Chapter 94: The Strategy of the Young Master

stared at the Shanyue Pavilion's entrance for a long time. Suddenly, she started charging out. If she couldn’t escape in the morning, perhaps she could do it tonight With this thought, her spirits li...Chapter 94: The Young Master's Plan

After stepping out of the Golden Hall, Yun Qianyue realized that it was already nighttime outside. She ignored the chaos inside the hall and led Rong Jing towards the palace gate.

Xiange, Ling Lian, Yi Xue, and others were waiting for her outside the hall. Upon seeing Yun Qianyue come out with an injured Rong Jing, their expressions changed, and they quickly followed behind her. Nan Lingrui also accompanied the Southern Liang Imperial Tutor following Yun Qianyue.

The group soon arrived at the palace gate.

There was heavy military presence guarding the entrance, roughly three times more than usual, plus about five hundred royal bodyguards, making it look like a black tide covering the entire imperial city.

The one in charge of the guard was the commander Zhao of the Imperial Guard.

"Open the palace gate!" Yun Qianyue approached and spoke to Commander Zhao sternly.

"Miss Yun, the Emperor has an edict: the palace gates will not open until after midnight when the celebration concludes." Though his tone was not humble, it was extremely respectful upon seeing Yun Qianyue carrying the injured Rong Jing.

"Young Master Jing is injured and must return to the Glory王府 for treatment. You know that he has an obsession with cleanliness and dislikes being treated in imperial palaces," Yun Qianyue calmly looked at Commander Zhao, "If something were to happen to him, it would cost you your entire family's lives. Are you sure you want to stop me"

Commander Zhao’s face changed.

"Open the gate!" Yun Qianyue’s voice was a bit cold.

Zhao seemed torn, but then showed a resolve akin to facing death. He shook his head, "Miss Yun, it's not permissible to defy the imperial edict! If you have an order from His Majesty, I can open the gate; otherwise, no one may pass!"

"Chaos has erupted in the Golden Hall: the Emperor was attacked, Young Master Jing was attacked, and so was the Southern Liang Imperial Tutor. Now they’re all unconscious! How am I supposed to get an order" Yun Qianyue coldly looked at Zhao, "Do you know what happened earlier I even destroyed my aunt emperor’s sword. Do you want me to use his newly bestowed Xueshuai to kill you"

Zhao's face paled; news traveled fast in the palace, and everyone already knew that Yun Qianyue was in a standoff with the Emperor and had destroyed his precious sword. Not only did the Emperor not get angry but also bestowed her with one of the three most famous swords in the world. His tone softened slightly, "Miss Yun, does the Emperor have an order"

Yun Qianyue held Rong Jing with one hand and drew out her sword from her waistband; she swiftly placed it at Zhao's neck as a cold voice commanded him to open the gate.

Zhao felt a chilling sensation on his neck, seeing Yun Qianyue’s icy eyes devoid of any emotion. If he said no again, she would really kill him. His body trembled violently.

"I am telling you to open the gate!" Yun Qianyue repeated sternly.

"Little girl, what's the point in talking Just kill him now," Nan Lingrui coldly remarked behind her.

"Do you understand that the injured are Young Master Jing and the Southern Liang Imperial Tutor If they die because of your obstruction, do you know the consequences" Yun Qianyue looked at Zhao. She didn’t want bloodshed in front of the palace gate unless absolutely necessary.

Zhao seemed finally convinced by her words and threats; he closed his eyes and gave an order, "Allow them to proceed!"

The guards opened the gates upon receiving Commander Zhao's command.

"Stop!" A black-clothed figure suddenly spoke from either side of the gate as they blocked Yun Qianyue’s path. His voice was cold and wooden: "The Emperor has an order: no one is allowed to leave until after midnight when the celebration concludes, including Young Master Jing and Miss Yun, Crown Prince Rui, and the Southern Liang Imperial Tutor."

