Denghuangtai

"General Pei, aren't you afraid I'll report you to the Empress Dowager for doing these things right in front of me?"

Pei Qingyan leaned back in her chair, tilting her head to look at Yun Zheng with a half-smile. "Didn't the Grand Minister also do some things that the Empress Dowager couldn't see?" She raised an eyebrow. "Although you and Empress Dowager Yun have a deep aunt-nephew relationship, I suspect that if Empress Dowager Yun knew that her closest nephew was undermining her behind her back, she wouldn't be happy. Grand Minister, why don't you give it a try?"

Yun Zheng remained silent, his gaze quietly fixed on Pei Qingyan.

The room fell into complete silence; you could hear a pin drop.

"Xijun." Banqing rushed in carrying a food box. "Have you been bullied...?"

He was only halfway through his sentence when he realized Feng Lingsu was nowhere to be seen in the room. He narrowed his eyes, staring at Pei Qingyan warily. "Pei Qingyan, what have you done to my Xijun?"

Pei Qingyan rolled her eyes and said irritably, "This is your residence. What can I do to the mistress of the house?"

Upon hearing this, Ban Qing curled his lip and replied without any politeness, "If you could set fire to my residence to force my husband and me to submit, what else wouldn't you do?"

"Think what you want." Pei Qingyan was too lazy to waste words with Ban Qing. The effects of the Dragon Tiger Pill were almost gone, and she had little energy left. She was saving it for dealing with Yun Zheng later, and she really couldn't waste it on Ban Qing. She leaned back in her chair, closed her eyes, and secretly regulated her breathing to control her surging blood energy.

Ban Qing went forward to argue with her, but Feng Lingsu's gentle voice rang out from behind, "Husband."

Ban Qing turned around and skipped over to Feng Lingsu's side. "Xijun, did they make things difficult for you?"

"No," Feng Lingsu replied with a smile. She walked past Ban Qing and stood in front of Pei Qingyan, who had already opened his eyes and was watching quietly.

"General, here is what you requested."

She handed a black lacquered box to Pei Qingyan, who took it and opened it to find a silver seal with a tortoise-shaped knob inside.

Pei Qingyan had no knowledge of seal script and couldn't tell if the item was genuine or not. She simply beckoned to Yun Zheng, "Grand Minister, could you please help me check if it's real or fake?"

Upon hearing this, Feng Lingsu frowned, her tone displeased, "Does the General suspect that I would try to fool you with a fake? Forging an official seal is a serious crime. My wife and I cannot commit such a grave offense just to deceive the General, can we?"

"That's hard to say. Compared to the crime of forging an official seal, breaking into the imperial prison and killing someone seems to be a more serious offense, doesn't it?"

"Didn't the general say that this matter should be left unresolved?" Feng Lingsu asked.

"Don't rush, I was just giving an example." Pei Qingyan's eyes held a cold smile as he rhythmically tapped the lid of the lacquer box. He said, "After all, there's a precedent for this. It's clear that Madam Feng has extraordinary courage. I, Pei, am a coward and dare not take the risk."

After saying that, she turned her head to look at Yun Zheng, "Grand Marshal, how about it? Come and help?"

Her tone was completely different now; it lacked the previous harshness and carried a hint of coquettishness.

Yun Zheng sneered, unconvinced. "Do you think I'm some market merchant, someone you can summon and dismiss at will?"

Pei Qingyan wasn't in a hurry after being rejected. She tilted her head and continued to stare at Yun Zheng. Although she was silent, she still gave the impression that she wouldn't give up until he agreed.

Feng Lingsu, left standing to the side, grew increasingly sullen. Given her temperament, being forced to compromise like this was already frustrating enough, but now Pei Qingyan was judging her with such petty malice. This was simply intolerable!

Feng Lingsu wanted to get angry several times, but she held back when she thought of Pei Qingyan's martial prowess.

What can we do? If we're not as skilled, we can only be at their mercy.

She now only hopes that Yun Zheng, this infamous "living devil," will be more assertive and, ideally, find a way to teach this ignorant fool a lesson.

Feng Lingsu looked at Yun Zheng with anticipation, only to see him pick up the teacup beside him, take a small sip of the already cold tea, and slowly put the teacup down.

Judging from his slow movements, one might mistake him for an elderly man in his eighties.

Just as Feng Lingsu was losing patience, he made his next move.

Yun Zheng stood up and walked gracefully to the two of them.

Pei Qingyan.

His voice was cold, his gaze indifferent, and it was almost predictable that what he was about to say would not be anything nice, or at least it would be laced with sarcasm.

Feng Lingsu silently took a few steps back and stood with Ban Qing. The couple waited with great interest for the two to put on a show of fighting.

The two sat and stood, one with his head slightly raised and the other with his head slightly lowered. Their eyes met, and they faced each other in silence, as if there were undercurrents surging within the room.

Feng Lingsu and Ban Qing almost held their breath, afraid of disturbing the exciting and lively duel that was about to begin.

"Let me see."

Yun Zheng's words instantly shattered the atmosphere in the room. Feng Lingsu and Ban Qing both rolled their eyes, sighing as if they were spectators watching a disappointing play.

Pei Qingyan, who was at odds with Yun Zheng, seemed to have anticipated this outcome. She curled her lips into a smile, a sly glint in her eyes, and held the box up to Yun Zheng. "Grand Minister, please."

Yun Zheng picked up the small seal, a few inches square, from the lacquer box. The bottom was engraved with "Seal of the General of the Five Offices," the characters were square and straight, the strokes were of uniform thickness, and the structure was rigorous. The tortoise knob was robust and realistic, with clear tortoise shell patterns, a short and thick tortoise head that stretched forward, and four powerful legs.

Judging from both the workmanship and the materials, it was indeed made by imperial craftsmen.

"This thing is..."

Before Yun Zheng could finish saying "It's true," Ban Qing, who had been watching the scene unfold, belatedly realized what was happening and shouted at Pei Qingyan, "Pei Qingyan, what are you doing with my official seal?"

Pei Qingyan ignored his words completely, saying, "It's true, right?"

After receiving Yun Zheng's affirmative answer, she stood up, snatched the seal from Yun Zheng's hand, and said, "Thank you for your help, Grand Marshal."

After saying that, she pulled Wu Yong, who hadn't said a word and was almost forgotten, and walked him out.

The two walked hurriedly toward the gate. As they walked, Pei Qingyan whispered to him, "I'll try to stall Yun Zheng for a while. You're fast, so hurry back to Xuandu Temple. Before Yun Zheng gets back, take Yuan Huli and retreat quickly."

Wu Yong's eyes were clear, and he obviously did not understand the deeper meaning of Pei Qingyan's arrangement. However, his greatest strength was that he was obedient and would carry out whatever Pei Qingyan asked him to do unconditionally.

With such loyalty, his simple and honest personality doesn't make him annoying; instead, it adds to his charm.

Pei Qingyan watched as Wu Yong climbed over the courtyard wall and disappeared. Just as she was about to turn back to look for Yun Zheng, Wu Yong's gruff voice suddenly came from behind her again.

"General, if those two hadn't agreed to your demands, were you really planning to set the place on fire and die here?"