After inquiring all the way, Lin Feiyang knew that his elder brother married the Princess. Princess Li’s mansion was situated in the East Bridge five miles away from the city, which faced the water in three sides. Blue-stone arched door extended. Ahead was the Princess’ mansion. Bright red front door was really baronial. Lin Feiyang walked to the door and knew that it was his elder brother’s house. He patted the door, and a rush of footsteps rang inside. Lin Feiyang held his breath and listened out for the sound inside. When the door opened with a creak, Lin Feiyang was held in trance.

“You are still alive.” Lin Xiaosa choked with sobs.

“Elder brother…” Lin Feiyang called. Lin Xiaosa did not believe it and squashed his palm till blood oozed. And then, he realized that it was not a dream, and his brother really did not die.

“Feiyang, this is your sister-in-law…”

Lin Xiaosa thought his younger brother had been killed by the Jin army, but now Lin Feiyang appeared unexpectedly. How could Lin Xiaosa not get excited?

“Nice to meet you…” The sister-in-law seemed younger than Lin Feiyang, so he greeted primly. Di Li looked at the man in front, who was her wife’s younger brother, and she behaved in a more dignified manner.

“Mi’er, this is your uncle.” Lin Xiaosa was afraid that Xiao Mi’er would not be polite to the younger uncle. However, Xiao Mi’er’s chubby body ran toward him. He looked at the handsome uncle inside the room and giggled. In the sunshine, Xiao Mi’er wore a pink lined jacket with fox fur piping around. He raised up his pink face and narrowed his eyes. What a cute child! Anyone would like to hug him. Lin Feiyang held him high, and Xiao Mi’er laughed louder.

“It’s too cold outside, and let’s come in and talk.” Xiao Mi’er held his uncle’s hand and walked to the room. Di Li jerked the corner of her mouth and thought that her child did forget that she had a mother when she had an uncle. Lin Xiaosa was amused by his little woman. “How could she even be jealous of Feiyang?” Xiao Mi’er held the uncle’s hand into the room, where fire was burning well. Silverware was filled with kumiss. Lin Xiaosa changed for a larger bowl. It had been three years. And he thought he had forgotten the taste, spicy mixed with milky aroma. This was the high-class wine in the North Desert. Lin Xiaosa closed his eyes and took a sip to enjoy the taste. It boasted the scent of grass and represented the roughness of the northern man, tasting from the soft soursweet to strong liquor. Lin Xiaosa drank it happily and satisfactorily.

“Father made it for you to drive out the cold.” Lin Feiyang shook the wine bag where little wine had left as his brother had drank a lot.

“Is everything going well with father?” After all, their father was 60 years old, so Lin Xiaosa was more concerned about his father’s health. Lin Feiyang certainly would not talk about the poisoning accident. Thanks to Mrs. Xu, she helped to solve the poison.

“The North Desert is not peaceful. Elder brother, you should come back and see.”

It was the flavor of home, and a man traveling away from home could taste it. The sour-sweet kumiss was made by his father himself, which contained his father’s deep love for him. The two brothers enjoyed the roast whole lamb. Xiao Mi’er looked greedy for the wine, so she held the cup to ask her father to fill it up. She stuck out her tongue and licked it, but coughed by the spicy taste. Di Li got tired by her energetic child, but Xiao Mi’er was in high spirits. Xiao Mi’er’s hands were filled with grease, and her month full of mutton. It was the mutton from the North Desert. It had been at midnight when they finished the meal. The little girl was too tired to stay up and slept beside the stove. Di Li picked up her child and returned to the inner hall.

Lin Feiyang thought his brother must know it, even if the Emperor Qi was sister-in-law’s brother. Lin Feiyang decided to tell the truth, because Di Qing was such a cruel person that he would achieve his purpose by any devious means.

“Elder brother, you must guard against the Emperor Qi.”

“Don’t talk about anything else tonight. Let’s enjoy drinking the wine.” How could Lin Xiaosa not know Di Qing’s nature? Di Qing was a person who even plotted his own sister. Di Qing was cool-blooded and unfeeling, and would do anything to anybody for his own interest, even selling his soul. Even so, Lin Xiaosa had no command over himself, because Di Qing held Lin Xiaosa’s weakness.

