The Disappearance of Qing Chen Gongzi

  The Eldest Son of the Qing Dynasty Goes Missing

  Ye Li didn't bother to ask what kind of state Bingshu Sheng had gotten Lao Lao into, and when he saw Lao Lao being dragged behind Bingshu Sheng on the verge of collapse, he only instructed him to be careful not to kill him. Bingshu Sheng was indeed not a good person with a kind heart, and neither was Lao Lao a good guy. After hearing Ye Li's words, Bingshu Sheng merely snorted disdainfully without saying anything. If he didn't want someone to die, that person wouldn't be able to die even if they wanted to. However, judging from Bingshu Sheng's gloomy expression, Ye Li knew that he probably hadn't gotten what he wanted from Lao Lao's mouth. After all, if this old man's mouth was so easy to pry open, he wouldn't have followed them all the way to Nanjiang. Nevertheless, Bingshu Sheng wasn't completely without gains; at least he had obtained the so-called complete token. Ye Li took a distant glance and saw that it was a jade ring with strange flower patterns engraved on it. Since Bingshu Sheng didn't plan to share it with them, Ye Li didn't bother to ask further. The group carefully avoided the people sent by Luoyi Department to tail them and rushed towards Nanjiao City without stopping their horses.

  The Imperial Palace of Chu State

  "Your Highness, the princess has sent a letter." It was already late April, and the warm sunlight spilled into the garden. Looking out the window, the peonies in the garden were blooming beautifully. Mo Xiuyao gazed at the garden outside the window, feeling a little dazed as he recalled that it seemed to be around this time last year that he had met Ah Li. At that time, he had never thought that Mo Jingqi's malicious and humiliating proposal would bring him such an extraordinary wife. Now, in the capital city, those loyal to the emperor and those loyal to the Lei King were almost like fire and water. The Dingguo Wangfu was still closed off from the world due to the princess's disappearance, expressing its dissatisfaction with the emperor through silence, allowing the emperor and the Lei King to engage in open and secret struggles without interference, unlike the usual practice of the Dingguo Wangfu supporting the emperor at critical moments.

  "Bring it over!" Mo Xiuyao withdrew his gaze and turned to look at Mo Zongguan standing in the doorway.

  Feng Zhiyao stood at the door, holding a thick sealed document in his hand, smiling slyly at Mo Xiuyao and saying: "Speaking of which, Ah Yao, our princess sister is really heartless. She's been gone for almost two months and only now thinks to write a letter back." Mo Xiuyao furrowed his brow, raised his hand, and the document in Feng Zhiyao's hand was sucked away by a powerful internal force. "Where are they now?" Feng Zhiyao shook his head: "If the princess's whereabouts were that easy to find, she wouldn't still be missing now. The dark guards who received the letter were at the edge of Nanjiang Luoyi Department, but none of them saw the person who sent the letter. Along the way, neither our people nor others have found any trace of the princess. It's strange... with five people in their group, they shouldn't be hard to find, right? Even if others don't know, we should." Mo Xiuyao furrowed his brow: "That proves that there weren't five people on their way, and Ah Lian's disguise technique is very good. The dark guards scattered all over the place haven't seen them, and it's difficult to recognize them." Moreover, they also knew the general location of the dark guards' distribution, making it easy for them to hide.

  Mo Xiuyao opened the scroll, and a shiny object slid out of the paper bag along with a sealed letter. Mo Xiuyao picked up the ornament in his hand, which was a gold decoration with several exquisitely crafted sunflower-patterned gemstones. Feng Zhiyao was surprised, "The princess actually sent you an ornament?" However... wasn't something wrong? Mo Xiuyao examined the gold decoration in his hand for a moment before putting it down on the table. Then he opened the letter and looked at it with furrowed brows. After a while, he said, "Find someone who is proficient in the Nanjiang script to come over." Feng Zhiyao looked at him strangely and said, "You don't know the Nanjiang language?" Mo Xiuyao frowned, "This is different, it should be the ancient script of Nanjiang." Feng Zhiyao took a look and was confused by the twisted and strange characters, "It looks like Nanjiang text, but... I don't quite understand. How does the princess know this weird script?"

