“He didn’t bring it himself. My martial brother did. He just left,” Qi Yunzhang said. “Would you like to see him?”
“No need,” Xie Yun replied indifferently.
Qi Yunzhang: “…”
Cen Huan looked at his prince in exasperation.
“The young emperor has been busy ruining people lately. I doubt he has time to visit.”
Xie Yun offered no comment. Though he had not attended court recently, he knew everything Song Liang had been doing. Or rather, all of Yanjing knew: he intended to tear the Qin family out by its roots.
The white pouch in his palm was made of cloud brocade, embroidered with pale green orchids and giving off a faint medicinal fragrance. Xie Yun brushed his fingertips over the orchids, then suddenly stood.
Both of them looked up in surprise.
“These memorials have all been reviewed.”
Xie Yun picked up a stack from his desk and said casually, “I must take them to the palace.”
Cen Huan: “…”
Since when did you deliver memorials yourself?
Qi Yunzhang remained perfectly composed.
“Even if you’re going to the palace to stage a rebellion today, you’ll have to wait until I’ve finished your acupuncture.”
The prescription and needling technique she and her martial brother had just developed were not going to waste.
Outside the Prince Regent’s residence, Rong Jing sensed a gaze fixed on him almost as soon as he emerged. He abandoned his route back to the palace and detoured toward South Street.
His pursuer was evidently surprised, but after a brief pause, continued following.
Rong Jing frowned. Timing his movements so that passing pedestrians obscured him, he slipped swiftly into a deserted alley. His pursuer took the bait and quickened his pace. The instant the man reached the alley’s entrance, Rong Jing drew his sword and thrust.
With a sharp crack, the blade met a folding fan.
Rong Jing narrowed his eyes at the face before him.
“Does skulking after people befit a gentleman, Lord Helan?”
Helan Ze regarded him coldly.
“Are you one of Xie Yun’s men?”
Rong Jing did not answer. He slashed sideways, his blade striking the fan so hard that it flexed into a curve and swept across Helan Ze’s chin, leaving a line of blood.
“You’re courting death.”
Helan Ze’s voice was icy. Tightening his grip on the fan, he met the attack.
At that same moment, inside Zhaoyang Palace—
【Beep!】
【Warning!】
【Current Grade-A instance, “Pillowing on Mountains and Rivers”: Main plot progress, 63%. Side-quest completion, 1/5. Major changes to the main plot have increased instance difficulty by 51%. Current grade: A+. Host must immediately return to the original storyline and strictly adhere to the assigned characterization!】
Song Liang’s hand jolted, knocking over the teacup on his desk and spilling tea all over him.
Zhou An cried out and hurried forward to clean up. Song Liang remained perfectly still. He looked at the tea stains on his clothes, then at Zhou An gathering up the cup, then around the vast, empty bedchamber.
“I didn’t do anything just now.”
3085: 【…】
3085: 【I thought you’d seen a ghost.】
Song Liang offered no comment.
“For you, a fifty-one-percent increase in instance difficulty is seeing a ghost.”
3085: 【…】
【You’ve already changed a great deal of the original plot. Even if you do nothing now, the main storyline will continue to shift, because it has reached a critical point that affects the final ending.】
【From now on, every step you take will leave far less room for error, and the small world’s response will become stronger. You can’t keep doing whatever you please. You must stay in character, or the instance difficulty will increase.】
【Then you’ll face punishment from the main system. It won’t be anything like my usual electric shocks. You’ll genuinely feel as though you’ve died once. Do you understand?】
“Yes, yes, I understand. But why is the instance difficulty still going up?”
【How could the instance difficulty possibly… Huh? What is happening???】
On the transparent system panel, the bar representing the instance’s difficulty index continued creeping upward. In moments, it had risen from 54% to 57%.
【How is this possible?!】
3085 was horrified. Then it erupted in exasperation.
【Host Song Liang, is this your doing again?!】
Song Liang: “…”
“Stop blaming me every time something happens. It’s very unethical.”
【Because it’s your fault every time!】
“But it really isn’t me this time.”
【I don’t believe you!】
“I can’t help that.”
While host and system were locked in argument, the palace doors opened. Rong Jing walked in, his clothes disheveled and a trace of blood at the corner of his mouth.
Song Liang: “?”
“Were you robbed?”
“I fought Helan Ze,” Rong Jing replied. “I almost killed him.”
Song Liang: “…”
3085: 【…】
Song Liang: 【Apologize.】
3085: 【…】
Song Liang: 【Apologize right now!】
3085: 【I’m sorry.】
Satisfied at last, Song Liang glanced at the difficulty index, which had already dropped, then regarded Rong Jing with interest.
“Did you lose?”
“I won.” Rong Jing wiped the blood from his mouth. “But he called in his hidden guards. I was outnumbered.”
“That’s all right. You did very well.”
“I’m afraid it isn’t all right.” Rong Jing frowned. “He followed me here.”