“Elder brother, you did not know that I was almost killed by him. But for Xu Linghe, I would have been killed already.”

“Really?” Lin Xiaosa did not believe it, because his younger brother came to the Qi Kingdom for the first time. Why did Di Qing wanted to kill him, as there was no any interest involved?

“Exactly.” Lin Feiyang unveiled his clothes and revealed a long scar on his back, which was filled with new pink flesh. Lin Xiaosa was lost for words at that moment. He worked himself to death for the Qi Kingdom, but Di Qing was plotting in the dark. In the past, Lin Xiaosa forced himself to bear it, but at that moment, he realized that everything was worthless. He decided to leave the Qi Kingdom, take his family back to the North Desert, and never come back to the Central Plain forever.

“Elder brother, father is missing you so much and waiting for us to go back.” Lin Feiyang remembered how his father saw him off before leaving. It was the time that sons fulfilled the duty as a son, and should not let their father guard the North Desert alone.

The woman outside the room leaned against the door, overwhelmed with sadness. She wondered what her elder brother had done to her husband, and that her brother even tried to kill Feiyang. Di Li could not sit by and decided to go to the palace to ask why immediately. She passed through the yard and walked out of the mansion. Then, the horses neighed and ran to the Qi Palace directely.

The soldiers at the gate of the palace blocked Di Li’s way, as someone tried to barge into the palace at midnight. A leader came down from the gate. A slim hand was revealed in the window. The leader was taken back at that moment. When he saw it was the Princess’ waist token, his legs trembled. All the people in the Qi Kingdom knew that the Princess of the apple of the Majesty’s eyes. But now, she was blocked out of the palace in such a cold day. If he was denounced, perhaps he would be killed. The leader opened the palace gate hurriedly. Di Li got off the carriage and walked to the main hall. In the deep winter night, even fur clothes could not keep out the cold. A palace servant followed her closely, because he could not bear any consequence if there was something wrong to the Princess.

Di Qing did live happily these days. Accompanied by Ou Jingyu, he lived a life as an affectionate couple and enjoyed the beautiful scenery around the city. But now his sweet dream was disturbed. Leng Cang stood outside the door and kept urging. In fact, Leng Cang was full of resentment because he, as prime minister, had to do the job as a soldier.

“Your Majesty, please get up.” Ou Jingyu laid on the side, because she was really tired these days and wanted to take a good rest. Di Qing was totally enchanted by the different You Qingcheng and began neglecting what happened in the imperial court. Leng Cang knocked the door cautiously, afraid of irritating the Majesty.

“What happened?” Di Qing looked ghastly gloomy. Leng Cang peeked into the room, wondering what kind of woman would make the Majesty leave there at night for half of a month. It was really a big event.

“The Princess wants to see you.”

“Why does she not sleep, but come to the palace at midnight?”

The two walked toward the front hall. And Ou Jingyu did not feel reassured and sent Fan’er to follow them to the Imperial Study. The situation in the palace changed constantly, so Ou Jingyu thought she should pay more attention to it.

Di Li was standing at the gate of the hall and muffled herself up well. She had enough of the weather. She kept stamping her feet till she felt numb on her toes.

“Is it cold?” One more mantle was put on her back. Di Ling’s hands got numb with coldness, so even her brother held her hand, she was unconscious.

“Did you send people to kill Xiaosa’s younger brother?” Di Li asked. Di Qing did not expect that his younger sister would ask about it, so he felt shocked in his heart. “Would Lin Xiaosa know about it as well?”

“Whom did you listen to it?”

Di Qing only wanted to know who told Di Li. No matter how heinous Di Qing was, he still tried his best to maintain his image as a good brother. This was Di Qing’s hypocrisy.

“My husband goes through fire and water for you. But how can you treat him like that?” This was her elder brother who was too stubborn to admit that he had done something wrong.

