Crowned Consort in Golden Age-Chapter 85. Brother and Sister Meet

85. Brother and Sister Reunion

Watching the stone doors close again, Xu Qingchen unconsciously furrowed his brows. The Saintess of the Southern Border was gradually losing her sanity. If everything went according to the plan he and Princess Anxi had made over the last six months, they could definitely take the Saintess and Prince Li’s power in the Southern Border without a fight. Hence, it was time for him to think about his exit strategy. Given that his goal had been overachieved, it didn’t make sense for him to linger here. Moreover, the circumstances were becoming increasingly dangerous.

The stone door was pushed open again from the outside. Xu Qingchen asked calmly, "Miss, is there something else?"

"It’s not the miss. I have something to say, Brother Qingchen..." A sweet, melodious laughter echoed from the doorway. Xu Qingchen, startled, quickly turned to look. By the half-open stone door, a lovely young woman in a goose-yellow silk dress stood smiling at him. "Li’er..."

Ye Li stepped in, her smile infectiously bright as she scanned the stone chamber. "Big Brother," she said cheerfully, "it seems you have decent living conditions here."

Xu Qingchen smiled at her. "Li’er, what brings you here?"

Ye Li winked at him, gesturing towards the still half-open stone door. "I came to welcome Young Master Qingchen, of course!" she said with a laugh.

Xu Qingchen glanced thoughtfully at the doorway. "Is there someone else outside?" he questioned.

Ye Li took Xu Qingchen’s hand and said with a laugh, "Let’s not worry about that now. We should leave quickly. It won’t be good if that woman returns."

Xu Qingchen nodded. "Li’er is correct. We can discuss everything else once we’re out of here. For instance, the matter of my sudden fiancée?"

The smile on Ye Li’s face froze. After a moment, she chuckled awkwardly. "Brother Qingchen, after we get out, please remember my name is Chu Liuyun. It will look suspicious if you don’t even know your fiancée’s name, you know."

Xu Qingchen quickly gathered a few items from a nearby table, then followed Ye Li out of the stone door. Outside, Darky Two and two unfamiliar shadow guards were waiting. Seeing Ye Li and Xu Qingchen emerge, they all visibly relaxed. Darky Two said, "Young Master Qingchen was indeed here. Miss, let’s leave through the palace."

"What about that woman?"

Darky Two replied, "Princess Anxi, acting on the information we provided, has taken her people to the Saintess’s Hall. With those corpses there as well, that woman will definitely realize Princess Anxi is onto her. She’s most likely at the Saintess’s Hall now, on high alert as if facing a great enemy."

Ye Li nodded in satisfaction. "And the palace?"

"Young Master Han will create a diversion in the palace at the right time, allowing us to slip out," Darky Two said.

Ye Li nodded. "I hope Han Mingxi is as reliable this time."

Darky Two lowered his head and chuckled. "Young Master Han sent a message via Darky Three, guaranteeing he won’t disappoint you, Miss."

"Let’s hope so."

Two shadow guards protected Xu Qingchen, with Darky Two at the rear and Ye Li at the front. As they had anticipated, a long tunnel connected the palace and the Saintess’s Hall. Although the mountain behind the palace wasn’t entirely hollowed out like those of the Luoyi Tribe, several stone chambers connected to the tunnel, one of which was where Xu Qingchen had been under house arrest. With Ye Li and the others leading the way, the group quickly reached the palace exit.

Xu Qingchen frowned. "Where is the exit?"

Darky Two sounded somewhat regretful. "It’s in the King of Nanzhao’s bedchamber. That Saintess of the Southern Border is so unhinged, yet the King of Nanzhao still dared to build the secret passage in his own bedchamber. Isn’t he afraid she’ll kill him someday?"

Xu Qingchen wasn’t surprised. "Under normal circumstances," he said calmly, "the Saintess of the Southern Border is absolutely loyal to the King of Nanzhao."

Darky Two was confused. "Then what’s happening with this one?"

Ye Li interrupted, "We’ll discuss what happened once we’re back."

Darky Two quickly agreed and carefully triggered the mechanism to the secret passage. The heavy stone was moved aside, revealing an empty chamber. After all five of them had emerged, Darky Two sealed the secret tunnel again. Two shadow guards rushed out first, swiftly pulling in two guards from the entrance who had come to investigate the noise. The two guards slumped to the ground silently before they could even utter a sound. Xu Qingchen glanced at Ye Li, who remained as calm as ever, a faint flicker in his eyes. He pulled Ye Li to his side. She looked up at him and said lightly, "Big Brother, let’s leave quickly." Xu Qingchen nodded.

Exiting the King of Nanzhao’s splendid bedchamber, they encountered few guards along the way; the small number they did see were swiftly dealt with by the two shadow guards and Darky Two. With their route planned in advance, the group reached the secret shelter Han Mingxi had prepared for them with little effort.

