Chapter 680: The Truth Behind the Twelfth Lady

"Luo'er, are you hiding something from me?"

Li Qingluo lifted her head, her gaze lingering as she looked at Duan Rongshi.

"It's not that I'm deliberately hiding it from you."

"It's just that some matters must remain secret…"

Unexpectedly, Duan Rongshi said, "That Pan family girl is Pei Shier Niang, right?"

Li Qingluo was filled with shock at the words Duan Rongshi suddenly uttered.

"You… how did you know? A Shi, are you just guessing, or do you actually know something?"

Duan Rongshi turned and walked to the window, gazing at the distant green mountains outside, no longer concealing the matter.

"Luo'er, do you still remember when your soul was lost and you returned to your previous life?"

"I also followed you to your past life, even possessing the body of my own previous incarnation."

"Although I quickly averted many events, I still couldn't prevent the twelfth lady from dying in the Pei family in another way."

"Later, Qingyangzi, in his grief‑induced madness, sensed my anomaly; he pressed me, asking whether souls truly exist in this world."

"I gave him an ambiguous answer, saying that indeed many incomprehensible phenomena exist in this world."

"He didn't even have time to investigate my background before forcibly altering Pei Shier Niang's destiny using Daoist methods."

"He said that if souls truly exist, he would trade his forty years of lifespan for the rebirth of that Pei family lady."

Li Qingluo hurriedly asked, "And then? Were there any changes in the previous life? Did the twelfth lady also possess Pan Li?"

Duan Rongshi shook his head.

"Nothing at all happened."

"The Pan family girl of the previous life did not die at the palace banquet, and her temperament was vastly different from that of the current Pan family girl."

Li Qingluo: "So because the two ladies died at almost the same hour, yet Pan Li's temperament now differs from her previous life, you guessed this truth?"

Duan Rongshi pinched Li Qingluo's soft cheek and said, "I clearly recall that the former Pan family girl got along poorly with you and Nanping, but after the incident in the Pei family dungeon, you and she became inseparable."

"You are certainly not someone who can confide in anyone, so I grew suspicious of this Pan girl's identity."

"After enduring those bizarre hauntings, you too were reborn; perhaps… the Pei family's twelfth lady was the same."

Recalling the past, Li Qingluo felt a sharp tug in her heart.

She tightly grasped Duan Rongshi's hand.

She also realized that Qingyangzi's obsession with the twelfth lady might not be as simple as she had thought.

"A Shi, do you think it's possible that the Qingyangzi of the previous life caused this life's twelfth lady to be reborn at the right moment?"

However, that question now has no way to be pursued.

Nevertheless, although Li Qingluo cannot tell Qingyangzi the truth, Duan Rongshi can give him a few hints.

At least they still care about Qingyangzi, hoping he can live well.

Although it's unknown what Duan Rongshi told Qingyangzi, since then he seemed much brighter than before.

Li Qingluo could only bid farewell to her grandmother again, repeatedly urging her to take care of her health, before reluctantly following Duan Rongshi back to the palace.

It wasn't until several years later that Qingyangzi suddenly passed away in a dream.

At that time, he was only thirty years old.

When the Immortal Yunhe heard the tragic news, he rushed back to Qingsong Temple to preside over the matter; upon seeing Qingyangzi's remains, he sighed mournfully, "Back then, when His Majesty summoned me back to Jinling, you immediately begged me, pleading for my help."

"You didn't seek to return to any place, nor did you wish to find anyone to come back. You only wanted to use your own Daoist arts and lifespan to exchange for a good rebirth for that Pei family's twelfth lady."

"In the next life, to have a husband devoted solely to her, never again betraying her."

"I repeatedly declined, refusing to grant it."

"You knelt in the rain, begging me in countless ways, even smashing your forehead against the ground, pleading for the master!"

"But back then I calculated that the twelfth lady already possessed other merits, and someone had already sought a blessed fate for her across past and present lives."

"You still ignored that, insisting that only you could devote yourself to her to leave no regrets."

"Your Daoist heart is shattered."

"I must mend it for you."

"So, back then I couldn't bear… in the end… I helped you."

"Now you truly haven't lived past thirty!"

"Qingyangzi, in the beginning did I help you or harm you?"

For some reason, this news still reached the ears of Madam Pan, the Minister's wife.

It was said she suffered a serious illness.

Later, she made a visit to Qingsong Temple, a place she hadn't set foot in for over a decade.

She stayed at Qingsong Temple for forty days.

Forty days away from the mortal world.

Forty days of reciting Daoist scriptures.

Until Minister Shen truly missed her, bringing his two children to fetch her, finally pulling her back into the mortal world…

Later, Li Qingluo, uneasy about Pan Li, went personally to the Shen family to visit her.

Pan Li said, "Your Majesty, please rest assured."

"I will live for a very long time."

"For him, and also for myself."

And Pan Li indeed lived on for a very long time, longer than anyone else.

Until she peacefully passed away in her sleep at the age of ninety‑seven.

In the third year of Longshi, Empress Li gave birth to a son.

The Dragon First Emperor granted a general amnesty across the realm.

He again lightened the people's labor and taxes, granting tax relief.

He also vigorously promoted waterworks and expanded agriculture and sericulture.

The Empress personally took charge of reorganizing the finances and reforming the tax system.

At the same time, the Dragon First Emperor widely established official schools, vigorously promoted the imperial examination system, appointed officials based on merit, and encouraged children of humble families to study or train in martial arts and join the army, actively striving to become pillars of the nation.

The Empress, meanwhile, launched trade with foreign states and proposed bestowal policies as a soft‑power approach; many Western Regions kingdoms began close and friendly exchanges with the Central Plains.

As for frontier defense, the Dragon First Emperor not only established key border garrisons but also reformed the military system.

Because the emperor and empress were constantly overworking the state, the treasury, which each year was hard‑wonly filled, would become depleted before mid‑year.

Although the Empress repeatedly brought in mountains of gold and silver to replenish the treasury, the nation's finances had been in deficit for several years.

Moreover, because the emperor and empress were both too busy, whenever court officials repeatedly raised the matter of enriching the harem, the Dragon First Emperor would retort, "Great Yue has not yet prospered; what idle thoughts or energy do I have to consider taking concubines and selecting them?"

"You are all too idle, which is why you bring me such nation‑damaging, labor‑exhausting matters!"

The Dragon First Emperor raised his hand and immediately assigned the minister who offered the counsel an endless stream of official duties.

If someone displeased him, the Dragon First Emperor would seize the chance to demote them far away, never to return to the imperial city.

Later, many ministers jointly submitted a petition, asking the Dragon First Emperor to select suitable women from families of officials of third rank and above to enter the palace as consorts.

In this way, the Empress's burden in the harem would be eased, the emperor could extend his lineage, continuing the Heavenly family's bloodline, and thus the Dragon First Emperor's line would endure forever.

The Dragon First Emperor was, of course, enraged.

"The Empress and I share deep affection; she bears my children, lives frugally, assists the inner court, and oversees the realm's finances. She has given everything for me, for the world, for all of Great Yue."

"And you, these mediocre ministers, dare to betray the Empress to this extent!"

"Since ancient times, many emperors have been ruined by harem disputes, external clan conflicts, and succession struggles, leading to bloodless battles within the palace that jeopardize the nation."

"Great Chu, DaLiang, are both cautionary tales."

"In my view, having many offspring is not necessarily a good thing!"

"I will never, because of your coercion, repeat past mistakes; anyone who tries to use my harem to disturb the realm shall be executed!"