She was stunned for a while after hearing this, and then crawled out of the haystack to follow him.

  "How are you?" Cheng Xū glanced at her complexion, his eyebrows still furrowed.

  Hua Yu wanted to smile at him in the morning, but her lips were so dry that they cracked when she stretched them, and a small blood bead quickly emerged.

  Startled by a sudden movement, it was just one night that they hadn't seen each other, but somehow the lady seemed haggard as if she had been seriously ill.

  She pursed her lips, a hint of iron rust flavor, and looked down at the wet floor of the big prison, step by step towards the interrogation room.

  The interrogation room was lit with many lights, which made her feel a bit uncomfortable. She closed her eyes for a moment after entering the door and only saw the scene inside clearly afterwards.

  Jiang Xuanjin stood with his back to her in front of Bai Qi, who was kneeling on the ground. When he saw her coming, his back straightened a bit, and his eyes were filled with worry.

  "Master." The servant slipped in and reported, "The person has arrived."

  Jiang Xuanjin didn't turn around, the cyan-colored embroidered sleeve of his robe was slightly lifted: "Not coming in to kneel down, do you still want me to invite you?"

  The icy tone was even more severe than it had been in the imperial court of old.

  Hua Yu smiled lightly and walked over to Bai Xue's side wearing prisoner's attire, then slowly knelt down with her head lowered.

  "I pay my respects to your lordship," she said.

  Jiang Xuanjin glanced sideways: "Your Highness's people are tight-lipped, I couldn't pry it out of them. Why don't you just come yourself?"

  "What's wrong with your mouth? Hua Yu was taken aback for a moment, then thought of Liang Si Xian's affairs and whispered to Bai He: "Are you stupid? At this point, what can't be said about those things?"

  Fortunately, it was Jiang Xuanjin who asked, if someone else came, he wouldn't have said two words and would have started beating him, wouldn't he still have to suffer a severe physical punishment?

  He shook his head stubbornly - without His Highness personally giving the order, he would never say a single word.

  "It's really..." Huai Yu looked at him with a mixture of anger and laughter, her eyes slightly reddening.

  The long table in front was tapped a few times, making a crisp sound.

  "It's getting late." Jiang Xuanjin said expressionlessly, "Please hurry up, Your Highness."

  She withdrew her gaze, and with a serious expression, said: "Regarding the selection of officials, I used both Second Brother and you. The protective charm I sent to Second Brother had míyào on it; he smelled it when he went out, so naturally he was extremely drowsy during the examination. His seal was one I stole, which I gave to Bai Xue, who stamped it onto his own essay, then I secretly put the seal back in the Imperial Academy."

  As a result, when the papers were finally reviewed, people would think that the papers of Bai Xue and Jiang Shen had been mixed up, and based on their handwriting, they would attribute Bai Xue's paper to Jiang Shen.

  But Jiang Shen, a member of the Jiang family, knew that he had submitted a blank paper and would raise objections. Jiang Xuanjin would certainly investigate this matter for his second brother, and upon investigation, he would discover Liang Sihuan's other base actions.

  His eyes turned dark, and Jiang Xuanjin said: "So the calligraphy and painting in the Wen Institute was deliberately hung by you?"

  "Yes." Huaiyu nodded, "The Wen Institute was originally Lujinghang's shop."

  Something accidentally saw similar handwriting, pretending to be so alike, was actually leading him step by step into the trap she designed.

  Jiang Xuanjin coldly laughed and said: "It was me who was foolish."

  Holding jade and lowering her eyes, she spoke in a hoarse voice: "Liang Sixian's corruption and abuse of power are facts, he has harmed many students from poor families for years, which is also a fact."

  "You deceived me." This is the biggest fact.

  "I'm not deceiving you, would you suspect Liang Sixian?" Huaiyu asked him, "In your eyes, isn't Liang Sixian a good official with good morals?"

  Jiang Xuanjin furrowed his brow and looked at her, only to see her suddenly lift her head, a pair of almond-shaped eyes staring straight at him.

