Lin Mengya was right. Long Tianyu would feel relieved only when Long Yinghua stayed by Lin Mengya’s side.

Besides, she had a lot of capable people around her, so Long Yinghua would be able to receive a good education.

“His Majesty may come to ask you about the details of the plague later. You just need to tell him the truth.”

After saying this, Long Tianyu gave her more advice though he knew that his father admired Lin Mengya a lot.

He believed that his father would not make things difficult for her.

“Here comes His Majesty—”

Outside the hall, the voice of the servant from the Servants Administration sounded. Lin Mengya and Long Tianyu exchanged a look before waiting for the emperor respectfully at the door.

The emperor had changed into some casual clothes that he used to wear in private, and the smile on his face became bigger. Compared with his dignified look in the morning, the look on his face at this moment was more affectionate.

“Get up, the two of you. We’re a family. There’s no need to stand on ceremony.”

There were only Long Tianyu, Lin Mengya, and the emperor in the side hall. The emperor sat in the main seat and ordered the couple to take a seat.

It was not until now that Lin Mengya had a chance to carefully observe the emperor.

When her father was at home, he had shown great esteem and respect to this good emperor.

Though the emperor seemed to be growing old as time went by, Lin Mengya could tell from his firm face that he hadn’t changed a lot from what he used to be, a young emperor in high and vigorous spirits.

It was just that compared to when he was in a coma, he had lost a lot of weight now. Yet, he still had a domineering look in his shrewd and sagacious eyes.

Compared to his father, Long Tianyu looked like a young wolf that had just grown up.

The emperor was the one that was really tough.

“Back when you and Yu’er got married, I was ill and couldn’t do anything when they messed things up. But Yu’er was lucky to marry you. The two of you are a perfect match. I’ll make it up to your family.”

As the emperor began speaking, Lin Mengya’s anger dissipated.

As an emperor, he didn’t have to explain so much to her, but he still did so. Thus, Lin Mengya and her family had no reason to feel angry with the emperor anymore.

“No, it’s no big deal, Your Majesty. Please don’t say so,” Lin Mengya answered sensibly.

Looking at his sensible daughter-in-law, the emperor nodded with satisfaction.

“The daughter of the Lin family is indeed different from that of ordinary families,” the emperor thought to himself.

At the moment, he made a decision in his mind.

“I heard from Yu’er that you were insightful about the plague matter. I summoned you today because I wanted to know if it’s true that the plague was caused by someone purposely.”

Lin Mengya lifted her head and looked at the emperor.

Seeing that he seemed to have a conclusion in his mind, Lin Mengya hesitated for a moment before replying in a cautious tone, “Yes, I have a guess, but I’m still doubtful because I haven’t done any investigation in the Yun State. The plague has stricken this land in the past dynasties, and the exact situations were different, so I can’t come to a conclusion recklessly.”

On hearing those words, the emperor knew what Lin Mengya was thinking.

Even a man would be filled with fear at the thought of the plague.

Thus, as a girl, her life would be at risk if she went to the Yun State recklessly.

The emperor’s gaze fell on Long Tianyu, and he was surprised to see that there was a tender look in the eyes of his son, who was used to be an aloof person.

He sighed in secret and wondered why all the sons of the Long family would become prisoners of love in the end.

“In this case, I’ll dispatch the two of you to the Yun State, but I’m wondering if you can find out the truth. The state is the ancestral land of many powerful families, so you must weigh the pros and cons.”

The emperor’s tone suddenly turned serious.

Lin Mengya got up from the chair and knelt on the ground.

“Your Majesty, I’m young and naive, and I may only be good at treating illness, removing poisons, and some other little things. But I believe Prince Yu must have considered it thoroughly, and I’m just trying to do my bit.”

On hearing Lin Mengya’s words, the emperor breathed a sigh of relief.

Since ancient times, women were not allowed to participate in political affairs. The emperor was afraid that his son had married an ambitious woman.

If that was the case, there would be no peace in the imperial harem. Besides, the Lin family processed military power; if Lin Mengya was an ambitious woman, then the Jin State might fall into internal strife.

That was the reason why the emperor had tried to sound Lin Mengya out.

“Well, with these words of yours, I’m relieved, but I have a task that is more important to give to the two of you this time when you go to the Yun State.”

“A task that is more important?” Lin Mengya looked at Long Tianyu with doubts. However, the latter also looked confused. It seemed that he didn’t know what the task was either.

“Please go ahead, Your Majesty.”

The emperor gave the two of them a serious look. Then, he took out a jade token from his wide sleeve.

The token was pure white and about the size of a palm. At first glance, one could tell that it was a piece of fine mutton fat jade.

