The eldest daughter's scheming, the crown prince's exclusive favor to the venomous concubi

These words carried an unexpected weight for Murong Chuanshuo, and the temperature in his eyes rose as he spoke them. Jian Yue gave him a bewildered smile and said, "Your Highness's words are somewhat ambiguous. I am a married woman; how can I possibly bear Your Highness's great favor?"

As she spoke, she bowed to Murong Chuan and was about to walk around him when Murong Chuan suddenly grabbed her arm. She immediately looked up, her eyes filled with anger, and said, "Your Highness, please have some self-respect."

"Self-respect?"

Murong Chuan laughed angrily: "Have you forgotten what we used to be like?"

Upon hearing this, Jian Yue raised an eyebrow and retorted, "In the past? Your Highness is joking. When have we ever had a past?"

Before, it was just a dream from a past life. Now, the dream is over, and I will never fall into your gentle embrace again, Murong Chuan. What awaits you next is something you never expected, your reward to me from a past life.

With those words, Murong Chuan's smile vanished. He squinted at Jian Yue for a long time, then suddenly gave a sarcastic smile and said, "You forget so easily? Where do you place me?"

Upon hearing this, Jian Yue's eyes became wary, and she looked at Murong Chuan with a serious expression, saying, "Your Highness, please watch your words. Jian Yue has lived on the estate since birth and has never been to the capital. She only returned to the capital this year. How could she have met Your Highness? How could she have forgotten? Your Highness must have mistaken me for someone else."

Murong Chuan continued to smile, but after a while, he suddenly released Jian Yue's arm and sighed, "I did mistake you for someone else. Your face does resemble hers, but you're not even a third as pretty as her."

Jian Yue smiled and lowered her eyes, saying, "That must be the Crown Prince's beloved, right? She must be a beauty that could topple kingdoms. Jian Yue is just an ordinary girl, how could she compare to the person in the Crown Prince's heart?"

As she spoke, she took two steps back and said, "Then, Your Highness, may I leave?"

Murong Chuan lowered his head, looked at Jian Yue with a frown, and asked, "What are you doing here?"

Jian Yue calmly replied, "I heard the other day that the young master had visited Lan Yue Tower, so I thought I'd come and see what kind of beauty she possessed that would make the young master condescend to come here."

She looked around, a question in her eyes, and asked, "But I don't know what happened here? Why was it sealed off?"

Murong Chuan looked at Lan Yue Lou and said, "It's nothing. It's just a den set up in the capital by some rebels. This Lan Yue Lou is the place. I was ordered by Your Majesty to arrest the criminals."

Upon hearing this, Jian Yue nodded, but then suddenly asked, "Could it be that many people have said there was a death here? Could it be that those people had a conflict with the Crown Prince's men and someone died?"

As she spoke, fear flashed in Jian Yue's eyes. Before Murong Chuan could speak, she said, "In that case, Jian Yue will not disturb Your Highness's investigation any longer. I will go back first."

Murong Chuan looked at Jian Yue with amusement. As Jian Yue took another step, he blocked her path and laughed, "Aren't you a young lady from the General's Mansion? Why are you so timid? It's just a human life, why would you be scared?"

"I am indeed a young lady from the General's Mansion, but I did not grow up there. Therefore, my words and actions are naturally different from those of a military officer. Besides, I am a young lady from a humble background, so I am certainly timid and cannot compare to Your Highness, the Crown Prince."

Jian Yue spoke in a very serious and earnest manner, and her confident eyes caught Murong Chuan's eye.

He smiled, his tone softening considerably, and said, "Since you're here, you might as well go and take a look. Didn't you want to see what kind of person managed to seduce the heir of the Marquis of Qingyan?"

Upon hearing this, Jian Yue took two steps back and said anxiously, "No, thank you for your kindness, Your Highness, but I don't want to watch it now."

Murong Chuan chuckled softly and stepped forward, saying, "What, you don't want to see him anymore? That's your husband. You just got engaged and he's already out fooling around. Of course you should come and see him. If you're not satisfied, you can break off the engagement. Why not?"

Jian Yue frowned, fear in her eyes. Seeing this, Xiao Cui bit her lip and squeezed in front of Jian Yue, blocking Murong Chuan. Then she clenched her hands to stop herself from getting nervous and said tremblingly, "Greetings, Your Highness. This servant greets Your Highness."

Murong Chuan's eyes flashed dangerously as he looked at Jian Yue through Xiao Cui. Jian Yue, seeing this, knew that Murong Chuan had murderous intent. She quickly shooed Xiao Cui away and took two steps back herself, looking at Murong Chuan and saying, "My girl has grown up in the countryside since she was a child. If she has done anything presumptuous, please forgive her, Your Highness."

At this moment, Zhang Baicheng had already walked to Jian Yue's side, and looked at Murong Chuan, cupping his fists and saying, "This humble general greets Your Highness, may Your Highness be well."

Murong Chuan looked at Zhang Baicheng, and after a long while, suddenly laughed: "I didn't expect the people from the General's Mansion to be so cautious. Am I some kind of monster? Why do they dislike me so much?"

