If you wish to die, then come.

Empress Dowager Nangong was so furious that her hands were trembling. She pointed at Yun Feiyue and shouted, “You, you—”

Old Master Yun turned his head to glare at Yun Feiyue, then looked back at the Empress Dowager with a smile. “Your Majesty, since it’s already been shattered, there’s nothing to be done. At most, we’ll compensate you for it.”

Yun Feiyue grimaced—her luck really was abysmal!

Little Mumu, knowing he’d done wrong, sensibly hid behind Yun Feiyue. “Feiyue, I didn’t mean to. I was trying to hit someone, but I missed, and the Jade of Soul’s Glory was the casualty. Boo hoo, next time I’ll make sure to aim before I throw.”

Yun Kuang’s face quivered with anger at that. The Soul-Calming Jade was no ordinary trinket, and he wanted to aim before he threw? Just wait until he got his hands on that little rascal!

Empress Dowager Nangong looked at the shattered pieces on the ground with a face full of grief. “Yun Feiyue! You little wretch, do you even know what you’ve done?”

Yun Feiyue said nothing, only glanced at Yun Kuang.

The moment “little wretch” left her lips, the Empress Dowager realized she’d lost her decorum. But what was said could not be unsaid. She steeled herself, putting on her imperial dignity. “Yun Kuang, look at the fine granddaughter you’ve raised! Guards! Seize this woman who has stolen a national treasure and throw her into the Celestial Prison!”

“Who dares?!” Yun Kuang’s cold gaze swept the room, brimming with fury. Even if his granddaughter was at fault, it was for him to discipline her.

But the Empress Dowager was not so easily cowed. At this moment, she was eager for an excuse to deal with the Yun family. If the Yun family dared lay a hand on her, she’d have the perfect pretext to accuse them of treason and bring them down.

“Yun Kuang, are you defying an imperial edict?” The Empress Dowager’s finger pointed at Yun Kuang, martial energy swirling around her. Was she about to erupt?

Old Master Yun sneered. “Yue’er is my lifeblood. Whoever tries to harm her, I’ll fight them to the death. Your Majesty, it’s just one Soul-Calming Jade. There’s more than one in this world. If you want it, I’ll make it up to you.”

“Ha! There truly is a second one, but it certainly isn’t in your hands.” The Empress Dowager gritted her silver teeth, furious.

The commotion naturally attracted a crowd. Suddenly, a clear and graceful female voice rang out among the onlookers. “The second piece is with my Jun family of the Southern Kingdom. It’s nothing so precious as to warrant bloodshed.”

“The Soul-Calming Jade is a national treasure, invaluable for cultivation. Who dares claim it’s nothing special?” The Empress Dowager, already seething, whipped her sash like a weapon at the source of the voice.

Jun Shaomo stepped out of the crowd, youthful and spirited in her jade-green robes, a proud smile on her lips. Beside her, an old nursemaid stepped forward, blocking the Empress Dowager’s attack.

When the Empress Dowager saw who it was, she hastily withdrew her sash. “So it’s the young mistress of the Jun family. You have some standing to say such a thing. But Miss Jun, this is a matter of our Chu Kingdom. I’m afraid you don’t have the right to interfere.”

Jun Shaomo pursed her lips in helplessness. Indeed, her father had warned her not to cause trouble before she left home, only to remember the one sought by the Divine Hidden Lord.

Now was not the time to fall out with the Empress Dowager.

“Your Majesty is right. I never intended to meddle. I was just curious about the commotion over here.”

Hearing this, the Empress Dowager’s expression softened somewhat. “Please, young mistress, do as you wish. I’ll continue to deal with the affairs of Chu.”

Her gaze returned to Yun Feiyue, only to see her lounging comfortably, munching on pastries made by Chunhua. “Chunhua, what did you use for these pastries? They taste even better than last time’s osmanthus cakes.”

Chunhua beamed at her mistress’s praise. “Oh! These are made with fresh rose juice, morning gardenia dew, and fine white flour.”

“Delicious! Absolutely delicious!” Yun Feiyue sang her praises.

The Empress Dowager was so angry that steam seemed to pour from her ears. “You! Yun Feiyue! You’re far too bold!”

Yun Feiyue opened her mouth, turned to the fuming Empress Dowager, and asked, “Uh…Your Majesty, what’s wrong? Would you like some?”

