As the Wen family left with a gloomy atmosphere, Ye Li also finally felt exhaustion come over him. He glanced at Wen Ru’s corpse, then had his servants wrap it and hide it for now. He’ll deal with this matter later. The unfortunate Wen Ru thought that if she died, she would be able to take Ye Mu to the grave with her. Yet, who knew the it wouldn’t happen? If she had known earlier, she definitely wouldn’t have chosen to die. Ye Mu looked at her corpse without a hint of sympathy. There was none, after all, she had threatened her life. Even if she had died
, she wouldn’t show mercy in the afterlife. Furthermore, since they insisted on bringing her trouble, then…they shouldn’t blame her for taking the initiative!
Sure enough, in the next second, Ye Li’s gaze fell on her, “Speak, how will you prove that what you just said was all true?”
When Ye Mu heard this, she fixed her gaze on Ye Li for a moment. She was silent for a while and then she lowered her head and said, “If I were to say that what I just said was a lie to protect my life, would father kill me out of anger?”
Although there was such a conjecture in his earlier speculations, when Ye Mu really admitted it, Ye Li didn’t become mad as he had imagined.
He frowned and was silent for a long time before letting out a cold snort. “You dare to deceive me? You little brat, you must have a lot of guts!”
Even though he spoke with a straight face, his words didn’t have any anger in them. All he could say was that Ye Mu had worked hard for so long, so she more or less held some place in his heart.
Ye Mu seemed to sense this and let out a long sigh of relief.
“Actually…those words were not a lie. The person who had told me that the emperor was in critical danger last time, had come to find me again and told me about this news. I don’t know if it’s true or not, but with father’s wit, you should be able to find it out quickly.”
When Ye Li heard that it was that mysterious person again, his thick eyebrows immediately wrinkled. He asked in a deep voice, “Since that’s the case, why didn’t you say so earlier?”
He stared oppressively at Ye Mu, as if wanting to know what else she was hiding from him.
Ye Mu shook his head, “At first, I didn’t tell because I was afraid of speaking such words, but Father would think that I was only thinking of falsehood and harboring hatred towards the madam. Moreover, I had to protect myself from the madam’s actions earlier…and I was very afraid that if the matter had been fake, the madam would use it against me.”
At the end of the day, she was the one who had spoken and protected herself. And just recently, she had been forced into a corner.
This fact inexplicably dug into Ye Li’s cold heart and all thoughts of fury immediately disappeared. If it were any child, it would have been too difficult for them to think about things so thoroughly; in that case, he could not blame her for her secretive actions.
Ye Li was silent for a moment before whispering, “This matter…you did well. But any information that reaches you—you must tell father immediately. And if that man in black comes looking for you again, you shouldn’t hide anything from me.”
Ye Mu nodded.
Seeing that she was well-behaved, Ye Li couldn’t help but reach out his hand and touch her head of which the curls had come loose from the earlier struggle with Wen Ru…
This girl could also be considered unlucky. Not only had she experienced an unimaginable disaster, even the scene from before had made her loose her former liveliness.
As Ye Li thought of this, a strange feeling spread in his heart. Especially when her fine and soft hair rubbed against his palm, he suddenly felt the endearing feeling of the words: ‘blood is thicker than water’.
“I almost sent you out together with the Wen family. Do you hate me?” Before Ye Li could come back to his senses, he had already asked such a question.
When Ye Mu heard this, she pondered for a moment before answering.
“Father, is power really so important? In order to be an emperor is it necessary…to lose people important to you?”
Ye Mu’s words made the corner of Ye Li’s mouth once again tighten. He withdrew his hand back and conspicuously placed it behind his back. “The country that the Qi family rules over—half of it should have been mine! But if they refuse to give it to me, then I can only seize it from them.” After he finished speaking, he looked down from above, his face filled with an almost iron-blooded coldness.
After a long time, Ye Mu ultimately made up her mind. “I understand. Father, I will definitely help you.”
And this time, she was serious! Regardless of who it was, since she had interfered in the chaos of the Yue country, she must make it come to an early end!
***
On the other side, Mo Linyuan was sitting on a swing in a vast courtyard, listening to his subordinates’ detailed report on what had happened in the Mo country during his absence. He had changed out of his slave’s clothes into pure, white clothes. He was dressed in a rare brocade the color of moonlight and his head was adorned with a silver crown. He looked like an immortal child that had fallen into the mortal world.
