Having many handsome men means no worries; pampering them all keeps me in good spirits.

The innocent victim, Yi Luo, was speechless... He gave a pitiful, forced smile. He hadn't done anything last night, not even a kiss...

Lu Nian and Xuan Ye, standing to the side, both frowned as they looked at Yi Luo… Could it be that he really… last night…

Yun Yuxuan's lips twitched, and he coughed awkwardly, "No...no...In that case...let's go back to the manor first...so Yan Qing can rest in the carriage..."

After saying that, he led Jiang Qingyan and the others onto the carriage.

Throughout the journey, everyone kept their eyes closed to rest. The carriage was quiet, with only the sound of a few people breathing audible.

They finally arrived at the Third Prince's residence. Yun Yuxuan got off the carriage first, followed by Yi Luo and Xuan Ye, and finally Jiang Qingyan was carried off the carriage by Lu Nian.

The servants in the mansion had already prepared a spacious courtyard for Jiang Qingyan and the others, with a total of four rooms, just enough for them to stay in.

With Yun Yuxuan's introduction, Jiang Qingyan had become familiar with the routes in the mansion. Then, under the pretext of secretly making Gu worms, she returned to her own courtyard alone.

Meanwhile, Lu Nian and Yi Luo, who remained in the courtyard, also kept busy, and together they carefully cleaned Jiang Qingyan's room again.

Upon seeing Jiang Qingyan return to the courtyard, Xuan Ye hurriedly stepped forward to greet her, acting coy as if he had something to say.

Jiang Qingyan raised an eyebrow and asked softly, "Is there something you want to tell me?"

Xuan Ye turned around and glanced at Lu Nian and Yi Luo, who were cleaning Jiang Qingyan's room. Seeing that they hadn't noticed them, he quickly pulled Jiang Qingyan into his room and then gently closed the door behind him.

Jiang Qingyan walked to the bed and sat down, raising an eyebrow and saying, "Why does this feel like we're having an affair? Are you trying to seduce me?"

Xuan Ye knelt down in front of Jiang Qingyan with a thud. After thinking for a moment, he seemed to have made up his mind. "Young Master, could you take Xuan Ye with you to Da'an?"

Upon hearing this, Jiang Qingyan's heart trembled. How did Xuan Ye know that she was from Da'an? What else did he know?

Jiang Qingyan narrowed her eyes, looked Xuan Ye up and down warily, and asked in a deep voice, "What do you mean by that?"

Xuan Ye lowered his eyes and said, "Last night I heard that you had returned to the inn, so I went to look for you. But I accidentally overheard your conversation with that other young master... However... I didn't mean to eavesdrop; I just wanted to see if I could help you..."

Jiang Qingyan leaned down, pinched Xuan Ye's chin, lifted his handsome face, and said coldly, "Oh? You really just overheard it by accident?"

Xuan Ye stared into Jiang Qingyan's eyes and said sincerely, "I really just overheard it by accident... and... I can steal the snow silkworm for you, young master..."

"Get up and talk." Jiang Qingyan withdrew her hand, her tone indifferent. "You don't need to go to steal the snow silkworm. You just need to stay in your room. If you behave, I will take you back to Da'an after I get the snow silkworm."

Jiang Qingyan took a sip of tea, her tone turning cold again, "However... if you were to tell anyone about this..."

Before Jiang Qingyan could finish her sentence, Xuan Ye hurriedly said, "I, Xuan Ye, swear that if I betray you, young master, I will surely die a horrible death!"

Jiang Qingyan smiled and said softly, "Alright, if there's nothing else, I'll go back to my room first. You should get some rest too."

After saying that, he pushed open the door and went out, only to meet Lu Nian's cold gaze.

Lu Nian glanced coldly at Xuan Ye, as if looking at a dying man. Seeing the murderous intent in Lu Nian's eyes, Jiang Qingyan coughed lightly, quickly took Lu Nian's hand, and walked towards her room.

Back in the room, Lu Nian pressed down on Jiang Qingyan's shoulder and said in a deep voice, "Husband, Xuan Ye cannot be allowed to live. He already knows about our plan. Better safe than sorry..."

Yi Luo, standing to the side, exclaimed in surprise, "What? Xuan Ye knows? This kid was eavesdropping? Then I'll go kill him right now..."

Jiang Qingyan quickly pulled Yi Luo back, reassuring him, "You two, don't rush. I have a feeling that Xuan Ye isn't as simple as he seems. Why don't you keep an eye on him secretly? Perhaps you can follow the clues and uncover a bigger secret..."

Hearing Jiang Qingyan's words, Lu Nian's tightly furrowed brows relaxed slightly. "I thought my husband was only soft-hearted because he was attracted to his good looks..."

Jiang Qingyan tapped his nose helplessly, then glanced at Yi Luo and said in a low voice, "Can you two stop always thinking of me as a pervert? Mo Ting is still unconscious, I don't have that many wicked thoughts..."

Hearing this, the two of them hung their heads in self-reproach. Yes, they were always decisive and resourceful on the battlefield, but when it came to matters concerning the Emperor, they would always automatically become jealous...

Jiang Qingyan took their hands and gently squeezed them. "Alright, you two should go back to your rooms first. Don't come to serve me for the next few days. I need to conserve my energy so I can finally take down Xuecan, and... King Xia..."

Lu Nian and Yi Luo stared at Jiang Qingyan's resolute eyes, a sense of reverence rising in their hearts. Perhaps the Imperial Observatory was right; the Empress... was indeed ordained to be emperor. She would not only be the Empress of Da'an, but the Empress of the entire world...

Time quickly passed, and it was the day of Queen Xia's birthday banquet. Green Medicinal Herb was brought to the courtyard by Jiang Qingyan early on.

Lu Nian and Yi Luo obediently stayed in the room, standing by the window and secretly watching Xuan Ye's room.

Seeing that no one was around, Green Plum whispered in Jiang Qingyan's ear, "Young Master, I finally know the Xia King's secret..."

Jiang Qingyan raised an eyebrow and quickly asked, "What secret?"

Green Medicine craned her neck and looked around to make sure no one was eavesdropping before quickly replying, "The owner of my clinic said that King Xia was bewitched by a villain and became obsessed with the art of immortality. He was accidentally poisoned and is now beyond medical help. He probably won't live more than a year... That's why he's been searching for doctors to take back and study antidotes."

Jiang Qingyan sneered. She knew from browsing history books in the past that some ancient monarchs were obsessed with the art of immortality, but she had never heard of anyone poisoning themselves. This King Xia was quite a character...

"Is your shopkeeper's information accurate? How did he know about such a confidential matter?" Jiang Qingyan asked doubtfully.

Green Medicine quickly explained, "The shopkeeper's elder brother was captured by the Xia King and taken to the palace. Later, under the pretext of going out of the palace to gather herbs, he managed to find an opportunity to send a letter to the shopkeeper. I only managed to see the contents of the letter when he wasn't looking..."

Jiang Qingyan patted Lvyao on the shoulder, gave her a thumbs up, and exclaimed, "Well done!"

Just then, Yun Yuxuan's voice suddenly came from outside the courtyard, "Is Yan Qing ready? The Empress Dowager has sent people to fetch us to the palace."

Jiang Qingyan quickly straightened her clothes, took Lvyao with her and walked out of the room. She smiled and replied to Yun Yuxuan, "I'm ready, let's set off now."

Yun Yuxuan glanced at the green herbs behind Jiang Qingyan and asked in confusion, "I wonder who this young lady is...?"