  "You're good wherever you go, but you're too naive and straightforward. You think that just because you're upright, everyone else is too. How many people are hypocritical, with a good appearance but a bad heart? And how many people put on a show of virtue in front of you, but behind your back they're corrupt and degenerate? Do you really think that what you see with your eyes is the whole truth?"

  Obviously a clear and introverted apricot eye, but here, it bursts out with a childlike charm.

  Why didn't he discover it all along? This person's appearance and temperament are fundamentally incompatible.

  His heart ached and he looked away, saying in a low voice: "Is this your reason for deceiving me?"

  Her body couldn't bear it anymore, Huai Yu knelt down and sat, lowering her eyes: "Deceiving you was my fault, sorry, I have something important to do."

  Clasping his hands together and slowly clenching them into fists, Jiang Xuanjin said: "When you used me to do these things, did you ever think that it would come to this today?"

  Have you ever thought about what would happen if he found out?

  Hua Yu looked at him silently.

  How could she have not thought of it? But even if she had, she would still have done the same thing.

  Taking a glance at her expression, Jiang Xuanjin also understood: "You never thought of living a peaceful life with me."

  The words were spoken lightly, echoing in the interrogation room like a cool breeze with autumn rain.

  Li Huaiyu was having some difficulty breathing and looked at him with a pale face.

  Jiang Xuanjin stood stiffly for a while, then lowered his eyes and said: "I've never asked you before, on the day when Liu Yunlie sent people to search Moju's place, why did you suddenly think of transferring Qing Si to another location."

  "And I've never asked you, why in your eyes, His Majesty is so much more important than me."

  "Now that these issues have been settled, can you still answer me one last question?"

  Her lips tightened slightly, and she seemed to anticipate what he was going to ask, looking away with a hint of embarrassment.

  However, his voice still pierced her ears: "On the day I went to Baidi Temple, was it you who revealed my whereabouts to Sun Qing?"

  Indeed.

  Hua Yu pinched her hand, and anxiety and guilt surged up, leaving her at a loss.

  She owed him this one; Lord Wind said that day was fraught with peril and he almost didn't make it back.

  At that time, the horse-drawn carriage passed through the forest, and he even covered her mouth and nose with his hand. After returning, not a single word was mentioned to her, completely trusting her, fearing she would worry and be afraid, protecting her well.

  But she... used him as bait, without even considering his life or death.

  Her fingernails dug into her palms, she didn't dare raise her head or make a sound.

  The person in front of him waited quietly, and after waiting for a long time without getting a response, he smiled softly: "Not even bothering to deceive me anymore?"

  The hem of her cyan skirt was picked up by someone, who slowly squatted in front of her, stretched out his hand to tuck her hair behind her ear: "Deceive me once more, say it's not you, you don't know, how could you bear to let me die."

  Her dry, cracked lips moved slightly, and a bead of blood emerged. Huai Yu dodged her gaze, her face deathly pale.

  Jiang Xuanjin stared at her steadily, his thin lips devoid of color, the fingers that touched her cheek as cold as snow: "What is your heart made of?"

  The day before, they were still joking and laughing together, but in the blink of an eye, she could put him to death? They had already gotten married, gone through the rituals, and consummated their union. She had peeled sweet tangerines for him, and he had carried her on his back to watch the moonlight outside the city. They were intimate to the point of no return, but when he revealed his true heart, why did she pull out a knife?

  Why?

  "....I'm sorry." Huai Yu explained with difficulty, "At that time... I just heard you used the Flying Cloud Palace's servant as bait to lure out the snake, so I..."

  "So you think that by risking my life, if I win, I can lure the snake out of its hole, and if I lose, I can avenge my hatred, either way, it's all to your liking, is that right?"

  His chest felt like it had been punched, Jiang Xuanjin stood up, not wanting to hear her response anymore. He simply reached out and grabbed her wrist, taking back the Buddhist beads he once gave her.

  "No..." Huai Yu struggled to keep that thing with her, her intuition told her that she couldn't lose it.