Yun Qianyue's gaze shifted slightly. She gave a cold glance at the black-clothed figure blocking her path. He had only his eyes showing. Knowing that her Wind Pavilion unit had dealt with the royal bodyguards for years to help Ye Tianshi, she knew this was the leader of the Royal Guard; he held up their badge. While Zhao could be persuaded quickly due to his lower rank, such an order from a higher authority figure like the Royal Guard's chief was completely pointless, so Yun Qianyue did not speak further and threw Xueshuai to Xiange, saying coldly: "Kill him!

String Song took the Fragmented Snow, and a flash of cold light appeared as she stabbed at the leader of the royal secret guards.

The leader of the royal secret guards didn't expect Yun Qianyue to actually make a move. He drew his sword from his waist and met String Song's attack head-on. At the same time, he gave orders to the five hundred secret guards guarding the palace gate, "Stop them all! Don’t let anyone get away!"

The five hundred secret guards acted simultaneously, creating a wall of three layers inside and outside at the open palace gate with a whooshing sound.

Yun Qianyue sneered and spat out one word, "Wind!"

Ling Lian and Yi Xue understood immediately. Ling Lian flicked her wrist, causing a blue smoke grenade to explode at the palace gate. As soon as the blue smoke exploded, over a hundred black-clothed people leaped over the walls and joined the battle with the royal secret guards.

Ling Lian and Yi Xue cleared a path for Yun Qianyue in front.

Commander Zhao suddenly woke up to reality. He thought that since even the royal secret guards had been mobilized today, the emperor truly didn't want anyone to leave. Now that the royal secret guards were already involved in combat, if he and the gate soldiers remained unscathed without making any moves, then no matter what, his life would be at risk when Jing Shizi and Miss Yun Qianyue left. With this thought in mind, he shouted loudly, "Shoot!"

The guards guarding the gate immediately drew their bows and arrows upon hearing him.

Yun Qianyue was thinking that she didn't want more deaths, but it seemed that couldn’t be avoided now! She gently flicked her sleeve, causing Rong Jing's torn half-sleeve to come out of her sleeve. Opening the handkerchief wrapped around it revealed over a thousand blood-sealing poison needles. Her cold gaze flashed as she prepared to throw them out. Just as she made this move, however, someone lightly stopped her wrist. Lowering her head, she saw that Rong Jing had grasped her wrist; she raised an eyebrow slightly.

"They are just doing their duty! It's not appropriate for the palace gate to be stained with blood today." Rong Jing shook his head at Yun Qianyue and looked at Commander Zhao with a pale face, weakly saying, "Commander Zhao, as His Majesty is being attacked and no edict has been issued yet, you should go consult Young Nobleman Dye! We will wait here!"

Commander Zhao had been watching Yun Qianyue's actions closely. He clearly saw the dense golden needles stuck to half of her sleeve, knowing that if these needles were released, there would surely be countless deaths and the palace gate stained with blood today. Looking at Rong Jing’s pale face, extremely weak condition, and a dark weapon embedded in his back, along with the large bloodstain on his moon-white brocade robe, such circumstances couldn’t possibly be faked. Moreover, he had always held Rong Jing in high regard; thinking that if anything went wrong because of this delay and led to Shizi’s death, wouldn't it be... He suddenly gritted his teeth and waved at the soldiers drawing their bows and arrows by the gate, "Stop!"

The drawn bows and arrows immediately stopped. “Miss Yun Qianyue may proceed!” Commander Zhao stepped aside.

Yun Qianyue glanced back at Commander Zhao, with Ling Lian and Yi Xue clearing a path in front for them; she led Rong Jing towards the palace gate.

"Commander Zhao! Don’t you want your head" The leader of the royal secret guards saw that Commander Zhao was allowing passage again and coldly glared at him during the gap while fighting with String Song, shouting.

Commander Zhao remained silent as if he hadn't heard.

At this moment, someone came from inside and shouted, holding a token, "By order of Seventh Prince Ye Tianyi, open the palace gate to allow passage!"

The leader of the royal secret guards saw the token in his hand and immediately stopped. He waved at those behind him, and all the secret guards immediately halted.

