One moment Guan Zhi had been sitting eating peanuts with the soft and gentle Ling Shu, the next instant she was replaced by the disheveled and heavily made-up Feng Yue. Guan Zhi was so startled his face turned green, a peanut lodging in his throat—he nearly choked to death!

The door slammed shut behind them, making Guan Zhi tremble. He glanced back, his face instantly ashen: “Miss Feng Yue…”

When did you go in there?

Angrily adjusting her clothes, Feng Yue said, “Is your master in a bad mood? Rejecting a beauty who delivers herself to his door. He even threw me out!”

“…When Master is busy with matters, he’s always disliked being disturbed.” Guan Zhi covered his face: “Why did you go looking for trouble?”

Casting a sidelong glance at Guan Zhi, Feng Yue placed her hand on his shoulder, rubbed her nose, and pointed to the sky in a masculine gesture: “On such a pleasant day, shouldn’t one enjoy oneself? Always busy scheming against others—one needs to rest occasionally too.”

Nervously removing the young lady’s hand, Guan Zhi lowered his head: “Miss speaks reasonably.”

Propping her chin in thought for a moment, Feng Yue asked, “Lord Guan Zhi, if I were to fall into the river now, would your master order someone to save me?”

“How could he not save you?” Guan Zhi’s eyes widened: “My master isn’t that kind of cruel person.”

“Then what if it were the dead of winter, with bone-chilling water, and he was the only one nearby—would he still jump in?”

Guan Zhi looked bewildered: “Of course, what’s the difference between the two situations?”

The difference is huge—one requires minimal effort, and the other requires risking one’s life. Feng Yue stroked her chin in thought. Guan Zhi understood Yin Gezhi well, which meant that she already held significant importance to him, so perhaps she didn’t need to resort to these seduction tactics anymore.

Clapping her hands, she sighed in relief and stood up to leave: “You two continue eating, I’ll go prepare dinner.”

“Yes!” Ling Shu responded cheerfully, completely unaware of what had transpired, continuing to feed peanuts to Guan Zhi.

Guan Zhi sat with a bitter expression, worriedly eyeing the tightly closed door behind him as he numbly chewed peanuts.

When Master came out later, would he blame him for dereliction of duty and throw him out of the residence?

While life in the envoy’s residence remained peaceful enough to worry about such trivial matters, outside was a different story—it was a world of turmoil, with officials no longer even bothering to be discreet about their corruption.

“What are we to do, Commander Fang!” The City Guard Deputy Commander Xue Zhenyu sat in the Fang family’s back courtyard, so anxious his hair was nearly turning white: “The Crown Prince acts so directly, clearly giving no face to General Yi. We’ve all followed the General for years. Now with people being imprisoned and executed, if we don’t think of something, neither of us will escape this catastrophe!”

Fang Wenxin sighed: “All the court officials who could speak up have tried, but the Crown Prince controls the court, and Yin Gezhi’s investigation orders have found solid evidence against them. Cases that have already been decided simply cannot be overturned.”

“So we do nothing?” Xue Zhenyu was extremely anxious: “These young upstarts are already throwing their weight around above me. Who knows what else His Highness the Crown Prince might do?”

“No need to be so urgent.” Fang Wenxin said: “Even if His Highness the Crown Prince wants to rectify the court, he can’t replace everyone at once. At most he’ll replace people in important positions—it won’t affect you and me yet. Once the General sends word back, he’ll surely protect us.”

“Alright.” Xue Zhenyu nodded with furrowed brows. After thinking, he added: “But what’s going on with Prince Yin? Wasn’t he always close to the General? Why is he helping the Crown Prince?”

Fang Wenxin sneered: “Many people can’t figure this out, but I had someone investigate clearly. Didn’t the Crown Prince assign the young masters of the An and Xu families as Yin Gezhi’s disciples? Then the young master Xu somehow got hold of a woman to give to Yin Gezhi. Although Prince Yin still often looks after Miss Yi, men are easily bewitched by beauty. With such a beauty by his side, how could he wholeheartedly protect the Yi family? His attention must be divided.”

“So you mean…” Xue Zhenyu drew in a sharp breath in sudden realization: “His Highness the Crown Prince has been deliberately trying to win over Prince Yin, using his special status to deal with us?”

“The Crown Prince’s efforts to win over Yin Gezhi didn’t start yesterday.” Fang Wenxin said unhappily: “We just didn’t expect that this time the woman they sent would truly suit his taste—truly a case of beauty bringing disaster. Although Prince Yin has extraordinary martial prowess, he hasn’t made any waves in Wu Kingdom for a year, nor has he meddled in any affairs, showing he has no interest in Wu Kingdom’s matters. He’s not particularly calculating either, so getting gradually ensnared by the Crown Prince is understandable.”

Xue Zhenyu nodded, cursing involuntarily: “At the same age, how is the Crown Prince so deeply scheming, specializing in harming others! Look at Wei Kingdom’s prince—he can fight battles and is straightforward, that’s why the Wei people are willing to submit to him.”

Letting out a sigh, Fang Wenxin shook his head, harboring similar thoughts.

If only Prince Yin would see through the Crown Prince’s schemes soon and wake up to stand on their side!

The supposedly forthright Crown Prince Yin was just putting down his brush, pressing his seal onto the final case document.

“Send this to the Court of Justice, and that should wrap things up nicely.” He tiredly worked his neck and said: “No matter how quickly General Yi moves, he won’t make it in time to save them. All major crimes—those who can be executed will be executed first, those who can’t will all be banished. In another half month, Buyin City’s situation should be stabilized.”

Guan Zhi nodded excitedly, clutching the documents as he rushed out.

Yin Gezhi turned his head, glancing at the dazzling sunlight outside. Seeming to recall something, his eyes flickered slightly as he rose and went out.

The courtyard was filled with fragrant flowers. Feng Yue wore red clothes as brilliant as the sunlight, holding a watering can as she bounced from left to right, then from right to left, muttering while watering: “It must be hard for you all growing around this ice mountain. Don’t be polite, drink more water.”

Suddenly feeling a chill behind her, Feng Yue’s eyes narrowed keenly. She quickly changed her tune, smiling: “It’s your blessing to be able to accompany the mighty, handsome, towering Prince Yin! You must cherish it, understand?”

Snorting in amusement, Yin Gezhi stood behind her with folded arms: “Do you take me for deaf or stupid? Words already spoken can’t be taken back with patches.”

Turning around with a grin, Feng Yue pretended nothing had happened, saying cheerfully: “Has Your Highness finished his work? It’s such nice weather today, haha!”

Giving her a sideways glance, Yin Gezhi grabbed her wrist and dragged her along.

“Your Highness? What are you doing?” Seeing him heading toward the study, Feng Yue’s eyes widened: “We can talk this out properly, this servant hasn’t done anything wrong, right?”

Without responding, Yin Gezhi tried to pull her through the door, but she braced her foot against the doorframe! She shouted with great momentum while pulling at him: “Private punishment is forbidden in the Wu Kingdom!”