Ye Tinglan froze there.

Aren’t all your palace intrigue tactics supposed to be subtle, like cotton concealing a needle? What kind of direct approach is this, asking for tea?

But this direct approach, she truly couldn’t handle.

The Holy Master had maintained her dignity her entire life; she genuinely couldn’t bring herself to humble herself and offer tea to Shen Tang, even if it was a pre-arranged scenario of a family member offering tea to her husband’s superior. She still couldn’t do it.

After all, their mentalities were quite different. Shen Tang could genuinely treat her as a mentor or national preceptor when offering tea, but if she were to truly offer tea to Shen Tang, it would reek too strongly of a mistress offering tea to the legitimate wife. Superior, my foot; who doesn’t know what you two are…

Fortunately, Lu Xingzhou was exceptionally quick-witted. He swiftly reached for a cup of tea on the table, presented it to Shen Tang, and said with a smile, “I offer this to Sect Master.”

Shen Tang shot him a resentful look. Protecting her already?

Never mind. Since Lu Xingzhou had intervened, Shen Tang didn’t press the matter further. She accepted the tea and leisurely took a sip.

Her beautiful eyes swept over Ye Tinglan, who was also lowering her head to drink the tea she had just offered, not daring to cause any more trouble.

A’nuo stroked her round chin. It seemed like a draw, but in reality, the old woman who needed a man’s help had lost badly. Sister Shen Tang was still a little more impressive.

Who knew what strange things this child was learning? She had never been so diligent when learning alchemy.

“As for the Dongjiang Gang…” Shen Tang leisurely began the topic, “We followed the strategy you left before you departed: poaching members, applying pressure, and competing for business from various angles. The Dongjiang Gang has already fallen apart and is in decline. Coupled with Shi Zhong’s mysterious death on his return journey, Shi Tielong lost significant morale and has held on until now, preparing to pack up, sell his assets, and leave. Oh, right, A’nuo burned their money tree, that counts as the primary achievement.”

A’nuo puffed out her chest.

Lu Xingzhou chuckled wryly.

Shen Tang continued, “Actually, when Ji Wenchuan was visiting earlier, I was still expecting Shi Tielong to make one last desperate move. At that time, we had a first-rank expert with a super-rank bone dragon on the mountain… But Shi Tielong showed no ambition whatsoever, completely wasting my anticipation.”

Ye Tinglan couldn’t help but inwardly grumble, where did you get such sinister thoughts? Is this how our empire’s princess behaves?

But listening to it felt strangely satisfying… Oh no, she had already been led astray by these wicked demonic cultists.

Lu Xingzhou stroked his chin and said, “We mustn’t let our guard down. Shi Tielong still has Prince Jin behind him. However, with no weaknesses on our part, they don’t have an opportunity to go all out. If we absolutely have to lure them out, you could go out alone to give them some motivation, and then *Xiansheng* could lie in wait behind you…”

Hiding the number one person in the world is much more formidable than hiding old Ji, isn’t it…

Ye Tinglan couldn’t help but clear her throat twice.

Am I here to do this for you?

But recalling how Lu Xingzhou thoughtfully offered the tea first to save her face, these words remained unsaid, hidden in her stomach. She just silently drank her tea.

Shen Tang looked at Ye Tinglan’s expression and couldn’t help but smile, “Let’s not. I’ve been cultivating in seclusion. If I suddenly go out wandering, they’ll know it’s a trap unless they’re fools. It’s meaningless and would needlessly waste *Xiansheng*’s time. I also don’t want to rely on *Xiansheng* for everything. *Xiansheng* intervening too much in my affairs isn’t ideal.”

Ye Tinglan, with a straight face, said, “Are you sure? Don’t make it seem like you’re fighting alone here, also facing malice from a higher dimension. Someone cares.”

Shen Tang smiled, “If I can’t overcome this peril myself, what right do I have to stand in a higher position? Many people are watching me, perhaps even the National Preceptor. I need to deliver my own answer sheet.”

Ye Tinglan: “…”

That was true.

When she had asked Qingli to save this girl, it wasn’t because she intended to support her. Firstly, she felt Gu Zhanting’s actions were unacceptable, and secondly, it was for observation. She had to have her own answer sheet. She could rely on the man beside her for advice, but she couldn’t rely solely on a man, much less on a love rival.

Is that appropriate…

However, Shen Tang having such clear self-awareness and ambition significantly improved the National Preceptor’s impression of her. Her feelings were truly complex; personally, she wanted to beat her, but publicly, Shen Tang’s impression on her so far was much better than that of the other princes…

Lu Xingzhou also understood Shen Tang’s thoughts and hesitated, “Are you just going to cultivate in seclusion and not leave the house?”

Shen Tang said, “I’m now at the peak of the third-rank, aiming for the second-rank. Outsiders wouldn’t expect my improvement to be so rapid. When I reach the second-rank and then go out, if they assess me based on my previous combat strength, I can make them suffer another big loss.”

Lu Xingzhou nodded, somewhat relieved.

Shen Tang was becoming increasingly confident. Her early sense of brokenness had long vanished. To ascend to the peak of Daqian in the future, she would need such spirit. Spirit is cultivated. Now, Shen Tang reigns over Xiazhou; there are no opponents for a thousand *li* around. The prefect, Town Demon Division, and army are all basically cooperating. To call it an independent kingdom might be an overstatement, but to say she is a powerful regional official overseeing a thousand *li* is perfectly accurate.

