Mo Yunxuan hoped the academy's leaders—the principal, vice principal, and the others—would have bones as hard as their mouths.
It was just that his rise to power had gone too smoothly. He hadn't even had a proper chance to establish his authority.
But Lin Fan's situation had also sounded an alarm in Mo Yunxuan's heart. So far, he had only discovered one Villain Protagonist, Jun Tianxiao, and one Child of Destiny, Lin Fan.
But who knew whether there were other undiscovered protagonists hiding in the shadows, quietly growing stronger?
If some Sixth Old protagonist secretly built up his strength and then struck him with a sudden blow at the very end, that really could cost him his life.
To prevent that from happening, aside from speeding up the Elite Vanguard's strengthening, he had no effective means at his disposal.
After all, most Children of Fortune had the constitution of "getting mocked wherever they went," so they weren't that hard to identify.
But finding every single Child of Fortune in the entire world without missing one—that was far too difficult.
One had to understand that this world was no ordinary place. Even the Dagan Dynasty possessed countless cities, numbering in the hundreds of thousands.
With the power of the Wei State Duke Mansion, all the Noble Families and aristocrats throughout Great Gan would give him some respect.
But they wouldn't tolerate him openly planting people in every region and recklessly gathering information.
As for operating in secret, that was basically impossible too. Every faction kept a tight hold on its own territory.
Some families could even investigate every person who came and went each day, learning their identities, backgrounds, and reasons for visiting in meticulous detail.
And that was without even mentioning the so-called "cautious" protagonists. They weren't nearly as conspicuous as the other protagonists.
Moreover, they deliberately concealed their whereabouts and were extremely sensitive to changes in their surroundings.
If they noticed him conducting a widespread search for Children of Fortune, it would be all too easy to alert them.
He might even provoke the hostility of many Children of Fortune hiding in the shadows and become the target of everyone's arrows.
That would be a completely losing proposition. He might as well let things take their course and strengthen himself instead.
He could recruit the Children of Fortune he was able to win over, and leave the ones he couldn't to the Children of Fortune who had already joined him to suppress.
He was sure most Children of Fortune wouldn't mind getting rid of these "unstable" factors.
As the two of them dote on each other, time passed quickly, and evening soon arrived.
After dinner, they each returned to their own rooms.
Mo Yunxuan lay on the bed, his mind constantly replaying everything that had happened over the past two days. He couldn't quite fall asleep.
Honestly, for someone as introverted as he was, these past two days had been full of military handovers and clashes at the Imperial Court.
He had experienced things that had once seemed completely beyond his reach, all within the span of two short days.
It felt... rather surreal.
Suddenly, the door opened a crack, and a familiar, soft voice called out.
"Darling, are you asleep?"
Mo Yunxuan sat up and looked toward the doorway, asking with some confusion,
"Zhirou, is something the matter?"
Hearing Mo Yunxuan respond, Meng Zhirou didn't hesitate. She walked straight into the room.
She even closed the door behind her and thoughtfully slid the bolt into place. Then she slowly approached the bed, meeting Mo Yunxuan's puzzled gaze.
As his expression gradually turned to astonishment, she lifted the covers, slipped inside, and hugged him tightly.
Mo Yunxuan felt half his body enveloped in warmth and softness. In the dim room, he could clearly make out the creamy-white curves.
Her faint, delicate fragrance was like a fuse, instantly burning away the last of his restraint.
Following their warm, slightly hurried breaths, he slowly lowered his head and pressed his lips to hers.
When they finally parted again, his hands had already found their way to comfortable places.
The young woman beneath him was just as swept up in desire. Bathed in the light coming through the window, she looked especially alluring, her skin dewy. She let out a soft moan.
"Darling, love me~"
Mo Yunxuan didn't hesitate any longer. He bent down...
That night, the bed endured a force it was never meant to withstand.
The night's commotion had its consequences after all.
It wasn't until noon that Mo Yunxuan finally broke free of the warm, fragrant embrace and the bed's seal.
Not long after he arrived at the Dining Hall, Wang Yuan walked in.
"My lord, a woman claiming to be the Empress's Personal Sword Attendant arrived at the mansion early this morning. She's waiting in the main hall."
Looking at the dishes that had just begun to arrive, Mo Yunxuan sighed.
"Uncle Wang, have a servant show her to the restroom, then bring her here to dine with me."
"Also, ask the kitchen to prepare some nourishing food, and have a maid deliver it to Zhirou."
"Yes, my lord."
Wang Yuan received his instructions and left.
Just as the dishes had all been served, Qing Li arrived with Wang Yuan and met Mo Yunxuan.
She had still been a little angry. After all, making a woman wait that long showed no manners at all.
Especially when she was there on the Empress's behalf, bringing him something.
But she hadn't expected the steward of the Wei State Duke Mansion to keep blocking her from entering.
With her Nascent Soul Middle Stage strength, she couldn't get past Wang Yuan's watchful eye, so all she could do was sit in the main hall and drink cup after cup of plain tea.
Her mouth had ended up tasting entirely of tea leaves, and Wang Yuan had kept watching her the whole time.
She'd been too embarrassed to say she wanted to use the restroom. After a whole morning, she'd nearly been bursting!
Fortunately, the Duke of Wei had some conscience after all. He'd thought to have someone take her to the restroom, and even invited her to join him for a meal.
But he shouldn't think that doing such a tiny favor would be enough to earn her forgiveness. She wasn't the kind of woman who could be won over that easily.
Seeing Qing Li suddenly lost in thought, Mo Yunxuan asked softly, "Are you all right?"
Looking at his gentle smile, Qing Li suddenly felt a little bashful and answered without thinking, "I'm fine."
But as soon as she said it, Qing Li came to her senses, inwardly going wild.
Ah! Ah! What are you doing?!
Weren't you supposed to get back at him?
Hadn't you sworn you wouldn't forgive him?
Why did you go all stupid the moment he spoke?
Pull yourself together!
After a brief moment of composure, Qing Li finally recovered some of her spirit. She walked quite naturally over to Mo Yunxuan and took a seat beside him.
Using the tone she'd learned from Hong Yu, she said, "Duke of Wei, you really are busy with the affairs of state. You didn't get up until the sun was high in the sky."
Mo Yunxuan was curious why, with so many seats available, Qing Li had chosen the one right beside him.
But to avoid falling for one of life's three great illusions, he didn't intend to read too much into it.
Qing Li's clearly sarcastic remark almost made him laugh, but he thought that wouldn't be very polite.
He gave a light cough and didn't respond to her jab. Instead, he picked up a piece of pork rib, placed it in Qing Li's bowl, and said gently,
"This sweet-and-sour pork is one of my favorite dishes. Try some."
Mo Yunxuan's bold move left Qing Li a little dazed.
H-he... how could he... put food in my bowl?
Despite the flurry of thoughts in her mind, her hands moved of their own accord. She picked up her chopsticks and slowly put the rib in her mouth.
As she tasted the pork, it seemed to her that the flavor was no different from what the Imperial Palace's chefs made.
And yet, it somehow tasted like the best dish in the world. A faint smile appeared on her face despite herself.
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