Sending a letter to the imperial tomb

Zhou Ziliang chuckled awkwardly twice, then went over to soothe Tang Feng, "I know you're upset, I won't touch you for the next couple of days, okay..." Tang Feng got even angrier, slamming the chicken soup he was holding onto the table. "What do you mean 'not touch you for the next couple of days'? You still want it after these two days?! Are you shameless?!" Zhou Ziliang could only try to appease him gently, "We're husband and wife, after all... How can we not touch each other every day?" Tang Feng got even angrier, rolling his eyes at him. "Why not? Didn't we... not touch each other much before? Now you absolutely have to?" Zhou Ziliang sighed helplessly, "That was because I thought you were weak before... Now that you're better, naturally we should live a normal life. Okay, okay, don't be angry, I'll be gentler next time, okay..."

Although Tang Feng was still angry, he wasn't an unreasonable person. However, Zhou Ziliang had caused him too much trouble yesterday, making him lose face. Hearing Zhou Ziliang offer a way out, he stopped making a fuss, sipping his chicken soup slowly, and then asked, "You and Xiling have never lost contact?" Zhou Ziliang thought for a moment and nodded, then continued... "It's not that we haven't been in contact... The letters my parents sent didn't mention you at all. Although Mo Bai sent letters, I roughly guessed that you might have... encountered some trouble, so I haven't been paying attention to those letters, and I don't know much about what happened in Xiling." Tang Feng pondered for a moment and then said, "Send a letter home. I need to make sure the Ninth Prince is alright. I did my best to protect him that day, but Li Linglan's character... I can't say I can praise him." Zhou Ziliang nodded in agreement and was about to write the letter when he seemed to remember something and turned back to Tang Feng. "Little Feng, I haven't asked you yet... Ning Luo has never had a precedent of rescuing or releasing anyone. How did you get out?"

Tang Feng held a chicken leg and slowly ate it without replying. Zhou Ziliang frowned, snatched the chicken leg from him, and held it high. "Speak first, then you can eat." Tang Feng had no choice but to wipe his hands and say, "He said he hadn't heard of a good price for a long time, so I sold him one."

"It's that simple?" Zhou Ziliang clearly didn't believe it, raising an eyebrow and staring intently at Tang Feng. "What news does Ning Luo have? Do you think he'd need a little information from you?"

Isn't that what I'm doing now?

Zhou Ziliang couldn't help but laugh. "You've already sold him out before anything even happened! How could that person agree to that? Aren't you afraid you'll cheat him?" Seeing Tang Feng's silence and slight unease, Zhou Ziliang suddenly became worried, fearing Tang Feng might have sold himself out. "You didn't agree to anything, did you..." Tang Feng looked at Zhou Ziliang guiltily and chuckled. "I told him to contact the Marquis's mansion if he needs anything..." Zhou Ziliang was taken aback, then pinched Tang Feng's cheek. "You just know how to trick me, don't you!" Tang Feng pulled his hand away and muttered, "What do you mean 'just know how to trick you'? We're husband and wife... what's yours is mine, and what's mine is mine. Why are you distinguishing between you and me..." Zhou Ziliang smiled helplessly and sighed. "Now you know we're a couple... Fine, if you sold me out, so be it. As long as you didn't sell yourself out." Then Zhou Ziliang suddenly remembered that Tang Feng had never made a losing deal, making his worries seem somewhat unnecessary.

Tang Feng pouted, "Don't act like I'm trying to kill you... Alright, alright, isn't an apology enough? I'll promise you once we get back to Xiling... Is that alright?" Zhou Ziliang hadn't expected Tang Feng to bring this up. He was taken aback for a moment, then smiled slightly, lifted Tang Feng's chin, and gently kissed him, saying with a smile, "This is what Xiao Feng said himself, I didn't force you... If Xiao Feng feels unwell later, then you can't scold me..." Tang Feng rolled his eyes, "Am I that unreliable... Is it really necessary? Hurry up and write the letter! So as not to delay things."

Zhou Ziliang, upon hearing this, stopped joking and nodded, then asked, "Would you like me to grind the ink?" Tang Feng readily agreed, kneeling beside the desk and gently grinding the ink stick. "Don't tell my parents I'm still alive... otherwise it would be very dangerous. Just subtly inquire," Zhou Ziliang nodded, then picked up a brush and wrote three or four pages, placing them in an envelope and handing it to Tang Feng. Just as Tang Feng reached for it, Zhou Ziliang withdrew his hand, looking at Tang Feng and asking, "Little Feng, do you have a general idea? If not, this letter cannot be given to you. I must ensure your safety... don't be impatient." Tang Feng naturally understood Zhou Ziliang's meaning and could only nod. "I naturally have a way, otherwise I wouldn't have asked you to write the letter. If His Highness the Ninth Prince is safe, I plan to coordinate an attack from within and without. I wonder if General Meng is still a commander in the Imperial Guard... We need to return to Xiling first, and then I need to see Lin Siwen. I have something very important to entrust to him."

