After being reborn, the aloof prime minister was once again forced by a tyrant.

Sure enough, the news came the next day.

The proclamation of the Emperor of Nanyue spread throughout the five kingdoms.

The proclamation was lengthy and sternly worded: "Prime Minister Xie Qinglan of Nanyue, during his mission to Beishuo, betrayed the Emperor's favor, colluded with the enemy ruler, plotted rebellion, and harbored treacherous intentions. Effective immediately, he is stripped of his prime ministership, all his lifelong titles and merits, and will never be reinstated. Emperor Xiao Jingyuan of Beishuo, through underhanded means, imprisoned the Nanyue princess for a marriage alliance, trampling on diplomatic relations and breaking treaties; his wolfish ambitions are blatantly exposed. Beishuo is given three months to return the princess and extradite the traitor Xie Qinglan; otherwise, Nanyue will mobilize the entire nation's strength to march north and punish this wicked ruler."

When the proclamation reached the Northern Shuo court, the entire court was in an uproar.

The military officers rose, their heels striking the gold bricks with a resounding clang, and eagerly volunteered for battle. The civil officials exchanged glances, their fingertips unconsciously tapping on their ivory tablets as they whispered amongst themselves.

Everyone knew perfectly well that Pei Nanchi's proclamation was full of flaws and far-fetched arguments, yet it occupied the name of righteousness and created a perfect excuse for Nanyue to launch a campaign.

Pei Nanchi was always insightful. He knew long ago that Xie Qinglan was staying in Beishuo, that all of Xie Qinglan's former subordinates had surrendered to Xiao Jingyuan, and that this man was lying low and would one day assist Beishuo in marching south and conquering the five kingdoms.

Rather than sitting idly by and waiting for the enemy to regroup and launch a counterattack, it is better to strike first and seize the initiative.

On the dragon throne, Xiao Jingyuan sat quietly with his eyes lowered. His slender fingertips tapped the edge of the imperial desk slowly and steadily. After listening to the eunuch recite the last word, there was not a ripple in his eyes.

He casually tossed the glaringly bright yellow proclamation onto the table, his voice deep and cold as frost, devoid of any inflection: "Issue my decree: the three armies shall immediately prepare for battle and stand ready for combat."

No need for further words in the imperial court. With the decree issued, all officials withdrew from the court. Xiao Jingyuan left none behind and went straight to Tingxue Pavilion, preparing to discuss the matter with someone.

Pushing open the courtyard gate, the crabapple blossoms were still in full bloom. Pink and white petals covered the courtyard, and the morning light filtered through the branches, spreading a layer of fine gold leaf on the ground.

Xiao Jingyuan had just stepped across the threshold and hadn't even had a chance to speak when an object flew towards him.

He instinctively reached out to catch it, and looked down—it was the gold-embroidered soft pillow Xie Qinglan usually used. Then another soft pillow landed squarely on his face.

Xie Qinglan sat back on the couch, her moon-white nightgown hanging loosely on her shoulders, the collar slightly open, revealing a section of her porcelain-white collarbone.

His back was ramrod straight, but his usual cool composure was gone. He was both ashamed and angry, his ears were so red they were almost bleeding, his lips were pressed into a tight line, and even the fingers gripping the corner of the blanket were trembling slightly.

"You...you've become increasingly outrageous lately." The voice was extremely low, filled with gritted teeth.

Xiao Jingyuan didn't react for a moment. He looked down at the two soft pillows in his hands, then looked up at Xie Qinglan's flushed face, and a smile suddenly appeared in his eyes.

He gently closed the palace door behind him, placed the pillow on the pear wood table beside him, and slowly walked to the bedside to sit down, the bed board making a very soft creak.

Last night, after Xie Qinglan fell asleep, he cleaned her up and went to find some ointment. He found the jade pendant in the drawer.

Although I couldn't remember how this thing ended up here, I recalled that the imperial physician in my previous life had said that jade was warm and nourishing, so I used it according to the instructions.

I was in such a hurry to go to court this morning that I forgot to take it.

He cleared his throat, suppressed his laughter, and leaned closer, looking completely innocent: "What's wrong, Qinglan? Who made you angry?"

Xie Qinglan turned her back to him, biting her lip and remaining silent for a long while before finally squeezing out a few words through gritted teeth: "How could you... how could you use me while I was asleep..."

Xiao Jingyuan reached out to put his arm around Xie Qinglan's waist, but Xie Qinglan slapped his hand away, leaving the back of his hand red.

Undeterred, he reached out again, this time his fingertips precisely gripping that narrow waist, his fingertips gently caressing the soft flesh behind his back, coaxing softly, "You have to put medicine on it when you're injured."