  However, Bai Si's body had already become extremely weak and she didn't even have the strength to resist. Between the time it took for her hand to lift and fall, the Buddhist rosary had already returned to Jiang Xuanjin's hands.

  Jiang Xuanjin lowered his eyes, took out a handkerchief, and carefully wiped the Buddhist beads clean one by one.

  "If you don't treasure it, then return it to me." he said.

  "Jiang Jing." Li Huaiyu's eyes reddened. "I'll treasure it well from now on, can you not take it away?"

  With a faint smile, Jiang Xuanjin looked at her and said: "Do you think you still have a future?"

  Plotting against one's superiors is a capital offense.

  "After no human intimacy, even the underworld is fine." She parted her lips, and the blood beads on her lips and the tears in her eyes came out together as she pitifully begged him, "Give it to me."

  "You're dreaming." He gathered his Buddhist beads and walked out without looking back.

  "Jiang Jing!"

  A hoarse voice echoed through the entire interrogation room, but the man's footsteps paused for a moment before disappearing out of the door.

  Hua Yu sobbed, sitting on the ground with her knees hugged to her chest, rubbing her empty wrists, tears dropping one by one.

  "Your Highness..." Bai Qi stared at her in a daze.

  The impression of Princess Chang seemed to have never been so heartbroken, her face scrunched up, sobbing and sniffling like a lost child.

  "It's all my fault." Cried Hua Yu, "I shouldn't have done this, it's all my fault."

  Lu Jinghang was right, playing with fire will get you burned. Now she's been burned so badly that her whole body hurts, hurting so much that she just wants to cry out loud.

  If everything could be relived, if it could be relived, she would not have set that trap to catch Sun Gong, but instead went with him to burn incense, draw lots, and return home peacefully.

  Cheng Xuan was still standing beside him, and Ben was also somewhat angry, but when he saw her crying hard, with a frown on her face, she didn't say anything too severe, only saying: "You really hurt people's hearts."

  "I know, I know." She rubbed her face randomly, but tears kept welling up. "I hate to see him sad the most, but why doesn't he even give me a chance to comfort him?"

  "How could you?" Murong Yu scolded in a low voice, "Everything else is fine, but after being with Jun Shang for so long, you still want to kill him. What do you think he would think of you?"

  "I didn't...I didn't mean to kill him..." Crying and gasping for breath, Huaiyu shook her head vigorously, "The reinforcements have all been arranged, if I wanted him dead, why would I inform Jiang Quan and Xu Yan in advance?"

  It's possible... even if there were reinforcements, who can guarantee they would arrive in time? When the lady made this decision, she didn't have your lordship in mind.

  Sighing repeatedly in vain, my heart is also suffocating.

  Bai Qi stood beside them, unable to help but say: "Didn't your highness also kill the prince? Moreover, the prince really died once, while your highness is still alive and well."

  "That's different." Cheng Xiao shook his head, "When you took action, you had no feelings for Princess Chang."

  "Who told you that I have no feelings?" Bai He's face sank.

  What kind of feelings could Ziyang Jun and Chang Gongzhu have? Even if they were half-master and apprentice, they had been at odds with each other for many years.

  He didn't think much of it and thought he was just protecting his master. He nodded slightly and followed Jiang Xuanjin out.

  Hua Yu sobbed and couldn't speak, Bai Qi stretched out his hand to press her onto his shoulder, softly saying: "Don't be sad anymore."

  "Loving someone is really so tiring." Li Huaiyu thought to smile, but tears flowed even more fiercely, as if she wanted to cry out all the tears of her life.

  Bai Qi looked at her with a pained expression, but didn't know how to comfort her, so he could only gently pat her back.

  "Your Honor has given an order, take them back to the cell." The bailiffs on either side stepped forward and separated the two men, dragging one to the left and one to the right.

  Hua Yu stood up and took two staggering steps forward, her body suddenly going limp, almost falling over.

  "Your Highness!" Bai Qi shouted in a low voice.

  He waved his hand at him in the morning, and Li Huaiyu reluctantly straightened up and followed the yamen runner out.

