"Beitang brother, how did you find out?" Duanmu Yuanji had been listening for a while. Although he couldn’t claim to have read all the books in the world, he had at least looked at the most important history books. However, he had never heard anything about the Dragon Guards and the Phoenix Guards.

"I like to collect rare books, and by chance, many years ago during a visit to the countryside, I acquired a volume of unofficial history that recorded the events of the Dragon Guards and the Phoenix Guards. Originally, I just took it as an amusing anecdote. I never expected to actually encounter it today." Jueqing was not interested in such matters and was solely focused on when the person inside the room would come out.

Xiao Jiazhen and Fo Conghui were also full of worry, their eyebrows furrowed as they kept glancing at the secret chamber’s passageway, hoping to see their future cousin-in-law soon.

Inside the secret chamber, the two of them looked at each other for a long time. Feng Xuxu smiled sweetly at Dugu Chen and reached out to caress his handsome face marred by a red bloodstain.

"Chen, let’s go home."

"Alright, let’s go home." Dugu Chen smiled joyfully at her words. He finally had a home—a home that belonged to him and the one he loved.

He picked up Feng Xuxu, who was dressed in a fiery red wedding gown, and carried her out of the secret chamber. With a few jumps powered by his inner energy, he left Prince Mo Residence and headed toward his own mansion, Prince Mei Residence.

Seeing that the main characters were gone, everyone thought they should be able to leave as well, so they turned their eyes to the Crown Prince.

With an awkward clearing of his throat, the Crown Prince said, "Let’s call it a day. Everyone can go back now. We’ll host a banquet for you all another day."

As soon as the Crown Prince finished speaking, there was a collective sigh throughout the courtyard, and a trembling of legs as people took step by step towards the grand entrance of Prince Mo Residence. Seeing the corpses on the ground, they had become numb, and with their wits scattered, they exited the mansion gate. Those with carriages boarded without care whether it belonged to their household or not, eager to leave quickly. The scene outside the gate descended into chaos as everyone scrambled to depart, not finding carriages, they hurried off on foot, leaving without a single word of complaint.

After leaving the back yard, the Crown Prince arrived at the front yard to find his aged father sitting in a chair, his gaze vacant as if unable to focus on any point.

Not wanting his elderly father to deteriorate like this, the Crown Prince approached softly and said, "Father, let me take you back to the palace."

Dugu Kangze turned his head to look at the Crown Prince. Gazing through Dugu Han’s face, he almost seemed to see a young Xiao Hanyan.

"Han, do you know why I chose you as the Crown Prince?" He sighed, attempting to stand up, only to realize his legs had gone numb. In the end, he slumped back into the chair.

Seeing this, Eunuch Wei knelt down and began to massage the Emperor’s numb legs.

"I do not know."

"You look too much like Hanyan." It was as if the memory triggered something; his eyes, originally rather gentle, suddenly transformed with a surge of hatred as he glared at Dugu Han.

"If you loved the Empress so much, why did you force her to her death." Dugu Han closed his eyes in agony at the thought of his mother’s death.

"Your mother betrayed me, she even poisoned me," he exclaimed, his eyes bloodshot with rage.

"That is impossible." Dugu Han suddenly opened his eyes wide to stare directly at his father, recalling the times, no matter how busy his father was, he would always join him, his brother, and his mother for a meal. Whenever he desired something, his father never asked but would grant it generously, and his mother would gently smile and say to his father, "Keep spoiling him. Let’s see what you’ll do when one day he wants the stars in the sky."

"I would be willing, as long as Han is happy."

Every time he revisited these memories, Dugu Han felt heart-wrenching pain. From when did his mother and father start to drift apart, and how was it he knew nothing of it?

Hearing his words, Dugu Kangze could only laugh bitterly, not believing himself. If it weren’t for Song Jing running out to save him, he might have already been dead.