123: My good disciple, if your master is happy, you will be happy too.

"Welcome, Imperial Son-in-Law."

Mo Yingqi emerged from the Pacification Bureau, a saber in hand. Ying Hong and the maids bowed in unison. He merely nodded slightly, his eyes holding an indescribable sense of detachment and coldness.

Ying Hong had seen such eyes more than once. Luo Yongan and Luo Yongning had the same seemingly polite yet incredibly cold and distant gaze when facing outsiders.

"Yingqi, are you tired?"

The carriage door was gently pushed open, and Luo Yongan and Luo Yongning smiled as they looked at their husband. The moment he saw them, Mo Yingqi reverted to his usual smiling demeanor, his eyes filled with tenderness and love.

"Yes, it's all handled," Mo Yingqi nodded. "I dealt with the follow-up matters with Commander Qianhu and had to select trustworthy people for the Southern Division, so it took some time."

"It's alright, as long as you're done," Luo Yongan looked up at the darkening sky. "Aunt, later, tell our Imperial Guards to prepare torches, and send someone back to the Estate to arrange for people to meet us."

"Uh, do we have to go back to the Estate?" Mo Yingqi asked, a little curious. "Actually, we could go back to the Princesss Residence to rest, and return tomorrow when we feel like it."

"We're going back anyway. It's not too late yet, so we can make it if we hurry," Luo Yongning extended her hand to Mo Yingqi. "Come on, Yingqi, get in? Luckily, Sister and I always prepare thoroughly when we go out. We have snacks, dried meat, and other food in the carriage, and even your favorite tea."

Mo Yingqi, saber in hand, was about to get into the carriage, but after a thought, he didn't immediately. Instead, he asked curiously, "Sister Yongan, Sister Yongning, where's my master?"

Mo Yingqi looked around but didn't see his master, Xie Qingfeng. The person who reported to him had already said that Xie Qingfeng had arrived and even fought with that Taoist priest at the Grand Chancellor's mansion.

"Don't you know Uncle-Master's temperament?" Luo Yongan looked helpless. "Only Maternal Grandmother can control him. How could Yongning and I have that ability? Uncle-Master said he'll see you when it's convenient for you. Let's go back to the Estate first, shall we?"

Mo Yingqi thought about it, and it did match Xie Qingfeng's personality. His master, he figured, would truly be unstoppable unless Nangong Wumeng spoke.

Thinking this, Mo Yingqi didn't ask further and got into the carriage.

It wasn't until the group left that Xie Qingfeng, munching on a crisp pear he'd gotten from who-knows-where, muttered from a corner, "Good heavens, he truly is my Senior Sister's Grandson. This ability to pass the buck is quite impressive."

In a few bites, the crisp pear was completely devoured by Xie Qingfeng. Tossing the core aside casually, the old fellow complained, "Tsk, I've been in that icy, snowy, desolate place in the Northern Territory for so long that my taste has changed. This perfectly good crisp pear doesn't taste as good as the frozen pears special to the Northern Territory."

Wiping his hands casually on his old robe, Xie Qingfeng stared at the gradually departing carriage, finally sighing, "Oh, what a sin. This rebellious Disciple seems completely off now... Tsk, the Disciple I taught is becoming more and more like my Senior Sister. How can I even reason with this? I can't really just ignore him completely... Oh well, it's beyond saving anyway. I'll teach him everything I can, and then I, his master, can gloriously retire."

With that, Xie Qingfeng, carrying his Staff-Saber, retreated a few steps, then vanished into the shadows... "It's good to be back, it's good to be back."

Learning that Luo Yongan and Luo Yongning had left the city with Mo Yingqi and were heading towards the Estate, Luo Yongfu's suspended heart finally settled.

"Your Highness, The Emperor means for you and the Second Prince to keep an eye on the Third Prince," Eunuch Fang informed Luo Yongfu of Luo Yongan's departure before stating his purpose. "You know, he is still The Emperor's son. Although he's made mistakes now, The Emperor has killed many of his own siblings and truly doesn't want to kill his own son for the dragon throne again."

"Alright, Eunuch, these are minor issues," Luo Yongfu said this, but he wasn't entirely comfortable. "Old Third, sigh, this boy has been clever since childhood, and his thoughts run deep. Although Second Brother and I truly have no desire for the Imperial Throne, we can't hand the empire over to him."

It wasn't that Luo Yongfu was being hypocritical; it was that the Third Prince was acceptable as a minister, but not as a ruler. His temperament was absolutely unsuitable. If it were truly said that Old Third could be a good brother and devote himself to the country and its people, Luo Yongfu would genuinely be willing to cede the dragon throne.