  She and Jiang Xuanjin were indeed a destined misfortune, from the beginning it was doomed to not have a good ending, yet she still foolishly dreamed of a happy life together.

  It's time to wake up from the dream, she has cried enough in this scene, and she should also return to her original self, Dan Yang.

  "Your Highness."

  Back in her cell, Xuxian beside her saw her red and swollen eyes and asked: "Have you seen Junshang?"

  Pick up that messy straw on the ground and pile it up by the fence. Huaiyu sat down, covering her lower abdomen and said, "I've seen enough."

  Xu Xian said: "I don't know what your intention is, but you've actually taken over our case of treason, and the Emperor has also agreed."

  Before meeting today, Huai Yu heard the news and might have held onto hope, thinking that he was there to protect her, just like the countless times he stood in front of her.

  "Let those who have grievances settle their scores, and let those who have grudges avenge themselves."

  He must have made it impossible for her to live a good life, let alone Hua Lin...

  Li Huaiyu thought for a moment, then said: "General Xu, if there's ever a chance to escape in the future, please make sure to leave the capital without looking back, don't do anything foolish again."

  Xu Xian was taken aback: "A chance to escape?"

  Unless Lu Jinghang finds someone to rescue him from prison, how can he possibly have another chance to escape?

  Huai Yu shook her head, didn't explain much, rested for a while, and when the pain in her stomach wasn't so unbearable, she found the prison guard and said: "Pass on a message for me, I am Bai Dezhong's daughter, Jiang Xuanjin's wife of Ziyang, and I have an urgent matter to see Your Majesty."

  The people in the death row asked to see the emperor, which was a common occurrence, but upon hearing her prefix, the prison guard hesitated for a moment before going out to report to the warden, who bypassed Zi Yang Jun and directly passed it on to Liu Yun Lie.

  Thus, two hours later, Li Huaiyu was put in shackles and taken into the palace.

  The Feiyun Palace had its gates and windows tightly closed, with dim light inside. Li Huailian sat quietly on the couch, watching her enter through the doorway.

  "Didn't you recognize me?" Huai Yu smiled lightly, "Seeing your own sister, why are you making that face?"

  His face tense, Li Huailin stared at her, his eyes filled with wariness. It wasn't until she walked up to him that he spoke in a low voice: "Imperial sister."

  Listening to these two familiar words, Huai Yu thought of pretending as if nothing had happened, but her hands still couldn't help but tremble.

  "Has elder sister wronged you in any way?" she asked.

  Li Huailian looked at the chain in her hand and remained silent for a long time before speaking: "You really don't know?"

  Shaking her head slowly and firmly, Li Huaiyu hooked her lips, the light in her eyes fragile: "You tell me."

  The light from the carved window came in, illuminating the dust particles in the air, dancing one by one, making people suffocate. After she finished speaking, the surroundings became quiet, with only the uncontrollably trembling chain constantly emitting a faint sound.

  ……

  Jiang Xuanjin returned to Moju and unexpectedly felt a killing aura.

  He cast a cold glance sideways, stood still, and waited for Qing Si to make her move.

  However, this man slowly walked towards him, with a strong murderous aura, yet he didn't make a move, and only said: "Do you want to know how the King of Pingling died?"

  Jiang Xuanjin lowered his eyes: "Do you know?"

  "Naturally." Qing Si said, "I'll use two secrets in exchange for you sending me into the palace to meet the Emperor, how about it?"

  Jiang Xuanjin looked at her coldly: "You even dare to stab His Majesty?"

  "He deserves to die!" Qing Si narrowed her eyes, "The person who most deserves to die in this world is not Ping Ling Jun, but him!"

  "How dare you!" Jiang Xuanjin shouted, "Insulting the emperor is a capital offense!"

  "Insulting the emperor is a capital offense..." The green-robed woman's eyes were filled with mockery, "Then I dare ask your majesty, what if someone usurps the throne and harms members of the imperial family, what crime would that be?"

  His body stiffened, Jiang Xuanjin was stunned. After reacting, he strode towards the bathroom.

