Let Me Explain, Fairy
Chapter 511 - 332 What Can You Do?_2

Chapter 511: Chapter 332 What Can You Do?_2

"Then... shall this palace follow your lead?"

"...."

Tianyan bristled upon hearing that, as a gust of wind spread outwards from the center of her petite figure suspended in mid-air.

Three thousand black hairs fluttered in the wind, and Li Qingyan’s fingertips caressed over the leather, pausing slightly before she sighed,

"Tianyan, it seems your temperament and stratagems still need much refining. A few taunts from this palace have made you so riled up. If this palace were to act like this..."

With that said,

Li Qingyan gracefully rose to her feet and instantly appeared before the two of them.

In Tianyan’s astonished gaze,

Li Qingyan lightly tiptoed, wrapped her arms around Xu Yuan’s neck, and her lush red lips stamped directly onto his.

Their lips parted.

Xu Yuan licked the corner of his lips.

Li Qingyan glanced sideways at her with eyes the same height as hers,

".. How would you react?"

...

...

...

Imperial Capital, Imperial Palace, Daqing Hall.

Two figures sat opposite each other, separated by a chessboard, one clad in yellow and the other in black, both adorned with dragon robes.

The Yellow Dragon took the black pieces, and the Black Dragon took the white.

The complexity of the chess game, with waves of incense wafting through the air, made it difficult to discern the victor.

"Clack!"

A white piece fell, and the white hourglass beside the chessboard automatically flipped over, more than half remaining.

Xu Yinhè looked at the elder before him, his voice calm but commanding,

"Has His Majesty found out who is responsible for the disappearance of Changtian and Qingyan?"

"...."

Li Yaoxuan didn’t respond, hunching his back, intently staring at the chessboard; after scrutinizing for several breaths, he took a black piece from the basket and placed it on the board, then slowly replied as if in deep thought,

"This matter, it’s not easy to investigate, ah. However, the person who simultaneously targeted Qingyan and Changtian probably wishes to disturb the alliance between us. What do you think?"

With those words,

The black hourglass also flipped, but there was very little sand left.

Xu Yinhè’s piercing hawk-like eyes gazed at the elder before him for several moments, then casually picked a white piece from the basket and set it down, saying,

"Who would risk breaking an alliance that cannot endure indefinitely?"

"Tsk... Can’t you slow down a bit? This ailing man can hardly keep up."

Li Yaoxuan sighed, continued to survey the chessboard while holding a black piece hesitantly, "But Yinhè, what you say does make sense, indeed there’s no need for destruction. Nevertheless, there aren’t many who have a reason to plot against Qingyan, Changtian, and the Barbarian King simultaneously, and even fewer who can actually accomplish it."

Xu Yinhè picked up a porcelain cup from the tea tray, took a light sip,

Plotting against the Barbarian King can be seen as for the nation, plotting against Qingyan might be driven by self-interest. Such a person is unlikely to be from the Sects."

"Hmm... That is likely."

Li Yaoxuan murmured, gently making his move, and then looking up, "So, Prime Minister, how would you like me to deal with such a person?"

Both men in dragon robes met each other’s gaze briefly,

Xu Yinhè lowered his eyes, twirling a chess piece before placing it down: "The affairs of His Majesty’s family are not for me to comment on."

Li Yaoxuan cracked a smile, with the tremors of his nearly black-spotted face giving him a somewhat grim look, "In that case, let’s leave it be."

Xu Yinhè picked up a piece, this time not immediately setting it down, instead gazing at it for several moments before pointing out several intersections on the board, speaking leisurely,

"Your Majesty, your chess play today is too cluttered; over here, here, and there, you’re looking to make moves.

"This is not a prudent approach."

"Oh... Now the Prime Minister is even instructing me in chess."

Li Yaoxuan said teasingly, then sighed again and smiled at his old friend, "I play without regret. You know my style; going all in is not always the best way."

As the conversation concluded, a crane’s call came from outside the Lake Heart Pavilion.

Li Yaoxuan glanced back, saying,

"I never found this crane bothersome over the many years, but now, as dusk approaches, it feels somewhat noisy every day."

Xu Yinhè looked down with a smile,

"The Saint used to treasure it greatly. If you find it noisy, why not seek peace by changing to a different hall?"

"This Daqing Hall is where the Empress Dowager bore and nurtured me. I’ve grown accustomed to it; I can’t move away."

Li Yaoxuan’s tone carried a hint of helplessness as he watched the crane flock soar in the sky, and shook his head, "I don’t have much time left anyway. Let them stay here."

"His Majesty is just not in perfect health, there’s nothing serious,"

Xu Yinhè’s deep-set eyes flashed with complexity, "At the very least, we must wait until the royal teacher triumphantly returns."

"Humph."

