"My mother prefers tranquility." The young Emperor leaned against the soft couch, took a sip of bird's nest soup offered by a eunuch to rinse his mouth, frowned, and waved all the palace maids and eunuchs out. The palace hall instantly fell silent.

Fan Xian bowed slightly and said, "I wonder what Your Majesty commands."

Looking at the restrained manner of this Southern envoy, a hint of amusement flashed in the Northern Qi Emperor's eyes. He said, "Lord Fan, you will be setting off to return to your country the day after tomorrow. You must take good care of the Grand Princess along the way."

Fan Xian was slightly startled. Only then did he remember that he had not paid attention to this momentous event. Escorting the Princess back to her country for marriage was an extremely important matter, and no mistakes could be made along the way. He had learned from Yan Bingyun that this Northern Qi Grand Princess had always been raised in the deep palace. She was the Emperor's half-sister, and her biological mother had long since died in some forgotten cold palace. The Grand Princess had never been favored by the Empress Dowager, which was why they were willing to sacrifice her in a political marriage.

He wondered what the Emperor meant by suddenly mentioning the Grand Princess. Logically speaking, the Emperor shouldn't have a deep affection for his elder sister.

But seeing the faint sorrow in the Emperor's clear brow, Fan Xian knew he was wrong. Sure enough, the Emperor sighed and said, "The Grand Princess has never left the palace. This time, she is marrying far away to the Southern Dynasty. Although I am the Son of Heaven, I cannot offer her much protection."

Fan Xian said sincerely, "Your Majesty, rest assured, the Grand Prince is a heroic figure in our country, revered by the people. The Grand Princess and the Grand Prince will surely live in harmony, grow old together, and the court officials will treat the Princess with respect, daring not to neglect her in the slightest."

The Emperor sneered. "What use is that?" He suddenly stared into Fan Xian's eyes and said, "Lord Fan, I regard you as a friend… I hope you will offer the Grand Princess guidance in Nanjing, ensuring that she lives a happy life."

Fan Xian was shocked again. He had only met this Emperor four times, how could he dare to be a friend of the Son of Heaven?

As if guessing his thoughts, the Emperor smiled and said, "Lord Fan, when we first met, I said that I admired your poetry and often recited it. Those words were as if you were speaking. Since I have spoken with you for a year, it is not surprising that I regard you as my friend."

Fan Xian was truly flattered and ashamed. Just as he was about to kowtow to thank the Emperor for his grace, he heard the Northern Qi Emperor's clear voice again, but there was a hint of anger in that voice.

"However, Lord Fan seems to be distant from me. Not to mention that you haven't been willing to come to the palace to talk to me these days..." The Northern Qi Emperor suddenly looked into his eyes and said, "Even in many matters, you are hiding them from me."

Fan Xian looked distressed and explained, "There are many matters to attend to, and I am busy working in both the Court of State Ceremonial and the Court of Imperial Sacrifices. I dare not disturb Your Majesty's rest."

The Northern Qi Emperor glanced at Haitang, who had been silent, and suddenly said with a smile, "Is that so? I thought that the thing you've been doing the most these days is accompanying Little Aunt-Master everywhere... shopping... drinking."

As soon as these words were spoken, even Haitang could no longer sit still. With a hint of unease, she replied, "Duo Duo often asks Lord Fan for advice on the Dao of Heaven and Man, and has benefited greatly."

The Emperor shook his head and looked at Fan Xian, saying, "Then when does Lord Fan plan to hide that matter?"

A drop of cold sweat emerged from Fan Xian's hair, but he refused to let it slide down his forehead and reveal the fear in his heart, instead letting it stay hidden in his dark hair. Fan Xian's first thought was – could Si Lili's matter have been exposed? If that were the case, even if this Emperor didn't like women, his possessiveness as the Son of Heaven would probably not allow him to leave Northern Qi alive!

He glanced sideways and saw that Haitang's calm face was peaceful, without the slightest fear or unease. So he felt a little relieved, cleared his throat twice, and asked respectfully, "I wonder what matter Your Majesty is referring to?"

No one knew about Xiao En's matter, except that Haitang might have guessed a little. As long as it wasn't about Si Lili, Fan Xian would not feel any guilt or fear facing this Northern Emperor. Unexpectedly, the Northern Qi Emperor's question almost made Fan Xian fall off his chair. Tonight's conversation in the palace was filled with continuous shocks!

...

...

"I ask you, what is the condition of your Lin Meimei?" The Northern Qi Emperor said coldly, looking at Fan Xian.

Like a thunderbolt striking in the depths of the palace, like the girl in the rainy night shouting "Oh heavens!", Fan Xian was stunned, his body a little stiff. For a moment, he didn't know how to answer – how could this Emperor know that Wan'er was his cousin! This meant that he knew his true identity!

This was impossible! This was impossible! There were definitely no more than five people in the entire world who knew his true identity, and none of those five people could have leaked this shocking secret.

But the problem was that the Northern Qi Emperor, as the Son of Heaven, had countless capable people under him. Could it be that he had really discovered this matter from some clues and piles of yellow paper? Otherwise, how could he suddenly ask about... his wife, his Lin Meimei!

The Northern Qi Emperor looked at him coldly, watching his panicked expression, and suddenly slammed his hand on the armrest of the soft couch, rebuking, "Speak!"

