However, upon encountering an acquaintance, Wen Hemian was even less inclined to stay any longer. She politely declined Liu Qiongyue's enthusiastic invitation and decided to rest for the night before heading elsewhere.
Liu Qiongyue said tactfully, "Although most places are relatively peaceful right now, Lord Wen... it's still best to be cautious. A veil can't hide too much."
To be frank, it's impossible to hide it.
When Lord Wen was still dressed as a man, he was already very eye-catching in the crowd. When he changed back into women's clothing, he was even more stunning. It can only be said that everyone underestimated him.
Even without seeing her face, her overall demeanor surpasses that of others, and Liu Qiongyue is truly afraid that she might be robbed on the street one day.
"You don't need to worry about that, I have everything under control."
Wen Hemian stroked the teacup, actually quite puzzled herself.
The system clearly stated that all the protection on her would disappear after the mission ended, but for some reason, she accidentally discovered that the protection was still there during an experiment.
While traveling, she didn't need to worry too much about her personal safety.
Liu Qiongyue's thought process was not on the same wavelength as hers: "That's right, Lord Wen should have someone protecting him. I was overthinking it."
"Stop calling me Lord Wen. I'm just a commoner now and don't deserve that title."
Wen Hemian accepted her statement without refuting it. Anyway, someone had already come up with a reason for her, so it was fine not to have to explain herself.
Liu Qiongyue insisted, "That's different. But Lord Wen, if you don't want to run into His Majesty's men, don't continue heading towards the capital. There are many people working for His Majesty now, and it's easy to expose your whereabouts."
"I understand, thank you for reminding me."
Wen Hemian curved her lips into a smile, lifted her sleeve and searched around. Finally, she found a jade pendant of excellent quality and stuffed it into Sui Sui's arms: "Since it's our first meeting, I didn't prepare anything else. Consider this jade pendant a gift."
Wen Hemian never lacked good things, and since he wasn't too worried about safety, he kept them with him for future use, and now they came in handy.
Liu Qiongyue did not refuse and said thank you with a smile. Sui Sui also imitated her and said thank you.
After a brief reunion, Wen Hemian bid them farewell and returned to the inn where she was temporarily staying.
She did intend to continue heading towards the capital, since three years had passed and the past had been largely forgotten, so there was little chance she would be discovered if she went back.
But that's only a high probability.
She sensed something unusual in Liu Qiongyue's words, perhaps about Xie Lang. In any case, it didn't feel good, so to be on the safe side, she decided not to go any further in that direction.
The little brat holds grudges, and who knows if he's discovered something. Three years have passed, and he'll probably remember it even more deeply. Wen Hemian was uneasy and decided to take precautions to avoid this risk in advance.
However, some risks are not something she can avoid simply by wanting to.
Things often take a turn for the worse.
That night, Wen Hemian had just finished washing up and was about to read a book for a while before resting when he saw the system jump in from outside the window, something he hadn't seen in a long time.
After all this time, the system is still the same; it just loves using a cat-themed shell.
Wen Hemian's eyelids twitched, and he immediately heard some bad news from the system.
"Host, there's a problem with the mission."
Wen Hemian's gaze was subtle: "Who was it that told me there would be absolutely no problem? What's the situation now?"
The system gave an awkward smile, though its cat-like face revealed no emotion: "Theoretically speaking, there shouldn't be any problems, but there are always exceptions! I only received the news a few days ago and rushed over here."
Wen Hemian thought about the situation that had happened to her and felt that it was not without clues. She sighed softly, "Tell me."
The system briefly explained: "There's a problem with the young emperor. The administrator detected that he has self-destructive and treacherous tendencies, which is why I was urgently recalled."
It has to be said that Wen Hemian's heart clenched when she heard the words "self-destruction and turning to the dark side." Even if she intentionally reduced her concern for Xie Lang, she had spent far more time with them than they had been apart. It wasn't something she could completely ignore just because she didn't care.
Her voice deepened: "So what's your solution?"
Wen Hemian is quite well-read, and she also reads novels, mainly for enjoyment. In her experience, characters who turn evil and become unstable are usually eliminated from books to maintain the balance of the world.
But Xie Lang obviously cannot be erased, and the system became more serious: "The administrator and I have discussed it and the result is that we hope you can go back and take a look."
Wen Hemian paused for a moment, then asked, "Do you think this is appropriate?"
She didn't know if Xie Lang had completely let go of what happened back then. If not, wouldn't she be walking into a wolf's den?
The system put its two paws together in a pleading gesture: "Host, please. If something like what happened in the original story happens again, this world really won't be able to hold on."
"Never mind."
After a moment, Wen Hemian closed his eyes and said, "I'll go back and take a look from afar first."
Xie Lang is the emperor, busy with countless affairs of state every day, so he probably doesn't have time to wander around outside all day.
The only trouble is that you have to be careful to avoid his men, especially the Imperial Guard, many of whom know her.
To be precise, many people in the capital know her. Over the past three years, there haven't been many updates or iterations, so Wen Hemian had to make plans in advance.
After a moment of thought, Wen Hemian suddenly opened her eyes and looked at the system: "Is this considered a mistake on your part?"
The system stammered, "I... I guess so?"
"Very good." Wen Hemian smiled, his smile as gentle as ever, yet it inexplicably sent a chill down one's spine. "Give me some preferential treatment, can you do that?"
The system, with tears in its eyes, replied: "Yes."
The next day, Wen Hemian set off again, wearing a veil.
This time, however, was different from before. She seemed to have lost her presence in the crowd, and almost no one noticed her. Even if they saw her, they would turn their heads and forget about her, and no one would care when she had appeared.
This is the system's compensation benefit—reducing Wen Hemian's presence in the crowd, making it easier for her to hide herself and avoid being tracked down by others to the greatest extent possible.
The system was urging him on, so Wen Hemian immediately set off on horseback, spending almost all his time traveling except for rest periods.
When she saw the capital city again, she almost let out a heavy sigh.
I haven't been back for three years. The capital city is just as I remember it, still majestic and magnificent, bustling with people, and even more prosperous than before. As dusk falls, lights come on in the distance, creating a scene of fading light, both familiar and strange.
She nervously tugged at her veil, jumped off the horse, and joined the queue, thinking, "I hope I won't be noticed?"
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com