatedly, unable to get close.

Just as he was growing desperate, a jujube flew from the side and struck Feng Yuan on the back of his head.

A small eunuch with a crooked hat, holding a chicken leg, strolled over. He frowned at the blood-covered Feng Yuan with his knife, then glanced at Feng Qiyuan, who had shrunken like a quail, and at Shen Jing, who was grimacing with anxiety.

“What are you all doing? What scene are you acting out now?”

This small eunuch was Xiaoying. She had just found some smoked chicken from the previous night in the Eastern Palace’s small kitchen. It still smelled fine, so she had eaten some of it.

Earlier, hearing noises from the front hall, she had listened carefully and learned that the Grand Prince had arrived, knowing that the situation was stable.

The drama in the imperial study must have concluded. She hadn’t eaten her fill yet, so she had grabbed some pastries and stuffed them into her pocket before making her way here, avoiding people along the way. She hadn’t expected the sleeping quarters to be so lively.

After hearing Shen Jing’s brief explanation, she walked to the bedroom door, craned her neck to peer at the bloody scene inside, then approached Feng Yuan and reached out to take the knife from his hand: “Those two old women couldn’t be allowed to live, but did you have to make such a mess? There’s blood splattered everywhere—who’s going to clean this up? Jian Hu did a great service today; it wouldn’t be right to give her this dirty work as well!”

Seeing that his strong grip wouldn’t release the knife, Xiaoying unceremoniously slapped the back of his hand: “Enough! I’m hungry. The inner chambers can’t be served by servants right now. Go make me some warm food—I want osmanthus fish and pork soup dumplings!”

Just like that, Xiaoying deftly took the knife from his hand and instructed Shen Jing to arrange for someone to clean up the bedchamber and wash the floor.

Then she pulled Feng Yuan to a side room to wash and change clothes.

“I was just acting. If I had wanted to resist, could they have touched me? Why are you so angry?”

Xiaoying was helping Feng Yuan change clothes when he suddenly embraced her, burying his face in her neck: “I’m sorry… It’s all my fault. Like when you jumped off the cliff back then… if I hadn’t stopped you, you and your brother wouldn’t be facing these tribulations today…”

Xiaoying hadn’t expected Feng Yuan to think back so far and couldn’t help but laugh: “Enough! If you keep looking back, you can’t move forward! I’m grateful you stopped me then, or how could I have gained such a beautiful person?”

As she spoke, she raised Feng Yuan’s chin with one hand and puckered her red lips flirtatiously, asking for a kiss.

Feng Yuan looked down at this roguish girl, then lowered his head to kiss her fiercely, tightly gripping her slender waist as if wanting to meld her into his own body.

The plan had been good, but when he had entered the imperial study earlier, his heart had been in his throat because he hadn’t known whether the person sent to the study would be Feng Qiyuan as he had planned.

Only when he saw Feng Qiyuan’s timid, shrinking demeanor did Feng Yuan’s heart finally settle.

Last night, after Xiaoying received word from Consort Yi that Mu Shi had sent someone to the Empress’s Cold Palace, she sent a message to Feng Yuan.

Concerns about Xiaoying’s identity were the biggest obstacle to the peaceful sleep of the solitary resident of the Prince Ruixiang Mansion.

So, regarding arrangements to help Xiaoying escape, he had rehearsed countless times during sleepless days and nights.

When the crisis was triggered, all the preparations fell into place naturally. Feng Qiyuan had been arranged by Feng Yuan to enter from the wilderness palace where he had originally escaped, and was handed over to Uncle Hai.

Although Mu Shi had acted first by surrounding the Eastern Palace, to avoid alarming anyone, the daily routines of eating, dressing, and other activities continued as usual.

So in the early morning, before Mu Shi came to confront the Eastern Palace, the waste collection cart entered as usual, passing through the guards’ inspection.

Uncle Hai’s cart had long been modified, with Feng Qiyuan hidden in a seamless compartment underneath, allowing him to enter the Eastern Palace safely.

This smelly cart remained a blind spot; the guards hurriedly inspected it and then let it pass.

After Feng Qiyuan was released from the back courtyard, Jian Hu led him to hide under the bed in the Eastern Palace.

Then Mu Shi entered the Eastern Palace to probe, and during the body examination of Xiaoying, Feng Qiyuan heard everything clearly from under the bed.

After Mu Shi left and Xiaoying had drugged the two old women, she carefully taught her brother how to respond, then changed into eunuch attire and ran to the small kitchen’s utility room, pretending to chop wood while shirking work.

Meanwhile, Feng Qiyuan returned to his proper place, was summoned to the imperial study by His Majesty’s eunuch, and went to confront Empress Tang and the others.

Xiaoying had only been worried that Jian Hu might make a mistake, or that her brother might forget what she had taught him.

