Qin Feng and Zhuo Jing accepted their orders and withdrew. Han Mingyue stared at Mo Xiuyao uncertainly for a long while, unable to speak. Mo Xiuyao rubbed his brow, tossed aside the scroll in his hand, and looked coldly at Han Mingyue. “Han Mingyue, you should know why this prince has tolerated you until now.” Han Mingyue lowered his head and smiled bitterly, “I know. It’s certainly not because of any friendship between us.” Mo Xiuyao said, “You should indeed be grateful you have a good brother… you should be even more grateful that Han Mingshi is a friend A’Li acknowledges. Don’t cause him trouble – he won’t be able to save you every time.” Han Mingyue fell silent. He knew that Han Mingshi had been in Ruyang City during this time. Though the brothers hadn’t met, he could still sense Han Mingshi secretly having people look after him. Worried about hurting his pride, Han Mingshi rarely let him know about these things. Most likely, even his secret investigation of the Qilin’s residence had been pre-arranged by Han Mingshi’s pleading. Feeling somewhat dejected, he lowered his head and said, “I’ve failed him as an older brother.”

Mo Xiuyao snorted lightly – in this life, apart from his blind obsession with Su Mei Die, who had Han Mingyue ever truly not failed?

“Xiuyao… please, spare Mei Die.” Han Mingyue painfully voiced his request. Earlier, even when he had lowered his stance, he still had bargaining chips to negotiate with Mo Xiuyao. But now, having nothing, he could only beg…

“Get out,” Mo Xiuyao said flatly.

“Xu-” Han Mingyue still wanted to plead, but he saw a flash of crimson in Mo Xiuyao’s eyes before an extremely powerful force struck him. Before he could finish speaking, Han Mingyue was sent flying out. He crashed hard into the courtyard outside as the study’s doors simultaneously closed before his eyes. Mo Xiuyao’s strike had been swift and merciless, giving Han Mingyue no chance to defend himself. He was thrown directly outside, falling to the ground and spitting out a mouthful of blood.

“Brother…” A dark red hem silently appeared beside Han Mingyue. Looking up, Han Mingyue saw Han Mingshi’s usually carefree handsome face filled with worry and sadness. Standing up with Han Mingshi’s help, Han Mingyue looked at his brother somewhat ashamed – he hadn’t wanted to appear so pathetic before his brother. “Mingshi, I’m sorry.” Han Mingshi silently shook his head and looked at Han Mingyue, “Brother, stop wasting your effort. Unless Jun Weiyi returns, no one can save Su Mei Die.” These days, Han Mingshi had given up trying to convince his brother to forget Su Mei Die, only telling him that his current efforts were futile. “The reason the Prince still keeps Su Mei Die alive isn’t because he can’t bear to part with her.” It was only because he needed Su Mei to Die alive – letting her die so easily would only be doing her a favor. Just like how the Mo family army could kill the Marquis of Muyang on the battlefield, Mo Xiuyao still ordered him to be released. Who knew what awaited the Marquis in the future?

“Ye Luo is already dead,” Han Mingyue said through gritted teeth.

Han Mingshi’s expression darkened as he said softly, “Unless they find her body, she isn’t dead. Brother, you’d better pray they don’t find… her corpse, otherwise…” No one knew what Mo Xiuyao might do. Since Jun Wei’s incident, Mo Xiuyao had become too unpredictable. Apart from initially killing those seven thousand soldiers searching for Jun Wei and expelling the Da Chu troops stationed outside Flying Hong Pass, he hadn’t shown any reaction to the Princess Consort’s misfortune. But as someone close to the Dingguo Prince Manor’s core, even without Mo Xiuyao saying anything, Han Mingshi could vaguely sense that Mo Xiuyao was setting up a scheme. When he truly made his move, it would inevitably bring endless bloodshed.

“If the Princess Consort…”

Han Mingshi shook his head and said indifferently, “The dragon has its reverse scales – touch them and die. Brother, take care of yourself.”

At the Imperial Tomb of the Founding Emperor

In the cold imperial tomb, Tan Jizhi’s expression was colder than the tomb itself. Being played by his ancestors made the anger in his chest impossible to vent. Ye Luo was also quite sensible not to provoke him at this moment. The three people left that white jade palace. Since Ye Luo had opened the palace door, all the mechanisms in the imperial tomb seemed to have disappeared, even the bridge piers that had sunk into the mercury river had risen back to their original positions. The three only sat down to rest after retreating to a stone chamber in the outer area of the imperial tomb. After struggling for most of the day, Ye Luo was already quite tired. Without standing on ceremony, she walked to the stone chair in the corner, sat down, took out the dried food and water she had brought with her, and began to eat.

