"What's wrong? What's wrong? Did you see anything? What happened?"
Young Master Yi was so shocked that he couldn't speak. Seeing his solemn expression and blank look, Mei Zhixuan felt a sense of unease and hurriedly pulled him aside, squeezing in front of him himself.
Looking around, he instantly froze and slowly retreated. But after thinking about it carefully, he exclaimed in astonishment, "This can't be true! My sister can't be dead! He can't be dead! She's clearly not dead. Didn't we see her perfectly fine at the Xiaolong Society just a few days ago?"
As she spoke, she turned her rather puzzled gaze to Young Master Yi's face.
"Of course the girl didn't die, but since Xuan Yuanhan has always cared so much about her, why would he do this? Why would he give up halfway and stop searching for her?"
Upon realizing this, the two looked at each other and fell silent.
After a while, Young Master Yi asked suspiciously, "Could it be that Xuan Yuanhan's men got there first and found the girl, but they don't want us to know?"
Mei Zhixuan turned his head slightly, thought for a moment, and then denied his guess: "No, a living person can't hide this kind of thing."
Young Master Yi simply crossed his arms, propped his chin up, and continued to think seriously for a while. Suddenly, he exclaimed in surprise, "Or perhaps... when he later found the girl at the Sihai Tea House, something really happened to her?"
These words immediately startled Mei Zhixuan.
After careful consideration for a moment, Mei Zhixuan said, "Based on this analysis, Xuanyuan Han must already know something that we don't. The only way now is probably to ask him directly. The Yi family in the west of the city must have received the same information."
Young Master Yi listened attentively, nodded, and then, coming back to his senses, instructed, "Leave Xuan Yuanhan's side to me. You should also try to find out something from your younger sister, Princess Qin. Perhaps she knows something too?"
Mei Zhixuan nodded and said meaningfully, "Yes, it's time to meet her!"
After discussing everything, the two began to act separately.
Inside the Western Qin Imperial Palace.
Upon hearing that the morning court session had just ended, Yi Shangkun found an excuse to leave the Imperial Pharmacy and anxiously waited on the road that Xuan Yuanhan usually took when leaving the palace.
Upon seeing that noble and imposing figure approaching from afar, he hurriedly bowed and knelt before him respectfully, saying, "Your humble servant greets Your Highness, the King of Qin."
"You've been waiting for me here, is it also because of Yun'er?" Xuan Yuanhan glanced at him disdainfully and said coldly.
"Your Highness, please forgive me. I simply cannot believe that Yun'er is gone." Yi Shangkun's voice trembled slightly today.
Xuanyuan Han turned to him and said calmly, "Things have come to this point, and there is nothing I can do about it."
Upon hearing this, Yi Shangkun hesitated for a moment, then suddenly seemed to have made up his mind and mustered his courage, speaking boldly and clearly: "Your Highness, please forgive my boldness in asking another question, but according to Yun'er's maid Yan'er after returning to the manor, Yun'er was clearly still alive. However, she was later kidnapped and taken back to the Western Qin capital. Why does Your Highness say that Yun'er died from falling off the cliff? What unspeakable secret is behind this?"
Before he could finish speaking, Xuan Yuanhan whirled around and berated him, shouting angrily, "Insolence! Are you questioning me? No matter what, now that Yun'er has entered your household and become your eldest daughter, you should cherish her, take good care of her, and protect her. Yet, you have ignored her, letting her suffer neglect and be bullied. If you hadn't consistently been indifferent and negligent towards her, how could she have suffered like this today?"
Upon hearing this, Yi Shangkun immediately pressed himself to the ground and trembled as he said, "Your Majesty... Your Majesty... Your Majesty knows that you deserve to die, but I only wanted her to keep a low profile in the manor and conceal her talents, so that Guan Ai would not stand out and become a thorn in the side of others. Isn't this exactly what her birth mother wished for before she died?"
"But what was the result?" Xuan Yuanhan stood with his hands behind his back, still indignant.
"As a result, as a result... as a result, none of the things that happened to her afterwards were within my control." For a moment, Yi Shangkun was speechless and fell into a somber silence.
After a long pause, Xuan Yuanhan seemed to have finally calmed down and said calmly, "Get up!"
"Thank you, Your Highness!" Yi Shangkun wiped the sweat that had already seeped from his forehead and finally stood up slowly.
Xuanyuan Han hesitated for a long time before finally making up his mind and saying, "If you truly want her to live a peaceful and uneventful life, then do as I say and consider her no longer in this world! That would be the best thing for her. Otherwise... perhaps... the entire world will be thrown into chaos because of her!"
"What do you mean by that, Your Highness?" Yi Shangkun felt that this matter was not simple, but he was also puzzled. So he asked tentatively.
Xuan Yuanhan said solemnly, "Some things are better left unknown to everyone. Go back and tell that maid named Yan'er immediately that no matter who asks her about Yun'er's whereabouts, she should say that she is no longer alive. Otherwise, there will be endless trouble. Do you understand?"
