The newcomer’s movements were as fast as lightning — a speed that, to Feng Jiu’er, was nothing short of astonishing.

On instinct, she launched a palm strike — yet at the very last instant before it connected with the other person, she yanked it back.

She stared, transfixed, at the silhouette standing within the darkness. Even before she could make out the outline clearly, the achingly familiar presence had already sent a wave of bittersweet feeling surging through her heart.

She had thought he had not come tonight, not knowing he had been behind her all along.

She had thought she did not know when they might meet again, not knowing that the meeting was not so far away as she had imagined.

She had thought… so many things she had thought — none of it was as real as the figure standing before her eyes.

Whatever she had thought, in this moment, her heart and her eyes held nothing but him.

“Ninth Imperial Uncle… mmph—”

A heaven-shaking, earth-splitting kiss sealed every word she might have spoken.

So many days apart, and he was every bit as overbearing, every bit as direct as he had always been.

Those scorching palms roamed over her, drawing tremor after tremor from her — until at last it all came to a halt at a soft, pained cry from her lips.

Zhan Qingcheng released her and stepped back two paces, putting distance between them.

He looked at the girl crouched on the ground, both hands pressed to her head in agony. Every instinct he had screamed at him to rush forward and take her in his arms to comfort her — but he could not.

Because he was the very one responsible for her pain.

Cursed Elder Shi!

“Ninth Imperial Uncle, please don’t come any closer. I’ll be fine in a moment.” Feng Jiu’er simply sat down on the ground, turned her back to him, and with great effort pushed through the piercing pain until it subsided.

Even after the pain had passed, she did not dare look at him. It was truly too agonizing — a pain that left her feeling as though she could barely breathe.

Zhan Qingcheng stood not far behind her, his burning gaze falling upon her without wavering.

The person he had longed for through every waking and sleeping moment was right before his eyes — and he was not even permitted to hold her.

Some time passed. Feng Jiu’er’s breathing had visibly steadied. Zhan Qingcheng immediately stepped forward.

Jiu’er nearly cried out: “Ninth Imperial Uncle, just stay where you are! Are you trying to kill me with pain?”

She truly did not mean to be so heartless. But that pain from just moments before was not something the average person could endure.

Someone with less inner cultivation would likely have already fainted from it. She had not fainted, of course — but that did not mean she was unaffected. She had been pushed very nearly to the edge of collapse.

Her dearly longed-for Ninth Imperial Uncle was right behind her — and yet the power of the Heartless Gu in her mind seemed to be growing ever stronger. How could this be?

“This Prince will not come closer. Do not be afraid,” Zhan Qingcheng said, steadying his breathing, though his large hand remained clenched tight.

What it meant to live through one day as though it were a year — he was finally coming to understand. Seeing her in Muhe had been an unexpected turn; he had originally assumed that once the battles were settled, this girl would come back to him of her own accord.

Now he understood she was far more restless than he had imagined. She had actually dared to come straight into the Muhe royal capital herself.

No wonder — these past few days, he had clearly sensed a force working toward the same ends as himself. He had originally supposed it was the Second Prince’s people taking a reckless gamble, daring to stir up internal strife within Muhe itself.

He had not expected it to be her.

“Girl, your nerve really is something.” Whether the words were reproach or admiration, it was hard to say. “Even this Prince could not have guessed that the one working in the shadows was you.”

“The Second Prince is a man who knows his place. He naturally would not do anything so drastic.” It was impossible to say why, but even without turning to look at him, Feng Jiu’er could seem to sense what was going through his mind.

Perhaps this was what people meant by being of one heart and one mind.

Shifting the subject proved to ease her head somewhat, though she still dared not turn around to look at him.

Not seeing him — and yet she had already felt the pain of missing him bring her to the point of wishing she were dead, time and again. Now that she was seeing him — if she looked more, would it become even harder to bear?

“Ninth Imperial Uncle, you should go back to Phoenix City.” She was not certain what reason the Ninth Imperial Uncle had that allowed him to leave Phoenix City without worry. But according to the reports Xing Zizhou’s people had sent back, the Ninth Imperial Uncle was plainly still appearing in Phoenix City.

In truth, Jiu’er had a fair idea — she simply had not brought that name up in front of the Ninth Imperial Uncle. Mu Mu.

The Ninth Prince now appearing in Phoenix City’s army was, of course, Mu Mu. Only Mu Mu could have done it so perfectly — to assume the Ninth Prince’s identity so flawlessly.

The two brothers had, by now, reached a point where they could manage to work together — whether in harmony or not, at least they could cooperate. That was an exceedingly good first step.

“Ninth Imperial Uncle, the First Prince will likely return before long. Muhe is on the verge of great upheaval, and only a few small things remain to be seen through here.”

She finally could not resist turning to glance at him — and truly, the Ninth Imperial Uncle’s elegant and commanding presence gave her a very real headache.

Yes, an actual headache.

She could not look even once — one glance and she was captivated, one glance and her feelings surged, one glance and she wanted to go to him, to throw herself into his arms and feel his warmth and strength surrounding her.

“Mmph—” Feng Jiu’er turned her head back at once, clutching her own head, not daring to look again.

As expected — she could not afford to be reckless. Temptation could be deadly.

The Ninth Imperial Uncle was nothing like an ordinary man. Looking at an ordinary man was one thing — but looking at the Ninth Imperial Uncle, with his unrivaled, breathtaking presence, could genuinely be lethal!

“Is it still very painful?” Zhan Qingcheng frowned. When she had turned and looked at him just now, he had thought he might finally be able to go to her, to hold her and kiss her.

And yet, with a single glance, this girl had been thrown right back into agony.

His large hand clenched and clenched again, the full force of his fury barely held in check.

“Ninth Imperial Uncle, after you go back, please don’t take it out on Elder Shi — you’d better wait until he has lifted the Heartless Gu from me before you do anything.”

Of course Jiu’er could feel his fury, and she knew well enough what he was furious about. But right now, with the war at a critical juncture, it was genuinely not the time to invite additional complications.

Moreover, as she had said — Elder Shi was still needed to lift the Gu poison from her. The last thing she needed was for him to return and, in a fit of rage, cut the man down before that happened.

Zhan Qingcheng said nothing. His expression was not pleasant.

“Ninth Imperial Uncle, go back. Leave the matters here to me — will you?”

“No.” The situation had, admittedly, nearly run its course, but his original plan had been to lure the First Prince back and then cut him down on the spot.

“I actually do not agree with your plan to kill him.” Jiu’er stood up, breathed out slowly, and still did not dare turn to face him.

The moonlight poured down and drew a long, long shadow behind the Ninth Imperial Uncle — part of it falling close beside her.

She looked down, longing at his shadow, wanting to reach out and touch it, and yet not daring to.

She exhaled gently, and then said, “The Second Prince is kind-hearted and benevolent — he will surely become a good king one day. But in the end, the First Prince is his own elder brother by blood.”

“If you kill the First Prince, even if the Second Prince sincerely wishes to give his people a peaceful and stable life, there will still be resentment in his heart toward Bei Mu.”

“When resentment grows deep enough, the two nations will never truly be at peace.”

This time, she turned and looked at him, pushing down the personal longing within her, and said with quiet sincerity, “We do not kill the First Prince. We let the Second Prince rise to power with an easy heart, and then we negotiate a truce. Ninth Imperial Uncle — will you agree?”