As soon as the two entered the room, they saw Madam Wang holding a bowl in one hand and a porcelain spoon in the other, feeding Prime Minister Jian water spoonful by spoonful.

Prime Minister Jian was already very resistant, and when he saw his son come in, he immediately turned his head to the side and said, "Alright."

Madam Wang saw Jian Hong at that moment and quickly greeted him with a smile: "Hong'er, you're back. Did things go smoothly?"

Jian Hong had lied to them that he had important business to attend to and was about to leave the capital, but in reality he was going to visit Jian Yang.

Jian Hong nodded slightly and said, "Everything went smoothly. Aunt, please go out first. I have important matters to discuss with Father."

Upon hearing the term "aunt," Madam Wang couldn't help but frown slightly.

She had clearly been officially recognized as his wife long ago, but Jian Hong always addressed her as "concubine".

However, because the eldest son of the Prime Minister's family had distinguished himself in battle and was known as a god of war, Wang Shi dared not act rashly, even though she was unwilling.

She placed the bowl of talisman water on the table beside her and said with a hint of flattery, "Hong'er, remember to send someone to call me after you finish talking with Master. Master can't be left alone, and I have to take care of him."

As she spoke, she glanced behind Jian Hong and saw that it was just an ordinary-looking maid, so she didn't pay any attention to her.

Jian Hong said expressionlessly, "Okay."

Before leaving the bedroom, Madam Wang dismissed all the servants. Seeing that the maid behind Jian Hong was still standing there, she said unhappily, "Where did this girl come from? The young master and the master have important matters to discuss. What are you doing here?"

Jian Yang remained unmoved.

Jian Hong said calmly, "This is my maid. She knows some traditional Chinese medicine. I asked her to take my father's pulse."

Madam Wang quickly smiled and said, "I see. Then Hong'er, you two go ahead with your work."

As soon as Wang left, Jian Yang immediately went to the bedside, picked up the bowl of talisman water, smelled it, and then took out the silver hairpin from her hair to test for poison.

Fortunately, the hairpin didn't turn black, so the talisman water wasn't poisonous.

When Prime Minister Jian saw that she dared to touch the things in the room without bowing, he immediately said to Jian Hong with a stern face: "If you don't know how to train your servants, I will have Steward Wu come and train them for you later."

Jian Yang rolled her eyes and said, "Dad, it's me."

Upon hearing this, Prime Minister Jian's eyes widened in disbelief.

After a long pause, he tentatively asked, "Are you A-Yang?"

Jian Yang nodded: "Yes, my daughter heard you were sick and came back to see you. Give me your hand, I'll take your pulse."

Prime Minister Jian was both surprised and delighted. He offered his wrist, but at the same time, he didn't forget to reprimand her: "The situation in the capital is in great chaos right now. What are you doing back at this critical juncture?"

Jian Yang: "...I already said I came back to see you."

Prime Minister Jian was momentarily speechless, realizing he had asked a foolish question, so he changed the subject, saying, "Have you considered what would happen if the Emperor found out you had returned?"

Jian Yang thought to herself that the emperor already knew, but she still gave a perfunctory answer: "My brother was very careful in bringing me back to the capital this time. Apart from you and my brother, no one else knew that I had returned."

Prime Minister Jian nodded and said, "That's good. But I still have to advise you. Since you have faked your death, do not let anyone else know that you are still alive. Otherwise, not only will you be punished for deceiving the emperor, but our Jian family will not escape punishment either."

“Daughter understands.” Jian Yang nodded casually.

"Furthermore," Prime Minister Jian continued, "you must never return to the Emperor's side, no matter what. Even if the Emperor forgives you for now, he might use this as a pretext to punish you and your father in the future."

Although that was Jian Yang's original plan, hearing her father say it made her feel inexplicably heavy-hearted.

"Father, rest assured, your daughter will never return to the Emperor's side."

After saying that, she withdrew her hand and continued, "I just took Father's pulse. His pulse is steady and strong, not at all like that of a sick person. Are you really sick?"

Upon hearing this, both Prime Minister Jian and Jian Hong froze.

Jian Hong looked at his father in disbelief.

Prime Minister Jian: "..."

He was careless; he was so busy catching up with his daughter that he forgot to continue pretending to be sick, and now he's been completely exposed.

He coughed lightly, looking slightly embarrassed, and said, "It's just that the situation in the capital is still unclear..."

Upon hearing this, both Jian Yang and Jian Hong understood.

What a cunning old fox!

This is clearly a case of feigning illness and staying at home to protect oneself, so as not to be affected by those power struggles.

Seeing that his children's faces were not very good, Prime Minister Jian laughed and said, "How long do you plan to stay this time, A-Yang? I will have someone clean your courtyard. As long as you don't go out and wander around, you can stay here comfortably."

Jian Yang said calmly, "I'll stay in my brother's courtyard."

Is her adoptive father stupid? Letting a "maid" live in her former boudoir would make anyone doubt her identity.

As for how long she would stay, since her father was alright, Jian Yang planned to stay for a few days and then leave.

"Ayang, you can go out first. I have some things to discuss with my father," Jian Hong suddenly said.

Jian Yang nodded and walked out.

To her surprise, as soon as she stepped out the door, she saw the emperor standing there expressionless.

Jian Yang: "..."

Damn it, this person must have overheard her conversation with her father.

“Your Majesty,” Jian Yang said somewhat guiltily, “if you want to hold someone accountable, just hold me alone. Please don’t blame my father.”

"I will not blame you or the Prime Minister, you can rest assured."

You'd better be!

Since the emperor's words were law, Jian Yang believed him to some extent.

“Ayang,” the emperor said again, “come back with me. I will certainly fulfill all the promises I made to you before.”

Jian Yang looked directly into his eyes, took a deep breath, and said, "Your Majesty, as you have heard, my family does not support my being with you. Besides, we are not on the same path. Now that you have returned to the capital, let's part ways here."

The emperor's eyes flickered. "That's their idea. What about yours?"

Jian Yang lowered her eyes and looked at the pattern on the floor tiles, saying, "Does Your Majesty not understand my thoughts? If I truly wanted to stay in the palace, I wouldn't have gone to such lengths to escape in the first place."

"Don't you have even the slightest bit of affection for me?"

Jian Yang, in a fit of despair, retorted, "Never before."

The emperor felt as if his heart had been squeezed, and the pain made it hard for him to breathe.

"I understand." His tone was somewhat heavy, and then he turned and left.

Jian Yang did not look up at him again.

When Jian Hong finished his business with Prime Minister Jian and stepped outside, he found his younger sister standing motionless at the door like a statue.

"Ayang, what's wrong?" Jian Hong patted her shoulder. "Why are you looking down? Are you counting ants on the ground?"

He meant to make her laugh, but Jian Yang slowly raised her head, her eyelashes filled with tears.

Jian Hong was startled and hurriedly asked, "What happened?"

Jian Yang choked up as she said, "He's gone."