The capital city.
The study in the Fourth Prince's mansion was quite lively.
"It's been a long time since I've seen Lord Li."
Mu Anjin warmly invited Lord Li to sit down and instructed, "No one is allowed to enter without my order."
"yes."
The door was closed again, leaving only the two of them in the study.
"My lord? How did things go?"
"Your Highness, rest assured. My son has fought on the battlefield before, so this is nothing to him. Besides, Mu Ange only has two hundred men, while my son has a thousand elite troops. Therefore, Your Highness can rest assured."
Mu Anjin listened and nodded with satisfaction: "Lord Li is very meticulous in his work, so I am naturally at ease. However, this matter is of utmost importance, and the fewer people who know about it, the better."
"That's natural."
He was willing to risk colluding with Mu Anjin to murder the prince for several reasons. First, it was clear that Lord He was about to pledge allegiance to the Fourth Prince, who was favored by the Emperor and was considered one of the more capable princes, with a high probability of becoming the future emperor. If he pledged allegiance early, the benefits would be substantial. Second, Mu Ange was a useless and dissolute man; even if he died, he wouldn't cause much trouble. Mu Anjin's willingness to do so indicated his confidence. Why should he serve a wise ruler instead of protecting a worthless nobody?
"Lord Li, once I ascend the throne, you will be my trusted advisor."
Lord Li stood up and bowed, saying, "Your Highness is wise!"
No sooner had the words left his mouth than a servant's voice rang out from outside the door: "Your Highness, the Princess Consort requests an audience."
Lord Li said, "Since Princess Consort is here, I will take my leave."
Mu Anjin escorted the person to the door, saying, "Please take care, sir."
Lord Li merely glanced at Xu Jiao'er standing at the door without speaking. Xu Jiao'er kept her head down and wrapped her clothes tighter around herself.
"Your Highness, I have done as you said."
Mu Anjin simply hummed in agreement: "Someone, bring the food to the Princess."
Since the last time, Xu Jiao'er only gets to eat after completing tasks as required by Mu Anjin; otherwise, she goes hungry.
Back in her room, Xu Jiao'er ate her now-cold food without shedding a single tear.
After finishing her meal, she took out a piece of paper from her vanity case and wrote down a line: November 2nd, a secret meeting with the Minister of War.
After writing it down, she carefully rolled up the note and put it into one of her openwork gold hairpins.
~~
The next morning, Mu Ange's troops prepared to set off. From this point on, Anning and Lanxi would also part ways, as the road to Tianlan Kingdom would not be the same as theirs.
"Sister Lanxi, be careful on the road, lest you get captured by bandits again."
"I understand. You need to be even more careful in the army, especially as a girl. Don't let anyone bully you."
An Ning glanced at Mu Ange, who was riding a tall horse in front of her, and said, "With him here, nothing will happen." After saying that, she looked at Mu Anxiang and said, "You must take good care of Lanxi."
Mu Anxiang nodded: "Don't worry, I won't let anything happen to her. When you're done with your work, come visit us in Tianlan Kingdom."
"good."
Seeing that they were packing their things to leave, An Ning couldn't help but step forward, her expression solemn: "No matter what, we will go to Tianlan Kingdom to meet you. Just remember this sentence, no matter what happens."
Lanxi was completely confused and nodded blankly.
At the city gate of Yuncheng, Mu Ange led An Ning westward, while Mu Anxiang and Lan Xi's carriage swayed and headed eastward.
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