Xie Tingzhou left Fengyi Palace but did not return to the Marquis's residence; he stayed at Wude Division that night.

After working on official business for most of the night, I carried several jars of wine up to the old tree in the courtyard in the middle of the night.

The Wude Division was located in a corner of the palace, and from the trees, one could see the direction of the East Palace.

An autumn hunt prevented the Crown Prince from returning to the palace. The once brightly lit palace is now illuminated only by a few dim lamps.

From a distance, it looks exactly like the Yellow Springs Road leading to the underworld.

Xie Tingzhou's old heart wound had long since healed, and even the scars had been treated and restored to their original state, but today it was throbbing painfully.

He tilted his head back and gulped down the wine, which slid down his lips, across his collarbone, and finally flowed to the spot that had killed him years ago.

Perhaps the alcohol was too strong, causing the old wound to ache even more, and he couldn't help but cough.

A sarcastic smile played on his lips. "Isn't this the underworld?"

Hundreds of the Crown Prince's personal guards and countless secret guards have all died. If the dead truly have souls, those hundreds of wronged spirits cry out in grievance every night, which is probably more tragic than hell.

Another gulp of strong liquor went down his throat, silencing the cough, but it left Xie Tingzhou pale and his fingers trembling slightly.

One guard was on the roof, and the other was under the tree. As his breathing became heavier, the two of them jumped up onto the old tree at the same time.

Fu Guang said worriedly, "Master, it's getting chilly, let's go home."

Xie Tingzhou leaned against the tree trunk, seemingly oblivious, and opened another jar of wine.

But my heart ached even more.

The palace where he is now is his home, but it no longer belongs to him.

Xing Ze boldly tried to snatch the wine jar, saying, "If you get drunk and fall ill, the young mistress will worry."

Zhen'er?

Yes, he also has Zhen'er.

His biological mother shot an arrow into his heart, and he managed to escape by sheer luck, only to be relentlessly pursued by countless assassins.

It was Zhen'er who risked her life to save him.

They stayed with him through his darkest hour, allowing him to live to this day.

Kezhen will spend tonight with the person she cares about.

Xing Ze snatched the wine jar away, but Xie Tingzhou showed no intention of getting up. He then took another jar, exhausted himself, and lay down on a tree branch.

Zhen'er has finally reunited with her master; she has her own happy moments, and he shouldn't disturb them.

The two brothers also realized that Ye Zhen probably wouldn't have time to think about Xie Tingzhou tonight, so Fu Guang added, "Before the Marquis left the capital, he instructed his subordinates to take good care of you. If anything happens to you, he will reprimand his subordinates."

Xie Tingzhou laughed, "You've learned to lie too."

Why would an old man give Fu Guang such mushy instructions when he's a grown man? He's probably worried that Fu Guang might do something reckless, so he wants Fu Guang to keep an eye on him.

Fu Guang pursed his lips. The Marquis had indeed not given such an order, but he knew that the Marquis was sincere towards his master.

He didn't know what had happened in Fengyi Palace, but his master's mood was clearly off today, which must have brought out a deep-seated pain.

The master was the posthumous son of the Empress and the late Emperor. The current Emperor murdered his brother and seized his sister-in-law. Although he established the Crown Prince as the heir apparent, the Empress gave birth to the second prince the following year, followed by the third prince.

The emperor had two biological sons, and many ministers speculated that the emperor's decision to appoint his adopted son as crown prince was merely a show for outsiders.

Because the uninformed public believed that the emperor's succession was the succession of the previous emperor on his deathbed.

After the emperor ascended the throne, he married the former emperor's wife, which drew criticism from officials and the public.

He appointed the late emperor's posthumous son as crown prince, informing the world that he was repaying his elder brother's kindness in passing on the throne, and that the throne would eventually be returned to his brother's son.

At the same time, this incident serves as proof to the world that he genuinely admires the Empress, which is why he was willing to make her son with the late Emperor the Crown Prince.

And he certainly behaved like a good father.

