After being reborn with my scumbag ex-husband, I became his sister-in-law.

"How is Ayan doing?"

Song Xizhi replied, "His injuries have been treated, but he has been subjected to too much torture and interrogation, and his body is too weak. Even after taking medicine, he has not yet woken up."

Pei Yunyi nodded, finally letting out a sigh of relief: "Tell me when he has recovered somewhat. Marquis Anding is eager to see him."

Song Xizhi naturally understood the Marquis of Anding's eagerness: "He can come anytime he wants. Just standing far away and taking a look will put his mind at ease, even though the person hasn't woken up yet."

After saying that, she inquired about the situation in the cellar: "How's it going on your end?"

Upon hearing this, Pei Yunyi took a long breath, and his expression turned serious: "It's very bad."

"After the identities of those mummified corpses on the crosses were clarified, it was discovered that they were all people of great importance to the Great Qian Dynasty."

Song Xizhi's heart skipped a beat, but then he heard Pei Yunyi continue, "Officials in the capital of Daqian, wealthy merchants along the coast of Daqian, and so on, are everywhere."

"And those fake people are still impersonating them, living well in the Great Qian Dynasty, becoming the nails that the Empress Dowager has planted in the Great Qian Dynasty, as if they are going to pierce through the throat of the Great Qian Dynasty."

Upon hearing this, Song Xizhi couldn't help but feel a lingering fear.

The Empress Dowager had been lying low for more than a decade, and her actions were not simply about establishing a base in a temple and developing her power.

They even directly arranged for the kidnapping of officials of the Great Qian Dynasty, hypnotized them, and finally replaced them with these fake puppets, subtly turning them into spies for the Western Rong.

No wonder they were in such a precarious situation before; it turns out that the Great Qian Dynasty was riddled with loopholes.

Thinking it over, Song Xizhi hurriedly showed Pei Yunyi the two dissected corpses:

"Perhaps the Empress Dowager created such people. They have flesh and skin, but their bones are made of metal. Someone used these soft things to create identical faces, and then let these puppets with memories swindle and deceive people in the Great Qian Dynasty, lying in wait."

Pei Yunyi bent down and looked in the direction Song Xizhi was pointing. His eyelids twitched: "There... is such a thing in the world?"

Song Xizhi pursed his lips and nodded: "It is truly beyond our imagination. Even Master has never seen it before."

“However, my master said that Bai Lizi, who is my biological father, once mentioned these things... Before he disappeared, he also mentioned that he knew a fellow villager.”

Pei Yunyi's eyes darkened for a moment, then he slowly raised his head again: "You mean to say..."

Song Xizhi nodded: "Perhaps it's my own selfishness, but I don't want to imagine that the man my mother loved was such a bad person. But everything before us tells us that there may still be many unknown things in this world."

Pei Yunyi looked at Song Xizhi's face and couldn't help but smile again, his gaze carrying a hint of heat:

"Zhizhi, do you really want to explore these unknowns?"

Song Xizhi's eyes lit up. She hadn't expected him to see through her thoughts so easily. Her whole body felt hot: "Yes."

"What could be more mysterious than hypnosis, or the black bones inside the human body?"

"And my father... how could he know so many mysterious things?"

Pei Yunyi nodded and grasped Song Xizhi's hand: "The world is vast, and whatever it is, is more interesting than that cold, lifeless prison of the palace."

Feeling the warmth from his palm, Song Xizhi looked up at Pei Yunyi and asked, "What happened to you in the palace?"

Pei Yunyi remained noncommittal, only smiling: "Father Emperor was very happy to learn about the cellar and that we had found He Jingyan. He said he would reward us."

Seeing the gloom in his eyes, Song Xizhi chuckled and said, "You're rewarding me with the position of a concubine?"

Pei Yunyi's hand tightened: "How did you know?"

Song Xizhi smiled and wasn't angry at all: "It's okay, when he rewards me, I'll reward you too. I'll reward you with the position of a concubine."

Pei Yunyi's throat tightened, but he still managed a forced smile: "That's good, at least I have a proper status now."

Seeing Pei Yunyi's discomfitured expression, the Divine Physician Rihua couldn't help but smile.