  "He looked down at another letter that was obviously brief and said, 'She didn't write it, she memorized these words and wrote them out from memory.'"

  Feng Zhiyao was skeptical, "Can you really recognize this twisted and complicated thing just by relying on memory?"

  Mo Xuyao glanced at him faintly, and Feng Zhiyao touched his nose and said: "Okay, there are many people under our command who are proficient in the current characters of Nanjiang, but if it's ancient characters... that thing seems to have been unused in Nanjiang for over 200 years, right?" In those days, although Nanjiang was attached to the Central Plains dynasty, it had many ethnic groups and different languages. It wasn't until after the founding of Nanzhao that a unified Nanjiang script was implemented. Who knows what kind of character this paper is written in? "In the capital, we might have to ask Old Master Su to see if he can figure out what this thing is. However..." Old Master Su may be highly respected, but he's still an official of the imperial court. If it's really something important, he'll probably report it to Mo Jingqi too.

  Mo Xiuyao furrowed his brow and shook his head: "Lord Su has never had a good impression of the Southern Frontier, and he is not proficient in the script of the Southern Frontier."

  Feng Zhiyao's eyes rolled, and she smiled: "Speaking of which... A Yao, have you forgotten someone very important?"

  Mo Xiuyao raised an eyebrow, gazing at him with a warning not to play tricks. Feng Zhiyao chuckled and said, "Don't forget... our princess is from which family. Looking at the entire Great Chu, is there any more prestigious aristocratic family than the Xu family? If the people of the Xu family can't solve this, we shouldn't hold out hope either." Mo Xiuyao furrowed his brow, lowering his head to examine the brief letter in his hand, which only had a few sentences. He picked up the golden ornament on the table and examined it carefully, saying, "Do you think this looks like an ornament?" Feng Zhiyao was puzzled, "Isn't it?" Mo Xiuyao felt the obvious scratches on the back of the gold ornament, saying, "This should be a decoration pried off from something. And... do you still remember which tribe in the Southern Territory has the hibiscus as their emblem?"

  Feng Zhiyao furrowed her brow in deep thought, "The sunflower is also known as the daylily, it likes warmth and can withstand drought, so it's not very suitable for growth in the southern border. Therefore, it seems that none of the tribes have taken it as their emblem. However... do you remember that in the previous dynasty, a princess was married off to the leader of a certain tribe in the southern border?" Mo Xiu Yao fell silent for a moment, they were both well-read in history books, and even if they hadn't paid attention, they would still have some impression of events from the previous dynasty and the nearby Great Chu. "Was it Princess Chaoyang of the previous dynasty's Emperor Gaozong?" Feng Zhiyao smiled, "That's right, it's said that one of the princess's given names had the character 'kui' (sunflower)."

  "So... Ah Lian will bring this thing out to explain that it's not an ordinary antique, could this thing be related to the princess of the previous dynasty? The descendants of the princess of the previous dynasty... It's been over 200 years since the princess married out when the previous dynasty collapsed?"

  "Who knows?" Feng Zhiyao shook her head.

  Mo Xiuyao hesitated for a moment before saying, "Send a copy of this letter secretly to Yunzhou. Also... if the secret guards in Nanjiang find out about Ah Lian, tell her not to interfere with this matter." Feng Zhiyao put away the letter with some surprise and said, "The princess is doing very well, if we have the opportunity to continue investigating, we should be able to uncover many secrets of Nanjiang. Why not intervene? We can send more people to assist the princess." Mo Xiuyao stared at the golden ornament in his hand and said in a low voice, "I don't know why, but I feel that there is a big secret hidden on that piece of paper, it's just that we haven't found any clues yet. Ah Lian doesn't know anything, it's very dangerous for her to investigate recklessly."

  Feng Zhiyao helplessly shrugged her shoulders, "Alright, everything will be done as you instruct, Your Highness."

