After deceiving the villain, I was forced to love him.

【wedge】

As I ran out of the mansion, the crackling sound of burning wood grew clearer and clearer as I approached.

Then it froze in a blinding flash of fire.

After she covered her brow with her hand and saw clearly...

Startled, Baili Ce stumbled back half a step. He instinctively wanted to escape but then tensed up and regained his composure.

Wang Qingyan turned around from the pile of corpses, the light behind him tinged with a dark red.

"Aren't you coming?" he asked with a smile.

It is both alluring and ruthless, yet exquisitely beautiful and flawless.

"..." Bai Li Ce felt a chill run down his spine.

They were even more afraid that if they escaped, he would tear everyone to pieces.

"Aren't you coming?" he asked again.

In an instant, lightning flashed and thunder roared all around.

In the eye of the raging thunderstorm, the smile on Wang Qingyan's face slowly disappeared, and his eyes turned as black as night.

To be precise, under the guidance of that unknown force, Baili Ce "saw" that everything from his eyes to his blood, including his heart, was black.

"Not coming?" Looking up at the dense, rain-like lightning, Wang Qingyan had given up all hope.

He raised his knife and slaughtered his way through the surrounding area.

He knew it was like this.

Even she would think he was a monster.

"Boom..." Under the sky, an even more powerful force swept across, and the deafening thunder stopped abruptly.

Bai Li Ce collapsed to the ground, utterly exhausted.

Then she tiptoed to her feet, tears welling up in her eyes from fear, and walked resolutely toward him.

He tossed aside the human Gu he had grabbed at random, then pulled the terrified Baili Ce into his arms.

"Fear?"

"..." I really wanted to lie to myself, but my mouth wouldn't listen and I couldn't move it anymore.

"Don't be afraid, I will kill everyone who hurts you."

................

In the first year of the Shouhe era, a new dynasty was established.

The new emperor, upon taking the throne, swiftly and decisively defeated a group of imperial relatives and veteran officials, leaving them utterly powerless to resist.

Strangely, this whole sequence of movements was carried out without any hindrance whatsoever.

"Hey, I heard those people are all scumbags, they just..."

Diner A looked around seriously, then lowered his head and whispered, "Are we just going to let them do whatever they want with us?"

The diner across from them spat out the pine nut shells in his mouth and said in a low voice, "How is that possible!"

“My cousin’s son happens to work in the north, and he said there was a big commotion on the day of the heavy snow before the New Year.”

The "big commotion" he was referring to was naturally the major event of mobilizing troops!

"But I haven't heard anything about anything happening at the end of the year," said Diner A, looking somewhat incredulous.

Diner B immediately straightened his back, becoming even more confident and self-assured. "Ah, that's why they say that person is a man of great talent and wisdom, unmatched by anyone."

"How so?" Diner C, after listening for a while, finally couldn't help but ask.

Diner B, who had firsthand information, looked smugly at the wine on the table and raised an eyebrow.

"Okay, okay, here you go!"

Diner B quickly accepted it with a chuckle, saying, "I'll gladly accept it, I'll gladly accept it."

However, before he could even take a sip, customer A impatiently urged, "Hurry up and tell us!!"

Diner B, suppressing his craving, had no choice but to say, "There was definitely a lot of noise, but unfortunately, we were stopped before we even set off..."

He pointed upwards with his finger, referring to the new emperor, and said, "It's resolved."

"So powerful?! Wasn't it said that the old general in the north had fought for decades without ever being defeated? How come..."

"Sigh..." Diner C suddenly remembered a piece of news he had heard the other day, "I heard that the higher-ups have recruited a lot of powerful families. Is this time... it's them helping out behind the scenes?"

"Not only that," Diner B glanced around, looking like he clearly knew something but dared not say more.

Then, vaguely, he said, "Haven't you noticed that those arrogant young masters and ladies who usually act like bullies have all disappeared?"

"..." The other two's expressions changed.

Before I could ask anything more, customer B had already left with the wine jug.

......

Seventeen, who was sitting next to him through the curtain, saw that there was no more useful information, so he paid for his tea and got up to leave.

After passing through several long streets and successfully shaking off a few tails, we entered through the side gate of Baili Mansion.

Just as he entered and passed through the corridor, Bi Cui, who was not far away, called out to him, "Seventeen, the young lady is at Qufeng Pavilion."

"Thank you," he said, and hurriedly turned and headed towards Qufeng Pavilion. When he arrived there, Baili Ce was painting.

With an expression of utter focus, his brushstrokes flowed smoothly and effortlessly, completing the work in one go.

But upon closer inspection—

It turned out to be a picture of chicks eating rice.

Moreover, the chicken's head-to-body ratio is very disproportionate.

It even has an extra leg, making it look like a monster.

But Baili Ce asked with a proud look, "Is it beautiful?"

"..." Seventeen's lips twitched slightly, and after a long while, he couldn't squeeze out a single word of flattery.

"Alright then," Baili Ce said, not pressing him further. "Tell me, what useful information did you get today?"

"The Wang family has already started making moves, but His Majesty's arrangements are meticulous, so those rumors probably won't spread for a while."

