became the Imperial Heir and would be the next Queen of South Zha. So how could a princess marry into such a situation Mo Xiuyao said coolly, "South Zha may not have princes, but they do have King She...331. Queen of Anxi

Not many days later, Princess Anxi also arrived in Li City with her consort. Arriving at roughly the same time was an envoy dispatched by Emperor Xi Ling. Although the emperor didn't personally come, he still sent another envoy after Prince Nan Zhong had already arrived. Even outsiders could clearly see how tense relations were between Emperor Xi Ling and Prince Nan Zhong. It's unclear whether it was intentional or a careless oversight on the part of those responsible for accommodating these distinguished guests, but they ended up placing both envoys from Western Liang in the same compound because they were all people from Western Liang. As for what happens when two opposing forces live together, that wasn't something the Ding王府的事。

Among all the distinguished guests, those who arrived last were the Northerners, but their envoy was quite significant nonetheless. Since King of Northern Rong was old and couldn't travel, this time they dispatched Crown Prince Yelü Hong and Seventh Prince Yelü Ye of Northern Rong as envoys. For a moment, one could say that all the most powerful heroes in the world had gathered in Li City. The last such grand event was during Little Treasure's full moon celebration.

When she saw Princess Anxi again, Ye Li was quite surprised to see that the princess was already five months pregnant.

In Ding王府, when Ye Li saw Princess Anxi wearing a white queen’s attire and her previously flat stomach now slightly protruding, she hurriedly asked Qing霜to help Princess Anxi sit down. "Why did you come with your pregnancy Doesn't your consort worry about it"

Princess Anxi smiled brightly, "Women of Nanzhao are not as delicate as those from the Central Plains. At four or five months, what's there to worry about Even if I were seven or eight months pregnant, we would still be able to move around."

Satisfied with Princess Anxi's radiant complexion and lack of fatigue despite her long journey, Ye Li relaxed somewhat. After observing her carefully, she smiled and said, "It looks like the… Queen and your consort have a good relationship." Princess Anxi lowered her head and gave a faint smile. When she spoke about her consort Pu A, her face softened with affection as she said in a gentle tone, “He's an honest man; he doesn't have the twists and turns of Central Plains people. Having such a consort is my blessing."

Ye Li smiled somewhat contentedly. Princess Anxi's deep love for Xu Qingchen註定無法得到回報。如果她能找到自己的幸福，那自然是極好的。兩人坐下後，青霜很有眼色地上了一杯適合孕婦的果汁就退下了。

葉璃看著安溪公主淺笑道：“說起來，你們怎麼會與西陵皇的使者一起到的？”這不僅是葉璃好奇，隻怕彆的人也同樣猜測紛紛。雖然從南詔到璃城不是不可以借道西陵，但是相比之下路卻比走碎雪關要難走多了。安溪公主懷中身孕還特意從西陵過並且還正好和西陵使者同行就有些奇怪了。安溪公主也不隱瞞，含笑道：“來璃城之前，我們去了一趟西陵皇城。”

Everyone is intelligent, so they understand right away. Ye Li looked at her and smiled, "Do you plan to… cooperate with Emperor Xi Ling"

Anxi Princess sighed helplessly and said, “Cooperating with Emperor Xi Ling is better than working with Lei Zhen Ting. At present, Lei Zhen Ting is in a difficult situation between Greater Chu. To the north there are Mo Xiu Yao's troops; to the south lies the dangerous Yun Lan River. If he wants to break through this deadlock, it’s either to cross this perilous river and challenge Mo Jing Li or turn towards us in Nanzhao. Our kingdom is small compared to Western Liang's strong army. We mustn't let him take action against our country first; thus we have no choice but to cooperate with Emperor Xi Ling. I only hope he isn’t a fool."

Ye Li smiled and said, "Compared to Lei Zhen Ting, Emperor Xi Ling is less capable. But he's not stupid either. However, Lei Teng Feng still guards An City; will he allow you to cooperate smoothly"

Anxi Princess laughed and said, “Lei Teng Feng is indeed a nuisance, but recently, he’s also been quite troubled.”

