After just one night, her progress was so rapid—truly worthy of being An’an.

He had taught her many divine abilities before, and her insight had always amazed him.

Seeing his composure, Feng Miao Jun said irritably, “You think I won’t do it?”

“Hmm—” he appeared thoughtful, yet lowered his head further, as if intending to press his neck onto the awl, “You won’t.”

Feeling the pressure from the awl’s tip—indeed, if he pressed down two more degrees, the Star Sky Awl would pierce his carotid artery. Feng Miao Jun glared at him angrily, yet had to quietly step back.

It wasn’t that she couldn’t bring herself to do it, but harming him now would serve no purpose.

“After traveling together for so long, if you wanted to harm me, you’ve had countless opportunities. Why wait until today?” Yun Ya’s lips curved into a smile. “An’an won’t hurt me.”

As he reached to embrace her slender waist, Feng Miao Jun stepped sideways, while putting away the Star Sky Awl, watching him warily: “If you have something to say, say it properly. Don’t get physical.”

He asked curiously: “Didn’t we always express our innermost feelings this way before?” As he spoke, his tightly clenched left fist behind his back finally relaxed quietly, while his smile grew increasingly radiant.

Who had ever expressed their innermost feelings with him? Hadn’t he always been toying with her, teasing her one-sidedly? Feng Miao Jun decided to redirect the conversation: “What are you doing in Ursel City?”

“Looking for you, of course.” Yun Ya spoke as if it were the most natural thing. “Since you left without saying goodbye, I’ve often been unable to sleep at night. Once I got the news, how could I not rush over?”

Her eyes were filled with suspicion: “No schemes?” Had this man ever spoken a single truth?

“Of course not.” He put away his smile and spoke seriously, “Jing Shun returned from Luofu Island, the Yan King handled the Gao family corruption case—when these two events were connected, I knew they must be related to you. The Queen of New Xia—I had to come meet you regardless.”

Under his maximum-intensity affectionate gaze, Feng Miao Jun felt her mouth go dry—the dream realm was truly marvelous; one’s five senses here were highly similar to reality. She felt her heart pounding like a deer’s and her chest tightening.

Fortunately, having spent considerable time with this fellow, she had some resistance to that devastatingly handsome face. She quietly swallowed and looked away: “If you’re hiding in the shadows letting Xu Guangxiang serve as Wei’s envoy, why intrude into my dreams and expose your presence in Ursel City?”

Yun Ya smiled: “Since I came, I wanted you to know; but appearing publicly might cause you trouble.” This girl was truly perceptive. Indeed, he had originally planned to remain completely hidden and give this young lady a taste of suffering—how else could he vent the anger in his heart? But upon seeing her again, seeing how she had blossomed into such extraordinary beauty, he didn’t feel as irritated anymore.

His heart had suddenly softened.

Nevertheless, while capital punishment might be waived, corporal punishment was still necessary! He wanted her to know he had arrived.

Wanted her to know? Feng Miao Jun just laughed inwardly. This guy meant to frighten her, right? But she also understood that Yun Ya indeed wasn’t suited to appear publicly in Ursel City. Just one Xu Guangxiang as Wei’s envoy could attract attacks from the New Xia people. If the State Preceptor of Wei dared to parade around here, assassination attempts against him would likely be endless, making New Xia appear unable to fulfill its protection duties.

Given Yun Ya’s relationship with Wei King Xiao Yan, if he suffered even the slightest harm, wouldn’t the Wei King mobilize troops to attack? So Yun Ya spoke this way because he didn’t want to make things difficult for her.

Feng Miao Jun bit her lip, the light in her eyes softening somewhat: “You won’t cause trouble in Ursel City?” She had witnessed his abilities firsthand; if this man decided to misbehave, he could turn any place upside down.

“Well—” he stroked his chin, ripples of amusement dancing in his peach blossom eyes, “That depends on An’an.”

Indeed, she had an ominous premonition!

“Tell me, what mischief are you planning now?” Feng Miao Jun raised her head slightly, though feeling somewhat distressed. Whether in Jin, Yao, or Yan, when she caused trouble, she could simply flee to the ends of the earth, clean and decisive. But now that wasn’t possible. She had such a large responsibility to manage, and with Yun Ya coming to cause trouble, she had no choice but to deal with it.

In her current situation, she could run away herself, but couldn’t take her position with her.

“Xiao Yan intends to ally with New Xia.” Yun Ya spoke earnestly. “Xu Guangxiang should have conveyed this message, but Fu Ling Chuan and others probably disagree, right?”

“Hmm.” Feng Miao Jun glanced at him sideways. “Fight when they want to fight, occupy when they want to occupy, make peace when they want peace—Xiao Yan truly doesn’t take the people of New Xia seriously.”

“Yesterday’s matters are like yesterday’s death, today’s matters are like today’s life.” Yun Ya smiled. “As with people, so with nations.”

“You make it sound too simple.” Feng Miao Jun said calmly. “National destruction and family ruin—how many people in New Xia have suffered deeply? Can your casual words simply dismiss all that?”

“As a ruler, haven’t you heard of the supreme state of forgetting emotions?” Yun Ya observed her expression. “Only by forgetting emotions can one achieve true impartiality.”

His reasoning was straightforward: as the helmsman of a nation, if one couldn’t put aside grudges and instead indulge in old hatreds like ordinary people, then governance decisions would inevitably be biased and erroneous, easily dragging the country into an abyss.

Precisely because the responsibility was so heavy, one needed to remain calm and self-controlled, objective and composed.

This required seeing what others couldn’t see and enduring what others couldn’t endure.

He asked her again: “The ruler of Pu attacked Yan in anger after his hostage son died. What was the outcome?”

Feng Miao Jun remained silent. When the King of Pu attacked Yan, apart from venting his anger, there was no substantial benefit. The power disparity between Pu and Yan remained unchanged, yet it exposed the results of Pu’s strategy of hiding its strength. When Yan’s forces withdrew from Pu’s secondary capital, they took away astonishing wealth.

In this battle, Yan didn’t gain much advantage, but Pu suffered considerable losses. Thus, an emperor’s anger could leave hundreds of thousands dead and blood flowing like rivers. The dead weren’t just from the enemy nation; much of the spilled blood belonged to one’s sons.

“What benefit would New Xia gain from seeking revenge against Wei now?”

For Feng Miao Jun, there was none.

Yun Ya said softly: “Fu Ling Chuan wants to establish Wei as an enemy to unite the remnants of An Xia to serve him. You’re still young; don’t let him manipulate you.”

To unite one’s people, the most effective method was to peddle fear and hatred—first drawing clear lines between friend and foe, then setting up a target for everyone to attack together, naturally creating cohesion. The target Fu Ling Chuan wanted to establish was Wei.

Feng Miao Jun let out a long breath, looking at him with a half-smile: “I’ve learned something—truly a silver-tongued devil. Is this how you persuaded Xiao Yan to usurp Xiao Jing’s throne?”

“If he had no ambition, my persuasion would have been useless; similarly, if you aren’t moved, my advice won’t take effect.” Yun Ya showed no sign of annoyance. “Alright, let’s not discuss this anymore. Are you interested in seeing others’ dreams?”

Oh? That was possible?

Yun Ya saw the gleam in her eyes and knew she was interested. This curious cat was always inquisitive.

He took her hand: “Follow me.”