“What business does Young Master Mu have with me?” Ye Lanshan opened the door and walked out slowly, her expression cold and aloof, as if she didn’t welcome Mu Ziming at all.
Hearing the slight displeasure in Ye Lanshan’s tone, Mu Ziming didn’t take it to heart and still spoke gently, “It’s like this—I came to discuss the matter of the Sun family with you.”
Huh? Didn’t Grandfather tell me not to get involved in this? Why did he bring him to see me? Ye Luotian met Ye Lanshan’s puzzled gaze and coughed awkwardly a few times.
“You two should talk it over and make sure you don’t fall into the Sun family’s trap. Just because we’re not participating doesn’t mean we’re easy to exploit.” Ye Luotian quickly explained a few words before leaving the space to Ye Lanshan and Mu Ziming.
“Oh? Is your Mu family also planning to sit this one out? The Sun family is about to rebel, you know.” Ye Lanshan let out a playful laugh.
Mu Ziming remained gentle as he asked, “Do you know why we became one of the three great families?”
“Merchants value profit—they never do anything that doesn’t benefit them. Tsk tsk, no wonder you’re the richest family in the Moon Kingdom. Your style is just that slick and cunning.”
Ye Lanshan didn’t catch on at first, but hearing Mu Ziming’s words, she immediately guessed their intentions.
“And what about the Ye family? I’ve heard the Ye family has always been loyal to the royal house. Why are you doing nothing when you clearly know the Sun family is plotting rebellion? Why aren’t you even willing to get involved?”
“Asking me about that is useless—you’ll have to ask my grandfather. He’s the one who told me not to get involved.” Ye Lanshan shrugged, directly shifting the blame to her grandfather.
“Now the Sun family wants to sow discord between us, making our two families fight until both are weakened so they can reap the benefits. Do you have any good ideas to counter this?”
Afraid he might continue with more probing words, Ye Lanshan steered the conversation straight to business.
“Well…” Mu Ziming pondered for a moment and said, “How about we pretend to play along, let the Sun family think their scheme worked, and then figure out the next step?” He stroked his chin, thinking his plan was decent.
“No, the risk of being found out is too high.” Ye Lanshan flatly rejected Mu Ziming’s plan.
“Then what do you have in mind?” Mu Ziming, unbothered by her rejection, asked her opinion gently.
“Since the Sun family has so much free time to cause us trouble, let’s strike first and give them some trouble of their own.” Ye Lanshan’s lips curled into a faint, sinister smile as if she’d thought of something.
“I recall your Mu family has people in the imperial palace, right?” Ye Lanshan remained calm, but her words sent a chill down Mu Ziming’s spine.
“If you’re thinking of going after the Empress, it probably won’t do much good.” Mu Ziming, being a merchant, understood the ins and outs of this very well.
“But I wasn’t planning to go after the Empress.”
“Then what are you planning?” Her words left him confused.
Ye Lanshan replied, “I mean, have her whisper more sweet nothings into the Emperor’s ear, and then see who else the Sun family has planted in the palace besides the Empress.”
Mu Ziming thought for a moment before clapping his hands and asking, “That could work, but if I do this, what’s in it for me?”
True to his merchant nature, even after reaching an agreement, he couldn’t help but think of how to use Ye Lanshan to make another profit.
“Profit? I can promise that if this succeeds, I’ll fully support you in becoming the head of the Mu family.”
Ye Lanshan knew that the Mu family had more than one legitimate son, and the competition for the family head position was brutal.
“You make it sound like I’m some prince who needs your support to become the family head.” Mu Ziming’s words still seemed gentle, but his intent was clear—he didn’t need it.
Ye Lanshan had no patience for beating around the bush and said bluntly, “Fine then, name your terms. As long as it’s within my power, I’ll do it. But from now on, you’ll follow my orders on this matter.”
Mu Ziming hesitated for a moment, but recalling her past track record, he immediately agreed, “Deal.”
“Oh, and one more thing—have someone disguise themselves as the Emperor’s men, kidnap Sun Yulu, and dump her in the wilderness.” Just as Mu Ziming was about to leave after their discussion, Ye Lanshan suddenly remembered Sun Yulu.
“Alright, I understand.” Mu Ziming maintained his refined demeanor on the surface, but inwardly he thought, *I thought Ye Lanshan was an upright and honorable person, but I never expected her to be this cunning and treacherous—even more so than me.*
Sitting in her room, Ye Lanshan had no idea what Mu Ziming thought of her. She just muttered softly, “Isn’t it just using others to do the dirty work? Anyone can do that. Let’s see who comes out on top—your cleverness or my skill.”
“With all this effort, you’d be better off focusing on your cultivation. If you’re strong enough, why fear any of this?” Wu Jiao scoffed at these schemes.
Ye Lanshan lounged comfortably on the bed and said, “You don’t get it. In the face of true strength, these tricks are as fragile as ants.”
“But I’m not strong yet. If I don’t use these schemes, how am I supposed to survive in this world?”
“Then you should train harder instead of lazing around and relying on these tricks.” Wu Jiao’s words carried a hint of frustration, as if disappointed in her.
Ye Lanshan sighed and said, “Now I finally understand why your beast race is so powerful but still can’t beat us humans.”
“What do you mean by that?” Wu Jiao immediately took offense at her words.
Ye Lanshan shook her head without explaining and simply closed her eyes to enter a meditative state.
Wu Jiao wanted to lash out but had no one to direct his anger at, so he could only sulkily retreat back into the space.
…
“Still haven’t found Futian and the others?” Several days had passed, and they had come up empty-handed. This result struck Yun Qingfeng as highly unusual.
The subordinate stammered, “We’ve searched every household, but there’s no sign of Futian and the others.”
After the subordinate finished, Ruyue picked up the thread, “They might have left the capital long ago. Maybe we should search elsewhere.”
Yun Qingfeng wasn’t stubborn. He had already guessed they probably weren’t in the capital anymore, but when they were tracking them, they had definitely entered the city without leaving.
Just as Yun Qingfeng speculated they might no longer be there, the very people were leisurely living their lives in a courtyard, completely unaware of his guesses.