During dinner, Ye Tinglan visited again.
Feng Yinwan thought something important had happened and was about to respond when she saw him quickly leave after dropping a single sentence: "You will enter the palace tomorrow."
Looking at his somewhat flustered retreating figure from behind, Feng Yinwan's brow furrowed slightly.
Feng Jinchen, who was drinking soup beside her, poked his little head out with curiosity.
"Mother, did you cast some spell on that bad old King? Why does he suddenly seem so afraid of you?"
Well, even Feng Jinchen noticed it.
Feng Yinwan's lips twitched slightly as she inwardly grumbled.
It wasn't exactly a spell, maybe it was her coming back from the dead that scared him.
But she couldn't say that out loud.
So, she glanced at him and pretended to be annoyed, "Where does he look like he's afraid of me? Does your mother look that terrifying?"
Feng Jinchen nodded without hesitation.
"Mother, I think you're not as gentle and considerate as before."
Thinking back to when they were in the sect, he was undeniably her mother's darling!
Threats and intimidation were things only his maternal grandfather would do!
Alas, times had changed~
Feng Yinwan, who was "not as gentle and considerate": "Shut up and eat!"
Feng Jinchen: "Oh..."
His curiosity, however, got the better of him. He quietly lowered his head and ate a couple of bites before unyieldingly continuing.
"Mother, I really think that bad old King is acting strangely. Look at how he used to be when he came, and now..."
Feng Yinwan's beautiful eyes narrowed, and the incessant chatter stopped.
After a pause, she also sensed something was off.
It was just a message, something Qi Xuan usually handled. Why would Ye Tinglan personally come?
Speaking of which, Qi Xuan hadn't been seen at all in the manor today.
As his personal guard, he wouldn't easily leave the manor without reason. Not seeing him all day, could it be that he went out on some errand?
His stubborn look from last night flashed in her mind again. Feng Yinwan's brow furrowed slightly, and she sternly said again.
"Eat."
Whether it was an illusion or not, ever since her identity was revealed, Ye Tinglan had actually become more well-behaved.
The next morning, when Feng Yinwan went to take the carriage, he was already waiting quietly inside.
Feng Yinwan glanced over; the driver was another guard from the manor, still not Qi Xuan.
Once inside the carriage, Ye Tinglan sat in the main seat, meditating with his eyes closed. Hearing her enter, he didn't react in any excessive way.
Suddenly becoming so proper made her a little unaccustomed. Feng Yinwan settled herself, cleared her throat, and asked casually.
"Did you change the guards around you?"
As soon as the words left her mouth, the atmosphere in the carriage inexplicably froze for a moment.
Just as Feng Yinwan was regretting her impulsive question, the figure sitting upright finally stirred.
"Qi Xuan has other duties and has not been at the manor for the past couple of days."
Feng Yinwan: "Oh."
Indeed, it was as she had thought.
She had no intention of asking further. Once she knew, she said no more. The carriage remained silent the entire way, and Feng Yinwan, listening to the faint sound of hooves from outside, felt drowsy.
After a long while, a faint touch landed on her cheek, very gentle, and it was gone as soon as it touched.
Her long eyelashes fluttered, and she opened her eyes slightly hazily. Before her, Ye Tinglan's low, somber voice fell.
"We've arrived."
When they alighted from the carriage, Eunuch Gao was already waiting at the palace gate.
Feng Yinwan was surprised that he had come to greet them personally. Beside her, Ye Tinglan had already taken a step forward.
"Your Highness, Concubine, please follow this old servant."
Seeing them, Eunuch Gao's attitude was extremely respectful. Feng Yinwan nodded and followed them all the way to the Hall of Mental Cultivation.
As they passed the Imperial Study, she saw a group of court officials kneeling outside. Feng Yinwan glanced at them with suspicion and then heard him explain.
"Ah, Concubine, please don't be offended. They are all here to plead for the Empress and the Eldest Prince."
Whether they pleaded or not, Feng Yinwan wasn't interested, but the object of their plea...
She paused for a moment, her eyebrows raised slightly in surprise, "For the Empress and the Eldest Prince?"
"Concubine may not know, but the Emperor's health had just begun to recover yesterday, when something major happened to the Empress's maternal family. His Majesty was furious and has already ordered their assets confiscated..."
Casting a careful glance around, he lowered his voice further, "His Majesty intends to depose the Eldest Prince and send him back to Fuxiu Temple. Even the Empress has been confined to her palace."
Feng Yinwan was shocked and listened to the entire explanation along the way.
It turned out that the Empress's younger brother, yesterday, had gotten drunk at Juxian Tower and, inadvertently, uttered treasonous words. In his speech, he implied that the Eldest Prince, as the eldest son, was destined to be the crown prince, and he himself would be the future maternal uncle of the nation.
The Emperor, who was already critically ill and had barely regained consciousness, naturally could not tolerate such words. He immediately passed judgment for treason. The entire Qin family's assets were confiscated. All males fifteen years and above were imprisoned awaiting execution, while the women were all reduced to prostitutes.
The Emperor's wrath extended to nine generations. Among these women, naturally, Qin Rulian should have been included. Because Feng Yinwan had kept her at Prince Mo's manor, she had narrowly escaped, but according to the crime, she was now indeed a person of extremely low status.
The Qin clan, a noble family of centuries, had fallen in an instant.
Feng Yinwan could only click her tongue but deeply felt the heartlessness of emperors, their faces changing in the blink of an eye.
The scene of the General's mansion being raided was still fresh in her mind. However, compared to that, the Feng family had only their property confiscated and were exiled, their fate being far better than the Qin family's.
With a slight shift in her thoughts, they had arrived before the Hall of Mental Cultivation. Eunuch Gao bowed to them and quietly stopped.
"Your Highness and Concubine, please go in. This old servant will take his leave."
Feng Yinwan nodded and followed Ye Tinglan into the hall.
Angered by this matter yesterday, the Emperor had suffered a fit of rage and almost passed away again. He was still asleep now.
Ye Tinglan's posture was calm. He picked a seat nearby and sat down by himself.
Feng Yinwan glanced at him, her beautiful eyes slightly raised.
Such a major event, and he didn't even react? Could it be that he already knew?
Wait.
That day, when she said she wanted to take Qin Rulian as a concubine and keep her in the manor, what had he said?
Keep her as a maid...
The Empress's younger brother's drunken ravings and the Qin family's confiscation all happened yesterday. Yet, Ye Tinglan could have predicted it beforehand. Could it be that he had foreseen this matter long ago?
Or was this matter... his doing?!
Feng Yinwan's heart grew cold, her beautiful eyes narrowing almost simultaneously.
She looked up. From a not-too-far distance, his profile remained as stern as ever.
His pale skin, illuminated by the candlelight in the hall, was coated with a faint warmth, but his expression grew even more somber, making it impossible to discern the emotions brewing in his eyes.
Feng Yinwan's slightly pursed lips instinctively tightened. Just as she was about to speak, the hall door was suddenly pushed open.
Against the light, her eyes narrowed. She saw that the person arriving was Jiang Rumo, clad in official robes and carrying a medical kit.