  The green silk lifted her heel and entered the study, closing the door behind her.

  "What does it mean to usurp the emperor's throne?"

  Holding her breath and listening to the surroundings, Qing Si confirmed that there was no one else besides Cheng Xiao, then she spoke: "Li Huai Lun is not the biological son of Emperor Xiaoming."

  A loud clap of thunder on a clear day made Jiang Xuanjin's pupils shrink slightly.

  Qing Si looked at him with a cold expressionless face: "This is the secret that the prince knew before he died, and it was because of knowing this that he brought about his own death."

  “……”

  "Your Highness is absolutely impossible to rebel against, everything she does is correct." Qing Si said, "In the eyes of the world, she has three great crimes: one is killing Pingling Jun, two is torturing Zhang Neishi, and three is during the plague in Jiangxi, abandoning seven counties' people, sealing off the city, and letting the people inside fend for themselves."

  "But if it's these three things, she didn't do anything wrong, shouldn't you also change your impression of her?"

  Jiang Xuanjin slowly sat down behind his desk: "Speak."

  "The Jiangxi plague, you have carefully examined and implemented the emperor's instructions, and should understand the whole story. It was because they were given disaster relief silver first that the drought did not subside, and the plague followed."

  "The idea of sealing off the city was proposed by Imperial Physician, and Princess Chang decided to follow it after weighing the pros and cons. Although the method is cruel, what's wrong with it? In the end, didn't that raging epidemic stop at the seven counties and not spread further?"

  The usually taciturn Qing Si spoke up, her voice clear and distinct as she asked, "Tell me, do you know what Pingling Jun and Zhang Nei Shi did to the princess?"

  When Emperor Xiaoming died, Li Huaiyu was only twelve years old and could only sit in the Feiyun Palace crying helplessly.

  Prince Pingling Li Shan was the fifth younger brother of Emperor Xiao. In terms of age, it would have been more suitable for him to ascend to the throne, but Emperor Xiao somehow persuaded Li Shan to assist in governance instead.

  Thus, Li Shan naturally moved from Pingling to live in the palace.

  Li Huaiyu had never had a good impression of Li Shantian, although they hadn't met much before. As soon as she saw him, she kept her distance, her eyes full of vigilance.

  At first, Qing Si thought it was strange and thought that the prince was afraid of birth, but later she discovered that this Ping Ling Jun's behavior was extremely despicable. As long as he got close to the prince, he would pretend to be a loving elder brother and hug her in his arms, with his hands being overly familiar.

  After discovering this, Qing Si would always keep Gongzi behind her and never let Pingling Jun get close again.

  However, on that day, Zhang Neishi came to pass on a message, saying that some relics left by the previous emperor had been found, and asked if the Grand Duke wanted to go take a look.

  Zhang Nei Shi was a person who had served the former emperor for many years, and Huai Yu trusted him very much. Although Qing Si was not there at that time, she still followed him.

  As a result, Zhang Nei Shuai took her to Pingling Jun's bedroom.

  Qing Si found that when she went to rescue, the bedroom was already in a mess. Her master was crouching in the corner, with blood all over his mouth, his clothes disheveled, and his eyes were exceptionally fierce. On the other hand, Ping Ling Jun had a big bloody wound on his hand, and he was cursing loudly.

  "Your mother and stepmother were not virtuous women, what are you pretending to be?! Lee Shan's face turned red with rage. "If it weren't for me, do you think you could still be a noble princess?"

  Qing Si listened, furious, and walked quickly to the side of the hall, helping her up.

  Twelve-year-old Li Huai was tender and weak, only as tall as her shoulders, often crying.

  However, on that day, Qing Si didn't see a single tear drop from her eyes.

  She stood up straight, re-tied the several loose ties on her palace attire, then pulled out a handkerchief and carefully wiped away the blood from her mouth.

  "Your Highness..." Qing Si called out in concern, and was so angry that she wanted to go up and beat Ping Ling Jun.

  Hua Yu stretched out her hand, and her small hand gently grasped her sleeve.

