Helian Chen stuffed the pastry into his hand, then bent down to pick up a handkerchief and wipe his face. "Royal Uncle, don’t be so quick to scold me. Take a look at those scrolls first."

Prince Yu’s gaze fell upon the seven or eight scrolls. He snorted and insolently picked one up to unroll it.

As his eyes fell upon the contents of the scroll, the insolence in them gradually turned to amazement.

Although it was a simple landscape painting, it was exquisitely beautiful and skillfully painted. Moreover, the material of the pigments seemed different from any other scroll.

"Whose... work is this?"

"A concubine from the General’s manor." Helian Chen’s little face was full of pride.

Prince Yu was even more surprised. ’Are the General’s concubines really that talented?’

As he opened the other scrolls, he was dazzled by the various styles. Every single painting was stunning.

These paintings were arguably on par with the ones in his Imperial Brother’s study. He had coveted those for a long time, but his brother was never willing to part with them.

"These are all works by the General’s concubines?" he asked doubtfully.

The seven scrolls showcased three different artistic styles, and the skill behind each was beyond what an ordinary person could achieve.

"Yeah! And one of the concubines said she would make a qin for me. Royal Uncle, you haven’t seen her play—I dare say no one in the entire Nanyuan can compare to her." Even now, Helian Chen was still savoring the memory.

"Is she really that amazing?"

"Of course! In short, the concubines aren’t just beautiful; they’re kind-hearted, and their cooking is second to none. I don’t know how that damn fatty got so lucky to have so many skilled concubines." Speaking of which, Helian Chen was incredibly envious.

Prince Yu had seen those concubines before. They were all stunningly beautiful. He had assumed they were just pretty faces, but he never expected them to be so talented.

’What could they possibly see in Xiang Minghou?’

"That damn fatty might be fat and stupid, but she’s surrounded by experts. If she were just a little more ambitious, her future would surely be bright." ’Comparisons are odious.’

Everything Helian Chen racked his brains for, that damn fatty obtained with ease, yet she didn’t even cherish it.

’If I were Dean Chen’s personal disciple and had so many skilled concubines around me, I’d definitely grow up to be smarter than Xiliu Yuan!’

"She’s only six years old right now. It’s too early to judge. I, however, feel she is no ordinary person." Prince Yu saw things clearly today; no one in the General’s manor was ordinary.

To gain the upper hand against Xiliu Yuan and Mo Geluo... even he couldn’t do that.

"If she doesn’t lose weight, she’ll die of obesity."

"Her business is not your concern. What you should be worried about is Nanyuan’s trade." Prince Yu was troubled. He had originally planned to negotiate with Xi Yan.

But after today’s incident, it was clear Xi Yan held malicious intent, making this a poor time for detailed talks.

"Imperial Father gave that task to you, not me."

"You... *Sigh*. Xi Yan is a lost cause for now. In a couple of days, come with me to visit the Gu family, the top merchant family in the Capital City, and see what they think." Prince Yu had seen many of the Gu family’s trade caravans in Nanyuan. A partnership would be beneficial for Nanyuan.

"In any case, it’s best not to deal with people from Xi Yan," Helian Chen huffed.

Prince Yu agreed. Xi Yan had been lingering in the Capital City for a long time. Who knew what hidden motives they harbored? They couldn’t risk another incident like today’s, which had nearly brought disaster upon them.

Spring rain fell, and it poured continuously for two days.

The sky was dark and gloomy. By mid-afternoon, the rain had lessened somewhat.

The streets of the Capital City were sparsely crowded. When carriages passed, people dodged far away, afraid of having their clothes splattered with rainwater.

"Seal the city gates!"

A sharp command rang out at the city gate, followed by a squad of imperial guards riding tall horses at high speed.

Seeing this, the crowd hurriedly scattered.

"By order of the Emperor, the city gates are to be sealed immediately! No one is permitted to enter or exit!"

As the voice faded, the tall city gates slowly closed.

Some commoners who had wanted to leave the city were bewildered, having no idea what was happening.

「Capital City Relay Station.」

It was dark by the time the envoys from the three nations received the news of the emergency lockdown. Upon hearing it, East Shu immediately sent someone to the palace to gather information.

The Princess of East Shu looked perplexed. They hadn’t revealed any flaws since arriving in the Capital City and hadn’t even made a move yet. ’Why would Beili suddenly seal the gates? Could they have discovered something?’

"Perhaps this doesn’t have anything to do with us," her husband-consort comforted her.

"Just in case, I will go pay a visit to the Empress of Beili." Chu Yue couldn’t sit still.

"Don’t be rash. The more critical the moment, the calmer we must be. Besides, we haven’t done anything since we entered the Capital City."

Chu Yue couldn’t make sense of it. The envoys from all three nations were in the Capital City. Who was the lockdown aimed at? 𝓯𝓻𝒆𝙚𝒘𝓮𝙗𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝒍.𝙘𝓸𝙢

The area around the embassy where Xi Yan’s delegation was staying had been put on high alert.

"What in the world is going on?" Xiliu Yuan’s face was grim.

A guard knelt on the ground. "This subordinate has not received any news from the palace."

Xiliu Yuan stood by the window with his hands behind his back, his gaze fixed on the Beili Imperial Palace. Everything had been going smoothly; it was impossible for the Beili Emperor to have noticed anything unusual.

’But if he didn’t discover something strange, why suddenly seal the city gates?’

"Send the Shadow Guards to provide support. If there’s an incident, do not bring the person back to the relay station for now," Xiliu Yuan said coldly.

"Yes, sir."

Xiliu Yuan’s slender fingers clenched tightly within his sleeves. ’The Beili Imperial Palace is truly filled with talented people. We were so discreet, yet they still found a flaw.’

If they failed this time, it would be even more difficult to make a move in the future.

’Who could have leaked the information?’

"What has Miss Xiang been doing these past two days?" he asked suddenly.

"She has not left the manor in two days. Besides eating, she has just been raising her birds and practicing calligraphy. Nothing out of the ordinary," the Shadow Guard reported.

"What about her personal guards?"

"Two of her personal guards left the Capital City two days ago. The others have not left the manor."

Xiliu Yuan’s expression grew serious. ’So it wasn’t her. Then who could it be?’

In contrast to the tension in the East Shu and Xi Yan delegations, Nanyuan’s was quite relaxed. Upon hearing the news of the lockdown, they were merely a little shocked, and then they began to speculate whether the other two nations had done something in secret.

It was a good thing they had been honest and well-behaved for the past two days and had not been in contact with the other two nations.

The entire Capital City instantly grew tense. As the rain continued to fall, the atmosphere became unbearably oppressive.

As night began to fall, numerous soldiers appeared on every street, searching homes door-to-door and causing a city-wide panic.

Tonight was destined to be an extraordinary night.

「General’s Manor, Yuehua Small Building.」

Listening to the news transmitted by her little lorikeet, Ye Qianning gently pressed her temples. She had calculated that Consort Yuan would cause a scene after being released from her "little dark room," but she hadn’t expected it to be this big.

She heard that the moment Consort Yuan returned to her bedchamber, she was on the verge of a breakdown. The Emperor, who had rushed over, was also completely baffled.

When the Emperor had entered the consort’s bedchamber, he found the palace completely empty. He assumed Consort Yuan was throwing a tantrum and had put everything away.

When the palace maids entered to serve tea, they were surprised to see the empty palace. However, since the Emperor said nothing, they assumed he had become angry and ordered everything in the palace to be moved out.

Therefore, no one raised an alarm. When Consort Yuan heard this, she was so furious she nearly coughed up blood. She interrogated many people, but no one had seen anyone moving things out of her palace.