His entire family perished in battle; he rose from the ashes to conquer the world.

Upon hearing Zhu Xu call him to come in, Zhu Qi dared not delay and immediately stepped inside.

"Fourth brother, we owe you so much this time." Zhu Xu walked quickly to Zhu Qi, his face full of admiration, and patted Zhu Qi on the shoulder.

Zhu Qi was completely bewildered by this action. He hadn't done anything, so why was Zhu Xu thanking him?

"Brother, I don't quite understand." Zhu Qi looked bewildered and asked cautiously, "I don't think I've done anything, so why are you thanking me?"

Zhu Xu smiled without saying a word and handed the memorial to Zhu Qi.

Zhu Qi, his eyes filled with confusion, took the memorial, glanced at its contents, and his face immediately turned serious.

Clearly, he had also investigated everything about Mu Yuan in private.

Otherwise, upon seeing the contents of a memorial, one's first reaction would definitely be confusion, not solemnity.

"Fourth brother, you have done your elder brother a great favor. Your elder brother will never treat you unfairly in the future."

After saying this, Zhu Xu burst into laughter again.

Zhu Qi's face was particularly grim.

To outsiders, Zhu Xu's words were words of praise, but to Zhu Qi, they were clearly sarcastic and mocking.

Even so, Zhu Qi did not dare to show any displeasure to Zhu Xu.

Because once you do that...

It's equivalent to Prince He turning his back on him.

He does not yet possess the ability to turn against Prince Zhu Xu.

Of course, if one could obtain control of 200,000 Western Army troops from Mu Yuan, the situation would be entirely different.

Thinking of this, Zhu Qi could only suppress his displeasure and outwardly agree, saying, "This is what your subject should do."

Zhu Xu naturally understood Zhu Qi's feelings at this moment. What he wanted was for Zhu Qi to be angry inwardly but not dare to vent his anger on him. He continued:

"Good, you should do more things like this in the future; it will make your brother happy!"

Zhu Qi's forehead veins bulged, his hands clenched tightly, and he gritted his teeth as he said, "If my elder brother is happy, I am happy too."

"If there's nothing else, you may leave."

Having achieved his goal, Zhu Xu was in high spirits. Before Mu Yuan left, he didn't forget to remind him, "Mu Yuan, don't forget your promise to me!"

Mu Yuan paused for a moment, then left without looking back.

They arrived outside the Crown Prince's residence.

Zhu Qi looked at Mu Yuan with an embarrassed expression, unsure of what to say. If it weren't for the memorial he had sent, things wouldn't have turned out this way.

Before Zhu Qi's lover could even speak, Mu Yuan took the initiative and said:

"I have something I'd like to ask Your Highness for help with."

"Just tell me, I'll do everything I can to help."

Zhu Qi still felt somewhat guilty. After all, this incident was caused by the memorial he sent, which affected his efforts to win over Mu Yuan. Now that Mu Yuan was offering his help, how could Zhu Qi refuse?

"Your Highness has also read the memorial. I would like to ask Your Highness to help investigate those officials in charge of the Grand Canal transport. Ideally, you should give me a reply by this time tomorrow," Mu Yuan said earnestly.

A hint of confusion flashed in Zhu Qi's eyes. Although he didn't quite understand Mu Yuan's actions, he still readily agreed.

"OK!"

The two parted ways.

Upon returning to his residence, Zhu Qi immediately dispatched people to investigate the canal transport officials who had been bribed by the Fang family.

When Mu Yuan returned to the Xu residence, he told Qin Hongxiu what had happened at the Crown Prince's residence. Upon hearing this, the latter immediately panicked.

It should be noted that the Fang family's smuggling of salt was related to the Western Army.

Once the imperial court launches a vigorous investigation.

Not only the Fang family will suffer, but the Mu family and the Western Army will also be implicated.

"What should we do?"

Qin Hongxiu paced back and forth, her face full of anxiety.

"The situation is urgent. There's something I need you to do," Mu Yuan said with a serious expression.

Qin Hongxiu understood that this matter concerned the life and death of the Mu family, and nodded, saying, "Tell me, no matter how difficult it is, I will definitely complete it."

"Hurry back to the southwest and mobilize the Western Army to the capital!"

Mu Yuan said coldly.

Mobilize the Western Army?

Qin Hongxiu's pupils contracted. This was a major incident—the mobilization of troops without authorization, especially the deployment of them to the capital.

"You mean...."

Qin Hongxiu immediately understood Mu Yuan's thoughts, and a surprised expression appeared on her face.

"This is the worst-case scenario."

Mu Yuan sighed. If the Fang family's bribery of canal officials were exposed, it would implicate too many things if investigated. Rather than waiting to be killed, it was better to take a gamble.

Since the emperor doesn't want to pass the throne to the crown prince, why not take advantage of the current chaotic situation, raise an army to invade, and depose the crown prince!

Qin Hongxiu did not ask for the reason. She only knew that the current situation was not favorable to the Mu family. If they did nothing, the Mu family would be like lambs to the slaughter.

Of course, Qin Hongxiu knew what price she would have to pay for doing all this.

However, since she had chosen to live and die with Mu Yuan...

She won't regret it.

Just as Qin Hongxiu was preparing to pack her luggage and do the things Mu Yuan had asked her to do...

Mu Yuan grabbed her arm.

At this moment, Mu Yuan's eyes were gentle and tender.

Qin Hongxiu nestled into Mu Yuan's arms, pressed her pretty face against his chest, closed her eyes, and listened to his heartbeat.

Mu Yuan picked Qin Hongxiu up and carried her to the bed. During this time, Qin Hongxiu did not resist at all, burying her face deeply in Mu Yuan's chest.

Both of them knew whether they could survive this or not.

I only ask for this moment of tenderness.

As the mosquito net fell, everything was understood without words.

A long time passed.

Mu Yuan slowly opened his eyes, looked at the beautiful woman beside him, and a smile appeared on his face.

But soon, his gaze was drawn to a delicate plum blossom on the bed sheet.

at the same time.

The beautiful woman also woke up.

Following Mu Yuan's gaze, the pretty woman suddenly blushed with shyness.

"What's wrong with you...?"

Mu Yuan was very surprised.

His sister-in-law was actually... a virgin.

After their lovemaking, Qin Hongxiu's eyes were completely different from before, as alluring as a ripe apple.

"Your elder brother and I actually never consummated our marriage."

Qin Hongxiu explained with a shy expression.

Mu Yuan felt as if he had found a treasure. He cupped Qin Hongxiu's small face and gave her a light kiss on the cheek.

However, Qin Hongxiu's next words made Mu Yuan even happier.

"It's not just me; the others are the same as me. They all married your brothers but didn't consummate the marriage," Qin Hongxiu said, blushing.

"Then aren't the other six sisters-in-law the same as you?"

Mu Yuan was overjoyed.

At that moment, besides joy, he unleashed an unprecedented survival instinct.

He must not be defeated by the Crown Prince.

After all, there were six beautiful sisters-in-law waiting for him.

If I were to be defeated by the Crown Prince because of such incredible good fortune, wouldn't I have come to this world for nothing?

Qin Hongxiu stretched out her slender, jade-like finger and poked Mu Yuan hard on the forehead, laughing and scolding, "Look at your pathetic self."

After saying that, she endured the pain in her lower body from her first time and got up to get dressed.

After all, she had already been intimate with Mu Yuan.

Next...