“Get out…” Di Qing’s face turned from livid to purple, since his mind was read by Di Li. Leng Cang felt breathless by Di Qing’s aura. Every time Di Qing burst into rage, Leng Cang was the one to suffer it, so Leng Cang was not reconciled but helpless. Leng Cang himself also knew that he relied on nothing but his flattery to help him to get what he had owned today. He walked out of the palace and went back. Having been busy at midnight, Leng Cang thought he should go back to take a rest. But with a few steps, he popped out, turned around and grabbed the black shadow’s neck. “How dare the person was to come to the Imperial Study!” Fan’er was scared to death and kept shouting for sparing her life. Leng Cang covered the woman’s mouth and thought she was such a rookie that she eavesdropped in such a conspicuous way.

“From the Qingshou Palace, right?” Fan’er was a little nervous and thought the man could read others’ minds, wondering how the man could know about her. But Fan’er did not know that Leng Cang had just left the Qingshou Palace.

“No…no” Fan’er stuttered, thinking that the master would certainly punish her as long as the master knew she was so useless.

“What is this. How can you say ‘no’?” Leng Cang took her waist token when she was unprepared. The waist token was carved with blue decorative pattern, and it was typical engraving technique of the Qingshou Palace. Realizing her identity had been seen through, Fan’er did not dare to cover it any longer and made a clean breast of the whole story that her master had asked her before. Leng Cang was astonished at it. That is to say, the Master in the Qingshou Palace was a fake one, and the one who enjoyed the couple life with the Majesty was not the Queen. Since Leng Cang spotted the secret, he had a plan immediately that he wanted to coerce the woman in the Qingshou palace to get something good. However, Fan’er just wanted to leave there and totally forgot the eavesdropping. Leng Cang was just a villain, so he would not miss such a great chance to make a show of authority. He sneakily followed Fan’er to the Qingshou palace. The moment Fan’er was about to close the door, Leng Cang squeezed his way in. Fan’er was frightened and her legs shivered when she saw it was the man at the gate of the imperial study.

“Fear me?” In Di Qing’s eyes, Leng Cang was just a dog. So when encountering a person who scared Leng Cang, Leng Cang felt his vanity was at once reassured and flattered. Fan’er was scared and fled to the corner.

“Look at the soft skin…” Leng Cang picked up the corner of the clothes, and smiled significantly. His big hand touched the little hand. The girl’s hands were as tender as the tips of bamboo shots.

“You…what do you want?” Fan’er’s little hands covered the corner of the clothes in a tremendous fright. Leng Cang chuckled and was able to tell whether a woman had served the Majesty before or not, as he was rather experienced.

“Your master is pretending to be the Queen. You’re just a servant, but conceal the truth. Can you bear the sin?” Leng Cang shook off the woman, and he only wanted to know the background of the fake queen.

“I know nothing about it…”

“Really?” It seemed that this maidservant was reluctant to tell the truth. Leng Cang gave a slap. Fan’er could not stand it at all, and then a bloody print was left on her tender face. As women cared about their looks most, Fan’er sank to the ground with scare.

“The master is Yan Shen’s informant.” For her facial appearance, Fan’er had no way but to surrender. Although she betrayed her master, she did have no other choice.

“The informant of traitor Yan’s?” Leng Cang did not expect that and thought that the women in the palace were so heaven-daring that they dared to link to anyone.

“Please spare me!” Fan’er crouched on the ground, as she had no one but herself to rely on.

“Stand up…”

Leng Cang swaggered out of the yard after getting the answer he wanted. He thought the woman was really timid, and he could get something more exciting next time. Seeing the evil leave, Fan’er finally felt relieved.

“Why do you come back so late?” It was getting light as Fan’er just came back from the imperial study. Ou Jingyu took a glance at Fan’er who was afraid of being found out.

Ou Jingyu picked herself up and retreated cautiously. When she passed the door, she spotted a suspicious person, who was sneaky there. When Ou Jingyu got closer, that person disappeared. However, Ou Jingyu did not care too much and jumped over the palace gate, followed stealthily by Xu Yin. He also climbed over the wall and knew clearly where the woman was going. To the mansion of Assistant Prime Minister, a friend of her late father’s friends. Was the fake Queen a spy of Yan Shen’s? Xu Yin flew into the courtyard and was so familiar with Yan family that he could find the study room even closing his eyes. When approached to the door, coughing voice rang from inside. Xu Yin crouched down to take a look. He poked the paper window lightly, and then candlelight came out. Afraid of being discovered, Xu Yin only revealed his pair of eyes.