  "Don't worry." She gazed at the person in the distance and said calmly, "He will die at my hands sooner or later."

  It was from that day on that Li Huaiyu changed, she rarely cried again and never mentioned what happened that day. She began to learn how to take control, negotiate with the officials, and gradually took back the power that belonged to her brother, Emperor Ruizong of Tang, from Li Xian.

  This long struggle lasted for four years, and Danyang suffered unimaginable grievances at the hands of Li Huailian. She had done many things that almost cost her life, and if it weren't for the support of Xu Xian and others later on, she wouldn't have been able to hold on.

  Fortunately, four years later, Li Shan's power was completely emptied and he was moved to the Pingling Mansion outside the palace. Li Huaiyu smiled and counted the days, pinching her mother's posthumous sacrifice day, bringing Su Xin to find him.

  "Huaiyu, you're my niece! " Li Shan was frightened by her and ran around the room wildly, looking at what she had in her hand, shaking his head repeatedly, "How could you possibly want to harm your fifth uncle? I'm your fifth uncle!"

  "Have seen five imperial uncles." Huai Yu still smiled and opened the medicine bottle in his hand, letting someone press him onto the soft couch.

  "Hey, Uncle Emperor, don't be afraid, this thing is precious, it uses the best pigeon poison and arsenic, and adds fresh snake venom, it should taste good."

  Li Shan looked at her in horror and scolded hastily and fearfully: "How can you be so vicious!"

  "Malicious?" whispered Huai Yu, "You just mention a few poisonous medicines and you say I'm malicious. If you knew that taking this Heart-Eating Powder would make your five organs and six entrails completely rot, and after suffering for several hours, you would die with blood flowing from all seven orifices, what words would you use to scold me?"

  Li Shan was shocked and stared at her in a daze.

  Hua Yu took a handkerchief and padded it, pinched open his mouth, and poured all the medicine down.

  "You......cough, cough......" Li Shan struggled with all his might, but still could only stare blankly as the medicine slid from his mouth into his throat.

  "I've said it before, you'll die in my hands sooner or later." With a flick of his index finger, the empty bottle in his hand fell to the ground and shattered. Huai Yu stood up, smiling at him, "Don't worry, without you, I can still be a good Long Princess."

  ……

  In the Fei Yun Palace, a low laughter sounded, Li Huailin raised his head to look at the pale-faced person in front of him and asked softly: "Didn't Imperial Sister see what was inside the secret room? I saw that thing when I was ten years old."

  The Edict of Restoration written by Emperor Xiaoming.

  Li Huilian was not the biological son of Emperor Xiaoming, but rather the illegitimate child of Empress Dowager and Prince Pingling. Emperor Xiaoming had deep feelings for Empress Dowager, knowing that she had betrayed him, yet he still raised Huilian as his own son.

  It's just that "when" is born, it ultimately isn't truly born.

  Emperor Xiao's heart was not without a plan, he let Huai Lin wear the dragon robe, just to prevent Prince Pingling from usurping the throne. He left behind the "Edict of Return", wanting Huai Lin to give up the throne when his first child in Danyang turned fifteen years old.

  Li Huaiyu felt as if the sky had darkened when she learned of this secret. She never thought that her father, the Emperor, would keep so many things from her, and even more unbelievable was that he still had thoughts of restoring Huairen's position.

  However, the Emperor had calculated everything but made one mistake - a normal girl's family would have had a child at the age of 17 or 18, but she, Dan Yang, was already in her twenties and still didn't have a real man.

  She thought that letting Huai Lin sit on the throne would be fine, even if he was the child of Pingling Jun, he was still a member of the royal family and her brother.

  It just didn't occur to her that Huai Lin had seen this thing before she did.

  Her throat slightly tight, Li Huaiyu smiled lightly and looked at him with the lock chain in her hand: "So, you are avenging your father's death on me?"

  Li Huairou's body trembled slightly, his eyes looked back at him, and he asked in a low voice: "Shouldn't I report it? What crime did Pingling Jun commit? He has always assisted me, helped me, you fought for power and position, but actually killed him?"

