Chapter 129: Reporting Safety

Although the Regent and Qi Shengsheng had been talking about overthrowing the imperial family of the Dengyao Kingdom, neither of them had yet disclosed any concrete plans.

Yan Heru did not believe they would be speaking so boldly without a strategy, but she still felt uneasy not having heard the specifics, which prompted her to ask.

The Regent, a man of great intellect, immediately understood his daughter’s concern. He smiled and explained, "There is a plan, of course, and it even involves your husband."

"My husband? The Ninth Prince?" Yan Heru looked at the Regent in confusion.

The Regent nodded and continued, "I was in contact with your mother today. She told me she has successfully persuaded the Ninth Prince to join forces with her to overthrow the Nanyang Kingdom’s royal family."

Upon hearing this, Yan Heru immediately pressed, "Then... is he safe now?"

The Regent nodded. "He was previously captured by the Fourth Prince, but because your mother had already planted her own people among the Fourth Prince’s ranks, she was able to rescue him. They have since reached an agreement. I only learned of this myself just now. This news alone had already brought me such joy, and now that I have found my daughter as well—I am truly overjoyed today! Hahaha!"

At that moment, the Regent shed the imposing dignity Yan Heru had first witnessed, appearing instead like a loving, affectionate father. This was exactly the warmth Yan Heru had envied in Qi Shengsheng, and now, it was hers to share.

"As long as the Ninth Prince is safe, that is all that matters. I have no other business, but since I was captured by the Fourth Prince, the Ninth Prince must be worried about me. Could we send word to assure him of my safety?" Yan Heru asked.

"Of course. Not only can we send word, but we can go and see him together," the Regent replied with a smile.

When Yan Heru heard she could return to see Shen Hezhi, her face lit up with a smile. Although Qi Shengsheng had been assisting the Regent, she was still young and possessed a playful spirit. Sensing Yan Heru’s shift in focus, she feigned anger and jealousy, pouting, "So, my sister cares nothing for me, and Father only has thoughts for her husband! I am so sad; I never imagined my sister would be like this. Wuwuwu..."

The Regent, long accustomed to Qi Shengsheng’s mischievous antics, paid little attention to her outburst. Yan Heru, finding her newfound sister adorable, shook her head with a helpless smile.

"No, how could I not care for such a lovely sister? Whoever has a sister as cute as you must have been blessed for eight lifetimes," Yan Heru said with a laugh.

Satisfied, Qi Shengsheng beamed.

"Right, let us set off to find the Ninth Prince now," the Regent said.

The others nodded. Just as the three were preparing to depart, the old man who had been dismissed earlier reappeared at the Regent's residence. Yan Heru immediately pulled her cloak back up to cover her face.

The Regent was displeased by the man’s sudden intrusion and was about to vent his anger, but seeing the old man’s frantic state, he held his tongue.

"What has happened to make you so flustered?" the Regent asked, his tone still heavy with irritation despite his restraint.

The old man, however, was far too desperate to care about the Regent’s demeanor. Gasping for breath, he reported, "War has broken out! The Third Prince has suddenly launched an attack..."

This news caused the Regent’s expression to shift instantly, as did Yan Heru’s.

The Third Prince had gone to war—but with whom? It had to be Shen Hezhi!

But that did not make sense. The Third Prince had already met Yan Heru, and since the Ninth Prince was her husband, logic dictated that the Third Prince would, at most, stage a mock battle, not engage in true warfare. Yet, looking at the old man, this did not seem like a feigned attack; if it were a sham, the people of Nanyang would be aware of it and would not be in such a panic.

Yan Heru felt a sudden surge of dread, sensing that something momentous was about to unfold.

The Regent, while having different thoughts, also found it hard to believe the Third Prince would suddenly initiate a real battle. "Are you certain the Third Prince is actually fighting? Could it not be a feigned attack?"

The old man shook his head immediately. "No. Although it is the Third Prince’s army on the march, the one in command is not the Third Prince—it is the Fourth Prince."

This revelation shocked all three of them. Qi Shengsheng, young and impulsive, grabbed the old man by the collar and demanded, "Why is the Fourth Prince leading the troops? The Third and Fourth Princes have always been at odds; how could the Third Prince possibly entrust his army to him?"

The old man, startled by her sudden aggression, cried out, "My little ancestor! Are you worried about the Fourth Prince or the Third Prince? You should be worried about me!"

Qi Shengsheng did not understand the man’s comment, so she turned to her father. The Regent, however, was less confused; he grasped the implications immediately.

If the Third Prince were the one leading the charge, it would have little to do with them. But with the Fourth Prince at the helm, it was a different matter. The Fourth Prince and the Regent were sworn enemies, though Qi Shengsheng had always played the role of trying to bridge the gap between them. The Regent knew the truth: the Fourth Prince had no genuine affection for Qi Shengsheng and only feigned it to manipulate the Regent. Both the Regent and Qi Shengsheng were aware of this, which was why she found the Fourth Prince so repulsive.

If the Fourth Prince won this war, he would gain the power to overthrow the Regent directly, rather than the Regent overthrowing the royal family. As it stood, the Regent’s faction and the royal faction were evenly matched, with the Regent holding only the slightest of advantages.

Most puzzling of all was why the Third Prince would surrender his command to the Fourth Prince. It was common knowledge in Nanyang that the two princes held a deep, mutual hatred—even more intense than that between the Fourth Prince and the Regent. It was impossible for the Third Prince to hand over his troops unless something catastrophic had happened to him.