Qian Xue offered a word of comfort before continuing to report on the palace situation. "Ye Jingcheng has been stripped of his commoner status and banished from the capital."
"Mei Yan is quite intelligent. She pleaded for herself upon entering the palace. His Majesty, considering she is a princess who has just arrived through a marriage alliance, did not punish her for this matter."
"Instead, he bestowed upon her a title and allowed her to continue residing in the Prince Lian's manor. All affairs are to be managed by her. Prince Lian's manor has also been renamed 'He Yi Princess Manor,' and all the servants and maids are under her command."
Ye Jingyu had already anticipated this outcome and was indifferent. He merely glanced at the sky outside, which was gradually darkening, and asked Qian Xue to fetch him some clothes.
Qian Xue helped him change.
Ye Jingyu then left the manor under the cover of night and headed for the General's manor.
Little Tuanzi was currently throwing a tantrum on the bed in her room.
The man was about to jump in through the window.
Although Su Yunmo did not turn around, she knew it was him. She directly flicked her hand, condensing her power and sending it towards him.
After a 'bang,' the man let out a muffled groan from outside.
Then, the window was closed again.
Ye Jingyu knocked on the window from the outside, growing increasingly helpless. "Little one, let this king in."
"If you don't leave, believe it or not, I'll go to the palace tomorrow and tell Uncle Emperor that you faked your illness?" her voice, full of anger, came from inside the room.
Ye Jingyu chuckled and shook his head.
This girl was becoming more childish by the day.
"Alright, then this king will leave?"
"Scram!" Su Yunmo spat out the word fiercely.
After a long while, there was no more movement outside.
Su Yunmo frowned, seeing that he seemed to have truly left. She climbed out of bed, her bare feet padding softly to the window, and peeked out.
The window was opened a crack, and no one was outside.
Su Yunmo then opened the window completely, still seeing no one.
She immediately closed the window with a 'snap,' stomping her feet in exasperation. "You damn Ye Jingyu, you bastard Ye Jingyu, I hate you the most!"
"I took care of you all night and didn't even sleep well. You're the one who did wrong, yet you haven't even apologized. This is too much!"
The door was pushed open.
Ye Jingyu strode in. "Didn't you tell this king to leave? And now you're scolding me again?"
Su Yunmo froze for a moment, then looked back at the window, momentarily bewildered.
After a while, she realized that this man had heard everything she had said and became furious. "Who let you in?"
Ye Jingyu sighed inwardly and strode over, directly picking up the little dumpling from the ground and pulling her into his embrace. "Look, why are you being so contrary now?"
Hearing his coaxing tone, Su Yunmo became even more indignant and bit his shoulder. "Bastard, bastard, bastard!"
Ye Jingyu grunted, his face contorted in pain, but he didn't put her down. He directly carried her to the bed and sat down.
Su Yunmo struggled desperately, biting his shoulder and refusing to let go.
Ye Jingyu placed her on his lap, his brow furrowed as he looked at her, remaining silent.
Only when Su Yunmo tasted the metallic tang of blood in her mouth did she stop and look up at him.
The little dumpling met his eyes, which held a mixture of helplessness and doting affection.
He reached out and gently stroked her head. "Are you still angry now? If you're not, you can stab this king in the chest."
Su Yunmo's fingers stiffened. She pursed her lips and turned her head away. "Hmph, you only say such things."
Ye Jingyu hooked her chin with his hand, making her face him. "When has this king ever spoken flowery words to you?"
Su Yunmo's heart skipped a beat. Looking at his increasingly distinguished face, a warmth inexplicably spread through her chest.
Ye Jingyu gazed at her quietly, his eyes growing darker, like a vortex that could draw one in.
The man slowly leaned down, one hand reaching to brush aside the stray hairs from Su Yunmo's forehead.
Then, an untimely voice rang out.
"You two are quite carefree, having the time to flirt here? Do you know how urgent the situation is?"
Hearing the commotion, Su Yunmo's eyelids twitched. She jumped off him in a panic, almost instinctively throwing a punch.
The punch landed squarely on Ye Jingyu's chest wound.
He gasped in pain, cold sweat breaking out on his forehead.
Well, this time it was truly repaid.
"Are you alright?" Su Yunmo, in her haste, realized she had hit him and quickly went to comfort him.
Ye Jingyu shook his head, gritting his teeth, but still endured. "I'm fine."
Su Yunmo knew he was putting on a brave face, but she also understood that even though her punch was heavy, it wouldn't truly injure him severely.
"Are you two done? Are you tired of being lovey-dovey? There's someone else here."
Su Yunmo turned to look.
Ye Ningyuan had arrived at some point.
She was leaning against the doorway, arms crossed, watching the two of them.
Su Yunmo grabbed a pillow from the bed and threw it at her. "Do you think the General's manor is your backyard? You come and go as you please?"
She decided she needed to tell the housekeeper to lock the main gate every night, and even block up the dog kennels by the wall!
Ye Ningyuan was no stranger to being hit. No longer foolishly standing there to be beaten, she reached out and accurately caught the pillow.
She walked towards the bed with the pillow, casting a resentful glance at Su Yunmo. "Momo, you're so biased. It's not like I'm the only one who barged in, so why are you only scolding me and not him?"
Ye Jingyu on the bed shot her a frosty glare.
Ye Ningyuan immediately raised a hand in surrender. "Alright, alright, I get it, you two are close."
Honestly, she should have returned from the border earlier. If she had met Momo before this man, perhaps she would have been the favored one.
"Enough nonsense, let's talk business." Su Yunmo turned and sat on the edge of the bed, arms crossed, looking at her. "What did you mean by 'urgent situation'?"
"Move aside, move aside." Ye Ningyuan nudged Ye Jingyu to the side and climbed onto the bed as well.
The three of them squeezed onto the bed.
Ye Ningyuan sat cross-legged with the pillow in her arms. "Although Ye Jingcheng has been banished from the capital, don't forget there's still another one."
A cold glint flashed in both their eyes.
Su Yunmo twirled her fingers and looked at Ye Ningyuan. "What else do you know?"
"You've already met the King of Southern Xinjiang," Ye Ningyuan paused, then turned to Ye Jingyu. "I guess you also know about the King of Southern Xinjiang being in the capital, but you don't know her exact hiding place, do you?"
Ye Jingyu frowned and remained silent.
He had indeed been secretly sending Ying Xiao to track the woman's whereabouts, but he had not been able to find any information.
Ye Ningyuan took a deep breath, her expression also becoming solemn. "This afternoon, at the same time Mei Yan entered the palace, that woman entered Prince Kun's manor. She has partnered with Ye Jingkun."
Upon hearing this, both of them were startled.
Su Yunmo frowned even more severely. "Are you sure?"
This was strange. If the King of Southern Xinjiang, as an enemy nation, had entered the capital under the guise of a marriage alliance to disrupt the royal family, why would she reveal herself to a member of the royal family?
What exactly was that woman trying to do?