Ming Yue Yin sat opposite Yuan Shao inside the carriage with Su Yi and Su Feng while one of Yuan Shao's right-hand men drove the coach with Su Jing seated next to him.

"I amazed Lord Long Ming didn't storm to the palace like he owned it. I thought the palace would be painted by blood right now if I were to judge by his character," Yuan Shao said.

​​

"They are lucky because aunty is fine. Uncle would have gone crazy if she was hurt," Ming Yue Yin leaned into the pillows lazily. "However, that doesn't mean uncle will not hold this Kingdom accountable for what happened. The Emperor will have to take responsibility for what Qian Mu Ting did either way."

"I never imagined the second princess would have the courage to go this far in order to kill Luo Ri Yi and kidnap my sister… I wonder what was going through her head," Yuan Shao sighed and shook his head helplessly. He was angry and remorseful for not noticing it earlier.

"Yang Qiong Yan got into her head," Ming Yue Yin said abruptly.

"WHAT!" Yuan Shao was flabbergasted. "Wait…why, are you sure?"

Yuan Shao gathered his thoughts. He always thought Yang Qiong Yan was shrewd, cunning, and a very careful man. This was the reason Yuan Shao wasn't able to gather much on him for the many years he had known him. The little information he had on him was worthless.

"Very sure!" Ming Yue Yin said with confidence. "It wasn't a bad plan if you think about it. Had he been successful, aunty would be dead and your sister kidnapped without a clue as everyone in the manor would be dead. Hei Shen Sect would be unable to investigate the matter and the only suspect would be Qian Mu Ting who holds a grudge against aunty. Uncle would easily blame Qian Mu Ting and the Emperor would not take it laying down. Uncle would massacre the whole family which would lead to a war between the Liu Yan Kingdom and the Hei Shen Sect. Meanwhile, Yang Qiong Yan would be standing in the sidelines while they kill each other."

Chills run down his spine. It was an elaborate plan. The kingdom would have fallen in chaos had he been successful. His father would then be forced to face the Hei Shen Sect and Ming Yue Yin's army and Yuan Shao wouldn't be in a dilemma on who to support.

Yuan Shao owed Zhao Li Xin and had special feelings for Ming Yue Yin but his hands would be tied if Yang Qiong Yan held his sister hostage. This could have forced him to go against Ming Yue Yin and Long Ming. Chances of survival were slim and his death could also mean his sister's end.

"That bastard!" Yuan Shao spat through his teeth and balled his fists.

"He is!" Ming Yue Yin agreed. Zhao Li Xin sent his shadow guard to find Yang Qiong Yan but the weasel had slipped through their fingers. This annoyed her. "Unfortunately, that bastard left the kingdom the moment he activated his plan. I think he chose to run and not wait to see if his plan was successful or not."

"Where did he go?" Yuan Shao was upset since he hadn't settled his old scores with him. He now had another score to add to it.

"My guess… He ran to Lao Min Na," Ming Yue Yin sighed loudly. "It is a pity. If we knew this would happen, we could have had someone tail him so that we can discover Lao Min Na's hideout."

"The information I have says many businesses owned by Lao Min Na are having difficulties because of the Hei Shen Sect and some have even closed down. If Yang Qiong Yan wanted to retaliate… wasn't he being a little reckless?" Yuan Shao didn't understand Yang Qiong Yan's moves. Although is a good plan, the risk was too high as Yang Qiong Yan had put a target on his forehead.

"I don't know… What I know is this… Lao Min Na has a personal grudge with aunty for some reason. She is always trying to kill her and perhaps Lao Min Na conveyed her feelings to Yang Qiong Yan and he targeted aunty to please her."

"You think this is Lao Min Na's scheme?"

"Who knows?" She casually shrugged. She then rose her eyebrows and gave him a meaningful smile, "I also know this… Lao Min Na has the charm to make men do her dirty works."

