This story about Lady Li is famous, but many found it lacked originality.

Still, because the tale of Lady Li is well-known and both Tao Sheng and Ji Yanming are attractive, this rumor made more sense to people.

Others not close to these powerful figures remained calm. They felt that Tao Sheng’s talents and the legends around her deserved attention, and that no matter how strange the rumors were, they added excitement to life. Although Grand Master Luo’s zither music was not for everyone, his legendary deeds inspired and entertained the people of Beijing.

Everyone liked Luo Taosheng.

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Su Jia was busy with business, Ji Yanming was preparing for his mission to the northwest, and Tao Sheng was dealing with various strange rumors. In short, everyone was very busy this spring, and they spent less time at home. Xiao Feng, who was often left alone, felt a bit sad.

Tao Sheng noticed that Xiao Feng was unhappy, so she asked Mother Tang to take the chicken for walks and check on Xiao Feng’s mood. But Xiao Feng had been glaring at Mother Tang lately. 

When he saw Tao Sheng want to hugging him, he jumped right into Tao Sheng’s arms.

Feeling helpless about this little at home, Tao Sheng noticed that Xiao Feng was very cozy in her arms. Since it seemed like Xiao Feng wanted to stay there, she sat by the chicken coop, half-sitting on a rocking chair, holding Xiao Feng and he using her as a pillow. They enjoyed some rare quiet time together.

When the King of Chu entered Ji’s house, he saw Tao Sheng holding Xiao Feng comfortably. Xiao Feng rested his head on Tao Sheng’s neck and occasionally flapped his wings to block the sun from shining on Tao Sheng’s eyes.

The King of Chu felt a bit jealous. In the past, when he held Xiao Feng, he would demand him to block the sun for him, or he wouldn’t be content.

He realized that pretty young women were treated differently.

He wondered if Xiao Feng remembered his kindness when he brought him back.

The King of Chu was familiar with the Ji residence. He watched Xiao Feng with some annoyance and found a seat. “About Prince Rui, has Ji Yanming said what to do next?”

Tao Sheng knew that Prince Rui’s demotion was serious, but she was surprised to learn that King Chu and Ji Yanming were involved. She asked curiously, “What happened?”

The King of Chu was surprised: “You don’t know?”

Tao Sheng thought for a moment and honestly replied that she had heard about Prince Rui being unlucky but didn’t know the details.

The King of Chu sighed.

He had been a bit angry about Prince Rui’s actions, but seeing Tao Sheng’s calm reaction made him feel that Prince Rui was truly unfortunate.

This matter was originally caused by Tao Sheng, but Tao Sheng was still unaware of it. If Prince Rui knew about it, he would probably vomit blood.

The King of Chu had experienced many ups and downs over the years and knew that many things could not be judged by appearances alone. When he thought about the fact that Ji Yanming had not revealed this to Tao Sheng, he felt it was a bit unreasonable.

To put it simply, this matter was that Prince Rui crossed the line and made Ji Yanming dissatisfied. Ji Yanming had the trump card to deal a heavy blow to Prince Rui, so he persuaded Grand Master Luo to expose several things at once. The emperor was furious and felt that Prince Rui and the Crown Prince had ill intentions, so he scolded them.

The political situation had been turbulent in recent years, and several surviving princes encountered more or less trouble. The only ones left were the Crown Prince and Prince Rui.

After all, the Crown Prince is the heir to the throne of the Eastern Palace, and the emperor gave him some face. He did not explicitly say that he was wrong this time, but just asked him to reflect on his mistakes behind closed doors.

Prince Rui was always cunning and never openly participated in the struggle for succession. He was also very careful with his words and actions in court. Although he had been selfish and self-willed over the years, he had never truly annoyed the emperor. He was the only prince who remained flawless.

Now that this incident happened, Prince Rui finally suffered a setback and fell to the same level as the others.

