Qi Yihan nodded, "I'll go see her. You stay here."
Asi didn't dare to raise his head, responding like a mosquito. She actually wanted to say that the Prince was being too secretive, visiting a young lady's boudoir without any formal status was too much.
But then she remembered what Aqi had said, hoping the two would return to the capital soon and finally break the ice, so she would have a proper mistress of the house!
While Qi Yihan was talking to Asi in the outer room, Li Man'er had already woken up. The room was unlit, and she changed her clothes by the faint moonlight, sitting by the table and waiting.
Qi Yihan entered and saw her, not surprised. This girl was a hidden talent, her skills even surpassing those of ordinary dark guards, and her vigilance was exceptionally high.
"Your Highness, you've come at the right time. I have something to tell you." Li Man'er spoke lazily, feeling uninspired for some reason, but it was of great importance, so she had to say it.
Qi Yihan, who had been full of anger, softened immediately upon seeing her like this.
"What do you want to tell me? That you were incredibly brave, going into the enemy camp alone?"
"How can you be so ungrateful!" Li Man'er's eyes widened, and her laziness vanished instantly. "Did you think I went there for fun? Did you think I went there out of overconfidence? I knew what I was doing, and I had a way to come back completely unharmed."
Facts spoke louder than words; wasn't she fine?
Seeing her defiant expression, Qi Yihan's anger dissolved unknowingly. Perhaps at this moment, he hadn't realized he would be walking further and further down the path of being henpecked.
"Wasn't I worried about you?"
Hearing this, Li Man'er felt a slight heat on her face. Fortunately, the room was dimly lit, so he probably couldn't see clearly.
"I went there on official business. Don't I also hope to quickly resolve the problem of the barbarians surrounding the city, to eliminate these people before the supply of materials runs out?"
"The heavy snow has blocked the roads. What method do you have?"
Li Man'er gave a cold smile, "I actually do." In her space, she had many peculiar items.
Snow remover was one of them.
She didn't know what possessed her back then to buy two old warehouses in the suburbs. One of them was filled with a large quantity of snow remover. The item wasn't very valuable, but the sheer quantity was immense. In a moment of absentmindedness, her miserly personality emerged, and she stored all the snow remover into her space.
With this snow remover, they could attack the barbarian camp and catch them completely off guard. Of course, explaining the origin of this item would be difficult, so she was somewhat undecided.
Qi Yihan fell silent. He always felt Li Man'er spoke with such confidence and assurance. He really couldn't think of any way to solve the problem of the barbarian siege. However, seeing that Li Man'er didn't intend to elaborate further, he didn't ask.
"Man'er, I just hope you are safe. These responsibilities were never yours to bear."
Li Man'er flinched slightly, a strange feeling creeping into her heart. She felt flustered and didn't want to face it, but she also knew that her relationship with Qi Yihan had long since moved beyond mutual utilization, and seemed to be spiraling out of control.
Especially after he had said those words to her last time, she wasn't a saint, so how could she remain unaffected?
"I discovered a shocking secret during my trip," Li Man'er cleared her throat and got down to business. When she shifted the topic to serious matters, she could avoid awkwardness.
"What secret?"
"Your Highness, do you know who the barbarian bride and groom are?"
Qi Yihan replied, "Scouts reported it's a marriage between Ha Yue Zhu and a young man. As for the young man's identity, it's not yet known."
"That young man's name is Man Muha He, the protagonist of the story I told you about who escaped from the wolf's mouth."
"Man Muha He? It really is him!"
Li Man'er nodded, "Absolutely true. And there's even more explosive news! You would never have guessed."
"Tell me."
"This Man Muha He is not a barbarian. Many years ago, he wandered here. However, people from the Zun Kingdom are naturally thin. Man Muha He had poor health since childhood and was frail. The two looked similar, which is how he was able to replace the deceased Man Muha He and stay in the tribe."
This was simply incredible!
"You say he is from the Zun Kingdom."
"Not only is he from the Zun Kingdom, he said his surname is Qi, and he is of royal blood."
"What?" Qi Yihan was truly shocked this time. "This is impossible."
Li Man'er continued, "At first, I thought he was a prince living in exile, but later he said his name was Qi Li, the second prince of the current emperor."
"This is impossible." Even Qi Yihan, who was usually calm in the face of events, showed surprise. Although he knew he should lower his voice, he couldn't help but exclaim.
"Your Highness, look at this." Li Man'er placed the jade pendant she had obtained into Qi Yihan's palm. "Do you recognize this?"
"Light the lamp." At this moment, Qi Yihan couldn't care about anything else, only wanting to see the jade pendant in his hand clearly.
Li Man'er took out a fire starter, lit it, and held it close to Qi Yihan, allowing him to see the jade pendant clearly.
"This is the jade pendant the Emperor bestowed on the second prince for his birthday. There's no mistake."
Li Man'er blew out the fire starter and whispered, "Your Highness, did you see it clearly?"
Qi Yihan's voice still carried a trace of barely discernible shock, "Yes."
Li Man'er said, "Then what he said should be true." She then recounted the conversation between Qi Li and Ha Yue Zhu to Qi Yihan.
Upon hearing this, Qi Yihan knew that the Grand Princess must have had a hand in this matter.
"This is a long story. If he can indeed be identified as Qi Li, it wouldn't be a bad thing."
"Your Highness, things might not be as simple as you think. Qi Li promised Ha Yue Zhu that once he ascends the throne, he will surely make Ha Yue Zhu his Empress. His intentions are obvious; he clearly wants to win over the Tie He Ye father and daughter, to help him seize the throne."
Qi Yihan's heart sank. How could he not understand this logic? However, with over a hundred thousand troops surrounding the city, their situation was quite unfavorable.
"I suspect Qi Li might have an inside contact!"
"Are you referring to the Xiao family?"
"Clever. At least it should be a conspiracy with one of the masters of the Xiao family."
This would explain everything!
Why did the Xiao family want to harm Li Shu? Was it just because they feared he would usurp power? Li Shu was an informant sent by the Emperor. With him around, there would be an obstacle between the Xiao family and Qi Li, and for Qi Li, it would also mean a potential collaborator.
"Xiao Ru Di!"
"Xiao Ru Di."
Both of them, as if by unspoken agreement, pointed the finger at Xiao Ru Di.