People are easily deceived. After he skillfully maneuvered around the situation, they were moved by his genuine feelings and indeed stopped discussing his marriage to the emperor's sister-in-law.

However, many self-proclaimed shrewd ministers were not easily fooled; they believed that the emperor's appointment of his master as crown prince was merely a stopgap measure.

Since ancient times, which emperor didn't think about passing the throne to his descendants for generations to come?

In an attempt to curry favor with the emperor, they scrutinized him with extremely critical eyes, looking for any faults he might have that would allow them to depose him as crown prince and relieve His Majesty of his burdens.

The most enthusiastic person about this matter was the Empress's father, the Empress's maternal grandfather.

He always felt that only if the second or third prince, who was born to the emperor and empress, became the crown prince could the empress's position be secure, and only then could her family benefit.

Unable to find fault with his master, he went so far as to import smallpox from another country in an attempt to kill his young master.

Fortunately, the Empress still cared for her son, and the Emperor, in order to appear tolerant and magnanimous to the outside world, ordered everyone to do their utmost to treat him, and the master survived.

It was because of the Empress's concern that her master was able to proceed with caution throughout the journey.

The late emperor's faction secretly instigated their master to take revenge, but the master had the ability to distinguish right from wrong since childhood.

Although he also hated the emperor for killing the late emperor, it was a fact that the late emperor was extravagant and licentious, obsessed with alchemy, neglected state affairs, and disregarded the people's livelihood.

It is a fact that the emperor and empress fell in love, and the late emperor took away his beloved and wanted to kill her.

There was another reason why the master did not avenge his father: he could see that the empress truly loved the emperor and that the couple had a deep affection for each other.

If he were to oppose the emperor, it would harm the empress. The master is filial and does not want to cause trouble for the empress.

However, the late emperor's faction failed to instigate him and became resentful, so the emperor had more eyes watching him.

Despite such difficult circumstances, the master never complained, but instead cultivated virtue, practiced self-discipline, and diligently studied to understand principles.

Although he could not be as close to the emperor as father and son, he could still live in peace with him, respect him as the sovereign, and spare the empress from trouble and the people from suffering.

Several years ago, during the autumn hunt, the master was wrongly accused of assassinating the emperor, and the empress shot the master's arrow without hesitation.

Her heart was set on protecting the emperor, and the two princes also brandished their weapons at their master, but the empress did not stop them at all.

The family of four huddled together and retreated into the tent, regarding their master as an enemy, leaving only their master, who had been shot by the empress, prostrate on the ground.

If it weren't for the fact that the master was usually kind and lenient towards his subordinates, and that the officials and guards of the Eastern Palace risked their lives to protect him, the royal hunting grounds outside the city would have been his burial place.

The one who carried out the attack was her own mother, whom her master had protected and trusted in every way, and afterwards, she even assassinated countless people.

After his father's death, his maternal grandparents' family wanted to take his life. His two brothers were separated by a layer of distance. For the master, the empress was his only blood relative in this world.

But the Empress's arrow not only nearly cost her master his life, but also shattered and trampled on his filial piety and faith, causing him to despair of blood ties.

Fu Guang clearly remembered the first words his master said when he met the Crown Prince at the border.

He said, "Tingzhou, I put aside the hatred of killing my father and the resentment of seizing the country, and practiced filial piety with my life, but filial piety killed me."

The former Crown Prince Zhaolin no longer exists.

"Brother, why are you crying?"

Xing Ze's voice pulled Fu Guang back to reality, and Fu Guang was surprised to find that her face was covered in tears.

Xie Tingzhou also looked over, "Fu Guang, are you feeling sorry for me?"

He was probably really drunk, and he even thought he was the Crown Prince Zhaolin from back then.

Fu Guang hurriedly wiped away his tears. "I was thinking of the young master. Master, let's go back. If the young master were still alive, he would surely be heartbroken for you."

Nicholas Tse recently drew some ridicule.

But his mother had no pity for him; her desire to bring him back was only for the sake of her other two sons.