Xie Qinglan's face flushed crimson, even her neck turning pink, and her voice tightened: "That's because you're too—"

He was too ashamed to speak. The second half of the sentence stuck in his throat, and he couldn't get it out no matter what he did; the tips of his ears were burning hot.

He didn't understand. Last night, he was clearly in the right—he was bandaging the wound on the man's palm while coldly reprimanding him, and then he was pinned down as soon as the medicine was applied. This man even turned around and accused him of seducing him, tormenting him for half the night while he was pinned down on the soft couch by the window.

When he woke up and found something was wrong, he didn't even dare to get out of bed. He could only sit stiffly on the couch and wait for Xiao Jingyuan to return.

"Hurry up and get it for me, I feel terribly uncomfortable." He bit his lip, his voice trembling slightly at the end, carrying a sense of grievance that he himself was unaware of.

"It was my oversight." Xiao Jingyuan's voice softened further as he reached out to lift Xie Qinglan's robe. The moment his fingertips touched Xie Qinglan's cool skin, Xie Qinglan recoiled as if he had been burned.

"What are you doing—"

"You're not asking me to take it?" Xiao Jingyuan shrugged, looking completely innocent.

Xie Qinglan glared at him, her usually clear and cold eyes now covered with a thin layer of mist, the corners of her eyes flushed with shame and indignation, like a cat that had been provoked.

He bit his lip and hesitated for a long time before slowly lying down on his side and covering his head with the quilt.

Xiao Jingyuan moved very gently, carefully parting those slender legs. When his fingertips touched that spot, the person in his arms trembled unexpectedly, her hands gripping the brocade quilt beneath her tightly.

"It's still a little swollen. Let it sit for a while longer."

"No." Xie Qinglan's muffled voice came from under the brocade quilt.

"obedient."

After a long while, Xie Qinglan finally spoke, his voice filled with gritted teeth: "Damn it, this is outrageous!"

"I only scolded you a few times, and you treat me like this on purpose."

Xiao Jingyuan leaned down, pulled back the brocade quilt, buried his face in Xie Qinglan's neck and rubbed against him, his nose gently nuzzling Xie Qinglan's collarbone: "It's my fault. The ointment hasn't been fully absorbed yet. Leave it on for a few more hours, and it will heal faster."

"Get it now."

"Let it sit for a while longer."

"Xiao Jingyuan." Xie Qinglan finally turned around, her eyes fierce, but because the corners of her eyes were red, she had no intimidating power at all.

"Just one hour." Xiao Jingyuan immediately begged for mercy, reaching out to hug his waist and pulling him closer to his chest, resting his chin on his shoulder like a clingy big dog.

Xie Qinglan closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and her chest heaved violently a few times. "I should have smashed this thing back then. So you wouldn't have brought it out to mess around again."

Xiao Jingyuan buried his face in the crook of his shoulder and chuckled softly, "By the way, how did this thing end up in Tingxuexuan's drawer?"

"You still dare to say that? Wasn't it you who gave it to me?"

Xiao Jingyuan raised his head, blinked, and suddenly realized:

"Could it be that the jewelry you sent that time slipped in? No wonder you're scolding me."

Xie Qinglan raised her hand and lightly punched his chest. Then he turned his face away, forcing his voice back to its usual cold tone, though his ear tips were still red: "You'll sleep in the side hall tonight."

"No." Xiao Jingyuan immediately retorted, hugging him even tighter, then softened, nuzzling against his neck and acting coquettishly, "I won't touch you tonight, I'll just hold you while we sleep. Really."

"No, if you try to bargain any further, I'll go back to your Yangxin Hall." Xie Qinglan's tone was resolute, her face cold and unmoved.

"Qinglan, my dear Qinglan..." Xiao Jingyuan still wanted to coax her a little more.

Just then, footsteps approached from outside the courtyard, followed by a heart-wrenching wail: "Your Majesty—Help! Your Majesty—you can't just stand by and watch me die—"

Xiao Jingyuan and Xie Qinglan froze simultaneously. Xie Qinglan quickly pushed Xiao Jingyuan away, grabbed the brocade quilt to cover herself, and hurriedly gathered up her disheveled nightgown.

Xiao Jingyuan was also a little stunned by this sudden change, and when he came to his senses, he was annoyed - who was the fool who barged in at this time?

Gao An's panicked voice came from outside the door: "General Shen! General Shen, what's wrong—please slow down—"

The courtyard gate was pushed open from the outside with a loud bang, and a figure staggered in, rushing straight to the entrance of the main hall and starting to pound on the door from the steps.

"Your Majesty! Your Majesty!"

Xiao Jingyuan opened the door with a dark expression.

Shen Hanzhou was lying on the steps, sobbing uncontrollably. He wasn't wearing his military uniform today, but a plain black dress, yet he looked even more miserable than if he had lost a battle—his eyes were red and swollen, his hair was a mess, and his clothes were askew, as if he had been dragged straight out of bed.

