C62 Chosen

After the selection process ended, Tiange was the first to leave the mansion and get into the carriage. Just as the driver was about to set off, someone jumped in.

Their eyes met, and Tiange felt her face flush slightly. She hadn’t chosen the chess room during the selection. She couldn’t stand the thought of facing Rong Qi every day—it was just too annoying!

“Good thing I made it in time. Eldest Miss, did you forget I’m the chess instructor?”

“...”

“You must have mistaken me for the flower instructor, or why else would you choose the flower room?”

“...”

“Luckily, I have a good relationship with the flower instructor, so I switched it back for you.”

“...”

Tiange looked at the man across from her, trying to appear calm but feeling tense inside. She finally resisted the urge to strangle him. “Does Prince Rong have any other business?”

Rong Qi thought for a moment. “If not...”

“Please get out of the carriage.”

“Then I do.” Rong Qi nodded seriously, as if confirming it.

Tiange was speechless. She silently repeated to herself, I’m not angry, I’m not angry, I’m not angry, then asked, “What is it?”

When Rong Qi explained, Tiange felt like she’d been struck by lightning. Bai Yushuang was coming...

“Is she crazy?” Tiange asked in shock.

Before Rong Qi could respond, Tiange shook her head. “She’s not, you are. You knew King Ping sent Zhou Ru here, so why didn’t you have your third royal sister stop Bai Yushuang from coming?”

"What's her deal with joining Qi?" Rong Qi asked, feigning ignorance.

"Use what little brains you have!" Tiange snapped, then took a deep breath. "Alright, my bad. Intelligence isn't your strong suit... Bai Yushuang has a grudge against Dugu Yan. She's here to make sure Dugu Yan is really gone. But don't forget, this place is crawling with remnants of corrupt concubines. If Bai Yushuang gets killed by one of them, what happens to your third royal sister? What about King Zhao?"

Rong Qi was taken aback, surprised at Silver Mask's sudden display of intelligence.

As for Bai Yushuang, of course, the third royal sister tried to stop her, only to end up having three jars of peach wine smashed over her head.

"She's already within Qi's borders," Rong Qi wanted to tell Tiange. "I thought of that too, so I'm not entirely lacking in brains."

Tiange suddenly fell silent, glaring coldly at Rong Qi, her eyes quickly filling with bloodshot veins. She wasn't Dugu Yan, nor was she Silver Mask. She was Tiange!

With that thought, Tiange composed herself. "It's not my problem."

"Please, make it your problem. If you can keep Bai Yushuang safe, I'll agree to any condition you set," Rong Qi understood that Tiange didn't want to reveal her interest in this matter, to avoid raising suspicion.

But he wasn't just anyone...

Seeing Rong Qi's pleading eyes, Feng Tiange thought for a moment, "I need money, fifty million dollars."

"Stop the car, I want to get out."

"Thirty million..."

"Stop the car!"

"Lend me your secret guards!"

"Deal."

In the void, Lei Yi was overwhelmed with emotion...

Rong Qi believed that Feng Tiange didn't want Bai Yushuang dead simply because her death might trigger Zhao Ping King's rise to power, and Zhao Ping King was just as bad as Beiming Yuan. What he didn't know was that Feng Tiange had more personal reasons. Although her memories with Bai Yushuang were filled with tears—more accurately, Bai Yushuang's tears—she saw Bai Yushuang as a true hero. She didn't want that woman to die, at least not caught in this dirty web of schemes.

"This doesn't seem to be the way back to the South Suppressing Marquis Mansion?" After a moment of silence in the carriage, Rong Qi lifted the curtain and asked suspiciously.

"It isn't," Feng Tiange replied coolly.

Rong Qi looked up, "Why didn't you tell me earlier?"

"You didn't ask," Feng Tiange said, feigning innocence.

Even so, Rong Qi could still feel the deep malice in Feng Tiange's eyes. "I think you misunderstand me too much. I've never tried to trick you!"

"Well, with your intelligence, it would indeed be difficult to trick me," Feng Tiange said sympathetically.

The next moment, the carriage came to an abrupt halt. As Rong Qi stepped down, a cloud of dust rose around him. Standing in the middle of nowhere, with no village or inn in sight, he paused for a moment before finally speaking.

"Tiange, are you even human anymore..."

Outside the Tiger Cavalry Battalion, Feng Tiange had been waiting for quite some time before she finally saw the guard return. As she re-entered the camp, memories of its former glory flooded back. A decade of battles had secured Great Qi's position as the leading nation among the seven, yet it had cost her everything, even her life.

Reborn, she was determined to seek justice, no matter the cost. Without a word, she followed the soldier to the main tent. "Miss, the Marquis is waiting for you inside."

Since that day in court, Feng Qing hadn't returned home, and Feng Tiange felt it was necessary to see her father. Her family in this world was dwindling.

"Eldest Miss?" Just as Feng Tiange was about to enter, she saw Lee Lin approaching with a basket of charcoal. As Yushuang had mentioned, Lee Lin had indeed been reassigned to the camp.

"Bringing charcoal for Father?" Feng Tiange reached out and took the basket from Lee Lin. "I'll do it."

Inside the main tent, Feng Qing seemed a bit uneasy when he saw his daughter enter. Feng Tiange noticed that in just a few days, her father appeared to have lost weight.

What is love, if not a self-imposed trap?

Feng Qing still hadn’t come to terms with everything.

“My daughter heard that Grandmother sent for you several times, but you didn’t go back. She was worried, so I came to check on you,” Feng Tiange said, adding some coal to the iron stove and securing the lid. “Father, you’ve lost weight.”

A simple expression of concern, yet Feng Qing couldn’t hold back his emotions any longer. “Tiange, I’ve let you down.”

Feng Tiange acknowledged the truth in his father’s words. Over the years, he had indeed neglected Silver Mask.

“Father, it’s not just me you’ve let down, but Mother as well.” Feng Tiange set down the iron tongs and moved to the low table, facing Feng Qing. “I don’t care what others say about my mother. To me, she wasn’t a heartless person. She wouldn’t have left me, my brother, and you for her own reasons.”

“Tiange...” Feng Qing looked up in shock; no one had ever spoken to him like this before.

“After so many years together, Father, you should know Mother better than I do. With her character, she wouldn’t marry unless she was sure, and she wouldn’t regret it.” As the daughter of Empress Dowager Chu, she was genuine. Considering the poisoning incident, Feng Tiange believed there was more to the story than met the eye.

“Wouldn’t marry unless she was sure, wouldn’t regret it...” Feng Qing leaned forward, gripping the table tightly, his expression pained. “But why did she leave? What was her reason?”

“I believe Mother will return one day. Until then, I hope you can hold onto that hope, just like I do,” Feng Tiange said, gently placing a hand on Feng Qing’s shoulder. “Can you do that?”

Feng Tiange's words ignited a spark in Feng Qing's heart, revitalizing him like a refreshing revelation.

"Yes... yes!" Feng Qing suddenly stood up, forcing back his tears. "I'll wait with you. Even if it takes ten or twenty years, I'll wait for your mother to return!"

Hope is a powerful thing; it can revive a spirit that seemed lost, just as it did for Feng Qing now.

That evening, Feng Tiange didn't leave the camp. After sharing dinner with Feng Qing, she went alone to the training grounds.

It was on these grounds that the leaders of the Thirteen Sects pledged their undying allegiance to her.

I'm sorry...