In the eyes of the King of Chu, this matter was just a court dispute, and there was nothing that could not be told to Tao Sheng. However, Ji Yanming, contrary to his usual behavior, did not tell Tao Sheng the whole story. It seemed that there was only one reason: Ji Yanming did not want Tao Sheng to know that Prince Rui intended to take her as a concubine.

Then why didn’t Ji Yanming want Tao Sheng to know about this?

Did he not want her to worry about this matter? Or did he not want her to consider Prince Rui as an option?

Or was it both?

Why is Ji Yanming so cautious about Tao Sheng’s marriage? Is there really no ulterior motive behind this?

In the King of Chu’s impression, Ji Yanming and Prince Rui had no prior connection. However, this time, Ji Yanming wanted to deal a heavy blow to Prince Rui. It was likely because Prince Rui had plans to take Tao Sheng as his concubine.

The King of Chu’s brain started working rapidly again.

After his earlier speculations—that Tao Sheng liked Ji Yanming or that she liked Xie Huaian—failed, the King of Chu suddenly felt that he might be approaching a shocking truth.

This was something Ji Yanming didn’t want Tao Sheng to know about. If the King of Chu accidentally disrupted Ji Yanming’s plan…

Thinking of this, the King of Chu couldn’t help but shudder.

Wouldn’t it mean that the hope of making a comeback would end in disappointment just when there was hope?

Because Ji Yanming had acted against Prince Rui this time, the King of Chu gained all the advantages, both in terms of face and money. Whether out of a desire to return the favor or to please the big boss, the King of Chu now had a warning in his mind—he must not provoke Ji Yanming.

Facing Tao Sheng’s curious eyes, the King of Chu vaguely explained that it was indeed Ji Yanming who succeeded in this matter. Ji Yanming exposed the fact that Prince Rui and the Crown Prince had spied on his father’s pulse, which caused Prince Rui’s bad luck. But he didn’t know the other specific reasons. Perhaps Ji Yanming, knowing he would soon leave for the Western Regions, was afraid something might happen while he was gone, so he acted early.

The King of Chu originally thought that Tao Sheng wouldn’t understand his vague words, but she looked as if she understood everything: “Your Highness, there is no need to say more, I understand everything.”

Tao Sheng had always found it strange that someone as important as Prince Rui had such bad luck so quietly. It was only after listening to the King of Chu that she realized Ji Yanming had personally taken action, cutting off Prince Rui’s retreat.

In the original text, Ji Yanming never needed a reason to act against someone, especially after he chose a side. Anyone who might hinder his goals would be a hidden danger, and he would eliminate them if necessary.

In his previous life, Prince Rui was fortunate to stand behind Ji Yanming. In this life, Prince Rui did not have such luck and was positioned opposite Ji Yanming from the beginning.

In his previous life, Prince Rui had gone too far in deceiving Ji Yanming, so in this life, Ji Yanming had cut off Prince Rui’s retreat from the very beginning.

Perhaps this is God’s will, a kind of cause-and-effect cycle that people like to see, and retribution is inevitable.

Xiao Feng nestled in Tao Sheng’s arms and suddenly felt that the King of Chu’s thoughts were a little strange. There was an indescribable excitement in his eyes when he looked at Tao Sheng.

Xiao Feng glanced warily at the King of Chu and swayed back and forth in Tao Sheng’s arms several times, trying to remind her to be more careful, as the man in front of her might be planning something.

However, Tao Sheng simply adjusted to a more comfortable position and didn’t notice Xiao Feng’s reminder.

Looking at Tao Sheng’s calm profile, the King of Chu almost shed tears.

It is true that one can search far and wide for the one who works hard, but heaven will not let down those who work hard. It was only today that he realized that such a good girl was from his faction. Most importantly, Ji Yanming seemed to have feelings for her… It was not easy to achieve these three things.

Whether to repay Ji Yanming or for his own comeback, he must find a way to bring them together.