“Seize her!” the Empress Dowager commanded her guards.

“Anyone who wants to die, step forward!” Yun Feng blocked Yun Feiyue, sword drawn and bristling.

No one knew when Mo Twelve appeared, but he snatched the pastry Yun Feiyue was about to eat and popped it in his own mouth. “Sister Yue, these cakes are delicious. If you feed me one, I’ll take you away to wander the world.”

Yun Feiyue’s lips twitched. Who wanted to wander the world? She hadn’t had her fill of such luxury yet!

“Go on, get out of the way. Don’t block my view of the show.”

Mo Twelve, disappointed, slouched into a nearby chair, crossed his legs, and watched the standoff with a smile. In truth, he rather enjoyed being a spectator.

Old Master Yun saw things were about to get out of hand, so he whispered two sentences to Yun Yi.

Yun Yi nodded, walked to the Empress Dowager’s side, and whispered in her ear. Her expression shifted repeatedly before she finally let out a cold laugh. “If you can truly produce ten million taels of silver plus another Soul-Calming Jade, I’ll let this matter rest. Otherwise…”

“What?” Yun Feiyue and Little Mumu stood up in unison. “Ten million taels of silver?” She called herself wealthy, but ten million taels was no small sum—did the Empress Dowager think the Yun family was a bottomless treasury?

“That’s right. No room for negotiation.” The Empress Dowager’s lips curled in a cold smile. “What’s wrong? The Yun family claims to be the richest in the land. Don’t tell me you can’t come up with a mere ten million taels?”

Yun Feiyue stood up and raised her middle finger.

The Empress Dowager was bewildered. “What does that mean?”

Little Mumu climbed onto Yun Feiyue’s shoulder, imitating her gesture, and explained righteously, “My Feiyue means: Go to hell, you fool! No money for you! All we have is our lives! Today, it’s either you or us!”

Yun Feiyue looked at Little Mumu with pride—her son was a genius at interpretation!

The Empress Dowager was so angry her fingers and lips trembled, and her face quivered as well. She could barely speak. “Ah! Guards! Seize this little wretch for me!”

A cacophony of weapons clashing erupted at once, and bodies began to pile up in the Feihua Pavilion.

By the time the Empress Dowager left the pavilion, her hair was disheveled, her clothes filthy, and all traces of imperial dignity gone.

Consort Murong hurried over to support her. “Your Majesty, are you all right?”

The Empress Dowager snorted and pushed her away. “Get lost! Is your Yun family rebelling?”

Consort Murong looked into the Empress Dowager’s eyes with a gentle, enchanting smile, her lips parting slightly. “Forget. You will forget… Forget everything that happened today…”

Yun Feiyue looked at Consort Murong with awe. She never expected her dear mother to master such a ‘spell’—impressive!

She was just about to praise her mother when the Empress Dowager slapped her hand away. “Forget? Forget, my foot! Murong, I’m telling you, even when we were both young, I couldn’t stand you!” The Empress Dowager was now so furious that her true colors showed.

Consort Murong’s expression darkened, a red lotus mark flashing in her palm as she struck the Empress Dowager’s head. “Useless wretch! Give you an inch and you want a mile; trying to harm my daughter, are you?”

With a thud, the Empress Dowager, caught off guard by Consort Murong’s unexpected attack, collapsed unconscious.

Consort Murong glanced at the Empress Dowager, twitched her lips a couple of times, then gave her a couple of kicks for good measure. Only after confirming she’d fainted did she turn to Yun Kuang, forcing a smile. “Father, I suppose I was a bit heavy-handed.”

Yun Kuang rubbed his forehead. How had he ended up with such unruly descendants? They were utterly incorrigible!

Yun Hai hurried to steady the old man. “Master, are you all right?”

Yun Kuang shook his head. “I’m fine! Quickly, summon someone to tend to the Empress Dowager. Guiji, Yue’er, you two had better go hide out at the Murong estate for a while.”

What? Yun Feiyue looked helplessly at Consort Murong, her gaze full of sorrow. She had no desire to go there—rumor had it everyone in the Murong family was a lunatic! She’d rather die than go! Her cousin used to torment her when she was little!

Just as despair set in, the icy, aloof figure drifted in—Mo Feiyuan, ethereal as an immortal, stepped into the Feihua Pavilion.