The night was peaceful in the Duke's Mansion, with the laughter of maids and servants rang out from time to time in the yard.

Duke Cheng was resting in the porch in his homely clothes, while Madam Yu was sitting beside him, fanning herself and chatting with a few maids and servants.

"It's much hotter here than where we are," she said.

"Have you prepared the ice?" asked Duke Cheng.

The maids and servants all laughed.

"It has been prepared according to the Duke's instructions," they said.

"I just said it casually, just being coquettish, why do you take it seriously?" Mrs. Yu said with a smile while waving her fan.

Duke Cheng simply smiled when such sweet words were spoken between husband and wife in public, and the maids and servants were also used to it and did not take it seriously.

The atmosphere in the yard is relaxed and cozy.

"The prince is back."

There was a report from outside, and then a figure appeared at the gate of the courtyard.

"Dad and Mom, I'm back." Zhu Zan said in a dull voice, and he didn't come closer. He turned around without waiting for Duke Cheng and his wife to ask him questions, "I'm going to rest."

"Are you going to see your wife?" Mrs. Yu asked.

Zhu Zan didn't say anything and seemed not to hear.

"Zan'er, wait a moment, I have something to ask you." Duke Cheng said.

Zhu Zan stopped.

The maids bowed their heads and retreated, leaving only the three of them in the yard.

"Come on, come closer, don't stand in the shadows." Mrs. Yu said, "Otherwise I can't see clearly what you look like after being beaten."

After saying this he burst into laughter.

Zhu Zan, who walked over, looked even uglier.

"Look, look." He said, standing in front of Mrs. Yu.

His clothes were a little disheveled and his face was bruised.

Mrs. Yu laughed even harder.

"Oh, I got slapped in the face." She said, poking Zhu Zan's face with her hand, "I can't go to see Miss Jun like this, it's too embarrassing."

Zhu Zan took a hissing breath and called out "Dad".

"Look at my mother," he complained.

Duke Cheng smiled at Madam Yu.

"Stop teasing him." He said, looking at Zhu Zan again.

Zhu Zan spoke before he even opened his mouth.

"Dad, you don't need to ask. This is what happened. This is Huang Cheng's trick, and His Majesty is testing you." He said, "It all depends on how you respond at the court tomorrow morning."

Duke Cheng said "Oh".

"Then..." he said again.

"That bastard Lu Yunqi is guarding the Prince Huai's Mansion, but he's not targeting you, father." Zhu Zan spoke first again, "He's targeting Miss Jun."

"Miss Jun..." said Duke Cheng.

"Miss Jun treated Prince Huai before. It was a bet that she got the job. She became famous in the capital because of this. Lu Yunqi will definitely use Prince Huai as an excuse to criticize Miss Jun's medical skills. Maybe he will even put the blame on her for the evil deeds in the end." Zhu Zan said with a snort.

Duke Cheng said "Oh".

"Dad, don't worry about it. Just discuss with your staff and do what they have agreed on." Zhu Zan waved his hand and said, "When Prince Huai arrives at the imperial mausoleum, we will be able to cure him."

Duke Cheng said "Oh".

"Okay." He said, without saying anything else, smiled and nodded, "Go ahead."

Zhu Zan responded by turning around. His expression was no longer as relaxed as before, and he strode away with a gloomy face.

Looking at his back, Mrs. Yu shook her head and clicked her tongue twice.

"On one side is Miss Jun, and on the other side is father. It's hard to choose," she said.

Duke Cheng smiled and sat down without saying anything.

"What do you think?" Madam Yu sat down next to him, bumped his shoulder and asked, "The emperor is the same. The person is gone, what does he still care about? He is making trouble for a child."

A thief with a guilty conscience.

These four words flashed through the couple's minds at the same time, but of course no one would say them out loud.

"In the officialdom and imperial power, there is no such thing as having children or not having children. They are all the same." Duke Cheng said in a gentle voice.

Madam Yu was silent for a moment, then stood up, fanning herself.

"I'm going to sleep first. You can think about it slowly. Don't disturb me during the morning court." She said.

Duke Cheng nodded with a smile.

"Sleep well," he said.

After Madam Yu left, Duke Cheng was the only one left in the yard, sitting in a cool chair in silence under the starry sky.

…

It is not as good to watch the stars in the capital as in the wild. The capital is too prosperous and the lights on the ground are brighter than the stars in the sky.

Miss Jun's gaze remained fixed for a long time under the starlight and in the lights.

"Hello."

Zhu Zan's voice was heard, followed by the sound of tiles creaking and someone coming over.

"There's not enough room for you to sit by the window, but you've come to the rooftop," he said. "Why do you always like to climb up and down, woman?"

Miss Jun smiled and pointed.

"The person who lives over there often said the same thing to me when I was a child," she said.

What words? Who?

Zhu Zan looked where she pointed and saw that half of the capital city looked like a fairyland, with houses and courtyards lined up one after another. Who knew where she was referring to?

She always said something incomprehensible. Zhu Zan ignored her and sat down.

There was silence between them.