Unexpectedly, the performances of both were flawless, but Feng Yuan had been so stimulated by this crisis that he had lost his temper and nearly gone on a killing spree in the Western Palace.

So now Feng Yuan was somewhat insatiable in his demands, and she naturally indulged him.

But as he moved downward, his examination proved even more thorough than those two old women’s, which was somewhat excessive.

Xiaoying’s face flushed like rosy clouds, her legs feeling weak. Only his iron arm around her waist kept her from collapsing.

“That’s enough! People are waiting for us. What… what are you doing!”

Feng Yuan seemed unsatisfied, just nuzzling her chin and neck with the tip of his nose, absently saying: “I arranged with your brother that before our wedding, he will replace you in the palace. You’re coming back with me today.”

Hearing this, Xiaoying couldn’t help but open her eyes wide and exclaim: “No way! How can he stay in the palace for long?”

Feng Yuan didn’t respond. In fact, at the Prince Ruixiang Mansion, he had shown Feng Qiyuan the enlarged wedding dress and shoes, then let Feng Qiyuan choose: either pretend to be ill in the Eastern Palace with good food and care, or join him for the wedding night?

Feng Qiyuan had been frightened to tears, anxiously covering his chest and saying that neither he nor his sister wanted to marry the Grand Prince.

Even when Feng Yuan stated that Xiaoying had agreed, Feng Qiyuan was half-skeptical, saying only that if he saw Xiaoying and she truly wanted to marry the Grand Prince, he would be willing to return and take her place.

So, while Feng Yuan tied on an apron to cook in the Eastern Palace’s small kitchen, Feng Qiyuan eagerly grabbed Xiaoying’s hand and asked her about the marriage.

Xiaoying nodded and said: “I did agree to marry him, but not at the price of having you enter the palace…”

Feng Qiyuan had just witnessed Feng Yuan go mad and kill with a knife, and his soul had not yet returned to his body. He truly couldn’t imagine why his sister would agree to marry such a madman.

But if Xiaoying was hesitating because of concern for him, that wasn’t necessary.

“These filthy matters shouldn’t be borne by you alone. I am Feng Qiyuan, who was born and raised in the palace. Staying in the palace isn’t difficult for me. After all, the situation now is very different from a year ago. Empress Tang and the Shang family, who threatened me, can no longer cause trouble. The Grand Prince suggested that I use this opportunity of being humiliated in the imperial study to continue feigning illness, developing a dissociative disorder, and then seize the chance to ask His Majesty to strip me of my position as heir!”

Hearing her brother’s words, Xiaoying suddenly realized that her brother seemed to have developed a sense of responsibility after he travels in the Northern Territory.

She held his hand and asked softly: “Are you… truly not afraid?”

Feng Qiyuan shook his head, looked up at Xiaoying, and suddenly his eyes reddened as he choked up: “I don’t want to run away anymore. I just hope to do my best to help you and the Grand Prince catch that master as soon as possible, to avenge the troupe master and my brothers in the opera troupe!”

During his days in the Northern Territory, he had lived closely with the kind troupe master and his wife, as well as the brothers in the opera troupe, like one family. Those happy and free days were unforgettable for a lifetime.

But if it hadn’t been for his appearance attracting visitors from the capital, the troupe master and others wouldn’t have had to die.

Regarding his wrongfully deceased mother, Feng Qiyuan had never really felt a strong sense of identity, nor could he harbor the deep hatred that Xiaoying did.

But this time, when the entire opera troupe was massacred, Feng Qiyuan, who had never known the hardships of the world, understood for the first time what it meant to hate to the bone!

If he could avenge the troupe master and the others, what did it matter if he stayed in this high-walled, deep palace? He carried the weight of so many vibrant lives; how could he sleep peacefully anywhere until this great revenge was achieved?

Xiaoying discovered that her timid brother had truly changed, but this painful growth was something she had hoped her brother would never experience.

When Feng Yuan brought several dishes to the table, Xiaoying pulled Jian Hu to sit down and eat with them.

Jian Hu was so frightened she nearly knelt, but Xiaoying laughed and held her hand, saying: “Today, we owe so much to you. Without you, my brother and I wouldn’t have survived this crisis. By all rights, I should thank you with a cup of wine. In the days ahead, I’ll need you to continue taking good care of my brother…”

Jian Hu looked at the young lady, finally accepted the wine cup, threw her head back to drain it in one gulp, and then said quietly: “If the lady cares for people, don’t let me stay to eat. I’m… somewhat afraid of the Grand Prince…”

Hearing this, Feng Qiyuan tugged at Jian Hu’s robe and whispered: “Sister Jian Hu, take me somewhere else to eat too. I don’t want to eat with the Grand Prince either…”

Feng Yuan acted as if he hadn’t heard, his handsome face serene as he placed food in Xiaoying’s bowl: “Eat quickly, then come out of the palace with me. Don’t delay them from resting!”

