Emerging from the Sihai Tea House, Tuoba Hong wandered aimlessly through the bustling crowd, his mind filled with memories of his meeting with Tuoba Ze.

Sure enough, the thing he least wanted to believe at first, he eventually had to come to believe.

But no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't understand how Tuoba Ze had become the way he was today.

From childhood to adulthood, he never thought of competing with him for anything. From a small horse or a beloved dagger to the position of the grassland king, which everyone coveted, he never cared about it in the slightest.

They could turn a blind eye to whatever he had done in the past, but how could he? How dare he? How could he bear to harm their father who loved them so much?

As he walked and pondered, he suddenly reached out and touched himself, realizing, "The Light of the Grassland is a pair in this world. No matter what, I cannot let them be separated again. Perhaps, this is the only thing I can do for the grassland."

After saying that, he hurriedly turned back.

At this moment, in the Sihai Tea House, Tuoba Ze, Mei Xiyuan, and Lu Tianjiao were secretly plotting a major event.

Tuoba Ze said, "I heard that although Xuanyuan Han is confined to his residence and not allowed to leave, he secretly ordered someone to send a batch of ephedra to Longhu City in Dongning Kingdom to treat the epidemic behind the back of Emperor Jing of Western Qin. What would happen if we intercepted this batch of ephedra without anyone noticing?"

As Lu Tianjiao poured tea for Mei Xiyuan, he said, "Without ephedra, there would be no cure for this great plague in Longhu City, and no one could save us."

Mei Xiyuan still looked worried and said with great difficulty, "But they are still citizens of my Dongning Kingdom. How can I, as a princess, stand by and watch them die?"

Upon hearing this, Tuoba Ze and Lu Tianjiao exchanged a glance, and then Tuoba Ze reminded them, "Princess, you are mistaken. From the day you married far away, you were no longer Princess Dongning. Now, you are no longer the subject of the princess, but the subject of the Third Prince Mei Zhixuan, or Princess Yongning, who is very popular among the people."

Upon hearing this, Mei Xiyuan said angrily, "You..."

Tuoba Ze continued confidently, "Princess, please calm down. Those words you spoke earlier were merely jest; please don't take them to heart. Now that I've managed to invite you here, I have a foolproof plan to help you restore your former glory. Even..."

Mei Xiyuan glared at him angrily, but then patiently listened to his idea.

As Tuoba Ze spoke, he moved closer to Mei Xiyuan and said mysteriously, "I can even help the princess ascend the throne and become the first female emperor of Dongning Kingdom. No, Princess, you should be the first female emperor in this Lingkong Continent, unprecedented and unparalleled. When that time comes, when the princess reigns supreme, majestic and awe-inspiring, will she be afraid of not being able to punish a heartless man?"

Sure enough, the idea was very appealing, and Mei Xiyuan immediately looked at Tuoba Ze's face in shock.

Even Lu Tianjiao, who was standing to the side, was taken aback.

"The Empress?" Mei Xiyuan repeated, half believing and half doubting.

But a moment later, he suddenly laughed as he looked at Tuoba Ze's face.

Then, she picked up the teacup in front of her, took a sip, and said, "What kind of nonsense are you spouting in broad daylight? How can I, the princess, believe that you have such ability?"

As Mei Xiyuan spoke, she looked around and said, "I remember very clearly that last time in the same place, you made the same solemn vows to me, but what was the result?"

"Last time, I was indeed careless and underestimated that girl. That's why I carelessly lost my kingdom. So this time, I will not fail, and I cannot fail again!" Tuoba Ze then gripped the teacup in his hand and said solemnly.

Seeing that Tuoba Ze had made up his mind this time, Mei Xiyuan took a deep breath, raised her head and said firmly, "Fine, I will believe you one more time, but if it fails this time, I will take your life before anyone else."

At this point, the two disheartened individuals locked eyes.

Even Lu Tianjiao, who had been silent to the side, fell silent and dared not utter another sound.

After a while, Mei Xiyuan seemed to have finally let go of the knot in her heart that had been bothering her for who knows how long, and asked easily, "This princess wants to know, after you have helped this princess so much, what do you want from this princess?"

Tuoba Ze stared intently at Mei Xiyuan's face for a moment, after which Mei Xiyuan guessed, "You wouldn't be thinking of me, the princess..."

At this moment, Tuoba Ze said with deep emotion, "How dare I offend the princess? To tell you the truth, after the war in the northwest, my country was destroyed and my family was wiped out. I only want revenge."

Recalling the past, Mei Xiyuan also said fiercely, "What the Western Qin Kingdom owes me, I will one day take back for it all."

Little did they know that all of this plotting was overheard by Tuoba Hong, who had returned to reclaim the heart of the grasslands.

Tuoba Hong pulled the guards aside and questioned them, "What exactly has the eldest prince done? Tell me in detail."