Tan Jizhi sat opposite her, casually sitting on the ground against the wall. His face no longer showed his previous confident pride and arrogance. His already gloomy temperament now carried additional hints of decadence and viciousness.

“Is the Princess Consort very happy now?” Tan Jizhi asked grimly as he watched Ye Luo eating naturally. Ye Luo’s hand holding the dried food paused slightly before she smiled faintly, “How can Master Tan say that? Sitting in such a gloomy place, how could this princess be happy?” Tan Jizhi didn’t believe her at all and sneered, “How could you not be happy after seeing me come up empty-handed and having enjoyed enough of the spectacle?” Ye Luo looked at him sincerely and affirmed, “This princess has never enjoyed others’ misfortunes.” Hearing this, Tan Jizhi’s face twisted again, but he quickly stared at Ye Luo and started laughing, “Although I came up empty-handed this time, meeting the Princess Consort and the future heir to the Dingguo Prince isn’t a total loss. Of course, I must thank Father for this.”

Doctor Lin kept a cold face and ignored him, pretending not to hear his words.

Ye Luo smiled, “I also need to thank Master for saving me. If not for Master’s help, this princess wouldn’t have lived to see Master Tan today.”

Tan Jizhi gave Ye Luo a somewhat strange look and stopped trying to needle her with words. He had been by Mo Jingqi’s side longer than most people thought and naturally had some understanding of Ye Luo. If Mo Jingqi’s most disliked person in this world was Mo Xiuyao, then the person he hated most would probably be Ye Luo. Although in Tan Jizhi’s view, this hatred was purely Mo Jingqi’s delusion. In Mo Jingqi’s eyes, the originally tottering Dingguo Prince Manor and the half-dead Mo Xiuyao had only become uncontrollable because of Ye Luo’s appearance, giving Mo Jingqi a fury and hatred of ten years’ work being destroyed in an instant. Perhaps compared to Mo Xiuyao, Mo Jingqi hoped Ye Luo would die first. Although Tan Jizhi didn’t agree with Mo Jingqi’s inexplicable hatred, this didn’t prevent him from taking Ye Luo seriously because of it. He certainly understood that a woman like Ye Luo couldn’t be swayed by a few words from him. His eyes turned slightly, and Tan Jizhi very sensibly changed the topic, “After such a long time, doesn’t the Princess Consort want to know how the Prince is doing?”

Ye Luo tugged at the corner of her mouth, giving him a hypocritical fake smile, “Would Master Tan tell me?”

Tan Jizhi smiled and said, “Being able to speak with the Princess Consort is naturally my honor. Speaking of which… the Prince truly has deep feelings for the Princess Consort. The day after you fell from the cliff, not only did all seven thousand soldiers below the mountain lose their heads, but the Prince also withdrew all the Mo family troops originally resisting Nanzhao and Xiling. Now Da Chu can be said to be in constant warfare.” Seeing Ye Luo frown, Tan Jizhi continued, “If that were all, it would be fine, but the Prince also expelled all Da Chu garrison troops outside Flying Hong Pass, killing all soldiers who resisted and didn’t comply. Now… who in the world doesn’t know that the Prince has rebelled… flying into a rage for the sake of his beauty? Is the Princess Consort deeply moved?”

Ye Luo’s expression remained unchanged, “Thank you for informing me, Master Tan. As a woman, knowing the Prince has done such things, this princess is naturally deeply moved.”

Tan Jizhi raised an eyebrow, “The Princess Consort comes from the Xu family of Yun Province, a family known for their unwavering loyalty. Does the Princess Consort have nothing else to say?”

Ye Luo smiled apologetically, “A married woman follows her husband. No matter what the Prince does, even if everyone in the world criticizes him, in this princess’s eyes he is always right.”

“To have such a wife, the Prince is truly blessed!” Tan Jizhi said through gritted teeth. Ye Luo smiled, “Master Tan flatters me. Compared to my Prince, this princess is more interested in Master Tan’s affairs.”

