At this time, the tenth prince also noticed Lan Yunyue. He had thought that Lan Yunyue was a maid, but upon noticing the exquisite clothes on her body, he realized his mistake. "You are...Lan Yunyue?"

  Lan Yunyue suddenly came back to her senses and gave the tenth prince a bow. "Commoner Lan Yunyue, greetings to Your Highness Prince Yun."

  The tenth prince looked up and down at Lan Yunyue, coldly snorting: "What a pitiful and innocent appearance! No wonder Lin Ming was infatuated with you. What a pity, if Lin Ming still had old feelings for you, you would have great use value, but now... looking at you will only add to my heartache."

  The tenth prince spoke without leaving any face, which made Lan Yunyue's complexion slightly pale. How could a girl bear to be spoken to like this?

  "Get out!" The tenth prince waved his hand at Lan Yunyue.

  Lan Yunyue bit her lip and forced back the tears in her eyes, bowing her head to take her leave.

  After Lan Yunyue left, the tenth prince let his attendants retreat, and in the end, only the tenth prince and Zhu Yan were left in the room.

  The tenth prince looked at Zhu Yan and said coldly: "Do you want revenge?"

  Zhu Yan was silent, but his bloodied fist, with fingernails embedded in the flesh, had already answered the tenth prince.

  "Alright, Lin Ming is about to become the core disciple of the Seven Profound Valleys. You should know what the Seven Profound Valleys represent in the Sky Spill Continent. Your chance for revenge is very slim!"

  However, there is still a chance. Lin Ming won't be able to stay in the Seventh Rank Wu Mansion forever. As long as he comes out, there will be an opportunity for assassination! Your strength is not enough, you can find stronger ones, I will secretly provide convenience and wealth for you. As long as the reward is sufficient, some free strongmen will be moved. These free strongmen have no fixed residence and are difficult to investigate. The Seventh Rank Wu Mansion cannot do anything about them either.

  "But! I will publicly cut off all ties with you, and the Zhu family will also expel you from the family! Zhu Yan, I hope you can understand that the Zhu family is already tied to me, and I must inherit the throne. Otherwise, neither I nor the Zhu family will be able to escape disaster!"

  Zhu Yan's heart skipped a beat. To be clearly demarcated from the tenth prince, and even expelled from the family!

  He certainly knew why the tenth prince did this, assassinating Lin Ming was risky! Once the Seven Xuanwu Sect found out, the tenth prince would be finished. The Zhu family would also be finished!

  So cut off the relationship!

  In this way, even if he fails to assassinate Lin Ming and is discovered by the Seventh Imperial Court, it will have nothing to do with the Tenth Prince or the Zhu family!

  Moreover, Zhu Jia and the Tenth Prince did this, on the surface, to show kindness to Lin Ming, expelling themselves who were hostile to Lin Ming. Such a ruthless move, in the eyes of outsiders, was a concession by Zhu Jia and the Tenth Prince.

  To show goodwill to Lin Ming, the strong man cut off his wrist. In Lin Ming's view, it was probably not good to continue being an enemy of the tenth prince!

  Even better, the tenth prince can win Lin Ming over from the crown prince's side. At least don't let Lin Ming completely defect to the crown prince's side.

  Two birds with one stone! What a wonderful abacus!

  However, his own political future was thus buried! Lost the family. Lost power, he is nothing, just a wandering avenger.

  And once he fails, he will pay with his life!

  But he has no right to choose!

  For the family, sacrificing one of their illegitimate children for the benefit of the family is something that doesn't require any hesitation.

  "Zhu Yan, things have developed to this point, and this is the only way! I cannot give up because of a single Lin Ming. The throne must be fought for, and the Zhu family must also preserve itself."

  "But Lin Ming, he's too terrifying. If he really becomes the Seventh Envoy or the Prefecture Master, I won't have a single shred of hope left. Lin Ming will either win you over or eliminate you. As for your matter, I've already spoken to Mother about it and she agrees. You can set off tomorrow or tonight, and safely make preparations for the assassination plan. I hope you don't disappoint me again!"

  "If you succeed and don't leave any handles behind, then after I ascend to the throne and things have stabilized, I'll give you what you want!"

  Will you give me what I want? Zhu Yan sneered in his heart, afraid that when the time really comes, you will kill people and silence them!

  The rabbit dies, the dog is cooked, the birds are exhausted and the bows are hidden. What about the tenth prince who is naturally suspicious? Who can he trust except himself? How can he tolerate keeping someone who has a hold on him by his side, making it hard for him to eat and sleep? Assassinating the core disciple of the Seventh Mystic Martial Arts Academy, this crime is enough for the Tenth Prince to be put to death by the Seventh Mystic Valley!

  Failure, I am dead!

  Success, I'm dead too!

  Deprived me of my wealth and glory, ruined my future, and now wants my life.

  Yang Zhen, you're ruthless!

  And also my good aunt, this idea has your participation too. For the sake of her son to fight for the throne, she is so ruthless to her own nephew!

  My fate is in my own hands!

  A cold glint flashed in Zhu Yan's eyes, he vowed to kill all those who had schemed against him and offended him!

  Power, I want infinite power, kill Lin Ming! Kill Yang Zhen! Dominate everything! Control the life and death of all living things!

  "Bang!" The tenth prince, accompanied by his guards, pushed open the door and strode out of the Zhu family branch. Lan Yunyue sat in the main hall, watching as the tenth prince's figure disappeared into the distance, feeling bewildered and at a loss.

