The Eldest Princess wasn’t exaggerating—her threats were real.
The Great Zhou Dynasty strictly regulated all superstitious and mystical practices among the people. Anyone found pretending to be divine or deceiving others with trickery could be deemed a monster by the authorities and publicly burned alive.
What Qi Yuan had just said—enough to earn her a hundred deaths.
Xiao Yunting, however, was struck by the fact that she, having never left her village, knew about things in Jiangxi, and even managed to expose Han Yue’e hiding in the Qi household. A thought stirred in his mind, and he looked at Qi Yuan with a cool gaze. “And you claim all this on just your word?”
Qi Yuan was unhurried, cupping her hands around her tea and sipping lightly. “If Your Highness and Wangye require more proof, then may I offer this: I know why Qi Wang planted and bought over Han Yue’e in the Yongping Marquis Manor. Would that count as evidence of my… unusual abilities?”
The glimmer of hope that had sparked in the Eldest Princess’s heart because of the taro buns began to fade once more.
She’d been foolish. How could gods truly exist in this world?
She didn’t want to listen to Qi Yuan’s explanations anymore. This girl, no matter how clever her words, was nothing but a liar—fabricating stories to win their trust and secure her place in the Qi family.
But then—
“What if I said that Prince Consort Lu’s child survived… and is still alive to this day?”
Qi Yuan’s voice rang out inside the carriage—low, soft, almost a whisper. Yet to the Eldest Princess, it landed like a thunderclap.
Her whole being trembled with shock. She lurched forward, grabbing Qi Yuan’s arms tightly, squeezing out each word through gritted teeth: “What did you just say?”
Xiao Yunting’s gaze also shifted dramatically.
The atmosphere inside the carriage turned instantly tense and lethal.
Anyone familiar with Xiao Yunting would have recognized it—he was already on the verge of killing.
If Qi Yuan said a single wrong word, she would not walk out of this carriage alive.
But under this deathly silence, Qi Yuan slowly opened her mouth. “Your Highness, Wangye—there’s no need to see me as an enemy. If I truly meant harm, would I have exposed Han Yue’e and Qi Wang’s plot within the Qi family?”
The Eldest Princess was nearly hysterical, tears welling up and spilling over: “The child… what child…”
Qi Yuan gently took her hand in return, her voice firm and calm. “Your Highness and Prince Consort Lu’s child. Back then, Prince Consort Lu was escorting the the Wangfei back to the capital, but was ambushed by bandits on the way…”
Both the Eldest Princess and Xiao Yunting’s expressions changed drastically.
Back then, the current emperor had still been Min Wang. When the late emperor died, he was named crown prince and rushed to the capital by water route to assume the throne, leaving his brother-in-law Lu Wending to escort the pregnant Zou Wangfei over land.
But in Jiangxi, the party encountered pirates who had drifted inland from the coasts—every member of the escort was wiped out. The pregnant Wangfei went missing. Lu Wending fought to the death.
After Min Wang entered the capital and ascended the throne, he instead made the daughter of the then Grand Commander and Acting Regent, Feng En’s daughter his empress.
Everyone said that Min Wang was able to take the throne back then all thanks to Feng En, the former emperor’s study companion and close friend.
So over the years, many believed it was Empress Feng who targeted Zou Wangfei.
Heartbroken, the Eldest Princess distanced herself from the emperor, refusing to see him ever since.
Now, this deep, festering wound was reopened.
The Eldest Princess stared at Qi Yuan, her voice breaking: “What do you know? What exactly do you know?!”
Qi Yuan’s emotions stirred.
What she knew—she had learned it in her previous life, while working for Xiao Yunting.
Back then, Qi Wang had married Qi Jin and, through Qi Zhen, had learned of Zou Wangfei’s whereabouts. He found and secretly detained her and her child, forcing her to testify that Empress Feng had committed treachery to become empress.
The scandal blew up. Though no one could criticize the emperor outright, the people condemned Empress Feng as a wicked woman who had betrayed her sovereign and harmed his true wife.
Petitions calling for her removal flooded the emperor’s desk.
The Yongchang Emperor grew increasingly frustrated.
On top of that, the Crown Prince was assassinated and killed.
Overwhelmed by grief, Empress Feng soon passed away as well.
The Crown Prince’s entire faction instantly became the target of public condemnation—if even the Crown Prince’s claim to the throne was illegitimate, how could the Crown Prince’s son possibly be justified?
The Crown Prince’s lineage completely withdrew from the fight for the throne.
It was in this situation that Xiao Yunting sent her and the Xie family to thoroughly investigate what had happened back then.
She stayed in Jiangxi for seven or eight years, and eventually even found the small Jiangxi town where Zou Wangfei had fled during her escape, finally uncovering the truth of the incident.
Now, the things she had uncovered in her previous life just happened to help her once again gain the trust of Xiao Yunting and the Eldest Princess—whether this could be considered karma coming full circle, she wasn’t sure.
Qi Yuan calmed her pounding heart and looked seriously and sincerely at the Eldest Princess and Xiao Yunting. “Perhaps Your Highness and Wangye will find this hard to believe, but I truly did have a fateful encounter. I can help Your Highness find the person you’ve been searching for.”
The Eldest Princess, choked with sobs, asked, “Then—then where is my child now?!”
Seeing the Eldest Princess too agitated, Xiao Yunting gently pressed her shoulder, signaling her to calm down.
He then asked Qi Yuan in a deep voice, “In a deal, there must always be give and take. If what you say is true and you know these things, you could have gone to someone else to reveal this information, couldn’t you? Why come to us?”
Qi Yuan looked at him calmly. “Your Highness, do you know Xie Ying?”
At the mention of the name ‘Xie Ying,’ Xiao Yunting’s expression immediately changed. “You know Xie Ying?!”
“Of course I know.” Qi Yuan lowered her gaze. “If you must ask why I chose Your Highness’s faction, then just consider it as—I’m doing this for Xie Ying and the Xie family. Xie Ying is your man, and the Xie family are your trusted aides. They are tied to you—their life, their honor, everything depends on you. Naturally, the same goes for me.”
Xiao Yunting’s eyes grew sharp and deep.
“The Xie family?” At this moment, Xu Tongzhou also looked at Qi Wang in confusion. “Your Highness, this is a critical moment. I’ve already tracked down the man from the Dali Temple…”
Why was Qi Wang now ordering him to target the Xie family?
Qi Wang’s expression was cold. “Since when have my decisions ever needed your explanation?!”
“Your servant wouldn’t dare!” Xu Tongzhou quickly prostrated himself on the ground and replied urgently, “Rest assured, Your Highness, I’ll set out at once and handle this matter properly for you!”
Qi Wang let out a low ‘hmm,’ his eyes flashing with a mocking smile. “Qi Yuan, oh Qi Yuan—even if you’ve been reborn, so what? Right now, you’re nothing more than the daughter of a marquis. Trying to outpace me? Truly pathetic.”
Did you think being reborn would give you a head start, that everything would go your way?
Just wait. The victor is yet to be determined!