Among his younger siblings, aside from Luo Yongze, who shared the same mother, and those two crazy sisters, most of the children born to other concubines actually had harmonious relationships with them. Especially the younger siblings, who were sometimes looked after by Luo Yongfu and his wife.

Only this Old Third. Luo Yongfu knew in his heart that Old Third was ambitious. He never rejected ambitious people; it was human nature to want to climb higher, to sit on that dragon throne.

Again, if Old Third could match the position of Crown Prince, Luo Yongfu would have given it up without hesitation, assisting him wholeheartedly. Wouldn't it be wonderful to live out his old age as a wealthy Prince and die a natural death?

"This old servant knows that you are probably reluctant to deal with the Third Prince," Eunuch Fang could somewhat guess Luo Yongfu's thoughts. "Your Highness, although you have no desire for the Imperial Throne, you are, after all, the eldest and virtuous. On the matter of the great position, His Royal Highness, the Second Prince, has never thought of competing with you, and neither have you."

"This dragon throne is not meant for humans to sit on," Luo Yongfu smiled somewhat bitterly. "Imperial Grandfather, Imperial Father, which of them wasn't burdened by this dragon throne? Forget it, Eunuch, don't worry. I, Luo Yongfu, am not someone without responsibility. If Imperial Father truly gives me the great position in the end, I will not disgrace the Luo family's ancestors. If Second Brother, or another younger brother, grows up to be exceptionally talented, I, as the elder brother, will certainly assist them wholeheartedly."

"Emperor Chengzhong, Imperial Grandfather, both were wise and enlightened rulers, but I still want to say something disrespectful... A family that is not harmonious cannot govern a larger one. If they understood a bit of human nature, like Imperial Father, there wouldn't be so many problems."

Although human hearts are unpredictable, Luo Yongfu still adhered to his belief: for ordinary people, or officials, discord in the inner court and disharmony among brothers easily led to internal strife and great disaster.

Not to mention an imperial family like theirs; Princes vying for the throne could lead to fratricide at best, and chaos throughout the land at worst.

"That's not something we should be thinking about, Yingqi."

Mo Yingqi had expressed similar thoughts to Luo Yongan and Luo Yongning. However, Luo Yongan put down her bowl and chopsticks, picked up a napkin to wipe her mouth, and then slowly began, "Indeed, the Third Prince is restless now. Imperial Father understands this, which is why he let Eldest Brother handle it. But this isn't necessarily a bad thing. Human hearts are unpredictable; where there are people, there are disputes. Siblings, what they strive for and desire may seem different, but in reality, there's no distinction."

"Our two elder brothers are actually quite ruthless and decisive enough. It's just that back then, Imperial Father was sent running around by Imperial Grandfather, secretly training and studying every day. Most of the time, our younger siblings were raised by the two of them. Even when Imperial Father ascended the throne and was busy with state affairs, our two elder brothers and their wives helped look after us."

"So, for them, these younger siblings are not just siblings, but half-children. In this situation, Eldest Brother naturally has to step up and handle things. But after all, people sometimes find it hard to act. However, there's no need to worry too much. Eldest Brother knows what's important. If the Third Prince is willing to be disciplined, then that's for the best..."

At this point, Luo Yongan didn't continue. After all, she and Luo Yongning had initially offered to handle this matter, but their Imperial Father thought about it for a long time and still decided to let Luo Yongfu deal with it.

There was no other way; if they, the sisters, were truly allowed to handle it, the Third Prince would probably be minced meat by now.

"Alright, I was thinking, if it didn't work, I could step in," Mo Yingqi didn't say anything more, just lowered his head and ate. "But then I thought it wouldn't be appropriate. They are your siblings after all, even if not born of the same mother..."

"Silly Yingqi, what is he? How can he compare to you?" Luo Yongning said, as she placed a large, red shrimp into his bowl. "Try this, Yingqi. There are many skilled Matrons and sisters-in-law at the Estate. This braised shrimp in oil tastes really good."

"Yingqi, you don't need to think about these things. It's not that we're stopping you or that it will cause resentment, but there's no need for you to do such trivial matters," Luo Yongan said with a smile. "Your most important task now is to focus on dealing with that Old Scoundrel... Oh, Yingqi, you don't need to use silver needles to stimulate acupuncture points anymore, but after dinner, you must eat the tonic I made, okay?"

Mo Yingqi nearly spat out the braised shrimp in his mouth. After finally swallowing the dish, he wiped his mouth and looked at Luo Yongan somewhat nervously: "Sister Yongan, is this tonic of yours... legitimate?"

