Song Tangxue knelt anxiously before the Empress Dowager: "I beg him to allow me to visit Feng County in the future!"

Feng County was Xie Qianzhong's destination. It was full of rioters, who were said to be remnants of the previous dynasty who had come here to escape the court's pursuit. The current laws were of no use to them, and they even dared to provoke the county magistrate on the spot.

Song Tangxue never expected that he would go to such a dangerous place. In her previous life, it was Luocheng, a place with beautiful scenery and residents living in peace and contentment. These are two very different places!

"I will naturally support you. There's no time to lose, you should set off now!"

The Empress Dowager was naturally pleased that she intended to bring Song Tangxue and Xie Qianzhong together.

Leaving the capital is not an easy task. The pancake shop in the capital needs someone to keep an eye on it, and there are other businesses that need someone to take over. Since Song Tangxue released that batch of grain, she has become famous overnight and made a lot of money. It is hard to guarantee that no one with ill intentions will ruin her business.

Song Tangxue had just left the Empress Dowager's palace when she was summoned by Empress Cheng.

The Empress's phoenix eyes were slightly narrowed as she lay half-reclined on the couch, wearing a phoenix robe with a lifelike nine-tailed phoenix embroidered on it. Her nail guards were slightly touching her cheeks, and she only lifted them when she heard a noise. Li Zhaoyun was still by her side, engrossed in reading scriptures.

"You've arrived."

"Your Majesty." The Empress was holding a land deed in her hand; it belonged to that pancake shop.

"I heard you're going to Feng County?"

The news spread really fast; everyone knew she was leaving the capital for some business, and they started eyeing the shops she owned.

"That's right." The Empress placed the land deed in her hand. "Don't worry, I won't take this shop from you. It's just that I'm often away and don't know when I'll be back. The shop can't be left unattended. I happen to have some people who can help you out."

The Empress was threatening her; if she didn't agree, she had plenty of people to smash up the shop.

Once Song Tangxue agreed to the Empress's request, it would be as if the Empress had something on her hands. If she chose someone else, she could use her power to harm that person. Song Tangxue was caught in a dilemma. She had no choice but to agree. Even the Empress thought so.

"Has the Crown Princess thought this through? My patience is limited, and I'm not always so kind as to help." The Empress frowned impatiently. After all, no matter how intelligent Song Tangxue was, she was ultimately just a concubine of the Crown Prince, while she herself was the mother of the nation.

Song Tangxue put the land deed back into her bosom. It might be necessary to check on the people in the shop. She had just casually handed over her confidence. What if something went wrong while she was away from the capital?

"Your Majesty, you may not know this, but when I spoke with the Empress Dowager earlier, we agreed that the shop would be entrusted to the Empress Dowager's people for safekeeping. Now I am saying that I am agreeing to Your Majesty's request... This is probably not a good idea."

If she wanted to outdo the Empress, she had to find someone of higher status. That way, the Empress wouldn't be able to touch the shop. Song Tangxue's plan was simple; she had already made this decision the moment she saw the Empress.

"Well, the Crown Princess really dares to be disrespectful to me just because she has powerful backers."

Li Zhaoyun put down the booklet in his hand: "Mother, I have almost finished memorizing my lessons."

The Empress's attention was drawn to that side: "Never mind, I was just trying to be kind. The Crown Princess may go then."

With everything arranged, Song Tangxue hurried off to Feng County.

The journey to Fengxian passes through three small towns and takes about two days. If anything else happens, the delay will only be longer.

Song Tangxue was extremely anxious, but there was nothing she could do. Since Zhan Ming had told her before that it would be enough to leave today, it proved that Xie Qianzhong's life was not in danger.

night.

After a long and tiring day of travel, Song Tangxue arrived safely in He County after passing through two small county towns.

They ate only dried meat to stave off hunger along the way and never stopped. The accompanying guards were also exhausted. They randomly chose a place to stop and set off early the next morning.

It was almost midnight, but Song Tangxue still couldn't fall asleep. Every time she closed her eyes, she saw Xie Qianzhong holding her in her past life, taking her home alone amidst a battle. Before that, the two of them had no connection, but they chose to resist the civil and military officials at that time, even risking becoming enemies with the entire Yongfeng Kingdom.

Is it worth it?

He had wanted to ask Xie Qianzhong this question for a long time.

"Hello!"

A fruit suddenly bounced off Song Tangxue's head, startling her. When she looked up, she was surprised to see Zhan Ming: "What are you doing here?"

Zhan Ming turned and sat down beside her. This time he wasn't wearing black clothes, but plain clothes like hers. He tossed her a piece of fruit: "I knew you would get the news and come over."

You should have told me sooner.

Otherwise, we would be in Feng County by now, and I wouldn't be so anxious that I can't sleep.

What does it feel like to love someone?

Zhan Ming gazed forlornly at the inky night. From childhood, he had only been taught to fight, and no one had ever told him that he could love someone. As a result, he was all alone by his side, and even his brothers in the Dark Gate were just tools.

He had seen many lovesick men and women before, but they usually didn't have a good ending. Every time that happened, he would laugh at how many people in the world were caught up in so-called love and romance, and he would never be so foolish.

Only now, seeing how much Song Tangxue cares about someone, does he realize that he has never had a brother.

"Fine, just pretend I didn't ask. I don't need to know anyway." As the leader of the Dark Gate, all he needs to do is master martial arts; everything else is a burden to him.

"When you love someone, you will think of them when you can't see them, and when you see them, you will feel completely different, as if all the grievances you mentioned before have vanished."

Song Tangxue really wanted to thank Qianzhong.

I want to know how he ate, how he dealt with the rioters, and whether he was injured.

"I really don't understand you people." Zhan Ming stood up and clapped his hands. "I'm going back first. I just came to see how you were doing. I don't want you to die so soon after we started working together."

Zhan Ming isn't a bad person; he just doesn't know how to get along with others. Deep down, he also needs someone to be with him.

Thank you.

Zhan Ming's face flushed slightly: "Let's go!"

Zhan Ming's figure disappeared into the night, and Song Tangxue's mood suddenly calmed down. That was Xie Qianzhong, after all; he would definitely be alright.

The following day, Song Tangxue arrived in Feng County without incident, but the place was even more chaotic than she had imagined.