  The bedroom door where Zhu Yan was staying was slightly ajar, with a gap that seemed to be the open mouth of a wild beast. Lan Yunyue didn't have the courage to step into that room, but she couldn't leave either, and could only wait aimlessly in the hall.

  About a moment later, Zhu Yan came out of the room, and Lan Yunyu stood up reflexively.

  Zhu Yan flicked his wrist and a thin piece of paper flew towards Lan Yunyue, who subconsciously caught it and took a look, only to find that it was their engagement contract.

  "Rip it apart." Zhu Yan said casually.

  "What...what?" Lan Yun's hand froze there.

  "Our engagement is off, and from now on, I am banished from the Zhu family."

  "Expel... expel Zhu's family?" Lan Yunyue was completely stunned, how could this be?

  "You agreed to marry me, no doubt because of my status, power and wealth. Now that I've lost all those things, there's no point in you staying with me. This engagement contract is just a joke."

  Zhu Yan finished speaking, and with a flick of his finger, the contract in Lan Yunyue's hand was cut into pieces by the True Yuan.

  At that moment, Lan Yun's mind went blank. In the Tianyun country, a girl who was divorced after engagement would be considered shameful, and remarriage would be affected. A big family would not marry such a woman as their wife, even if they were to take her in, it would only be as a concubine.

  "You can go." Zhu Yan had completely calmed down, he said and turned to leave, without looking at Lan Yunyue again. At this time, his heart was already filled with hatred, the original Zhu Yan was already dead, how could he possibly care about Lan Yunyue's feelings.

  ……

  Walking out of Zhu's department, Lan Yun was wandering on the street in a daze, it's all over... everything with Zhu Yan is completely over...

  She suddenly found that she didn't have the sadness and despair that an abandoned girl should have, but instead felt a sense of relief.

  With the shattering of that marriage contract, those unbearably oppressive and exhausting days also came to an end...

  The autumn night wind is heavy with dew, blowing on the body with a chilly feeling. The night in Tianyun City is still bustling and noisy, the paper-thin brothels are intoxicating, the red lanterns are hung high, and amidst the dim light, the fragrance of rouge from the beautiful women can be clearly smelled even ten feet away.

  Looking at this bustling world, Lan Yunyue suddenly smiled, a smile that was almost liberating. She thought of her childhood playing with Lin Ming on the grassland, flying kites made of bamboo and paper. She remembered rainy days when they would go out to pick wildflowers, stepping on slippery stones to cross small streams, their bare feet soaking in the cool water. If they got a bit muddy, small fish would swim up to their feet and nibble gently, causing a ticklish sensation... Because he grew up in a wine tavern, Lin Ming learned how to cook delicious meals from a young age. He could catch wild chickens, pick wild vegetables, pluck wild fruits, and use clay pots to create all sorts of exquisite dishes. When she was ill, he would run several miles to fetch clear spring water from the mountains and bring back medicinal porridge...

  But... it's all irreversible now.

  Lan Yunyue didn't know when, but her face was already filled with tears. She regretted not because Lin Ming had become the most dazzling new star in Tianyun Country, nor did she miss the opportunity to become the Town General or even the Seven Mysteries Envoy's wife. Instead, she regretted that for luxury and vanity, she had abandoned that simplest, purest happiness.

  She wandered aimlessly, her slender body wrapped in a simple green cheongsam dress, under the illumination of the large red lanterns, casting a hazy and lonely shadow, she was like a green butterfly that could no longer fly in the cold wind of late autumn.

  She didn't want to return to the Seventh Xuanwu Sect anymore. With her innate talent, without the support of precious medicinal materials, she wouldn't achieve high martial arts accomplishments in this life either.

  She didn't want to go back to Qing Sang City either. She had no face to return with and she didn't know how to face her parents or the people in the neighborhood.

  Moreover, most importantly, she didn't want to see Lin Ming again, couldn't bear to see him...

  ..............................

  Lin Mingzhen sat in the carriage of Xue Longma, completely unaware of Zhu Yan and Lan Yunyue's change in fate and everything that was happening to him.

  He certainly knew that his feud with Zhu Yan was irreconcilable, and he also guessed that Zhu Yan might take revenge in the future. However, he could not kill Zhu Yan, as Zhu Yan was after all a formal disciple of the Seven Mysteries Martial Arts Academy, and whoever killed him would be equivalent to challenging the authority of the academy.

  "Master Lin, please get off." The carriage stopped and a eunuch from the prince's mansion respectfully said to Lin Ming.

  Lin Ming lifted the curtain of the horse carriage, he thought the prince would invite him to meet in the study of the prince's mansion, but unexpectedly left Tianyun City and came to the foot of Dazhou Mountain, which is not far from Qiuxian Wu Fu.

  After getting off the carriage, Lin Ming found that the carriage had stopped in front of a mansion. The mansion was not luxurious, but it was built with great elegance inside. There were small bridges and flowing water everywhere, as well as artificial hills and winding corridors. It looked more like a garden than a mansion.

  "Hehe, Lin brother, this house, do you like it?"

  "Huh?" Lin Ming was slightly taken aback, and had already vaguely guessed what Yang Lin wanted to do - he wanted to give the house to him.

  If he accepted this house, he would also become one of the Crown Prince's faction.

  ()