Mu Ge’s drugging incident was quickly resolved without much effort.

It turned out that the letter case was not sent by Duan Qingxue. After secretly discovering numerous letters and learning about her father’s actions, she decided to return them untouched to avoid alerting anyone.

But Mu Ge was quite daring.

Although Prime Minister Bai still maintained peace with the Regent on the surface, anyone with discernment could see that they were only bound together by shared interests. Internally, they had long been at odds with each other. After the Huainan incident, the Regent lost many of his subordinates, and his defeat was already obvious. It was only a matter of time before the current emperor regained imperial power.

Especially after seeing these letters, Mu Ge was certain that the Regent was at his wit’s end. Otherwise, he wouldn’t resort to such desperate measures.

Secretly sending the heir and heir consort to Huainan was one thing, but the Regent also wanted to spread the plague that had already been cured in Huainan outside the city, causing a wider outbreak. Then secretly kill Lady Bai and have Bai Jinzhi step forward to preside over this “man-made plague”. If this succeeded, the heir consort Bai Jinzhi and heir Duan Xuyuan would be the biggest contributors to this plague. As for the “Lady Bai” from before? Who would remember?

Of course, if this plan were exposed, it would bring eternal infamy, leading to the Regent King’s complete downfall.

It was a desperate move.

Given his current status, Duan Jing’an wouldn’t have taken such a risk unless he was out of options.

So, Mu Ge devised a plan and sent all the letters over. But if she delivered them herself, not only would not be able to see Duan Changchuan, but also bear the crime of “betrayal”. No matter how capable she became, she would be stigmatized.

Thus, she sold this favor to Duan Qingxue and came up with another plan. She had an incense sachet made and wore it into the emperor’s study.

“The princess is loyal and kind, she can distinguish between right and wrong … If this servant presents the letter to His Majesty, at most this servant will be reprimanded for my recklessness. She won’t be too harsh … Presenting the letter to His Majesty is also for the princess’s future…”

The maid lying on the ground wiped her tears and stammered. She justified her superfluous action in a grandiose manner.

Yun Xie almost laughed in anger, “You said it yourself, the princess is loyal and kind. She can distinguish between right and wrong. Why would she need you to do this? Aren’t you just afraid that your master would be implicated as the daughter of a criminal and you would be disgraced as well? In this palace, who isn’t a thousand-year-old fox with countless schemes? Do you really think no one saw through your intentions? You want to distance yourself from this power struggle and climb up with a clean slate.”

“This servant …” Mu Ge was about to reply when two people entered the study.

It was Duan Changchuan and Bai Su, who were fully dressed and rested.

Bai Su held Omega’s arm with one hand and slowly guided him to sit on a couch, “The aphrodisiac sachet has been destroyed. I’ve also ordered to ventilate this room. Don’t worry.”

Duan Changchuan nodded, and took a small sip from a teacup, “Hmm…”

During the movement, his sleeve slid down his arm, revealing a red mark on his wrist, which he quickly covered.

“I heard everything. Take her to Liu Xia Pavilion and have a few guards watch over her. She’s meritorious for reporting, so she’ll be provided with better food and clothes.”

After that, he turned his head and ordered Chang Le, “Prepare a brush and ink. I’ll write a secret edict for Zhang Dehai to deliver to the princess.”

Bai Su sat beside him and patiently added ink, asking, “What’s your plan, Your Majesty?”

The young man dipped his brush and wrote, “Tell Duan Qinxue I’ve received the letter. The regent should already know about this. I allow her to push the credit to her maidservant on account of her previous efforts in informing me. Once things settle down, I’ll find a reason to deal with Mu Ge.”

Pushing the credit to Mu Ge would at least make things easier for Duan Qinxue in the regent’s mansion. This was also why he hadn’t dealt with Mu Ge yet.

With a few words, he finished writing, folded the paper, and handed it to Chang Le, “Give it to Zhang Dehai. Make sure the princess reads it and burns it.”

Chang Le put the letter into his sleeve and respectfully replied, “Yes.” Then he turned and left the hall.

The guard commander obeyed the order and sent Mu Ge to Liu Xia Pavilion.

The maid knew her fate was sealed, was utterly despondent, and lost the will to resist.

Once everyone left, only Feng Yao and Yun Xie remained in the room.