Yun Qianyue turned her head in the direction of the sound and saw it was Ye Tianyi's personal secret guard holding a token. She turned back to see that all the royal secret guards blocking the palace gate had made way for them, forming a path. Yun Qianyue didn't speak as she led Rong Jing out of the palace gates with her light footwork. The hundred people from the Wind Pavilion fought against the five hundred royal secret guards and although it was rather difficult, breaking through wasn’t impossible. However, since Ye Tianyi had allowed them to pass, that would be best; no losses on either side.

Nan Lingrui carried Nan Liang's Imperial Tutor out of the palace gate behind Yun Qianyue.

After leaving the palace gates, Yun Qianyue looked back at Nan Lingrui but didn’t say anything. She led Rong Jing in light footwork towards the Rong王府 (Prince's Manor). String Song, Ling Lian, and Yi Xue immediately followed her. However, their martial arts skills and agility were not as good as Yun Qianyue’s; even using all their strength, they still fell far behind.

Nan Lingrui watched Yun Qianyue's back disappear and then led Nan Liang's Imperial Tutor in light footwork towards the residence of the Southern Liang envoys.

The third young master waved his hand, and the hundred people from Wind Pavilion left like a tide following him out of the palace gates.

Although there was a brief skirmish at the gate, none of the soldiers were injured. However, several royal secret guards were wounded. The leader of the royal secret guards waved his hand; some people quickly cleaned up the site. After a short while, the palace gate returned to quietness as if nothing had happened—a near-bloodbath was narrowly avoided.

The imperial palace gate to the front of Rong王府 was unobstructed, and Yun Qianyue smoothly returned to Rong王府 with Rong Jing. She entered through the main gate but did not stop, flying over multiple courtyards and purple bamboo forest until she arrived at Purple Bamboo Yard.

Qing Shang had already received news and was anxiously waiting by the entrance of Purple Bamboo Yard. Seeing Yun Qianyue bringing Rong Jing back, she hurriedly came forward with red-rimmed eyes, "Miss Yun Qianyue, our young lord..."

"It's fine!" Yun Qianyue glanced at Qing Shang and quickly headed towards the main house.

Qing Shang no longer spoke; she hurriedly rushed ahead to open the door of the main house. She pulled back the curtains, allowing Yun Qianyue to enter. Once inside, Qing Shang immediately lit a lamp in her hand, and the room instantly brightened up.

Yun Qianyue went straight to the bedside and gently laid Rong Jing down sideways, then reached out to pull off his moon-white brocade robe. Rong Jing stopped Yun Qianyue's hands with a touch and told Qing Shang, "Leave."

Although she was anxious, Qing Shang knew that the young lord never let her get close to serve him, not even when he was injured. She nodded in response and asked Yun Qianyue, "Miss Yun Qianyue, do you want me to call Old Medicine for the young lord..."

"No need, I can handle it!" Yun Qianyue shook her head.

Qing Shang turned and left. The door closed behind her.

Yun Qianyue looked at Rong Jing; he let go of his hand, allowing her to pull off his moon-white robe and then the white brocade undershirt underneath. Beneath it was a layer of soft golden silk armor with fine rings attached to it. The rings were tied to an extremely thin silkworm silk bag, where the weapon had struck. Blood stained both the inside and outside of the silk bag, as well as the weapon itself. However, the golden silk armor was only slightly damaged, clearly indicating that this blood did not belong to Rong Jing but rather was from within the silken bag. She raised an eyebrow and pulled down the thin silk bag with the weapon, holding it up before his eyes, raising her eyebrows in question, "What's going on"

"Just as you see," Rong Jing pulled off the golden silk armor and sat up straight, putting on a clean moon-white robe from the bedside slowly.

