Xiao Ling thought he might be mentally challenged.

Qiao Zhen succinctly explained:

She walked to the alley entrance and turned the corner, only to find that Shen Zhao had really abandoned her and left her behind. She was heartbroken; her heart had turned to ice and shattered into pieces that she couldn't even pick up.

Xiao Ling:

Qiao Zhen:

Xiao Ling:

Qiao Zhen:

In the end, Qiao Zhen still broke into the general's mansion at night to put the fake military tally inside, but found something interesting in General Xu's study: a bright yellow cloth. She unfolded it and looked at the writing inside; it turned out to be the late emperor's edict.

The general idea is that if the young emperor is incompetent, the throne will be passed to Shen Zhao.

This is outrageous!

No way!

Qiao Zhen tucked the roll of cloth into her wide sleeve and, taking advantage of the absence of the study, moved through the night. Lately, her movements had become increasingly effortless, and her senses had become more acute.

After she entered the Xuan Shi Hall without anyone noticing, she went into the inner room. The tension from sneaking into the general's mansion and breaking into the palace at night gradually subsided, and drowsiness began to creep into her mind.

Qiao Zhen crawled directly into the quilt.

Xiao Ling:

Qiao Zhen:

neat:

Qiao Zhen:

Chuchu was resolute:

That hurts, my Chu.

well.

It's definitely a little painful, but not to the point of self-destruction or suicidal thoughts. As men, no one in this world is indispensable.

At least that's Joe's attitude.

When Shen Lan arrived at the inner chamber of Xuan Shi Hall, layers of dark clouds had already obscured the bright moonlight. He saw something protruding from under the covers, and as his gaze moved upward, he saw Qiao Zhen's half-exposed face.

He sat on the edge of the bed, gently brushing Qiao Zhen's nose with the tip of her hair, and couldn't help but chuckle as he watched her twitch her delicate nose, unwilling to wake up.

Qiao Zhen felt something furry on the tip of her nose and slapped it. Learning from Lu Yuanchuan's experience in that world, she didn't speak while she was not fully conscious. After opening her eyes and calming down for a few minutes, she finally saw the little emperor clearly before lifting a corner of the quilt and rubbing her sleepy eyes.

Shen Lan looked at Qiao Zhen with disdain, "How can there be such a slovenly woman?"

Enraged, Qiao Zhen threw the military tally from her sleeve at Shen Lan, but seeing how delicate his face was, she couldn't bring herself to hit him in the face. "What a pity I didn't manage to kill you."

Shen Lan caught the military tallies and found they were all genuine. His gaze towards Qiao Zhen subtly changed. He had sent people to steal these tallies before, but they had all been defeated by the General's Mansion's defenses.

Qiao Zhen sensed Shen Lan's subtle change, and she suddenly felt inflated. "Don't love me, there's no future for us."

Shen Lan accepted all the military tallies. "These are enough to command 300,000 elite troops. You're just giving them to me like this? Aren't you even a little bit reluctant?"

Qiao Zhen frantically tried to snatch the military tally while simultaneously teasing the young emperor, "I didn't think much of it at first, but now that you mention it, I'm actually a little reluctant to part with it. Give it back to me quickly, I'm regretting it."

There's no reason to return a military tally that's already in your hands. Shen Lan immediately protected the tally carefully. "What's given away is like water spilled; there's no reason to take it back."

Qiao Zhen chuckled, but then realized it wasn't the time to laugh. She straightened her expression and asked, "What else do you want?"

Shen Lan was surprised by Qiao Zhen's abilities; she didn't hold back when making demands, and her requests were quite outrageous. "And the Prime Minister, he's also one of Shen Zhao's men. Why don't you kill the Prime Minister and frame the Regent? That would kill two birds with one stone. What do you think of this plan?"

Qiao Zhen nodded in agreement. She couldn't resist pinching Shen Lan's slightly chubby cheek, "How will you repay your sister for helping you?"

After pondering for a long time, Shen Lan said, "You can pinch my face however you like, how about this in return?"

"Okay," Qiao Zhen agreed with a smile. "But I have other requirements. You mustn't reveal that I'm the one plotting behind your back. Just treat me like I'm invisible, coming without a trace and leaving without a trace. If you agree, I will do everything I can to help you."

Shen Lan tilted his head, deliberately catering to Qiao Zhen's preferences, "Okay."

Qiao Zhen raised her hand and ruffled Shen Lan's hair. "Good boy, you still haven't grown up." He couldn't even hide the emotions in his eyes, but she wouldn't expose him.

"I have one more request, please let me stay for one night, I have nowhere else to go." She deliberately made a pitiful expression, looking innocent.

Shen Lan pointed to the bougainvillea-covered couch, "Here, you can sleep there tonight."

Qiao Zhen looked at the soft couch, which was about two meters long and one meter wide, enough for her to turn over. "Okay." Her eyes darted around. "How about letting me eat something else? I just secretly put a fake military tally into the general's mansion. I guess the generals won't find out yet. You can take advantage of the fact that they don't know the tally is fake and bribe their confidants to try to turn defense into offense."

What she could think of, the young emperor could think of as well, but the young emperor's thinking was not as thorough as hers.

The two talked about the battle plan all night long, until just as dawn was breaking, Qiao Zhen finally huddled under the covers on the boudoir bed and closed her eyes to rest.

As for the young emperor, he had to change his clothes and go to court, which, in modern terms, started at 5:30 a.m. and ended depending on whether anything important happened in court.

When Qiao Zhen woke up and her stomach was growling with hunger, Shen Lan also returned from court.

"Yi Chen, I'm so hungry," Qiao Zhen said dejectedly to the little emperor, her hair a mess. "You can't bear to watch me fall from the sky halfway through my flight and be sent to prison as an assassin, can you?"

The young emperor's lips twitched. He had no idea why this woman was still here. He even felt that Qiao Zhen's ability to sneak into the palace at night was a complete waste. "I'll have someone bring the meal."

Soon, the palace maids and eunuchs carried trays of pastries and dishes to the table in the outer room. "You may all leave," Shen Lan said, feigning maturity.

Even a starved camel is bigger than a horse.

No matter what, Shen Lan is still a little emperor.

He had no shortage of food, clothing, shelter, and transportation. Even his three meals a day were prepared according to the standards of emperors throughout history, with dishes and pastries that were perfect in color, aroma, and taste.

After Qiao Zhen had eaten and drunk her fill, she used the available resources to comb her hair, making it match her clothes perfectly and showing no signs of dishevelment. Only then did she leave satisfied.

Jiao Lan stood at the door with Xiao Bao, whose eyes were brimming with tears. "Aunt Lan, what if Mommy doesn't come back? Does she not want Xiao Bao anymore?"

"No, Madam wouldn't abandon the young master. Perhaps Madam has something to attend to. Let's wait a little longer. Maybe Madam will come back tomorrow?" Jiao Lan couldn't help but tear up, but she didn't dare let Xiao Bao see it.