Su Yuyao forced her way into the Vermilion Bird Palace

With Yu Qing's matter resolved, Su Yuyao finally breathed a sigh of relief. No matter what, Grandpa Langzhi wouldn't go to the academy to flirt with Yu Qing. And Qingyue's expression... while not great, wasn't as pale as before...

“Miss! The side couch has been moved over. Why don’t you come back to sleep here tonight?” Bai Er asked tentatively.

Su Yuyao looked at the unusually calm Qingyue, still somewhat worried about Qingyue's emotions, "I... still want to sleep with Your Highness!"

Qingyue's eyes flickered, and she said to Su Yuyao, "Go back to your room and sleep..."

"No!" Su Yuyao took off her shoes and climbed onto Qingyue's bed. "Your Majesty, please let me stay one more night!"

Qingyue was feeling very down. She had finally managed to get Langzhi to leave, and now she just wanted to be alone. But Su Yuyao started acting up again, so she could only patiently coax her, "Yao'er, be good and go back to your room!"

Su Yuyao ignored him completely, took off her clothes, crawled into Qingyue's bed, and muttered, "I'm not leaving!"

Seeing Qingyue suppressing her anger, Bai Er quickly stepped forward and pulled Su Yuyao, winking at her as she said, "Miss, stop making a scene... let's go back!"

"No! No!" Su Yuyao shook off Bai Er's hand and shouted, "I want to sleep here! I want to sleep here! I want the Empress to stay with me!"

Qingyue couldn't take it anymore. She stepped forward, pulled back the covers, grabbed Su Yuyao's arm, and shouted, "Yao'er! Go back to your room!"

"No!" Su Yuyao grabbed Qingyue's waist. "I won't go! I won't go!"

Qingyue, exasperated by Su Yuyao's nagging, said impatiently, "Look at you! You're just like your Grandpa Langzhi! We made you learn from him to temper your character, but instead of learning the good things, you've learned to be a liar!"

Su Yuyao tilted her chubby little face up and said, "Your Majesty... I just want to sleep with you! Please don't send me away!"

Qingyue looked at Su Yuyao's shameless act with annoyance. She was just like that stinky spider!

Suddenly, Qingyue remembered what Granny Zhong had said about her past life...

Her heart skipped a beat, and she suddenly cupped Su Yuyao's face in her hands, recalling... her cheeky expression, her ingratiating manner, her innocent and kind attitude towards everyone... wasn't this just Lang Zhi?

Her heart was pounding. She dared not think any further, yet she couldn't control herself. She gazed at Su Yuyao, who was just as chubby and loved meat as she had once been, as if she were seeing her for the first time...

"Your Majesty, please let me sleep with you one more night..." Su Yuyao said coquettishly, swaying Qingyue's body.

"White Ear," Qingyue stared blankly at Su Yuyao, "prepare hot water for Yao'er..."

"I'm not taking a bath! I'm not dirty!" Su Yuyao let go of Qingyue and crawled back into Qingyue's bed. "Your Highness, please hurry! I'm sleepy!"

The night finally quieted down. Qingyue took off her elegant long robe, let down her neatly styled hair, and lay on the bed stroking Su Yuyao's face. Is it possible? It can't be... How could it be?

Su Yuyao leaned against Qingyue, placing her hand on Qingyue's chest, and fell into a deep sleep...

"Tuan Yue!" Lang Zhi put her hands on her hips and looked at Tuan Yue, who had been punished to stand in the courtyard all day, "Still crying?"

Tuan Yue stared at the spider silk ball that had turned into something at her feet, keeping her mouth shut and remaining silent.

Langzhi let out a long sigh of relief. "You've been standing all day, aren't you tired?"

Tuan Yue remained silent.

Langzhi turned around and looked at the empty courtyard to make sure everyone was gone before approaching Tuanyue, leaning close to her ear, and whispering, "Shall I take you back?"

Langzhi's words gently brushed against Tuanyue's ears and temples, making Tuanyue's heart gradually itch.

Her face flushed, she stubbornly turned her head away, but she couldn't escape the aggressive masculine aura emanating from Kai Zhi.

"Get out," Tuan Yue said angrily.

Langzhi smiled helplessly, "Tuanyue, you made a mistake, and now you won't even let people talk about it?"

Tuan Yue turned her head, pouting, and said, "I did something wrong! But did you have to yell at me in front of so many people?!"

