Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio  Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

Yun Jiuge lifted her cup and drank the tea to soothe her throat. She told Bao'er, “I don't trust the others. I want you to find out me.”

 “Yes, I'll do that right away,” Bao'er nodded her head gently. She left to find out what had happened the night before.

 Whatever happened the previous night had caused quite a stir in the palace, So it was not difficult for Bao'er to get the information that Yun Jiuge wanted. When she returned, she carried a shocked expression on her face.

 “What's wrong?” asked Yun Jiuge.

 “Miss, here's what I found out about last night. It seems that the Broken Jade Pavilion suddenly caught fire and subsequently collapsed. His Majesty himself personally led the others over there to put out the fire,” Bao'er said in her soft voice.

 “What about the Lihua Garden?” asked Yun Jiuge pointedly.

 Bao'er's face turned red and she stammered, “N-Nothing much happened at the Lihua Garden. It's just that…”

 “It's just what?” said Yun Jiuge as she frowned and went on to say, “Please don't stammer. Say whatever is on your mind.”

 “Yes.” Bao'er noticed that Yun Jiuge looked a little frustrated. She quickly said, “I heard that the palace maids and eunuchs who were in charge of tidying up Lihua Garden found His Highness Zhan w.a.n.g dangling from a pear tree. He was naked and unconscious when they were found him.”

 Zhan w.a.n.g was dangling from a rather conspicuous spot. He was seen by the palace maids, eunuchs, and others. He was so naked that they could even tell how many moles he had on his body.

 “Zhan w.a.n.g was dangling from a tree naked?” repeated Yun Jiuge. She hid her smile as she recalled disciples from the Yin Corpse Sect who offended Zi Shang similarly dangling naked over the wall.

 Zi Shang was someone who would do terrible things to you if you made him angry, Yun Jiuge thought to herself. He would always strip a person of their clothing whenever he was upset with that person. Yun Jiuge wondered why he always meted out this horrible punishment.

 “Zhan w.a.n.g was the one who took off his clothes on his own, right? I didn't do anything to him,” said Zi Shang. He was not happy with the way Yun Jiuge thought of him. Why does she see me as some kind of pervert, he thought. He was already nice enough to cover up Zhan w.a.n.g's lower body with some leaves!

 “His Highness wasn't fully naked. Someone made a skirt out of leaves for His Highness. There was a big lotus leaf in the middle,” Bao'er said as her cheeks flushed a deep red.

 “A big lotus leaf in the middle,” repeated Yun Jiuge. She almost laughed out loud after hearing what Bao'er related. Zhan w.a.n.g might as well be naked!

 “Miss, please don't tell others about this. Things could turn bad if someone else heard about what happened to His Highness,” Bao'er said. Zhan w.a.n.g was the Emperor's younger brother, and this gave him quite a bit of power within the palace. He might not be as powerful as the Emperor. But he could make things difficult for Yun Jiuge if he learned that she had told others about this humiliating incident.

 “I understand. You should tell everyone in Chuxiu Palace to not talked about this incident,” instructed Yun Jiuge.

 Zi Shang might have sealed Bao'er's memories, but it was hard to tell if she would suddenly regain her memories and remember how she was ravaged by Zhan w.a.n.g the night before.

 “Yes, I'll do that right away,” said Bao'er. She quickly left to carry out Yun Jiuge's instruction.

 Yu Sha sneakily slipped into the room after Bao'er left.

 “Where have you been?” asked Yun Jiuge. She had not seen Yu Sha around all morning.

 “I had to see the scene for myself,” said Yu Sha as she winked at Yun Jiuge mischievously. She laughed and said, “Bao'er did not tell you the complete story. There's more to it!”

 “What else is there to the story?” asked Yun Jiuge. Her curiosity was piqued.

 “After Zhan w.a.n.g regained consciousness, he ran to the study room and quarreled with the Emperor. He ended up being grounded by the Emperor,” Yu Sha said in a low voice.

 “Grounded? Can we still meet him or speak with him?” asked Yun Jiuge. She planned on having a chat with Zhan w.a.n.g later that day.