“The eldest prince… he…” the guard began to explain.

Upon hearing the guard's words, Tuoba Hong was stunned by Tuoba Ze's almost inhuman actions.

When he finally came to his senses, he muttered to himself, "No, I absolutely cannot sit idly by and let my brother become so depraved and harm the world."

Seeing Tuoba Hong about to rush in, the guard quickly grabbed him from behind and stopped him, saying, "Second Prince, it's no use. You can't stop the First Prince's plan. His eyes are full of hatred now; he's gone mad and there's no cure!"

Tuoba Hong was still determined to stop him, so he struggled and said, "No, even if it means death, I must stop my brother."

Seeing that he could no longer stop him, the guard, in desperation, struck him with a palm, knocking him unconscious: "Second Prince, I'm sorry, I've offended you."

Behind the Qin Prince's Mansion, in a deserted valley.

As dusk falls on Qixia Mountain, wild geese return home.

Crimson clouds fall from the sky onto the green pond, and the spring waters of the river reflect the rosy glow of the sunset. The mountains and forests are full of fragrant grasses, and colorful butterflies dance among the flowers.

Deep within the flower field, a beautiful woman is seen, her silk robe secretly damp with tears.

Yi Shangyun sat alone in the quiet valley. Before her eyes lay a landscape of unparalleled beauty, yet even amidst such soothing scenery, she could not escape the weight of her worries and the loneliness that lingered in her heart.

Who am I?

"Why are fragmented memories from the past appearing more and more frequently in my mind lately?"

"Who are those people? And what do they have to do with me?"

"Vice President Yi..."

"The eldest daughter of the Yi family..."

"Descendants of the Guardians..."

"The legitimate princess of Dongning Kingdom..."

Which one is really me?

What exactly happened?

"Good heavens, what on earth is going on?"

A man sat on a hillside, hugging his knees, his brows furrowed, muttering to himself for a long time, clearly still unable to find the answer.

Looking up, I suddenly saw flocks of birds soaring in the sky, and I couldn't help but feel a pang of envy, saying, "The sky is high enough for birds to fly freely, and the sea is wide enough for fish to leap. Even weary birds can return to their nests, so when will I be able to have my own freedom?"

Just as she was feeling sad, a little maid's voice suddenly came from behind her: "Your Highness, the Dowager Consort requests your presence!"

Upon hearing the sound, Yi Shangyun quickly snapped out of her daze and turned to look in the direction from which the sound came. She saw that it was Huan'er, who was by the side of Consort Chun, coming to find her, and immediately smiled at her.

But recalling the less-than-friendly conversation with Consort Chun not long ago, Yi Shangyun had a vague feeling that something bad was about to happen again, so she silently thought to herself, "Sure enough, what was bound to happen has happened."

But now, it seems she is completely trapped here, and everything is beyond her control.

For her, what was the worst thing that happened along the way? What else could she not bear?

She decided to stop thinking about it altogether, because whatever it was, she had to face it.

So, after a brief pause in her smile, she still smiled and softly replied, "Okay, I'll be right there."

As she finished speaking and was about to stand up, perhaps because she was thinking too much, she suddenly felt dizzy and quickly reached up to touch her forehead.

In addition, because it had rained for several days in a row, the grass underfoot was still a bit slippery, and Yun slipped lightly on her feet.

Upon seeing this, Huan'er quickly stepped forward to support her, saying with concern, "Princess, be careful! Is something wrong? When we get back, please make sure Physician Le examines you carefully. Now that you are pregnant, you must be extra careful in everything you do."

Yi Shangyun explained, "Don't worry, I'm fine. I'm probably just a little tired from sitting here for so long. I'll go back and rest. There's no need to disturb the others in the manor. I'm really grateful to you for what happened earlier!"

“Princess, you don’t need to be so polite! But… it would be better to ask Physician Yue to take a look,” Huan’er insisted.

Yi Shangyun said, "Really, there's no need. Have you forgotten that I am a doctor myself?"

Huan'er looked intently into her eyes, and suddenly recalled the happy times they had spent in Taohuadian Village in the south of the city. She said with emotion, "I really didn't expect that Ruoxi would be a princess."

Looking at Huan'er's face, which remained as innocent and unchanged as ever, Yi Shangyun gave her a faint smile, but silently thought to herself, "If I told you that I would rather be Ruoxi in Peach Blossom Village who has forgotten everything for the rest of my life, would you believe me?"

However, after saying all that, Yi Shangyun finally reduced it to a single urging sentence: "Hurry up and go, don't keep the Empress Dowager waiting anxiously."

After saying this, the two walked back together.

Huan'er carefully supported him all the way until they reached the entrance of Zihexuan, whereupon Huan'er let go of his hand and went inside to report.

Yi Shangyun stopped in her tracks, took a deep breath outside the door, and then stepped over the threshold and went inside.