Saving the foolish general, she accidentally becomes his favorite.

The capital city, Zhuque Avenue, post station.

Prince Su Zhelan of Beichen sat by the window, with a pot of tea on the table next to him.

He took a sip of Longjing tea and was savoring it slowly.

"Your Majesty, Princess Mingzhu from the grassland tribe has arrived," a servant entered and respectfully reported.

"Let her in."

Su Zhelan stirred the floating leaves, coldly watching the drifting tea leaves rise and fall, and calmly gave her instructions.

Princess Mingzhu, dressed in red, slowly approached carrying an exquisite box. If Ye Li were present, she would surely exclaim in surprise:

She was the woman I met in the palace that day.

The woman even threatened to tell her to stay away from Mo Chen.

The once beautiful and radiant Princess Mingzhu, her bright eyes now filled with anger, slammed the box down in a huff and coldly said:

"This is not what we agreed on. Why did they burn down the royal hunting grounds of Tian Shu Kingdom?"

Su Zhelan's lips curled slightly, and she said calmly, "Someone took advantage of me. They dared to mess with me, so naturally they have to teach them a lesson."

"But all the rare and exotic animals that our grassland tribes hunted with all our might have been burned to ashes in a single fire!"

Princess Mingzhu gritted her teeth and said:

"Does the Prince of Beichen not intend to give me an explanation?"

The Prince of Beichen smiled at her with his rather enigmatic face, his pair of affectionate peach blossom eyes blinking seemingly unintentionally:

"Fifty thousand taels of gold will be presented to you soon."

Princess Mingzhu was taken aback; this amount was indeed more precious than any wild beast.

I never expected them to be so generous.

Princess Mingzhu was initially angry and wanted to demand compensation, but to her surprise, Su Zhelan was actually willing to pay.

She said calmly, "I will send my men to collect it tomorrow. You'd better keep your word."

The Prince of Beichen pushed his cup away and became polite: "Of course, honored guest, you have come from afar, and I have not yet had a chance to offer you a cup of tea. It is my fault."

Mingzhu glanced at him disdainfully and said nonchalantly:

"Don't try to trick me like that. I'm not the Empress of Tian Shu Kingdom, and I'm not so easily bewitched by you."

Su Zhelan paused for a moment, then gave a faint, melancholy smile:

"It seems you know too. I originally thought I could burn it all down, but it turned out to be a wasted effort."

Princess Mingzhu sneered:

"With such a big commotion, why would you be afraid of others noticing? But don't worry, I'm just guessing, I have no concrete evidence. I doubt anyone else would have any evidence either."

Su Zhelan poured another half cup of tea. "Then I thank Princess Mingzhu for showing mercy."

Princess Mingzhu looked at him, as if trying to see through him, but the King of Beichen's face, a master of acting, showed no flaws. She could only try to probe him indirectly:

"It's just that someone used the Empress's dagger to frame the Empress's family, why are you getting involved?"

"Could it be that you still have feelings for him? Has someone finally warmed your heart of stone?"

Su Zhelan remained unfazed by Princess Mingzhu's teasing:

"What are you saying? I was just helping out when I saw injustice. Fu Zeshan did die a violent death, but I was simply doing what I was supposed to do. Tonight's fire will only show people how corrupt the court of Tian Shu Kingdom is."

"Isn't this what you wanted to see?" Su Zhelan said matter-of-factly.

"In this way, you and I can each get what we need amidst the chaos."

Princess Mingzhu, seeing his smooth talk and flattery, stopped beating around the bush:

"What a high-sounding reason." She glanced at him sideways, took a sip of tea, and asked, "So what do you plan to do now?"

"I was merely out sightseeing and to complete a transaction on the side. Now that I've seen enough of the show, it's time to head back home."

Princess Mingzhu reminded him, "Don't forget our agreement. You haven't given Tian Shu the Blood Spirit Grass from the temple yet."

