She refused to marry.

Shen Chongyuan lowered his hand, took a deep breath, stood up, and bowed deeply to Feng Chenjun.

"Your Majesty's great kindness is something I will never forget. Our family has truly been indebted to Your Majesty for this great calamity..."

Xiao Xuanjing waved his hand: "That's all in the past, let's go back."

The Shen family father and son have passed away.

The private room quieted down, with only the wisps of tea smoke rising from it.

The door to the next room opened gently, and Su Wanwan peeked out.

Xiao Xuanjing picked up his teacup and took a sip of tea.

"It's cold..."

Su Wanwan brewed tea again. "Your Majesty, did the account books submitted by the Crown Prince last time involve the Su family?"

The account books at the time clearly only contained information about the Shen family and the eldest princess.

How did the account book matter involve the Su family?

Lu Huai'an lied to her.

"Not only the Su family, but everyone who has dealings with the Princess is involved. The people who collected the account books are definitely trying to drag His Majesty and Her Highness the Princess down from the court. His Majesty will surely take all the blame himself. Now they have achieved their goal," Jian Qingshan said angrily.

"Given the immense risks, why did you embezzle public funds in the first place?" Su Wanwan frowned slightly.

"Embezzling the national treasury? What does Miss Su know? The Empress controls the Ministry of Revenue and, in order to curb the power of Prince Changxin, cut off his military supplies at the border."

If it weren't for our sovereign's secret intervention, the border would have been in grave danger long ago. How could we have such peaceful days now? A mere woman, she knows nothing, all she does is make a mess!..."

Su Wanwan bowed her head to serve tea, listening to Qingshan rambling on and on, cursing the Empress and the Crown Prince's faction.

She dared not utter a sound, her mind preoccupied with everything about the original work.

It's a pity I didn't subscribe back then, otherwise I would know what happened next.

Looking up at Feng Chenjun, he had already drifted off to a nap thanks to Qingshan's incessant chatter.

He was indeed not as glamorous as before, but his complexion had become much gentler.

She quietly got up and went outside, leaning against the railing.

Why did Lu Huai'an lie to her?

Could it be that I've been by her side all this time just to gather information?

If that's the case, Lu Huai'an is in grave danger.

After sitting for a while, a soft cough came from inside the room. Su Wanwan hurried in and saw Feng Chenjun holding a pure white silk handkerchief, covering his mouth and coughing violently.

The moment Feng Chenjun removed the handkerchief, Su Wanwan saw the bright red bloodstains on it, and her heart skipped a beat.

"Your Majesty..." Su Wanwan stepped forward quickly, took out an embroidered handkerchief, wiped the blood from the corner of Feng Chenjun's mouth, and poured some water to his lips, "Rinse your mouth."

Xiao Xuanjing took it and downed it in one gulp.

"Your Majesty, is there an internal injury?" Even though Su Wanwan disliked Feng Chenjun, she was still somewhat frightened by his appearance.

If he can't think straight, wouldn't it be a waste of her precious youth to die with him?

Wait a minute, how could she have such a strange idea?

"What are you thinking about?" Xiao Xuanjing put down his teacup and looked at the absent-minded woman.

"I... I was thinking about His Majesty's injuries. Did the Crown Prince use some underhanded tricks on His Majesty?" Su Wanwan thought about what happened in the imperial prison.

"My achievements overshadow the emperor. If I were to die at the hands of the crown prince, the people in the court would not accept me." Xiao Xuanjing coughed softly again.

Only after the last trace of blood was wiped away did Xiao Xuanjing catch his breath. "Miss Su, I always feel uneasy whenever I see you."

Su Wanwan lowered her eyes and said softly, "In that case, Your Majesty, shall we waive the matter of practicing calligraphy from now on?"

Xiao Xuanjing chuckled and looked up at her. "Miss Su is the most secretive; I haven't seen through her yet."

Su Wanwan slumped back into her seat, realizing that this was why Feng Chenjun wouldn't let her go.

"Open it and take a look." Xiao Xuanjing's gaze fell on the box.