A subordinate couldn’t help but add, “His Highness was kidnapped for a few months and the situation in the court has only gotten more tense by the day. His Highness has to go back and take charge of the situation!”
Mo Linyuan knew clearly the dire need for him to return back, but…
“There’s no rush.” Mo Linyuan frowned, “I want to take someone with me, but to take her with me is an extremely troublesome process. Therefore, I’ve decided to support someone to make things easier. This is something I’m serious about.”
The person kneeling on the ground widened his eyes when he heard this.
Who needed the crown prince to muster such a large force?
He anxiously replied, “But this is a matter of the Yue country, our participation is no less than igniting a fire…”
Mo Linyuan smiled. “Not at all. I asked you to investigate that person called Yan Xu. Did you manage to find anything?”
“Not yet…but I believe there will be news soon.”
Mo Linyuan ignored their hesitant gazes as he kept his thoughts to himself.
“Then there’s no rush.” He smiled, “The person I want is here, so no matter how chaotic the Yue country is, I only want to stay here!”
***
A few days later, the general’s manor was in mourning. At the same time, the atmosphere in the residence had become heavy. Ye Li had used the treasures in the old courtyard and was preparing for huge battle!
Ye Mu felt that it was very obvious that the fastest way to calm the chaos was to let Ye Li successfully ascend the dragon throne. After all, no matter who became emperor, that person’s position would probably be unstable with Ye Li still alive in the flesh. Moreover, she didn’t even have to use her hand with someone as powerful as Ye Li by her side.
Why does she still have to sacrifice her safety?
Furthermore, as long as Yan Xu didn’t pay her any attention, then he would not have any chance to turn the tables on the battlefield. And if Mo Linyuan was really able to obtain the Forbidden Army Map, then Ye Li could force his way to the imperial palace with absolute certainty.
Therefore, since the chances of Ye Li succeeding were so high, what was there for her to hesitate? And as for Yan Xu…she could only apologize.
Seeing that he was also unwilling to return to her, she had no other choice but to let him be. In any case, she knew that Official Liu had been drugged and Mo Linyuan’s subordinates had returned to his side. It was safer for him to stay in that official’s estate than to stay in here in the treacherous general’s residence.
Ye Tian had come to look for trouble with her several times, and due to the ugly matter with Wen Ru, the Prime Minister’s estate had already begun to show signs of breaking away from the General’s residence.
However, the Prime Minister kept the affair of whether or not the Concubine Rou was pregnant very tight-lipped; Ye Li had no way of finding out, so he delayed his plans and waited for the best opportunity to make a move.
Until one day, a banquet was thrown in the imperial palace, inviting all unmarried ladies of aristocratic families in the city.
“Young lady, you wanted to enter the palace?” Previously, Xiaolang had always thought that Aji would be in danger if he left the residence but now that Aji was able to write a letter every now and then he was obviously safe. Ye Mu nodded, feeling a headache coming, “I don’t know what the other party’s motive is, but logically speaking with my mother is dead—no matter who it is, they have to be filial and pay their respects. However, the invitation only invited me.”
Hearing Ye Mu’s words, Ye Xiaolang felt a little uneasy again. “There can’t be a trap, right? Never mind that, I will still go with the young lady! ”
Recently, he had been practicing martial arts with the two experts beside the young mistress. And his improvement had increased by leaps and bounds that he would definitely be able to protect the young lady now.
Ye Mu shook her head, “It’s dangerous in the palace. I can’t take you with me, so you should only continue your studies diligently at home. Did you memorize the phonetic sheet I gave you last time? Aji had learned it in two hours. How many days have you been learning it?”
When it came to studying, Ye Xiaolang was only at a loss for words. “I—I…I will continue studying with him when the young mistress comes back…”
“I knew you would be lazy!” Ye Mu glared at him in exasperation.
At this moment, Xiaoqiu ran in, a little alarmed, “Young lady, the general is here!”
Ye Li? Why would he come to her courtyard?
Ye Mu narrowed her eyes and chased other people away to welcome him.
“Father,” she greeted reverently.
“Hmm…” Ye Li’s gaze swept across the exquisite courtyard before landing on her. “Mu’er must prepare well for the palace banquet to be held in three days.”
Ye Mu pursed his lips and asked again, “But why did you invite me? Shouldn’t you invite older sister instead? ”
Ye Li lowered his eyes to look at the exquisite little child in front of him. As time passed, the little thing in front of him became more and more pleasing to his eyes; when she would look at someone with her eyes wide open, it was as if that person was her entire world…
She really can’t bear to be like this, but…the person who becomes a powerful in the future does not care about his own daughter. What else could she do to obtain his pity and favor?
