The elder smiled without speaking. She turned her head to look at Liu Changning, a flash of light passing through her aged eyes as she asked slowly: “I noticed this lady watching from the side earlier. Would you like to play a game with this old woman?”

Liu Changning glanced at the rain outside, hesitated for a moment, then nodded.

The rain wouldn’t stop anytime soon, and the old woman’s earlier game had shown her to be ruthless and uncompromising, quite different from her current ethereal appearance. Playing against her should be interesting.

Seeing her nod, the elder instructed the young woman to move aside.

One held the white stones, the other the black.

The elder made the first move. Liu Changning didn’t hesitate either, casually placing a black stone on the board.

As the game began, the elder’s demeanor appeared relaxed. She repeatedly murmured, “Young lady, have you thought it through?”

However, as more and more stones filled the white jade board, her white stones, which were originally surrounding the black ones, unexpectedly found themselves in a reverse encirclement.

When the last stone was placed, utterly defeated, beads of sweat appeared on the elder’s forehead.

Her gaze fixed on the board, carefully reviewing the game. The more she reviewed, the more astonished she became.

This person, so young, played with patience and stability, advancing by retreating, using diversionary tactics, deliberately luring her in like Jiang Taigong fishing.

This person’s Go skills were superb, their mind as intricate as a spider’s web!

When the elder raised her head again, she carefully observed the simply dressed young woman before her, noting her extraordinary bearing.

“Young lady, you are truly talented. May I ask, earlier when the black stones seemed to be in a hopeless situation, how did you manage to turn the tables with that one move of diversionary tactics, pulling the rug out from under me? Was it your plan from the beginning to lure this old woman into a trap?”

Liu Changning shook her head. She picked up the tea from the table, took a light sip, and smiled, “The game of Go, like the affairs of state, changes with circumstances. I observed that the elder’s moves were fierce, surely due to some anger in your heart, so I made this risky move. In terms of Go skills, I am far from your equal. If you were to play a game with me with a calm heart, the outcome would be hard to predict.”

Jia Zhiyuan lifted her eyelids, a flash of understanding in her eyes. After a while, she straightened up and bowed to the woman sitting across from her: “Thank you for your advice, young lady. This old woman was indeed too impetuous!”

Liu Changning turned her body, avoiding such a grand gesture. It was just a casual comment; whether it was understood depended on the elder herself.

Outside, the heavy rain had stopped. Liu Changning bowed to take her leave and turned to leave.

The old woman watched her back, her cloudy eyes gradually regaining clarity.

She looked at the young woman beside her and said softly, “Ziyun, let’s go. We’ll escort His Highness back to the capital.”

The young woman standing to the side, her hand holding the teacup trembling slightly, turned her head in surprise: “But… before you left the capital, you clearly said…”

The elder gazed at her for a moment: “You are now of age and have had your hair pinned up. I have always taught you to listen in all directions and observe in six ways. Yet you are rash and impulsive, not understanding cause and effect. Now, in public, your words are unguarded. If only you could be half as steady as that young lady just now, I could close my eyes and meet your father with peace of mind.”

After speaking, the elder said no more.

The young lady from earlier had ostensibly played Go with her, but in reality, she had used the game to remind her to rein in her anger, to use softness to overcome hardness in order to break the deadlock. That’s why she had mentioned the game of state affairs.

She must be getting old if even a young woman could surpass her now.

This time, the design of the Marquis of Zhennan in Jinling City, destroying the reputation of the son of a nobleman, had already been suppressed by her with swift action. However, the voices calling for the removal of the Emperor’s Husband were growing louder in the court.

She was now powerless!

If the situation hadn’t been so serious, she wouldn’t have personally gone north to seek out the Long Emperor.

Under heaven, the only one who could stabilize the situation was Pei Ziyuan, who once shocked the four seas and whose prestige still remained, the only one who could preside over the court was the wise Long Emperor of those years.

She had given him three years to maneuver and strategize. Now she would use the petition written in blood by tens of thousands of students as a reason to welcome him back to the court.

The Long Emperor Pei Yuanshao from before the incident three years ago that changed his temperament was coming back!

The evidence of the Prefecture Chief’s plot to frame Long Emperor Pei Yuanshao had been fully collected.

Now, behind Long Emperor Pei Yuanshao stood the 300,000 strong Northern Desert army led by General Mo, and he had the support of half the civil officials in the court. Although unable to completely eradicate the Marquis of Zhennan’s influence, he could at least stand on equal footing.

—

On this night, Pei Yuanshao met with Grand Tutor Jia and discussed until very late.

After hearing about the situation in Jinling City, the expression on his face turned completely cold. He had always thought it would be a long, drawn-out battle, but he didn’t expect that Jing Huan, rushing at full speed, would force him to return to the capital before even arriving in Jinling City.

Fortunately, yesterday he went to Langhuanjun to rectify the discipline of the Northern Desert army, finally rooting out the last spy the Empress had placed in the Northern Desert army years ago. In the capital, Cousin Mo Yan had also been rescued from the secret passage in Jing Huan’s mansion by his people.

Jing Huan was ruthless, harming Guan Yunyun and killing so many of his spies. This grudge must be repaid.

He had originally planned to leave her a grand gift, but now it seemed he needed to act earlier. Since Jing Huan had even calculated to include the young son of a nobleman in her schemes, she couldn’t blame him for…

In the previous life, the Prefecture Chief of Jingzhao tampered with the imperial tomb, which led to the broken stele incident. This was a plot orchestrated by the Empress Mother many years ago.

If that’s the case, let the stele be broken. As for the prophecy, it should be changed to: “A man in woman’s clothing, disrupting the court order.”

Even if Jing Huan is truly a woman, once this prophecy is out, there will come a time when she struggles to prove her innocence. In the previous life, he married Pei Yunzhi. In this life, he will make her marry the second prince earlier, letting that fool enter her household and disturb her family peace.