Chapter 333: Flames

　　“What are you going to do if Chu Liuyue didn’t do it?” Si Ye asked solemnly.

　　The Empress was stunned, and she didn’t have a reply. All she could do was mutter to herself. “It has to be her—it has to be! There’s no one apart from her!”

　　Si Ye felt his head throb. “Jing’er, listen to me. I know you’re worried about Rong Zhen—I am too! However, we cannot do this! We have to be careful right now. If not, we could lose everything!”

　　The Empress eventually calmed down. “Wh-what should we do then? Wait for our doom?”

　　Si Ye was silent for a moment. “I’ll send someone to check on Chu Liuyue and see if anything seems out of the ordinary.”

　　The Empress’s eyes lit up. “Sure sure sure! Isn’t Si Ting at Tian Lu Academy too? I heard that they’re classmates and that they’re close. He’s the best candidate for this!”

　　But Si Ye was rather reluctant. He valued Si Ting and had been training Si Ting to be his successor.

　　This kind of matter was rather shameful. Given his personality, Si Ting would never agree to it. Besides, he was rather reluctant to make Si Ting do things like this.

　　“Si Ting gained quite a bit of experience after the Qing Jiao Competition, and he’s been focused on cultivating recently. There’s no need to send him; besides, Si Yang is a better fit for getting information. He’s closer to Chu Liuyue too.”

　　The Empress did not agree. “Si Yang? Given his jumpy personality, can he be counted on? Big Brother, this might seem like a small matter, but it’s extremely important! Big Brother, you might not understand Chu Liuyue. She’s really shrewd! She’ll probably know that something is amiss if we send Si Yang! Si Ting is more mature and careful; it’s better if we send him!”

　　Si Ye’s expression was somber as he remained silent.

　　The Empress carefully glanced at him as she inched closer. She then softened her tone. “Big Brother, I know you dote on Si Ting, and I don’t want to trouble him over something like this. But… aren’t we out options? If you’re really not willing, then… I’ll find someone myself. I’ve given you so much trouble over the years… I just hope that you and the Si family won’t be implicated if anything happens…”

　　Tears streamed down her face as she spoke.

　　The Empress was his sister after all, so Si Ye felt bad. It pained him to see his sister in such a vulnerable position.

　　“Then… Big Brother, I’ll take my leave first,” said the Empress as she wiped her tears and prepared to get up.

　　Si Ye shook his head helplessly. “I’ll send Si Ting!”

　　The Empress gratefully looked at him as tears streamed down her face again. “…Thank you, Big Brother!”

　　Si Ye sighed, then patted her on her shoulders. “Being in the palace for so long has been hard on you, and you’ve helped the Si family out quite a bit. We’re all in the same boat, and this is just a small matter. You’ve been out for long enough today. Hurry back to the palace; I’ll let you know once I have news.”

　　The Empress thanked him again before she left.

　　…

　　Prince Li Mansion…

　　Rong Xiu laid on his bed with his eyes closed. One of his arms was outstretched, and it was rather badly mangled.

　　Yu Mo knelt by the bed and carefully changed the dressing for him.

　　Looking at the wounds on his Master, he still felt worried despite having been through killings and battles.

　　He opened up the dressing, but a large part of it was attached to the skin because of all the blood and pus.

　　Yu Mo picked up a pair of scissors and carefully cut away the dressing, but some of the wounds unavoidably reopened.

　　Yu Mo glanced at his master as he sighed to himself. Given Master’s ability, the collapse of Jiuyou Tower wouldn’t have been a threat at all. The only reason he would be this badly injured would be that… He did it on purpose, and it goes without saying who it was for.

　　“Master, how long do you intend to nurse this wound?” Yu Mo removed the dressing and hesitated as he stared between the few bottles.

　　“Use the gray one,” Rong Xiu said calmly.

　　Yu Mo paused. “Master, the medication inside doesn’t work that well for your wounds. How about we use the white one?”

　　He dared not ask his master to use the gold one, but even the white one was much better than the gray one!

　　Rong Xiu paid no heed to Yu Mo’s words. Instead, he asked a question: “How’s it going on Yan Qing’s end?”

　　Yu Mo replied immediately, “Yan Qing went over to that side since you entered Jiuyou Tower. According to him, he seems to have found something. He’s on his way back and should return by today.”

　　“En,” Rong Xiu replied, his emotions unclear.

　　The room sank into silence again.

　　Yu Mo hesitated before he spoke up. “Master, I know you don’t want to heal too soon and draw suspicion, but… you have to consider Ms. Liuyue, right? She must feel bad because you got hurt for her. Her heart’s going to ache every time she sees you and how your wounds don’t seem to be healing, no?”

　　Rong Xiu’s eyelashes fluttered a little before he opened his eyes and stared at Yu Mo. His eyes were clear but deep like the most mysterious night sky. It was like they could see through everything.

　　Suddenly, a burst of flames flashed across his eyes!

　　Yu Mo’s heart skipped a beat. “Master—”