Li Yaoxuan chuckled and raised his eyes to glance at the north, "Judging by the time, it should have started by now. In fact, we should thank the person who plotted against Qingyan and Changtian. Without him, those hundreds of thousands of troops from the Barbarian Tribes wouldn’t have been so easily annihilated, and I might not have been able to witness the triumphal return of my royal teacher."

"Hum—"

A light hum.

One yellow and one black imperial robe fluttered in the wind.

Against the wind’s pressure, Li Yaoxuan looked at Xu Yinhè and said with a deliberate pause and a smile, "Prime Minister, you seem so engrossed in idle chat that you’ve forgotten to make your move."

"It is indeed an oversight on this old official’s part."

Xu Yinhè’s voice was low. He carelessly flicked a white piece towards the board with force, but just before it landed, an invisible internal force caught it.

Li Yaoxuan’s dark lips curved with a peculiar smile,

"Prime Minister, you have the advantage in this game. If this piece were to overturn the board, your efforts in this match would become a joke."

With those words,

Da....

The white piece gently fell into place on the board.

"That’s more like it."

Li Yaoxuan slightly leaned back, bracing himself on the jade floor, and looked up at the pavilion’s ceiling, "To win, one must endure what ordinary people cannot."

After a pause,

The old man lowered his gaze and suddenly said with a smile, "Right, I had asked you to receive the envoy from Jiatiange. How goes it now?"

Xu Yinhè looked up, his expression as placid as an ancient well,

"The eunuch from Jiatiange was followed all the way here. Does Your Majesty really not know?"

"Tch... That waste was nearly killed by your uncle with a single sword strike, what useful information could he have?"

"At the time, it was mistaken for a spy from the Sects intruding upon a restricted area of my Prime Minister’s Mansion. I ask for Your Majesty’s forgiveness."

"He was able to endure until after the discussion before acting; I am quite satisfied with that."

Li Yaoxuan neither agreed nor disagreed, and said with a light, amused tone, "However, I did hear that Feng Jiuxuan gave his token to that little girl. Can the Prime Minister enlighten me as to why?"

"The particulars should be known to the eunuch."

"So what I’m asking is why give that girl the Sword Saint’s token."

"..."

Xu Yinhè remained silent and tapped the board with a "thud, thud, thud" three times.

Seeing this action, Li Yaoxuan’s eyes held a hint of peculiarity,

"Your three children seem to be quite romantic by nature, not at all like you, Prime Minister."

At this point, he paused, and Li Yaoxuan suddenly smiled playfully:

"First the State Preceptor’s beloved disciple, then the Saintess from Jiatiange, hmm... and it seems there’s also the young Tian Master from the Tian Master’s Sect. Ha... I feel like your Prime Minister’s household is closer to the Sects than even my Imperial Family."

"I trust that Changtian and Changge will exercise restraint."

"It’s just a pity for my daughter."

"I thought Your Majesty didn’t care at all."

"Hehe..."

Li Yaoxuan chuckled softly, speaking leisurely, "The Imperial Family lacks familial affection, but after all, I am human, and my daughter is the only one among my children with military authority."

After saying this, Li Yaoxuan casually made a move on the board, stood up, and walked over to the window to look towards the north:

"Isn’t it strange that the Saintess willingly took the token on a journey northward? What do you make of it, Prime Minister?"

The envoys from Jiatiange had been in the Imperial Capital for a month, preparing to accept the Imperial Court’s official recognition, which naturally, the court did not wish to grant.

Stalling with excuses such as the absence of the State Preceptor and thus being unable to hold the ceremony, while also not approving Ran Jianli’s application to enter the capital.

Directly stalling the procedure, keeping the envoys from Jiatiange within the Imperial Capital.

But then, Jiatiange abruptly proposed to exchange a northward journey of the Saintess for the court’s direct recognition.

This was very odd.

Because the court’s refusal was merely a temporary measure - after all, the influence of Jiatiange, with its heft standing firm, and its affiliated Sects in the Southern Borders already recognized by an official decree, wouldn’t change in the slightest, even if the court refused to confer recognition.

This was merely a matter of time.

And the Saintess’ journey northward to meet with various Sects seemed like promising benefits, aiming to gain these Sects’ support in the Imperial Court. But in reality, it was to numb the Sects of the Northern Frontier Three Prefectures.

"Indeed strange. If that girl goes to the Northern Frontier Three Prefectures, in the eyes of the world’s Sects, Jiatiange would be seen as directly siding with our Imperial Court."

Xu Yinhè’s voice was steady and calm, "However, this might also be the calculation of those Sects, for the Northern Frontier Three Prefectures have already been abandoned by the Sects of the world."

Li Yaoxuan slowly turned his gaze,

"You really enjoy playing the fool with a clear understanding, don’t you? The Heaven’s Watchtower Master has anticipated the end of my reign and wants to exacerbate the conflict between my Imperial Family and your Prime Minister’s Mansion...."