Reunion

Ning Wan nodded. "Then what does Your Highness think now?" Li Yunyu looked at the letter in his hand, a ruthless glint in his eyes. "I've been thinking about Tian for a long time... I've been confined to the imperial mausoleum every day, just because the Grand Tutor forgot everything. Now that the Grand Tutor has returned, how can I refuse... Wan'er, get paper and pen. I need to write back to put the Grand Tutor at ease, and then write to Meng Lie... This time... I can't fail again." Ning Wan agreed, "I'll go get paper and pen right away, Your Highness, wait for me a moment." He brought paper and pen from the study, and without waiting for the paper to be laid out, he spread the letter on the ground, knelt down, and wrote stroke by stroke. While writing, he didn't forget to remind Ning Wan, "Wan'er, does General Meng know about this?"

Ning Wan shook her head. "I'm not quite sure. Since the incident involving you and the Grand Tutor, His Majesty has secretly dealt with many people, including the Grand Tutor's former close friends, Young Master Zhang and Young Master Pei. Fortunately, neither of them is in mortal danger. As for General Meng, although he still commands the Imperial Guards, His Majesty is very vigilant. He has sent some of the Imperial Guards to garrison outside Xiling City, while keeping the other half by his side. Currently, there are more Imperial Guards in Xiling City than outside." Li Yunyu thought for a moment, then handed the letter to Ning Wan. "Since they only sent Meng Lie away, Father Emperor probably hasn't suspected him. It's safest for you to give him these two letters. This one is his, and this one, addressed to the Grand Tutor, should be sent to the border by him personally. There must be no mistakes. If there are any errors, he will be held accountable."

At this moment, Tang Feng was sitting in the military camp, reading poetry and books, waiting for Li Yunyu's reply. Zhou Ziliang brewed tea, poured a cup, and handed it to Tang Feng. "This place is not like Xiling. We only have Biluochun tea here. We'll have to wait a while for the pre-rain Longjing." Tang Feng glanced at Zhou Ziliang. "Do you think I'm that pretentious? In the desert, having anything to drink is already a blessing..." Zhou Ziliang smiled helplessly. "Alright, alright, I was being petty. Is there any news from His Highness the Ninth Prince?"

Tang Feng shook his head. "Let's wait a bit longer. After all, the journey is long, and it's possible it will take a while."

"If you're going back to Xiling, do you want to go home first?" Zhou Ziliang was also unsure about this, so he decided to ask Tang Feng's opinion. After all, when he wrote the letter, Zhou Wuhai and Madam Zhou didn't know Tang Feng was still alive, and he couldn't write the letter too openly for fear of being discovered. However, if he rashly raised an army, he was afraid that Xiling City would fall into chaos and his family would be hurt again. Tang Feng pondered for a moment and nodded, "I do want to see them. I wonder how my parents are doing, and my sister and the others..."

Mentioning Qin Jiujiu, Zhou Ziliang sighed, "Miss Jiujiu thought you were gone and didn't want to stay in Xiling anymore. Not long after, she left Xiling for Shanghan, saying she was going to find the antique shop you used to run and help you manage the sound. She came to see me on the way, but I suppose she had coordinated with Mo Bai. No matter how I asked about your whereabouts, she wouldn't say, only telling me not to ask anymore... Now, in Xiling, I suppose only Liu Yiwan is left."

"Sister went to Shanghan? Why didn't you say so sooner!" Tang Feng was a little anxious. He was about to leave when Zhou Ziliang stopped him. "Sister arrived safely a long time ago... Bugu also sent a message to let you know she's safe. Don't worry." Tang Feng sighed, sat down, and took a sip of tea. "How could I not worry... Sister, a weak woman, going to Shanghan, such a long journey, how could she possibly endure it..." After a moment of silence, he continued softly, "I really feel sorry for Sister and Liu Yiwan... If it weren't for me, their marriage wouldn't have been delayed for so long."

Just as Zhou Ziliang was about to comfort Tang Feng, Chen Ke brought in a letter. "My lord, it's a letter from General Meng. He specifically instructed us to deliver it to you." Zhou Ziliang saw that the letter was from Xiling and handed it to Tang Feng. "It's probably from the Ninth Prince. Open it and take a look." Tang Feng nodded, took the letter, glanced at it, and smiled with satisfaction. "This little Ninth Prince has really grown up... He even knows to ask Meng Lie to deliver a letter. I wonder if he's doing well at the Imperial Mausoleum..."

Zhou Ziliang smiled helplessly. "Are you his master? Being so concerned about the imperial mausoleum, it's no wonder things aren't going well for you. To put it nicely, you're guarding and offering sacrifices at the mausoleum; to put it bluntly... you're imprisoned." Tang Feng didn't reply, only sighed. "Let's set off tomorrow. But the Dingbei Army is so conspicuous; the return journey certainly won't be smooth sailing."

"Don't worry about Xiao Feng. We'll go through the border area where there are fewer soldiers and less information, making it easier to deceive people. Don't worry too much. I'll take care of everything."

For the next three months, the Dingbei Army marched southeast along the Yan-Yun border until they reached Yaojiashan. Zhou Ziliang then ordered them to set up camp, smiling at Tang Feng. "Are you tired? These past three months of constant travel must have been exhausting." Tang Feng dismounted and tossed the reins to Chen Ke. "I'm not that weak; this distance is manageable... but I wonder how to get from Yaojiashan to Xiling... have you arranged a carriage?" Zhou Ziliang nodded slightly. "I've already had Chen Ke prepare it, so don't worry. We'll definitely get you into Xiling City today. However, there's one thing I'm concerned about."