Yuan Shao swallowed his response as the carriage arrived at the Imperial palace gate. The soldiers stopped them for identification. Su Jing and Yuan Shao's subordinate calmly did as instructed. However, the soldier at the gate had a low position and failed to recognize Su Jing's identification. He sought clarification from his senior creating a commotion when the identification was recognized.

The two soldiers turn pale and kowtow on the ground repeatedly before they courteously allowed the carriage into the palace. One of the soldiers was quick to inform the head eunuch who pulled up his long robes and ran to the imperial palace's main hall in.

The eunuch found the Emperor was in his high golden chair with his forehead on his fist. The Emperor's spies had already informed him of the issue with Qian Mu Ting. The Emperor almost vomited blood when he got the news and immediately summoned Han Zi Yu to confronted her. Han Zi Yu was as shocked as the Emperor and was distraught by Qian Mu Ting's death.

It was a weird feeling for Han Zi Yu because she always treated Qian Mu Ting as her chess piece. She never gave her daughter warmth like a normal mother. She at times thought she didn't love her daughter but Qian Mu Ting's death made her feel like her heart was stabbed by a knife and she couldn't breathe.

"Your Majesty, please avenge our dead daughter. They killed our daughter!" Han Zi Yu grabbed the Emperor's hands tightly and screamed in madness.

The Emperor was infuriated by Han Zi Yu's behavior. He forcefully pulled his hands away from her and roared with fury, "Do you know what your daughter did? She went to Yong Heng Manor and tried to kill Long Ming's fiancée and burned half of the manor in the process. As if that isn't brazen enough, she took assassin who attacked Empress Ming, AGAIN!"

The first time Han Zi Yu attacked Empress Ming could be seen as a mistake since she was disguised at the time but the second time… What kinda excuse could he use this time? People said once bitten, twice shy. The Liangzu kingdom won't forgive them easily not mentioning Long Ming's wrath!

"No…no…that can't be true. My Mu Ting wouldn't do that. They are lying… They are slandering her. Can't you see? The Hei Shen Sect and Empress Ming are trying to harm my daughter? You should not believe them!" Han Zi Yu kept shaking her head as she begged the Emperor to believe her.

"The rumor is out there. People heard the explosion when it happened at Yong Heng Manor. Some of my spies even say Long Ming was not at the Manor when the explosion happened. We are lucky Long Ming's fiancée was not killed. If she was, Long Ming would have kicked our front gate and killed us all," The Emperor screamed and flipped a table in anger.

Han Zi Yu was petrified. She had never seen the Emperor so angry before. Her body shook and her forehead was covered with a thin layer of sweat but she still refused to believe Long Ming would do what the Emperor said, "Nonsense! The Liu Yan Kingdom isn't weak. How can a mere sect master dare to go against us? I can't believe it!"

"A mere sect master you say?" The Emperor hissed with impatience. He always thought Han Zi Yu was a smart and sensible woman but it seemed otherwise. The Emperor limped to a chair with a tired sigh. "Do you know how powerful Long Ming is?"

Han Zi Yu gave the Emperor a blank look. The Emperor sneered "No one knows… There was a time someone sent a Heavenly King cultivator to deal with him but that cultivator died, they then sent an Emperor level cultivator and he also died. More and more experts have been sent to kill Long Ming but no one has ever survived. Long Ming kills everyone who dares to go against him. Sometimes it is him who sends his people to kill and other times he makes his enemies turn against each other. Long Ming is powerful, cunning, and merciless. The fact that he has the four King Palaces also makes him the invincible power on this continent."

The tired Emperor leaned into his chair after he vented out most of his anger, "You want me to fight him? Sure we can fight but I'm not sure if we can win. You shouldn't also forget Empress Ming. If they both attack us, our Kingdom will be ruined… Do you understand?"

Han Zi Yu sobbed. Although she still grieved over Qian Mu Ting's death, she was also scared of what would happen if the Kingdom was ruined. She didn't want to die and she didn't want to lose her status as the Emperor's woman. In the end, she decided to abandon her daughter once more and choose herself as always.