“I’ve considered that. Captain Wu’s situation might be extremely unique. My grandfather once told me that the current Emperor's bloodline is actually… the blood of the True Phoenix! Among the four great families, our You family’s bloodline is the closest to the Emperor's. Perhaps… because of this proximity, we once received immense trust and power.

“However, the You family and the royal family had a very unpleasant experience later on. Since then, the You family's bloodline has become particularly thin.

“But Captain Wu's situation is very similar to what my grandfather described about the royal bloodline, the True Phoenix bloodline.”

“The Emperor and Captain Wu both have the blood of the True Phoenix…”

Fang Yue recalled Captain Wu’s situation, his expression gradually becoming strange.

“Are you saying that Captain Wu is actually the Emperor’s illegitimate son or something?”

“Shhh! Don’t talk nonsense!”

You Sisi quickly covered Fang Yue’s mouth with her hand, but realizing what she’d done after feeling his warm breath, she immediately withdrew her right hand, blushing as she whispered,

“Grandfather told me about the nine princes at that time, mentioning some of the Emperor's past. He said the Emperor was young once too and had many romantic entanglements. But the only ones he truly acknowledges now are the nine princes. If the Emperor intends to abdicate, the successor to Qing Country can only be chosen from among them.”

Fang Yue frowned. “Do the nine princes also have the True Phoenix bloodline… like Captain Wu, possessing the power of resurrection?”

You Sisi shook her head. “I don’t know. No one has ever truly killed the nine princes, or rather, even if someone killed them and learned the secret of the True Phoenix blood, they wouldn’t leave alive. This kind of core secret of the royal family will only be known by the dead and won’t be spread. You must be careful too. After hearing this today, never mention it to anyone, or even my grandfather won’t be able to protect you.”

…Your grandfather probably wishes he could get rid of me. He’d never protect me.

But if You Sisi really threatened him with death or something, clinging to familial affection, Elder You might waver.

But there’s no way Fang Yue would let You Sisi go that far, let alone allow things to develop to that point.

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Some things, once they happen, are enough to cause lifelong regret and must never be allowed to happen a second time!

However, since Elder You told You Sisi about the Emperor's secrets, even the secret of his bloodline, then You Sisi's position in Elder You's heart should have reached a considerably high level, basically that of an heir.

If that’s the case, why is Elder You still insisting that You Sisi marry the Seventh Prince? Wouldn’t it be better to train her as the heir to the You family…

Fang Yue suddenly stopped. He understood.

Elder You has no choice.

The four great families must choose a side.

Of course, even if they choose the wrong side, the four great families will certainly be preserved and serve the new king, but it’s uncertain how much of their family power will be retained and how they will be dealt with after the autumn harvest.

The Seventh Prince might not be a good choice, but with the Emperor's past decree from above and the responsibility to stand on the side of one of the nine princes below, the Seventh Prince isn't a particularly unacceptable choice under duress.

However, the situation of the You family isn't something Fang Yue needs to worry about. As long as You Sisi is fine, Fang Yue doesn’t care about anything else.

It's Captain Wu's side that…

“The Phoenix Organization captured Captain Wu, and Captain Wu has the True Phoenix blood, similar to the royal family. Could the Phoenix Organization's goal be…”

“Are you trying to say regicide?”

You Sisi shook her head. “Impossible. Night, you don't understand the Emperor. The Emperor isn't just someone who handles documents. Apart from those old monsters who have been in seclusion for many years, the Emperor should be the strongest person in Qing Country, standing at the very top of Qing Country!”

The strongest person in Qing Country!?

Fang Yue clenched his fist, his expression grim.

“How strong?”

“I don’t know, but according to my grandfather, there have always been people assassinating the Emperor. Although there aren’t many assassins who break into the palace and get close to the Emperor, there are still some. And without exception, they all failed—defeated by the Emperor himself! Anyone who dares to assassinate the Emperor, you should know what level of martial artist they are, right? Without reaching the Yu realm, you’re not qualified to stand before the Emperor."

“……”

Fang Yue fell silent, feeling a pressure, a tremendous pressure.

But he could handle it.

He would never let go of You Sisi’s hand again!

Calming down his emotions, he thought for a moment, then asked, “Hasn’t the Emperor ever truly died once? Hasn’t he ever displayed the power of the True Phoenix blood?”

“He has. According to my grandfather, he only heard the Emperor’s Fengming (Phoenix Cry) once in his life! It was that one time that he truly confirmed that the records of our ancestors were all true!

“That was when the Emperor encountered the strongest assassin at the time—Baiying Ci (White Shadow Assassin)!

“At that time, the Emperor and… Lord Han, entered the Wenxuan Dian (Hall of Literary Profundity) together, while the people from our four great families waited outside the hall.

“Not long after, a battle broke out inside, and the Emperor issued an order forbidding the four of them from entering the hall.

“But after a while, the Fengming (Phoenix Cry) sounded from inside the Wenxuan Dian (Hall of Literary Profundity), and then the battle ended.

“When my grandfather and the others entered the hall, they only saw the Emperor squatting on the ground, surrounded by a pool of cold blood, like frozen blood, preheated and melting into water.

“And Lord Han, who should have been in the hall, had disappeared. The Emperor only said that he had been assassinated by Baiying Ci (White Shadow Assassin), and Han Bai was injured trying to save him and led Baiying Ci (White Shadow Assassin) away, his whereabouts unknown.

“But when the heads of the four great families wanted to investigate this matter, they were stopped by the Emperor, who said that he would personally handle it himself.

“Later, the Emperor suddenly announced that Baiying Ci (White Shadow Assassin) had been killed by him, and that Han Bai had also contacted him, leaving the capital to retire to the mountains and forests, never to return, and that no one was allowed to investigate his whereabouts or disturb his peace, otherwise ‘bloodshed’ would reappear!

“This was the highest level of command, and the four great families didn’t dare to ask any more questions.

“Only my grandfather later thought that the strongest assassin who appeared at that time, Baiying Ci (White Shadow Assassin), who had killed the Emperor once, was probably… Han Bai, Lord Han!

“But this matter could not be spread or investigated, and it was dropped.

“This should have been a secret forever sealed away by the heads of the four great families, but after my bloodline awakened, my grandfather told me about this, along with other secrets.”

Having said so much in one breath, You Sisi was a little out of breath.

Don’t let her say that her bloodline has awakened and how her talent will be in the future, and how her strength will improve rapidly.

In fact, she is still very weak now. She hasn't even reached the strength in Qing Si County, and is still in the stage of recuperating her body.

To be honest, she was stunned when her grandfather first told her this news.