"Have you heard?"
"What?"
"Our Great Rui's current Right Chancellor, Lord Tan Wenhan, is the reincarnation of a mountain earth god! He came to the mortal world to undergo his trials!"
"Whoa!"
He turned around. "Have you heard? Our Great Rui's Chancellor Tan is a mountain spirit in human form! The Great Rui Imperial Family saved him, so he entered court to repay their kindness!"
"Wow!"
The passerby realized he was carrying an earth-shattering secret and must never casually divulge heaven's mysteries. Yet on his way home, he happened to run into a friend. "Hey, let me tell you-our Chancellor Tan's true form is actually a mountain spirit!"
"A mountain spirit?" his friend asked in surprise. "Like a fox?"
"Hmm... more or less?"
His friend's eyes lit up. "Oh my!!"
The two parted ways, and the friend continued happily toward the teahouse.
He had arranged to meet a few friends at the teahouse that day. The moment he sat down, he announced excitedly, "Listen to this! I ran into Brother He on the way here, and he told me an earth-shattering secret!"
"What? What?"
"Our current Right Chancellor, Chancellor Tan! He's actually a fox spirit!"
"Eek!!"
"Pfft-"
Behind them, Tan Wenhan, dressed in simple casual clothes, had just taken a leisurely sip of tea. He sprayed every last drop out, then began coughing violently.
What?!
What on earth were these people talking about?!
That wasn't the story he'd sent people to spread!!
Jiang Yingcheng was taking an afternoon nap.
Over the past few days, she had never given up on her grand "escape" endeavor, even losing sleep over it. Yet every time, just before she could leave, her Crown Prince brother would arrive to fetch her, catch her, and take her along to Chongyun Hall for court...
After several