After being reborn, I went on a killing spree in the imperial court.

"Xuanfeng, is Chu Yan coming again?"

Cao Yuan still wouldn't give up and asked him again.

"He..." Even Xuanfeng himself didn't know.

"It's okay, I didn't want him to come and see me off anyway!" Cao Yuan felt a pang of melancholy.

Parting is always sad.

It might be better if we just never see each other again.

"Will you join us?"

Cao Yuan asked.

"His Highness the Crown Prince instructed me to escort you back to the capital." Xuanfeng bowed respectfully.

"And then what happened after you returned to the capital?"

“Of course I’ve come back to report,” Xuanfeng blurted out.

Upon hearing Xuanfeng's words, Cao Chun turned his head to one side.

Cao Yuan licked her lips, lowered the carriage curtain, and sighed helplessly, "Let's go!"

He's so stubborn.

The convoy exited the palace gates and successfully passed through several city gates.

After passing through the majestic and magnificent gates of the Shu Kingdom, Chu Yan stood on the city tower, gazing intently at the carriage procession that was gradually disappearing into the distance.

It was early spring, and a cold wind howled past, slicing across his face like sharp blades. Yet Chu Yan stood firmly atop the city gate like an unbreakable stone statue. His posture was upright, his robes fluttering, and the cold wind did not shake his resolute figure in the slightest.

"Doesn't the Crown Prince intend to see the Princess? Who knows when we'll meet again after this parting?" Eunuch Li also felt sorry for them.

"You came here so early and waited so long, wasn't it all to see the princess off on her final journey? Are you really not going to see her?"

Chu Yan stood silently in place, gazing wistfully into the distance, his hands casually clasped behind his back. He murmured to himself, as if saying, "This isn't the last time I'll see A-Yuan, so why say goodbye?"

Just then, the eyes, which had been dull and lifeless, suddenly seemed to be ignited, flashing with a bright light.

A petite figure emerged from the side window of the carriage parked not far away. Chu Yan's heart skipped a beat, and he involuntarily took a step forward. When he saw that it was Cao Yuan, the corners of his mouth turned up slightly, revealing an undisguised smile.

Cao Yuan stood on the carriage, waving her arms vigorously at Chu Yan on the city wall. Her smile was as bright and dazzling as a flower blooming in spring, causing the indescribable reluctance in Chu Yan's heart to pour out like a flood breaking through a dam.

On the carriage.

Cao Yuan carefully observed Cao Chun. Cao Chun showed no joy or happiness on the way home, but simply gazed calmly out the window.

She had always wanted to ask Cao Chun what had happened in Shu, but she was afraid to bring up Cao Chun's unhappiness.

Bai Lu tugged at Cao Yuan, "Princess, what are your plans for our trip to Wei?"

"Not yet, I'm thinking of going back and observing the situation first."

"Bai Lu, you said the remaining half of the tiger tally is with me, are you sure?"

Bai Lu nodded firmly.

Cao Yuan fell into deep thought. According to Chu Yan, her father must have some resentment towards her second brother. The remaining half of the tiger tally should not be in the palace, but hidden in that poem.

Plum blossoms fall in the setting sun!

It seems she needs to go somewhere before entering the palace.

Xuanfeng led them into the capital city and settled them in an inn.

Cao Yuan and the others got off the carriage together, and she and Bai Lu discussed going somewhere else together.

"Elder sister, I want to go somewhere before entering the palace. Could you wait a few days before you come to the palace with me?"

Cao Chun nodded.

Xuanfeng was about to follow Cao Yuan when Cao Yuan said, "You don't need to go! Stay here and protect my elder sister and Jinzhu."

"Ah I……"

“But…” Xuanfeng turned to look at Cao Chun, who snorted and turned to enter the inn. When he turned back, Cao Yuan and Bai Lu had already disappeared.

"But I still don't know where you're going!" Xuanfeng sighed. How was he supposed to report this to the Crown Prince?

Cao Yuan and Bai Lu went to the market together to buy two horses.

Where do we go now?

"I want to go to the imperial mausoleum to look for any clues. I can't let my second brother find it first."

Just as Cao Yuan finished speaking, she was suddenly bumped in the face.

"Princess, are you alright?" Bai Lu asked with concern.

Cao Yuan frowned in pain, gently rubbing her injured shoulder as she slowly raised her head. To her astonishment, she saw a bearded man standing before her, his expression dazed. The man looked as if he had lost his soul, utterly disoriented.

He seemed completely unaware that he had just bumped into someone. After a while, he seemed to wake up from a dream and mumbled an apology to Cao Yuan: "I'm... I'm sorry!" Then, without waiting for Cao Yuan's response, he turned around and staggered away in another direction.

"Fan Qingli!"

Cao Yuan shouted at his retreating figure.

Fan Qingli stopped in a daze, slowly turned her head, and her previously dejected eyes suddenly brightened.

Bai Lu rubbed her eyes. "Is this... Lord Fan? What happened to him?"

"Your Highness!" Fan Qingli rushed over, grabbed Cao Yuan's shoulders with both hands, looked closely, his eyes reddened, he rubbed his eyes and patted his face to prove that he was not dreaming.

"It really is you, you...you're back!"

"It's me! I'm really back!" Cao Yuan hadn't seen Fan Qingli for a long time. How could the once spirited and dashing Fan Qingli have become like this?

"Lord Fan, it's only been a short time since we last met, how did you get yourself into this state?" Cao Yuan asked curiously, wondering what had happened to her after she had been gone for so long.

The three of them found a teahouse, and Fan Qingli told them the whole story.

"So you've been looking for her all this time! How could Luo Xiaoniang, a woman confined to her chambers, disappear so completely in the capital?" Cao Yuan said.

"Have you reported it to the authorities?"

Fan Qingli shook his head. "The Marquis of Dingguo sent word that we cannot report this to the authorities, as it would damage the reputation of his manor."

"This is outrageous! They can't even find their own daughter, and they won't let us report it to the authorities!"

Bai Lu slammed her hand on the table and stood up angrily.

"I have already spoken to the government office. They told me to notify them if there is any...unidentified female corpse."

"Since there's no news, that's the best news. Maybe she just went to another city to relax," Cao Yuan comforted her.

Fan Qingli rubbed her eyes. "Your Highness returned this time...for His Majesty?"

"My father sent me a message; I heard he's been placed under house arrest. Do you know what happened?"

Fan Qingli shook her head, "Father is eager to win over the Second Prince, so I can't ask any more questions."

“Ever since I returned to the capital with the Second Prince, I have never seen His Majesty attend court! The Second Prince was already handling state affairs, and with half of the Tiger Tally in his possession, he quickly took control of the court, which the ministers took for granted.”

"Your Highness said His Majesty sent you a message. When was that? The capital is heavily guarded; not even an ant can get in. How could such a message possibly get through?"

Bai Lu explained, "If that's the case, then it was indeed quite easy for me to enter the palace, and it's possible that it was because of Xiao Jinghan."

"Let's not worry about how strict it is for now; we need to find the other tiger tally."

"Is there anything I can do?" Fan Qingli asked.

"Of course!"