"Junwei... your lord is back! Aren’t you going to come out and greet me?" Before everyone could even sit down, catch their breath, or have a sip of water, Han Mingxi’s flamboyantly flirtatious voice echoed from outside the courtyard. Just as they turned, a shadowy figure leaped down from the wall, pouncing towards where Ye Li stood.

"Young Master Han!" Darky Three, following behind him, broke out in a cold sweat and cried out. Xu Qingchen and Darky Two simultaneously stepped forward, blocking Han Mingxi.

Xu Qingchen’s smile was gentle yet cold. "Young Master Han, what are you trying to do?"

Only then did Han Mingxi clearly see that the person standing beside Xu Qingchen was not his eagerly anticipated "little brother" Junwei, but a charming young girl in a goose-yellow silk dress. "Er... this..."

Ye Li quickly retreated behind Xu Qingchen, peeking out with only half her face visible. "Brother Qingchen..."

Han Mingxi felt a pang of shame, realizing he had startled the young lady. As a renowned gallant who had navigated the seas of romance for over a decade, when had he ever committed such a faux pas with a beautiful young woman? To salvage his image, Han Mingxi immediately put on his signature charming smile. He raised an eyebrow at the girl hiding behind Xu Qingchen and said softly, "My dear young lady, I am truly sorry. My name is Han Mingxi. Did I frighten you just now? Please accept my sincerest apologies."

Ye Li, hiding behind Xu Qingchen, spoke in a clear, though somewhat brittle, voice, "That’s quite all right. However, sir, perhaps you should refrain from... such actions in the future. After all, there are distinctions to be observed between men and women."

Han Mingxi’s mouth twitched. He really wasn’t a scoundrel; he had simply mistaken the person beside Xu Qingchen for Junwei, alright? But speaking of which, where had his Junwei gone?

"Zhuo Jing! Where did my little brother Junwei go? Why are all of you here, but he’s the only one missing?"

Who is *your* little brother? Ye Li couldn’t help but roll her eyes mentally.

Darky Three, his expression darkening, silently watched Han Mingxi’s relentless antics. "Our Young Master didn’t say he was coming here," he stated.

Han Mingxi was dissatisfied. "Why isn’t Junwei coming here?"

Darky Three replied, "This place was prepared by our Young Master, at Young Master Han’s request, for Young Master Xu."

Han Mingxi glanced resentfully at the elegant Young Master Qingchen, an inexplicable sourness welling up inside him. He whined, "But I prepared it for Junwei!"

Darky Three couldn’t resist rolling his eyes. "Our Young Master has a place to stay."

Han Mingxi pouted. "How could the place you’re staying be as comfortable as the one I prepared? If I had known Junwei wasn’t going to stay here, I wouldn’t have put in so much effort." After saying this, he didn’t forget to glare fiercely at Xu Qingchen.

Xu Qingchen noted this and smiled faintly. "Thank you for your trouble, Young Master Han."

Han Mingxi hmphed softly, waving his folding fan. "Considering you’re Junwei’s elder brother, I, this young master, won’t bicker with you. Now, where is Junwei? If he’s not with us and not with you, where has he gone?"

Darky Two quickly glanced at Ye Li and replied, "Well... Young Master Chu received a message when we returned earlier and left. He said he had something to attend to first and will come back to meet us later."

"Ah, I see." Han Mingxi was skeptical, but perhaps Darky Two’s somewhat serious expression lent credibility to his words. Finally, Han Mingxi just hmphed and left with a flick of his sleeve.

Watching Han Mingxi disappear from the courtyard, Xu Qingchen turned back to Ye Li, a faint smile playing on his lips. "Little Sister, it seems quite a few things have happened on your journey to the Southern Border?"

Ye Li flashed a placating smile at Xu Qingchen. With his astuteness, it wouldn’t be difficult for him to guess that Chu Junwei and Chu Liuyun were the same person.

Xu Qingchen smiled at Ye Li’s uneasy expression and nodded. "It’s been almost a year since I last saw you. Shall we go inside and chat?"

Ye Li blinked helplessly, then stepped aside to clear the path. "After you, Big Brother," she whispered.

「In the study.」

Xu Qingchen sat behind the desk, calmly observing Ye Li, who looked thoroughly guilty. Ye Li stood to the side, head bowed, her eyes darting around rapidly. Occasionally, she dared to steal a glance at Xu Qingchen. Just as the previous generation of the Xu Family had most feared Xu Hong Yu, the children of the current generation most feared Xu Qingchen. This included Ye Li, who had often spent time at the Xu Family estate during her childhood.

Seeing Xu Qingchen merely staring at her calmly without speaking, Ye Li called out in a small, aggrieved voice, "Big Brother..."

Xu Qingchen observed her pitiful act, sighed lightly, and said, "It’s been a while, Li’er. You’ve certainly become more capable—now you even know how to play pitiful in front of your Big Brother?"

Ye Li blinked and pouted. "Big Brother... Li’er isn’t playing pitiful. Why are you angry...?"

Xu Qingchen arched an eyebrow. "Li’er, you don’t know why Big Brother is angry?"