"On the way to the imperial mausoleum, please show it to Prince Huai." Zhu Zan said suddenly, "I have arranged everything."

Go to the Imperial Mausoleum.

Miss Jun nodded.

"Okay," she said.

There was silence between the two again.

"Hey, are you angry?" Zhu Zan said in a deep voice.

"I don't have time to be angry." Miss Jun smiled and looked at him. It was dark at night and she could only see Zhu Zan's bright eyes. "If I were angry, I would have died of anger a long time ago."

Having parents killed and siblings imprisoned, for a person, this is already the most infuriating thing in the world. Apart from this, everything else is as it should be. What is there to be angry about?

"Actually, I'm not that powerful." Zhu Zan suddenly said again.

Miss Jun laughed even more.

"You finally realized this? Congratulations," she said.

Zhu Zan made a "Pooh" sound.

"I'm just being humble, don't take it seriously," he said.

Miss Jun laughed.

"It's just that a tiger is trapped in plain water and bullied by a dog." Zhu Zan said, "I can't take you into Prince Huai's mansion. You have reason to be angry."

"I'm not angry at you. It's not you who stopped me from coming in." Miss Jun said, "What's wrong with you? Why do you come and say these inexplicable things to me?"

As he spoke, he moved closer and looked at Zhu Zan, seeing his hazy face in the starlight.

"Oh, so you were beaten." She smiled, "You came to me to tell me about your grievances and to get comfort."

As he said this, he reached out and touched Zhu Zan's head.

"Let me take a look at the injury..."

Zhu Zan jumped up.

"Can you please be serious?" he shouted angrily, "I'm talking about serious matters."

Miss Jun stopped laughing.

"I'm talking about serious matters." She said, "It doesn't matter if we don't go into Prince Huai's mansion now. We can meet halfway as you said. Since they are using Prince Huai as a tool, Prince Huai must be fine. There is nothing to worry about."

Then he laughed.

"That's great. Prince Huai can go out for a walk. He hasn't been out for many years. This is a good opportunity."

Zhu Zan looked down at her for a moment.

"I can't ask my father to stop this." He said, "Although I don't know why, I know that Prince Huai is important to you. Logically, I should ask my father for help."

"You also said that, that's from a moral point of view, but from a rational point of view, it's completely meaningless to do this." Miss Jun said, "Knowing it's a trap, do you still want to jump in? This is too stupid."

Then he smiled again.

"I've already done this stupid thing once."

She entered the palace with a knife in hand and assassinated the emperor alone. At that time, she had no other considerations but to avenge her parents and kill the enemy right before her eyes. This was all her emotion. As for whether she could do it, whether she could do it in a different way, or even what to do if she succeeded or not, she didn't think about it at all.

At that moment, she was only thinking about the blood feud and dying together rather than letting that person live.

It's enough to do this once, and it's enough if she dies.

"There are many things that can be done in this situation." She looked at Zhu Zan, "For example, what you arranged is very suitable."

Zhu Zan was silent for a moment.

"Well, you comforted me," he said. "Thank you."

Miss Jun looked at him and smiled.

"How about giving yourself to me as a token of my gratitude?" she said.

Zhu Zan made a "Pooh" sound and was about to speak when he heard Chen Qi's shout from the yard.

"Miss Jun, Miss Jun, the prince hasn't come back yet. Did he run away..." He lowered his voice as if he wanted to whisper, but was afraid that Miss Jun on the roof wouldn't be able to hear him, so he raised his voice again.

"You're the one who ran away." Zhu Zan interrupted him angrily.

Chen Qi was startled and then laughed dryly.

"No, no, I was wrong." He said hurriedly, "I was saying that the prince came back late, do you want to prepare a midnight snack?"

"Roll, roll, roll." said Zhu Zan.

Chen Qi ran away with a smile on his face.

Miss Jun also stood up.

"What are you doing?" Zhu Zan took a step back cautiously.

"I've had enough of the night view. I'm going to have a midnight snack." Miss Jun said, "Do you want to join us?"

Without waiting for an answer, he walked past him.

Zhu Zan let out a breath, looked at the woman's figure that became increasingly thinner due to the blur in the night, and followed her in silence for a moment.

The stars dimmed, the lights dimmed, the night faded, and the morning began to appear.

People were already walking on the street, with carriages and sedan chairs. These were officials attending the grand court meeting. Today was different from the past, and the officials they met on the street all talked to each other for a few words, their expressions seeming both excited and nervous.

Soon a group of people also walked on the street. There were nearly a hundred people following them wearing purple robes. They were so powerful and impressive that the minor officials in green robes on the street hurriedly avoided them.

This was the ceremonial procession of Duke Cheng. Duke Cheng rode along under the gazes of the crowd and soon arrived at Yu Street.

Because it was still early for the court meeting, many officials stopped to eat at the restaurant stalls in the corridor.

Duke Cheng also stopped. Did he want to eat something here as well?

Duke Cheng did not look at the breakfast stall, but looked in another direction.

"Let's go." He said suddenly, urging his horse to turn around.

The follower was slightly startled.

"Where is the Duke going?" he asked.

"Go visit someone." said Duke Cheng.