He unexpectedly asked, “Mu’er, what do you think about your father’s treatment of you?”
“Father naturally treats me extremely well!” Ye Mu replied without thinking. The people of the capital knew that Ye Li favored his daughter due to the blessings of the Prime Minister’s estate, so what else could she say?
Ye Li nodded his head, “Actually, the reason you were on the list of people to enter the palace was because of Concubine Rou. And it was also for father’s sake.”
Ye Mu raised her head and looked at him, her pupils narrowing as he asked with a smile, “Father pushed the boat together with the current because there was something that he wanted Mu’er to do?”
“M’er is very smart.”
Ye Mu really didn’t know what to make of Ye Li’s straightforward admission. She was only six years old and was not yet an adult. If Ye Li didn’t trust her too much, then he must have some other motive.
“Father…what do you want me to do? ”
Ye Li raised his eyebrows slightly. “Did you remember before that you said Concubine Rou was pregnant? Unfortunately, during this period of time of searching, I was not able to find anything. Now that there will be a banquet in the palace, and the Imperial Consort Rou will also attend it—”
“Father wants me to investigate?”
Ye Mu’s eyebrows were knotted into a frown, and her heart felt a little troubled. “That’s the only reason?”
Ye Li stroked her head, “Yes, that is the reason. Later on, I will bring the garments that you will need to wear to the palace. After Mu’er enters, be careful.”
Ye Mu nodded as she watched Ye Li leave. She knew that her intuition was telling her something was amiss, so she had to prepare something in the next three days.
Ye Mu nodded as she watched Ye Li leave. She knew that her intuition was telling her something was amiss, so she had to prepare something in the next three days. – On the day she entered the palace, countless majestic carriages were scattered around the capital, and the common folk watched from the sides. It was a rare sight to see so many noble women leave their residence at the same time; they all hoped for a chance to catch a glimpse of their beautiful faces.
Ye Mu’s carriage was also among them, heading towards the direction of the Imperial Palace.
“Did you find anything?” Before, there had been two experts sent by Mo Linyuan, but Ye Mu had asked one of them to become hers and Mo Linyuan’s bridge to communicate, so there was currently only one person with her now. Furthermore, even if she brought him with her to the palace, it would prove risky as there was bound to be many eyes.
“Young lady, the imperial palace is heavily guarded, so I don’t have much information about it. However, one of the oddities floating around is that two princesses have died in succession recently. Other than that, there’s no other doubtful news surrounding it.”
Ye Mu stroked her chin. Indeed, having too few ears and eyes was a difficult task. That Concubine Rou inviting her into the palace would surely deal with her…
As if in a blink of an eye, they arrived at the entrance of the imperial palace. All the guards had stayed outside, but this was not the end. All the maids had to be checked by security, and those with skills or weapons were all temporarily detained.
When Ye Mu was inspected, she was curious and bribed him to speak, “Big brother, why is the investigation so strict this time?”
After the guard accepted Ye Mu’s money and saw that Ye Mu was a cute, soft, little sister, he couldn’t help but relax his facial expression as he whispered to her, “His Majesty will also be attending today’s banquet.”
With that, he went to investigate the next group, leaving Ye Mu bewildered.
That sickly Yue Emperor wanted to participate?
Before this, the Yue Emperor had been recuperating because of a serious illness. Of course, this was shown as only a minor illness on the outside. But looking at the time, he hadn’t appeared in front of anyone for several months now.
Did this have something to do with Concubine Rou summoning her into the palace?
Ye Mu entered the palace together with the massive crowd with a skeptical look on her face.
According to her understanding, the banquet this time was mainly for the Second Prince to choose an imperial concubine, and this had nothing to do with Ye Mu. Even if the Second Prince wanted to be linked with Ye Li, he should have chosen Ye Li’s direct daughter and not a concubine-born daughter like her.
Although it was her first time going out, she had been curious for a while and had lost interest in the place. After all, even though the place was luxurious and refined, it didn’t look too different from the palaces she ahd come to know in her old lifetime.
The empress was in charge of the overall event, and Ye Mu sat upright in the seats for young ladies below.
When would this banquet end? She wondered.
At this time, a servant girl took the opportunity to pour some tea and secretly slip a slip of paper to Ye Mu.
Ye Mu’s eyebrows twitched, but she didn’t say anything as she unfolded the paper.