The emperor put the jade token on the table and motioned for the two of them to come up and have a look together.

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It was only when Lin Mengya came closer that she could see there were red streaks mixed with tiny black dots on the jade token.

At first glance, she didn’t have any clue.

However, after taking a closer look at it, she vaguely felt that it was a miniature map on the token.

Subconsciously, she scanned the token with the Shen Nung system, but she couldn’t figure out what the pattern on the jade token meant for a moment.

“Your Majesty, isn’t this… the token that grandfather had always brought with him? Why does it look like this now?”

Long Tianyu was taken aback. Other people might not know about the token, but he knew a lot about it.

Because his mother’s maternal family and his grandfather were old acquaintances, his grandfather had been treated with special care.

He allowed him to stay in his bedroom; thus, Long Tianyu had a few chances to see a private object of his grandfather, like this jade token.

However, he remembered that his grandfather had always kept the token close to his body and never showed it to anyone easily.

He didn’t know what his father meant by showing it to him now.

The emperor let out a sigh, and when he looked at the token, a bitter expression appeared on his face, where there was a relieved look just now.

He gently caressed the surface of the warm jade token with his rough hands before pushing it to Long Tianyu solemnly.

“This jade token once led our family to conquer the world and establish our hegemony. So our ancestors all took it as a token and would bring it with them wherever they went. Before I was in a coma, I found out some secrets about the token. I don’t know if the plague in the Yun State is a warning, but I will never surrender. Nevertheless, the people are innocent. I’m afraid this token must be targeted by many people. I trust the two of you the most, so I hope you can keep this token for me. I will keep the secret forever so no one will know it.”

There were unwillingness and disappointment in his forceful tone, but there was not a trace of regret.

Looking at the calm expression on the emperor’s face, Lin Mengya finally understood why her father and those clans would choose to follow this emperor’s lead.

Everyone had ambition and desire.

As an emperor, he had a broader view, so naturally, he had more desires.

However, not every emperor would suppress their desires for the sake of the people.

An emperor who would like to give up his ambition of expanding his territory and endure hardships so as to bring peace to the people deserved admiration and respect.

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

Long Tianyu knelt down and took the jade token solemnly with both hands.

As the emperor looked at his son, a look of satisfaction appeared on his face.

“Alright, take a rest for a couple of days. After that, you’ll need to head toward the Yun State. Besides, what you did in the court today is right. I know what you were thinking, and I’ll find your mother’s whereabouts. So you can go to the Yun State without worries.”

Lin Mengya frowned slightly when she heard the emperor mention what had happened in the court.

She couldn’t help but feel confused.

“What happened in the court today? Why did even His Majesty look like he was helpless about it?”

The emperor looked tired after the talking.

Though Zuo Qiuyu had managed to help the emperor maintain his vigor, the emperor’s health declined greatly as he was getting old and he had been exhausted after he woke up from the coma.

After ordering the servants from the Servants Administration to send Lin Mengya and Long Tianyu out of the palace, the emperor, surrounded by his servants, went back to his bed-chamber.

Lin Mengya looked at Long Tianyu and saw the worry in his eyes. She gently reached out and held his rough big hands.

“It’s all right. Everything will be fine.”

Her soft voice seemed to carry magical power.

Long Tianyu turned his hands and held her soft little hands tightly in his own hands.

She was right. At least, he still had her with him.

“Let’s go. Let’s get out of the palace and go home.”

Baiji was waiting anxiously outside the Imperial Palace for Lin Mengya, and she was very happy when she saw her and Long Tianyu.

However, her smile soon disappeared, and she followed behind Lin Mengya with a serious face.

The Imperial Palace… seemed to have changed.

In fact, she couldn’t tell where the palace had changed; she just felt that it was more depressing in the palace than when she first came here.

Moreover, the eunuchs and palace maids who were responsible for watching over them, all behaved like they were some big enemies.

Even the patrolling guards all kept a poker face and kept glancing at them.

Baiji felt like she was a little bird in a cage; she was under supervision wherever she went.

Now, she was about to exit the palace soon, so she felt like she was a bird that had just been released from the cage.

The carriages took them back to their mansion steadily.

Before leaving the palace, Long Tianyu had already sent someone to inform Concubine Xian of their decision.

According to the message the maids brought them secretly, Concubine Xian would have someone send the 10th prince to their mansion at nightfall.

Long Tianyu attached great importance to this matter, so Lin Mengya thought she had to consider everything thoroughly this time.

She didn’t expect the situation in the palace to be so unclear. It seemed to her that the empress and Crown Prince would take desperate measures this time.