“That was fake,” Feng Miaojun shrugged. “It was a body double I left with Princess Hanyue.”

Finding a body double for a child just over two years old was not easy. Not only did the appearance have to be identical, but the physique had to be perfectly replicated as well. This meant that adults simply couldn’t do it; only someone with a similar body type could barely attempt it.

“A body double? Surely not another infant? Otherwise, it would have been exposed early on.” Yu Haizhen, with her vast experience, connected this with what she had seen yesterday and said, “I saw it fighting the cultivators from the Lu mansion and even gaining the upper hand. Could it be a demon?”

Her reasoning was sharp, and Feng Miaojun nodded appreciatively: “Exactly.”

At that moment, a breeze from outside the window gently swayed the dragon-shaped earrings at her temples.

The one disguised as Miao Hansheng and left with Princess Hanyue was, of course, the liquid metal demon, Baiban. In theory, illusion techniques could hardly imitate the original for months without being discovered by familiar people. However, there were exceptions. Miao Hansheng was just a two-year-old child, and human children at this age had no fixed behavioral patterns. Their tempers were unpredictable, and they still needed to sleep for six hours during the day. So Baiban’s disguise went remarkably smoothly, deceiving not only the wet nurse but also the Lu family members who were less familiar with Miao Hansheng. From beginning to end, there were no slip-ups.

Yu Haizhen became more interested: “Before you left Jiao territory, you already knew someone would harm Miao Hansheng?”

“By that time, two months had passed since New Xia took over East Jiao. I had issued new policies but hadn’t yet received intelligence about private militia training in the prefectures. When you implement policies, it’s like throwing a stone into a lake—there’s bound to be a response, but before the ripples on the surface could spread, I rushed to Xi Kingdom to rescue you. So I didn’t know what happened subsequently in East Jiao.”

“However, the Jiao people are nostalgic, whether officials or commoners, often showing deep affection for their former country. You should know that officials here frequently overstep their authority, so I had to be cautious.”

Yu Haizhen nodded. When faced with such officials, the ruler must surely be troubled. “Then where is the real Miao Hansheng?”

“He’s been by my side all along.” Feng Miaojun smiled. “Do you know of a treasure from Jiao called the Golden City?”

“Well-known indeed.” Miao Fengxian had once used the Golden City to launch a surprise attack that led to the death of the old King of Wei. This classic battle had been widely circulated across the southern and northern continents, and Yu Haizhen had certainly heard of it.

“The last time I left Yinzi City, I also took Miao Hansheng with me in the Golden City, while the body double stayed with Princess Hanyue.” The spirit of the Golden City was Miao Fengxian—wasn’t it natural for a father to care for his son? So when they returned to Yinzi City after three months, everyone noticed that young master Miao had grown plumper—he had been fattened up by Miao Fengxian.

“Although I didn’t know what methods these former Jiao officials might employ, I had to be cautious.” Feng Miaojun smiled faintly. “At that time, things were urgent and I couldn’t think through everything thoroughly, so I simply took Miao Hansheng away. No matter what thousand schemes they had, they couldn’t calculate against me. Otherwise, with the situation in Jiao territory not yet safe and stable, how could I have been at ease leaving both Princess Hanyue and her son here?”

Yu Haizhen couldn’t help but shake her head and laugh.

So that was it. It turned out that Miao Hansheng, the biggest variable, had been in the control of the Queen of New Xia all along. No wonder Grand Tutor Lu couldn’t escape her grasp no matter how he struggled.

But this Queen was also too patient. Though she never lost the young master, she still stayed in Yinzi City for over a month without clarifying, quietly casting her net and waiting for the big fish from the Lu family to swim in.

“I have one more question.” Yu Haizhen casually raised her cup and took a sip. “I know that Grand Tutor Lu has outstanding prestige among the Jiao people. You needed him to personally confess his crimes in front of everyone so that the Jiao people would be convinced. However, how did you know he would leave the city by carriage tonight?”

Without predicting the opponent’s moves, how could one plan in advance? Just looking at the exquisite illusion array set up at the Xue family compound, it was clear that the Queen had been planning for a long time, waiting for this fatal strike.

Feng Miaojun sighed lightly: “I’ve been paying close attention to former Jiao officials. Grand Tutor Lu was renowned for his military achievements in his youth, but he was also temperamental and wouldn’t listen to others. As he aged, his disposition became increasingly stubborn—this flaw only worsened, evolving into obstinacy and suspicion. Otherwise, he could have sent the ‘Miao Hansheng’ in his possession hundreds of miles away for careful protection early on, and my strategy would have been impossible to implement. But he trusted no one and insisted on keeping the only bloodline of the Miao royal family within his reach, watching over him.”

“Speaking of suspicion, his method of communicating with the bandits under his command was through markings in Danshui Alley. For each day Miao Hansheng was safe, one more marking would appear in Danshui Alley. This way, if one or two markings were missing, he would immediately become uneasy.”

“During this period, there was also the incident where the bandits lost Miao Hansheng, making him increasingly doubtful of his subordinates’ competence.” Feng Miaojun took a sip of warm wine to moisten her throat. “At this point, I announced the reunion of Princess Hanyue and her son. Even if Grand Tutor Lu suspected I was lying, he would try to verify it, and the best way was for him to personally visit Princess Hanyue. All I had to do was set up another illusion for him there, making him realize that ‘everyone else is drunk while he alone is sober.’ From then on, he would no longer trust any intelligence regarding Miao Hansheng and would need to see and hear for himself.”

When Grand Tutor Lu rushed to see Princess Hanyue in the middle of the night and saw Miao Hansheng in her palace, it was already the real one. Only he was deceived. Therefore, when civil and military officials later visited Princess Hanyue and her son, they did not doubt Miao Hansheng’s authenticity.

Under these circumstances, Grand Tutor Lu’s unease and suspicion accumulated to the point of being alarmed at the slightest movement. If any anomaly appeared, such as problems with the markings in Danshui Alley again, all these emotions would explode at once.

At this point, he no longer trusted others, only himself.

“Coincidentally, there was no curfew on the Lantern Festival night, and the people of Yinzi City could play all night long with no one guarding the city gates. If Grand Tutor Lu didn’t take this opportunity to leave, when would he?”

After listening, Yu Haizhen remained silent for a good while before draining the wine in her cup:

“Grand Tutor Lu’s defeat was not undeserved.”

“He was only defeated by his age.” Feng Miaojun sighed softly. “If he were forty years younger, Grand Tutor Lu likely wouldn’t have made such a mistake. The Prince of Yan’s first choice wasn’t Grand Tutor Lu.” No matter how brilliant a mortal is, they are still limited by their lifespan.

Yu Haizhen thought for a moment: “Zhao Rushan?”

“Exactly, Zhao Rushan.” Feng Miaojun remained composed, but in her heart, her estimation of Yu Haizhen rose another notch. Zhao Rushan had played a crucial role in the final life cycle of Jiao and was indeed the person who should have received the most attention from the Prince of Yan.

But when Jiao was destroyed, the war between Xi and Yan was raging fiercely. Yu Haizhen should have been overwhelmingly busy, yet she could still spare attention to analyzing battle reports from the Northern Continent and even notice individual performances within the situation. That was truly remarkable.

A Brilliant strategist never limits their gaze.