Yun Qianyue looked at the silken bag and weapon in her hand again. The tip of the weapon had blackened; clearly it was poisoned. She threw them away and slowly sat down. Recalling when she saw the weapon strike, Rong Jing had formed a sphere of real energy around himself to deflect all weapons instantly. Later, after the old emperor was hit by a weapon, Rong Jing suddenly released his energy and was struck as well. At that time, without thinking twice about it, she wanted to pull out the weapon for him, but he stopped her. She realized today's situation must be extraordinary. After recovering from the severe injuries suffered during the battle with Master Pushan and the stinky old Taoist at Lingtai Temple, Rong Jing should not have been unable to dodge a single weapon while surrounded by energy defenses. Even if the weapon could not be dodged, it wasn't aimed at his fatal point on his back. What did that mean That he deliberately let himself get hit. She looked at Rong Jing and said, "What I see is one thing; what you tell me is another. If you don’t explain, I won’t understand this."

"Yun Qianyue, are you reciting tongue twisters" Rong Jing suddenly laughed.

Upon seeing his smile, Yun Qianyue felt a surge of anger. She grabbed the collar of his clothes and fiercely said, "What is going on Do you know how scared I was when I saw you hit by that weapon If you had any plans or preparations, shouldn’t you have told me sooner Did you consider my feelings"

Rong Jing paused in buttoning up his shirt. Raising an eyebrow to look at Yun Qianyue, he said, "These past couple of days, you’ve either been busy watching a live spring drama or painting the seventy-two springs. Then you rushed off with Ye Tianyi to Jade Maiden Pond and Golden Hall. Did I have the chance to tell you"

Yun Qianyue’s fierce expression froze.

"When doing these things, did you ever think of my feelings" Rong Jing raised his eyebrows pointedly.

The anger in Yun Qianyue was reduced by half. Suddenly she couldn’t look into Rong Jing's dark eyes anymore; her grip loosened and she cleared her throat before whispering, "Although I didn't think about you when watching the live drama or painting the seventy-two springs, going to Jade Maiden Pond and Golden Hall were for your sake. Let me emphasize again: I didn't go with Ye Tianyi to Jade Maiden Pond first; he came after me. Then we went together."

Rong Jing kept his raised-eyebrow expression, looking sideways at Yun Qianyue, "Even if he came later, you still ended up going together to the Golden Hall. What's the difference In any case, you trusted him; otherwise, why would you go with him"

"I trusted him because of you!" Yun Qianyue was somewhat irritated as she recalled today’s events. She said with a huff, "Night Tianyu told me that the old emperor had someone make a Nine-Turn Mandarin Ducks Gourd to kill the Southern Liang State's Master Priest. However, this Nine-Turn Mandarin Ducks Gourd was placed on your table. I wanted to find and understand its secrets before he could use it so I first went to the Imperial Study Hall via secret passages. Then I discovered the Jade Maiden Pond in the old emperor’s Holy Yang Palace and intended to destroy it; then Ye Tianyi appeared at that moment. Afterward, we both went to the Golden Hall where I found out about the poison needle weapon. You know what happened after."

"While your story is correct, can you say you weren’t swayed by his words It’s a clever trick and scheme," Rong Jing let go of Yun Qianyue's collar and didn't bother to button up his shirt collar either; he lazily leaned back in the chair with raised eyebrows still watching Yun Qianyue.

Yun Qianyue was furious, "Do you think I want him to influence my mind Whenever it’s about your matters, I can’t control myself. No matter how rational I try to be, I am compelled to think of you and what I should do for you. How could I discover his scheme in such a short time Moreover, even Ye Tianyi was caught by this trap; no matter how cold-hearted I am, I couldn't refuse..."

"Indeed, you can’t reject the kindness of someone like Ye Tianyi who grew up with you as childhood friends," Rong Jing continued Yun Qianyue’s words, "What did he say Is it not that he’s afraid I would die and leave him alone; he doesn't want to see you dead either so he chose to accompany you. And talking about me like this, confused your mind"

Yun Qianyue suddenly stopped.

"I thought the person in your heart was just someone that kept you from touching your closed-off heart gate, but now I realize how deeply they affect you. Even a look-alike could make you feel soft-hearted and unwilling to let go," Rong Jing's lazy tone became cold, "Yun Qianyue, I don’t know whether to call you devoted or long-lasting in love."