"Okay, okay, I was wrong! I was wrong, alright?!" Langzhi tugged at Tuanyue's arm, laughing as she said, "Don't be angry..."

Tuan Yue pushed Kai Langzhi's hand away, wanting to turn around and leave, but because she had been standing for too long, she couldn't move her feet.

"Ah!" Tuan Yue bent over, clutching her aching and numb legs. "It hurts so much..."

"Hey! Don't move!" Langzhi quickly reached out to help, but inadvertently slipped her hand inside Tuanyue's clothes.

Langzhi was startled, and Tuanyue was taken aback. He looked at her face in horror, while she blushed and did not scold him...

Langzhi did not pull her hand away, but tentatively covered the soft, springy palm with hers. Tuanyue did not resist, but slowly moved closer to Langzhi.

He gently kneaded her skin, and she shyly responded. He lowered his head and pursed his moist, red lips, and she reached out to embrace his broad back...

The courtyard of the spinning room was completely empty, but the door to the spinning room was tightly shut...

"Hmm?" Su Yuyao wiped her wet face with her hand and slowly opened her eyes. "Your Majesty, have you been crying?"

Qingyue then realized that her cheeks were already soaked with tears. Instead of maintaining her usual composure, she simply wiped away her tears under Su Yuyao's distressed gaze, then stroked Su Yuyao's head and asked softly, "Yao'er, did I wake you up?"

“Your Highness…” Su Yuyao mustered her courage and reached out to wipe away the tears on Qingyue’s face, “Please don’t cry, Grandpa Langzhi will be heartbroken…”

Qingyue smiled. She looked at Su Yuyao, who was causing her so much trouble. What did it matter whether it was true or not, whether it was possible or not?

"Yao'er, have you learned what Grandpa Langzhi taught you?"

"I've learned it!" Su Yuyao said with a grin. "Now I know how to collect manure and how to pile it up!"

"What?!" Qingyue slapped Su Yuyao in anger. "You child! Why do you only learn useless things?!"

"Hehe..." Su Yuyao snuggled into Qingyue's arms shamelessly, "Your Highness, don't be angry! I've memorized everything Grandpa Langzhi taught me! It's just that I'm not quite sure how to use it yet..."

"You need to practice more! Stop playing all day! When Xuanfeng was your age, he already took on the responsibilities of a Daoist Heavenly Lord!" Qingyue said, stroking Su Yuyao's hair.

"Your Majesty, when will Xuanfeng return? I miss him so much!" Upon hearing Xuanfeng's name, Su Yuyao couldn't suppress her longing and asked.

"Missing Xuanfeng?" Qingyue asked, gently patting Su Yuyao's back.

"Huh?" Su Yuyao suddenly realized she had said the wrong thing, sat up abruptly, and stepped aside. "Your Majesty! I was wrong!"

Qingyue looked at the panicked Su Yuyao and sighed, "What have I done to this child?"

Qingyue sat up, took Su Yuyao's hand, and said softly, "Yao'er, Xuanfeng is very busy. He will come to find you as soon as he is done."

This was the first time Su Yuyao had seen Qingyue cry, the first time she had seen Qingyue dressed in casual clothes with her hair down, and the first time she had heard Qingyue speak gently to her. She couldn't help but worry. Why didn't the Empress scold me? Could it be that she was really upset?

"Your Majesty," Su Yuyao asked cautiously, "Are you... feeling unwell?"

Seeing Su Yuyao's serious expression, Qingyue pulled her into her arms with heartache and gently patted her, "Go to sleep, you don't need to go to the manure drying ground tomorrow..."

"Really? That's wonderful!" Before Qingyue could finish speaking, Su Yuyao leaned against her and lay down, closing her eyes in peace...

Su Yuyao's life became more comfortable. Qingyue took over the small courtyard, and she no longer had to worry about everyone's affairs.

Feihua gradually calmed down. Apart from being a little slow on her feet, she stopped forcing Su Yuyao to memorize texts and stopped hitting her.

Lang Zhi busied himself between the manure drying yard and the small courtyard every day, happily enduring Qing Yue's cold glares with a warm face.

Yuqing, unusually dressed, spent her days with Granny Zhong watching over the troublesome children...

"Feihua! Feihua!" As soon as Bai'er finished dressing Su Yuyao, Su Yuyao rushed to Feihua's room and whispered to Feihua, "In a little while, tell Qingyue that you want to go to the tofu shop to see the white rice cakes!"

"I'm not going!" Fei Hua shook her head.

