People in the Qin Dynasty, entertained during the Warring States period

And in the darkness of night, such an impression often signifies the beginning of death.

"Please enlighten me, Mr. Cao Ze."

Cao Ze revealed a smile, which, in the eyes of Han Fei watching from afar, was quite despicable. He had no idea how many times Cao Ze had tricked him.

After a moment, Mo Ya looked at Cao Ze with narrowed pupils, "Is what you say true, sir?"

"Whether it's true or false, the general can judge for himself. As for the rest, Brother Moya, you should be able to handle it, right?"

Mo Ya hesitated before replying, "Thank you for your kindness, sir. I am very grateful."

In the past, he would not have easily accepted Cao Ze's goodwill and benefits.

But now Cao Ze is one of our own, and a new ruthless general of Nightfall, so the situation is different.

As an old man who lived in the shadows, he naturally knew that some gestures of goodwill and transactions were unavoidable.

Just as Jade Tiger used treasure to win him over, Cao Ze was, in his view, trying to befriend him.

As Ji Wuye's confidant and capable right-hand man, Mo Ya was very confident that he was trusted by Ji Wuye more than Fei Cuihu, even if his loyalty to Ji Wuye was only superficial.

Cao Ze watched the black crow fly away, hummed a little tune, glanced at his brother-in-law and Xiao Liangzi who were secretly observing him from afar, and curled his lip, thinking, "What a fake brother."

Han Fei was unaware that Cao Ze had known they were spying all along. "Brother Cao is still very loyal. Zifang, let's go."

Zhang Liang said with a bitter face, "Brother, if Brother Cao finds out that we don't trust him this much, what will happen...?"

"Ha, we don't trust him, and he's never trusted us either, we're even."

Han Fei let out a soft breath, no longer thinking about what Cao Ze was doing in Korea, as long as he was harmless to Korea.

Liu Mansion, West Garden.

Inside the house, Hu Meiren and Madam Hu chatted and laughed.

Both sisters were hoping that Liu Yi would die soon.

As if she had thought of something, the joy on Madam Hu's face faded.

"Little sister, do you still remember Li Kai?"

"Why bring him up? If he hadn't insisted on going deep into our territory back then, would you be in this state now?" Hu Meiren's beautiful face was full of indignation.

Madam Hu hesitated, seemingly preoccupied.

Hu Meiren sensed something was wrong. "Sister, what is it that you're hiding from your younger sister? If you don't want to tell me, I'll go find Cao Ze and force him to tell me."

"No..." Madam Hu stopped her sister, saying, "Don't do anything rash, I'll tell you, okay?"

A smile returned to Hu Meiren's charming face. "This is my good sister."

Madam Hu sighed softly and said, "The matter is somewhat complicated. The reason why Fire Rain Manor was destroyed back then was because..."

Madam Hu recounted everything Cao Ze had told her in detail.

Hu Meiren went from incomprehension to shock, and then from shock to resentment. Her chest heaved, and her heart was in turmoil.

"Liu Yi should be torn to pieces, and Li Kai is no better!"

Hu Meiren said through gritted teeth.

It turns out that Li Kai was not the person she thought he was in love with her sister, but was plotting to steal the Baiyue treasure that neither of them knew about.

Madam Hu felt a pang of sadness, feeling extremely guilty towards her deceased father and the other innocent people in Fire Rain Mountain. She had been blind to their true nature; if it weren't for her current lover, she might have died without ever knowing the truth.

"So, what are you planning to do, sister?" Hu Meiren asked cautiously, her tone softening.

She knew her sister was gentle and kind-hearted, and she was afraid her sister would get stuck in self-blame and not be able to get out.

Madam Hu hesitated and said, "Li Kai wants to see his daughter and me."

Hu Meiren immediately objected: "Why would I see him!"

"Where is he now? I'll arrest him right now!"

Madam Hu shook her head slightly: "Sister, he cannot be caught now, otherwise we and Nongyu will be in danger."

Hu Meiren was taken aback, only then realizing that Li Kai's whereabouts and life and death were involved in many things. If it were exposed, she and her sister, as the only remaining people in Huoyu Manor, would definitely be affected.

"Then kill him!"

A cold glint flashed in Consort Hu's beautiful eyes. She was no soft-hearted person who had managed to remain unscathed in the harem for so many years.

Madam Hu said repeatedly, "No, he is Nongyu's biological father. Anyone can kill him, but we can't."

Hu Meiren said coldly, "Sister, you don't need to lift a finger. This wicked sister will do it. She won't allow someone who indirectly harmed her family and now wants to ruin their lives to be around her."

Madam Hu remained silent; compared to her sister, she seemed quite timid.

"No need, sister, Cao Ze will help us."

Hu Meiren's heart skipped a beat. "What did he say?"

"Cao Ze agreed to take care of Li Kai and my daughter, on the condition that Li Kai stay far away from Xinzheng and South Korea."

Hu Meiren snorted coldly: "At least Li Kai still has a conscience."

"Sister, are you really planning to go see him with Nongyu?" Hu Meiren couldn't help but ask.