This cultivates spirit. At least, such spirit is not seen in the princes who have been scrambling and politicking in the capital. In peacetime, those princes taking over might not be an issue, but from current observations, this world won’t be peaceful for long.

“Second-rank already? That fast?” Ye Tinglan said, “I’ve seen your secret realm. The spiritual energy is indeed rich, not inferior to any of the strongest spiritual mountains and sacred lands in the world. But ultimately, it still lacks practical experience. Purely sitting in seclusion is detrimental to cultivation.”

Shen Tang smiled, “We don’t purely sit in seclusion. We often organize disciples for practical training in the Hundred Thousand Mountains bordering the Tianshuang Kingdom to the west. However, these operations are usually group activities, not my personal outings. If the situation becomes clearer in the future, I will also organize disciples to go to other parts of Daqian, and even the Demon Realm. The world is so vast; how can cultivators be confined to one corner?”

Ye Tinglan finally said nothing more, nodding slightly: “Very good.”

Lu Xingzhou found it hard to keep a straight face. This *Xiansheng*’s motherly aura was constantly overflowing; it was actually quite difficult to keep her identity from being revealed…

But having discussed this much, there seemed to be nothing more to say. Since Shen Tang wanted to handle the Dongjiang Gang issue herself, it seemed even Lu Xingzhou didn’t need to say much, let alone Ye Tinglan. The four people at the table looked at each other, and the atmosphere became a little awkward again.

In a nutshell, this was still a scene of a man bringing his mistress to provoke his legitimate wife… It’s just that the mistress’s identity was a bit special, which made the legitimate wife dare not fully erupt…

“Cough.” Shen Tang cleared her throat and stood up, saying, “You’ve traveled a long way, so you must be tired? *Xiansheng*, please rest first. I have a few words to say to Xingzhou.”

No matter what, Shen Tang was the host here. For the host to say this was perfectly natural and logical. Ye Tinglan didn’t even have an excuse to object. She watched, wide-eyed, as Shen Tang, without even pretending, left her wheelchair and pulled Lu Xingzhou towards the main house.

The door closed, leaving endless speculation outside.

Not long after, Shen Tang’s delicate groan of “En” could be heard.

A’nuo cautiously observed *Xiansheng*’s expression, watching it change from slightly flushed to pale, then to deep red.

She was overheating again…

With a “crunch,” the teacup in her hand shattered into powder, leaving no ceramic dust, turning to ash…

A peak super-rank, terrifying indeed.

In reality, nothing at all happened inside the room. Shen Tang entered the room, closed the door, and immediately started panting delicately herself. How could Lu Xingzhou not know what she was doing? He quickly covered her mouth, “Hey, hey, don’t do that…”

Shen Tang angrily bit his hand, “I haven’t even scolded you yet, and you’re already trying to control me. Throughout history, has there ever been a man like you who brings his mistress home to show off?”

There probably were, but they would usually be called a scoundrel of the ages in folk tales.

Shen Tang indignantly continued, “Her status is high, and her strength is great. I can’t do anything to her. I can’t even hum a few times myself?”

Lu Xingzhou chuckled wryly, and could only resort to the great art of kissing again. He pulled her into an embrace and kissed her, stopping all of Shen Tang’s indignant protests.

Shen Tang resisted with “mmph mmph” sounds, still having a lot of words to scold this scoundrel man, but he had already started cheating… Her small fists hammered on his shoulder, hammering weaker and weaker, until they slowly wrapped around his waist, passionately responding.

How could this slight sound escape Ye Tinglan outside the house? This time, the old woman didn’t even have a cup to crush. She angrily rose and entered the guest room, isolating herself.

Jealousy is a natural reaction; love is possessiveness. If there’s no jealousy, then it’s not love.

Shen Tang undoubtedly loved this man deeply, so naturally, she would feel jealous.

But Shen Tang had also told Dugu Qingli that she was not a jealous shrew.

Growing up witnessing the imperial family, her father, uncles, and later her younger brothers, all had multiple wives and concubines. In the little princess’s heart, this was overly normal. Capable people were supposed to possess more resources, including women.

She had even encouraged Lu Xingzhou to pursue Qingli and Guamei before, because their identities might bring help to Lu Xingzhou, especially Qingli, a direct descendant of Tianyao, how terrifying.

But she had never even imagined that something even more terrifying would come—the Holy Master of Tianyao herself had appeared…

As Shen Tang kissed, her heart gradually calmed down. She whispered, “Should I not be jealous of this…”

Lu Xingzhou quickly said, “Of course not, it’s normal for you to be jealous…”

“But I’m afraid,” Shen Tang gently leaned her head on his shoulder, “Afraid that if you find someone better, you’ll abandon me. I’m confident with others, but True Person Tinglan is just too… Will you abandon me?”

Lu Xingzhou gently kissed her forehead and whispered in response, “Lu Xingzhou is a demonic cultist, and he’s been repressed for so many years… Perhaps his actions are a bit reckless… But I am absolutely not someone who will abandon you after an initial infatuation. If I betray this heart, may heaven strike…”

Before he could finish, Shen Tang’s slender finger was placed on his lips, stopping the harsh words that followed.

“Don’t swear recklessly.” Shen Tang looked into his eyes and said softly, “Lu Xingzhou is a wicked demonic cultist. He was handsy soon after we met. He’s not a good person, how could I not know? Falling in love with you was my own choice, and Shen Tang will not regret it.”