Seeing Xuan Yuanhan speak so solemnly made one extremely nervous, and one suddenly recalled the various rumors circulating in the city recently about the Yi family and Yi Shangyun.
Suddenly, Yi Shangkun seemed to realize something, but then asked with deep surprise, "May I ask one last question: Has Your Highness already discovered Yun'er's true background? She is not from an ordinary family, is she?"
Xuanyuan Han gazed into the distance, his expression completely unchanged.
Yi Shangkun knew that this was tacit agreement, so he composed himself and said solemnly, "Your Highness, rest assured, I will definitely remember Your Highness's instructions and will keep this secret even at the cost of my life."
But as soon as he finished speaking, a pang of reluctance rose in his heart, and he stammered, "But... I wonder if I will ever be able to see that girl again in my lifetime?"
Xuanyuan Han looked melancholy and remained silent for a long time before saying in a deep, drawn-out voice, "Yes."
Upon hearing this, Yi Shangkun suddenly knelt down heavily behind him again, and for the first time sincerely and sincerely knelt down to express his gratitude.
"Your Highness, I thank you, and on behalf of Yun'er, I also thank you. To be honest, I originally thought that a small family like ours, which cannot withstand the slightest storm, should stay away from court intrigues and have little contact with the Prince of Qin's mansion. But now it seems that it is Yun'er's blessing to have met Your Highness in this life. With Your Highness's protection, Yun'er will definitely live well."
Yi Shangkun finally felt relieved and went back to the Imperial Pharmacy with peace of mind.
At this moment, Cheng Liang, who had been silent all along, stepped forward and approached Xuan Yuanhan. Watching Yi Shangkun's departing figure, he asked, "Does Your Highness think that Yi Shangkun truly doesn't know Miss Yi's background?"
“Yi Shangkun, he was such a moderate and cautious person, only seeking to protect himself! If he had known back then, he would never have dared to take on such a hot potato, let alone keep her by his side all the time.” Xuan Yuanhan said as he continued walking forward.
"But his last words just now seemed to come from the heart?" Cheng Liang said quietly.
"This proves that he still has some conscience, and Yun'er does have a place in his heart. Otherwise, given Yun'er's temperament, if he were to support her behind the scenes, she would probably be famous throughout the entire Western Qin, known to everyone." Xuan Yuanhan said calmly.
Cheng Liang said, "In that case, the biggest mistake was involving Miss Yi in the matter of the Empress Dowager's illness."
Xuanyuan Han replied, "No, the fault lies with the opinions of the masses."
Cheng Liang, puzzled, tilted his head and asked, "What everyone says?"
Xuan Yuanhan breathed a sigh of relief: "That's right. Right now, isn't the whole city buzzing about the mysterious phoenix phantom that appeared in the sky above the backyard of the Yi family on the night the eldest daughter of the Yi family woke up after being in a coma for a year? Some people are already saying that it was the guardian appearing in the world. If this continues, the false will become the true. What's more, she might actually be the real one."
"Does Your Highness really believe that Miss Yi is the guardian who has been missing for many years?" Cheng Liang asked in surprise.
As Xuanyuan Han was deep in thought, he suddenly heard a maid's voice behind him say, "Your Highness, please wait!"
Upon hearing the voice, the master and servant turned around and saw that the person was Jinlan, a maid from Xuanyuan Yue's Fenghua Palace.
As soon as Jinlan approached, she respectfully bowed and said, "This servant greets Your Highness, the Prince of Qin. May Your Highness live a thousand years!"
After gesturing for him to stand up, Xuanyuan Han asked, "How is the princess's health?"
Jinlan stood up and said, "Your Highness, I am unaware of the situation. After we encountered danger at the Sihai Tea House that day, someone had already given the princess and me the antidote, so we were fine after resting for a while."
Xuan Yuanhan coldly rebuked, "You can't accompany the princess in such nonsense anymore. If something really happens, it's not something a lowly servant like you can bear."
Jinlan said timidly, "Your Highness Prince Qin is right. After returning from outside the palace that night, Her Majesty the Empress had already severely punished me. Fortunately, Your Highness Prince Qin saved me in time, otherwise the Emperor would not have noticed, or I would certainly have lost my life."
Xuan Yuanhan sighed softly. At this moment, Cheng Liang, who was beside him, suddenly remembered the scene from that night and asked the maid, "By the way, do you know who saved you that night?"
Jinlan shook her head, but her eyes were somewhat unfocused and evasive. She then pretended to frown and recalled, "That night, both the princess and I lost our minds and were in a daze. In the critical moment, we only vaguely saw two masked men enter and subdue those bad guys in a few moves, but we did not see their true faces clearly."
Upon seeing her actions and hearing her words, Cheng Liang realized that Jinlan was deliberately concealing something, so he looked at his master's face with some suspicion.
Upon learning that Xuanyuan Yue was alright, Xuanyuan Han asked Jinlan, "What brings you to me?"
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