Sometimes a handsome man wreaking havoc on a woman’s senses was truly something else—just one phrase, “take you apart bone by bone,” and she actually felt her whole body go weak and soft!

This man was practically a walking aphrodisiac—one gesture, one sentence, and any woman would be left hopelessly stirred.

Jiu’er bit her lip; if she hadn’t, she really feared she might not have been able to stop herself from moaning in his arms. The thought that a single sentence from a man could provoke such a sound from her—if word got out, she’d be laughed to death.

And then there was the matter of her legs—what on earth had happened to them?

Seeing her thighs completely exposed, Feng Jiu’er jumped in shock and hurriedly scrambled off the Ninth Imperial Uncle, fumbling to pull her shorts back on properly.

After finally managing to straighten her clothes somewhat, her small face had already turned red enough to practically drip blood. So this was how intimate things had already gotten with the Ninth Imperial Uncle! If they had gone just one step further a moment ago, she would already belong to him!

And the worst part was, Mu Mu was sleeping not far away at all… Heavens! How could this be happening!

Zhan Qingcheng, on the other hand, showed not the slightest trace of awkwardness—only that his face still carried a faint flush from his earlier passion, and his breathing remained somewhat uneven.

Jiu’er instinctively tugged at the front of her own robe, not even having the courage to look up at him, and could only deflect: “N-Ninth Imperial Uncle, there’s not much time left before dawn… why don’t we just rest a while on the bench?”

“Come here.”

“No, I won’t!” The refusal came out instinctively. If she went over there, she really might end up wanting to push him down herself! What was going on with her tonight, wanting to do something so forceful and shameless?

In the end, Feng Jiu’er’s surging desire cooled rapidly the moment her gaze caught sight of Mu Mu on the bed. Mu Mu was still lying there unconscious—how could she let herself be swept up in lovesickness for the Ninth Imperial Uncle again, right in front of him?

She quickly straightened her clothing and turned toward the large bed. “Ninth Imperial Uncle, I still need to keep watch over Mu Mu tonight. You should rest first.”

Zhan Qingcheng’s gaze landed on Mu Mu, and whatever lingering flame remained in his eyes was finally completely doused.

That night, Jiu’er stayed by Mu Mu’s side the entire time. Fortunately, nothing unexpected happened to him through the whole night, which meant that, from now on, he truly no longer needed anyone else’s inner energy to keep him alive.

Hearing this good news, Long Yi spoke up at once. “Your Highness, now that Mu Mu no longer needs you to channel your energy to sustain him, then…”

What came next wasn’t something a subordinate dared to say himself, so he glanced over at Di Ji, pouring all his hopes onto him instead.

Di Ji looked up just in time to catch Ye Luocha’s glance directed his way. Ye Luocha gave a nod, and only then did Di Ji turn to Zhan Qingcheng. “A’Jiu, we really should set out and head for Phoenix City.”

Zhan Qingcheng said nothing—this time, he didn’t outright refuse, nor did he agree; he seemed to still be considering it.

Jiu’er said, “Ninth Imperial Uncle, the people of Phoenix City need you, you…”

“Are you going to set out together with them?” Zhan Qingcheng cut her off.

Feng Jiu’er paused for a moment, then suddenly understood—the Ninth Imperial Uncle had decided to depart. The common people needed him, and he wouldn’t truly abandon them to their fate. What was more, only by returning to his own army would everyone truly be safe.

As for Mu Mu, now that he no longer required the Ninth Imperial Uncle’s true energy to sustain his life, the moment for them to part ways had genuinely arrived. Had the circumstances been the same as before, the Ninth Imperial Uncle would likely have insisted that Feng Jiu’er stay by his side. But now, knowing that Mu Mu was his blood brother, how could he simply disregard him?

The Ninth Imperial Uncle understood in his heart that this separation was unavoidable, didn’t he?

“I’ll stay and watch over him.” Jiu’er nodded gently, her gaze locked deep into Zhan Qingcheng’s eyes. The bond of feeling between the two of them, perhaps, only they themselves could fully understand.

Di Ji and Ye Luocha only felt caught in a difficult position. Whether it was Zhan Qingcheng or Mu Mu, both were of the Di family’s blood, and neither of them wished to see either one suffer in the future.

The matter was now thoroughly settled—only the details of the journey ahead still needed careful planning.

In fact, Long Yi and Di Ji had already discussed things with Long Shiyi; if there was no need to bring Mu Mu along, then with their capabilities, leaving the imperial city would be no great difficulty at all.

Outside, the sound of hurried footsteps approached, and soon someone came to report: “My lord, Long Shiyi has brought three people with him.”

Jiu’er stood up at once and looked at Zhan Qingcheng. “Ninth Imperial Uncle, it might be Qiao Mu and Xiao Yingtao—I’ll go take a look.”

“Mm.” Zhan Qingcheng nodded.

Jiu’er hurried out to meet them, and sure enough, the ones Shiyi had brought back were Qiao Mu and Xiao Yingtao.

The day before, they had left Nanmeng Rong behind in the academy quarters. Qiao Mu had sensed something was off even before stepping inside—after all, how could Jiu’er possibly have begged Nanmeng Rong for mercy? If anyone were begging for mercy, it would surely be for some purpose. Sure enough, when they went in to check, things were exactly as she’d suspected: Nanmeng Rong had been switched into Jiu’er’s clothes and left unconscious off to the side.

As for the two of them, after the carriage procession departed, they’d made an excuse about needing to go get a meal at the kitchens, leaving “Feng Jiu’er” behind in the quarters to rest, and the guards stationed outside hadn’t grown suspicious at all.

Qiao Mu and Xiao Yingtao had then taken the opportunity, while heading toward Yongwanshang, to slip away quickly. But not knowing where Jiu’er herself was, they could only get out first and then try to make contact with the others afterward.

Since Feng Jiu’er had knocked out Nanmeng Rong and left her in the quarters, Qiao Mu and Xiao Yingtao, as accomplices, naturally couldn’t remain at the academy any longer. What was more, the Dragon Martial Institute had, by this point, essentially fallen under the Crown Prince’s control—even the instructors had been replaced. The Dragon Martial Institute of today was no longer what it once was, and there was no longer any point in their staying behind.

“Xing Zizhou went ahead to scout the way. He’ll leave markers for us to find him and regroup,” Xiao Yingtao said, looking Feng Jiu’er over carefully and, finding nothing wrong with her, finally letting out a deep breath of relief.

“You really scared me half to death yesterday. You came up with a plan and didn’t even give us a heads-up first—I was scared out of my mind.”

“I didn’t really have a plan beforehand. I knew it was likely that Nanmeng Rong would come looking for me, but I never imagined under what circumstances it would actually happen.”

In short, yesterday’s events had basically been an accident—but an accident that had turned out remarkably, perfectly well.

“And you weren’t afraid that Qiao Mu and I couldn’t hold up and would expose your secret?” Even thinking back on it now, Xiao Yingtao still felt her heart racing with lingering fear.

At the time, they had nearly been exposed—just barely. When she went over to help “Feng Jiu’er” up, she suddenly realized that this “Feng Jiu’er” was actually Nanmeng Rong.