"You're so stupid!" Su Yuyao tapped Feihua's forehead. "I've calculated it! Aunt Mi will most likely be frying tofu today! If we go, we might be able to get some fried tofu! If not, we can at least get a bowl of soy milk!"

"I'll eat fried tofu!" Fei Hua nodded, then shook her head. "I'm not going to tell Lady Qingyue..."

"Feihua, the Empress loves you the most. You go and talk to her, she'll definitely succeed!" Su Yuyao pulled Feihua and went to find Qingyue.

Fangchun quickly stopped her, "Miss! Miss! The fairy is just feeling a little better, please let her rest! Besides, Her Majesty isn't in the courtyard, she's in the Vermilion Bird Palace discussing matters with Lord Guan Xiao and Young Master Guan Yue!"

"Hmm? Vermilion Bird Palace?" Su Yuyao stopped and looked at the Vermilion Bird Palace, which was built on the cliff and resembled lush branches and leaves. "That's wonderful!"

She turned around and pulled Feihua, saying, "I've been here for so long and I've never been to the Vermilion Bird Palace! Let's go together this time!"

"I'm not going." Fei Hua broke free from Su Yuyao's hand. "I'll get scolded."

Fangchun quickly shielded Feihua behind her, forcing a smile as she said, "Miss, the fairy's health hasn't fully recovered yet. The Vermilion Bird Palace is so high up; if something happens, we'll have a hard time explaining ourselves! Why don't you... go yourself?"

Su Yuyao looked at Fangchun's awkward, forced smile, snorted, and said to Feihua, "Hmph! If you don't want to go, then don't go! When I get the fried tofu, there won't be any for you! You won't even get any soy milk!"

After saying that, he turned and ran out of the yard.

Inside the Vermilion Bird Palace, Su Yuyao had only visited Guan Yue's Shoujing Hall and had not gone any further up. At first, she was not curious, but now that she had a reason to go in and take a look, she became excited.

She walked up the steps and turned onto the uphill path at the fork in the road leading to Shoujing Hall.

"I'm going too!" Feihua's voice drifted from afar. "I want to go too!"

"My dear fairy, I'll go and buy it for you, okay?" Fangchun coaxed.

"If I don't go, I won't get to eat! I have to go!" Feihua said stubbornly.

Soon after, the sound of footsteps could be heard, catching up with Su Yuyao.

Su Yuyao turned around with a smile, and pulled Feihua, who was just as chubby as her, up with her. "Come on! Let's go together!"

Fangchun chased after them to the entrance of the Vermilion Bird Palace, but dared not rush in. She called out anxiously, "Miss! Fairy! Be careful!"

Su Yuyao naturally wouldn't take such a trivial instruction to heart. She pulled Feihua up the steps, turned a corner, and suddenly her eyes flashed, a white light dissipated, and the steep cliff disappeared. What appeared before Su Yuyao was a gentle slope somewhat similar to the hall she visited for the first time.

Unlike other paths, the mountain trails here are paved with gray-white stone steps, each path distinct and independent, not intersecting with the others, truly resembling tree trunks. Along the gray-white trails are neat stone houses, like leaves on a tree trunk. A few large trees grow between the houses, but there is no green grass…

"Wow! Feihua! This place is so unique! It's completely different from what I saw down here!" Su Yuyao held Feihua's hand, observing the unique scenery in amazement.

"Miss Yao'er?!" A person dressed in armor walked out of a stone house by the roadside. "What brings you here?"

"Huh? I..." Su Yuyao looked around for a while but couldn't figure out who was inside the armor, so she had to answer, "Fairy Feihua had something to discuss with Lady Qingyue, so I brought her here! Um... excuse me... General, where is Lady Qingyue?"

"Hahaha!" The armored man laughed loudly. "Miss Yao'er, don't you recognize me? You were the one who showed me the way to learn fire-breathing!"

"Huh? Fire-breathing?" Su Yuyao tried hard to recall, and finally remembered that she had indeed shown it to someone who could breathe fire in the Yuantun Palace!

"Oh, it's you! Have you learned how to breathe fire?" Su Yuyao asked with a smile.

"I've got it! Following your method, my eyes can now light candles!" he said excitedly. "However, I heard that the wildfire you started was truly formidable! Even Lord Langzhi couldn't extinguish it with his spider webs; in the end, it was only thanks to Lady Qingyue..."

"Ah...hehe..." Su Yuyao said with an awkward laugh, "Um...what's your name..."