Song Liang was about to ask what he meant when hurried footsteps sounded outside, followed by Zhou An’s anxious voice.
“Lord Helan, His Majesty is resting—”
“I have urgent business with His Majesty. If you delay me, your head won’t be enough to pay for it!”
The doors were shoved open. Helan Ze stood at the entrance, looking from Rong Jing to Song Liang behind the desk, and gave a cold laugh.
“His Majesty seems perfectly awake to me.”
Rong Jing drew his sword and barred his way.
“Insolent! This is Zhaoyang Palace. Helan Ze, do you mean to rebel?”
“Am I the rebel, or are you?”
Helan Ze advanced into the hall, his eyes fixed on Rong Jing, though his words were directed at Song Liang.
“Your Majesty, this man is a spy planted by the Prince Regent, Xie Yun. His rescue of you below the cliff must have been deliberately arranged by the Prince Regent. He certainly had a hand in the Western Hills assassination attempt as well. Your Majesty should have him arrested and thoroughly interrogated!”
“Do you have any evidence for that accusation, Lord Helan?”
“My evidence is that I personally saw you entering and leaving the Prince Regent’s residence without authorization.”
“I went there because—”
Rong Jing stopped. He had only gone to deliver something on His Majesty’s behalf and ask his martial sister a few questions for him. But those were His Majesty’s confidential affairs. He could not disclose them.
Just then, Song Liang’s casual voice sounded through the hall.
“He went to the Prince Regent’s residence on my orders. Is that what you wanted to know, Lord Helan?”
Silence fell. Song Liang tapped a fingertip against the desk and told Rong Jing, “Leave us.”
After a moment’s hesitation, Rong Jing went out and closed the doors behind him.
The hall grew quiet again. Helan Ze stared coldly at the young man behind the desk.
“You knew all along that he belonged to Xie Yun.”
Song Liang said nothing, allowing it to stand as an admission.
A chill entered Helan Ze’s eyes. He spoke each word distinctly.
“What exactly is your relationship with Xie Yun?”
【Beep! Host’s current characterization adherence: C. Maintain the assigned characterization to prevent plot collapse!】
The sudden notification startled 3085.
【Host!】
Song Liang merely looked at Helan Ze in silence.
“You fell from the cliff with Xie Yun, yet he didn’t kill you.”
【Beep! Host’s characterization adherence is about to fall below C. Maintain the assigned characterization to prevent plot collapse!】
“In the Western Hills, Cen Huan led the Black Armor Guard against the Grand Empress Dowager. The moment you appeared, he withdrew.”
【Warning! Host’s current characterization adherence is below C. Maintain the assigned characterization to prevent plot collapse!】
“Xie Yun was involved in the assassination attempt, yet you’re protecting the man he sent.”
【Warning! Host’s current characterization adherence is below C. Instance difficulty increase: 58%! Maintain the assigned characterization to prevent plot collapse!】
3085: 【Host, say something!!!】
At last, Song Liang spoke, his tone unhurried.
“You ask why? Because I know he won’t hurt me.”
“Because he likes me.”
“Because I like him too.”
3085: 【???】
3085: 【Have you lost your mind?! Do you have a death wish???】
As it cried out in disbelief, killing intent slowly gathered in Helan Ze’s eyes. The main system’s cold, piercing warning followed—
【Warning! Host’s current characterization adherence: D. Instance difficulty increase: 83%. To prevent the main plot from collapsing, punishment will be administered to the host. Punishment level—】
“I pursued him for so long, put so much thought into making him like me. I made a man who commands armies and holds sway over the entire court abandon his treasonous ambitions and begin protecting me instead—fall in love with me. Isn’t that an exceptionally profitable bargain?”
Faint currents prickled through his fingertips. An invisible force seemed to pin him to his chair. Somewhere beyond perception, an immense power began to reveal a sliver of its true form, enveloping the entire world.
Song Liang struggled to move his fingers. Even his tongue was beginning to stiffen as he slowly forced out his final sentence.
“As an emperor, shouldn’t I possess a prize of conquest like that?”
The alarms stopped abruptly. The killing intent in Helan Ze’s eyes turned to astonishment.
A moment later, the main system sounded in Song Liang’s mind once more—
【Beep! Host’s current characterization adherence: C. Instance difficulty: 61%. Maintain the assigned characterization to prevent plot collapse.】
3085: 【…】
Its voice was dazed, still shaken by the narrow escape.
【Did we just… bluff our way through that?】
【Mm.】
The immense power had dispersed, and Song Liang could move again. Yet he lowered his head and stared at his fingertips, lost in thought.
【Host?】
“Hmm?”
Song Liang answered instinctively, then remembered there was still someone in front of him. With the danger past, he was about to find an excuse to send Helan Ze away when the doors opened again.
His brows drew together in irritation. He turned, ready to reprimand the intruder—only to freeze at the sight of the man in the doorway.
Xie Yun stood there, looking at him without expression.
“Am I your spoils of war?”
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