Yuan Muyu, of course, knew she could fly; she just wanted to experience what it was like for Lu Xingzhou and Shen Tang to be in wheelchairs and unable to stand.

It was indeed difficult. The journey from there to the city was very uncomfortable, not just because of the inconvenience of movement, but also due to the stares of others.

All along the way, countless people watched her, some with pity, some with mockery, as if all were saying what a pity for such a beautiful young girl to be a cripple.

Even those who offered well-intentioned pity couldn’t hide a sense of superiority, not to mention the discriminatory mockery, and some even thought, “Serves her right, with that seductive face, she deserves to be a cripple.”

With her extraordinary spiritual sense, the depths of Wangchuan, every feedback resonated in her heart.

It was truly difficult to bear.

There were also some who were eager to come forward and bully her, but since it was a bustling street and under the eyes of the public, no one actually made a move. Yuan Muyu had no doubt that if they were in a dark alley, many would try to bully her.

These were unrelated people; what if they were “colleagues”?

Back then, Ye Wufeng and his group called him a cripple over and over, with such disdainful looks. How did Xingzhou endure all that?

What was she doing when he most needed her by his side, supporting him?

She was having Situ Yue dispose of the medicine meant to heal his leg.

As the wheelchair gradually left the city, Yuan Muyu’s face was already streaked with tears.

The wheelchair lifted off the ground and flew south. Yuan Muyu looked back, watching the city grow distant, slowly disappearing over the horizon.

Menggui City, what a beautiful name.

Meanwhile, Lu Xingzhou entered the room to see Ye Tinglan, whose pretty face was stern.

Lu Xingzhou chuckled and embraced her, “Alright, don’t be angry…”

He thought Ye Tinglan was still upset about Yuan Muyu’s inhumane actions, not understanding the fickle nature of a woman’s heart.

At this moment, a large part of Ye Tinglan’s stern expression was due to imagining Lu Xingzhou and her sister naked in bed.

Even if Lu Xingzhou behaved very well this time and didn’t mess around, what about the future? If Yuan Muyu truly became a decent person and pursued him earnestly, would she succeed?

If it really happened, would it be sisters serving one husband?

Thinking of such a scene, Ye Tinglan truly couldn’t maintain her composure.

What “Gui Mei Yi Di,” what kind of nonsense did A’nuo calculate? At that time, it was to calculate the fortune of an outdoor trial. Did you, a little dumpling, calculate a marriage in your belly?

Lu Xingzhou’s embrace didn’t quite succeed; instead, Ye Tinglan grabbed his ear, “Are you very proud?”

“No, what would I be proud of?” Lu Xingzhou was truly helpless, “If I were really proud, I would have gone in. Why would I make myself impotent?”

Ye Tinglan: “…”

Leaving future matters aside, regarding today’s events, Lu Xingzhou was entirely blameless; she truly couldn’t fault him.

So her heart softened, and she allowed Lu Xingzhou to embrace her.

Lu Xingzhou kissed her earlobe, and as Ye Tinglan began to tremble, he whispered, “I’ve also been holding back with great difficulty, Sir, please help me…”

Ye Tinglan, despite being filled with annoyance and complexity, still softened with his kiss. She intended to push him away but found herself powerless and limp, then he kissed her on the lips.

“No, get lost…” Ye Tinglan mumbled, “I’m annoyed just seeing you right now.”

Lu Xingzhou took advantage of her mumbled words and open mouth to slip in his tongue.

He didn’t care what gibberish she was saying.

Ye Tinglan: “…”

The door wasn’t even closed… Outside, Meng Guan, the Prefect who had just arrived, watched the Imperial Tutor being embraced and kissed by a man, her slender hands weakly pushing him away in a vulnerable manner. He felt as if struck by lightning.

Even though he had heard about it, seeing such a scene unfold directly before him was still too shocking, so much so that the Prefect, who had navigated the political currents for decades, completely lost his train of thought.

Ye Tinglan noticed Meng Guan and struggled violently, pushing Lu Xingzhou away. “Who is that official outside the door? How dare he not avoid seeing me, Yuan Muyu, being intimate with a man.”

Lu Xingzhou burst out laughing.

Meng Guan: “…”

Lu Xingzhou suppressed his laughter and said, “Prefect Meng, is this branch of the Yama Palace going to relocate?”

Meng Guan retorted indignantly, “As if I colluded with the demonic path!”

“In the future, the Yama Palace might not be so demonic,” Lu Xingzhou led Ye Tinglan out, but Ye Tinglan shook off his hand. Lu Xingzhou cleared his throat, “Prefect Meng, do you have something to discuss?”

Meng Guan looked straight ahead, “Originally, I wanted to see if the Marquis, who was taken by the Yama King, needed any help. It seems he doesn’t. So, may I ask, this place is rather simple; does the Marquis need me to arrange a guesthouse for a short stay?”

Lu Xingzhou quickly said, “Prefect Meng, please don’t call me Marquis. We are old acquaintances; just call me Xingzhou.”

“We are not close enough for me to call you by your given name, just as you still call me Prefect Meng.”

“Uh… then let’s just consider ‘Xingzhou’ my courtesy name, my courtesy name.”

Only then did Meng Guan recall that Lu Xingzhou’s identity was now public; his name was Huo Qing, and he was indeed a member of the Huo family. Although he still acted under the name Lu Xingzhou, he had inherited the ancestral temple and peerage using his Huo family identity.

Meng Guan understood the meaning of Lu Xingzhou’s “inheritance”; it wasn’t for himself, but to fulfill his father’s and grandfather’s dreams, to contend for the rightful position of “main branch.” For Lu Xingzhou himself, it was useless; even this marquis title was just to sound better when he married Shen Tang, as Shen Tang was now a King.