  Feng Zhiyao took the things and went out, leaving only Mo Xiuyao alone in the room. Mo Xiuyao lowered his head again to look at the letter in his hand. Apart from briefly explaining what happened after entering Nanjiang, there was only a short sentence: "Take care and don't worry." Gently stroking the letter, a faint smile with a hint of bitterness appeared on Mo Xiuyao's lips.

  Ye Li and the four of them rushed all the way, and in less than seven days, they arrived at the capital city of Nanzhao. As soon as they entered the city, Bing Shu Sheng didn't hesitate to take Lian Lao Ye away. Han Ming Xing was furious and couldn't help but curse, "What does he mean? Is he going to burn his bridges?" Ye Li glanced at him and smiled, "Even if he burns his bridges, what can you do about it?" Tian Yi Ge had people in Nanzhao, just like Yan Wang Ge did. Tian Yi Ge was an intelligence organization, while Yan Wang Ge was indeed a killer organization. Even if they were dissatisfied, no one could do anything to Bing Shu Sheng. Han Ming Xing crossed his arms and looked at Ye Li, "You're not looking for some kind of elixir that grants eternal youth or brings people back from the dead? Are you just going to let him go like this? Do you think he'll still deliver it to you obediently?"

  Ye Li smiled and said, "You don't have to follow him, he won't necessarily give it to you obediently. He won't give it to me, will he go find it himself?" She didn't come to Nanjiang for the sake of Ben Sheng and his Biliu flower, it's impossible to always follow him. However... this kind of thing doesn't necessarily have to be done by oneself either.

  As soon as they entered the capital of Nanzhao, Han Mingxiao took Ye Li to the best wine house in the city to reward himself for his hard work over the past few days. After ordering a table full of Nanjiang's specialty dishes and having a big feast, he returned to his room to rest. He also made it clear that no one was allowed to disturb him within two days unless the wine house caught fire. Leaving Ye Li and An San staring at Han Mingxiao's swaying figure as he went upstairs, they were speechless for a moment. An San rarely sighed, "Han Gongzi is really different from Mingyue Gongzi." Ye Li smiled at him and said, "Do you really think he went upstairs to sleep? I bet he can't sleep until midnight tonight." It was already evening now. An San furrowed his brow but didn't say anything. Ye Li, in a good mood, swung her folding fan and said, "Let's go out for a stroll and take a look at the nightlife of Nanzhao."

  Compared to the grand and majestic Chu capital, the capital of Nanzhao was much smaller, and it also didn't compare to the prosperity and splendor of Chu. Everyone in the city was dressed in southern border attire, so Ye Lixi and Ye Li, who were wearing Central Plains attire and had an extraordinary air about them, naturally attracted a lot of attention. However, Ye Lixi wasn't interested in the southern border's attire at all, and didn't plan on changing his clothes unless absolutely necessary.

  "Master." A surprised, low cry came from behind, and Ye Li and An San turned around to see An Er, whom they hadn't seen in a long time. Ye Li was somewhat taken aback; she hadn't planned on looking for her brother as soon as she arrived in Nanzhao. "What are you doing here? Is Big Brother also here?" An Er looked exhausted, his voice hoarse: "I have some bad news to report to Master. Xu Da Gongzi...Xu Da Gongzi has gone missing."

  "What?" Ye Li was startled, "When did this happen?"

  An Ye said in a low voice: "It's been over half a month since the incident, and Xu Gongzi had already gone missing two days before we arrived at the capital of Nanzhao."

  "It's been so many days! Who knew about this?" Ye Li asked with a frown. An Er replied in a low voice, "It's said that Qingchen Gongzi instructed him to return after five days before he left, so at first everyone didn't think much of it. It wasn't until the sixth day morning when Qingchen Gongzi still hadn't appeared that they realized something was wrong. I and the dark guards from Nanjiang also secretly investigated, but there's been no news whatsoever. The message had already been sent back to the capital a few days ago, it's just that Gongzi has been hiding his tracks along the way so we didn't receive any news."