Yun Qianyue's lips tightly pressed together, and her eyes coldly looked at Rong Jing, "Rong Jing, what exactly do you want from me Aside from the person in my heart, Ye Tianyi is someone who has grown up with me. Over these years, I have long since separated him from Xiaoqi. He is him; Xiaoqi is Xiaoqi. Even if I initially felt that he looked like Xiaoqi, it cannot erase the fact that she and I have been connected for so many years. If even a cat or dog had been by my side for such a long time, I would still worry about it, let alone someone with flesh and blood."

She paused and said each word clearly: "But whether it's Xiaoqi or Ye Tianyi, these were not what I considered back then. All that mattered to me was you. What are you doing now Do you want to nitpick about my past because of the engagement with Princess Donghai for a hundred years"

Rong Jing suddenly stopped talking.

"You don't like what I'm doing, right Am I allowed to leave then!" Yun Qianyue angrily took a step forward. She must be crazy to fetch him out of the palace and order Feng Ge to fight with the imperial guards outside the palace gates almost causing bloodshed at the gate; she must be crazy to play 'Phoenix Seeking Its Mate' in front of everyone on the old emperor's birthday banquet to dispel his anger over seeing Ye Qingran watching a living spring scene performed by Ye Tianqin and Qin Yuning; she must be crazy to refuse playing 'Spring River Flower Moon Night' with bamboo flute and zither with Ye Tianyi, leaving her zither for him. It was just one piece of music; how could it exhaust her It was because she cared about his feelings! She didn't know how shameless she appeared every time the old emperor threatened their relationship, needing to declare her love in front of everyone, not being reserved at all. She must be crazy to seek out bullying from him each day while having a comfortable life.

"Where are you going" Rong Jing suddenly grabbed Yun Qianyue's hand.

"It is none of your business where I go!" Yun Qianyue was getting angrier the more she thought about it, and she couldn't help but use her inner energy to push his unpowered grip off her. She didn't want to stay any longer; she left without looking back.

"Yun Qianyue, stand still!" Rong Jing was startled and immediately got up from the bed and chased out of the room door. But when he reached outside, Yun Qianyue had already left the Purple Bamboo Courtyard.

The pearl curtains clattered because of their movements, ringing clearly in the silent courtyard.

"Young Master!" Qing Shang stood at the door and watched as Yun Qianyue and Rong Jing came out one after another. She hadn't had time to stop Yun Qianyue when she saw her leave the Purple Bamboo Courtyard with a bad expression on her face. Seeing their Young Master chasing after her, she looked worriedly at Rong Jing.

"What kind of foul temper!" Rong Jing kicked the door frame in frustration as he watched Yun Qianyue's figure disappear into the bamboo grove.

String Song arrived moments later back at the Purple Bamboo Courtyard and saw Rong Jing's action. He stopped immediately, his eyes wide with shock as he looked at Rong Jing.

Qing Shang also opened her eyes in disbelief, staring at Rong Jing. Had she been seeing things just now Their Young Master had actually kicked the door frame! In all her memory of being by his side since entering the Rong王府, this young master had always remained composed and calm; where had he seen such a temper that didn't fit his character

Both of them looked at each other in shock.

Rong Jing seemed unsatisfied after kicking once, and kicked again. The door frame shuddered slightly. He angrily cursed, "When did I ever look down on you How can someone who's right become wrong!"

Qing Shang and String Song were silent.

Rong Jing stared at the Purple Bamboo Grove for a while, his frustrated and angry emotions gradually fading. He turned and went back into the room.

"Young Master, are you not going to chase after Miss Qianyue It seems she's very upset..." Qing Shang had been standing outside and faintly heard their conversation inside; now she hurriedly followed him in.

"How can I go chasing her I'm injured!" Rong Jing rarely sounded so bad, sitting back down by the bed.

"Should I go look for Miss Qianyue" Qing Shang asked tentatively.

"She definitely hasn't returned to the Yun王府. Where would you find her Forget it..." Rong Jing rubbed his forehead and instructed Qing Shang, "Spread word that I've been poisoned by a hidden weapon and am currently unconscious. The Purple Bamboo Courtyard should appear as if I'm injured and unconscious; send Old Medicine out of the manor to gather herbs on Cloud Mist Mountain."