 “I've already relayed the message to him. He said he would come over and speak with you tonight,” said Yu Sha. She did more than just looking at the spectacle in the garden.

 “Alright then. I'll wait for him however long it takes,” Yun Jiuge said with a smile.

 Yun Jiuge specifically checked on the Gray-faced Emperor's schedule for the day with Eunuch Li so that her meeting with Zhan w.a.n.g could go on without a hitch.

 “There was an incident at the Broken Jade Pavilion last night. His Highness would have his hands full dealing with the issue over the next few days. However, His Highness still thinks of you every single day. Feel free to let me know if there's anything that you need. There's no need to be shy,” Eunuch Li said respectfully.

 Eunuch Li was not aware that Yun Jiuge did not have s.e.x with the Emperor the night before. He was very impressed with the fact that Yun Jiuge did not need to undergo medical treatment like the other women in the past.

 “I understand. Thank you very much, Eunuch Li,” said Yun Jiuge. She was relieved that the Gray-faced Emperor would not have the time to care about what she was up to today.

 When night fell, Yun Jiuge sent all the palace maids and eunuchs away. She waited for Zhan w.a.n.g with Yu Sha in her room.

 At midnight, Zi Shang alerted her, “He's coming.”

 Yu Sha immediately retreated to the back of the room and hid from view. Now was not the time for her to show herself.

 Yun Jiuge smoothed the creases on her clothes before she got to her feet and opened the door. However, the person standing outside was not Zhan w.a.n.g. It was the messenger from before, the one who wore a white mask and dressed in a black robe.

 “Why are you here?” asked Yun Jiuge with a frown. She expected Zhan w.a.n.g to personally make his way over. She did not expect him to send a messenger instead. How insincere of him!

 “I hope you had a good day, Miss Yun. Zhan w.a.n.g has been grounded by the Emperor and is unable to move about currently. So he sent me over to speak with you. May I know what you would like to say to him?” asked the masked man whose voice was extremely gentle. It was the kind of voice that would convince people to believe in him.

 “I only wish to speak with Zhan w.a.n.g. I'll not speak with anyone else. Please leave!” replied Yun Jiuge. Although she knew that the masked man was Zhan w.a.n.g's close aide, she did not wish to speak with him too much.

 “Are you worried about my true ident.i.ty? I might be a black-robed messenger, but I'm definitely on Zhan w.a.n.g's aide. If you don't believe me, you can take a look at this,” said the masked man as he took out a gray amulet and showed it to Yun Jiuge. The amulet bore the insignia of the Rebel Army. It was proof that he was the deputy leader of the Rebel Army.

 “I don't care who you are on. I only wish to speak with Zhan w.a.n.g,” Yun Jiuge insisted.

 The masked man fell silent momentarily before he sighed and said, “Miss Yun, you are not an ordinary woman. If you wish to see Zhan w.a.n.g this badly, it must be related to what happened last night!”

 “Last night? Are you talking about how the Broken Jade Pavilion had collapsed and the fire?” said Yun Jiuge. She pretended not to know what he was referring to.

 “No,” said the masked man. He stared at Yun Jiuge for a while before saying, “I'm talking about the failed consummation last night.”

 “What do you mean?” she asked. This masked man knew a lot more than he let on she thought.

 “I'll get straight to the point. The fact that you are standing here and speaking to me right now means that you are aware that it was not the Emperor, but Zhan w.a.n.g who slept with all those white-skinned women in the past,” the masked man continued.

 “Indeed. I know it was Zhan w.a.n.g who did that. But, I don't know why he did what he did. He does not look like a l.u.s.t-driven man,” Yun Jiuge replied.

 “I can tell you why, but you'll have to help me first,” the masked man said.

 “What am I to help you with?” Yun Jiuge asked.

 “I want you to help me deal with Emperor Leng Hui,” replied the masked man. He stared at Yun Jiuge and said, “You don't need to come up with an excuse to refuse my request. I know you are capable of doing it. I knew you don't belong to this world from the very moment that I saw you. You are just like Emperor Leng Hui. Both of you come from the outside.”

 Yun Jiuge's eyes widened and mirrored her surprise. She needed time to process all the information.