  Ye Li's face sank slightly, and she was worried about Xu Qingchen's safety. "Who was big brother with before he went missing?"

  "It was the Princess of Nanzhao, Anxi Gongzhu. She is the sister of Qixia Gongzhu and also the next King of Nanzhao. She and Qingchen Gongzi are friends, and after Qingchen Gongzi arrived in Nanzhao, he has been living in the princess's mansion."

  An'er said with a smile. Ye Li nodded and ordered: "Have someone send over the information about the capital of Nanzhao as soon as possible. Also, I want to meet Princess Anxi."

  An'er nodded and said: "Understood. However... what identity does the young master plan to use to meet the princess?" Although Nanzhao is a small country, the princess is not someone who can be met by just anyone. Ye Li's eyes sparkled as he smiled and said: "The third miss of the Chu family in Yunzhou, Chu Liu Yun - Qingchen Gongzi's fiancée!"

  Wang Fei is either ruining her own reputation or that of Qing Chen Gongzi.

  Ye Li's face was as usual, with a smile that could be scooped up, looking at the two stiff faces. "What else can we do? Go to the door as the king of Dingguo and find my brother-in-law? Alright, An Er, you'll follow me for now. An San, secretly investigate what's going on in Nanzhao and with Big Brother. Also, if Han Mingxi comes looking for me..." An San replied, "Understood, I won't let Young Master Han suspect anything."

  "That's good. No need to be too polite to him, just try not to let him get close to me. Let's go back first, An Er prepare for tomorrow morning we will visit Princess Anxi."

  "Yes."

  The next day, Ye Li, who had been reading the scroll messages all night, opened the door with a clear and refreshing expression after hearing the light knock on the door. An San couldn't help but be stunned by the woman standing at the door with a clever smile. He was used to Wang Fei's male disguise on the way, and he almost forgot that Wang Fei was still a teenager. To say that the impression left in less than two months since leaving the capital was actually deeper than the previous year. At this time, looking at the woman in front of him, she wore a soft yellow silk embroidered green plum dress, with her black hair neatly tied up into a small bun, and a delicate silver hairpin adorned with four butterflies on her hair bun. Her forehead was covered by thin bangs, making her face look even smaller and more delicate. The slender silver butterfly in her hair trembled slightly, making the girl seem more playful and mischievous, and not very similar to the quiet and elegant Wang Fei in the capital's Dingguo King's mansion. An San had to admit that Wang Fei's disguise technique was indeed beyond ordinary people's reach.

  "Zhuo Jing?" Ye Li raised an eyebrow, looking at the dark guard in front of her who seemed lost in thought.

  After a moment of contemplation, he calmly opened his mouth and said: "As...Miss had expected, Mr. Han left the inn last night at midnight and has not returned yet. Miss now..." Ye Li waved her hand with a smile: "Thank you for your trouble, go back to your room and rest first. I'll go down myself."

  "Yes."

  Ye Li walked down the stairs with a pleasant mood, and An Er was waiting for her in the large hall downstairs. Last night, she had entered with An Er and opened two more rooms. Coincidentally, An Er's and An San's rooms were sandwiched between her two rooms, so no one discovered that the two rooms actually belonged to the same owner. Now they just needed to check out together and leave. If Princess An Xi investigated later, she would only find out that they had entered the city yesterday evening and stayed at this inn for one night, nothing more.

  Carrying Dark Two out of the inn, the two rushed straight to the Nanzhao Wang Gong Palace and unwillingly went to the Anxi Princess's mansion.

  After waiting for a while outside the princess's mansion, the person who went to inform them finally came out and invited the two of them in. The architecture of Nanzhao was vastly different from that of the Central Plains, but the city itself was similar. However, the princess's mansion was much smaller compared to the grand and majestic Dingguo King's mansion. It was probably around the same size as the Ye family's Shangshu mansion. The buildings in the Central Plains had incorporated many unique features from the southern regions, giving off a strange and mysterious feeling.

