Xue Li had been branded with Ye Yu's Soul Devouring Curse, making him Ye Yu's servant.
As long as Xue Li wished to communicate, he could speak with Ye Yu through their souls no matter how far apart they were.
Not every method of the Devil Race was unusable.
"Something happened? What happened?" Ye Yu asked with a frown.
In Ye Yu's memories, the Great Yan Dynasty did not seem to make any major moves during this period.
"It's like this—***Ye Qingwan tried to leave Great Yan yesterday. She was caught and brought back, then placed under house arrest. I heard she is living miserably now. Should I secretly provide her with some aid?" Xue Li asked.
At the mention of Ye Qingwan, Ye Yu remembered. It was likely related to her marriage agreement with Zhou Li, the Fourth Prince of Great Zhou.
In his previous life, Ye Yu had known that Zhou Li was no good. Thus, when Ye Fan proposed sending Ye Qingwan and Ye Qingxuan to marry into Great Zhou, Ye Yu had rejected it outright.
Back then, Ye Yu had not been like he was now. Though his life had been far from satisfactory, he had still clung tightly to the position of Heir Apparent, and the court officials had placed exceptional trust in him.
That was why Ye Yu had stopped the matter. Yet in this life, Ye Yu had relinquished the position of Heir Apparent and been driven out. Without him standing in the way, this marriage agreement was naturally bound to go through.
A few months earlier, Ye Fan had sent word back about this matter, and Ye Yu had blocked it once.
"No need. Let her be," Ye Yu said flatly.
Xue Li was utterly bewildered upon hearing that. He knew better than anyone how much Ye Yu valued family. Over the past year, under Ye Xuan's arrangements, Xue Li had repeatedly framed Ye Yu.
Ye Yu had suffered endless torment, yet he had still treated those people as well as ever. But now, had he truly changed just like that?
"Oh, all right then." Xue Li scratched his head. He had thought he could use this to claim some credit, but apparently that was not the case.
After cutting off contact with Xue Li, Ye Yu smiled and murmured, "Ye Qingwan, in this life, accept the fate that was originally yours."
With that, Ye Yu began refining pills.
In his previous life, he had failed to enter that secret realm. He had only heard some information about it, so he needed to prepare more thoroughly.
Besides Miasma Breaking Pills, he also needed to prepare some other medicinal pills.
With that thought, Ye Yu took out a pill furnace from his Ring of Holding and began refining pills.
This time, there was no rush, so Ye Yu did not use any formations. He chose to refine them slowly in pursuit of the highest-quality pills.
This refining session lasted a full two days.
During the time Ye Yu was refining pills, Ye Qingxuan and the other had already returned to the Great Yan Imperial Palace.
Cangyun had already departed, leaving behind a letter instructing Ye Qingshuang to settle the affairs of the Great Yan Royal Family before going to find him herself.
Though he was dissatisfied with Ye Qingshuang, she was, after all, a disciple he had publicly acknowledged. He could not completely wash his hands of her. As for the affairs of the Great Yan Dynasty, however, he no longer wished to involve himself in them.
After the two paid their respects to Ye Fan and learned that Ye Xuan was in seclusion, they hurried off to find Ye Qingwan.
"Second Sister, don't you think there are a lot more people around Eldest Sister's palace? And none of them seem weak," Ye Qingshuang said in surprise as the two arrived before *** palace.
Ye Qingxuan frowned at those words, sensing that something was wrong. The way Ye Fan had looked at her earlier had been very strange, though she could not put her finger on exactly why.
Under the guards' watchful gazes, the two entered the palace.
The once resplendent and magnificent residence now seemed cold and desolate. The maids and eunuchs had long since vanished, and aside from a few necessary furnishings, nothing remained inside.
"Eldest Sister, what happened?" Seeing this, Ye Qingwan and the other were startled and hurried forward to ask.
Ye Qingwan no longer possessed the arrogant, overbearing bearing she had displayed when overseeing the state. Her hair was disheveled, tear tracks were plainly visible on her face, and there was even blood at the corner of her mouth that she had not had time to wipe away.
At the sight of Ye Qingxuan, Ye Qingwan could no longer hold back. She threw herself into the arms of the two girls and burst into howling sobs.
Ye Qingxuan and Ye Qingshuang exchanged a glance, both completely at a loss. They utterly failed to understand the situation before them.
Only after quite a while did Ye Qingwan finally stop. Sniffling, she was just about to tell Ye Qingxuan about the marriage alliance when Ye Qingxuan and Ye Qingshuang interrupted her.
"Eldest Sister, we need you to look at something. Qingshuang and I are really confused by it," Ye Qingxuan said.
With that, Ye Qingshuang activated the Memory Stone, and the scene of the Crown Prince's Eastern Palace appeared once more.
After watching what had happened between Ye Qingqing and Yan Ji, Ye Qingwan's eyes widened. She had never imagined things had unfolded this way.
"Eldest Sister, what do you think? Was this carefully orchestrated by Ye Yu, or did we really... misunderstand him?" Ye Qingxuan asked urgently, desperate to hear an answer from Ye Qingwan.
Ye Qingwan, too, found it hard to accept what she had seen. After pondering for a long while, she had just prepared to speak when voices sounded again from the scene.
In the scene, a week had already passed. Ye Yu's injuries had healed considerably, though he still looked sickly and frail as he stared fixedly at the figure before him.
The three girls were no strangers to that figure. It was Gao Qun, Ye Fan's personal eunuch.
Looking at Ye Yu in his current state, Gao Qun curled his lips into a faint smile. "I truly never expected the dignified Crown Prince of Great Yan to end up in such a state."
"Say what you came to say. Spit out whatever shit you came to fart," Ye Yu said. Though his voice was weak, his tone was ice-cold.
When Ye Yu had first been made Heir Apparent, Gao Qun had already been one of Ye Fan's favored ministers. Throughout the court, he had long been in a position where his hand covered the sky.
The two had fought openly and covertly for a long time, until Ye Yu ultimately emerged victorious. Gao Qun had been forced out of the center of power and followed Ye Fan out of Great Yan to travel elsewhere.
Gao Qun gave a faint smile. "Your Highness is still as overbearing as ever. Given my temperament, I truly would like to kill you right now, but His Majesty will not allow it. His Majesty sent me back this time to notify you of something."
"You must make proper arrangements for the marriage alliance between Great Yan and Great Zhou."
The moment those words fell, not only Ye Yu but even the three watching the scene were shaken to the core. Ye Qingwan's expression became incomparably ugly. "So he was the one behind this!"
If Ye Yu had been standing before Ye Qingwan at that moment, she would have wanted nothing more than to tear him apart with her bare hands.
The other girls' expressions were also unsightly. A marriage alliance? With whom? Who was being sent? How could they know nothing about it? That dog had some nerve!
"A marriage alliance? With whom?" Just as the three girls were boiling with indignation, Ye Yu in the scene suddenly spoke.
"***Ye Qingwan, and the Second Princess Ye Qingxuan, to the Fourth Prince of Great Zhou, Zhou Li." Gao Qun spoke unhurriedly, as though he were discussing something utterly insignificant.
Ye Qingxuan's face turned deathly pale. She finally understood why Ye Qingwan had become like this! So that was the reason?!
"That dog! Doesn't he know what kind of person Zhou Li is? How could he agree to something so absurd?!" Ye Qingshuang also came to her senses. She trembled with rage from head to toe, wishing she could tear Ye Yu to pieces.
But in the next moment, Ye Yu said something none of them could have anticipated.
Before you continue