  "Y... ou..." His heart ached unbearably, and Huai Yu couldn't stand anymore. He slowly crouched down, his voice hoarse as he said, "You think I killed him just to fight for power?"

  "What if not?" Li Huailian frowned.

  Li Huaiyu fell silent, recalling past events, her face looking somewhat unpleasant.

  Huai Lin thought she was just being timid and grasped her hand, reluctantly asking: "Imperial sister, why did you want to change?"

  When the emperor was still alive, she was a gentle person, but since she started assisting with governance and wearing court attire, she became someone he no longer recognized - ruthless, cruel, and cold-blooded. Although she still smiled at him, protected him, and cared for him, he wasn't completely oblivious to everything.

  What she did was wrong, he didn't do anything wrong.

  She covered her eyes with her hands and said in a trembling voice, "If Father Emperor hadn't died, I would have liked to remain an innocent Princess Chang forever, never changing."

  But Emperor Xiao died, and her innocence was met with the covetousness of countless people, their desire for the throne. What's the point of that innocence now?

  Do you really think the imperial court is a place for playing house? Can two silly little kids just point fingers and make decisions here?

  Huai Lin's eyes looked at her deeply, with a hint of sadness and reluctance in his eyes, but also a sense of imperial indifference.

  "The Empress Dowager has already passed away." He said, "Since she's already gone, why not follow the Black and White Impermanence obediently, but instead come back to stir up trouble in the imperial court?"

  "What do you think I am?" Hua Yu sneered, laughing at herself, "Do you think I still want to use this white and delicate body of mine to compete with you for the throne?"

  Huai Lin furrowed his brow.

  I'm doing all this for you anyway.

  She couldn't say this sentence anymore, she thought she was also very silly, sillier than Jiang Xuanjin.

  She thought she treated him as her own brother, and he would treat her the same way. Who knew that in his heart, there had been a rift between them since five years ago.

  How could she...not notice at all?

  Now it's good, being stabbed in the back and hurt so much that there is nowhere to hide, but not daring to turn around to see if the person holding the knife is him or not.

  With a hoarse voice, she burst out laughing, Hua Yu shook her head, thought for a moment, and then shook her head again, muttering something that Li Huailin couldn't quite hear.

  "Since the Empress Dowager doesn't want to seize the throne, shouldn't she hand over the military seal?" He said, "Keeping it is also useless."

  The military tally of the Forbidden Army, from the day they entered the Grand Prison, Li Huairan had been searching for it, but after searching all the mansions in various places, he still couldn't find it.

  "Since you were little, whatever you wanted, I would give it to you." Huai Yu raised her eyes to look at him, her voice soft. "You want the military symbol, and naturally, I will also give it to you. Only... this time, I need to ask something of you in return."

  Li Huailian slightly furrowed his brow and pondered for a long time before asking: "What does the Empress want?"

  "The lives of those people in the death prison." Huai Yu said, "You know, they didn't have any intention to rebel, but were implicated by me and fell into your trap."

  Looking at her with difficulty, Huai Lin said: "They have always been my heart's greatest worry."

  "Big Sister knows." Huai Yu nodded, "So this time, as long as you let them off, Big Sister will make sure they never return to the capital again, okay?"

  "Eldest sister, you should understand better than me the principle of 'wildfires can't burn everything out, and spring winds will bring new life'?"

  "I understand." Huai Yu nodded, "So as long as you let them go, I'll take my own life, taking all the things that could threaten you with me to the afterlife, is that okay?"

  It's hard to openly say that Bai Zhen is a demonic possession of Danyang, and it's impossible to convince the officials in the court and the people all over the world. Thanks to the protection of Bai Dezhong and Jiang Xuanjin, he wants her dead, but it won't be that easy.

  So as long as he loosens his mouth, she goes to die herself.

  Li Huailian's Adam's apple moved slightly, and his eyes were extremely complex. He wasn't weighing the pros and cons of this matter, but was carefully observing her reaction, with a hint of caution and a touch of inexplicable heartache.