"What?"

“Seeing your parents is easy… but what about His Highness the Ninth Prince? Why don’t you go to the General’s Mansion first? Of all these people, the only ones who haven’t been suspected are probably from the General’s Mansion.” Tang Feng thought Zhou Ziliang’s words made sense, but he had other plans. He wanted to communicate with Li Yunyu in person, since letters were too easy to discover, and Xiling was right under the Emperor’s nose. He didn’t know what method he could use to blend in. Tang Feng sighed, “Let’s leave it at that for now… What you said makes sense.”

Tang Feng and Zhou Ziliang boarded the carriage prepared by Chen Ke and headed towards Xiling. Tang Feng was pondering how to deal with Emperor Yun when Zhou Ziliang chuckled, "Little Feng, you should first think about how to explain this to your parents. They already know what you did before, and this time you probably won't be able to get away with it..." Tang Feng felt a headache coming on. Madam Zhou was alright; a little coaxing would suffice. But Zhou Wuhai was a different story. He already disliked him, and now he'd created such a huge problem for him. Just thinking about it gave him a headache. Tang Feng nestled in Zhou Ziliang's arms, "Then what should I do? If all else fails, I'll just say it was your idea."

"Hey! You sold me out in Ningluo, and I haven't even said anything. Why am I the one who has to take the blame when we get back to Xiling?"

"Who told you to be up there! I don't care! If you're up there, you have to take responsibility for what you're doing."

Seeing Tang Feng's self-righteous attitude, Zhou Ziliang was also quite helpless. "No... you haven't forgotten about this... Xiao Feng, who goes up and who goes down has nothing to do with taking the blame, right?"

"What? You slept with me, pulled up your pants, and now you want to run away?" Seeing Tang Feng's anger, Zhou Ziliang naturally didn't know what to say, and awkwardly laughed twice, "Be careful next time... Let me off this time... If they find out I sent you on this dangerous adventure, my mother will probably use family discipline."

"What can we do? Your father is so fierce..." Before he could finish speaking, Chen Ke said, "My lord, you should quickly hide. There are soldiers checking ahead." Zhou Ziliang immediately grabbed the blankets beside him and covered himself and Tang Feng with them, adding some straw on top. Chen Ke jumped down from the carriage and smiled, "Sir, we're in a hurry to get into the city. Could you perhaps make an exception?"

The soldier rolled his eyes. "Who wouldn't be in a hurry to enter the city at this time? Don't make things difficult for me. Hurry up and lift the curtain so I can see inside. If there's nothing wrong, I'll let you go." Ignoring Chen Ke's attempts to stop him, the soldier lifted the curtain directly. He saw that the carriage was covered in straw, and the blankets underneath seemed to be moving. Seeing that he was about to be exposed, Chen Ke quickly stopped the soldier. "Sir...sir...this...our young master just kidnapped a little beggar...the little beggar is quite pretty, so...you know..."

At this moment, Tang Feng was pinned down by Zhou Ziliang, unable to move. His hands groped around, finally finding a handful of loose soil, which he rubbed on his face. He deliberately raised his body, looking pitifully at the soldier. Seeing that Tang Feng was indeed covered in dirt, the soldier said, "Hurry up and get in. In broad daylight, doing business in a carriage... Your young master is really something." Chen Ke quickly lowered the carriage curtain, awkwardly chuckling, and led the horse towards the city. Tang Feng, still pinned down by Zhou Ziliang, blushed and gritted his teeth, "Zhou Ziliang, this is your soldier! Like father, like son... I thought Brother Chen was very upright!" Zhou Ziliang quickly helped Tang Feng up, "Alright, alright, it was just to get in, there was no other way... Come on, are you alright? Does it hurt?"

Tang Feng rolled his eyes and remained silent, sulking to himself until Chen Ke said, "My lord, we've arrived." Zhou Ziliang pulled back the curtain to check outside and make sure everything was alright before hugging Tang Feng. "Let's stay at an inn first, and go out later when it's late at night. Otherwise, we'll be too obvious a target."

"Let's go to the General's Mansion first... There's no rush with Father and Mother. As the ancients said, 'Know yourself and know your enemy, and you will win every battle.' This time, I can't let Emperor Yun trick me a second time. Let's make preparations first. No matter what, I must find a way to see the Ninth Prince, no matter what..."

As night deepened, Zhou Ziliang and Tang Feng entered the back gate of the General's Mansion one after the other. Lin Siwen was already waiting at the door. "Grand Tutor!" Lin Siwen hugged Tang Feng, choking back tears. "We thought you were dead... Everyone was either under His Majesty's supervision or exiled. We never expected you to be alive."

Tang Feng smiled slightly and ruffled Lin Siwen's hair. "You're becoming more and more mature. Let's go inside and talk."

“Sir, I roughly know the purpose of your return this time. You saved my Lin family, and you have shown me great kindness. Just tell me what you need, and I, Lin Siwen, will naturally do my duty without hesitation.” Tang Feng knew Lin Siwen well and knew that he was always steady and reliable, so he told him everything. “I have returned this time to force the emperor's hand. If I succeed, I will be remembered for eternity; if I fail, my entire family will be executed. Are you willing?” Lin Siwen nodded. “Please tell me.”