Empress, please have some self-respect. I am not your husband.

"It's him."

Yu Ningyan tried her best to calm herself down. "I'm sure you've all heard about the reappearance of the Crimson Flame Token in the Qian Kingdom. According to the Qian Kingdom's imperial physician, Wei Qingfeng died at the hands of at least a second-rank expert."

"I am not familiar with martial arts and have never seen what a second-rank expert looks like when he makes a move. But when I was being assassinated, the Crimson Flame Army expert rescued me by leaping and bounding on the roof of the Qian Kingdom's capital, making me feel like I was traveling on the wind for a moment without ever having my feet on the ground."

Yu Ningyan looked at Liu Changyu: "May I ask, Senior Liu, is this something that a third or fourth-grade expert can do?"

Liu Changyu narrowed his eyes: "How long did it take that person to save you and then take you away?"

“It’s been almost half an hour,” Yu Ningyan said.

Liu Changyu raised his eyelids: "A third-rank martial artist couldn't last this long."

Yu Ningyan dared not relax for a moment: "Wei Qingfeng died at the hands of a second-rank expert, and I was saved by a second-rank expert. If they were not the same person, do you all think it is possible for a small country like Qian to have two second-rank experts occupying the capital?"

Minister of War: "Then why can't this person be Lu Feng?"

Yu Ningyan sneered: "Which second-rank expert isn't a reclusive master who appears and disappears like a dragon, roaming the world freely? You, such an expert, would you serve as an official in a small country like Qian? As a fourth-rank junior tutor?"

These words made everyone fall into deep thought.

After a long while, Emperor Chu Yu Tianlong spoke: "All of you, step back."

The six ministers, along with Liu Changyu, all stood up and said, "We take our leave."

Only after everyone had left the imperial study did Yu Tianlong coldly ask, "Why did you come back?"

Yu Ningyan frowned.

Seeing that she did not respond for a long time, Yu Tianlong said again: "This is the first time I have seen you so lenient towards a man. Since you have already fallen for Lu Feng, why don't you stay by his side?"

"Your Majesty, I have no problem with this. You are overthinking it." Yu Ningyan lowered her head.

The Chu Emperor's voice was icy: "You can't fool me. You've returned to the country this time with no will to live left in your eyes. You've resigned yourself to your fate. I see it clearly."

Yu Ningyan said calmly, "The campaign against Qian has failed, and this mission has also ended in failure. I am no longer of any value to Western Chu, and I should accept my fate."

Whether it was her imagination or not, Yu Ningyan suddenly heard a soft sigh.

Then, a voice that was no longer cold rang out: "Your mission to the Qian Kingdom failed. Although it is a pity, it was within my expectations. I might as well tell you that on the very first day you left Western Chu on your mission to the Qian Kingdom, I made an agreement with Northern Qi."

"If you fail, you will be killed in the capital of Qian Kingdom."

Yu Ningyan was not surprised, but said, "Your subject understands that this is your last bit of value."

Unexpectedly, Yu Tianlong laughed: "Value? I just think that it's better for you to die in Western Chu than to become that old beast's plaything and live a life worse than death."

Yu Ningyan suddenly looked up, her eyes wide as she stared at her father, the Emperor.

Despite the laughter, the Emperor remained expressionless. He continued, "When you sent your entourage back, I realized for the first time how my daughter, who had always been clever and quick-witted, had suddenly become so stupid."

"Since you didn't die at the hands of the Northern Qi assassins, why not just change your name and abandon your identity as the Princess of Western Chu, and live a peaceful life from now on? Do you really think that I would have someone kill the daughter I've held in my arms since she was a baby?"

"Don't you know what you'll face now that you've come back alive?"

Yu Ningyan asked in disbelief, "Father...Father Emperor?"

Yu Tianlong sighed inwardly, looking at his daughter kneeling in front of him, her face bearing a resemblance to her biological mother, the maid he had fallen for when he was a teenager.

Even though many concubines came after him, all of whom were stunningly beautiful, he always loved the innocent and naive little maid the most.

Even though he was the emperor of the Western Chu Dynasty, he couldn't even protect the woman he loved and his daughter.

"Get up."

Yu Tianlong stepped forward and helped his daughter up, giving a bitter smile: "This is probably fate. You came back because you were afraid Liu Changyu would seek revenge on that Lu Feng?"

Having knelt for a long time, Yu Ningyan forced herself to nod and purse her lips upon hearing this.

Yu Tianlong smiled and said, "That's good too. Finally having someone I care about and like makes my life worthwhile."

“So… Father Emperor…” Yu Ningyan asked, her voice trembling.

Yu Tianlong said calmly, "Back then, when your mother died, I paid a great price to bring Tang Qianren to the palace and served him for a year before that old beast dared not lay a hand on you."

"I made a pact with him that as long as you lead the conquest of the Qian Kingdom within eight years, he will not lay a hand on you. But unfortunately, the war against Qian failed, and the three Grandmasters, including Tang Qianren, perished together with the Crimson Flame War God."

"Now there is no one in Western Chu who can check him, so when you proposed the plan to go to Qian State, I immediately agreed. But fate is cruel and you have returned."

At this moment, Yu Ningyan finally understood that the person she hated had been trying to protect himself all these years.

Seeing the sorrowful expression on the Emperor's face, she smiled sadly and shook her head: "At least I know that Father still loves me just as much as he did when I was a child, and that's enough."

Just then, the door to the Imperial Study was pushed open, and a red-robed eunuch stood in the doorway, saying in a low voice, "Your Majesty, Princess, the Ancestor wishes to see you both."

Yu Tianlong immediately flew into a rage: "There's still a year left until the agreement, what does he mean by this!"

The eunuch in red robes said calmly, "This servant does not know. If Your Majesty has any doubts, please ask the Grand Ancestor. Your Majesty and the Princess, please."

Looking at his daughter, Emperor Chu took a deep breath. "Don't be afraid. If he dares to make any move before the time is right, your father will fight him to the death."

Yu Ningyan nodded gently, feeling incredibly at ease as she looked at her father. Another figure flashed through her mind; it would be even better if he were here too.

The forbidden area of ​​the palace.

A father and daughter followed the red-robed eunuch to the gloomy palace in front of them, the most shameful place for the women of the Yu clan. Yu Tianlong took a deep breath, stood in front of Yu Ningyan, and was about to speak.

suddenly.

A furious roar rang out: "Who are you! How dare you attack me!"

Immediately afterwards, a black figure crashed through the palace gate from both inside and outside! The heavy palace gate was shattered into pieces! It was a shocking sight.

Before Yu Ningyan and her father could even see who the black figure was, the person had already leaped over the wall in a few bounds, leaving only a warning echoing around them.

"I have come here on the orders of the Lord of Lingfeng Tower to deliver a message: if you practice evil arts again within two years, the Twelve Ninth Swallow of Lingfeng Tower, Nine Crying Cold Cicadas, will surely take your head, Yu Jinghuang. Today, I have broken one-tenth of your Yuan Gong as punishment!"