The carefree sixth prince, my father respectfully invites me to ascend the throne.

The head of the Liu family immediately breathed a sigh of relief.

He knew that His Highness the King of Qin was not as cruel and violent as rumored; otherwise, he would not have agreed to marry Liu Yuyao to the King of Qin.

Yang Ling took a sip of tea, put down the cup, and looked up at the head of the Liu family: "Since the head of the Liu family is so frank, then I will not hide it from you either. Besides visiting the sick, I have another matter that I need the head of the Liu family's help with!"

The head of the Liu family was stunned.

Could it be that His Highness the King of Qin really needs his help?

"Your Highness, please just say the word. As long as it is within my power, I will do my utmost and will not shirk my responsibility," the Liu family head assured, patting his chest.

"I want to know, how exactly did Miss Liu's mother, the Princess Consort Rui, die?"

Yang Ling's sudden question startled the head of the Liu family, who stood up abruptly, his legs trembling.

"Thump!" The head of the Liu family knelt down on the ground, his forehead covered in cold sweat.

Yang Ling frowned, clearly displeased.

What he hates most is being deceived.

"Master Liu, there is no need to be afraid. I just want to know about the assassination attempt on Princess Rui back then."

Yang Ling spoke calmly, but the intimidating aura emanating from him was enough to deter anyone who dared to deceive him.

The head of the Liu family gritted his teeth and endured it.

"Your Highness, this old minister cannot tell you."

Yang Ling narrowed her long, almond-shaped eyes: "Oh, really?"

"Yes, Your Highness, please forgive this old minister for being unable to tell you."

Yang Ling raised an eyebrow, looking at the head of the Liu family with great interest.

“Patriarch Liu, you know that if I wanted to investigate, it wouldn’t be difficult to find out.”

“Your Highness, as I have said, the events of that year cannot be explained in a few words. Moreover… those who participated in the hunt back then were all officials appointed by the court. If you wish to investigate, it will only cause chaos in the court.”

Upon hearing this, Yang Ling suddenly chuckled: "Heh, Patriarch Liu, you really are a cautious person."

"This old minister dares not presume to guess His Majesty's intentions," the Liu family head hurriedly said.

“You don’t need to worry. I have no intention of getting to the bottom of this,” Yang Ling waved his hand, gesturing for the head of the Liu family to sit down. “The reason I asked about this matter is entirely out of concern for Princess Rui. After all, Princess Rui saved my life back then.”

“Yes,” the Liu family patriarch wiped the cold sweat from his forehead, carefully observing Yang Ling’s expression, “but…”

"Ok?"

"However, the assassination attempt on Princess Rui back then was too strange. On that day, all the guards at the hunting grounds were taken into custody, but Princess Rui was the only one who was unharmed. Moreover, Princess Rui even saved a young master."

Yang Ling tapped the table lightly with his fingertips: "Patriarch Liu, as far as I know, that young master is not a member of your Liu family, is he?"

“Yes,” the head of the Liu family sighed, “that young master is not a member of our Liu family, but a member of another clan. His name is Xiao Ming, the heir of the Marquis of Nanyang’s mansion. Because his father had made great military achievements, he was granted the title of Marquis. After his mother passed away, he stayed in the capital and became friends with the Liu family.”

Xiao Ming, the heir of the Marquis of Nanyang's mansion?

Yang Ling frowned slightly: "Xiao Ming? Has he mentioned this to me?"

“No,” the Liu family head shook his head, “but Young Master Xiao is gentle and kind, and he is very fond of my youngest daughter. I think he must have mentioned it.”

"Oh?" Yang Ling smiled and said, "So, what Patriarch Liu means is that Princess Rui was assassinated while trying to save the heir of the Marquis of Nanyang's mansion?"

“That should be the case,” the head of the Liu family nodded. “It’s just that the group of people back then were very powerful. They couldn’t even withstand the guards of the Marquis of Nanyang’s mansion. They almost wiped out the entire Marquis of Nanyang’s mansion. Fortunately, Princess Rui was very lucky and escaped the calamity, but she ended up with amnesia. Her memory only returned when she woke up.”

"Master Liu, where is that heir of the Marquis of Nanyang's mansion from back then?"

The head of the Liu family hesitated for a moment before answering, "When Princess Rui was in a coma, Prince Xiao left the Liu family to take care of her. I don't know where he went or what happened to him."

Yang Ling remained silent for a long time, her gaze thoughtful.

"Master Liu, I thank you in advance. I will send someone to the Liu family to report that everything is alright once Princess Rui wakes up."

"It's my pleasure." The head of the Liu family wiped the sweat from his brow. "Your Highness, please take care."

Only after Yang Ling left did the head of the Liu family breathe a sigh of relief.

He had just turned around to order someone to gather information when a familiar voice suddenly rang out from behind him.

"father."

Liu Yucheng stepped in from outside the door.

He glanced around but didn't see Yang Ling anywhere, a hint of disappointment appearing on his face.

"Chen'er, you're back." The head of the Liu family smiled kindly. "Please sit down and have a cup of tea to rest. Chen'er, you've lost a lot of weight recently. Are you too tired?"

"I'm not tired, Father. I came back today because I have some things I want to ask you."

The head of the Liu family was taken aback, frowning as he looked at Liu Yucheng's serious face.

"what's up?"

Liu Yucheng hesitated for a moment, then asked uncertainly, "Father, when the Prince Rui's mansion was attacked back then, did the Princess Rui... die?"

"Nonsense," the Liu family head hissed. "No one knows the truth of what happened back then, but don't jump to conclusions. Princess Rui is a lucky person; how could anything have happened to her?"

"Father, do you know?" Liu Yucheng pursed his lips, "I have found the urn containing the ashes of Princess Rui, but unfortunately, it was burned."

The head of the Liu family was stunned.

"What did you say?"

Liu Yucheng slowly closed his fist.

“Father, Princess Rui’s body was burned to ashes, and her urn was dumped in a mass grave. If Princess Rui were alive, how could she have scattered her ashes in a mass grave?”

"..."

The head of the Liu family closed his eyes, rubbing his temples in pain.

That assassination attempt was extremely dangerous. Even he thought that Princess Rui was definitely dead. Unexpectedly, she survived!

"Chen'er, that assassination attempt was too bizarre. Don't overthink it. Before your Uncle Rui passed away, he entrusted Princess Rui to our Liu family. We must protect her ashes!"

“Father, I understand what you mean. I won’t let her suffer any injustice, but I always feel that what happened back then is probably not as simple as it seems on the surface,” Liu Yucheng lowered his eyes, a layer of gloom shrouding his handsome face. “Father, the Nanyang Marquis’s mansion is now very powerful and should not be provoked.”

"Chen'er, don't worry. The heir of the Marquis of Nanyang's mansion has never met Princess Rui before. He has no reason to lay a hand on Princess Rui. Besides, only a few of us know what happened back then. No one else knows. No matter how powerful the Marquis of Nanyang's mansion is, it has no right to interfere in the affairs of our Liu family."

The head of the Liu family raised his eyes to look at Liu Yucheng, his gaze resolute.

Liu Yucheng pursed his thin lips: "Since that's the case, then I won't worry about it anymore. Father, I'll go back to my room first."