As they were talking, they heard a noise coming from the room where He Jingyan was. They rushed over to see what was happening and found that He Jingyan had slowly woken up.

The group pushed open the door, and he was on the bed. The first thing he saw was Pei Yunyi's face.

He Jingyan struggled to get up, but Pei Yunyi rushed forward and stopped him again: "Ayan, your injuries are serious, don't move."

He Jingyan couldn't help but shed tears again: "Your Highness, I never thought I would see you again. I thought it was all just a dream."

Seeing his red-rimmed eyes, Pei Yunyi couldn't help but tear up as well: "He's alright, that's enough."

He immediately sent someone to summon the Marquis of Anding.

Pei Yunyi explained to He Jingyan what had happened during the days he was hypnotized.

He slowly raised his head and looked in Song Xizhi's direction: "Is this the Imperial Physician Song?"

Song Xizhi stopped the acupuncture he was performing and nodded to him: "It's me."

Looking at him now, Song Xizhi also felt like crying.

Although they had the same face, Song Xi could tell at a glance that the General He in front of him was the one who had risked his life to save him when he was a child.

His gaze towards Song Xizhi held a hint of guilt: "I was the one who held you back in the past."

Seeing the subtle intimacy between Song Xizhi and the Crown Prince, He Jingyan told them a lie: "Actually, I... I already have a girl I like on the frontier..."

Song Xizhi believed it to be true and finally felt relieved: "Actually, I also have a man I like in the capital, and I'm about to make him my concubine."

He Jingyan stared wide-eyed in surprise, while Pei Yunyi shook his head helplessly.

He gently raised his eyes and glanced at Song Xizhi again without making a sound, making Song Xizhi's neck itch.

She shrank back, then gave another sly smile.

…………

Once He Jingyan had recovered, the group went to His Majesty's side again.

Emperor Guangqi was very excited and praised everyone. He then dealt with the remaining forces hidden in the capital with great decisiveness, eliminating any possibility of a counterattack from the Empress Dowager and Prince Ning's forces.

He Jingyan also solemnly proposed a divorce from Song Xizhi.

Emperor Guangqi readily agreed, and the imperial edict appointing Song Xizhi as a concubine was delivered to her residence the following day.

The eunuch who was to deliver the imperial decree waited for a long time under the scorching sun at the gate of the mansion, but no one came to receive the decree.

When he stormed into the Song residence with the imperial edict in hand, he found it already empty.

On the table were only a few lines of large characters left by Song Xizhi in a flamboyant style, saying that he had already appointed the crown prince as his concubine.

When the emperor saw the few lines of large characters left by Song Xizhi, he was so angry that he suddenly spat out a mouthful of blood.

"A concubine? A concubine? What's that?"

"A married son is like water spilled from a bowl; Pei Yunyi was just willing to become her concubine and leave without hesitation?"

Eunuch Yang nodded cautiously: "He took quite a lot of things with him, and His Highness the Crown Prince seems quite happy."

Emperor Guangqi, feeling dizzy and lightheaded, clutched his throbbing head: "This is utterly horrific! My crown prince has become a concubine? This is absolutely horrific!"

Meanwhile, Song Xizhi and Pei Yunyi had already left the capital.

Bronze and Siqin rode horses, while the Divine Physician Rihua sat in another carriage. In addition, there were three other carriages carrying large and small packages.

Their mission was to search for the whereabouts of the late Empress and Bai Lizi.

Unusually, this time Pei Yunyi did not ride a horse. Instead, he said he was too tired to ride and sat in the carriage with Song Xizhi.

The wheels rumbled over the mud as the two sat in the dimly lit carriage.

Pei Yunyi looked at the small face so close to his, and enjoyed the tranquility of the moment with immense happiness.

He gently lifted her chin and whispered in Song Xizhi's ear, his hot breath filling her ear.

"My lady, since today is the ceremony for the consort's investiture, when shall we bring him... into the bridal chamber?"

Song Xizhi chuckled and pounced on the man like a hungry tiger: "My concubine must serve me well..."

"Serve me well and I'll promote you!"

The man chuckled, a hoarse voice escaping his throat.

【End of full text】