Phoenix Pavilion.

Tang Fei and Little Fatty rushed over, and the room was packed with people.

The kidnapping of the Empire Princess, such a matter could be kept from the general public, but not from the real power holders.

They felt embarrassed to visit in person, so they sent their sons and daughters, or grandsons and granddaughters, under the guise of a social gathering to pay a visit.

Phoenix understood their intentions and didn't reject all of them.

You can remain noble and aloof, but you can't be isolated from the world.

Because if you do, you'll truly be isolated.

Anyone who still has any thoughts about the future and the world wouldn't let themselves get trapped in such a detrimental vortex.

What's more, Phoenix aspired to become a great General.

"Xiu Xue, that dress is really beautiful. Which store made it? I want to order one too... It's just that it doesn't look as good on me as it does on the Princess."

"You didn't lose to the dress, you lost to the face... Xiu Xue is beautiful, everything looks good on her."

"Lu Wan, you're too mean... Who speaks so bluntly? I don't care, I'm hurt, you owe me a dress..."

------

The ladies gathered around Phoenix to chat about topics such as jewelry, fashion, and makeup, trying their best to compliment Phoenix.

The gentlemen congregated on the other side, drinking and talking about politics and current affairs, as well as last night's football match where Team Phoenix beat the Aus Emperor Team three to one.

No one discussed the Princess's kidnapping.

As if such a thing had never happened.

Should anyone ask, they would surely feign complete ignorance: The Princess kidnapped? Such a thing is impossible.

Seeing Tang Fei arrive, everyone's expressions became strange, their eyes filled with amusement as they sized up this pair of "rumored lovers."

They're truly not involved?

Sheng Xinhua stretched lazily, stood up and said, "You guys have fun. I'm a bit sleepy, going to sleep first."

After saying that, he prepared to leave.

Instantly, everyone else understood and began to take their leave.

"Xiu Xue, I have something else to do, so I won't bother you any longer."

"Today is my great-aunt's birthday, I have to show my face or my mom will say I'm disrespectful again..."

"My ex-boyfriend was hit by a car, I'm going to the hospital to see him one last time..."

------

In the blink of an eye, everyone else had left.

Sheng Xinhua sat back on the sofa as if nothing had happened, picked up the half-finished glass of champagne, and continued to drink.

Now that they were gone, he didn't need to leave.

If they hadn't left, he would have found a way to get them to leave.

Tang Fei walked swiftly to Phoenix, looked her up and down with concern, and asked, "Are you alright?"

Phoenix didn't speak, just stretched her hand around his waist and rested her small face against his chest.

"It's alright now, it's alright, everything's fine now that you're back..." Tang Fei gently stroked Phoenix's back.

Little Fatty stood by, his words of concern unspoken.

Bro, I haven't even said what I wanted to say.

Wait for me to finish before you hug...

Wait, and wait.

Finally, Phoenix was willing to let go of Tang Fei's embrace.

She looked up at the eyes of Tang Fei, who was so close, and said softly, "When I was locked in that dark room, I thought of my father, thought of Mr. Sheng, but most of all, I thought of you."

"I was so worried, so afraid, I thought I might never see you again..."

"Thinking of that made me so miserable... My heart felt like it was being crushed..."

"That won't happen, how could we never see each other again?" Tang Fei looked directly into Phoenix's eyes, speaking tenderly, "Here we are meeting, aren't we? No one can separate us."

"Tsks tsks tsks..."

Sheng Xinhua looked at Little Fatty, and said with a mocking tone, "Isn't it sour?"

"Sour? What's sour?" Little Fatty asked.

Sheng Xinhua finished his drink in one gulp, waved his hand, and said, "Forget it, forget it, you little kids don't understand anything."

"You still have the cheek to call Little Fatty?" Phoenix turned to look at Sheng Xinhua, retorting, "The fox that can't eat the grapes says they are sour."

"Humph, the bitterness of love, I don't fancy a bit of it."

Phoenix pulled Tang Fei to sit on the sofa and asked, "Would you like something to drink? Shall I have someone brew a pot of black tea for you?"

"I'm not thirsty." Tang Fei looked at Phoenix with concern and asked, "What exactly happened? How could you have been kidnapped? When the dean told me, I thought he was joking with me..."

Phoenix didn't want to talk about it and pointed at Sheng Xinhua, saying, "You ask her... She was with me, whatever I know, she knows..."

"Why drag me into your little love fest?"

Sheng Xinhua rolled her eyes, picked up the champagne bottle to pour herself another glass, and said, "For the sake of this bottle of champagne, I'll just tell it... Phoenix said she was feeling down and asked me to accompany her for shopping."

"The two of us were thinking of checking out the autumn and winter new releases, so we went to Jiu Chong Zi... We hadn't even chosen the clothes when a handsome guy in white crashed in, saying you guys were taken hostage by him..."

"A handsome guy in white?"

"Yes." Sheng Xinhua nodded, "Although he is a kidnapper, I have to admit, he's pretty good looking... Much better looking than you."

Phoenix then gripped Tang Fei's hand tightly and said, "Don't listen to her, you are much more handsome."

Tang Fei, caught between laughter and tears, said, "Is that what I'm concerned about? What I care about is... who are they?"