Su Wanwan glanced at it cautiously, then opened the box through her sleeve. Inside were several letters.

Su Wanwan took out the letter, unfolded it, and frowned deeply.

She didn't recognize a single one of those crooked, illegible characters.

Xiao Xuanjing took it. "It's a courtesy name from the Northern Rong."

After reading them, he gestured for Su Wanwan to lay out the remaining letters one by one.

Su Wanwan did as instructed.

"This letter is from the Northern Rong, arranging a meeting time with the Crown Prince. This one is the location," Xiao Xuanjing said.

Su Wanwan was immediately filled with admiration for Lord Fengchen. "Your Majesty even knows the Northern Rong script?"

"I studied for a year when I was leading troops." Xiao Xuanjing put the letter on the table. "The Crown Prince's order for the Northern Rong to send troops to the north is probably to check and balance the Prince of Changxin."

"The Crown Prince? He can do such a thing? Does His Majesty know?" Su Wanwan's bottom line for the Crown Prince was refreshed once again.

"No, His Majesty's health is much worse than before. He relies entirely on medicine to stay healthy, and even speaking is difficult for him." Xiao Xuanjing stood up, and Jian Qingshan hurriedly stepped forward to help him, slowly walking to the railing.

Su Wanwan followed.

"The Shen family has always been good at gathering information. I didn't expect that the Crown Prince's trump card would be obtained by the Shen family. Does the Shen family mean that His Majesty should take action?" Jian Qingshan asked.

Xiao Xuanjing took a deep breath. "In this state, who can I possibly control? Right now, the affairs of the court are between Prince Changxin and the Crown Prince. Let's just sit back and watch the show."

"Should we give this letter to Prince Changxin?" Jian Qingshan asked.

"Prince Changxin can establish a kingdom, but he cannot maintain it. He is ruthless and decisive in his killings in court, and he can kill half of the civil and military officials. At that time, the country will be stable, but the people's hearts will be scattered."

"Where is the Crown Prince?"

"The Crown Prince holds a high position, but his virtue does not match his rank." Xiao Xuanjing's voice turned cold.

"He colludes with foreign enemies, persecutes loyal officials, and embezzles military pay, yet he happens to be the crown prince. As long as His Majesty doesn't fall, he won't fall."

"Even if His Majesty falls, he certainly won't. He has the Empress's family backing him. Prince Changxin won't find it so easy to touch him."

"Is the Lord willing?"

Jian Qingshan was unwilling to accept this.

Xiao Xuanjing's lips curved slightly. "I've already been dismissed from my post. No soldiers, no power, even half of the guards in my residence have been laid off. What can I do if I'm unwilling?"

"No one in this world is indispensable. Whether it's Prince Changxin or the Crown Prince, it doesn't matter who wins. What the people want is peace, not a wise ruler."

Su Wanwan was stunned.

He actually harbored such profound sense of righteousness in his heart.

He lowered his head and thought for a moment. He was the Grand Tutor's top student. The Grand Tutor was a man of high moral character and integrity. How could he accept a person without conscience as his last disciple? There must be something the Grand Tutor valued in him.

Watching Feng Chenjun's retreating figure, I recalled the ending of the original novel.

A chill ran through me.

Lord Fengchen died in battle.

His fate was hardly any better.

"Your Majesty, it's windy outside, let's go inside." Su Wanwan brushed aside her wind-blown hair.

"Miss Su, come here." Xiao Xuanjing glanced at her slightly.

Su Wanwan stepped forward and stood beside Feng Chenjun. "Your Majesty, what are your orders?"

"Miss Su, you mentioned the imperial edict to me before." Xiao Xuanjing narrowed his eyes, his gaze fixed on the hazy horizon in the distance, his voice very soft.

Su Wanwan's heart skipped a beat.

"That matter, besides myself and His Majesty, no one else in the world knows about it." Xiao Xuanjing turned his head, his eyes narrowed slightly, revealing a subtle killing intent. "But you do know."

Su Wanwan's throat tightened.

Is this guy going to kill her here?

"If anything happens to that child, I will kill you first."