Peach Blossom.

When the mystery was revealed, Tao Ye was completely bewildered.

Beneath the mask was indeed a disfigured face.

Caiwei was also so frightened that she shivered.

That face wasn't just disfigured; it was as if a layer of skin had been peeled off! It was more terrifying than any ghost in the legends!

Tao Ye glanced at him once, then dared not look at Tan Yue's face again. She hurriedly threw the mask back into Tan Yue's hand and urged, "Put it on...you should put the mask on..."

Tan Yue took the mask, but didn't put it on in a hurry. Instead, a smile appeared on his lips as he asked kindly, "Has Your Majesty seen enough?"

"I've seen enough," Taoye replied, her heart still pounding.

Although she only glanced at it and couldn't tell which old acquaintance it was, Tao Ye was basically certain that it wasn't her second brother, Wang Jing.

Tan Yue put on the mask and asked again, "Does Your Majesty still require me to examine your illness?"

"I don't trust your medical skills, so I'd better not examine you." Tao Ye returned to her seat and did not look at Tan Yue again.

When she realized that Tan Yue was not Wang Jing, she couldn't help but feel a little disappointed.

"Last time, Your Majesty suffered from irregular menstruation and lost too much blood, causing you to faint. Wasn't it I who cured you?" Tan Yue looked at Tao Ye and spoke softly, "I noticed that Your Majesty's complexion improved a lot afterward. Why don't you trust my medical skills now?"

Tao Ye nodded. She should be grateful to Tan Yue for her illness last time. Tan Yue not only concealed her miscarriage, but also made her even healthier than before.

"The woman's chronic ailment was cured by Pharmacist Tan with just three doses of medicine. Now, the Emperor's new injury is not complicated, so why can't you cure it?" Tao Ye tilted her head, looking at the bronze mask with a puzzled expression.

Tan Yue asked with a smile, "So, Your Majesty hopes that His Majesty will recover soon so that he will have the strength to allow Your Majesty to bear children for the royal family?"

Tao Ye was startled. Could it be that Tan Yue had left Chen Ji in a state of semi-recovery just to prevent him from seeing her...?

She was once again curious about the bronze-masked man's identity: "Who exactly are you?"

"Instead of wasting your time thinking about who I am, Your Majesty, you should first think about what you really want to do." Tan Yue bowed deeply, his tone extremely gentle: "Once Your Majesty has made up your mind, then summon me to see you. At that time, I... will certainly obey your every word."

After speaking, the guest bowed and took his leave.

Tao Ye sat there blankly, not saying a word. Tan Yue's hint was already very clear: whoever he was, he had come for her.

Moreover, she seemed to think that Tan Yue was right, and that she really should think carefully about what she was doing and what she wanted to do.

So, Taoye temporarily put her mind at ease.

Two days later, Lan Yue entered the palace to pay her respects to Tao Ye and inquire about Tao Ye's tiring journey.

The two then started chatting inside the house.

Tao Ye asked about Lan Yue's current situation: "Is Secretary Chen treating you well?"

"Thank you for your concern, Your Highness. He treats me very well. My food, clothing, and daily necessities are the same as those of the eldest daughter-in-law. He takes turns staying in the eldest daughter-in-law's and my rooms, without favoritism or bias, and is very fair." Lan Yue was clearly very satisfied with her married life.

Taoye found it quite amusing. "He treats you and Madam exactly the same. Doesn't Madam have any objections?"

Lan Yue said, "I only saw Madam once on the day I entered the house. She was very kind. After that, we never saw her again. Secretary Chen said that Madam was shy by nature and didn't like to see people. She just stayed in her room every day."

"Shy by nature?" Tao Ye couldn't help but find it amusing. "How old is she? Still acting like a little girl, not easily seeing people?"

Lan Yue thought for a moment and said, "She should be about the same age as Chen Mi... I haven't asked. This lady is a bit different from other mistresses. She keeps her curtains tightly closed every day. Not to mention outside, you might not even see her in her room."