Xiaoying rolled her eyes helplessly, quickly filled her stomach, then changed into a guard’s attire and left the palace with the Grand Prince.

Just as they returned to the Prince Ruixiang Mansion, news came from the palace that Consort Shang had died.

But how she had died, the messenger couldn’t explain clearly.

Now dressed in a skirt and brushing her long hair, Xiaoying said: “Do you think your father is so easily handled? After such a big commotion, he didn’t even say one harsh word to the Western Palace. Consort Shang was clever enough to immediately sense something was wrong and begged His Majesty with tears, but alas, his heart was like iron. No matter how deep the affection, when it comes to state power, none of it counts.”

Feng Yuan sat by the dressing mirror, watching Xiaoying slowly brush her flowing, long hair. The violence stirred up in the palace and the turbulent blood surging through his veins seemed to settle and subside with each stroke of the comb through her black hair.

After Xiaoying finished brushing her hair, she leaned back in his arms and touched Feng Yuan’s face, asking: “Why aren’t you speaking? Are you still troubled? Have you been drinking the detoxification soup the doctor prepared for you?”

Since being poisoned again at Duke Ding’s mansion, Feng Yuan’s old toxins had been stirred up, making his emotional fluctuations more frequent than usual.

He was aware of this and had prepared some medicinal soups to stabilize his emotions.

However, compared to those soups, the most effective spiritual medicine was the soft, fragrant one in his arms.

He held Xiaoying tightly and said softly, “If you sleep with me tonight, I’ll feel better.”

Xiaoying smiled as she wrapped her arms around his neck, saying playfully, “We aren’t married yet. If my adoptive father found out about such behavior, he would scold me… I won’t accompany you!”

Though her words sounded firm, she blinked her bright, moist eyes, allowing her lover to kiss her lips again…

At this moment, inside Duke Ding’s mansion, Mu Shi had also learned about everything that had happened in the imperial study.

When he heard that the Crown Prince’s body examination had revealed nothing unusual, his pupils contracted sharply as he stood up abruptly: “What did you say?”

Meng Shiqi hurriedly reported: “Consort Shang… hanged herself in the Western Palace. When the Second Prince reached the Western Palace, the Noble Consort had been dead for half an hour.”

This bizarre turn of events was completely beyond Mu Shi’s expectations. The discomfort of not being in control made him pace back and forth.

“How could His Majesty be someone who doesn’t value old feelings? And why did Consort Shang end her life so easily?”

During this confrontation in the study, the Crown Prince was humiliated and sought death. The Grand Prince also angrily questioned His Majesty, asking how many more princes would Consort Shang be allowed to slander. His Majesty… sent a message to Consort Shang, saying that a mother’s crimes shouldn’t affect her children. He told Consort Shang to think of the Second Prince, saying that the Northern Territory was bitterly cold, and if the Second Prince were banished there with Consort Shang, the Second Prince would waste his youth in suffering…”

Mu Shi understood. Emperor Chunde had attributed all the crimes—both the past slander of Ye Zhanxue and the recent slander of the Crown Prince—to Consort Shang.

And he had used the Second Prince’s future to force Consort Shang to take her own life.

From beginning to end, His Majesty had not issued a single imperial decree. He had merely bestowed a white silk cord, allowing Consort Shang to end her own life.

Those who could become emperors, no matter how much chivalry they displayed, ultimately had ruthless hearts.

Consort Shang had threatened the imperial succession and repeatedly trampled on His Majesty’s face—of course, she couldn’t survive.

But what Mu Shi couldn’t understand was how, when the fake Crown Prince had already confessed and been examined by palace maids, the situation had been reversed so dramatically?

Now thinking back to that girl pitifully falling before him, crying and begging, it was probably all an act.

What about her brother being killed by Feng Yuan? The one who entered the study today must have been the real Feng Qiyuan!

Mu Shi touched his teeth and smiled coldly. He had truly underestimated this girl!

But how had she known about his plan and arranged for Feng Qiyuan to enter the palace early?

Mu Shi pondered endlessly, investigating again and again, but couldn’t determine which link had gone wrong.

So early the next morning, he entered the palace, wanting to see the Crown Prince again.

Unfortunately, when he reached the palace gate, the guard coldly said: “The Crown Prince returned from the study yesterday and has been dejected and ill. Duke Ding, please go back. The Crown Prince isn’t seeing anyone!”

Mu Shi wasn’t surprised to be turned away. As he was stepping back, he happened to glimpse a wooden cart collecting chamber pots on a nearby path.

Mu Shi first moved a couple of steps to the side to avoid the smell, then turned back, looking intently at the square wooden cart: “Yesterday morning, did any latrine carts enter the palace?”