Lin Wan excused herself and left the banquet early to return to her tent, but not to rest. Instead, she went to the large tent where the Emperor resided. The eunuchs guarding the door respectfully greeted her with a bow, smiling: "Is the young mistress here again to prepare dinner for His Majesty?"

  "En." Lin Wan handed him the food box in her hand: "This is a hangover soup, take it to heat it up, remember to go to the small stove at the back, use the smallest fire."

  Xiao Nei Jian quickly grabbed his things and ran away.

  Lin Wan saw him walk far away, then lifted the curtain and entered the house, circling to a small room on the far right.

  The people inside the house were startled, quickly got up, and a rustling sound was heard. Lin Yu covered her mouth in surprise and apologized: "Ah, I'm so sorry, I didn't know Sir Xiao was here."

  Xiao Zhen was the Right Chancellor of the current dynasty. He had come to see the Emperor today, but unexpectedly, the banquet in front had dragged on for too long, and everyone was reveling late into the night without stopping. He hadn't expected that there would still be strangers entering the main tent, and he was stunned for a moment before remembering that this was the Emperor's favorite concubine, Lin Yuan. He hastily paid his respects to her.

  Lin Wan dodged to the side: "As one of the two Xiao's, Xiao Cheng has a high position and great power, there is no need to pay respects to a fifth-rank imperial concubine."

  Xiao Zhen still performed the ritual with a humble attitude, and said somewhat despondently: "The two Xiaos are merely mistakenly praised by the world, how dare I be mentioned in the same breath as Xiao Guozhang?"

  Xiao Youxiang was born into a humble family and entered officialdom as the top graduate of the imperial examination in the 21st year of Emperor Kang's Jingyou reign. Not only did he have a lowly background, but his appearance was also unimpressive, with all five features on his face being very small, without any hint of nobility; however, he indeed had talent, and when he served as an envoy to the Mongol and Dali kingdoms, he was eloquent and quick-witted, making great contributions to the subjugation of Dali, which earned him recognition from Emperor Taizong of Northern Wei, eventually rising to a high-ranking position. Because Empress Dowager's father, also named Xiao, served as Left Chancellor, and both men were Chancellors, the people of Great Qin referred to them together as the "Two Xiaos".

  However, the imperial court of the Great Qin Empire has never been a place where one can get by just on their abilities. Xiao Zhen is talented, but he has always been rejected by the noble circles in the capital. The officialdom is more particular about appearances than the harem, and without a powerful family to back him up, how could he possibly make a name for himself? Xiao Zhen holds the title of Right Chancellor, but being the Right Chancellor means assisting the Left Chancellor, with no real power, not even as much as the Six Ministries' Shangshu who can make decisions on their own. Moreover, the Xiao family's power and influence are overwhelming, and the pressure Xiao Zhen faces is imaginable.

  Lin Wan's gaze swept across Xiao Zhen's small nose, small eyelids and dark skin a few times, her lips curled up slightly: "Xiao Gong is too modest. With both virtue and talent, entering the palace as a high-ranking official, I have always thought that this title of Xiao is well-deserved..." As she spoke, she waved her sleeve over the table: "I'm disturbing you, sir. After the grand feast earlier, the Emperor will still summon Mu Wu Wang, it's likely to be around three watches before he returns, so you'll have to wait a bit longer."

  Lin Yan immediately left, with a look of really walking into the wrong house and not wanting to talk more.

  Xiao Zhen's eyes narrowed into a thin line, her gaze piercingly shooting towards Lin Yuan's back. To see the Emperor for official business, one had to specially notify the Feathered Forest Guard and go through layers of reporting before entering this grand tent, yet this Imperial Consort simply walked in as if she owned the place, even having the audacity to barge into the ministers' policy discussion area. Moreover, the news that the Emperor would summon Mu Wu Wang after the banquet was unknown even to a Chancellor like himself, so how could she possibly know...

  As for Lin Shi Fei, I had heard some rumors about her being a newly favored concubine, but that was all... I never thought that Consort Lin would receive such favor and trust from the Emperor.

  ***

  On the second day, Lin Wan still followed the carriage.