"Oh, I am Bi Rong!" Bi Rong clasped his hands in a fist and bowed deeply.

"Ah, Bi Rong, that... Lady Qingyue, she..."

"Go to the third intersection ahead and turn left. It's the stone house at the very end!" Bi Rong pointed out the way enthusiastically.

Su Yuyao curtsied in thanks, then pulled Feihua along and ran in the direction Bi Rong pointed.

"Miss Yao'er!" Bi Rong called out, "Teach me how to start a fire sometime!"

Su Yuyao pulled Feihua along and ran even faster...

"What?! The mountains under Qinggan's jurisdiction have been flooded?" Qingyue said in surprise. "Those mountains have gentle slopes, lush forests, and wide rivers. Even with heavy rain, they shouldn't have been flooded!"

Guan Yue said, "The weather cleared up these past few days, and Dandelion brought back the news. Lord Xuanfeng had long suspected something was amiss with the floods in the south, so he sacrificed a valley to absorb the floodwaters. Unexpectedly, the torrential rain stopped. Lord Xuanfeng deduced that the rain would turn towards Jiujiao Mountain, but on his way back, he accidentally entered a multidimensional channel that was transporting the rain. When Lord Xuanfeng broke through the channel and escaped, the rain stopped..."

"I understand..." Qingyue said thoughtfully, "The torrential rain was originally meant to reach Jiujiao Mountain, but it accidentally injured the southwest branch! What did Xuanfeng say?"

Guan Xiao said, "Lord Xuanfeng has already gone with Lord Qimen, and their current idea is..."

"Your Majesty! Your Majesty!" Su Yuyao rushed in, shouting, "Feihua has something to say to you..."

Seeing the serious expressions on the faces of the group, Su Yuyao knew that she had made a mistake by barging in, so she quickly grabbed Feihua and turned to run away.

"Stop!" Qingyue was both surprised and angry. Ignoring her dignity as a lady, she took two quick steps, grabbed Su Yuyao's ear, and slapped Su Yuyao's bottom twice. "Don't you have any manners?! This is not a place you can just barge into! And you dare to shout like that!"

Su Yuyao was pinched painfully by Qing Yue and retorted, "Didn't Your Majesty also shout and yell?"

"You?!" Qingyue turned around and looked at Guan Xiao, who was awkwardly covering his face and trying not to laugh, and Guan Yue, who was squinting and watching the show. Then, she put on her imperial airs and released Su Yuyao. "What are you doing here!"

"Yao'er said Aunt Mi is frying dried tofu today, so I want to go see the white rice cake..." Fei Hua whispered from outside the door.

"Feihua!" Su Yuyao gritted her teeth in anger. Feihua's brain is getting worse and worse! She sold me out so quickly!

"Eat, eat, eat! All you know is eating!" Qingyue wanted to take another bite, but with outsiders present, she could only glare at them and scold, "Go back and study!"

"Huh?" Su Yuyao said with a bitter face, "Fine, I won't go. I don't want to memorize my lessons..."

"Go back quickly!" Qingyue said, suppressing her anger.

Su Yuyao sighed and pulled Feihua along, complaining as they walked, "Feihua! You're getting dumber and dumber! What good would it do you to sell me?! Neither of us would have anything to eat! And we couldn't even go out to play..." She rolled her eyes and whispered to Feihua, "In a little while... we'll say that Her Majesty has agreed to let us go out to play. We'll go straight to the tofu shop, eat, and come right back. Her Majesty won't find out!"

Feihua blinked as she listened, seemingly understanding quite a bit.

"Su Yuyao!" Guan Yue called out to Su Yuyao.

"Huh? Brother Yue'er? What's wrong?" Su Yuyao asked, craning her neck.

"Come and see, what would you do in this situation?" Guan Yue called out to Su Yuyao, ignoring Qing Yue's dark expression.

"Oh...then I...take a look?" Su Yuyao glanced at Qingyue, whose face was gloomy, but she did not stop her.

Su Yuyao then boldly ran back to the stone house and carefully examined the sand table in the middle of the house.

“If that’s the case, we can take this opportunity to block this road!” After listening to Guan Yue’s brief introduction, Su Yuyao gestured on the sand table with her hand. “Didn’t we talk about this before at Yuantun Palace? This time, we can take advantage of the heavy rain to block this road to the Heavenly Palace. That way, the people on these ten mountains controlled by Lord Qinggan will only be able to detour through the heart of the Immortal Mountain to enter and exit!”

