"Thank you for gracing us with your presence. It's rare that you remember me and have gone to the trouble of keeping this appointment," Tuoba Ze said with a broad smile as he entered.
Mei Xiyuan and Lu Tianjiao had both removed their veils. Lu Tianjiao spoke first, saying disdainfully, "The Crown Prince really hid his abilities quite well before, making us look like those blind fools."
Tuoba Ze had long anticipated that his identity would eventually be discovered by these two.
With almost no change in expression, he personally poured tea for the two of them while saying apologetically, "In these chaotic times, everything I did was out of necessity. But from beginning to end, apart from concealing my identity from you two, I have never done anything to harm you, and I have tried my best to help you solve your problems, haven't I?"
As he spoke, he seemed to find it extremely ironic: "Moreover, now that my country is destroyed and my family is gone, I am truly all alone, just a commoner, no longer a prince. So, I hope you two esteemed gentlemen will not take offense."
“You’ve really become honest now, not even bothering to defend yourself,” Mei Xiyuan chimed in.
Upon hearing this, Tuoba Ze quickly regained his composure and presented the tea he had just poured to them with both hands. He then sincerely said, "It was my fault for failing in my duties and disappointing the princess. Fortunately, heaven has spared me, and now that I have caught my breath, I have come to apologize to you both."
"What? Did I hear that right? The dignified Crown Prince of the Northern Lie Kingdom is making us two weak women who can't even kill a chicken apologize? We two dare not accept that!" Before Mei Xiyuan could speak, Lu Tianjiao, still feeling angry about what happened at the Sihai Tea House last time, said sarcastically.
Tuoba Ze quickly picked up another cup of tea, bowed deeply to Lu Tianjiao, and said, "Miss Lu, you are very magnanimous. All the mistakes of the past were my fault. I hope that everything in the past can be wiped clean."
"Hmph!" Although Lu Tianjiao gave him a cold snort and glared at him resentfully, he still took the teacup from his hand.
Seeing that Lu Tianjiao had calmed down, Mei Xiyuan finally asked, "Speak, why did you send someone to summon the two of us here?"
Lu Tianjiao angrily added, "Hurry up and tell us, is there some kind of deal this time? I wonder how much we'll have to pay this time?"
"You flatter me. I still feel resentful that I couldn't do what you needed last time, so I wouldn't dare mention the bargaining chips to you again."
As soon as Tuoba Ze finished speaking, Lu Tianjiao deliberately spread his hands towards him and teased him, "Since you've said that, why don't you return the chips we won last time in full!"
"Sister..." Mei Xiyuan saw that Tuoba Zedun looked troubled and quickly stopped her.
"Hmph..." Lu Tianjiao snorted coldly again and glared at Tuoba Ze.
Recalling how Tuoba Ze had treated him so arrogantly and turned his back on him at the Sihai Tea House, Lu Tianjiao still felt a bellyful of anger with nowhere to vent it.
At this moment, Tuoba Ze finally spoke: "Although I cannot return the chips to you two, I dare to guarantee with my life that this plan will be foolproof."
After Tuoba Ze confidently said this, he gestured for the two men to move closer to him. Finally, the three of them huddled together and whispered their secret plot.
Inside the room, after Tuoba Ze revealed his flawless plan, the two women stared at each other in astonishment.
They had to admit that Tuoba Ze was extremely ruthless, far beyond their imagination; he had no bottom line in order to achieve his goals.
After pondering for a while, Lu Tianjiao asked with some doubt, "Since your plan has been arranged to such a perfect degree, why did you call the two of us here? You don't mean you want us to applaud and cheer for you on the sidelines, do you?!"
Tuoba Ze then stared intently at Mei Xiyuan's face. Mei Xiyuan seemed to understand instantly, but as if in a dream, she asked him in disbelief, "Do you want this princess to lend you a hand in your actions in Dongning?"
Tuoba Ze's expression clearly showed his certainty.
After a moment's thought, Mei Xiyuan slammed her hand heavily on the coffee table in front of the three of them.
She immediately refused, saying, "No! That is my motherland, the place where I was born and raised. Even if things are bad, I cannot do such a rebellious thing."
Mei Xiyuan was furious: "The plague is only happening in Longhu City now, and there is no disaster reported in other places. Just to protect the people of one city, you want me to risk losing the dignity of my entire royal family? Isn't that the same as me handing Dongning over to you? Your wishful thinking is really clever, ingenious, and ruthless."
Her heart was already pounding with excitement, but after saying so much, seeing Tuoba Ze simply sitting there leisurely sipping tea, Mei Xiyuan became even more determined: "No, absolutely not..."