Yun Xie rubbed his ears exaggeratedly, “Finally, she’s gone. She’s been crying non-stop since she came in, hurting my ears … she must have cried for four hours straight. How is she not tired at all?”

Feng Yao rubbed his ears affectionately.

Duan Changchuan, sipping tea, rolled his eyes, “So delicate.”

Yun Xie closed his fan and looked at him up and down a few times, clicking his tongue, “Are you not delicate? Speaking of which, why were you guys so quiet just now? I couldn’t hear anything from here. But with that maid crying so loudly, even if you cried out loud, we may not be able to hear you.”

Duan Changchuan, “…”

Another eye-roll, “Why should I cry? Don’t tell me it’s because you’re often crying?”

Yun Xie, “… So what if I am? The fact that I cried means that Auntie has good skills!”

He was becoming more and more shameless. If it weren’t for the two women watching him, he would have put his hands on his hips to prove his point.

Duan Changchuan, who was drinking water, choked.

Seeing this, Feng Yao bid farewell to them and left with Yun Xie directly.

“Just wait to be disciplined by Auntie.” The young man gritted his teeth as he watched their departing backs.

Bai Su chuckled and gently patted his back, soothing his breathing, “He will be thoroughly disciplined.”

The young man leaned into her arms, and snorted softly, “Hmph.”

–

After nightfall, the two went to bed together.

Duan Changchuan’s heat period hadn’t completely passed yet. He was particularly dependent on his Alpha and immediately cuddled into her arms.

Bai Su let him be and fanned him with a palm-leaf fan.

“I had Jin’er to return Your Majesty’s jade pendant. Did Your Majesty receive it?”

“Yes, I received it two nights ago …”

“That’s good. It’s best if the emperor doesn’t have to appear personally to turn Prime Minister Bai against the Regent. Otherwise, he will use it to manipulate His Majesty in the future.”

The young man couldn’t help but snuggle closer to her, “I know … Sister is doing this for my own good.”

Alpha smiled and patted his back, “Good boy.”

“Speaking of which, there’s an interesting story to tell you… Recently, a storyteller appeared in Shengjing. Has Your Majesty heard about it?”

“I heard from Changle that it’s about the Huainan incident, making me out to be quite formidable.”

Bai Su was amused by his description. She smiled and ruffled his hair, “His Majesty is indeed formidable, there’s no need for them to make it up. When I returned to Shengjing, I asked Yun Xie if there were any literati who could write a storytelling script about the Huainan incident. Can you guess who took up this task?”

The young man’s eyes widened in surprise, “This book, was it commissioned by sister?”

“Yes. During the late Yuan Dynasty, a farmer rebellion was pre-empted by burying a stone tablet inscribed with ‘When the stone man with one eye appears, the world will rebel.’ They used this as a pretext to incite rebellion. It was all about controlling public opinion. I found a storyteller to spread the story, both to let the people know how poorly the Regent King managed the government and to show them that His Majesty was their savior. It’s all about controlling public opinion and winning hearts and minds.”

“Yes, where the people’s hearts lie, victory follows.”

Bai Su nodded and tapped the tip of his nose, “So, Your Majesty, guess who took this job in the end?”

“Since you said so, it should be someone we both know and someone loyal to me. Well … This person must be steady and a bit playful, and very literate. Among my close ministers, there’s only one who fits.”

“Who?”

The young man’s eyes sparkled and said, “It must be Lord Zheng of the Hanlin Academy. I bet it’s not only Lord Zheng but Lord Qian will also be involved, right? Such an interesting task, Lord Qian wouldn’t miss out.”

Bai Su kissed his forehead and said, “Your Majesty is so smart.”

Her tone and actions were like coaxing a child.

The pregnant and somewhat spoiled Omega had a bad temper and was a little unhappy.

He pouted, “It’s like a child’s goodnight kiss … I’m not a child.”

Bai Su was taken aback, and then she burst into laughter.

She put the palm fan aside and hooked the child’s chin, “So, does my Omega want an adult’s goodnight kiss?”

“Ahem … I only said I don’t want children’s … I didn’t say … umm …”

Before he could finish a sentence, his lips and tongue were sealed.

Alpha’s presence was overwhelming.

After a while, he was panting.

The curtains were drawn, and from inside, came the woman’s laughing voice, asking, “Does Your Majesty want more?”

“… I think my nape still itches a bit …”

[Duan Xiaochuan, why are you so cute?]