The princess was ordained by Heaven.

Qi Yongji: The fist has hardened.

"You want to piss me off?"

That is impossible.

He can lose, but he cannot lose in an undignified manner.

"Why should I bother with a good-for-nothing dog?"

Zheng Xun glanced at Mo Cheng behind him, and a slight, almost imperceptible smile appeared on his lips.

Mo Cheng looked directly at her, his face calm.

Zheng Xun looked at Qi Yongji again: "Qi Yongji, do you need a doctor?"

Qi Yongji was stunned for a moment, and then his expression gradually turned ugly.

"You poisoned me?"

"Not her."

Mo Cheng's voice came from behind.

Qi Yongji turned around, understanding dawning on him.

"It's you."

“That’s right,” Mo Cheng straightened his back. He had been bent over for too long and was already a little hunched over, but he still tried his best to stand up straight. “It was I who poisoned him!”

"Am I not good to you?" Qi Yongji asked, suppressing his anger.

Mo Cheng seemed to have heard an absurd joke: "Good? Hahahaha! Qi Yongji, don't you find it ridiculous?"

"Status, wealth, power—these things that never belonged to you were given to you by me!"

Even when he knew that defeat was inevitable, Qi Yongji had never been this angry.

He truly trusted Mo Cheng.

His most precious and scarce resource, trust, was exploited by Mo Cheng and turned into a sharp sword aimed at him.

How absurd, how laughable!

"Good? Ha... What's good? Is it good to treat me like a dog that comes when summoned and goes when dismissed?"

Mo Cheng's eyes glistened with tears as he smiled.

He took a step closer: "Have you forgotten what you said? You said I was born lowly! You've never respected me. The trust you have in me is less than the trust someone else would give to a dog! Ask yourself honestly, do you trust me? You clearly look down on me, you clearly think I'm a sycophant, you think I'm a coward!"

"What a pity, you're going to die at the hands of someone as worthless as me. I wonder if you'll feel resentful."

Mo Cheng was so excited that he trembled all over.

He had been waiting for this day for far too long!

For the past few years, he has dared not sleep soundly at night, for fear that Qi Yongji would discover that he had poisoned Qi Yongji.

He wasn't afraid of retaliation; what he feared was not being able to kill him.

Qi Yongji was highly skilled in martial arts and remained vigilant even in his sleep. He knew that he had no chance of winning if they faced each other head-on.

Therefore, he could only resort to this somewhat clumsy method—adding trace amounts of toxins to Qi Yongji's diet.

He did it extremely carefully, putting only a tiny bit of powder under his fingernail each time.

Of course, even though he held a high position in the palace, transporting poison was still very troublesome.

He dared not entrust the task to others, so he hid the herbs in a secret compartment in the house and secretly ground them at night.

Despite his caution, he was still nearly discovered several times.

Fortunately, he was cautious and managed to evade danger time and time again.

Seeing his arrogant laughter, Qi Yongji moved his hand.

Zheng Xun quickly moved to his side and grabbed his wrist: "You can talk, but you can't kill anyone!"

She crippled Qi Yongji's martial arts with a few words, then stepped back a few paces, signaling Mo Cheng to continue: "Eunuch Mo, please speak freely. With me here, I guarantee he won't be able to harm you in the slightest."

Qi Yongji stared blankly at his weak and powerless wrist.

Only then did he finally realize the true extent of his situation.

His once-proud martial arts skills are truly gone.

How did that happen?

How could it be so easy?

Clearly, isn't he the one destined for greatness?

Mo Cheng shook his head: "I have nothing to say, I only ask that Your Highness leave me a whole body."

Say what?

He followed Qi Yongji closely and knew how resilient Qi was.

He had no regrets in this life for being able to kill Qi Yongji.

He Wuyu saw his suicidal intent and raised his hand to stop him: "I've already said, speak properly. We don't want to hear you talking like that, neither dead nor corpse."

Mo Cheng stared at them blankly: "You're not going to kill me?"

Zheng Jiao asked in confusion, "You were the one who killed Qi Yongji, so why kill you?"

Mo Cheng was both crying and laughing: "I won't survive."

To avoid arousing Qi Yongji's suspicion, he ate the poison with him when he was testing it.

Of course, he wasn't the only one who tested the poison.

But so what? As long as we can kill Qi Yongji, a small sacrifice is worth it.

Hard work pays off; Qi Yongji was dying, and so was he.

He didn't regret poisoning the animals; he just had a slight regret that he would have been born in the Dayong Dynasty...

His demands weren't high; he just wanted to... be a decent human being.

Zheng Xun sighed: "Don't worry, I will have someone give you a grand funeral, and your name will be written in the history books, I guarantee it."

Mo Cheng's brows relaxed: "In that case, I have no regrets."

Zheng Xun waved his hand, and two groups of people, wearing shackles, approached Qi Yongji.

Qi Yongji's eyelashes trembled, and he aimed at the corner of the table next to him before standing up.

Zheng Xun pressed him back down: "You can't kill yourself, you can't die yet."

He should slowly savor the feeling of the poison taking effect and slowly relive the taste of defeat.

Having suffered so much, only through his own pain can the spirits of the fallen heroes and innocent people of the Great Yong Dynasty find peace.

After Qi Yongji was captured, He Wuyu, Zheng Jiao, and others stayed behind to clear out the fleeing remnants of the army.

To prevent a counterattack from the remaining forces, the army still needs to be stationed in the former territory of the Brown Kingdom.

In the capital of the Great Yong Dynasty, the officials appointed by Zheng Jin were already on their way.

Next, it's time to rest and recuperate.

Zheng Xun set off alone to return to Beijing.

Xu Zhen's coffin arrived in the capital with her.

Miao Rui led her guards to the city gates to pick up the person.

Her hair was already completely white when, in the warm spring season, she welcomed the remains of her last descendant.

Zheng Xun rode his horse, watching from afar as the coffin-carrying procession met up with Miao Rui's procession.

Soon, the sound of weeping came from the procession.

Zheng Xun raised his hand and touched the letter on his chest.

That was Xu Zhen's last words.

He survived the plague, but he still couldn't see the future of the Great Yong Dynasty.

Her eyes welled with emotion, but after a long while, they returned to calm.

She didn't disturb them and continued speeding towards the palace gate.

With Zheng Xun's return to the palace, power was once again in her hands.

With the foundation of the Great Yong Dynasty, the new territory was integrated into the Great Yong Dynasty very smoothly.

Yuanxiu Academy has blossomed everywhere, and the people of the former Brown Kingdom are now enjoying the blessings of Dayong.

Three months later, Qi Yongji was bedridden and, in front of tens of thousands of witnesses, his body was separated from his body.

In order to manage the new territory well, three imperial examinations were held in the next five years, which produced countless talents. At this time, female officials accounted for 20% of the total.

In the twenty-seventh year of the Zhaoyuan era, Emperor Zhaoyuan began to find himself unable to handle state affairs and resolutely decided to abdicate, and Emperor Yuanjia ascended the throne.

Over the next fifty years, the territory of Dayong expanded rapidly, doubling in size. Agriculture, economy, technology, medicine, education, and culture of Dayong developed rapidly, the population tripled, and Yuanxiu Academy flourished everywhere.

Zheng Jin and Zheng Jiao, one a scholar and the other a warrior, loyally assisted the emperor without ever slacking off, and were hailed as the royal twin stars.

In the imperial court, the aging ministers retired, and new pillars of the state emerged.

This is a brilliant era.

Officials and the people together created an immortal golden age.

In the fiftieth year of the Yuanjia era, the emperor died and was buried in the imperial mausoleum with her ministers.