There were just a few words written on it, ‘Second brother requests marriage, and you must agree to it.’
Ye Mu’s eyes instantly widened!
Second brother? Could he be referring to the Second Prince? And he had asked her to marry him, so she had to simply agree?
What the h*ll is this bullsh*t? She cursed internally.
Ye Mu analyzed her situation calmly. This Second Prince had a transparent background and the only reason she remembered him was that in the plot, after the next Emperor Yue had successfully ascended to the throne, all his brothers had died.
Then…was this note truly from him?
Without giving Ye Mu time to think things further, the empress from the head seat had asked abruptly with a smile, “My son, with so many noble girls present, which one do you think is the most outstanding? If there is you like then let us make her a married lady,” she jested, thinking her son wouldn’t have anyone he fancied.
The empress’s words were actually polite. And everyone was here to become an imperial concubine, and those who didn’t want to be chosen wouldn’t show up for no reason. So as long as the second prince had chosen them, what else was there to disagree to?
Of course, Ye Mu was the only one with this exception. She had been specially invited to the palace, and she didn’t come for the purpose of being chosen as a wife. Moreover, she was only six years old and was a concubine-born daughter.
The second prince would never choose her!
Right? At first, Ye Mu was very sure of this, but now, she wasn’t really sure. Sure enough, when the warm and gentle second prince heard this, he smiled and looked in Ye Mu’s direction.
“There really is such a person, and she’s quite strongly and deeply ingrained inside my heart.”
Ye Mu’s heart skipped a beat. She was just thinking things, right?
The empress was also stunned for a moment, as if she had not expected the second prince to really choose someone.
She could not help but ask, “Who is my son referring to?”
The Second Prince seemed somewhat embarrassed as he smiled. “That person is…it is the daughter of the general’s residence, Young lady Ye Mu.” The empress followed the Second Prince’s hand and looked at Ye Mu, her expression turning a little odd. If it was any other girl, she might have said, ‘Let’s get on with this decision then!’ After all, this Second Prince did not have any ambitions even if he had his own soldiers!
But this girl…
She was stunned for a moment, then asked, pretending to eb ignorant of Ye Mu’s identity, “Where is Young lady Ye?”
Only then did Ye Mu come back to her senses and walked forward to pay her respects. “Empress, this subject is none other than the concubine–born daughter of the Ye family, Ye Mu.”
She stressed the word ‘concubine-born’ heavily. Although the Second Prince also had a handsome appearance, he was already twenty-five years old!
Are they asking for him to be her new father?!
Moreover, she had also heard that when he was outside the border, he would always delay being married…and now, he should be at the age where he’s in a rush to get married and have children. Why should a mere kid like her she be chosen?
Could it be…did Yan Xu had said something to him? But no matter the case was, she had no intention of marrying here!
The empress sized her up from top to bottom with a smile. “You really are a pretty child. No wonder my son… but seeing that young lady Ye is still young. And this empress is unaware if you’re willing to marry into the imperial family?”
Was this a chance given by the heavens to reject him?!
Since the empress was easy to talk to, Ye Mu didn’t dare refuse. She was just a concubine-born daughter after all. Normally, the empress wouldn’t ask such a question and immediately refuse.
And to marry the Second Prince?
Ye Mu glanced at the Second Prince. He was looking at her with a smile, as if he was confident that she wouldn’t reject him. Ye Mu thought for a moment before shaking her head.
“Your servant…doesn’t want to marry!”
What?!
Many of the women present cried out in alarm. After all, the Second Prince was still a prince; he had his own militia and he held real power. For a concubine-born daughter this was a good marriage, yet this girl refused to marry him?
Indeed, she is too young and ignorant of everything! They all thought.
Yan Xu who was hiding in the dark saw that Ye Mu refused and angrily punched the tree in front of him!
“Seriously…what a silly girl!” He was trying to save her!
Even if Ye Mu had refused, he couldn’t just let her off the hook. But what could he do? For some reason, a young man’s face suddenly appeared in his mind. If he knew that Ye Mu was in such a predicament, Yan Xu was sure he would be able to think of something unorthodox.
With this thought in mind, he turned around and headed away from the direction of the imperial palace.
When the empress heard Ye Mu’s rejection, she seemed to be stunned for a moment before a hint of a smile appeared on her lips. “Since young lady Ye doesn’t agree, then…”
“Imperial mother!” When the Second Prince saw that Ye Mu had refused, he suddenly became anxious, “But this son likes Young lady Ye. I hope mother will reconsider!”
