After the Gao Bi incident came to a conclusion.
Zhao Wuwang was reprimanded for his oversight and fined half a year's salary, which greatly damaged his prestige within the department.
The Prince of Zhenbei's mansion was not only cleared of suspicion of causing trouble by releasing ghosts, but the mysterious ghost princess was also rumored to be even more supernatural.
It can cure the prince's chronic illness and identify evil spirits from afar; it is truly an auspicious omen for protecting the home.
This situation left Qin Lu, the commander of the Zhenling Division, feeling quite uneasy.
He had been in charge of the Zhenling Division for many years, specializing in the order of Yin and Yang, and had always been a powerful figure in the capital.
He couldn't swallow this insult, now that his limelight had been stolen by a wicked woman from the inner quarters.
Moreover, the Prince of Zhenbei holds military power and is someone who needs to be treated with caution in the court.
Now that this new variable has added to his worries, he feels even more uneasy.
…
On this day, Qin Lu had a chance encounter with the Prince of Zhenbei.
"Your Highness has been looking quite well lately, which must be due to peace and tranquility in your residence and the joy of good fortune," Qin Lu said with a forced smile.
The Prince of Zhenbei, being a man of great stature, immediately understood the implied meaning and laughed heartily: "Thank you, thank you. It's mainly because my daughter-in-law is sensible and the family is harmonious that I am naturally at ease and healthy."
Qin Lu's eye twitched slightly: "Speaking of which, the Crown Prince's consort... is no ordinary person. To have such a wonderful wife, the Crown Prince is truly blessed. However..."
He then changed the subject, his tone tinged with concern for the country and its people: "Yin and Yang are in order, and humans and ghosts are on different paths. If they coexist for too long, it will ultimately violate the natural order and common sense. I am worried that this will not be a long-term blessing for the Crown Prince's noble health or for the fortune of the Prince's mansion."
The Prince of Zhenbei remained unmoved, stroking his beard as he said, "Commander Qin is overthinking it. His Majesty has tacitly approved the marriage; how could it violate the will of Heaven? As for destiny—"
He laughed heartily: "I feel that since my daughter-in-law entered the household, the air in the mansion has become much fresher! Even my old, rheumatic legs have felt much better these days!"
Qin Lu felt a tightness in his chest from being choked, but forced a smile and said, "That's good, that's good."
Seeing Qin Lu's aggrieved expression, the Prince of Zhenbei was in a good mood. He deliberately took two steps closer and lowered his voice:
“Commander Qin, no offense, but has your Zhenling Division been short of funds lately? You can’t even figure out a few little ghosts, and you have to rely on my daughter-in-law for ‘guidance’.”
He sighed heavily and patted Qin Lu on the shoulder: "If all else fails, how about I let my daughter-in-law take a temporary position with you? Don't worry, she won't take your place, she'll just be an advisor."
Qin Lu was so angry that his beard trembled.
"...Your Highness is truly blessed. I have official business to attend to, so I must take my leave now!"
…
In the back garden of the Prince's Mansion, Li Qiyang was chanting incantations while facing a feng shui compass.
Li Yuheng floated up behind him and suddenly asked, "Little Li, what are you looking at?"
Li Qiyang shuddered, and the compass almost slipped from his hand.
Turning around and seeing Li Yuheng, his eyes lit up instantly: "Master! You've arrived—no! Your Highness!"
He hastily changed his tune, bowing deeply, his face plastered with obsequiousness: "It's been so long! I've missed you terribly. I knew you had the bearing of a true dragon, and now I see you are indeed—"
"Stop." Li Yuheng raised his hand. "Stop flattering me. What kind of lousy birth chart did you give me? 'Arrogant Young Lady'?"
"This... Your Highness, please calm down! The Prince and Princess were in a hurry at the time. If I had said directly that you were a true dragon, I'm afraid they wouldn't have been able to bear such a blessing!"
"So you're saying I'm 'arrogant'?"
"This... I think the word 'proud and arrogant' is quite fitting for Your Highness's... uh, noble and aloof temperament?"
"Cold and aloof?" Li Yuheng narrowed his eyes. "Say that again?"
"It's my fault for being tongue-tied! The Crown Prince is wise, mighty, and exudes an aura of dominance!"
Li Yuheng nodded in satisfaction: "That's more like it."
He floated down onto the stone bench and sat down, glancing sideways at Li Qiyang: "Hey, didn't you already have a job as a ghost messenger in the underworld? What are you doing here? What, did you come here just to watch me fall in love?"
