Xi Xi was still focused on exchanging glances with Fu Guang when she suddenly noticed a burning gaze. She turned to look at the door and saw Chen Xiao staring at her speechlessly.
Seeing Xixi turn her head, Fu Guang belatedly turned his gaze to Chen Xiao as well.
Yin Yuyao was the first to notice Chen Xiao's arrival, and she had already walked to the door to welcome him in. "Has His Majesty already dealt with the affairs of the court?"
Chen Xiao nodded, then looked at Fu Guang and Xi Xi and asked, "And you two?"
...The only response Chen Xiao received was silence from both of them.
Chen Xiao had an expression that said, "I knew it would happen." "How much time has passed... at least 45 minutes, if not half an hour? You two... were you just busy having a staring contest?"
Xi Xi, having her reality exposed by her host, stubbornly replied, "I'm just waiting for you."
"What are you waiting for me for?" Chen Xiao knew Xi Xi was stubborn, so he deliberately asked her to see what kind of story she could come up with.
After stammering for a while, Xi Xi finally managed to squeeze out an answer: "This concerns the Yuan Realm. You've been there before, so you know a thing or two about it. Besides, you're my host now, so you're practically a half-Yuan Realm person. You definitely have the right to know!"
Chen Xiao was slightly taken aback upon hearing this. Although he knew that Xi Xi was just being stubborn and would only say such things to save face, Chen Xiao, who had been labeled as a 'half-Yuan Realm person,' still felt a warmth in his heart. He then smiled, stopped teasing Xi Xi, and changed the subject.
"I see. Now that I, a half-Yuan Realm being, have arrived, you may begin to speak?"
He then sat down next to Yin Yuyao and waited for Xixi to explain.
Xi Xi straightened her voice and stood in front of Fu Guang's bed. Her short stature was exactly the same as Fu Guang's on the bed. She stared at Fu Guang with a serious expression and asked, "Have you forgotten something?"
A hint of confusion appeared on Fu Guang's cold face.
Seeing this, the people present understood that Fu Guang had indeed lost his memory, and Xi Xi's initial malice towards Fu Guang turned into a joke.
They were unaware of the intricacies involved; only Xixi knew.
Xi Xi had an "I knew it" look on her face, snorted, and muttered, "I knew something was off."
After a pause, he continued, "Since you've forgotten, there's nothing more I can say. You wouldn't remember anyway, so it's pointless. You should just lie down. I have to go back to the Yuan Realm for something. Be careful during this time."
The first long, awkward sentence was clearly addressed to Fu Guang, while the last sentence, "reporting," was spoken to Chen Xiao.
After speaking, he suddenly disappeared.
The remaining group looked at each other in bewilderment once again.
Chen Xiao was speechless: I haven't even gotten a taste of the melon yet!?
Yin Yuyao's brows relaxed as she looked at Fu Guang, who lay on the bed with a blank expression. She secretly breathed a sigh of relief, suppressed her emotions, and said to Fu Guang, "Since that's the case, I'll be leaving now. You... get some rest."
Fu Guang's face showed reluctance, but Yin Yuyao turned and left before Fu Guang could react.
Chen Xiao was speechless again: Very well, after waiting for so long, I haven't gotten any gossip.
Meeting Fu Guang's gaze, she forced a fake smile and said, "Lord Fu Guang, please rest well. Goodbye!"
Following Yin Yuyao's example, she quickly left, leaving Fu Guang alone sitting on the bed with an unreadable expression.
Outside the palace.
Xu Qian and the others had gathered together sometime earlier. Seeing Yin Yuyao and Chen Xiao emerge one after the other, but not Fu Guang and Xi Xi, they were puzzled. Just then, Chen Xiao explained:
"They have important matters to discuss, let's leave now!"
Then the group burst out of the inner hall, much to the astonishment of everyone in the Dark Pavilion: only a handful of people had ever been able to enter the inner hall before, so what was going on lately? Today, several people had suddenly entered!
Has the threshold of the inner hall been lowered? Or have they made a mistake, and these people haven't actually entered the inner hall?
Upon seeing this, the person who had first greeted them immediately ordered his men to check the records.
The reply came quickly: "Everything is correct. There were five people before, now there are nine."
Chen Xiao and his companions naturally saw the scene before them. At first, Chen Xiao chuckled to himself: Who told them they could use the 'back door'!
The group squeezed into one carriage, just as they had when they arrived.
But for some reason, Yin Yuyao fainted as soon as she got into the carriage, which made Chen Xiao nervous and worried for a while, and he kept calling for Xixi.
Finally, Xixi was bombarded with messages and came online to explain, "It's normal, it doesn't affect anything," before hurriedly logging off, which calmed Chen Xiao down.
The carriage was not only spacious and comfortably furnished, but also had a woody fragrance, which stirred up a myriad of thoughts in everyone present.
Chen Xiao pondered to himself: Previously, only five people had entered the inner hall, but now the number has increased to nine. Xu Qian and Yin Yuyao had both entered before, so who are the other three?
For some reason, she always felt that Chu Yanxi was one of the three, but a political strongman like Chu Yanxi would not come to the Dark Pavilion to find cheat codes like they did.
At this moment, Xu Qian also thought of Chu Yanxi, and his thoughts were the same as Chen Xiao's.
Xu Ruyan, unaware of what His Majesty and the Prime Minister were daydreaming about, was already impatient to return to the palace so he could move out of the inner palace immediately.
His gaze was intense, and his expression was radiant. Even though Chen Xiao was lost in thought, his eyes were drawn to him.
Chen Xiao snapped out of his thoughts and looked at Xu Ruyan's state with some amusement, saying, "Brother Yan, you really are... so innocent!"
Xu Qian and the others were somewhat surprised: "Brother Yan?" Wasn't Xu Ruyan a few years older than Chen Xiao? But Chen Xiao was the emperor, so she must have her reasons for calling him that!
Xu Ruyan, however, was already used to it and even dared to call Chen Xiao "sister-in-law".
This time, the group wasn't just surprised, they were shocked: What? Sister-in-law? Sister???
Xu Ruyu's eyes darkened, and a hint of a smile flashed across them.
Chen Xiao was shocked by this modern way of addressing someone: Isn't this a popular internet meme?! How could Xu Ruyan use this term? Could it be because that mysterious mission taker taught her?...
But Xu Ruyan didn't notice that something was wrong. She was still thinking about what Chen Xiao had said: Why does that slight pause feel like it wasn't a good word?
However, he didn't think about it for too long. Anyway, once the imperial edict was announced tomorrow, he would be free! He wouldn't have to stay in the oppressive palace anymore! He could even serve as an official alongside Yuan Yin!
An even more exaggerated smile appeared on his face.
His expression immediately broke the strange atmosphere. Yuan Yin couldn't help but smile slightly. Xu Ruyu looked at her younger brother with a helpless expression, but her eyes were full of tolerance.
Xu Qian also found it somewhat amusing, but he immediately straightened his expression and looked at Xu Ruyan with a serious face, earnestly instructing her: "Tomorrow you will be entering the court as an official, so do not be like you are now... showing all your emotions on your face. His Majesty is magnanimous, but the officials in the court are different. The most important thing in the court is to hide your emotions!"
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