TGFH Chapter 32: The Power of Rumors

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Bai Yi laughed softly and shook his head, gently holding Xiao Yiran's hand. "I thought it was something serious. It's nothing. If we can't go back, that's fine, Shengjing is quite nice." He wasn't upset by this result. Although Xiao Yiran had promised him that they would return to Huaiding together after everything settled, Bai Yi had thought about it afterward and realized that, given Xiao Yiran’s position, leaving might not be that easy. In fact, as long as they were together, it didn’t matter where they were.

"I’m sorry, I promised you..." Xiao Yiran's brow remained furrowed, his voice tinged with a hint of heaviness.

Bai Yi looked up at Xiao Yiran, his expression calm and his lips curled into a gentle smile. He took Xiao Yiran's hand and placed it on his abdomen, smiling softly as he said, "As long as we’re together, it’s fine. There will always be time to go back later."

Xiao Yiran felt a tremor from Bai Yi’s abdomen through his palm, and meeting Bai Yi’s gentle gaze, a warm current flowed through his heart. He leaned down and kissed Bai Yi on the lips. "Wait for me, I will take you back."

"Alright," Bai Yi smiled and nodded lightly, his hand brushing Xiao Yiran’s hair at his ear. "Will you stay tonight?"

Xiao Yiran hummed in agreement. Since being "scolded" by Yun Mozhi, Xiao Yiran had been dutifully coming home on time, aligning with Bai Yi’s schedule and resting properly.

Although the two of them were simply sharing a bed without any intimacy, Bai Yi’s increasingly sensitive body due to pregnancy, coupled with Xiao Yiran’s presence and scent, made Bai Yi occasionally feel tempted. Yun Mozhi, while forbidding Xiao Yiran from engaging in certain activities, still allowed for Bai Yi’s needs to be met, leading to Xiao Yiran often attending to Bai Yi’s comfort before they both fell asleep. Compared to Bai Yi, Xiao Yiran’s situation was more difficult—because of Yun Mozhi’s repeated orders to prevent Xiao Yiran from taking action, he had to endure and take care of his own needs.

Despite this, Xiao Yiran still tried to stay by Bai Yi’s side as much as possible. As Bai Yi’s pregnancy progressed, it became more challenging for him, as Bai Yi would often experience night sweats, leg cramps, or have to get up in the middle of the night. If there was no one by his side, Xiao Yiran couldn’t rest easy, so even if he had other matters to attend to, he would ask Yuan Er to stay in the outer room to keep Bai Yi company.

After having the servants tidy up the room, Xiao Yiran noticed that Bai Yi was starting to feel drowsy. Knowing that Bai Yi hadn’t rested well the previous night because of him, he urged Bai Yi to sleep earlier.

When Xiao Yiran remembered that he needed to tell Bai Yi that a decree would be issued tomorrow, Bai Yi had already fallen asleep. After thinking for a moment, Xiao Yiran decided not to wake him. After all, Bai Yi would find out sooner or later, so it didn’t matter if it was now or later. He rose and added some charcoal to the heater in the room, then went to bed himself.

The other couple who were also granted a marriage decree on the same day did not escape the gossips of the storytellers in the inns and teahouses. After all, Xiao Yiran was the famous General of the North in Da Zhao, a royal relative, and suddenly being assigned a wife with no known background naturally aroused curiosity. Although the General's mansion was strictly managed, gossip spread like feathers in the wind — once it started, it couldn’t be stopped. With the help of some individuals spreading rumors, the story began that the new General's wife, Bai Gongzi, had used some seductive methods to win his heart, breaking apart the General's relationship with his childhood cousin. As time passed, the rumors became more absurd, with tales of Bai Gongzi coming from a brothel, and being a heartless and scheming young man, among other wildly inaccurate stories.

However, Bai Yi, after receiving the imperial decree, stayed in the General's mansion to focus on her pregnancy, completely ignoring the rumors. Xiao Yiran, too, paid little attention to the gossip. But just because the two main parties were unconcerned didn’t mean others didn’t care. The rumors spread quickly, and within a day, from the General's mansion to the Divine Physician’s mansion, to the Shengjing military camp, there were broken teacups everywhere. Then, as if by some magic, the story shifted dramatically. It turned into a tale of a wounded General meeting a kind and gentle physician, falling in love with each other. Bai Yi’s unclear background was suddenly transformed, and she became the disciple of a divine physician. The plot was further embellished with tales of Bai Yi saving the General on a rainy night, carrying his child, and searching for her husband across long distances. This dramatic, twisting story, combined with the rarely seen stoic General’s identity, made their story just as hot a topic as that of the An Guo Hou and Mu Xiang.