Tan Jizhi started, warily staring at the smiling woman in plain clothes before him. Ye Luo waved her hand and smiled slightly, “Master Tan need not be nervous. Since you’ve already let this princess know your identity, presumably you don’t mind about other matters?”

Tan Jizhi fell silent. Indeed, his biggest secret was nothing more than his identity. If this was no longer a secret, what else couldn’t be said? Looking up, Tan Jizhi’s lips held a trace of a smile, though unfortunately his face, long accustomed to gloominess, could never achieve an elegant appearance – but no one cared about that anyway. Tan Jizhi raised his eyebrows and smiled, “To have the Princess Consort’s interest truly makes me feel honored beyond measure.” Ye Luo smiled, “Master Tan need not be so polite. This princess won’t guess at Master Tan’s intentions for staying by Mo Jingqi’s side all these years – it’s all for that one matter, isn’t it?”

Tan Jizhi nodded slightly, “Indeed.” As a descendant of the previous dynasty, what he was scheming for by hiding beside the current emperor didn’t need much thought to guess.

“Has Master Tan seen how many descendants of previous dynasties have successfully restored their rule in history?” Ye Luo asked, putting down her dried food and pouring some clean water to wash her hands.

Tan Jizhi’s face darkened as he stared coldly at Ye Luo. Ye Luo smiled, “Master Tan need not overthink it. This princess isn’t mocking you. Please consider my question, Master Tan.”

“Indeed there haven’t been many successes. Does the Princess Consort have some insight?”

“I wouldn’t dare claim insight. Restoration… is far more difficult than establishing a dynasty, isn’t it? It’s been two hundred years since the previous dynasty. What common person would risk losing their head for a royal descendant whose dynasty perished countless generations ago? And what benefits could Master Tan, as a descendant of the previous dynasty, give them to make them take such risks? Master Tan wants to restore the dynasty, but where will the money, armies, and talented people come from? Master Tan surely doesn’t think that with the Dingguo Prince Manor gone and Mo Jingqi dead, the realm of Da Chu would simply be yours. Although Master Tan didn’t get the treasure you wanted this time, this imperial tomb is still worth quite a bit.”

“The matters the Princess Consort brings up – I thank the Princess Consort for the advice,” Tan Jizhi studied Ye Luo for a while before cupping his hands in thanks.

Ye Luo remained silent: I wasn’t giving you advice, I was trying to discourage you. But then again, how could someone who wanted to restore their dynasty and could endure humiliation to hide beside someone like Mo Jingqi for so many years truly have no preparations? Ye Luo pondered the information she had just learned from Tan Jizhi, though her face showed no trace of her thoughts. Ye Luo had always been good at maintaining proper boundaries in dealing with people. She knew clearly that she couldn’t continue speaking. If she said more, Tan Jizhi would no longer think of using her to negotiate with Mo Xiuyao but would instead want to silence her permanently.

Ye Luo didn’t want to speak, but Tan Jizhi had become interested in her. “Speaking of which, with your wisdom, Princess Consort, how did you end up being forced to marry the Prince? Or perhaps… you and His Highness were already in love before our Emperor knew?”

“Master Tan has read too many romance novels, hasn’t he? This princess simply has good taste,” Ye Luo glanced at him and said flatly.

“Good taste?” Tan Jizhi asked with some amusement, clearly scoffing at Ye Luo’s words. From any perspective, marrying Mo Xiuyao couldn’t be considered a good thing. Ye Luo pursed her lips, deciding not to explain her taste to an outsider. If viewed purely from the perspective of women in this era, marrying Mo Xiuyao indeed wasn’t a good thing. But for Ye Luo, it was the best possible choice – no need to maneuver among countless women in the back courtyard, no need to spend a lifetime discussing cosmetics and household matters with secluded noble ladies, no need to spend a lifetime confined to a tiny world. Even though she had been prepared for such a life, why not make a better choice when available? Although it was far from the peace she had originally hoped for, gains always came with sacrifices. She couldn’t expect to enjoy the same freedom as in her previous life while simultaneously avoiding any responsibilities and obligations. Others’ views and opinions didn’t matter; many things were like drinking water – only the drinker knows if it’s hot or cold. What Mo Xiuyao gave her made her happy, and she was willing to do everything she could for him. That was all.

Though the treasure in this imperial tomb was fake, its size still lived up to its royal reputation. Following the map, apart from necessary rest stops, they had barely delayed and it still took the three of them over a day to reach the exit.