"Isn't this a bit too much of a shyness?" Tao Ye listened to Lan Yue's description as if she were hearing a foreign language.

Lan Yue smiled and said to Tao Ye with great interest, "It's not just her temperament; her name is also quite exaggerated."

Taoye then asked with a smile, "What's your name?"

Lan Yue laughed and said, "None of my family knew her name. I only overheard Secretary Chen calling her by her maiden name when I was spying on her one night."

"You actually went to spy on me?" Tao Ye looked at Lan Yue and couldn't help but laugh.

Lan Yue lowered her head shyly and said embarrassedly, "Your Majesty, please don't tease me! I just want to know whether Chen Mi loves me more or loves her more."

"How could I be making fun of you?" Taoye laughed incessantly. She hadn't had such a relaxed chat in a long time, and she was in a very good mood. "Go on, tell me."

Lan Yue then said, "I peeked through the window cracks several times, but each time I only saw Secretary Chen, not Madam. Their room was always quiet, with very little noise. Once, I heard Secretary Chen call out, 'Shanhe, wait a moment.'"

"Mountains and rivers? Which two words?" Tao Ye asked gossipingly, while grabbing a handful of melon seeds and cracking them open.

Lan Yue pouted and replied, "I was just as curious as Your Highness, so I asked Secretary Chen the next day which two characters they were. As a result, Secretary Chen warned me that I was not allowed to peep anymore, or the Madam would be angry. Later, when I went to check again, I found that the windows in the Madam's room were all covered by curtains, and I couldn't see anything at all."

"So what are the two characters in her name?" Taoye was still curious about the original question.

Lan Yue said, "It's the 'Shanhe' from 'Qizhuang Shanhe' (meaning 'magnificent mountains and rivers'). Isn't that a unique name?"

“It is indeed unique for a woman to have such a name,” Tao Ye smiled and nodded.

Lan Yue suddenly added, "Oh, right, Secretary Chen said that the eldest daughter-in-law doesn't like her in-laws knowing her maiden name, and told me to pretend I don't know and not to mention it in front of others."

"Then why did you tell me?"

"I forgot."

After saying that, the two of them couldn't help but laugh again.

"Your Majesty, Boss Shen has arrived," Caiwei reported to Taoye as she entered.

Tao Ye's mood, which had just relaxed for a moment, suddenly tightened again. She almost forgot that she was now the empress.

Upon hearing this, Lan Yue quickly stood up.

Shen Yan arrived shortly after, dressed as a maid, and nodded to Tao Ye in greeting: "I have something to discuss with Her Majesty the Empress alone."

Lan Yue and Cai Wei then withdrew.

Tao Ye then invited Shen Yan to sit down and poured her a cup of tea.

Shen Yan was always efficient, and she got straight to the point: "I obtained a letter from Madam Han, which states that Emperor Chengzong has never favored Meng Xue. I have already shown this letter to the Consort, and she will no longer concern herself with Meng Xue's affairs, so you no longer need to worry about it."

Tao Ye was surprised and had to ask, "If Emperor Chengzong didn't favor Meng Xue, then where did her child come from? Why did Madam Han admit it in the first place?"

"Where Meng Xue's child came from is probably only known to her. I only heard that when Emperor Chengzong knew he was seriously ill and would not live much longer, he was afraid that the distant remnants of the Meng clan would take the opportunity to cause trouble, so he summoned Meng Xue to win people's hearts."

But Emperor Chengzong had long lost his ability, so when Meng Xue served him in bed, he pretended to be confused and acted as if he had been favored. Unexpectedly, Meng Xue was "pregnant." Madam Han knew Emperor Chengzong best and knew that he valued his reputation extremely much. How could she let anyone think that he had been cuckolded?

Madam Han was the only woman who accompanied Chengzong to the very end of his life. Not only did she have to protect his reputation in public, but she also had to find ways to conceal this shameful affair from him... It was truly a difficult task." Shen Yan clicked her tongue in admiration, seemingly ashamed of her own shortcomings.