However, if Lu Xingzhou wanted to establish his own power, the dignity of a Marquis would certainly be better than his previous Viscount title. The slight awkwardness for Lu Xingzhou now was that his time as an official was surprisingly short, and his official rank was too low. A peerage could be inherited, but an official position could not.

What was somewhat stifling was that Meng Guan had originally not belonged to any faction; although he leaned towards Pei Qingyan, it was due to shared political views, not being part of his party. Yet now, in the eyes of the court and the new emperor, he, Meng Guan, seemed to have become Lu Xingzhou’s man.

You, a lowly physician, make me, a Prefect, your man…

Forget it. Seeing the Imperial Tutor being embraced and kissed, he seemed to have all the qualifications.

Meng Guan pondered for a long time and finally asked, “What do you think of the new emperor, Xingzhou?”

Lu Xingzhou whispered, “Very dangerous.”

Meng Guan’s expression was displeased. Indeed, the new emperor and Lu Xingzhou were still fundamentally hostile. Even judging from their vigilance towards Princess Chaohuang, the two sides were destined not to get along. His faction would have to form, whether he wanted to or not, otherwise, he would be dismissed without anyone to help.

Thinking of this, he said with some irritation, “Then please climb faster. Is there anything you need me to do?”

Lu Xingzhou said, “You can submit a memorial to push for the establishment of the previously shelved foreign trade department. This time, the deposition and enthronement of the new emperor has not yet had its merits rewarded. My previous peerage was inherited, not a conferment. Also, he must purge a group of people… There will definitely be large-scale adjustments after the New Year, and we need to set up our stage.”

Meng Guan retorted indignantly, “So many Prefects of large prefectures have died. You need to secure these positions for your people. But how many people do you have? Don’t tell me after all this effort, they’re all Pei.”

Lu Xingzhou smiled slightly, “There are still some. Prefect Meng, would you like to make a move?”

Meng Guan’s heart stirred, “I didn’t participate in this battle. What can I do?”

“No need to participate. No one knows how to break the great formations of the world. If I say you have merit, you have merit.”

Meng Guan couldn’t resist glancing at Ye Tinglan.

Such unruly traitorous official talk, and the Imperial Tutor showed no reaction… Forget it, she said she was Yuan Muyu.

Indeed, the character for “traitor” is not used lightly.

Meng Guan said, “Menggui City is a large city, but Menggui Prefecture is not a large prefecture. And, with the central government’s control becoming increasingly weak, the power of the State Governors is growing…”

Lu Xingzhou understood. Meng Guan did not want to return to the capital’s central government; he wanted to move to a first-class large prefecture or become a Governor. “Easily said, Prefect Meng, await my news.”

After bidding farewell to Meng Guan and returning to the capital, Ye Tinglan, flying in the sky, kept looking askance at Lu Xingzhou.

Lu Xingzhou chuckled, “What’s wrong? Uncomfortable watching a treacherous official form a faction?”

“I’m not only concerned with the affairs of the Great Qian. What do the politics of the Great Qian have to do with me?” Ye Tinglan said, “Don’t you know that the Great Qian’s destiny is lost and will only decline day by day? What’s the point of scrambling for official positions and forming factions here? The smart sects have already established their own territories, and the emperor can’t control them. You don’t really think the new emperor can re-凝聚 the destiny and bring about a revival, do you?”

“It’s just to accumulate more capital, to make things simpler if something happens in the future. Look at this time, we have few people in the prefectures and counties across the realm. If it weren’t for Yuan Muyu’s killing formation, it would have been a big trouble. Next time something similar happens, I hope to have control.”

He paused, then added, “Right now, what I most want to understand is what kind of objectives this new emperor has, what he wants to do… and his connection to the ancient world.”

“How do you plan to do that?”

“I’ll go for an audience first, for the wedding.”

It was dusk. The new emperor, Gu Yiheng, had just finished dinner and was looking at a stack of documents in the Imperial Study, casually asking, “I heard the Yama King abducted Lu Xingzhou. What’s the situation now?”

The head eunuch, Hai Ruyuan, chuckled beside him, “The Imperial Tutor rushed over to rescue him.”

Gu Yiheng sneered slightly, “A super-grade expert snatching a man, and sisters at that… truly absurd.”

Hai Ruyuan said, “Huo Qing is no ordinary man. It’s no exaggeration to say that he single-handedly orchestrated this dethronement and enthronement.”

“Let’s stick to calling him Lu Xingzhou; the name Huo Qing is unfamiliar,” Gu Yiheng said with a smile, “To say he orchestrated it, he merely became a tool in our hands this time.”

Hai Ruyuan said, “Naturally, everything is within Your Majesty’s calculations.”

“But this blade has gained consciousness and might hurt a hand eventually,” Gu Yiheng lightly tapped the table, “Many things related to him have deviated from my original estimations, especially his cultivation speed. It will be a variable… I need him to improve, but not this quickly.”

Hai Ruyuan said, “He seems to be starting to pursue official positions now, which is detrimental to cultivation, isn’t it?”

“Yes, so if he wants to be an official, let him. The more complex his duties, the better. And if he wants women, let him have them. The more troubles, the better…” Gu Yiheng smiled, “He’s getting married on the fifth day of the new year?”

“Yes.”

“How is he arranging the Pei Qingyan and Sheng Qingfeng families’ sequence?”

“This old servant doesn’t know. According to status, the Pei family should come first, right?”

“Most people would think that, but if he thinks that too, Sheng Yuanyao might draw her saber,” Gu Yiheng smiled with a hint of amusement, “I’m looking forward to that scene.”

Just as they were chatting and laughing, a guard rushed in to report, “Your Majesty, Dingyuan Marquis Lu Xingzhou requests an audience.”

Gu Yiheng paused, then smiled, “Announce him.”