"Hmm" Ye Li raised her eyebrows in curiosity. Although Lei Teng Feng was overshadowed by his father's reputation and seemed inconspicuous militarily, this was because the opponent he faced was Mo Xiu Yao. The secret line of information from Ding王府 proved that Lei Teng Feng wasn't a simple person either. Anxi Princess smiled and said, "Don’t you remember Yama Pavilion has enmity with Prince Nan Zhong's family. Although Prince Nan Zhong's family’s influence is too great for Yama Pavilion to challenge directly, now that the royal capital of Xi Ling has moved to An City and Prince Nan Zhong’s family has suffered a major setback, Lei Teng Feng isn't having an easy time either."

"I see." Ye Li nodded with a smile. "But I didn’t know what kind of grudge Iron Cold Ling and Lei Zhen Ting have It doesn’t seem like they have such deep enmity." If it was blood feud, Yama Pavilion and Ling Tiehan’s power would certainly be enough to take down Lei Zhen Ting, but Ling Tiehan never acted on this. Plus there were several times when he met with Lei Zhen Ting without any real action being taken against him, suggesting that the enmity might not be irreconcilable.

Anxi Princess gently stroked her slightly protruding belly and said with a smile, "I did learn some details from Emperor Xi Ling. It seems to have something to do with the late consort of Prince Nan Zhong who passed away shortly after giving birth to Lei Teng Feng under suspicious circumstances. The specifics weren’t revealed by Emperor Xi Ling." Ye Li frowned slightly and thought for a moment before saying, "If you truly plan to cooperate with Emperor Xi Ling, it’s best to clear this matter up thoroughly. Although I trust the conduct of Master Iron Cold Ling, since this involves major concerns, being stabbed in the back during critical times would be very troublesome."

The Princess of Anxi’s face warmed up a bit as she nodded and smiled. "I know, thank you for reminding me." There was no permanent peace or friendship between countries, which they all knew very well. Perhaps in the future they might become enemies, but at least now the Princess of Anxi knew that Ye Li truly cared about her.

"Let’s not talk about such troublesome things," Ye Li smiled and said. "The Xi霞 Princess followed Mo Jingli to Li City, would you like to meet with her"

The Princess of Anxi frowned slightly as she shook her head. "Forget it. If she doesn’t treat me like an elder sister, I’ll just pretend that there’s no such younger sister. She has been following Mo Jingli without any title or status for so many years and divulging the secrets of Nanzhao on his behalf. Let’s leave her fate to be determined by her own actions from now on. On the other hand, your young marquis and princess I have yet to meet."

Ye Li smiled sweetly. "What’s difficult about that" She turned around and asked Qingsha to bring over the two little ones. Then she called Qin Feng to invite the young marquis.

In no time, Mo Xiao Bao appeared at the door like a gust of wind. "Mother, did you call for me" When he saw the stranger sitting beside Ye Li, his simple smile gradually faded away as he put on a polite and proper smile instead. Ye Li waved to him with a smile and said, "This is Queen Anxi of Nanzhao. Come over here and pay your respects." Mo Xiao Bao then stepped forward and announced loudly, "Mo Yuchen pays respects to Queen Anxi."

The Princess of Anxi’s smile grew even bigger as she watched the boy who was flawlessly beautiful bowing sincerely in front of her. She turned her head towards Ye Li with a smile and said, "No wonder he is your young marquis. My seven or eight-year-old child still runs around and plays freely in the palace."

As a mother, she liked to hear others praise her children. Ye Li smiled and said, "Don’t be fooled by his well-behaved looks now; he’s usually quite naughty."

The Princess of Anxi thought for a moment before taking out a blue gemstone and offering it to Mo Xiao Bao with a smile. "I forgot about bringing a gift for our meeting. This is for you to play with. Don’t be upset, okay" Mo Xiao Bao accepted the gemstone with both hands and said in a steady voice, "Yuchen thanks Queen." The Princess of Anxi was even more charmed by his earnest little face as she said, "If my child can look ten percent like this young marquis, I will be content."

Mo Xiao Bao blinked his eyes and said crisply, "Queen’s majesty is naturally dignified. Whether it’s a little prince or princess, they are all born with dragon-like bearing and phoenix-like appearance, making them extraordinarily handsome."