"Don't you already know? The Tang Family rebel party... They took Phoenix as a hostage, forcing the Empire to release those death row prisoners..." Sheng Xinhua said nonchalantly.

"Damn it." Tang Fei gritted his teeth.

"It's alright now. I was actually going to persuade my father not to kill those orphans, now they are all alive, and I haven't been hurt..."

Phoenix's smile was gentle and elegant, "Two birds with one stone, isn't it great?"

Now that Phoenix was safely sitting in her Phoenix Pavilion, she could say such things.

But what if the kidnappers hadn't released her?

What if the kidnappers had harmed Phoenix?

What if...

What if she never came back?

"I hope such a thing never happens again," Tang Fei said seriously.

He was speaking to Phoenix.

But he was also speaking to himself.

"Mm," Phoenix nodded. "I hope such a thing never happens again."

Phoenix was safe, so Tang Fei and Little Fatty sat for a while then left.

The night had grown deep, and the two of them couldn't stay long at the Phoenix Pavilion.

Sheng Xinhua naturally had no time restrictions; she was already habituated to spending the nights at the Phoenix Pavilion.

In her own words: In this world, who has slept with the Princess more times than me?

After seeing off Tang Fei and Little Fatty, Sheng Xinhua flopped onto the sofa with a 'plop.'

Then she patted the seat beside her and said, "Beauty, come and attend to me in bed."

Phoenix didn't refuse, walking over to lie down beside Sheng Xinhua.

They had often lay like this in the past, chatting and whispering secrets that only best friends share.

Sheng Xinhua's hand instinctively reached for that mountaintop of mists...

Phoenix brushed it off.

She reached again.

Phoenix brushed her hand away once more.

Sheng Xinhua, with a face full of regret, said, "Ah, now that you've got a man, you start despising me... Is it more comfortable when a man touches you?"

Phoenix's face turned red with embarrassment as she scolded, "What are you talking about?"

"I'm just discussing some physiological knowledge with you... Is it that men feel better to the touch? I don't feel much even when I touch myself."

"If you keep talking like that..." Phoenix sat up and said, "I'm leaving."

"Alright, alright, I'll stop," Sheng Xinhua said, dragging Phoenix back down. "Since you're not in a scholarly mood, let's not talk about that."

Phoenix lay down again.

The two were silent, just quietly looking at the ceiling above.

After a while, Phoenix sighed, "It feels so good to be alive."

"Yeah," Sheng Xinhua echoed, "This feeling is really great."

Sheng Xinhua, as if suddenly remembering something, turned to Phoenix and asked, "Did you tell anyone about our trip to Jiuchongzi?"

"No," Phoenix shook her head. "I haven't told anyone."

"Not even Tang Fei?" Sheng Xinhua fluttered her long eyelashes; her eyes were deep and charming.

"Not even Tang Fei," Phoenix met Sheng Xinhua's gaze firmly, without backing down.

Sheng Xinhua stared into Phoenix's eyes for a while, then burst out laughing with a 'pfft.'

"I was just asking casually... Why so serious?"

"..."

------

On the self-driving car ride home, Little Fatty indignantly said, "Sister Phoenix is so kind, yet someone dared to kidnap her... If I catch them, I'll smash them into meat paste with a hammer."

Tang Fei nodded silently in agreement, responding, "Mm."

Little Fatty, sensing Tang Fei's moodiness and assuming it was due to the Phoenix kidnapping case, comforted, "Bro, don't be sad. Sister Phoenix was rescued, wasn't she? We just need to be more careful from now on..."

"Mm."

"I will avenge Sister Phoenix."

Tang Fei turned to look at Little Fatty, his face a picture of steadfast sincerity.

Tang Fei sighed softly and rubbed Little Fatty's head, asking, "Hungry?"

"Yeah."

"Let's make a snack when we get home."

"That's great, thanks bro."

------

The night was profound.

No moon, and scarcely a star.

The old man had just arrived at the White Dragon Port when he felt a sharp murderous intent hitting him head-on.

He stood alert and looked forward, calling out, "Since you've come, show yourself then."

"Hahaha, worthy of being called 'Imperial Barrier' by the former Emperor..." A dark voice came through as a man in a gray robe appeared above the deck of a large ship, looking down at the old man with a high-and-mighty gaze.

"Ye Shenyi?" The old man's eyes narrowed as he spoke.

Although he hadn't appeared in the Empire for a long time, he remembered all the information about the key figures within the Empire.

The Empire's situation was well within his grasp.

This man was one of the Monitoring Bureau's worshipped members, Ye Shenyi, a famous Martial Arts Grandmaster in the Empire.

Such a figure was naturally of great interest to the old man.

Yet he hadn't expected him to show up here.

His visit confirmed the old man's location had been exposed...

Tang Fei was in danger!

"You know me?" Ye Shenyi's smile was easy, yet his grin was chilling, "That's not in vain then, my effort in finding you."

"It wasn't easy, wanting to dig you out."

"Looking for me?"

"Of course." Ye Shenyi continued to smile, saying, "But before, we didn't know the person we were looking for was you... This is a pleasant surprise, isn't it?"

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