The moonlight was dim, and after Tao Ti came out of the bath, Pei Yanren disappeared.

Linglong stepped forward at the right time and explained respectfully, "Crown Princess, His Highness has some government affairs to deal with in Tongming Palace. He asked you to rest first and not wait for him."

"Oh, okay."

Tao Ti turned his head and glanced at the dark sky outside the window, muttering, "It's already midnight, and I'm still busy. Hmm... Being a prince is not easy."

Linglong didn't respond and helped her to bed to rest.

…

At the same time, in Tongming Palace, inside the study.

Pei Yan was wearing a loose white robe and sitting upright, like the sound of a bamboo board. Gu Feng, who was sitting opposite him, was wearing a neat black robe and had a long sword on the table.

The aroma of tea wafts in the air, and in front of the two people lies a chessboard with black and white pieces running in all directions.

Gu Feng dropped a black chess piece, his voice as low as if it had been burned by wind and sand, "Your Highness, you only said before that you wanted to teach Princess Mu a lesson, and you didn't mention making such a big fuss."

Pei Yan laughed softly, "I'll let it go this time. I didn't expect the Crown Princess to be so bold as to confront them on their territory."

He usually thought that Tao Ti was greedy and playful, kind-hearted, but also timid. For example, before, she dared to hit Pei Changzhou, but she would be scared and have nightmares at night.

He had arranged for Prince Mu to do this in order to delay Princess Mu and prevent her from implementing her plan for the pleasure boat.

Secondly, it was also a lesson for Princess Mu. If she wanted to destroy someone's innocence, then he would use her own method to retaliate and destroy the "object" that her beloved son used to destroy someone's innocence.

Seeing that Pei Yan could still laugh, Gu Feng frowned and said solemnly, "The Crown Princess is brave but not prudent. Your Highness, you are still used to her... Today, I learned that Princess Mu is secretly plotting to attack you or your Crown Princess. This matter really pissed her off."

Pei Yan's expression was sluggish, and he said slowly, "If she really takes action, it might not be a bad thing for us, right?"

Gu Feng was startled, and suddenly realized something, his expression suddenly changed, "Your Highness, your original plan is risky enough, and now with Princess Mu's involvement, isn't the risk even greater!? No, this is too dangerous..."

Pei Yan remained silent. He elegantly picked up a chess piece with his long fingers, put it down gently, and said softly, "Uncle Feng, it's your turn."

Gu Feng's mind was in a mess and he was in no mood to play chess, but when he saw Pei Yan looking at him with a smile, he picked up a chess piece and placed it randomly.

"Your Highness, we have evidence that King Mu colluded with the prefect, sold private salt, and forged weapons privately. This is enough to make him lose power. Why do you still want to take such a big risk?"

“Not enough.”

Pei Yan shook his head, his eyes were filled with a cold and stern expression, "I want to make King Mu lose his power completely, so that he will never have any chance to rise again. Besides that, I will also drag those people in Chang'an down with me."

Gu Feng frowned and looked at the prince in front of him with mixed feelings.

Ever since Queen Gu passed away and the young prince fell into the water, he was sent by his master to be by the young prince's side to protect him and teach him.

The first time he saw the little prince, he was only five years old, so thin, pretty and delicate like a little girl. His pale face looked at him who suddenly appeared, but he was not afraid. He just stared at him with a pair of dark eyes.

Later, the two of them became familiar with each other, and the little prince took the initiative to say to him, "Uncle Feng, my illness cannot be cured. If I recover, someone will still want to harm me... I don't want to die."

The harem had endless shady schemes, and pretending to be sick was the only solution the five-year-old could think of.

Time flies, he accompanied the little prince to grow up, watching him grow from a little child who said "I don't want to die" with a firm look in his eyes, step by step into the man in front of him with "ravines in his heart and mountains and rivers in his eyes".

In the silence, the wind blew in from the window, and the candlelight flickered.

Pei Yan wrote a word on the chessboard, and a relaxed smile appeared on his cold and pale face, "Uncle Feng, you lost."

Gu Feng woke up from his past memories, looked down, and saw that the white chess piece that Pei Yan had just placed had unexpectedly captured a large area of ​​his black chess pieces.

Pei Yan said, "It's a risky move, but if used well, it can have miraculous effects."

Gu Feng understood the deep meaning of his words, and bowed his hands and said, "Your Highness is a superb chess player. I am willing to admit that you are inferior to me."

…

There was a peaceful silence in the Jixian Palace, and several lights in the bedroom were turned off.

Linglong, who was guarding the door, saw Pei Yan coming and stood up to salute, "Your Highness."

Pei Yan looked at the dim light inside and asked in a low voice, "Is she asleep?"

Linglong: "Yes, I fell asleep half an hour ago."

After a pause, she continued, "The Crown Princess ordered that hot milk be warmed on the stove and asked me to tell Your Highness to drink it."

Pei Yan said "hmm", feeling relieved.

After drinking that cup of warm and slightly sweet milk and taking a shower, the night got deeper.

He walked to the bed and lifted the light gauze curtain embroidered with willow-yellow hibiscus flowers, only to see a graceful and petite body wrapped in a small cup, sleeping on its side facing inside.

He glanced at it, then slowly looked away and turned off the light.

On the soft bed, Tao Ti's eyelashes trembled slightly. She listened to the rustling sound beside the bed and half-opened her eyes sleepily.

Is Pei Yan back?

She was dazed and wanted to turn around and say hello to him, but she was too lazy to move.

Until the man next to her lay down next to her, and a strong arm naturally hooked around her waist and pulled her into his arms.

Taoti, “……!”

He he he he he he!

Her heart was pounding, but she kept her eyes closed and dared not open them.

The man hugged her tightly, buried his head in the soft and sweet crook of her neck, and relaxed his tall body, as if all the fatigue from a whole day outside was released at this moment.

In the darkness, people's other senses become extra sensitive. Tao Ti felt his warm breath on her skin, which made her feel numb and tingling, and she shuddered slightly.

She couldn't see how red her face was, but she could feel her cheeks burning.

At this moment, many thoughts popped into her mind.

The way he hugged her was a little too smooth. Did he hold her like this every night before sleeping?

Before that, she woke up several times and found herself lying in his arms. It wasn't because she slept poorly that she clung to him, but he took the initiative to hug her?

There are also those intimate head-pats, hand-holdings, shoulder-wrappings, forehead-knockings...

His warm smile, his gentle voice, and his seemingly inexhaustible patience with her.

Could it be that Pei Yan...likes her?

As soon as this thought came to her mind, Tao Ti froze. She felt as if something had exploded in her head. She was a little panicked and at a loss. She felt like she was floating on the clouds...

She didn't know how long it had been, but she heard the man's steady breathing in her ears, and her confused heart gradually calmed down.

Maybe it was because my emotions were fluctuating too much. After I calmed down, I felt sleepy like a tide.

She was tired of thinking and fell into a deep sleep without realizing it.

Feeling the calm breath of the person in his arms, Pei Yan, who should have fallen asleep long ago, gently opened his eyes.

In the dark night, those dark and deep eyes were clear, without any trace of sleepiness.

He reached out, and his bony fingers gently stroked the black hair beside Tao Ti's ear, and his cool lips kissed her soft earlobe.

"Little girl, don't avoid my love. It will make me very sad."