The Princess of Anxi was delighted as she replied, "Then I thank you for your auspicious words, Young Marquis."

After Mo Xiao Bao finished paying his respects to the Princess of Anxi, he handed over the gemstone that she had given him to the person following behind and sat down obediently next to Ye Li. The Princess of Anxi was impressed by how refined and well-mannered he was in both appearance and behavior, as if born with a noble demeanor. She couldn’t help but marvel at the good luck of Ye Li and Mo Xiuyao while gently stroking her slightly protruding abdomen with more anticipation.

"My Lady, Young Master and Little Princess have arrived." Two wet nurses came in carrying two little babies. Mo Xiao Bao’s eyes lit up as he stared steadily at the two baby boys placed in Ye Li’s and the Princess of Anxi’s hands. The two babies were very well-behaved; even a complete stranger like the Princess of Anxi didn’t make them cry or fuss. The baby lying in Ye Li’s arms seemed to feel her mother’s warm breath and started giggling one after another. Mo Xiao Bao stretched his neck and said, "This one smiles so much, he must be my younger brother." Both newborn babies from the Ding王府 did not like crying; especially little Lin’er who loved smiling whenever someone played with him as long as he wasn’t asleep. Of course, this didn’t apply to Lord Mo Xiuyao of the Ding王府.

The Princess of Anxi held Xinxin carefully and gently patted her baby blanket while still stiff from being nervous. She sighed enviously and said, "My Lady and Prince Ding are so lucky; their three young marquises and princesses are all adorable like snowflakes." Ye Li smiled faintly without saying anything.

After sending off the Princess of Anxi, Ye Li took both little babies back to their room and then went to the study in the front courtyard. As soon as she arrived at the flower garden before the study, she met Mo Jingli coming towards her. Seeing his glowering expression, Ye Li couldn’t help but want to avoid him. Although she wasn’t afraid of Mo Jingli, looking at a face that seemed like everyone owed him five million taels and refused to repay it was still uncomfortable.

Just as she paused for a moment, Mo Jingli had already seen her. She couldn’t turn around and leave anymore then, so Ye Li could only walk up and nod coldly. "Prince Li." These days, the key figures of Ding王府 were very busy. Not only were they handling various matters related to Ding王府 and the birthday banquet, but also dealing with Mo Jingli who had nothing better to do than come knocking for a chat. But it was unclear what Mo Jingli wanted to discuss with Mo Xiuyao today; judging from his face, their conversation must have gone poorly.

Mo Jingli blocked Ye Li’s way and didn’t say anything but stared at her intently. This gaze made Ye Li frown unhappily as she said coldly, "If Prince Li has nothing to say, I still need to speak with our prince. I’ll take my leave now." Mo Jingli looked at her and asked, "Do you have to talk to me like this"

Ye Li was momentarily stunned, completely at a loss. She looked at Mo Jingli in confusion and couldn’t figure out what he meant by that. She thought her behavior wasn't impolite.

Mo Jingli seemed agitated as he glared fiercely at Ye Li, saying, "Since I cancelled your marriage back then, you hate me so much You have to help Mo Xiuyao against me Now that Mo Xiuyao has taken over Chu Capital, are you satisfied"

Ye Li rolled her eyes and sighed. This was what kind of logic She said calmly, "Prince Li, I believe you should remember that the Ding王府 only went to rescue the Chu Capital after you abandoned it first. No, they were rescuing Changxing Prefecture. It wasn’t something we took from you." Mo Jingli froze for a moment and said sternly, "Even so, this is still part of Great Chu’s territory. Furthermore, isn't Northern Rong and Northern Jin attacking Great Chu within Mo Xiuyao's calculations If not for your help, how could he take down Xiling City so quickly"

Ye Li laughed coldly in response, "Prince Li, does the fact that Northern Rong and Northern Jin are attacking our country have anything to do with us Did we provoke them into invading Great Chu Besides, I'm the Ding Wangfei. Who should I help if not my husband Furthermore, many years ago, this Dowager told your Highness something, don’t you remember"

Mo Jingli frowned slightly and clearly didn't understand what she was referring to.

