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Having taken just a single step, Hu Miaomiao quickly strode forward to block the path, skillfully hooking her hand around Zhang Qing’s shoulder with impressive speed.

Immediately following, her body also leaned in, pressing her plump frame against Zhang Qing as she cheerfully said, "Big brother, rest assured, with your little brother here, I will definitely protect His Majesty. Moreover, those people you worry about are currently being tossed into chaos by Master Cao, like a chicken coop in disarray. They are so preoccupied with their own troubles, they won’t have time to cause any problems."

Zhang Qing’s slim frame was nearly overwhelmed by the stout figure leaning against him, almost causing him to be crushed and fall.

He shook his shoulders, attempting to shake the person off, but his smaller stature was no match, and this white fatty even knew martial arts, making it impossible for him to break free.

Feeling the heat of embarrassment on his face, he couldn’t help but spit out in his mind, furiously thinking that if it weren’t for this person’s incompetence, His Majesty wouldn’t have had to go personally.

This one with a pale face and a dark heart had shamelessly thick skin, not seeking punishment or admitting fault, and still had the nerve to boast and talk as if everything were all right, mentioning something about his ancestors accumulating good deeds.

If they really had accumulated merit, why did he end up as a eunuch?

Being punished for past evils would be more like it, and only through His Majesty’s salvation could he be reborn as a human being.

Seeing Zhang Qing’s expression, Hu Miaomiao knew the old eunuch still had his concerns.

Extending her fleshy hand, she patted his chest affectionately to comfort him, "Big brother, His Majesty didn’t forbid you to go.

If you truly can’t set your mind at ease, ask for permission to follow later.

Should there be any danger, you can use your body to block knives and bullets. Wouldn’t that solve everything?"

"Cough..." Zhang Qing nearly coughed up blood from that pat. Why was the white fatty’s strength also so immense? That fat, solid hand of his made Zhang Qing’s chest ring like a drum, almost shattering his breastbone.

"Oh dear, big brother, I’m sorry, did it hurt you...?" Hu Miaomiao quickly retracted her hand, having forgotten that Zhang Qing was no longer skilled in martial arts. She was used to roughhousing with the Shadow Guards and had forgotten to moderate her strength.

After coughing for a good while, Zhang Qing finally stopped. He exchanged a few more words with Hu Miaomiao and, reassured by her insistence that it was nothing serious, eventually felt somewhat more at ease, and the two of them left separately.

The night deepened, with the bright moon high in the sky.

The Emperor returned to the Side Hall to find his Little Concubine in a sweet sleeping position, not having kicked off her covers. He couldn’t resist rewarding her with a kiss, eliciting a soft murmur from her.

Feeling content, he wrapped his arms around her and fell asleep.

As the night grew darker, lights in homes of the folks went out, the people who had been enjoying the moon gradually dispersed to return to their homes, and the lively Mid-Autumn night market became quiet once again.

The entire Capital City began to fall asleep.

Several hundred li outside the Capital City, in a small dilapidated temple, moonlight poured through a large hole in the temple roof, illuminating the inside where a fire cast a warm glow, with a man and a woman present within its walls.

The man was white and clean, with an innocuous pleasantness about his features. Currently, he was leaning against a broken stone statue, his shoulder wrapped with a white cloth that hinted at blood seeping through.

His fox-like eyes twinkled mischievously in the moonlight as he said to the woman, "Sister, you have saved me once again."

The woman had her back to him, her hair long and untied except for a loose band that secured it, trailing down her back, her silhouette graceful and refined.

In her hands, she was flipping a few fish skewered on wooden sticks over the fire, the fish sizzling as they cooked, her fingers slender and beautiful.

Upon hearing him, she didn’t turn around, simply saying, "Without me and Qian Chen, you would still have been fine."

Her voice was cool and clear, like the babbling of a brook in a mountain valley, melodious and pleasing.

Cao De loved to hear her talk and loved to watch her. Seeing her and hearing her talk filled him with a peace and tranquility he couldn’t find elsewhere, feelings that were unique to being beside his sister.

Lately, he had taken his men to the frontier lands to clear Shen Ming’s name and to secretly gather evidence of Xue Ping’s collusion with the army.

On the way back, they had been discovered, and he was chased all the way here. He ordered one of his men to carry the evidence they had gathered and escape first. He and the others then pretended to be overwhelmed, feigning weakness to lure their pursuers to this place.

As he was eliminating the pursuers one by one, he encountered his sister. Distracted for a moment, his shoulder received a slash.

His sister recognized him and had Qian Chen swoop in to save him.

Then he made a discreet signal to his men, instructing them to scatter and walk away in different directions, which was how he ended up being brought back by his sister.

Of course, she saw right through him, clearly understanding his little ploys.

He could have dodged that blow, but he intentionally didn’t, simply looking for an excuse to stay by his sister’s side and have her care for him.

He didn’t dwell on whether to be saved or not, but as he looked up through the large hole in the roof, he admired the full moon and said, "Tonight is the Mid-Autumn Festival, truly as legendary as they say, indeed a night for reunion.

Being able to meet with my sister on this day is worthy of the name of reunion. "

Then, looking down at the woman who was grilling fish, he had a hint of greedy earnestness in his eyes, yet said teasingly, "Sister, I’ve missed you a lot..."

After a pause, he added a few more words, "Missed the fish you grill a lot. Every time I dream of it, I crave it so much I can hardly stand it. The spices you gave me are all used up..."

His tone was a bit aggrieved as he spoke.

Upon hearing this, the woman finally turned around, revealing her face clearly!

In the glow of the moon and before the campfire, before them was a visage of purity and detachment, her whole being untainted by any traces of vulgarity and possessing a broad-minded and indifferent air—as if a fairy from Guanghan Palace had descended, and it would be believable.

Her expression was very calm; if you didn’t look closely, you wouldn’t notice a thing.

She looked at him attentively, with a voice as steady and cool as before, "Don’t worry, it’ll be ready soon. And I’ll leave some spices for you when you leave."

Having said that, she turned back to the task at hand, her gaze settling on the glistening grilled fish. She lifted the fish to check on it, deemed the heat just about right, then took the spices out of her bag and began sprinkling them on.

She sprinkled lemongrass, then chili powder, and halfway through, she remembered Cao De couldn’t eat spicy food, and given that he was injured now, it was all the more reason for him not to have it.

She turned back with a slight apologetic tone, "The fish is spicy; let’s wait for Qian Chen to return and I’ll grill another one for you."

She came from the Bashu region, used to the spicy flavors from a young age, and she and Qian Chen were ones who found joy in spicy food. So, without thinking, she had sprinkled on the chili powder.

Cao De’s sly eyes crinkled with a smile. He was happy that his sister remembered that he couldn’t eat spicy food.

Grinning, he said, "Sister, you don’t know, but I can eat spicy now. Just give me the fish, I can handle it."

His tone ended on a slightly triumphant note, as if he was mentioning something of great import.

He had been unable to eat spicy food before, but he had slowly trained himself to do so. Since his sister was such an avid spicy food lover, he had to keep up, didn’t he?

After finishing his statement, he made to get up and take the fish.

"Don’t move," Lih Qingshu frowned slightly, worried that any sudden movement might reopen his wound. The cut he had sustained was a solid one; though it hadn’t reached the bone, it was far from light.

Cao De obediently settled back down, leaning comfortably and motionless, with a satisfied smile in his eyes, "Then I’ll trouble you to bring it over to me, sister."

His eyes shone brightly, as if he were eagerly anticipating her coming closer.