"Yes!" Qing Shang responded immediately and left when Rong Jing waved his hand.

"String Song, inform Qian Yan. The Qian Family should follow my previous instructions and leave without a trace," Rong Jing instructed String Song further, "it would be best if the Qian Family vanished from this world overnight."

"Yes!" String Song immediately left.

Rong Jing looked at the hidden weapon and silkworm cocoon bag on the ground. His eyes were cold with a mocking bloodthirsty gaze, but after a while, that coldness dissipated. He rubbed his forehead wearily and laid down against the headboard of the bed. He had never seen her lose her temper like this before; was it because of the engagement for a hundred years Suddenly, he curled up the corner of his mouth, revealing an elegant mocking smile.

The door curtain swayed, making a clear and crisp sound. It seemed that the tune "The Phoenix Seeking Its Mate" was lingering in his heart.

After Yún Qiǎn Yuè came out of the Purple Bamboo Grove, she originally intended to leave Rong王府 (Palace). However, her gaze fell upon a large main residence on the east side where lights were still on. She turned and headed toward that main residence on the east.

In ancient times, the east was considered greater than the west, and north was superior to south. With Róng Jǐng residing in the northern part of the palace now, it implied that the eastern quarter should be occupied by the Old Prince of Rong. Recalling the century-old engagement matter made her feel like a thorn had been stuck in her heart.

Upon reaching the old prince's residence, Yún Qiǎn Yuè just landed in the courtyard when two black-robed men surrounded her on both sides out of darkness. She glanced at them and spoke calmly, "I am looking for Grandpa Róng!"

"Is it the little girl Come inside!" Old Prince Róng's voice came from a room.

The two black-robed men immediately stepped back.

Yún Qiǎn Yuè strode toward that main house and pushed open the door. She saw the old prince sitting at the table, fidgeting with something on it—several small sticks and pebbles were laid out in front of him. Not looking up to meet her gaze, he continued his work. Irritated, she bluntly said, "Grandpa Róng, I want to see the engagement document between the hundred-year-old Rong Prince's palace and the Princess of East Sea."

The old prince paused in his handiwork, lifted his eyes to look at Yún Qiǎn Yuè, with a mild expression. "Little girl, you've come for this"

"Yes!" Yún Qiǎn Yuè nodded.

"First, help me set up the array and only if you can break it will I show it to you," said Old Prince Róng.

"I have no time to break your arrays. If you don't show it to me, I'll go back to my palace and ask Grandpa for it!" Yún Qiǎn Yuè turned to leave. She remembered that the old emperor had mentioned that Cloud Palace also possessed a copy of this document; the former Cloud Prince was one of the witnesses at the time.

"Little girl, do you not have any patience" Old Prince Róng raised his eyebrows, "Don't let Róng Jǐng underestimate you! Since you and the imperial family had an engagement since childhood, how many years has he been holding back for your sake You can't even handle hearing that he's engaged to someone else"

Yún Qiǎn Yuè halted in her tracks. She felt a bit ashamed at being called out by Old Prince Róng but couldn’t vent her frustration either. Taking a deep breath, she returned and said firmly, "Okay then, if I break this array you will show me!"

"If you can break it, not only will I show it to you, I'll even give the document to you," Old Prince Róng stated.

"Is that what you said" Yún Qiǎn Yuè looked at Old Prince Róng.

"Yes, that's exactly what I said!" Old Prince Róng nodded.

"Who wants a piece of paper anyway! I just want to take a look," she pouted.

Old Prince Róng seemed to have smiled. "You are quite the girl."

Yún Qiǎn Yuè remained silent, focusing on observing the array set up by Old Prince Róng. She had only glanced at it earlier and seen a few small sticks and pebbles. Now she noticed that there was also a diagram drawn on the table; it depicted an intricate Yin-Yang Eight Trigram formation. Despite her expertise in arrays, she felt momentarily bewildered upon seeing this diagram. After studying for a moment, she glared at Old Prince Róng with dissatisfaction. "Your array is deadlocked from all sides—where are the entrances It's obviously impossible to break!"