Ye Li replied leisurely, "Wishful thinking is a disease that needs treatment. Please consider carefully before speaking further. This Dowager will take my leave." Then without caring about Mo Jingli's reaction, she bypassed him and went in the direction of the study room.

"Ye Li!" Mo Jingli suddenly called out, reaching for her wrist to pull her back. But how could Ye Li be easily caught by a common woman She raised her hand and blocked his attempt. Mo Jingli said sternly, "I have something important to tell you!" Ye Li replied indifferently, "This Dowager has nothing to say to Prince Li." Mo Jingli reached out with the other hand towards Ye Li's arm; she turned away and a cold glint flashed in her sleeve as she increased the distance between them. She stopped the secret guard from stepping forward and looked at Mo Jingli, saying firmly, "Prince Li, this is the Ding Manor, not somewhere you can act recklessly."

Mo Jingli was silent for a moment before he said solemnly, "This Prince has something important to tell you in private."

Ye Li frowned and replied, "I've already mentioned that there's nothing I need to discuss privately with your Highness. This Dowager respects guests but also asks Prince Li to show respect. Goodbye." With that, she turned and left. Mo Jingli made a step as if he wanted to follow her, but two dark shadows flashed in front of him; two black-robed guards blocked his path, saying, "Prince Li, please be respectful."

Looking at the two clearly skilled individuals before him, then seeing Ye Li far away, Mo Jingli finally sneered and left with a flick of his sleeve.

Entering the study room, Mo Xiuyao was reading there. Hearing footsteps, he looked up to see Ye Li and smiled, saying, "Lily, has Princess Anxi left" Ye Li nodded and said, "I met Mo Jingli in the flower garden just now. He seemed rather nasty. What did you two talk about" Mo Xiuyao pulled Ye Li into his arms; being forced to sit on someone’s lap made her momentarily uncomfortable. Mo Xiuyao smiled faintly and waved his hand creating a gust of wind that slammed the door shut, then he said with a smile, "What else He called me despicable for taking advantage of others' misfortunes. Maybe he wants to take back Changxing City."

"Take it back" Ye Li raised her eyebrows; Mo Jingli's imagination was truly rich. How many people died on the way to forcefully break through Northern Rong’s army and capture Changxing City It wasn't something Mo Jingli could simply get back with a few words, let alone that Ding Manor wasn’t a charity organization, nor was Mo Xiuyao some holy father.

Mo Xiuyao lazily rested his chin on her shoulder and scoffed, "Even if I returned it to him, what’s the point Can he hold onto it"

Ye Li smiled as well. All of Great Chu's troops were in southern China now; northern areas were occupied by various forces. Not only would they not return Chu Capital, even if Mo Xiuyao really returned it, Mo Jingli might not dare to receive it. He would have to dispatch troops and officials to manage it. Besides these, should Changxing City once again fall into the hands of Northern Rong or others, then Mo Jingli's face would truly be trampled on.

"Then what was he here for" Ye Li asked, puzzled.

"He came to vent because he’s bored. Did he make things difficult for Lily just now in the flower garden" Mo Xiuyao nuzzled against her hair and asked softly. Ye Li smiled faintly and said, "How could he make things difficult for me" Mo Xiuyao chuckled, saying, "It's uncertain. Seeing how well we're doing naturally makes him jealous and envious. Maybe he thinks you’re helping me out of revenge." Ye Li was speechless; Mo Jingli truly thought like that. She held his handsome face in her hands and said seriously, "Don't mess around with idiotic thoughts, it's contagious."

Moxiu Yao blinked his eyes and immediately understood Ye Li’s meaning. He couldn’t help but burst into laughter, kissing her pink lips several times heavily before continuing to laugh maniacally.

Seeing him so happy, Ye Li could only give in無奈地看著他。靠在墨修堯懷裡，順便將見安溪公主時所談的話跟他說了一遍。“. Moxiu Yao played with her slender hand while pondering, "The Nan Zhao is currently not conflicting with us, so helping them secretly isn’t a bad idea. If the King of Xi Ling can deal with Le Zhen Ting, it would save us a lot of trouble."