Speak your mother's speak!

Most of the expression on Fan Xian's face was feigned. He still maintained a strong sense of calm in his heart. He slightly hooked his little finger on his left hand, but suddenly remembered that because he was afraid Haitang would discover his connection to the matter at the cliff, he had not been carrying the black dagger on his left leg these days.

Fight? He couldn't beat Haitang. Escape? As long as the Northern Qi side revealed his identity, wouldn't those Crown Princes, Grand Princes, and Second Princes immediately turn into a pack of hungry wolves? And those women in the deep palace...

Fan Xian cleared his throat twice, and a smile reappeared on his face. Since the other party dared to say it in front of him, they were naturally prepared to threaten him. So he prepared to play dumb and listen to the other party's conditions first. "Your Majesty, what are you talking about?"

...

...

The Northern Qi Emperor stood up, stepping on those soft boots. He didn't even bother to put them on properly, and walked straight towards Fan Xian. The expression on his face gradually became more interesting, turning from the previous slight anger to a faint smile. Within that smile, there was also some hidden excitement and anticipation.

Seeing this expression, Fan Xian was startled, further confirming that this Emperor was a little pervert.

A pair of hands gripped Fan Xian's shoulders. The Northern Qi Emperor shook Fan Xian's shoulders somewhat失态 (shī tài - uncontrollably), and laughed loudly with eyebrows raised and eyes dancing: "Fan Qing啊 Fan Qing, you have kept it from me so well, you have kept it from the people of the world so well."

"Ah?" Fan Xian had already given up on the idea of ​​controlling the Northern Qi Emperor and fleeing to the ends of the earth. He looked somewhat foolishly at the face that was close at hand, and found that this Emperor was really good-looking. The Son of Heaven bathed every day, and the body odor was also considered fresh. Haitang watched the Emperor's狂热 (kuáng rè - fanatical) expression and Fan Xian's傻愚 (shǎ yú - foolish) appearance from the side, and couldn't help but laugh.

"Cao Gong!" The Northern Qi Emperor shook him hard twice again, making Fan Xian feel a little dizzy. "Cao Gong! Tell me quickly, did Lin Meimei finally end up with Baoyu or not..."

...

...

Finally understanding what was going on, although he didn't know how the Northern Qi Emperor had guessed this, Fan Xian finally couldn't bear the toss between surprise and joy any longer. He sat down on the chair with his butt, and without saying anything else, he first picked up the teacup next to him and drank two gulps.

The Emperor smiled and looked at him: "If you don't finish telling me the *Dream of the Red Chamber* today, I absolutely won't let you leave the palace."

Fan Xian sighed: "How does Your Majesty know that the *Dream of the Red Chamber* comes from the pen of an outer minister?"

The Emperor looked at Haitang. Haitang smiled slightly and said, "The book is only published by Danbo Bookstore. That Mr. Cao has always been reclusive and has not served as an official. Apart from Danbo Bookstore, no one else knows who he is. The *Dream of the Red Chamber* is popular all over the world, and countless people are guessing who he is. When drinking the other day, Lord Fan seemed to have spoken a little too much, so I naturally guessed a little. Today, Your Majesty interrogated him again, and since the adult has admitted it, it can be considered that I guessed right."

Fan Xian smiled bitterly, not knowing what to say. In fact, he didn't need the reputation of the author of *Dream of the Red Chamber* very much now. Seeing the Northern Qi Emperor calling him "Cao Gong Cao Gong" intimately before, he almost mistakenly thought he was Guo Jia. It seems that he is also a痴迷者 (chī mí zhě - fanatic) of *Dream of the Red Chamber*.

Confirming that Fan Xian was the author of *Dream of the Red Chamber*, the Northern Qi Emperor seemed very happy, and said repeatedly: "Hurry up and tell me, how many girls did Baoyu finally take in?"

Fan Xian laughed, thinking that this Majesty turned out to be a fan of后宫文 (hòu gōng wén - harem novels). He repeatedly waved his hands and pleaded: "Your Majesty, this outer minister only胡乱 (hú luàn - carelessly/randomly) wrote more than sixty chapters. The later part is really not yet thought out." When he said this, he thought of the problem of savings and update issues that he had thought about when Ruo Ruo asked him for articles when in Danzhou. Being a太监 (tài jiàn - eunuch, referring to unfinished novels) is really a very troublesome thing.

The Northern Qi Emperor sighed upon hearing this, with a frown on his brow. He glanced at Haitang, who was resting on the side, and suddenly leaned to Fan Xian's ear and lowered his voice and said: "The begonia poetry society in the thirty-seventh回 (huí - chapter)... what connection does it have with Little Aunt-Master?"

Fan Xian's eyes caught the corners of Haitang's eyes becoming slightly柔顺 (róu shùn - gentle), knowing that this girl was eavesdropping, so he微微 (wēi wēi - gently) smiled, and boldly replied: "Your Majesty, the author cannot explain his own work, and this outer minister is sorry that he cannot say more."

His Majesty revealed a hint of暧昧 (ài mèi - ambiguous), and said: "Then Lord Fan should hurry back to his journey. Every chapter you write, remember to send a chapter to where I am."

Fan Xian responded in terror, not daring to say more.