  The two of them were led into the main hall, where they saw a tall woman wearing blue embroidered clothes with a high collar sitting inside. Her clothes weren't the usual straight-mouthed narrow sleeves, but rather clean and neat arrow sleeves with intricate patterns on the cuffs that represented the royal family of Nanzhao. A silver belt was tied around her waist, accentuating her slender figure and making her look even more elegant and refined.

  Compared to Qixia Princess, who was known as the most beautiful woman in Nanzhao, she wasn't as stunningly beautiful. However, her sparkling eyes made her stand out even more.

  As soon as Ye Li entered, An Xi Gong Zhu's gaze carried a hint of inquiry and scrutiny. Ye Li furrowed her delicate eyebrows, and with a slightly arrogant tone, she raised her small face and said: "Why didn't you invite us to sit down?"

  Anxi Princess furrowed her brow and looked at Ye Lian, saying: "Please sit down. I don't know what to call this young lady?"

  Ye Li said: "My name is Chu Liu Yun, I'm here to find Qing Chen Gege."

  "Qingchen brother?" Princess Anxi's eyes dimmed slightly as she shook her head and said, "Sorry, I don't know any Qingchen brother."

  "You deceived me!" Ye Li glared at her accusingly: "Qingchen Gege said he came to Nanjiang for a tour and to visit friends. Qingchen Gege said you were his friend, how could he not have come here? Did you hide Qingchen Gege away?" Anxi Gongzhu's slightly raised eyebrows furrowed even more tightly, looking at the delicate and tearful girl in front of her, asked: "What is your relationship with Qingchen Gongzi?"

  "I... I am his fiancée. Waaah... Brother Qingchen clearly said that as long as it's three months, he'll return and marry me. But now... waaah, he's been out for so long and not a single letter has arrived. Aunt Xu is worried too, waaah... He must not want Flowing Clouds anymore... If I can't find Brother Qingchen, I won't live either!" Princess Anxi's eyes dimmed slightly as she gazed at the crying girl with some suspicion: "You're Qingchen's fiancée? Why haven't I ever heard him mention you?" Ye Li raised her head and looked at her with a resentful gaze: "We girls from Central Plains have always emphasized our reputation, how could Brother Qingchen possibly discuss me in front of friends. Here, this is the token Brother Qingchen gave me last year, if you're really his friend, you should've seen it before, he said he's worn it for many years and was grateful for this jade to protect him all these years while he was outside."

  The princess of Anxi looked at Ye Li with a complex expression, her eyes slightly shaking. She didn't know if the jade was Xu Qingchen's or not, but the old lace on the jade pendant was indeed the style and color that Xu Qingchen often used, even the thread was exactly the same as the one he used on his body. "Sorry, Miss Chu, I was rude earlier. But it's been a long and arduous journey from Zhongyuan to Nanzhao, how did you end up in the capital of Nanzhao?" Princess Anxi asked softly while returning the jade pendant to Ye Li. Ye Li bit her red lips, looking at Princess Anxi with a stubborn gaze: "Qingchen brother won't come for a long time. My second sister said Qingchen brother doesn't want me anymore. I...I want to find him and ask him clearly. Waaah, if he really doesn't want me, I'll go die!"

  An Qi stood on one side, watching as his own master portrayed a young girl who had run away from home for love with great skill and nuance, and couldn't help but applaud.

  Princess Anxi was clearly at a loss with such a stubborn and slightly willful little girl, hesitated for a moment before saying: "Young Master Qingchen did indeed visit my humble abode some days ago, but he is no longer here now. Why don't I send someone to escort Miss Chu back to Zhongyuan first? If she sees Young Master Qingchen, I'll make sure he writes to her as soon as possible. What do you think?" Ye Li stared blankly at Princess Anxi for a moment before bursting into tears, wiping away her tears while saying: "I snuck out with my guards to take a look around, if I don't find Young Master Qingchen and go back together, my father will definitely break my legs... Waaah... I don't want to go back, I want to find Young Master Qingchen."

  "Alright, alright... Miss Chu, how about this: you stay at my estate for a while first, and when Qingchen returns, you two can go back together?"