Li Qiyang waved his hands repeatedly: "Hey, no. It's Lord Black Impermanence who assigned me a promotion assessment task. Xifeng and the others came too. We're a group, and we have to work together to capture the soul of a villain the moment he dies, so that he can't have the chance to turn into a corpse or a vengeful ghost."
He rubbed his hands together, looking expectant. "If I do a good job this time, I can get a permanent position!"
"Oh? Well, good luck to you then."
As soon as he finished speaking, Shu Bai walked over slowly, his gaze sweeping over Li Qiyang: "What are you chatting about, making such a commotion?"
Upon seeing Shu Bai, Li Qiyang immediately adopted a professional fake smile, feigning profundity: "Your Highness, this humble Taoist is currently discussing... uh, Your Highness's Consort... life with her."
Li Yuheng immediately started pointing and gesturing at Li Qiyang.
"Who's discussing life with you? Stop spouting nonsense! My wife has regained her memory; she knows everything."
Li Qiyang froze, then looked at Shu Bai somewhat awkwardly, secretly praying: I hope this young master's wife won't misunderstand.
Shu Bai walked slowly to Li Qiyang and gave him a perfectly timed apologetic smile: "Daoist Master, I am truly sorry."
Li Qiyang was flattered: "Why do you say that?"
Why do I have this strange feeling that something is wrong?
My right eyelid has been twitching too.
"I think I've forgotten your name."
Shu Bai tapped his forehead thoughtfully: "I only vaguely remember that you seemed to say... you never want to fly again?"
Li Qiyang: "..."
That's not fair...
He wants to go back to the underworld...
Li Yuheng raised an eyebrow, his gaze shifting back and forth between the two.
Shu Bai continued to stare at Li Qiyang: "So what is your name? I really can't remember it right now."
"I...I..."
Li Qiyang glanced at Li Yuheng while his lips trembled.
Should he say it or not?
“His name is Li Tiezhu.” Li Yuheng suddenly interjected, putting his arm around Shu Bai’s shoulder. “Let’s go, wife. We don’t need to remember the names of irrelevant people. It’ll just take up memory.”
Shu Bai was turned around, her eyes glancing at Li Qiyang's stiff expression.
“Li Tiezhu?” he repeated slowly, “That’s quite a unique name.”
Li Qiyang thought his idol, Li Yuheng, had forgotten his name, and immediately panicked: "Your Highness! My name is Li Qiyang! Qi as in the morning star, Yang as in the sun!"
Li Yuheng waved his hand without turning his head: "Almost there, so annoying. Let's go, wife, what's the point of talking to someone who can't even come up with a decent name?"
Shu Bai was being led forward by Li Yuheng when she suddenly chuckled softly.
"Li Qiyang is indeed a better-sounding name than Li Tiezhu."
Li Yuheng paused, tilted her head to look him up and down, her eyes subtly asking, "What, you like cultured people?"
"I prefer someone who is honest."
"Little Shubai~ You're just jealous, aren't you~"
"right."
"You're just pretending—?"
Li Yuheng's prepared witty remarks got stuck in his throat.
He blinked, hardly believing his ears: "What did you just say?"
"I said, I'm jealous."
"I don't like you getting too close to other people, not even the underworld ghosts."
Li Yuheng was stunned, which was rare for him.
I've only ever experienced this scene in my dreams.
It really happened; it's almost like a dream.
Seeing that he didn't react, Shu Bai raised an eyebrow. "What's wrong? Can't you understand human language?"
"I understand! I understand it perfectly!"
He hoisted Shu Bai onto his shoulder with the agility of a mountain bandit chief kidnapping a bride.
"Let's go home and cook! Xiao Li is hungry!"
Shu Bai was hanging upside down by him, but she didn't struggle. She just slowly reminded him, "Father and Mother are watching from the pavilion."
"Let them look, they can't see me anyway."
Li Yuheng strode forward, even deliberately swaying towards the pavilion.
"This will be a good opportunity to show them what it's like."
The Prince and Princess saw their son "float" across the corridor in an extremely contorted posture, as if he were being carried by something invisible.
The princess clutched her handkerchief anxiously: "Your Highness, what's wrong with Xiaobai's walking posture...?"
Prince Zhenbei calmly sipped his tea: "It's alright, young people are full of energy."
…
As soon as he entered the room, Li Yuheng threw Shu Bai onto the bed and then pressed himself down on top of her.
"Tell me, what kind of cuisine do you want?" He twirled the sash of his white robe with his fingertips. "The Manchu Han Imperial Feast or a specialty from the underworld?"
Are you sure 'Xiao Li' is hungry?
"What else? It's our family's most precious possession; we can't let it go hungry!"
"Then let it come out and eat by itself."
"It's shy."
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