"Now that I've taken out the Snow Spirit Grass from the temple, I won't hide it away. It's just a matter of waiting a bit. Isn't it better for some things to be put to good use and for everyone to get what they deserve?"

“That would be for the best.” Princess Mingzhu stared at him intently. “Now that your Beichen’s Holy Maiden is missing, I am the only one who can enter the temple.”

Princess Mingzhu calmly said:

"If you're unwilling to make this deal, then I won't risk entering the temple for you. After all, those piles of bones are quite terrifying..."

The two engaged in a fierce battle, neither gaining the upper hand, with silent sparks flying in the air.

King Su Zhelan of Beichen needs Princess Mingzhu to enter the temple, but Princess Mingzhu wants to destroy Tian Shu Kingdom and Xuan Yuanming.

The two had previously reached an agreement: the King of Beichen would bring the Blood Spirit Grass from the temple to lure the turbulent court of Tian Shu, while Princess Mingzhu would take the place of the missing Holy Maiden to enter the temple for pilgrimage.

"So far, besides the Holy Maiden, you are the only one who has been able to enter the Pilgrimage Temple of my Beichen. Speaking of which, Princess Mingzhu may have some connection with the Beichen royal family."

Princess Mingzhu knew he was investigating her, but he couldn't find out why, so she didn't want to say more.

"Since it is a temple, all living beings are equal. It's just that I happened to be able to enter."

Now, we each get what we need. You give the Blood Spirit Grass from the temple to the Heavenly Book Kingdom, and I'll go to the temple to retrieve the Life-Changing Pearl for you. It's a pleasant cooperation.

Su Zhelan asked one last question: "But I'm really curious, why did you want to save Mo Chen?"

My intelligence indicates that the two of you have never met and have no connection whatsoever.

However, you did meet his wife once before.

“Sometimes being too curious isn’t a good thing. For example, I never ask you who the Life-Changing Pearl from the Pilgrimage Temple is for.”

Su Zhelan seemed to have met his match, and he said with considerable satisfaction:

"This young lady really doesn't want to suffer any loss."

Princess Mingzhu rose to take her leave, deftly brushing off imaginary dust from her clothes:

"Each each other."

Then he left on his own, seemingly oblivious to everyone else.

Su Zhelan looked at the box she brought, which was decorated with exquisite and intricate carvings. He opened the lid, and inside lay an enormous pearl. When he picked up the pearl, miraculously, the colors on the pearl began to change—this was a treasure obtained from the temple.

The pilgrimage temple of Beichen Kingdom is located on an island in the sea, and only those with a special destiny can enter.

Countless people tried to enter the temple, but each time they could only sink into the sea in despair.

But this woman from the grasslands was one of the few people besides the saintess who could enter the temple. The scouts reported that she went straight to the sea. When the tide receded, the temple was exposed with countless white bones on the seabed. She stepped onto the bridge of bones, climbed the steps, and successfully entered the temple.

Su Zhelan held the bead, her eyes gleaming with fervent passion.

People only know that Prince Su Zhelan of Beichen is exceptionally talented and kind, but they don't know how difficult it was for him to get to where he is today.

Amidst mountains of corpses and seas of blood, all those close to them were lost...

He held the beads, his anticipation growing stronger, and a smile couldn't be contained on his lips.

At this moment, a subordinate came to report:

"Your Majesty, last night, Minister of Rites Fu Xiyang searched the fire site but found no clues. Miss Lu went to the fire site to pay respects to her fiancé in the middle of the night and was seen by General Mo Chen and his entourage. They pretended to be ghosts to lure Miss Lu into revealing the truth, but Miss Lu fainted. General Mo Chen and his entourage did not descend the mountain until dawn."

The spy recounted in detail what he had seen and heard during surveillance, which Su Zhelan listened to with great interest. He even inquired about Ye Li's situation.

Subordinate's reply:

"The general's wife was frightened during the assassination attempt, but she was unharmed. After scouting the fire at night, she left with the general's carriage."

Su Zhelan didn't care; he asked with great interest:

"Madam, have you continued preparing food?"