  Upon hearing this, Ye Li immediately burst into tears and laughed, "Thank you, Princess sister, you're really great..."

  Anxi Princess summoned the maid to lead Ye Li to the guest room to rest. After the maid retreated, Ye Li looked at An Er with some guilt and asked: "You say... is it possible for Anxi Princess to become my sister-in-law?" If this ruins her brother's marriage, that would be troublesome. She didn't want to become the cannon fodder girl in a melodramatic love triangle. An Er shook his head solemnly: "It's impossible. Although the Xu family doesn't discriminate against other tribes, they have never intermarried with them over the past few hundred years. Moreover, Anxi Princess is the daughter of the King of Nanjiang, her status is noble and esteemed. The Xu family wouldn't let their next family head marry into Nanjiang either. More importantly, given Qingchen's personality, if he really had feelings for Anxi Princess, he would never address her as a friend."

  Ye Li thought for a moment and nodded in agreement. If this were to ruin her brother's marriage, it would be a grave sin. However, speaking of which, Princess Anxi seemed quite pleasant. Having met many princesses before, among the young ones, only Princess Chang Le was still just a little girl, but Princess Anxi looked the most reliable. If it were any other princess, who knows how she would react to being her heart's desire's fiancée? It seems brother had indeed chosen a good friend.

  "What's your plan, miss?" asked An Er.

  Ye Li smiled and said: "Isn't living in the princess's mansion a good opportunity to gather information about big brother?"

  An Ye said: "However, living in the princess's mansion is inconvenient for entering and exiting, and Miss will also be restricted a lot."

  Ye Li shook her head and smiled: "Princess Anxi wouldn't go so far as to detain the fiancée of a friend, would she? Now it's more important to figure out where my brother is. After all, even after so many days, the secret guards still can't understand where he went." An Er lowered his head and said with shame: "It's this subordinate's fault." Ye Li waved her hand and smiled: "How could you be blamed? If everything could be figured out clearly, then there wouldn't be any secrets in this world. I just hope... that my brother is safe and sound now." Thinking of Xu Qingchen whose whereabouts were unknown, Ye Li couldn't hide the worry in her heart.

  The Princess Anxi's mansion was not large, and perhaps because the southern border was not strict about separating men and women, Xu Qingchen's room was also in the same courtyard as Ye Li's. Ye Li did not hide her tracks and directly asked for Xu Qingchen's room location before heading over. Pushing open the door, the room was very tidy, apparently someone came to clean every day even though Xu Qingchen had been gone for many days. All of Xu Qingchen's belongings were still there. Ye Li carefully examined everything: Xu Qingchen's clothes, jade pendant, folding fan, and travel notes that seemed to be carried around to alleviate boredom were all in a package in the cabinet.

  On the desk on one side, there was still Xu Qingchen's favorite white porcelain blue and white tea set, with some books and writing materials neatly arranged in the middle. Obviously, Xu Qingchen had lived here for a considerable period of time. Ye Li walked over to the back of the desk, sat down, and casually picked up a book to flip through it.

  "Miss Chu, what are you doing here?" Princess Anxi's voice sounded from the doorway, and Ye Li looked up to see her standing at the door with a frown. Ye Li quickly stood up, looking at her somewhat uneasily: "Sorry, I heard that Qingchen brother used to live here before, so I thought I'd come over and take a look around... just casually find some books to read." Princess Anxi walked over, gazing at the books on the table with a hint of warmth in her eyes, asking: "You also like reading?"

  Ye Li lowered her eyelids and nodded slightly with a hint of shyness: "Qing Chen is the most talented in the world, I think I'll read more books..."

  Princess Anxi nodded and said, "Young Master Qingchen also loves to read books. He always carries a book with him when he has nothing to do. I can only roughly recognize the characters from Central Plains, but as for what's written in these books, I don't quite understand." Ye Li put down the book in her hand and said softly, "I've heard Young Master Qingchen mention the princess before. As a princess of Southern Territory, you must have more important things to worry about. It's natural that you're not interested in poetry and literature." Princess Anxi smiled generously, "I started learning Central Plains characters late, so it's already good that I can recognize them roughly. Even if I had the interest, I wouldn't be able to understand them. Miss Chu, since you like the books in this study, feel free to take any of them to read. These were all bought by Young Master Qingchen and are just collecting dust here."

