Chapter 179: Emperor Sovereign Disguise

Ye Qingran personally escorted Dongfang Mo out of the Ye Residence.

"With your temperament, you shouldn't let Ye Yu and the others stay any longer."

Ye Qingran glanced sideways at Dongfang Mo, one eyebrow raised, "Does the Ninth Prince know me so well?"

"Isn't it obvious I know you're not quite normal? After all, we're… friends, aren't we?"

Friends?

Behind them, Qingshu's eyes flickered with a hint of unwillingness.

As the master's closest subordinate, he knows the master's innermost true feelings! Yet the master suppresses that feeling deep inside, interacting with the woman she likes under the guise of friendship.

Isn't that a kind of torment as well?

Friends?

Ye Qingran slowly nodded.

That feeling isn't bad at all.

In her previous life, she was used to going alone, though she had made a few friends, and those friendships were all very good.

Dongfang Mo could be considered her first friend in this world, right?

"I actually want to drive them out outright, but human hearts are terrifying! Though I don't care about others' opinions, I must consider future trouble. So I simply compromise."

"You did the right thing."

"Then thank the Ninth Prince for the praise."

Dongfang Mo's lip curled into a smile; his grin added an even more jade‑like aura. Ye Qingran couldn't help but wonder, if he were freed from this awkward predicament and stood tall, what brilliance he would exude.

Her gaze unintentionally fell on Dongfang Mo's legs, for the first time feeling an impulse to heal him.

"May I… look at your legs?"

She asked gently, her tone tinged with caution, fearing the request might trigger the disabled man's sensitive nerves.

Sure enough, despite Ye Qingran's carefulness, Dongfang Mo's body froze the moment he heard the request; his eyes, like a mirror, suddenly shattered, reflecting only fragmented glints.

Qingshu also startled, apparently never having expected Ye Qingran to make such a request.

The leg disability had always been a thorn in the master's heart; even after many years, time had brought no cure.

Every recollection brought a bone‑gnawing pain.

Dongfang Mo's complexion grew paler bit by bit, until even his lips took on a frosty white hue.

"Sorry, I'm feeling a bit unwell, I'll leave first." Dongfang Mo lowered his head and whispered. Qingshu lifted Dongfang Mo, wheelchair and all, into the carriage; the moment the hanging curtain was lowered, he cast a complicated glance at Ye Qingran.

Ye Qingran stood before the Ye Residence gate, staring blankly as the carriage departed, only exhaling a slow breath of foul air once it vanished.

"Miss, what's wrong with the Ninth Prince?" Han Xing whispered, genuinely unable to understand why Dongfang Mo reacted so strongly.

"It seems the matter is far more serious than I imagined," Ye Qingran murmured softly.

Perhaps for Dongfang Mo, the leg injury was more than a physical ailment; something far more terrifying must have occurred when he was wounded, leaving not only a disability but a deep psychological scar from that moment.

If it were merely a simple leg injury, it wouldn't pose much difficulty for her, but once psychological issues are involved, the matter becomes far more complex.

Never mind, there's plenty of time ahead.

Ye Qingran was about to turn back to the residence when a familiar figure caught her peripheral vision.

That lofty, god‑like man—if not the National Master, then who could it be? After all, Xiliang City could not produce another handsome man who could dim the sun and moon, and make heaven and earth lose their colors.

"What are you doing here again?" Ye Qingran frowned. The National Master has been visiting her far too often lately!

"Here to see the children."

Ye Qingran pursed her lips.

It's the same excuse, and she can't refute it.

Amid the myriad complicated gazes of the Ye Residence servants, Fu Hanxiu followed Ye Qingran to Ting Yu Xuan.

"Mother!" As Ye Qingran entered Ting Yu Xuan's gate, two figures rushed in like cannonballs, their mouths dripping with honey, ridiculously sweet.

Watching the son of the Lu family pouting cutely in Ye Qingran's arms, obedient and soft, Fu Hanxiu felt an inexplicable pang of jealousy.

Ah, he also wants to act spoiled in Ye Qingran's arms!

Just thinking that, Fu Hanxiu's eyes couldn't help but darken.

"Father Lord?!" After a while of acting cute in his mother's arms, Fu Qianchen finally realized his biological father had also arrived.

That "Father Lord" sounded devoid of feeling, purely procedural, a stark contrast to his earlier "Mother" call, making one wonder if this father might actually be a step‑father.

"National Master Uncle," Mo Xiaohu greeted Fu Hanxiu politely and obediently.

Fu Hanxiu felt his heart soften; the more he looked at Mo Xiaohu, the more he liked her. This rapid rise in affection made Fu Hanxiu begin to doubt himself—might he someday like Mo Xiaohu more than Fu Qianchen?

"Since you're here, I have a question for you; have a seat." Ye Qingran sent the two children off to play, then personally brewed a cup of tea for the National Master.

Fu Hanxiu cradled the cup, feeling the tea's warmth pale compared to the warmth in his heart.

"National Master, isn't it hot?"

Fu Hanxiu snapped back to reality, somehow gripping the scalding cup as if it were a priceless treasure.

"Oh, it's not hot."

It truly wasn't hot; after all, his cultivation was so high that he was no longer mortal.

But Fu San covered his eyes, feeling he couldn't bear to look.

"Your Majesty cannot be hot; being foolish, however, is indeed foolish!"

Ye Qingran sipped her tea and asked, "National Master, you came from Xi Ji; do you happen to know the Emperor Sovereign of the Peak of the Hunt?"

The National Master's expression flickered with a subtle nuance.

Ask him if he knows himself?

His complexion unchanged, he raised his sword‑shaped eyebrows and retorted, "Why do you suddenly ask about him? Did you hear some rumor that piqued your interest?"

Ye Qingran nodded, and a barely perceptible hint of joy flickered in Fu Hanxiu's eyes. If Ye Qingran is interested in him, does that mean that once he reveals his Emperor Sovereign disguise, she will willingly throw herself into his arms?

However, the little flame of excitement in Emperor Sovereign sir's heart had just ignited, when Ye Qingran ruthlessly extinguished it with a basin of cold water!

「I heard that five years ago he took a liking to a woman and hid her in a golden house. I have to say, this Emperor Sovereign who stands at the pinnacle of the struggle for the throne is truly damn blind。」

Fu Hanxiu: ……

Fu San: ……