Walking out of the tomb’s exit, the sunlight made Ye Luo close her eyes uncomfortably. She raised her hand to shield her eyes, and after adjusting for a moment, she reopened them to see Tan Jizhi staring at her with a smile. “The Princess Consort truly trusts me.” Ye Luo smiled lightly, “If Master Tan wanted to harm me, couldn’t you have done so inside the tomb? Don’t worry, this princess won’t run away. After all… my child is most important.” Tan Jizhi nodded with satisfaction, “It’s good the Princess Consort understands. To be honest, I don’t want to use force against you either.”

Since meeting Tan Jizhi, Doctor Lin had become very quiet. Most of the time it was Ye Luo and Tan Jizhi talking, probing each other, while Doctor Lin just listened with a cold face. Standing at the foot of the mountain, watching the tomb’s entrance slowly close before them until no trace remained, Doctor Lin turned to walk forward.

Tan Jizhi’s face darkened as he stared at Doctor Lin’s back. “Father, where are you going?”

Doctor Lin turned back and said coldly, “You’ve already entered the tomb. Why should you care where this old man goes now?” Tan Jizhi looked at Doctor Lin with complex emotions, pondering before saying, “Father, I want the location of the real imperial tomb.”

Doctor Lin’s face showed a hint of shock as he stared at Tan Jizhi. “You think this tomb is fake?”

Tan Jizhi stood with his hands behind his back. “There was nothing inside. Isn’t it obvious?”

Doctor Lin laughed coldly, “I told you there was no treasure in the tomb, but you wouldn’t believe me. Now you’ve seen it with your own eyes, yet you suspect this isn’t the real tomb? Are you suggesting this old man has hidden the real treasure?”

Tan Jizhi remained silent, his expression seemingly confirming Doctor Lin’s words. A flash of grief and pain crossed Doctor Lin’s face as he glared at Tan Jizhi and laughed bitterly, “Fine! Fine! Even if I did hide the treasure, what would you do? Kill this old man?”

“Father!” Tan Jizhi gritted his teeth, his gaze at Doctor Lin containing a hint of ruthlessness. Looking arrogantly at Doctor Lin’s suddenly stooped figure, he said coldly, “Have you forgotten… you’re not my birth father? Those treasures don’t belong to the Tan family either.” Doctor Lin’s face twisted into a mocking smile that looked more like crying to Ye Luo. “Then don’t forget, you still carry the Tan family name!” Tan Jizhi’s expression flickered, his face growing uglier. “You…”

“I say, shouldn’t we leave this place first? We’re still near Ruyang, aren’t we?” Ye Luo suddenly spoke up.

Tan Jizhi started, finally swallowing his words. He looked at Doctor Lin and said stiffly, “Come with me.”

Doctor Lin’s white eyebrows rose as he was about to speak, but Ye Luo grabbed his arm. She apologized, “Master, your disciple feels a bit unwell. I’ll trouble you to examine me later.” Doctor Lin paused, gave Ye Luo a deep look, and finally stopped objecting.

Having calmed the adoptive father and son who were about to explode into violent conflict, Ye Luo sighed inwardly. She unconsciously touched the piece of silk cloth in her sleeve as she followed Tan Jizhi’s steps.

Tan Jizhi walked ahead while looking back at Ye Luo. “My people are not far from here. Princess Consort, don’t get excited – we won’t be going to Ruyang this time. So you won’t be able to see the Prince for now.”

Ye Luo smiled faintly, “Having fallen into Master Tan’s hands, naturally this princess will follow Master Tan’s arrangements. However, this princess is curious – does Master Tan plan to take me back to the capital?”

Tan Jizhi smiled, “Why would the Princess Consort think that? What benefit would bring you back to the capital give me?”

Ye Luo lowered her eyes. “Then this princess is even more curious – what excuse did Master Tan use to leave the capital for so long? Mo Jingqi’s paranoia is well-known.” Tan Jizhi smiled somewhat smugly, “Since I’ve earned His Majesty’s trust, how could I not manage to find even this small amount of time? As for where the Princess Consort is going… you’ll know when you get there.”

Ye Luo smiled gracefully, “In that case, this princess eagerly awaits to see.” *If you could deceive Mo Jingqi for so many years, let me see if you have the ability to get past Flying Hong Pass.*