The empress frowned, feeling troubled. Before she could speak, a male voice rang out.
“Nonsense! Since she doesn’t want to marry, do you still want to force her to marry? Is my son so afraid that he won’t be able to take an imperial concubine?”
Hearing this voice, the empress took the lead and made everyone kneel.
The empress respectfully greeted, “Your consort welcomes His Majesty! His Majesty lives a hundred lifetimes!”
“His Majesty lives a hundred lifetimes!” The other people in the banquet followed suit.
Ye Mu was shocked and hurriedly paid her respects with the crowd. She didn’t think that the Emperor would really come.
Wasn’t he seriously ill? However, when she saluted, she noticed with her sharp eyes that the Emperor seemed to be really spirited, as if he’d recovered from a sickness. Beside him was an extremely flirtatious girl, and it was needless to say, that person was ought to be the daughter of the Prime Minister…Imperial Concubine Rou.
Ye Mu was speechless. Something was truly brewing at coming straight at her!
“Everyone, rise!” “Thank you, Your Majesty…” Everyone stood up. Recently, there were many people who secretly told that the emperor was very sick. However, with the appearance of this energetic emperor, all the rumors turned instantly cold.
After all, how could a sick person still be this active, looking full of life?
However, Ye Mu felt it was strange and looked at the emperor a few more times before discovering some clues. For example, why was the emperor wearing thin robe instead of his usual dragon robes? Also, the Emperor’s cheeks were red, but why were his eyes bloodshot?
In addition, she was certain that this person would die of an illness early next summer. It was already autumn, so how could he possibly recover so fast in just a few months?
After the Emperor sat down at the head seat, he continued to speak to the Second Prince, “Alright, this little girl is unwilling. Choose again until you are satisfied!”
His very explicit words made all the noble ladies feel very embarrassed. The prince gave Ye Mu a deep look and could only say, “Yes.”
Ever since the arrival of the emperor and his concubine, Ye Mu felt as if she was sitting on pins and needles. Their gazes were always on her, and now, she only hoped that the banquet would soon come to an end.
On the other side, when Mo Linyuan heard Yan Xu’s words, he smiled. But in an instant, the cup in his hand shattered into pieces!
“Wen Feng.”
The moment he opened his mouth, a nimble, short person appeared. Furthermore, this person’s martial arts were extremely high that even Yan Xu did not notice how he appeared!
“Go…” Mo Linyuan’s phoenix eyes slightly narrowed as he gave an extremely gorgeous smile. “Go and bring Official Liu to me. Drag him over!”
Official Liu was originally in his study, but because the emperor only invited female subjects today, he did not enter the palace. However, the moment he saw Wen Feng, he immediately turned around and wanted to flee, and even had his guards block him. Unfortunately, how could his guards be a match for Mo Linyuan’s people?
In the end, he could only let himself be dragged away!
This time, Mo Linyuan did not beat around the bush. When Official Liu was shoved onto the ground and was laid flat on the terrain, he reached out his hand to grab official Liu by the hair to pull his head closer.
“Official Liu, I’ve observed that your news has been getting uncertain lately. Ah, is it because the Emperor is well, and you’ve thought of a clever scheme? Do you want to serve as a servant? Did you foolishly think you can serve a second master? Or is it because you want to extract revenge on me? ”
“No, no, no, no!” Official Liu immediately countered the allegations against him, “Your Highness! Your Highness, please listen to my explanation…”
Official Liu had never seen such a terrifying gaze from a teenager before. He felt his legs go weak and he couldn’t even fully get up to kneel.
Mo Linyuan kicked him. “Explain? No need. I originally wanted to keep you for a few more days, but what’s the use of keeping an unfaithful dog? Do you think the emperor has recovered? Let me tell you, he’s dead for sure!”
With that, Mo Linyuan straightened his spine. “Wen Feng, have you found the person I have ordered you to look for?”
Wen Feng lowered his head and answered, “I have found him. He’s similar to this person by 80%.”
“Very good. When I come back, I don’t want to see him again. And didn’t this person like to abuse children? You should know what to do.”
“Yes, Your Highness.” Wen Feng bowed his head down.
“No…no way!” Only now did Official Liu realize that Mo Linyuan had not killed him merely for the reason that he had been looking for a doppelganger to replace him.
Now he had found one and he had lied to him again! This time, he was truly doomed!
Unfortunately, no matter how much he yelled for mercy, Mo Linyuan still left. He took the forbidden map of the Imperial army and went straight towards the general’s estate.