【Later, the Twelfth Princess also enjoyed immense favor, with Emperor Mingxi granting her unrestricted access to the imperial study.

The ailing Emperor Mingxi never expected his seemingly obedient daughter to be capable of such a grand scheme!

The Ninth Prince seized this opportunity to instruct his younger sister to sneak into the study and steal the maps!

First, the Ninth Prince distracted the guards, while the six-year-old Twelfth Princess stole the border fortress defense plans, leading to a catastrophic defeat eight years later. The Great Yan Dynasty's most elite forces suffered devastating losses, with over a hundred thousand casualties.

Several generals were implicated—some executed, others exiled—yet one of the masterminds behind this tragedy remained unknown, continuing to bask in the privileges of being the most favored princess of the Great Yan Dynasty.】

A hundred thousand? The border defenses near Beili were reduced by nearly seventy percent. With such losses, it was no surprise that within two years, Beili would invade and bring about the fall of the Great Yan Dynasty.

The generals' eyes burned with fury, their teeth clenched and fists tightened like sandbags to keep from cursing aloud.

When they glanced at Yue Fuguang, still casually nibbling on pastries, their gazes turned fervent.

The young master truly lived up to his reputation as a celestial being—within moments, he had saved not only their lives but their entire families.

These men were responsible for the northern Beili border defenses. Had such a colossal failure occurred, none of them would have escaped punishment.

Who among them would have lost their heads? Who would have been exiled?

As for one of the culprits—the yet-unborn Twelfth Princess—they vowed she would never see the light of day in this lifetime!

Meanwhile, Emperor Mingxi could only think: What? This is my fault too?

True, he was no stranger to blame, but this was an enormous burden even for him.

Losing seventy percent of the dynasty’s finest troops meant the remaining thirty percent were practically useless!

"She was only six at the time. Surely someone manipulated her—was it Concubine Xian Zhou?"

【It was indeed Concubine Xian Zhou and the Ninth Prince. This year, through the concubine’s deliberate arrangements, the Ninth Prince would meet his biological father and learn he was not Emperor Mingxi’s true son. From then on, his hunger for the throne grew insatiable.

Master, care to guess the Ninth Prince’s name? Or the Twelfth Princess’s future name?】

Yue Fuguang flatly refused. "I won’t guess. Just tell me."

She had no patience for games. Initially, her status in the capital had been too low to uncover royal secrets.

Now, with her current standing, why bother with the name of some brat?

【Emperor Mingxi doted on Concubine Xian Zhou, allowing her to name their children. The Ninth Prince was named Xie Zhihua, courtesy name Zizhong.

The Twelfth Princess was named Xie Nianhua, granted the title Chongyang. See? The concubine never forgot her old lover.

Since the children couldn’t bear their real father’s surname, she commemorated him through their names—such touching devotion!】

Touching? How utterly touching!

Xie Zhihua and Xie Nianhua, was it?

Emperor Mingxi was on the verge of exploding.

That wretched Zhou Yunxin had deceived him to this extent! He would kill her—no, death was too merciful.

She would live. Her children, her lover—he would keep them all alive, tormenting them slowly, bit by bit!

Unbeknownst to Yue Fuguang, Emperor Mingxi, though outwardly composed, had already begun his descent into madness, twisting into something dark and unrecognizable.

"No wonder I said it—the Great Yan Dynasty is doomed. An incompetent emperor, infighting ministers… it’s only a matter of time!"

The "incompetent" Emperor Mingxi: !!!

The "infighting" ministers: !!!

Doomed? ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌‌ ‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌ ‌‌ ‌ ‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌ ‌‌‌ ‌ ‌‌ ‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌ ‌ ‌‌ ‌ ‌‌ ‌ ‌‌ ‌ ‌ ‌‌‌ ‌ ‌‌ ‌ ‌ ‌‌ ‌‌‌ ‌‌ ‌ ‍No, no—they could still salvage this! Really!

They practically itched to beg Yue Fuguang for another chance. Just one!

【Emperor Mingxi was pitiable too. Misled by sycophants, he grew estranged from the Crown Prince, even suspecting him of treason.

Not long after the Crown Prince’s death, the border collapsed. Poisoned by the very concubine and children he adored, Emperor Mingxi died that winter. Tragic!】

Tragic? Pathetic, more like.

Emperor Mingxi felt both sorrow and absurdity.

No doubt Concubine Xian Zhou and her children had laughed behind his back countless times.

The ministers bowed their heads lower, not daring to meet the eyes of the Crown Prince or Emperor Mingxi.

Had any of them contributed to the rift between father and son?

The Crown Prince wore a perfectly crafted expression of hurt and confusion, gazing at Emperor Mingxi with wounded devotion.

Seeing this, the emperor was overcome with guilt. He had favored his youngest son unfairly—only to learn that same son was not only illegitimate but also instrumental in his and the Crown Prince’s deaths!

"Exactly. The Xie family’s reign nearly ended in the hands of outsiders."

【Knowing he wasn’t the true heir, the Ninth Prince feared exposure. Worse, he coveted the throne.

To secure power, he needed to eliminate his greatest rival—the Crown Prince—and then his biggest obstacle: Emperor Mingxi himself.】

"Who else aided him?"

Emperor Mingxi and the ministers braced themselves. The divine artifact was about to name names.

【He had many accomplices, both inside and outside the palace: Concubine Xian Zhou, Zhuo Fei, palace servants loyal to the Crown Prince, even those bribed within Emperor Mingxi’s own quarters.

There was also Xu Changyue, Zhou Fushan (a distant relative of the Zhou family), Zhou clan members, and several court officials.

During the chaos surrounding the Crown Prince’s death, opportunists hedged their bets across multiple princes.】

"You’ve mentioned many, but what about Zhou Yan and Zhou Qingyu?"

She noticed the father-son pair looking ashen, resigned to their fate.

【Zhou Yunxin wasn’t Zhou Yan’s biological daughter—a fact known to very few, excluding these two.】

Yue Fuguang’s interest spiked. This smelled like juicy drama.

"Another case of switched identities, like mine?"

She pulled out melon seeds from her pouch, settling in for the gossip.

Emperor Mingxi and the ministers perked up, ears straining.

【Not exactly.】

Some had expected certain death today, but the divine artifact spared them—for now.

With their necks temporarily safe, they couldn’t resist the allure of scandal.

Zhou Yan and Zhou Qingyu slowly rose from the floor. If Zhou Yunxin wasn’t their daughter/sister, did that mean their clan might survive?

"Little Pearl, hurry up and explain. This court session has dragged on too long—I’m bored!

Look at them down there, still debating without resolution. With such inefficiency, no wonder the country’s doomed!"

The ministers pretending to deliberate: What did we do to deserve this? We’re only trying to maintain appearances!

They're just here to set the mood!

To catch more of the Divine Artifact and the Young Immortal Lord's inner thoughts, the elder officials feel they've truly gone above and beyond!