Guan Xiao laughed and said, "That's right! This road leads directly to the Heavenly Palace, so in order to protect the Heavenly Palace from the flood, we have no choice but to block it up!"

"Has Xuanfeng already blocked this place?" Su Yuyao asked with a smile.

Guan Xiao smiled and nodded.

Qingyue was somewhat surprised to see that Su Yuyao's plan was the same as Xuanfeng's. "Yao'er, how did you know Xuanfeng's intentions?"

"Hehe... Of course I know! Because blocking this place was my idea!" Su Yuyao said proudly.

Guan Yue looked at Su Yuyao with a smile and asked softly, "If there is a flood in Jiujiao Mountain, how will you deal with it?"

“Jiujiao Mountain? Hmm… let me think…” Su Yuyao pondered for a long time while looking at the sand table. “How could there be a flood in Jiujiao Mountain? The surrounding mountains are all very high, and the climate here doesn’t seem like it would experience torrential rain. Even if there were torrential rain, it would flow out along the valleys!”

As Su Yuyao spoke, her eyes suddenly turned serious. "However... the canyons here in Jiujiaochuan are long and narrow. If there really is a rainstorm as big as the one in the southwest branch, we... will be in danger!"

"Lord Langzhi's place has been cleared. If there is flooding, we can divert the water there first. Is this a feasible plan?" Guan Yue also became serious.

Su Yuyao didn't answer, but thought for a moment and asked, "You just said... that the floods in the south were caused by someone using some kind of channel to transport the torrential rain directly there. In other words, they can use the same method to transport the torrential rain here! Such a blatant thing, and Mother Yi didn't do anything about it?!"

“No…” Guan Yue shook his head and said.

"Hmm..." Su Yuyao looked at a plain not far from Jiujiao Mountain and asked, "What place is this?"

"This is the birthplace of Lady Yimu, the Yin Guo Garden!" Lady Qingyue said. "The people living here are all Lady Yimu's family members, and Qinggan's mother, Qingjin, also lives here..." A fleeting trace of melancholy crossed Qingyue's face.

"How can we get to Yingguo Garden from Jiujiao Mountain?" Su Yuyao asked again.

"It would be difficult for people to get through!" Guan Yue said with a smile. "Although there is a canyon here, it has been blocked by huge rocks!"

"No need for people to cross! As long as the water can flow across!" Su Yuyao said with a grin.

"What nonsense are you talking about!" Qingyue slapped Su Yuyao on the head.

Su Yuyao covered her head and said indignantly, "Your Majesty! Empress Yi clearly knows that someone deliberately caused the flood, but she has been slow to act. Only by diverting the water to Empress Yi's territory can she intervene in this matter!"

"You still dare to talk back?!" Qingyue glared at him, raising her hand to slap him. "Aren't you afraid that Mother Yi will find out you were the mastermind behind this?! Do you have any regard for your life?!"

Su Yuyao covered her head and dodged, "Your Majesty! Although there are many capable people in Jiujiao Mountain, they definitely can't withstand the raging flood! Yinguo Garden is the hometown of Your Majesty's Mother, Your Majesty's Mother will definitely come to the rescue... Ah! It hurts!"

"Yao'er! Your idea is excellent!" Feihua shouted, leaning against the door frame.

"Your Majesty!" Su Yuyao dodged Qingyue's slap, "Look! Feihua also says my idea is good!"

Feihua nodded and said, "Let's sneak out to play in a little while, and come back as soon as we finish eating. The Empress definitely won't find out..."

"Huh?" Su Yuyao quickly waved her hands and said, "When did I say I was going to sneak out to play? I never said that!"

Qingyue's anger, which had not yet subsided, flared up even more.

Her face flushed with anger. She grabbed Su Yuyao and, ignoring Guan Xiao and Guan Yue's attempts to stop her, dragged Su Yuyao outside and slapped her hard several times. "Yao'er! You and Feihua stay here! Stand facing the wall and reflect on your words! Think about what you should and shouldn't say!"

Su Yuyao covered her bottom and stubbornly said, "I didn't say anything wrong!"

“Yao’er is right!” Fei Hua echoed.

"I told you you weren't wrong! I told you you weren't wrong!" Qingyue slapped her a few more times, disregarding her image.

Su Yuyao finally shut her mouth, tears welling up in her eyes, feeling wronged.

Qingyue then tidied her makeup and walked into the stone house with a dignified air.