Tao Ye sighed upon hearing this, "So, Cheng Zong never knew Meng Xue was pregnant until his death?"

Shen Yan nodded, then smiled and said, "After Emperor Chengzong died, the remnants of the Meng family plotted to oust Si Xiu and install Meng Xue's son in the throne. Ironically, before they could act, the Qi Kingdom had already changed its surname to Chen."

After listening, Tao Ye immediately grasped another key point: "Madam Han has long since disappeared. How did you find her? And why did she go to the trouble of writing a letter to clarify this matter?"

Shen Yan smiled and said, "Madam Han has gone to Madam Bai for help. I have been in contact with Madam Bai, and it was Madam Bai who helped me get it."

"You've been in contact with Madam Bai? So you also know..." Tao Ye hesitated for a moment before speaking.

Shen Yan knew, of course, that Tao Ye wanted to mention the trip to Qiao County.

"Madam Bai asked me if the Empress had really lost her memory. She felt that the Empress and the Emperor had a very good relationship, and it didn't seem like she wanted revenge at all," Shen Yan said, laughing, her laughter sarcastically.

Tao Ye's face hardened, and she said indifferently, "It was her own scheme that was exposed, which led to her failure. It wasn't my fault for turning against her."

Shen Yan placed her hand on Tao Ye's hand and smiled as she advised, "Don't be angry. Madam Bai was just trying to kindly remind you to be careful not to be discovered. She has already sold her flower garden in the capital, but your sworn brother still managed to find it."

Tao Ye knew that Ma Da was so stubborn and would definitely pursue this matter to the end, so she couldn't help but worry.

“Although the Emperor loves you, once he decides that you intend to kill him, he may not let you go.” Shen Yan slowly sipped her tea, appearing completely indifferent.

Tao Ye never dared to overestimate Chen Ji's feelings for her, because Wang Jingyi had repeatedly said that Mantang Jiao was killed by Chen Ji, and that she was also a girl Chen Ji had once loved.

She quickly began to mentally review the people and things she couldn't let go of, then looked up and asked Shen Yan, "Since you're so close to Madam Bai, could you occasionally ask about Wang Yu for me?"

Shen Yan nodded and said, "She must have been with Si Xiu the whole time, taking care of his illness. I heard last time that Si Xiu's madness is difficult to cure, but he keeps muttering the words 'Wei' and 'San'."

Lady Bai pondered for a long time. Having searched for the best doctors in Qi, to no avail, she risked taking him to Wei. Unexpectedly, the third prince of Wei actually took them in and found a doctor to treat Si Xiu. Only after settling Si Xiu in did Lady Bai feel at ease enough to go to Qiao County.

“The Third Prince of Wei…” Tao Ye repeated these words, and couldn’t help but smile bitterly. The last person to mention the Third Prince of Wei in front of her was her second brother.

Shen Yan asked with a smile, "Would you like me to be your messenger?"

"No need, it's best if she doesn't know about me now. As long as she's doing well... that's enough..." Tao Ye gazed into the distance, feeling a pang of sadness as she spoke of her old friend.

"No one understands your conflicted feelings better than me. However, many things in life are irreversible once the arrow is released. You can't stop now; you can only move forward." Shen Yan gently shook her head, a hint of regret in her eyes.

After sighing, Shen Yan stood up again and said, "I should not stay any longer, Your Majesty. Please take care."

Tao Ye nodded silently. She knew that she couldn't stop now; she had no chance to choose again.

Shen Yan took two steps outside, then suddenly turned back: "There's something else. This term's open recruitment of students has attracted a lot of applicants. I'd like to hire a few more tutors and increase the number of schools. But we should still officially name the schools. It's not appropriate to keep calling them Fengmingyuan School."

Tao Ye lowered her head, pondered for a moment, and said, "Wei is often referred to as the Northern Kingdom, so Chen is the Southern Kingdom. Jiankang is the capital of the Southern Kingdom, so let's call it 'Nanjing Academy'!"