"Where is the He family?"

Although his tone was calm and composed, Seventeen could detect a hint of joking and schadenfreude in his voice.

She raised her head slightly, pretending to casually glance at Baili Ce a few more times, and said, "The He family is preparing to send their youngest daughter, He Yao, into the palace to solve their immediate problem."

"However, news from the palace says that His Majesty is not interested in women and has rejected many women, even the Empress Dowager is helpless. The He family is probably going to be in trouble this time."

Bai Li Ce smiled and shook his head, "This time, the He family might actually be able to turn the tide with this youngest daughter."

"..." Seventeen looked on with a face full of confusion.

Bai Li Ce didn't keep anyone in suspense, "When His Majesty was out of favor, he lived with the Empress Dowager in the northern frontier for a period of time."

"The He family often had business dealings with the Hu people of the northern frontier."

"..." Seventeen pondered for a moment, then immediately realized!

"I heard that He Yao was originally not favored, but later, because of her business acumen and her diligence in learning, she gradually gained the attention of the He family head."

"Yes, He Yao is a business prodigy. He Shoufeng didn't want to bury her talent, but he was also unwilling to relinquish his position as the eldest son, so he entrusted the business in the north to her."

"And it was at that time that His Majesty and He Yao met."

"In other words, Your Majesty's success today is also thanks to He Yao's unwavering support and full assistance when Your Majesty was in a weak position."

To his surprise, Seventeen became even more confused...

After hesitating for a long time, the young man bowed respectfully, saying, "I am not questioning you, young lady, but I am in charge of 'One Word Pavilion' and have never heard of this matter."

Yiyan Pavilion is the intelligence network of the Baili clan, a place for major families to buy and sell information.

The authenticity of news that is not available anywhere is highly questionable.

"I wonder... how did you know, young lady?"

Because she had read the novel!

But on the surface, Baili Ce said, "If I didn't have some of my own methods, how could I stand out from the many branches of the Baili clan?"

He had an air of profound mystery and uncanny foresight.

Is that so? Seventeen's expression gradually brightened, and she relaxed...

And so I accepted it.

He even looked at Baili Ce with a hint of admiration.

"But I've heard that the Hu people are ignorant of etiquette, and it's not uncommon for men and women to live together. It's also not unusual for both parties to have affairs before marriage. If this youngest daughter of the He family has been associating with Hu people for many years, her reputation..."

Bai Lize shrugged. "So, not many people know about this."

Then, with a threatening tone and a dark expression, he said, "Now you know, aren't you scared?"

"Be careful, His Majesty the Emperor and the He family might kill you to silence you!"

Seventeen thought for a moment, then nodded in agreement, "I'm scared."

Her expression was so perfunctory and uninteresting that, in Baili Ce's eyes, it was practically an insult calling her an idiot.

But this child is only sixteen years old.

"The acting is completely unconvincing, it's boring."

Seventeen was speechless once again... He was just a guard, not a storyteller under a bridge.

"In that case, should I spread this matter around?"

"You really want to die?" Bai Lize suddenly felt that Seventeen still had some youthful qualities.

Sometimes they act impulsively without considering the consequences, which is extremely dangerous.

"His Majesty is in high spirits right now, full of vigor and ambition. How could he possibly allow someone to make a move on the woman who has served him?"

"If we really offend him, the Baili clan will never have a good life."

A new broom sweeps clean, and a new emperor sets his sights on sweeping the heavens.

The key point is that they are his own daughter and son. As their father, it's one thing for them to be reborn as one of the powerful families that threaten his imperial power, but how can he also force them to separate?

Even if we have to hit her, she shouldn't be the one to use the stick.

"But if we don't do this, the He family will have overcome their difficulties by relying on this woman, which will be very detrimental to the Baili family."

"You're wrong about that." In most people's eyes, from any perspective, preventing He Yao from entering the palace was the most advantageous and simplest method for Baili.

But she wasn't worried at all that the He family's influence was greater than her own.

“I have a better idea.”

The taller the tree, the more the wind will blow. Since the He family is so eager to be the first to stick their neck out, let them be.

Besides, she'll be running away in a year.

In the end, whether it's the He family or the Baili family, they'll all be doing the work for someone else's benefit.

Why should she bother making a fuss?

"Yes," Seventeen couldn't help but be convinced, and he was especially confident that with Baili Ce's wisdom, he would be able to lead the Baili clan to even greater heights.

Then, with eyes full of expectation, he asked, "What do I need to do?"

"Go and deliver a letter to the Wang family for me," Baili Ce said, taking the letter he had already written from the table.

"Huh?" That's it? It's incredibly easy.

"After you finish delivering the message, get some rest."

"Young lady, your subordinate..."

Seventeen was about to say that she was fully capable of handling more difficult tasks when Baili Ce interrupted her, "Look at the dark circles under your eyes, they're almost blacker than the bottom of a pot."

"If this continues, how can your body take it?"

"..." Seventeen felt a warmth in her heart, and was extremely moved.

He then stepped back, his cold and aloof exterior masking yet another barely suppressed flutter of emotion.