  Ye Li nodded, "Thank you, Princess. Princess..." Ye Li looked at Anxi Princess and hesitated to speak, Anxi Princess raised an eyebrow and gestured for her to continue. Ye Li asked softly: "I want to find Qingchen brother as soon as possible, he hasn't written a letter home in a long time. Can you please tell me where he said he was going when he left? I'll bring the guards with me to look for him."

  The Princess of Anxi looked at her for a while before frowning and saying, "It's not that I don't want to tell you where he is, but...I'm also looking for him right now."

  Ye Li guessed with some delight: "Then... will he have already left Nanjiang and returned to the Central Plains?" Princess Anxi shook her head, saying: "There are still many things in Nanjiang that haven't been taken care of, he won't leave easily. Besides, if he really wanted to leave Nanjiang, he would bid me farewell or at least leave a message."

  "Then...then will he be in danger?!"

  Anxi Princess looked at her with some difficulty, and after a long time, she shook her head and said: "Should... won't. Qingchen young master is extremely intelligent, whatever happens he will definitely be able to handle it."

  "But, but Qingchen brother doesn't know martial arts. He can't even beat Lin Han who's by my side." Ye Li exclaimed anxiously. Anxi Princess pulled her gently and comforted her in a soft voice, "Believe me, he'll be fine, I guarantee it." Ye Li's eyes flickered slightly, she lifted her head and looked at her with hope, "Really? You guarantee..."

  Princess Anxi nodded heavily, "I guarantee as the Princess of Nanzhao that nothing will happen to him. You just need to stay in the mansion and wait quietly, you'll see Qingchen young master soon." Ye Li nodded, "Alright, I trust Princess sister. But I also want to go find Qingchen brother!" Princess Anxi looked at her helplessly, "You can only be within the city, don't run around randomly. What if Qingchen young master comes back and can't find you..."

  "I understand, thank you Princess."

  Apart from the guest house's gate, Princess Anxi's smile gradually faded. As she walked towards her own courtyard, she turned back to ask the person following behind her, "Has anyone gone to investigate Miss Chu's side?"

  The man following behind said in a low voice, "Your Highness, I've investigated and found that Miss Chu entered the city yesterday just before nightfall. After entering the city, she went to the most famous inn in the capital to stay. This morning, she got up early, checked out of her room, and asked around for the location of the Princess's mansion before coming here directly. However...she didn't come under the identity of Chu Liu Yun, but rather as Xu Yun He and Lin Han."

  Princess Anxi nodded, "It's not excessive to use an alias when going out. Is there anything else?"

  The man shook his head and said, "There's nothing else. If we want to verify Miss Chu's identity, I'm afraid we'll have to send someone to Da Chu. It will take at least a month for the round trip."

  Anxi Princess shook her head, "We're afraid we don't have that much time, she must be someone who knows Qingchen very well. It's more important to find Qingchen as soon as possible. Whether or not he is found will become clear in no time. Just have your people keep an eye on them for now."

  "Yes."

  "Anything else?"

  The man hesitated for a moment before saying, "When we went to investigate Miss Chu, we found that three people from the Central Plains had also arrived at the inn yesterday. Their names didn't seem particularly unusual, but they may not be their real names either."

  "What's your relationship with Miss Chu?"

  "It doesn't seem like it for now. They arrived more than two hours before Miss Chu, one of them had dinner and went back to their room to rest. The other two went out and only came back after Miss Chu checked in. And they still haven't met each other."

  "Let's just ignore them for now, it's normal to have people from the Central Plains coming and going in the city. This is something that the General of the City Guard should be handling, we're getting too involved and it's becoming a hassle."

  "Yes."

  "Princess, the king has summoned you."

  "Understood. I'll enter the palace immediately."