"Do you really think that the King of Xi Ling can handle Le Zhen Ting" Ye Li asked.

"No." Moxiu Yao denied without hesitation. The King of Xi Ling might have some cleverness, but he was far from Le Zhen Ting's level. "As long as they cause early trouble for Le Zhen Ting, that’s good enough. What we need to consider now is… Beirong!" At the mention of Beirong, a hint of killing intent flashed in Moxiu Yao’s calm eyes. The hatred between Beirong and the Black Ink Army or rather, towards Moxiu Yao himself, was more than the combined hate from all other countries. Back then, Moxiu Wen had died at the hands of Beirong people, and the two hundred years’ most tragic failure of the Black Ink Army also happened in Beirong. Most of Moxiu Yao’s seven or eight years of hiding and humiliation were due to the Beirong people. Now that the Black Ink Army was recovering, it was time for the Beirong people to face their retribution. Furthermore, last year's heinous crimes committed by the Beirong troops in Da Chu, Moxiu Yao would never let them get away with.

Leaning against Moxiu Yao’s chest, Ye Li frowned slightly and said, "Yelv Hong and Yelv Ye will arrive no later than tomorrow morning. What is Shouxiao planning to do about them"

Moxiu Yao smiled calmly, "This time it's my grandfather’s birthday; I don’t plan to deal with them now. Just treat them like everyone else. Our Li city is small, so having Yelv Hong and Yelv Ye stay together should be fine."

Ye Li smiled slightly. Yelv Hong and Yelv Ye had always been at odds and after over ten years of open and covert rivalry without a decisive outcome, living together would allow them to restrain each other from any mischief in Li City.

"I should also meet Princess Rong Hua," Ye Li said thoughtfully. After burying this chess piece for so long, she needed to see if it was still useful. It would be a pity if anything happened to her. No matter what Ye Li did, Moxiu Yao always felt at ease. Although Princess Rong Hua had been arrogant in the past, she was said to have improved over the years; however, another person made Moxiu Yao frown slightly, "Is that really okay with Ye Ying"

Moxiu Yao didn’t like Ye Ying one bit. She was only pretty on the outside but lacked substance otherwise. Such a woman would be unpredictable in nature. Not only could she not be trusted to do things for others, even being a respectable head of the household would be an overestimation of her capabilities. Compared to women like Ye Ying, Moxiu Yao found that women from brothels like Yao Ji were more reliable to use. Even someone as spoiled and arrogant as Princess Rong Hua would be more dependable.

Ye Li said with a faint smile, "As long as the Prince can help her find her son, she will become very reliable. Moreover, don’t underestimate women, especially delicate ones like Ye Ying. The weaker they look on the outside, the crueler their hearts are." On the other hand, those who seemed intimidating were often unable to accomplish anything because such people easily made others wary of them.

Moxiu Yao said with a nod, "As long as you have it figured out."

"Do you really know nothing about that son of Mo Jing Li" Ye Li asked curiously.

Moxiu Yao replied, "Originally I had no interest, but since you need to know, we can send people to investigate. However… according to Mo Jing Qi’s usual behavior, this child…"

"How so"

"He is far away yet near at hand. But even if Mo Jing Li were given a hundred years, he might still not guess it," Moxiu Yao smiled.

The thought flashed through Ye Li’s mind but she couldn’t grasp it in time. However, she felt like she had some clues. Absently playing with Ye Li's smooth black hair, Moxiu Yao said, "Are you really planning to help Ye Ying find her son and give him back to her Ye Ying isn't the kind of person who would repay kindness."

Ye Li laughed, "Of course I know that. But since she asked me for help, it's only right that I look for him. Besides, this child is also very important to Mo Jing Li,"搶到皇位卻冇有兒子繼承，那份成就感瞬間就會打折無數倍啊。

(Note: The last sentence was left untranslated as it wasn't properly translated in the original Chinese text and seemed to be a mix-up or incomplete thought.) look flashed in his eyes. He raised his hand to slap Ye Yue on the head but stopped when Ye Li reached out and grabbed his wrist, pulling it back so that their hands were clasped together. Looking at...