Zhou Ziliang thought for a moment and looked at Tang Feng, "What is it that Lin Siwen absolutely has to do?" A resolute glint flashed in Tang Feng's eyes, "Li Yunheng is practically his enemy. I need him to kill Li Yunheng and Consort Rong... Only when Li Yunheng is dead will the Ninth Prince have a chance to inherit the throne. As for Li Linglan... I don't plan to kill him; he's still useful." Zhou Ziliang looked at Tang Feng and suddenly smiled, "Little Feng has changed quite a bit... Now you've really hardened your heart." Tang Feng didn't deny it, but said helplessly, "There's no way around it. People always learn from their mistakes. Shen Qinghang is right; I'm too soft-hearted, which means I'm destined to fail. As the saying goes, 'Water that is too clear has no fish, and a person who is shameless is invincible.'" Zhou Ziliang handed the letter to Tang Feng, "If you're going to do it, do it big. I'll go with you."

"The Zhou family has been loyal for generations. Father won't blame me for corrupting their son, will he?" Hearing Tang Feng's joke, Zhou Ziliang didn't take it seriously, only chuckling, "What can I do? It's just that my young master has never been one to sit idle. I'll just have to play along." Tang Feng couldn't help but laugh, taking the letter and handing it to Chen Ke standing outside the tent. He then turned to Zhou Ziliang, "We'll wait. Once Father and Mother reply, I'll explain the plan in detail. Li Linglan is naturally suspicious; we can't alert her again this time..."

Li Yunyu knelt before the Empress Dowager's memorial tablet, finished reciting the scriptures, and then heard someone enter. Turning around, he saw Ning Wan dressed in plain clothes, carrying a food box. "Your Highness... dinner is ready." Li Yunyu rose and went over. "Why are you here? What if Li Linglan finds out?" Ning Wan, hearing Li Yunyu address the Emperor by his given name, quickly covered his mouth. "Your Highness... walls have ears..." Li Yunyu pulled Ning Wan's hand away and sneered, "So what if walls have ears... He's unworthy of being a father, forcing the Empress Dowager to her death..." "My brother killed the Grand Tutor again! Now that he's imprisoned me in the imperial mausoleum, how could he possibly be bothered to monitor me? If there were truly eavesdroppers... would he still be keeping me alive until now..." Hearing Li Yunyu mention Tang Feng, Ning Wan felt a sharp pain in her heart, as if pricked by needles. To Ning Wan, Tang Feng was her savior, protecting Li Yunyu all the way to the end, only to be hastily imprisoned in the palace. "Your Highness... the Grand Tutor also said back then... to let you live well... You can't, you absolutely can't keep speaking so recklessly."

Li Yunyu gave a bitter smile, walked outside and looked at the sun, half-hidden by clouds. "My teacher's influence is as vast as a mountain, reaching far and wide from the humblest things. How can I swallow this insult! Do you know what he asked me to do? He told me to forget everything once I left that palace gate... But I am not an ungrateful person. How can I forget everything he did! How can I forget what my father did!" Ning Wan pursed her lips, her eyes reddening, and tightly gripped the handle of the food box. "In any case... Her Majesty said to take care of yourself... Try to think positively and don't disappoint the Grand Tutor."

“Disappointment…” Li Yunyu smiled. “Wasn’t what I did enough to disappoint him? Tell me… if I hadn’t entered the Tang family three times… would the Grand Tutor have had a different life?” Ning Wan didn’t say much more when she saw Li Yunyu like this. After Tang Feng saved Li Yunyu from Emperor Yun, Li Yunyu was imprisoned in the imperial mausoleum by Emperor Yun, keeping vigil for the Empress Dowager every day. The Ninth Prince, who used to be impulsive, had become much more composed, but his resentment towards his father was still strong. Tang Feng was both a teacher and a friend to Li Yunyu. Even though Tang Feng had scolded Li Yunyu and even disagreed with him, his intentions were to help him. Li Yunyu pondered, but the Emperor Yun... Li Yunyu never imagined that the one who killed his elder brother was actually his own father. Even tigers don't eat their cubs, yet the Emperor Yun had driven his elder brother to his death because of the Pu Yuan incident. Ning Wan put down the food box and gently took Li Yunyu's hand. "You... eat something... all these years, you've always thought of the Grand Tutor... you..." Ning Wan sighed, seeing Li Yunyu sitting on the cushion so dejectedly, she had no words to comfort him. She laid out the contents of the food box one by one, but noticed a letter on the dessert plate. She couldn't help but feel puzzled. The food box was prepared by Yun Lan herself, so why was there a letter? Ning Wan slowly opened the letter, glanced at its contents, and immediately froze, her eyes slightly red. She looked at Li Yunyu, who was sitting on the cushion with his back to her, and said in a trembling voice, "Your Highness... the Grand Tutor... the Grand Tutor he..."

Hearing Ning Wan mention Tang Feng, Li Yunyu looked up and turned slightly to the side. Ning Wan's voice trembled slightly, choked with tears, "Your Highness... the Grand Tutor is still alive... this letter... it's from him to you!" Upon hearing this, Li Yunyu quickly scrambled off the cushion, snatched the letter from Ning Wan's hand, and examined it carefully. Then, looking at Ning Wan, he both cried and laughed, "It really is a letter from the Grand Tutor! It's from him to me... He's alive! He didn't die!"

"What did the Grand Tutor say to you?"

Li Yunyu wiped his eyes and glanced at the letter. "The Grand Tutor asked if I was still well... and..." Li Yunyu frowned, "asked if I was still willing to exonerate my elder brother."