"What's going on?" Xiao Jingyuan asked, arms crossed, his tone unfriendly.

"Your Majesty!" Shen Hanzhou looked up, grabbed Xiao Jingyuan's boots, and wiped his snot and tears on the hem of his dragon robe. "Please, let me stay in the palace! I have nowhere else to go!"

Xiao Jingyuan's face was so black it could drip ink, yet he stubbornly didn't lift his foot to kick him away.

"Stand up and speak."

"I can't get up." Shen Hanzhou's voice was muffled, with a heavy sob in it, his back hunched over like a shrimp.

Xiao Jingyuan glanced at him and noticed that his kneeling posture was rather strange—his back seemed unable to straighten, his whole body slumped, as if someone had taken his bones apart and then forcibly put them back together. He frowned and turned to Gao An at the courtyard gate, saying, "Gao An, help him up."

Gao An hurriedly ran over and struggled to help Shen Hanzhou up from the ground. Shen Hanzhou was hunched over, his legs were trembling, and he was about to collapse even when he stood still. The fierce general who once galloped across the battlefield was nowhere to be seen.

Upon entering the hall, Shen Hanzhou plopped down on a chair, then bounced up with a hiss, before carefully sitting only on one side.

Xie Qinglan had already straightened his clothes and was sitting on the couch by the window, holding a cup of tea, looking at him expressionlessly. Xiao Jingyuan leaned against the desk, arms crossed, waiting for him to speak.

"What exactly happened? How could someone storm the palace and wail so early in the morning? What kind of behavior is this?" Xiao Jingyuan asked in a deep voice.

Shen Hanzhou opened his mouth, then closed it again. He looked at Xiao Jingyuan, then at Xie Qinglan, his face flushed red, and after a long while, he managed to stammer out, "This humble general...this humble general..."

He couldn't continue. What could he say? That he'd been tormented all night by that male wife who was half a head taller than him, and now he couldn't even straighten his back and was trembling when he walked? That he'd sneaked out of the general's mansion through the back door while Wanyan Lie was in the bathroom? If that got out, how could Shen Hanzhou possibly maintain his reputation in the Northern Shuo army?

"I beg Your Majesty to grant this humble general permission to send A-Yue—that fellow Wanyan Lie—back to the Western Territory!" He skipped all the details and stated his request directly.

Xiao Jingyuan raised an eyebrow. Looking at Shen Hanzhou's flushed face, his disheveled appearance with red eyes, and his awkward posture where he didn't dare to sit properly, he vaguely understood something and couldn't help but smile.

"Oh, him. I was just about to tell you—the male wife you married yesterday is no ordinary person."

"What?" Shen Hanzhou looked up, staring at him blankly.

"He is the missing third prince of the Western Rong."

Shen Hanzhou was stunned. His mouth was agape, his eyes wide as saucers, and his expression changed from bewilderment to shock.

The Third Prince of Xirong. The legendary Third Prince, renowned for his exceptional literary and martial talents and deeply favored by the King of Xirong. The one who is said to have died in internal strife, his remains never recovered.

The "mute girl" A-Yue he picked up—was it him? He even slept with her in his arms for two months, constantly calling her his darling? No wonder he was pinned down in the bridal chamber last night and tormented by her, unable to fight back at all.

"What???" Shen Hanzhou screamed in disbelief, his voice cracking.

Looking at his thunderstruck expression, Xiao Jingyuan slowly added, "Where is he now? I'm looking for him."

Shen Hanzhou knelt down again with a "thump".

"Your Majesty!" His voice was urgent and rapid, his eyes reddening, not from grievance, but from a panic he himself couldn't quite explain. "A-Yue—Wanyan Lie—I beg Your Majesty not to make things difficult for him. When I found him, he was covered in wounds and had been unconscious for three whole days before waking up. He followed me for two months afterward, without inquiring about the Northern Shuo army's intelligence or making any untoward moves. Although I don't know who he is, I'm certain he didn't come to Northern Shuo as a spy—he, he is a—he is—"

He couldn't continue. He didn't know why he was pleading for Wanyan Lie. That swindler had deceived him for two months, treating him like a fool, and had tormented him like this last night. He should be seething with hatred.

When he heard Xiao Jingyuan say he was looking for Wanyan Lie, his first reaction was fear. He was afraid that Xiao Jingyuan would lock Wanyan Lie up as a spy for Xirong, afraid that Wanyan Lie would die under Wanyan Hao's blade after being sent back to Xirong, and afraid that he would never see that person with light golden eyes, who spoke haltingly, and whose smile was so captivating.

Xie Qinglan put down her teacup and glanced at him. In that glance, there was a hint of understanding, and also a very faint smile.

"Alright." His voice remained calm and indifferent. "His Majesty won't do anything to him."