With such stories circulating, the people of Shengjing certainly had no shortage of conversation as they ushered in the new year. However, while the city was filled with joy and excitement, in a small, run-down courtyard in the southern part of Shengjing, a man seethed with resentment, evading the pursuit of the authorities. He was none other than the fugitive and now nationally wanted prince of Yan, Murong Yao.

For Murong Yao, the festive atmosphere around him felt like a dagger stabbing into his body, leaving countless wounds that bled continuously. Worse still, the news he learned from his few remaining loyal guards was like salt poured into those already festering wounds, causing him unimaginable pain.

On that day, Murong Yao had been forced to use a thunderbolt to escape, managing to flee with only three of his elite guards. After escaping, he didn’t dare return to his family’s estate and instead hid in a secret safe house set up by his guards in Shengjing. The safe house, a location unknown to the authorities, had been used by his guards for some time. They had disguised themselves as locals to avoid detection, and Murong Yao had remained there for nearly half a month without being found.

"Crash!"

Murong Yao threw the medicine bowl in his hand, his eyes burning with anger and hatred as he kicked one of the kneeling guards, shouting in a hoarse voice, “Tell me again! What do you mean by 'let the state of Zhao handle it'?!”

“Your Highness, please take care of your health,” the three guards who had protected him in the escape all knelt and softly advised.

Though they had successfully escaped, the thunderbolt had caused severe injuries to Murong Yao. Despite the guards’ efforts to protect him, his wounds had not healed, and he had been carefully using medicine to avoid detection. Meanwhile, his attempts to contact Yan’s other hidden agents had yielded no results. Worse still, he received the news that Yan had officially cut ties with him, stripping him of his title as heir, and leaving him to be dealt with by Zhao. In that moment, it felt as though the world was spinning, and Murong Yao couldn’t hold back a mouthful of blood, his vision blurred as he struggled to stand.

"Your Highness!" one of the guards hurried over to support him.

Murong Yao steadied himself, then suddenly lowered his head and let out a soft, almost tearful laugh, the sound of it filled with sorrow. His laugh became strained, and eventually, he couldn’t breathe and had to stop. Clenching his fists with all his might, blood leaked from his fingers as if he was unaware of it. Slowly, he raised his head, his eyes clouded with darkness, and in a hoarse voice, he whispered, “Since my father has abandoned me, I no longer have a way to live. You all may leave now. Save your strength for the greater cause of Yan.” He then withdrew his hand from the guard’s support and turned away.

The three guards exchanged looks, and the one who had supported Murong Yao earlier led the others to kneel and bow deeply, saying, “We are your Highness’s loyal guards. We swear to follow you to the end.” The other two guards also bowed to the ground.

Murong Yao, hearing this, turned back and said in a low voice, “Good! Since your loyalty remains, follow me in this final task. Kill Bu Huaiyuan and Xiao Yiran’s male spouse! I want Mu Qi and Xiao Yiran to suffer for the rest of their lives!” A look of venom flashed in his eyes. Murong Yao knew that Mu Qi and Xiao Yiran were both powerful fighters, and it would be difficult to kill them directly with just the three guards, but killing the defenseless Bu Huaiyuan and the physician was far easier. As long as they could infiltrate the General’s mansion and the An Guo Hou’s mansion… Murong Yao glanced at the kneeling men, “This mission is near suicide. Do you three truly wish to follow me? If you leave now, you can return to Yan and serve my father once this passes.”

“We are willing to serve Your Highness!” the three guards replied in unison. For them, every mission was life-threatening, and they had no fear. The greatest taboo for them was to survive when their master had died.

“Good!” Murong Yao withdrew his gaze and whispered, “You three have been here for some time and have identities that help cover your tracks. From tomorrow on, continue gathering information and find a way to infiltrate the General’s mansion and the An Guo Hou’s mansion! Be sure to avoid Mu Qi and Xiao Yiran, and don’t let your identities be discovered before you act.”

“Yes.”

“Where there’s smoke, there’s fire. In the General’s mansion, find out more about that rumored cousin. If she can be used, do so. The An Guo Hou’s mansion is more dangerous — the attempt to assassinate Bu Huaiyuan has already failed. It seems the rumors about Bu Huaiyuan controlling the Shadow Assassins of Zhao are true.”

"Your subordinate will not fail in this mission," the three guards said in unison, kneeling deeply before Murong Yao.

"Once you've found a way to infiltrate, notify me immediately. I will handle this myself!" Murong Yao said fiercely, then waved his hand to signal the guards to retreat.

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