Discussion

The moment they left the teahouse, the smile vanished from Ming Lunyu's face. On the other side, the smile on Xue Qinghe's face also faded.

"Young Master, what do you think of this Crown Prince?" Dugu Bo asked with great interest.

"This Crown Prince is deeply calculating. And highly ambitious," Ming Lunyu said.

"He's definitely calculating, but how could you tell he's ambitious?" Ma Hongjun asked with clear-eyed curiosity.

Ming Lunyu subconsciously flicked his wrist, took hold of his folding fan, and began fanning himself.

"I deliberately mentioned midway through the conversation that my village had been massacred by an Evil Soul Master. That was actually to test his attitude. What was his response?"

"First, he admitted that the Heavenly Dou Empire's institutions were utterly rotten. Then he said his people could help me solve the problem—whether they could find that Evil Soul Master was irrelevant, because I knew that beast had died long ago. When the time came, the Crown Prince would probably just find some random Evil Soul Master to take the blame. The purpose of doing this was to demonstrate his capabilities—what the Heavenly Dou Empire couldn't do, he could. In doing so, he was subtly separating himself from the Heavenly Dou Empire. He wanted us to trust the Empire less and think more favorably of him alone."

"But I don't quite understand why the Crown Prince would do that. What benefit is there in separating himself from the Empire? Is it so I'll pledge loyalty to him alone rather than the Empire?"

"But there was one thing. When I mentioned Evil Soul Masters, obvious disgust appeared on his face. Whatever other motives he may have, at least I'm certain that his attitude toward Evil Soul Masters aligns with mine. That's enough. I can try working with him to achieve my goal."

"That's why I accepted that token. It wasn't merely a benefit he gave me; it was also a favor. Once I truly use the token, I'll automatically be considered part of the Crown Prince's faction—at least, outsiders will certainly see it that way."

"Ohhh." Ma Hongjun understood.

"Brother, that Xue Qinghe is actually a woman." Tang Fu'er suddenly spoke up, dropping a shocking revelation on them.

Fortunately, they were all people who had seen much of the world, so they did not lose their composure too badly. Still, their faces were filled with disbelief.

"A woman? What do you mean?" Ming Lunyu asked, though he recalled Xue Qinghe staring at him and her reaction after he caught her at it.

"Lady Fu'er, you're not joking, are you?" Dugu Bo asked in disbelief. Because of Prince Xue Xing, she had interacted with the Heaven Dou Imperial Family frequently long ago, yet she had never noticed any sign of Xue Qinghe disguising herself as a man.

Tang Fu'er said firmly, "Xue Qinghe isn't just a woman. I also know she's from Spirit Hall. Her martial soul is the Six-Winged Angel, so she's probably a descendant of Qian Daoliu."

"Spirit Hall possesses a set of inherited soul bones that can only be used by soul masters with the Six-Winged Angel martial soul. And the only person qualified to fuse with that set of soul bones is Spirit Hall's Young Master—the future Pope!"

"So Xue Qinghe is actually Spirit Hall's Young Master in disguise? Spirit Hall's Young Master infiltrated the Heavenly Dou Empire and became its Crown Prince! They're truly plotting something enormous!" Ming Lunyu fanned himself even faster as his thoughts raced.

"So that was it. In other words, when she deliberately pointed out the Heavenly Dou Empire's corruption, her true purpose was to deepen my negative impression of the Empire while elevating herself. She'd help me find my enemy and earn my gratitude. That way, even when she later restored her true identity, she could still retain my support."

"But Spirit Hall's Young Master infiltrated the Heavenly Dou Empire as its Crown Prince! Doesn't that mean the Heavenly Dou Empire will naturally fall under Spirit Hall's control in the future?" Ma Hongjun said.

Ming Lunyu said indifferently, "I don't care about that sort of thing. Who controls this land means nothing to me, since I have no attachment to either side. If Spirit Hall takes over and can develop this place better, then I naturally have nothing to say. But if Spirit Hall's ruler is some deranged useless fool, or an idiotic glutton who only knows how to indulge in pleasure, and turns the Heavenly Dou Empire into a place where the people cannot live in peace, then perhaps I'll uphold justice myself."

"But the latter situation is unlikely."

Ming Lunyu remembered that Spirit Hall's reputation among the common people was fairly good, at least better than the Heavenly Dou Empire's.

Meanwhile, after seeing the three of them off, Xue Qinghe remained quite satisfied with the outcome of their discussion.

Although Ming Lunyu had not explicitly agreed to her proposal, he had accepted her token. He could already be considered half one of her own people. At the very least, in outsiders' eyes, Ming Lunyu was already on her side.

Whenever Xue Qinghe thought of her back-and-forth with Ming Lunyu, she gritted her teeth in frustration.

"Why is he so difficult to deal with? Is he really only twelve? Why does he act like an old fox?"

Then she reconsidered. Ming Lunyu had lost his family at only six years old and had wandered alone with his Sister, struggling to survive. If he had not been more cautious, he might not have lived at all. Xue Qinghe could not help feeling even softer toward him.

Especially when she recalled Ming Lunyu's handsome face, his deep and bright fox-like eyes, and his ethereal, otherworldly bearing, Xue Qinghe's heart trembled once again.

"If I help him take revenge, will he be so overwhelmed with gratitude that he buries himself in my arms and sobs uncontrollably...?" As she thought of this, Xue Qinghe's expression grew increasingly strange.

No matter how hard she tried, she could not suppress the thought. In the end, she simply sealed off the teahouse and went alone to the top floor to do some this-and-that before finally calming down.

Leaving aside Xue Qinghe's shameless behavior, Ming Lunyu and the other three wandered through Heaven Dou City until they arrived before a massive building bearing the symbol of an auction hammer: the Heaven Dou Grand Auction House.

"Young Master, shall we go in and take a look? This old man has the auction house's VIP Red Card." Dugu Bo invited him, anticipation in her eyes.

Ming Lunyu casually agreed. "Sure, might as well take a look. But I don't have much money on me, so I'll just go in to browse."

"No!" Dugu Bo hurriedly said, her expression bashful. "I-I have money, Young Master. Use it however you like. After all, even I myself belong to you, Young Master~" Dugu Bo twisted two slender jade-like fingers together, her whole face flushed crimson.

It feels like this girl said all that just so she could casually lead into that last sentence, Ming Lunyu inwardly complained.

But he could more or less understand Dugu Bo's state of mind.

On one hand, because of the contract, she was extremely prone to developing affection for Ming Lunyu. And because of Ming Lunyu's succubus constitution, that affection grew even faster. On the other hand, constrained by the remnants of her nearly vanished male pride, she bashfully refused to admit her changes.

The proper response to that mindset was to ruthlessly...

Ming Lunyu had never claimed to be a righteous gentleman. Faced with a beautiful young girl like Dugu Bo, who was completely trustworthy and adored him, he had long wanted to take her in. The only reason he remained unmoved now was the River Crab Divine Beast lurking in the shadows.

"Lady Fu'er!" Dugu Bo suddenly cried out in alarm.

Tang Fu'er had stepped on the top of Dugu Bo's foot and had not eased up, making Dugu Bo bare her teeth in pain without daring to flare up.

"My foot slipped!" Tang Fu'er crossed her arms and haughtily tossed her little head.

She did it on purpose! Dugu Bo cried inwardly, but she did not dare challenge Tang Fu'er.

At a time like this, Ming Lunyu naturally stepped in to smooth things over. He flicked each of them on the forehead. "Stop fooling around. Let's go in."