Ye Li shook her head. Xu Qingchen asked, "Who is Chu Junwei? And who is Chu Liuyun?"

Trying to beat around the bush with her Big Brother was a futile effort. Ye Li lowered her head in defeat. "Big Brother..."

Xu Qingchen gestured to the chair before him. "Sit. Sit down and tell me everything, slowly."

Ye Li obediently sat down on the stool and then recounted everything in detail, from being schemed against by Ye Yue in the Capital City to finding Xu Qingchen in the Southern Border, leaving no stone unturned. By the time Ye Li finished speaking, she found her throat was rather parched. Looking up, she saw Xu Qingchen handing her a cup of tea. Ye Li smiled faintly and quickly took it, taking a sip.

Once she had drunk the water and soothed her throat, Xu Qingchen looked at her and said calmly, "Let’s put aside the matter of Ye Yue scheming against you for now. Why did you specifically go to Guangling to find Han Mingxi? And bring him to the Southern Border?"

Ye Li said softly, "I didn’t want to alarm anyone in the Capital City, so it wasn’t convenient to use the secret guards from the King of Ding Kingdom’s Mansion. Han Mingxi followed me on his own accord; I didn’t bring him."

Xu Qingchen looked at her with a half-smile. "Not wanting to alarm people in the Capital City was indeed a good consideration. However, have you asked about Han Mingyue’s relationship with Prince Ding? If it were discovered by outsiders that you, the dignified Princess Consort of Ding Kingdom, were using an alias at Tianyi Pavilion, what would you do? Most importantly, if Han Mingyue genuinely wanted to investigate, would he be unable to find out your identity? If he were to obstruct you, what would you do then?"

Ye Li looked up at Xu Qingchen’s still-smiling handsome face. "I left Darky Four to monitor the Clear Wind Bright Moon Building. If Han Mingyue returned, he would notify me immediately. Besides, I didn’t entrust any truly important matters to Tianyi Pavilion. I just wanted Tianyi Pavilion to help divert some attention from our secret guards."

Xu Qingchen nodded. "Consider that matter passed. Then... who told you to provoke the sick scholar?"

"Big Brother, you know about the sick scholar too?" Ye Li asked. The sick scholar, despite his fame, was a figure from the worldly society; Ye Li was somewhat curious that Xu Qingchen knew of him.

Xu Qingchen looked at her calmly. "The Grand Master of the King of Hell Pavilion, Ling Tiehan, is a friend of mine."

Ye Li was dumbfounded, silently looking up to the heavens in her heart. She had just been mentally plotting how to deal with the sick scholar. However, the sick scholar was, after all, a dangerous individual. "Big Brother, if I were to do something to the sick scholar, it wouldn’t affect your friendship with Pavilion Master Ling, would it?"

Xu Qingchen raised an eyebrow. "What do you intend to do to him?"

Ye Li frowned delicately and carefully explained the matter of the Bilo flower. After listening, Xu Qingchen fell silent for a moment before saying, "So, you’re worried that if he obtains the Bilo flower, it would be disadvantageous to Prince Ding, and you want to strike first to eliminate this potential threat. At the same time, you believe the Bilo flower might help Prince Ding’s condition, so you also want to obtain it? You are indeed thinking a great deal for Mo Xiuyao; it’s clear you truly see yourself as the Princess Consort of Ding Kingdom. Father and Uncle were always worried that your disposition was too mild. However, I imagine they also wouldn’t want to see you value Prince Ding too highly."

Hearing Xu Qingchen say this, Ye Li suddenly felt rather embarrassed. "Big Brother, what are you talking about? Mo Xiuyao has always treated me well. Since I’m already married to him, I naturally hope he is well. Or does Big Brother wish for him to die quickly so your poor cousin becomes a widow?"

Seeing Ye Li’s forced display of righteousness, Xu Qingchen smiled faintly. He cleared his throat gently. "Never mind. Just be careful regarding the sick scholar. As for Ling Tiehan, I will communicate with him myself. I’ll ensure the King of Hell Pavilion doesn’t cause you trouble."

"Thank you, Big Brother," Ye Li said with a smile.

Xu Qingchen looked at her with an unreadable smile. "No need to thank me, Cousin Li’er. Now, let’s discuss the matter of my fiancée. By the way, I’ve already sent a carrier pigeon back to the Capital City to inform those who need to be informed."

"Ah... Big Brother... how could you do this? No, wait, how could you be so quick?!" The mere thought of how many letters she would receive because of this, and the future scoldings from her First and Second Uncles, made Ye Li’s head ache. 𝗳𝐫𝚎𝗲𝚠𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝘃𝚎𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝗺

Xu Qingchen chuckled. "Actually, the very first day I heard about my fiancée coming to Nanzhao, I had a message sent back. Or did you think that just because your Big Brother was under house arrest, he couldn’t send messages out? A reply should arrive in five days at most. Sister Liuyun..."

Ye Li wanted to groan and clutch her head. Big Brother is truly... truly wicked!