Shengjing has been peaceful these days, but undercurrents are surging in the court. Spring has finally come to an end. After the beginning of summer, the continuous rain seems endless, and the whole city is shrouded in drizzle.

Worried that the memorials would get wet in the rain, Jiang Kang'an took the initiative to stop the emperor's "delivery" service, and like Xiao Lingyu, secretly went to the imperial study to deal with it.

The emperor wanted to put the matter of the queen election on hold, and the ministers were all focused on Mobei and Nan Gu, and were not as urgent as before.

But apart from Hu Yue, the emperor did not let anyone leave the palace.

There was a frequent report of victory from Mobei. According to the current situation, Wala could be defeated soon, so some people began to have evil thoughts.

During the court session, the Right Censor-in-Chief Shang Yu took the lead in proposing that after defeating the Oirat Mongols, He Yanting should continue the Northern Expedition and capture the entire Mobei region in one fell swoop.

Shang Yu originally belonged to Marquis Anle, who was openly a man of Crown Prince Xiao Lingyu. When these words came out, everyone couldn't help but speculate in their hearts.

By standing up this time, does he also represent the prince's intention?

The two most promising candidates for succession to the throne now are Crown Prince Xiao Lingyu and Sixth Prince Xiao Yanli.

But Xiao Yanli was punished and confined to his house, and it seemed that he had been disliked by the emperor.

Xiao Lingyu was just the opposite of him, reviewing memorials in the imperial study every day.

The emperor should favor the prince.

The Crown Prince intends to let He Yanting continue the Northern Expedition. Does this involve the Emperor's intentions?

Everyone looked calm on the surface, but in their hearts, eight hundred thoughts had already begun to compete with each other.

But the emperor knew that Shang Yu had been Xiao Yanli's man from the very beginning, and these words were probably instructed by Xiao Yanli.

He wanted Yan Ting to continue fighting and delay time.

The emperor smiled faintly, "We can discuss this matter after we conquer Wala. There's no rush... Any news from Nan Gu?"

Shang Yu quietly returned to his original position. After listening to the emperor's words, everyone roughly understood that the emperor obviously did not agree to continue the Northern Expedition. This should only be the prince's intention.

So everyone became secretly alert.

"Your Majesty, according to the news, General Jiang and Imperial Censor Jiang have entered Nan Gu, but we don't know what happened there. The army has also set off and will arrive in Nan Gu soon."

The way of Prime Minister Shang Yi.

The emperor nodded slightly and continued discussing other things.

After the court session, Shang Yu entered the Sixth Prince's Palace through a secret passage.

After hearing this, Xiao Yanli smiled faintly and said, "He didn't agree. I believe that once the Oirat Mongols are defeated, the emperor will immediately summon him back to the capital."

"Where did he hit?"

Shang Yu said, "Qingxi Pass."

Qingxi Pass is easy to defend but difficult to attack. There is a steep cliff between the city and the road, and the water flows rapidly below the cliff.

People in the city travel by relying on a wooden bridge.

"The bridge has been destroyed by the Wala people themselves. He Yanting and his men have been stationed on the opposite side for about three days." Shang Yu paused slightly and continued, "I guess there's nothing we can do."

Xiao Yanli knew He Yanting and didn't think so. He just scoffed at what he said, "Nothing you can do? I don't think so."

He had no intention of continuing to discuss the situation in Mobei with Shang Yu, so he changed the subject and said, "What about Nan Gu? The army should be arriving soon. Bai Yan is leading the team, and it's thanks to the emperor's confidence."

Shang Yu felt the same way. He hesitated and said, "I've been to Nan Gu before. During this time, it was raining continuously in Nan Gu, and the miasma in the dense forest was thick. They must be trapped outside."

Just as Shang Yu said, even if Xiao Mingye was chasing at full speed, by the time he reached the border, the miasma had almost covered the entire dense forest.

This place is simply a natural umbrella of protection. There is no need to station anyone there to guard it. Even though there is miasma, no one dares to trespass.

Xiao Mingye sighed softly and ordered them to stay where they were, whispering to Du Chen, "Keep an eye on him."

This "he" refers to Bai Yan.

Once they arrived at this place, if Bai Yan wanted to go back, as long as he entered the dense forest, they would be helpless.

At this time, Xiao Mingye would not allow any mistakes to happen.

Du Chen also knew how powerful it was, and nodded when he heard it.

…

Jiang Wenjing and Jiang Zhiyu went to Xu Youran's place every day under the pretext of supervising the embroiderer making clothes for Casas.

After Xu Youran divorced her husband, she had been thinking about what to do.

I decided to come to Nan Gu because of a Nan Gu boy I saw by chance.

After asking around, Xu Youran learned that the clothes of the Nan Gu people were all made of rattan. Although the colors were rich, the styles and accessories were extremely monotonous.

Xu Youran then came up with an idea and came to Nan Gu without telling anyone.

It was the young man from Nan Gu who led her into the dense forest.

Not everyone likes novelty. At first, her clothes were not popular among the Nan Gu people. It was not until Casas said that his useless brother designated the girl wearing her clothes as his concubine that people began to accept it.

But later, the girl suddenly attacked her, and the young man who brought her to Nan Gu was also killed.

When Xu Youran thinks about it now, she still feels guilty.

While they were having a long conversation, on the other side, You Gu, who had been pierced in the abdomen by Jiang Wenjing, finally woke up slowly.

The young man who brought him here was Youli, Yougu's biological brother.

Looking at him, I breathed a sigh of relief.

"Finally you're awake. You must stay in bed and rest for the next few days," You Li said in a cold voice. "You must never be so reckless again."

Yu Gu lay on the bed, looking at Yu Li's tired but worried eyes. He knew that he was frightened, so he said obediently, "I know."

He was also terrified. He felt like he was on the verge of death, and his mind was plunged into absolute darkness. The scene of the dagger flying towards him and piercing his abdomen kept echoing in Yugu's mind.

He retracted his shaking hands back into the quilt and forced a smile at You Li: "I won't act rashly. You must have been worried sick these past few days. Go back and rest."

Yuli stared at his face, and despite Yugu's surprised expression, he lifted his quilt and the two of them squeezed into one bed.

"You Gu, you know that you are my only relative in this world. Similarly, I am your only relative. Neither of us can afford the risk of losing either of us, right?"

"..." Yugu looked at him with red eyes: "Yes, it's my fault, brother."

"Those two are definitely not good people. The elders will deal with them. I will definitely avenge you for the knife you took."

Yuli's voice grew weaker and weaker, but he still managed to finish the sentence.

Yugu looked at Yuli's sleeping face and couldn't help but move his body closer to him.

They are each other's only relatives.

…

The rain in Nan Gu seemed endless. The humidity and the heat made the young Jiang fish, who were used to staying indoors, come out more frequently.

The young men and women who surrounded them that day were all nobles.

Nan Gu is not as big as Tianqi. Walking on the street, it really proves the saying that you can't see it when you look up, but you can see it when you look down.