Wei Qiong was a female general in her thirties.
Chu Qianli realized that in their Longteng Kingdom, female generals were indeed common.
While their numbers might not necessarily exceed male generals, they definitely held an advantage compared to other countries.
However, seeing Wei Qiong was not surprising. What was most unexpected was finding Fulong and Feng Wuya at the Prince’s residence.
“How did you get back?” Chu Qianli asked, astonished.
She had been contemplating how to bring Wuya out of the palace.
To her surprise, he had already left the imperial palace and was now at the General’s residence.
“I told the Grand Princess that I didn’t like being around His Majesty, so she sent me here.”
Feng Wuya was sitting with Wei Qiong, and it seemed they had already shared several cups of tea and conversed for some time before Chu Qianli and her companions arrived.
“Long Xinghe personally sent you here?” This truly caught Chu Qianli off guard.
But upon reflection, she suddenly understood Long Xinghe’s intentions.
“It seems this Grand Princess truly has feelings for you.”
“A’li!” Feng Wuya gave her a reproachful look.
“I’m just stating facts. You’re so handsome that even Her Majesty the Empress stared at you intently.”
Long Xinghe was afraid that if she kept him in the palace, the Empress might take advantage of him.
However, sending him to her own princess’s residence seemed inappropriate as well.
Before their marriage, the Emperor could find many ways to have Feng Wuya.
The only place the Emperor could not act as she pleased was this Prince’s residence.
Long Xinghe, in order to prevent the Empress from touching him, was willing to send him to the Prince’s residence, a place even she herself could not reach. She had gone to great lengths to protect him.
Feng Wuya initially wanted to reprimand her.
After all, with General Wei present, saying such things in front of a general made one feel somewhat uncomfortable.
To his surprise, General Wei nodded in agreement, saying with a serious expression, “My thoughts are exactly the same as Miss Chu’s speculation.”
The Grand Princess was truly serious about protecting Prince Xiaoyao this time.
General Wei suddenly thought of something and added, “If that’s the case, there might be a rift between the Grand Princess and Her Majesty the Empress.”
“General, you jest. A’li is young and likes to joke. Please don’t take offense, General,” Feng Wuya said with a hint of indifference in his voice.
Chu Qianli and Wei Qiong exchanged glances.
Knowing he disliked the topic, they decided to set it aside for the moment.
“By the way, Miss Chu, did you see the Prince in the palace?”
“Naturally, I did.”
Chu Qianli briefly recounted her experiences in the palace.
Of course, she did not mention her reunion with Prince Ding, nor any details about her identity.
“Why does the Prince believe you can persuade my mother?”
In fact, Wei Qiong had been trying to persuade her mother for years.
However, her mother always showed little interest and had no intention of helping them.
In reality, for Old General Wei, it made little difference whether the Second Prince Long Tianliu became Empress or the Third Prince Long Hongming ascended the throne.
Unless it was Princess Xiyue, both of them were the same to him.
Unless they could find evidence proving that Long Tianliu had killed the Empress and usurped the throne back then.
But for so many years, they had no evidence, and the claims of murdering the Empress and persecuting Princess Xiyue were, in the minds of many, mere baseless rumors.
“Does Old General Wei truly believe that Princess Xiyue harmed the late Emperor?”
“Of course not,” Wei Qiong sighed softly, “But my mother is unwilling to believe that Long Tianliu harmed the late Emperor without evidence.”
This was a deadlock.
It remained unresolved to this day.
There were rumors that the late Emperor had died of illness, and that spies from neighboring countries had harmed Princess Xiyue.
Some believed it, others doubted it, but the matter had long been buried by time, and no one could produce any solid evidence to prove anything.
“But my mother absolutely trusts Her Majesty the Empress and Princess Xiyue…”
Wei Qiong paused, then couldn’t help but sigh, “She is only willing to believe them.”
Unfortunately, neither of them were around anymore.
Therefore, her mother had no interest in court affairs.
“Since the Prince gave me a letter and ordered someone to find Old General Wei, I believe I have the ability to persuade her.”
However, the key point was her own identity, which Chu Qianli had no intention of revealing for the time being.
Feng Wuya appeared somewhat weary. Wei Qiong immediately said, “Ming Hong, escort the Prince to rest.”
Chu Qianli’s brow furrowed.
Did Wei Qiong have something else to say to her?
She could only look at Feng Wuya and say, “Wuya, you are not feeling well. Go and rest first.”
If it weren’t for the necessity of keeping him by her side and not being able to be far from him, Chu Qianli wouldn’t have wanted him to travel all the way to Longteng with her.
It was so troublesome and taxing!
But if she were too far away, and something happened to Wuya, she wouldn’t be able to rush back to care for him.
She was worried if he was too far away.
“Alright.” Feng Wuya was always very obedient to her, especially when it concerned his health.
The man named Ming Hong was the expert Chu Qianli had noticed immediately upon scaling the wall to enter the palace.
Ming Hong bowed to Feng Wuya and said, “Your Highness, this subordinate will escort you to rest.”
Feng Wuya left with Ming Hong.
Wei Qiong glanced at Feng Si. It was a clear dismissal, but Feng Si seemed oblivious and paid no attention.
“This is my… friend, Mr. Feng Si. He is also a friend of the Prince,” Chu Qianli quickly introduced.
“He is… a friend of the Prince?” Wei Qiong hesitated, wanting to say more.
Feng Si put down his cup, stood up, and left.
He was decisive and efficient, though his aura was a bit too cold.
“He is a martial artist from the jianghu and lacks etiquette, but his martial arts are extremely high. I still need his help with many things.”
Chu Qianli first clarified Feng Si’s identity.
It was impossible to command Feng Si to do anything; he acted according to his mood.
But if he was willing to help, he would be a very powerful ally for them.
That was the gist of it.
Wei Qiong understood.
However, she still found it difficult to speak.
“General Wei, if you have something to say, please speak directly,” Chu Qianli added.
Wei Qiong then looked at her and asked tentatively, “May I ask what your relationship is with Prince Xiaoyao, Miss Chu? Are you… lovers?”
Chu Qianli was taken aback.
If this question had been asked a few days ago, she would have unhesitatingly replied: Yes.
However, Wuya had said they were not that kind of relationship.
She herself knew that her feelings for Wuya were more like a familial closeness.
It wasn’t romantic love.
Chu Qianli shook her head, “I treat him like an elder brother.”
Wei Qiong breathed a sigh of relief but still seemed hesitant.
After a long pause, she finally said, “It seems that the Grand Princess and His Majesty both have feelings for Prince Xiaoyao. Miss Chu, have you considered approaching this from that angle?”