"Yes, it's very legitimate?" Luo Yongan looked at Mo Yingqi curiously. "What's wrong? Didn't we say we'd help Yingqi improve his internal energy? How could you forget?"

"That's what you say, but can internal energy really be improved by eating tonics?"

Frankly, Mo Yingqi didn't quite believe this. After all, this was about cultivating inner qi; in essence, it still depended on oneself, and external forces were always just supplementary.

"Oh, Yingqi, it's all Uncle-Master's fault."

Luo Yongan complained, but Xie Qingfeng, hiding in the shadows, almost ground his teeth to dust when he heard it. He had secretly followed them, hoping to find an opportunity to instruct his Disciple and teach him the last of his hidden skills.

But these two sisters were like conjoined twins, constantly following him. Even when his Disciple went to the latrine to pee, one of them would always follow!

Not being able to find an opportunity was one thing, but then they blamed everything on him behind his back, which was truly too much. How could they blame him for not teaching or not saying anything? The Northern Territory was cold, and rare medicinal herbs were even scarcer. If they were in a large city, it would be fine, but the place they lived was remote.

Furthermore, it wasn't as if he hadn't given Mo Yingqi tonics, alright? But his Disciple's Governing and Conception Vessels were naturally open, so unless it was a true rare treasure, ordinary medicinal tonics would only serve to nourish his body.

His exceptionally high talent, paradoxically, also placed certain limitations on Mo Yingqi. Yet, despite this, Mo Yingqi still far surpassed his peers with his innate genius.

"Damn it, isn't it because I'm broke?"

Xie Qingfeng couldn't help but curse inwardly. There was nothing he could do, truly nothing. He wasn't Nangong Wumeng. The Nangong family already had vast wealth and power, and she also commanded Partridge Sky and was a Duchess.

To put it impolitely, what the imperial family had, Nangong Wumeng had. What the imperial family didn't have, Nangong Wumeng probably had too.

"It's alright, it's alright. Yingqi has us now, it's never too late," Luo Yongning said with a sweet smile, her gaze subtly drifting towards the window. "Yingqi can rest assured, as long as Sister and I are here, you will never lack these medicinal herbs and tonics."

"Tsk, damn it, I was actually discovered by two juniors?"

Xie Qingfeng, in the shadows, felt a chill down his neck. Luo Yongning's gaze just now seemed completely unintentional, but in that instant, he clearly realized that his presence had been exposed!

"Truly monsters, at such a young age?" A bead of cold sweat trickled down Xie Qingfeng's forehead. "Tsk, I'm afraid I never truly saw the real abilities of these two madwomen from the very beginning..."

Xie Qingfeng didn't dare to linger. The main characters had already discovered him, so what was the point of staying? Having been with his Senior Sister for so many years, Xie Qingfeng knew her temperament all too well.

"Tsk, I feel uncomfortable, truly uncomfortable."

In a few breaths, Xie Qingfeng had already darted away from the Temporary Palace, yet he was still extremely displeased. Although he had long grown accustomed to being suppressed by his Senior Sister for so many years, this current situation, surely he wouldn't have to be suppressed by her Granddaughter in the future, too?

"Forget it, forget it. Once I've completely passed on my skills to that rebellious Disciple, and peace reigns in the capital, I'll return to the Northern Territory. I won't come out even if I die!"

Xie Qingfeng was, after all, a top master. In that brief moment, he clearly understood that these two sisters were not his match now, but he couldn't guarantee that he could still suppress them in a few years.

Although Xie Qingfeng had indeed had a thought in that instant, he wouldn't kill the two sisters for his Senior Sister's sake, but he could certainly take his Disciple away.

However, when he saw the look in Mo Yingqi's eyes as he gazed at the sisters, Xie Qingfeng dismissed that idea. The current Mo Yingqi probably hadn't even realized that the possessiveness and obsessive dependence in his eyes when looking at the two sisters were growing heavier.

"Alas, I tell you, boy, if you were a bit uglier, had a worse temper, were a bit dumber, and weren't so devoted to them, wouldn't you have boundless freedom?"

"But now, alas, a dull scholar has stumbled into a fox's den. A perfectly normal person is almost being charmed into a fool by these fox spirits, and he doesn't even know it!"

At this point, Xie Qingfeng seemed to recall something and actually smiled with relief: "Good Disciple, this is good too. The more you are like this, the less this family of madwomen will remember your master. I'm content, and you're happy. We, master and Disciple... everyone's happy!"