Madam Hu shook her head: "I don't want Nongyu to see him. It's enough for Cao Ze and me to go see him."

"Okay, you can go with Cao Ze. I'm at ease with that. As for Nongyu, just pretend Li Kai is dead."

"That's what I think too. With Cao Ze around, Li Kai will give up."

When Mrs. Hu spoke of Cao Ze, a happy smile appeared on her face.

Meeting Cao Ze that night was the luckiest thing that ever happened to her.

“Sister, I plan to reunite with Nongyu and bring her to live in our mansion.”

“No.” Hu Meiren said calmly, “Liu Yi’s death is no small matter. In addition, Li Kai is still in Xinzheng. This place is in the eye of the storm and it is easy for someone with ulterior motives to discover something. Sister, please wait patiently.”

Mrs. Hu said apologetically, "It was my oversight."

Hu Meiren smiled brightly and charmingly, "I know what you're thinking, sister. From now on, our family will definitely stay together forever."

Cao Ze, who was standing in the courtyard outside the gate, couldn't help but smile. It's always good for the whole family to be together.

Hu Meiren then had some private conversations with her sister.

She went outside and saw Cao Ze in the courtyard. Her delicate brows furrowed slightly: "Were you eavesdropping?"

"No, no, Your Majesty, if you don't believe me, you can ask the maids around you. I've been standing here the whole time."

Cao Ze shamelessly denied it.

Hu Meiren snorted lightly, glanced at the maids behind her, and said, "You all go to the side."

"Yes." The maid stood a dozen meters away, with guards stationed everywhere.

Consort Hu stared intently at Cao Ze. "I ask you, did you deceive your sister? Is the matter concerning Li Kai true?"

"If Your Majesty does not believe me, you may go and verify it with Li Kai."

Cao Ze's tone was neither humble nor arrogant, which annoyed Hu Meiren somewhat.

If she couldn't even handle Cao Ze herself, wouldn't she be forced to watch helplessly as her sister suffered in the future? Having protected her sister for so many years, she found this extremely difficult to tolerate.

"Could we find someone to secretly kill Li Kai?" Hu Meiren asked in a low voice, suppressing her dissatisfaction with Cao Ze.

She needed to be considerate of her sister's feelings in front of her, which is why she didn't say much.

Now that it's just her and Cao Ze, they naturally have nothing to worry about.

"This..." Cao Ze hadn't expected that Hu Meiren's desire to kill Li Kai was so strong.

Killing Li Kai wouldn't have been difficult, but he didn't do it. Firstly, Li Kai wasn't particularly wicked, and secondly, Li Kai was, after all, Nongyu's biological father, and he didn't want to plant a seed of future trouble for himself over something so trivial.

"Is it that you can't do it, or that you don't want to? If you really care about your sister, if you're even a man, then kill Li Kai!" Hu Meiren provoked Cao Ze with her words.

If Cao Ze kills Li Kai, he can eliminate future troubles, and she will also have leverage over Cao Ze to control him.

"Tch, Your Majesty, you can try to see if I'm a man or not. No one can force me to do what I don't want to do."

Cao Ze, too lazy to pretend, said directly, "Moreover, let me give you a piece of advice, Your Highness: your current situation is not much better than Li Kai's. You still want to bring Nongyu into the palace to be with you? You should ensure your own safety first."

Hu Meiren's expression changed. "What do you mean?"

Cao Ze chuckled and said, "Your Majesty may not know, but a few days ago, Ji Wuye made me a ruthless general of the Nightfall. There is some news that Your Majesty should be very interested in."

Hu Meiren was startled. "What news?"

"I have a colleague whose code name is Tide Demoness. Does Your Majesty know her true identity?"

Hu Meiren's fingertips felt a little cold, as if she had realized something. "Madam Mingzhu?"

"Yes."

"boom--"

Cao Ze's words completely stunned Hu Meiren.

She never imagined that Madam Mingzhu would be a seductive enchantress.

Has the hand of night already stretched so far?

"No, I must inform the King!" In her panic, Consort Hu tried to protect herself.

"If Your Majesty doesn't want to die, it's best to pretend you don't know. Once the King finds out, we don't know if Lady Mingzhu will be in trouble, but Your Majesty will be..."

Hu Meiren suppressed the urge to run away, her chest heaving with shock and fear.

Yes, now the palace is filled with people hiding in the shadows; even the king might just be a puppet.

The thought of living in such an environment for over a decade without realizing it terrified Hu Meixin. She felt that if she had done anything out of line, she would probably be dead many years ago.

What should I do?

Hu Meiren's forehead was covered in fine beads of sweat. She looked at the calm and composed Cao Ze, swallowed hard, and forced a smile, "Sir, do you have any ideas?"

Cao Ze snorted, "Behave yourself."

Hu Meiren's breath hitched, but she continued to put on a fawning smile and said, "I hope that you will give me some guidance for my sister's sake."

Cao Ze grinned and said, "There's no open road, but there is a dark road."

Hu Meiren asked in a panic, "What dark road?"