"If it were easy, I wouldn't have called you," Old Prince Róng glanced at Yún Qiǎn Yuè and said with certainty: "There has never been a pathless road in this world. This array must have an entrance somewhere. There's no such thing as a dead end—only what people perceive as one."

Hearing this, Yún Qiǎn Yuè found it reasonable. She calmed herself and set aside all irrelevant thoughts, seating herself down to study the sticks and stones carefully.

Seeing Yún Qiǎn Yuè's focused attention on studying the small objects, Old Prince Róng also sat down and spoke slowly: "Do you know about the affair between the Hundred Years Ago Rong Prince and Zhenjing Empress"

"Yes!" Yún Qiǎn Yuè responded.

"Actually, the Life and Death Curse was cast by Empress Zhenjing when she found out that the founding emperor intended to marry her," said Lord Rong.

Yun Qianyue's gaze flickered with a hint of surprise. "She cast it herself"

"Yes! Empress Zhenjing didn't want to live anymore!" Lord Rong spoke calmly, stating the fact.

Yun Qianyue fell silent. Prince Rong and Empress Zhenjing must have had a deep bond. In her view, they were two lovers who couldn't be together forever; rather than enduring a life of misery, it would be better to die.

"Prince Rong clearly knew Empress Zhenjing's thoughts but still went to Donghai Kingdom to retrieve the Evil-Dispelling Pearl because he wanted her to live. Even if he couldn't see her, as long as she was alive, that was enough for him," said Lord Rong.

"Why didn't they die together" Yun Qianyue raised an eyebrow.

"Little girl, how do you know whether one can become husband and wife in the netherworld or reincarnate again to continue their marriage Perhaps everything turns into ashes after death, leaving nothing at all! Sometimes living is harder than dying," Lord Rong sighed.

"Then why didn't he rebel" Yun Qianyue raised an eyebrow again.

"When the founding emperor was conquering the world, it had already been in chaos for several decades. He took ten years to conquer it; at that time, the country was just stabilizing and the common people were still recovering from a long period of hardship. They couldn't bear another war," Lord Rong's gaze turned desolate. "To ignore the greater good for personal feelings would mean suffering again for the commoners, with corpses littering barren mountains. Prince Rong could not do that."

Yun Qianyue did not speak any longer; a hundred years ago was different from today. A hundred years ago, the world had already been ravaged by years of warfare, while now it appeared prosperous but was riddled with corruption within. She might understand Prince Rong and Empress Zhenjing's helplessness back then; ultimately, they were just two kind-hearted people.

"The Evil-Dispelling Pearl is said to be a national treasure of Donghai Kingdom. It wasn't easy for Prince Rong to obtain it, but fortunately, the princess of Donghai was smitten with him and came to Tiangong Realm with him. Originally, he had agreed to marry her, but after meeting Empress Zhenjing, she changed her mind. Perhaps knowing that she could never win his heart in this lifetime, she made a deal regarding their descendants' marriage," said Lord Rong.

Yun Qianyue nodded; during the conversation, she did not pause on deciphering the formation.

Lord Rong remained silent and quietly sat beside her, watching Yun Qianyue.

The sky began to lighten as dawn approached. Light from outside shone through the beaded curtain into the room. Suddenly, an idea struck Yun Qianyue; she quickly moved the small sticks and stones in her hand a few times, stood up, and said to Lord Rong, "I have solved your formation!"

Lord Rong chuckled and handed her a yellowed piece of paper: "This is the agreement. Here you go!"

Yun Qianyue took a look at it before tossing it back to Lord Rong, turned around without looking back, and left his courtyard but did not leave Rong王府; instead, she returned to Purple Bamboo Courtyard. Qing Shang was delighted when she saw her return and was about to speak when Yun Qianyue waved her hand, opened the door, and immediately spotted Rong Jing curled up on a cushion with his eyes now open looking at her.

—— Interlude ——

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