"You...you are really the Prince of Xiaoqiaochuan?"

Feng Wan asked her "master" this question with trepidation and pity, but then realized that there was no need for him to answer. The face of the Little Qiao Chuan King was right there, so it was naturally him.

The benefactor who rescued him from prostitution and sent him back to the Daye Palace was none other than Prince Xiaoqiaochuan, Li Qingchen!

Feng Wan was naturally shocked, but Zuo Huan was no less shocked than her. He turned his head to look at the delicate and lovely woman beside him, his eyes revealing disappointment.

Long before Wen Chan entered the palace as Consort Wen, he had secretly admired her; the two had grown up together as childhood sweethearts. However, in those years, everyone knew that the young lady of the Wen family's beloved was His Highness the Crown Prince, and that her eyes were set on the position of Crown Princess. Therefore, Zuo Huan had no choice but to bury his love deep in his heart.

However, Wen Chan had wasted her youth for the Crown Prince, who had no intention of marrying her. This gave Zuo Huan renewed hope, and he asked his uncle to go to the Wen family's residence to inquire about their intentions. He thought that if the Wen family was willing to yield to reality, he would be willing to marry Wen Chan with the utmost sincerity.

Unfortunately, at this critical juncture, Wen Chan stayed overnight in the palace and was suddenly promoted to the rank of Consort Wen. Zuo Huan's dream was shattered.

He got drunk several times because of this, neglected his duties, and was severely punished by the commander with twenty lashes. After that, he accepted it and understood that he would never have any connection with Wen Chan again in this life.

However, fate always seems to play tricks on the unfortunate. On that moonless night, he was patrolling the palace with his guards when he heard soft sobbing outside the gates of the Cold Palace. The Cold Palace had been abandoned for many years and no one lived there. Everyone else was too afraid to enter, but as the deputy commander, he was naturally not afraid of ghosts and gods, and entered alone.

There were no female ghosts in that cold palace, but there was the woman he longed for day and night.

Zuo Huan had always believed that all of this was a compensation from heaven, and he was willing to gamble with his life! But now he realized that it was not the will of heaven, but man-made.

Wen Chan was actually one of Xiao Qiaochuan King's people, so everything she did was naturally on Xiao Qiaochuan King's orders.

She was ordered to seduce him!

Zuo Huan's eyes gradually became blurry, as if veiled by a layer of mist, making it increasingly difficult for him to see the woman in front of him.

He was completely immersed in immense grief, and Li Qingchen clearly didn't have time to wait for him to slowly process his emotions.

"Left Deputy Commander."

A faint smile played on Li Qingchen's lips as his gaze swept coldly between Zuo Huan and Feng Wan.

“You two are a favorite concubine of the current emperor and a deputy commander of the imperial guards who protect the palace. Both are people whom the emperor values ​​highly. Yet you have both betrayed the emperor.”

As he spoke, Li Qingchen took a few steps forward, passing between the two men. His shoulder brushed against Zuo Huan's right shoulder, a gesture of provocation.

Zuo Huan was tense, as if facing a formidable enemy. His large eyes were fixed on Li Qingchen, and he turned around as Li Qingchen moved.

Li Qingchen suddenly turned his head and glanced at Zuo Huan, who was now behind him: "But since the two of you are already in the same boat, there is no need to fight amongst yourselves anymore. Why don't you think about how to save your own lives?"

The threat in those words was clear even to a fool. Zuo Huan's jaw bulged slightly, his teeth clenched, and after a long while, he finally managed to squeeze out a sentence through his teeth:

"Young Prince, you've gone to so much trouble to arrange all this; what exactly do you want from me?"

Seeing that Zuo Huan seemed to be admitting defeat, Li Qingchen smiled with satisfaction, and then turned his gaze to Feng Wan: "It's getting late, why don't you retire for the night, Consort Jieyu?"

"As for the Left Deputy Commander, the moonlight is just right outside, why don't you accompany me for a stroll in the back garden?"

These words sounded like a request for their opinions, but they also clearly outlined what they were going to do next.

Feng Wan, being sensible, nodded in farewell. Li Qingchen walked ahead, with Zuo Huan closely following behind. When they reached the door, Zuo Huan suddenly turned back to look at the woman inside, his eyes seemingly filled with resentment.

However, this emotion only flashed by briefly, and Zuo Huan then followed Li Qingchen to the back garden of Lanxinzhai.

...

It was late autumn, and there was nothing left to see in the back garden. The moonlight was sparse, and the insects wept in the dew, creating a desolate scene everywhere.

The two walked one after the other on the stone-paved path. Li Qingchen deliberately slowed down and waited for Zuo Huan behind him. Zuo Huan knew that he had something to say, so he quickly followed.

The two walked side by side for a few steps, then Li Qingchen suddenly stopped, turned around and looked at Zuo Huan, finally speaking: "If I remember correctly, it seems that Deputy Commander Zuo's uncle is currently working at the Dali Temple?"

Zuo Huan scoffed inwardly, thinking that Li Qingchen could even find out which girl he secretly admired and arrange these plays to manipulate people's hearts, so how could he not know that his uncle was Zuo Kangshi, the Minister of the Court of Judicial Review?

However, Zuo Huan could only grumble to himself, but he dared not show it on his face. He replied respectfully, "If Your Highness is not mistaken, my uncle is indeed Zuo Kangshi, the Minister of the Court of Judicial Review."

"I've also heard that the Left Deputy Commander and his uncle have an unusually close relationship?"

Now that he was already on the wrong path, Zuo Huan dared not hide anything and told the truth: "Yes, I lost my father at a young age and my widowed mother and I have always been under the protection of my uncle. In addition, my uncle never married and had no children, so he was like a father to me."

Li Qingchen nodded solemnly, seemingly showing some sympathy for Zuo Huan's background, before getting straight to the point: "To be honest, the case that has now fallen into the hands of the Dali Temple is a miscarriage of justice, framed by someone. One of the people involved is an old friend of mine, so I would like to ask your uncle for a favor."

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