Three days later, after the ceasefire agreement was finalized, the envoy from Daqing bowed slightly and personally escorted Ji Wuyu and his entourage away from the border. According to the wishes of both sides, and also on the orders of Daliang, Ji Wuyu was to return to the capital immediately.

But Ji Wuyu, after a year of hard work, could not possibly return empty-handed. He selected a portion of the army, while the rest were stationed on the border, not only to guard against Daqing, but also to guard against Ji Hao.

At least the troops they brought back were enough to raze the capital to the ground.

When it was time to set off, Ruan Qing'an naturally got into the carriage and leaned against the window, while Ji Wuyu mounted his horse.

The envoy from Daqing, hunched over, carefully presented the map, saying, "Your Highness, the Emperor of Daqing asked me to convey a message to you: the ceasefire only counts if you are present."

"……knew."

Ji Wuyu narrowed his eyes slightly, but didn't say anything more.

Daqing and Daliang are the only two major powers left besides the surrounding small countries, so it is impossible for them to coexist peacefully. This time, they were only frightened by Ji Wuyu, but it is absolutely impossible for them to never take action against Daliang again.

With Ji Wuyu present, everything will be fine; otherwise, there will be a massive army.

Ji Wuyu understood the meaning of the Daqing envoy, but he didn't care. He would naturally suppress Daqing after he ascended the throne. As for the possibility that he wouldn't ascend the throne... that was impossible.

At worst, I'll just kill those "friendly" princes. After all, I almost died at their hands back then; it's just a matter of returning the favor.

Just as Ji Wuyu pulled on the reins, preparing to leave, the Daqing envoy suddenly stepped forward and lowered his voice: "I would like to add a message for Your Highness: Daqing has never attempted to ambush or kill you. Your Majesty can see what you need."

After saying this, the Daqing envoy hurriedly left.

Ji Wuyu held the reins, while in the carriage beside him, Ruan Qing'an rested her chin on her hand and chuckled, "I understand now."

"Over the past year, Your Highness could have defeated many more places in Daqing, but in fact, you have also been able to contain their defeat to a certain extent. The two have maintained a balance of mutual restraint. His Majesty of Daqing has seen this, so he has not taken any action against Your Highness."

"So...the incident when Your Highness met Miss Ah Xiu seems even more suspicious."

Ji Wuyu nodded slightly, his dark eyes filled with contemplation.

Meanwhile, ahead, Ah Xiu followed the army returning to the capital, claiming she wanted to broaden her horizons in the capital. Since Ji Wuyu and Ruan Qing'an did not stop her, no one said anything.

She was walking ahead when she turned around and saw Ji Wuyu and Ruan Qing'an talking side by side, their attitude intimate and familiar.

hateful……

Ah Xiu's fingernails almost dug into her flesh. She gripped the medicine packet in her hand tightly, suppressing the resentment in her heart, and walked forward quickly.

The army was a step behind, after all, Ji Wuyu couldn't very well lead his men directly to the capital. According to the old emperor Ji Hao's thinking, that would be no different from starting a war face to face.

Therefore, Ji Wuyu simply gave up riding a horse and went with Ruan Qing'an, while Long San and A Xiu sat in the coachman's seat. The four of them left first, with the army following slowly behind.

As evening approached, the carriage passed through a small town and stopped in front of the largest inn, finally halting its journey. Long San led the horse to feed the grass, while Ji Wuyu went to book a room.

Four people, four rooms.

Of course, Ji Wuyu wanted to book a room for himself and Ruan Qing'an alone, but Long San's eyes were too resentful, as if he could tell Ruan Changhong at any moment, reminding him of his bad-tempered father-in-law...

Then, Ji Wuyu decisively chose to give up.

It's one thing to secretly "bully" Nguyen Thanh An behind his back, but to "bully" him to his face would get him dragged out and beaten to death by Nguyen Chang Hong.

...

Nighttime, inside the room.

Steam rose as Ji Wuyu rose from the wooden tub. Water flowed down his muscular body, following the lines of his abdominal muscles. After removing his armor, he could finally rest for a moment.