As he spoke, Murong Chuan's eyes suddenly turned dangerous. He narrowed his eyes and looked at Jian Yue, saying, "Since you've asked me, then let's go in and take a look. Besides, it's quite boring for me to be here alone."

Before Jian Yue could speak, Zhang Baicheng said to Murong Chuan, "Your Highness, please do not force me. My young lady is of marriageable age and it is not appropriate for her to be so close to other men. Please do not make things difficult for me."

"Difficult? If I am in a difficult position today, what can the General's Mansion do to me?"

As he spoke, he took a few more steps forward. Zhang Baicheng, gripping the hilt of his sword, blocked his approach. But in the next moment, two golden-armored guards rushed over, placing two swords on his neck, one on each side, with terrifying speed.

Murong Chuan smiled, circled around, and arrived in front of Jian Yue. He forced Jian Yue to take several steps back, causing her to bump into a pillar outside the Lan Yue Tower. She looked somewhat helpless, but in Murong Chuan's eyes, it was a beautiful sight.

If she were here, the scene would surely be completely different.

Thinking of this, a trace of melancholy flashed in Murong Chuan's eyes. That lingering look of nostalgia seemed ironic to Jian Yue, but she didn't reveal her feelings, only awkwardly saying:

"Your Highness, please don't force me. I am the young lady of the General's Mansion and the fiancée of the Marquis of Qingyan's heir. If the Princess finds out that Your Highness and I are here, she will surely be furious. Please, Your Highness, be magnanimous and let me go!"

Jian Yue's voice choked with sobs, and she began to beg for mercy, a rare occurrence for her. Murong Chuan narrowed his eyes, thinking of that day at Bai Jianan's welcoming banquet, when she had been calm and composed.

At this moment, her face paled, filled with apprehension and extreme fear, which only added to the beauty of her face. He couldn't help but be somewhat lost in thought, staring at her incessantly chattering little mouth.

After Jian Yue finished speaking, he suddenly leaned closer. Jian Yue was terrified and was about to resist when she saw Murong Chuan stand up, resume his previous demeanor, and look at the entrance of Lan Yue Tower, saying, "Accompany me inside, and I'll let you go after we take a look around."

As he spoke, he had already walked to the main entrance of Lan Yue Tower. The golden-armored guards opened the seal, and the door creaked open.

It was pitch black inside, like a sleeping giant beast with its mouth open, waiting for its prey to go in and reap the benefits.

Jian Yue paused, looked at Murong Chuan's back, hesitated for a moment, and then followed. Xiao Cui had no choice but to follow as well. Zhang Baicheng also wanted to follow with his men, but he had a knife to his neck. He immediately called out to Jian Yue, "Miss."

Jian Yue paused for a moment, then turned to Zhang Baicheng and said, "Don't worry, you can wait here."

Jian Yue turned around and followed Murong Chuan. Zhang Baicheng clenched his fists in anger, regretting that he was not skilled enough and had failed to protect the young lady.

After Xiao Cui caught up with Jian Yue, she quietly said to her, "Miss, why is there no candlelight here? There's not even any light like usual."

Jian Yue shook her head without speaking, but Murong Chuan laughed and said, "Of course not. In the past, the walls here were inlaid with luminous pearls. Although there were no windows and no light came through, the brilliance of the luminous pearls added a lot of color to this place."

As he spoke, the people around him lit a tinderbox. Through the light, Xiao Cui saw that the walls of the hall were covered with holes the size of eggs, densely packed together, which looked particularly eerie.

Xiao Cui felt a chill run down her spine, and remembering Hua Xiangrong being skinned alive, she shuddered and moved closer to Jian Yue. Jian Yue didn't speak, but looked at Murong Chuan and sneered, saying, "Did the Crown Prince bring me in just to scare me?"

Upon hearing this, Murong Chuan turned to look at her. In the firelight, Jian Yue's silhouette overlapped with the person in his memory, and he couldn't help but be a little stunned. Then, he turned and walked towards the stairs: "The second floor is fine; there are windows on the second floor."

Murong Chuan walked quickly and had already climbed most of the stairs. Jian Yue, with the Golden Armor Guards following behind, had no choice but to follow him as they headed towards the second floor.

The second floor was just as quiet as the lobby on the first floor, but the sunlight made Jian Yue and her companion feel much better.

However, Murong Chuan did not stop on the second floor but went straight to the third floor, and then the fourth floor. After Jian Yue followed him up, she glanced at Hua Xiangrong's room without changing her expression and suddenly asked, "There are no signs of a fight in Lan Yue Tower. Could it be that everyone here surrendered when Your Highness came?"

Murong Chuan suddenly laughed and said, "Do you think they are local thugs who are afraid of my steel knife? When I came here, there were only a few people left. Do you see the bloodstains over there? They were left by the last few people when they ran away. I really regret that I couldn't catch them."

Upon hearing this, Jian Yue fell silent. Murong Chuan then walked to the door of Hua Xiangrong's room, pushed it open with one hand, and said, "It is said that this room belongs to the owner of this building. This owner is also the most beautiful woman in Lan Yue Tower. I wonder if the heir of Qingyan Marquis is on her chaise lounge."