The slender, green Longjing leaves stretched and swirled in the clear tea soup. Xia Mingyuan's face was reflected in the teacup, and he blew gently from his mouth, and the leaves slowly dissipated in the tea foam.

Yuan Xi stood aside a little stiffly, her eyes already red and swollen from crying. Xia Mingyuan put down the teacup, looked up at her, sighed, and said, "Xi'er, such a big thing happened, why didn't you tell Dad? It's really hard for you."

Yuan Xi saw the deep concern in Xia Mingyuan's eyes, her nose was sore, and she almost cried again. Although she had always had an inexplicable fear of her father, the situation around her had been dangerous and dangerous in the past few days, and she had already been exhausted. At this moment, she could feel the care of her relatives, which was like a warm current flowing into her heart, making her feel that she was no longer fighting alone.

The old marquis watched coldly from the side and said to Xia Mingyuan: "Prime Minister Xia, don't worry. Since Yuan Xi has entered the Marquis' Mansion, no matter what Du'er does, we will not let her suffer any injustice."

Xia Mingyuan snorted coldly and said, "Old Marquis, there is no need to be so nervous. Even if I don't get along with you guys normally, I won't add insult to injury at this time." He sighed again and said, "Even if Xiao Du doesn't improve, he is still my son-in-law. What's happened to him now? I don't want my daughter to become a widow for no reason."

Yuan Xi frowned slightly, thinking that the word "widow" sounded a bit harsh, so she walked forward and added some tea for Xia Mingyuan, saying, "Don't worry, Daddy, my husband will be fine, and your daughter can take care of herself."

Xia Mingyuan looked at her without comment, then waved his hand behind him and asked a guard to hand a red sandalwood box to the old marquis. He said, "These are some precious medicinal herbs in my house. They were all given by the palace. I don't know if they are useful. The old marquis should keep them for now." He turned to Yuan Xi and said, "Since my father is here, he also wants to see him in person. Xi'er, how about you take me there now?"

Yuan Xi looked at the old marquis hesitantly, knowing that he did not want outsiders to know about Xiao Du's condition. The old marquis looked coldly at the wooden box in his hand, knowing that Xia Mingyuan had come today with full preparations and would never be easily sent away, so he could only forcefully pull up the corners of his mouth and said, "Thank you for your kindness, but Du'er is currently undergoing treatment, so even we are not allowed to enter. I'm afraid I have to refuse your kindness today."

Xia Mingyuan picked up the teacup nonchalantly and said, "That's fine. I'm here now, so I'll just wait and see. If there's a result today, I won't have to worry about Xier anymore."

He had already done his best, and the old marquis had no other excuses to offer, so he had to let him wait in the hall.

Yuan Xi ordered people to serve fruit tea, and then secretly glanced at the few bodyguards brought by Xia Mingyuan. She was always confused in her heart. Although she was touched by her father's concern, she also felt that her father's purpose of coming this time was not simple.

After a while, Xiaochun ran in from outside, sweating profusely, and said in a trembling voice: "Master, Madam, the left doctor is out, and I want you to go over immediately!"

As soon as the old marquis and Yuan Xi saw his expression, they knew that the situation was not good. They stood up and hurriedly followed Xiaochun out. Xia Mingyuan's eyes flashed with a hint of sternness. He also hurriedly put down his teacup and rushed up with a few guards.

Outside Xiao Du's room, there was chaos. The princess couldn't stand the stimulation and was dragged back to her room by Nanny Yu. Zuo Qiao looked heavy-faced and kept pacing in front of the door. When she saw the old Marquis and Yuan Xi rushing over, she hurriedly went to greet them with guilt and grief, "It's all my fault. The Marquis... The Marquis may not survive tonight!"

Yuan Xi covered her mouth and cried out in shock, almost fainting. The old marquis was also shaking violently, his eyes filled with grief, and he was speechless for a moment, not caring that there was someone behind him who should not have heard these words.

It was Zuo Qiao who just saw Xia Mingyuan following closely behind them. He was immediately frightened and shuddered. He stammered and saluted, "Xia... Prime Minister Xia, why are you here?"

Xia Mingyuan's eyes showed an inquiring look, and he glanced at Zuo Qiao and said, "Doctor Zuo, you can see clearly that this matter concerns the life and death of the Marquis, and even more so the safety of the border. This conclusion cannot be made rashly."

Zuo Qiao wiped the sweat off his face, cast an apologetic glance at the old marquis, and said, "Of course, it cannot be said that there is no hope. Anyway, tonight is the critical moment. I just hope that the old marquis can hold on."

Xia Mingyuan sighed, walked to the grief-stricken Yuan Xi, gently placed her head on his shoulder, and said softly, "Don't worry, Dad will be here with you. No matter what happens, Dad will help you get through it."

Yuan Xi raised her head in panic, feeling that everything seemed unreal. Her eyes were red and swollen, her gaze was unfocused, and her voice was weak and seemed to float in the sky. "Daddy, are you going to stay tonight?"

The old marquis finally pulled himself out of the pain. He slowly closed his eyes and said coldly, "How can Prime Minister Xia be willing to leave without seeing the result? Right?"