At this moment, Tuoba Ze smiled and finally spoke slowly, wanting to test her: "I heard that since Princess Yongle left the Prince of Qin's residence... she has not left the house all day long..."
Before he could finish speaking, it seemed that he had indeed touched a sensitive nerve in Mei Xiyuan, and she immediately shouted at Tuoba Ze, "Shut up!"
With just a few words, Tuoba Ze seemed to have already figured out the result he wanted. He smiled and continued, "The princess has been living in seclusion for a long time. How can you be so sure that the disaster is only happening in Longhu City and not in other places?"
"What do you mean by that?" Upon hearing this, both women immediately turned their gazes to Tuoba Ze's face in surprise.
Tuoba Ze then calmly poured fresh tea for the two of them before speaking, "If the world were truly as peaceful as the princess imagines, how could the wise and intelligent King of Western Qin have been implicated in this matter, to the point that Emperor Jing of Western Qin was so furious in court that he confined him to his residence to reflect on his mistakes?"
"Was all of this your doing behind the scenes?" Lu Tianjiao suddenly realized what was going on and stood up in surprise.
Tuoba Ze still had a smile on his face, slowly poured another cup of tea, and this time he picked it up and leisurely sipped it himself.
Finally, he toyed with the teacup in his hand for a while, and said with great interest, "Princess, can't you tell where this tea comes from?"
Upon hearing this, Mei Xiyuan picked up her teacup again and carefully tasted it. Finally, she looked into his eyes in surprise and said, "This...this is a dragon scale that was freshly made in Longhu City last spring and was reserved exclusively for the imperial court. How could you..."
Tuoba Ze looked at the pale yellow tea in his teacup, and then seemed to be thoroughly enjoying the aroma of the tea.
Then, in an extremely nonchalant tone, he said, "I had nothing to do some time ago, so I just took a casual stroll through Dragon Tiger City. Tsk tsk tsk... That paradise on earth, such a beautiful and precious place, is now full of disaster victims. They cry out to heaven and earth in vain, and can only wait to die."
Just hearing these words, Mei Xiyuan felt as if she had witnessed it all herself, and her heart clenched instantly.
Seeing Mei Xiyuan's pained and helpless expression, Tuoba Ze still couldn't stop and continued, "I really couldn't bear to look at those eyes filled with longing for life, so I transferred the seriously ill patients to other corners of the Lingkong Continent, hoping to find medical treatment for them and get better care as soon as possible."
As he spoke, he shifted his gaze to Mei Xiyuan and asked, "Even a complete stranger like me can't bear to see them continue to suffer. Princess Yongle, as their mistress, doesn't she want this disaster to end sooner, so that your people will suffer less and have fewer deaths?"
"Tuoba Ze, you...you are utterly heartless, spreading the plague everywhere." Mei Xiyuan was incredulous and furious upon hearing this.
Tuoba Ze stared intently at Mei Xiyuan's face and argued, "Wasn't what I did helping your people on behalf of Your Highness? Or... was I wrong? Does Your Highness not like it?"
Suddenly, Tuoba Ze seemed to be possessed: "Oh dear! I remember back then, I told those disaster victims that I was sent by the princess who had married into the Western Qin to save them. They were so grateful to you, Princess, that they were moved to tears. The princess doesn't like it, what should I do now?"
"Madman, Tuoba Ze, you're a complete madman, a great demon." Even Lu Tianjiao, who was listening nearby, felt a chill run down his spine.
Mei Xiyuan was clearly so shocked that she didn't know what to say. She could no longer sit still and immediately stood up and said firmly, "Even if I can never go back to Dongning in this lifetime, I will never associate with a villain like you who is afraid that the world is not chaotic enough. You are simply insane. I advise you, those who do many evil deeds will surely perish. In this lifetime, you should stop having any more delusions."
"Sister, let's go."
As soon as Qi Liao finished speaking, the two stood up and were about to step out when a voice suddenly rang out: "By the way, I've recently heard that the Prince of Qin's mansion is keeping a woman from Dongning Kingdom, who seems to be of even higher status than Princess Yongle. Not only that, I've also heard that the woman seems to be... pregnant. I've also heard that Consort Chun has been frequently visiting the palace to meet with the Empress Dowager lately, I wonder what family matters they're discussing? But it seems that the Prince of Qin's mansion... will soon have double happiness."
Upon hearing this, the two immediately stopped in their tracks.
Mei Xiyuan gritted her teeth, quietly clenched her fists, and said in a deep voice, "This princess agrees to cooperate with you."
After saying that, the two turned around and went back to their seats.
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