  "Do you know I want you dead?" he asked in a low voice.

  "Many things, just because I trusted you too much, even if I knew about it, I would pretend not to know."

  "Just... this time, can't you not use Zi Yang Jun's hands to kill the Empress?" Pressing down on her aching heart, she hooked her lips and said, "You clearly know what he means to the Empress."

  Prince Zi Yang...

  Li Huailian closed his eyes with a guilty conscience.

  A long time ago in the Dragon Abode Palace, Prince Zi Yang would come every day at dawn, wearing a cyan silk embroidered changshan with a high jade crown, elegant and captivating. At this hour, the palace gate's female guards would be unusually numerous, secretly watching him teach the emperor calligraphy and discuss literature.

  Huai Lin was used to this kind of scene, he knew that Zi Yang Jun was very popular, and the palace's big and small palace maids all admired him.

  However, he didn't know from which day on, when he inadvertently glanced outward, he actually caught a glimpse of his imperial sister.

  With a start, Li Huailin widened his eyes and glanced at the fleeting peony palace dress, then looked at the monarch beside him who was intently reciting "Guo Ci", and for a moment felt something was off.

  Everyone in the palace knows that Princess Chang and Prince Zi Yang don't get along. Prince Zi Yang teaches her etiquette and calligraphy, but she never studies and only knows how to fool around with others, making Prince angry.

  Ke Li Huailian knew that his imperial sister actually liked Jun Shang very much, but... she seemed to be worried about something and never dared to get close to Zi Yang Jun, only daring to steal a glance at him when he wasn't aware.

  This little secret, the elder sister generously didn't keep from him, only reminding him not to tell anyone, but it became the sharp knife that pierced her heart later.

  He knew how much pain his sister would be in, he knew it all.

  But he still did it anyway.

  "Does Empress hate me?" Li Huailin asked softly.

  Her legs felt a little numb, and Huaiyu slowly sat down on the ground, saying in a low voice: "I don't know."

  Getting hit is always painful, but if someone hits too hard and too fiercely, people may react slowly.

  She is now in such a state.

  Li Huairou seemed to be getting impatient, holding up his dragon robe and standing up, walking in front of her and saying: "I promised the Empress, if she wants them to live, I'll let them live, it's just...the things the Empress promises, must also be done."

  "Good." Huai Yu nodded slowly and seriously.

  He was about to hurry away when Huaiyu called out to him again: "The Empress has another question for you."

  "You speak." Li Huailian stopped in his tracks, his hand already on the door handle.

  She puckered her mouth and asked: "The Ninth Five Honors and the Imperial Sister, which one is more important?"

  Li Huailian was stunned, his fingers tightening slightly.

  The tender laughter seemed to still linger in the Fei Yun Palace, and the little child was held in the arms of Emperor Xiao, answering without hesitation.

  "Older sister."

  He heard his own voice blending with that childish treble.

  A low, muffled laugh came from behind him, Li Huailin felt his heart stuffy and didn't dare to look back again, nor did he dare to stay any longer, so he picked up the dragon robe and stepped out of Feiyun Palace.

  "You're saying people like this shouldn't die?"

  Mo Zhu Li, Qing Si finished speaking of past events and coldly asked this one sentence.

  Jiang Xuanjin sat quietly behind his desk, his slender fingers pressed against his brow bone, the joints pale and icy.

  His face didn't show much expression, and Qing Si looked very anxious.

  Do you believe it or not?

  "Master." Chongxu shouted from outside, "Young master is here."

  "Hmm." With a soft response, Jiang Xuanjin withdrew his hand and stood up, not looking at Qing Si again, only saying, "You stay in the ink house and don't move."

  How can you just sit there and go kill the Emperor? Qing Si's expression turned slightly annoyed: "Do you want to eat your words?"

  "This king has never promised you anything, what are you talking about breaking a promise?" He casually threw out this sentence and walked away.

  The green silk was shocked and immediately realized that this person had not promised anything, and her face sank immediately.

  He won't help, so she can only rely on herself.