Xia Mingyuan laughed dryly twice and did not reply. The old marquis took a deep breath, and at that moment, he seemed to have returned to the tough man who was decisive and ruthless on the battlefield. He called Zhou Jingyuan and ordered him, "Go and clean up a room for Prime Minister Xia to stay in, and send a few maids and servants over, and tell them to serve well."

Xia Mingyuan waved his hand and said, "No need. These personal guards around me have been with me for more than ten years. They can do what they should do. There are many things to do in the mansion, so there is no need for them to arrange anything for me."

He turned around, shook Yuan Xi's hand again, and said, "Don't worry, Daddy will stay here tonight. If anything happens, I will send someone to tell Daddy."

Yuan Xi only cared about Xiao Du's safety at the moment, so she just responded casually and told Li Ma to write it down. The old marquis stared at Xia Mingyuan's back with a sharp gaze, a sneer on his lips... Inside and outside the house, people's hearts were very different, and each had their own thoughts.

The moon was at its zenith. In the upper room of the Marquis's mansion, Xia Mingyuan sat leisurely in the armchair. Han Kun, his most trusted personal guard, was leading four other people to carefully check the items in the room. After confirming that there was nothing unusual, he asked the others to guard outside and reported to him, "Don't worry, Prime Minister. There is no problem."

Xia Mingyuan sneered coldly, "Xiao Yunjing is not that stupid. Everyone knows that I entered his mansion. If I can't walk out safely, neither the Queen Mother nor the Emperor will let him off easily."

Han Kun understood and said, "That's why the Prime Minister dared to stay in the mansion overnight so resolutely." He added, "It's all because of that old fox Xiao Yunjing who blocked the news in the mansion so tightly. If he hadn't been unable to contact the insider in the mansion, why would the Prime Minister come here in person?"

Xia Mingyuan said, "Although there are rumors that Xiao Du is dying, I still don't believe that this matter is so simple. Only by coming to see him in person can I feel at ease. I will find out his background tonight so that I can make arrangements tomorrow."

Han Kun thought for a moment and then asked, "But why would Xiao Yunjing just sit there and wait to die?"

Xia Mingyuan tapped his fingers on the table and said, "So, you guys should stay outside and guard for me tonight. You must not make any mistakes."

Han Kun stood up straight, waved his hand, and said, "Don't worry, Prime Minister. All the soldiers here today are selected elite soldiers. I have also arranged a team to keep an eye on the outside of the Marquis' Mansion at all times. Unless Xiao Yunjing dares to openly become an enemy of our Prime Minister's Mansion, nothing will happen."

Xia Mingyuan nodded, and gave Han Kun a few more instructions. After confirming that everything was arranged correctly, he relaxed a little. At this moment, he suddenly heard the guards shouting from outside: "The Prime Minister has gone to bed, no one can enter."

Han Kun saw Xia Mingyuan winking at him, so he asked loudly, "What's the matter?"

A guard outside hurriedly replied, "It was a maid from the mansion, who said she came to bring supper to the Prime Minister."

There is no reason for her to send a midnight snack. Han Kun frowned and was about to ask others to send the maid away, when he suddenly heard Xia Mingyuan say, "Let her leave the things behind and go."

Han Kun was confused when the guards outside brought in a plate of cakes. Xia Mingyuan looked at Han Kun intently and told him to break each cake into pieces. Sure enough, he saw a folded piece of paper hidden in one of the cakes.

Han Kun hurriedly unfolded the note carefully, and saw that it said: "There is a fraud in the mansion, discuss it at the west corner gate at three o'clock in the morning."

"This..." Han Kun took a deep breath and couldn't tell whether the message on the note was true or false. He could only look at Xia Mingyuan cautiously.

Xia Mingyuan thought for a moment, then crumpled up the paper and threw it into the candle flame. Han Kun stared at the paper being quickly devoured by the candle flame and turned into a puff of black smoke. He asked with some lingering fear in his heart, "What if this is really a message from that person? Do you want me to go to the corner gate to check it out later?"

Xia Mingyuan smiled and shook his head, saying, "Whether it's true or not, you just need to remember the purpose of our visit today, and don't pay attention to anyone else. We just need to stay safe until tomorrow morning, and whatever happens in the mansion will naturally not escape our eyes. Before that, the more you do, the easier it will be to be caught."

Han Kun responded with a vague understanding, and after arranging everything inside the house, he went to guard outside. He also asked another person to stand guard outside the house and pay close attention to any unusual movements in the mansion.

Xia Mingyuan had been nervous for the whole day and felt a little tired, but he didn't dare to sleep too deeply, so he lay on the bed with his clothes on.

At three o'clock in the morning, there were a few "dong dong" sounds of clappers outside the wall. Xia Mingyuan was suddenly awakened by a strange fragrance. He immediately got out of bed alertly and followed the smell. Just after taking a few steps and stepping to the corner of the bed, he suddenly felt his feet sink. Before he could shout out, he fell into a hole in the ground.

The hole was not deep, but he fell into it unexpectedly and was thrown all over the place. He raised his head and saw that the stone slab above him had closed instantly. In the corner behind him, a dark shadow was slowly walking towards him...