But beyond every master stood another, and beyond every mountain rose another! (Please subscribe and vote with monthly tickets)

Wu Nanzhi's simps in Tiger-Crouching City were far crazier than Chu Ruoyan's.

Many of them were even getting on in years, yet had never considered marrying. They were waiting for Wu Nanzhi.

As long as Wu Nanzhi remained unmarried and childless, they would never give up.

With so many simps around, and none particularly outstanding, Wu Nanzhi had stayed single to this day.

The entire Wu Family worried about her marriage prospects, arranging blind dates every few days until she was sick of it.

That was why she had fled to the Imperial Capital to hide out at the Wu Family's businesses there.

At least she only had one nephew here, and his standing was lower than hers, so she had nothing to worry about.

She could also use her nephew's acquaintance with the emperor as an excuse to dodge her family's pressure to marry.

Tiger-Crouching City was not the Imperial Capital. Over there, Li Chen was supposedly a puppet emperor, the Empress Dowager controlled the court, and the wise Second Prince had been driven out of the Imperial Capital. Its people were suffering in deep water and scorching fire, all waiting for the Second Prince to return and save them.

Clearly, the Second Prince had people spreading these claims.

He was openly laying the groundwork to seize the Imperial Throne.

The Imperial Capital had plenty of children from powerful families with reliable sources of information, so he could not spout nonsense there.

Outside it, people took every gust of wind as proof of rain, leaving him free to spread whatever rumors he liked.

There were even rumors that, after taking the throne, Li Chen had become debauched and tyrannical, refusing to spare even the Empress Dowager.

But people quickly objected: wasn't Li Chen a puppet? How could he be