At the same time, there was a knock on the door.

Who's outside?

"It is I, Your Highness."

Ah Xiu's voice came through, still gentle and beautiful.

Ji Wuyu narrowed his long, narrow eyes. Why was Ah Xiu coming to his door at this time? He vaguely felt that something was wrong, but he had kept this woman for three whole months, saying all sorts of strange things.

Most importantly... he almost got killed by his father-in-law because of it.

If this drags on any longer, Ji Wuyu will lose interest in continuing the pretense. Besides, he is about to return to the capital, and all sorts of monsters and demons will likely emerge. It's time to deal with Ah Xiu, this backup plan.

As he was thinking, Ji Wuyu finished dressing, went forward and opened the door. Standing outside was Ah Xiu.

She had changed her clothes and seemed to have taken a bath; her face was flushed, as if she were blushing. After glancing at Ji Wuyu, she immediately lowered her head: "Your Highness, I have something to discuss with you. May I come in?"

"Come in."

Ji Wuyu turned to the side.

Ah Xiu was overjoyed and immediately went into the room. She took out a wine pot from behind her back, placed it on the table, and before Ji Wuyu could speak, Ah Xiu faced him and knelt down with a thud.

Ah Xiu lowered her head, looking pitiful: "Your Highness, Ah Xiu has come to apologize. Please forgive me. I was ignorant before and not only offended Miss Ruan, but also caused you trouble."

"..."

Ji Wuyu paused, remaining silent as he looked down at Axiu. An inexplicable silence spread, causing cold sweat to bead on Axiu's forehead. She felt immense pressure for no apparent reason.

What, what's going on?

Ah Xiu was somewhat apprehensive. Although she didn't understand Ji Wuyu's attitude towards Ruan Qing'an, she believed that she was right to understand Ji Wuyu's personality. She had already knelt down and admitted her mistake, so shouldn't Ji Wuyu rush forward to help her up at this time?

Thinking of this, Ah Xiu cautiously looked up, only to meet a pair of dark eyes. She hurriedly lowered her head, feeling a strong sense of unease and fear spreading through her heart.

But the arrow was already on the bowstring, and it had to be released.

Just then, Ji Wuyu suddenly bent down and helped Ah Xiu up. He took a step back, sat down at the table, and smiled warmly and affectionately, his dark eyes also looking at her with a smile: "Don't say that, Ah Xiu."

"Your Highness..."

Ah Xiu bit her lower lip. She knew that she had misunderstood His Highness earlier. She stepped forward to pour wine for Ji Wuyu, saying, "I bought this from the restaurant across the street. I hope to have a good drink with His Highness. I feel bad for causing His Highness trouble before."

"It was Your Highness who took me in and helped me. There was a misunderstanding between us before. Can you forgive me?"

As Ah Xiu spoke, her desire to have a drink with Ji Wuyu was quite obvious, and Ji Wuyu's gaze fell on the wine glass on the table.

He suddenly asked, "Ah Xiu, is there any sound from Qing'an's side?"

No, no, right?

Ah Xiu was a little stunned.

Ji Wuyu pointed to the door and chuckled, "You know she's jealous. Go see her; I'd like to have a drink with you too."

Ji Wuyu, in his disguise, was almost flawless, like a gentle and affectionate young master. When he looked at the other person with his dark eyes, his deep affection seemed to overflow.

Ah Xiu blushed and quickly ran to the door.

She suddenly realized that being a concubine wasn't so bad; with a little effort, she could become the mistress of the house, as long as Ji Wuyu had her in his heart.

But what she didn't know was...

Let alone looking at her, Ji Wuyu could look at a dog with deep affection. He had been wearing a mask for twenty years and could no longer take it off, except for Ruan Qing'an, a villain just like him.

Silently switching the wine glasses, Ji Wuyu waited for Ah Xiu to sit down at the table. Under her earnest and expectant gaze, he drank the wine in his glass, and a short while later—

Ji Wuyu lay slumped on the table, half-asleep.

\u0003\u0003\u0003