  Mu Wu Wang stood several meters in front of her, wearing a snow-white heavy armor made of white iron, which was bestowed upon him by Emperor Kang Jing and allowed him to have his own private army. In his fertile fiefdom of Qi State, his Iron Armor Army continued to grow and expand, while Tuoba Hong had been helpless for eight years... And today, in the hunting grounds where he proclaimed friendship with Mongolia, he wore heavy armor as if on a battlefield.

  Lin Wan does not think that Mu Wu Wang is just a spoiled and arrogant king who was pampered by his father. Being able to hold on for eight years under Tuoba Hong's rule, this person is not simple.

  When the crowd dispersed, Lin Wan dismounted and walked to the far right of the birch forest. That was where the most ferocious beasts roamed, and also where Mu Wu Wang and Tuoba Hong were most likely to go.

  As expected, the sound of iron hooves and cheers grew closer, interspersed with the roar of tigers and leopards, shaking people's hearts. Such a place where swords and knives are blind and beasts run wild would never be suitable for women, but Lin Yuen did not stop, she covered her face from the sandstorm and continued walking forward.

  Fearlessness comes from ambition and confidence. Lin Yan has already figured out everyone's purpose - Tuoba Hong rushed to Beise thousands of miles away to kill Mu Wu Wang, because Beise is the place where Tuoba Hong is most confident, here are his trusted army, with the support of the Mongolian Khan. And Mu Wu Wang, he dared to come to Beise, and must have had a trump card in his hand. The Shen family, the Empress, Xiang Fei, and their families behind them are all the weapons that Tuoba Hong can rely on, and the Empress Dowager's refusal to follow is not only because of her old age but also to sit in the capital. The Mongolian king and Tuoba Hong reached some kind of agreement, he was willing to mobilize troops to assist Tuoba Hong, must have taken a very high price. Chu Huashang was sealed as Jieyu, and the Chu family was quickly promoted by Tuoba Hong, because the Chu family is a military general clan, Tuoba Hong needs them to make an effort in this matter.

  Everyone has their own prey, and everyone is also someone else's prey. Lin Yan smiled, she was just a pampered concubine, just a woman attached to a man, but how could she not participate in the struggle among men.

  Whether it's Tuoba Hong or Mu Wu Wang, they are both hunters and prey at the same time. Tuoba Hong is Lin Yan's cash cow, while Mu Wu Wang is a piece of fat meat stuck in a trap. Although it's risky, the temptation is too great, and if she succeeds, the benefits she can gain from this chaos will be substantial.

  As an imperial concubine, spending her whole life tied to one man is still too insecure, Lin Yan has many things she needs to do.

  The sound of horseshoes grew louder and more deafening, a magnificent spectacle of thousands of fine horses galloping together.

  Lin Wan started running, heading towards the most crowded area. Finally, she saw the figures of the two men, one wearing white iron armor and the other wearing golden riding attire. She burst out laughing and shouted loudly without regard for her demeanor: "Your Majesty! Congratulations on your victory..."

  Tuoba Hong burst out laughing and raised his whip towards her. The appearance of Mu Wu Wang seemed to have no effect on the emperor's hunting mood, he was delighted to see that his concubine could stand in the crowd and shout for him, thinking that Lin Shi was a real beauty, although she was afraid of riding horses, but dared to come to this lion and tiger garden, and even learned the boldness of Mongolian women.

  He suddenly became enthusiastic, galloped on horseback to Lin Yuan's face, and with a loud shout, he pulled this little woman onto the horse. Lin Yuan screamed, only to hear Tuoba Hong laugh and ask: "Aren't women afraid of the roar of fierce beasts? I underestimated you...Yuan'er, take the arrow for me!"

  Lin Wan was not afraid of fierce beasts, she was only afraid of horses, or rather, acrophobia. She did not expect to be pulled onto the horse by him, and at this moment, she just wanted to cover her ears and scream, her hands trembling as she drew an arrow from Tuoba Hong's quiver behind his back. Tuoba Hong found it even more amusing, laughing loudly: "With a beauty by my side, this hunt is even more enjoyable. I won't let you down today!"

  The wind whizzed past her ears. Lin Wan was now really wanting to cry, what's the point of sacrificing one's life for a gentleman? The emperor had gone mad and unscrupulously pulled her onto the horseback to play, she was starting to regret coming on this trip!

  The cost of probing for information is not ordinary at all!!!

  Fortunately, Tuoba Hong's arm strength was great, and he held her tightly on the horseback, that force made her believe she wouldn't fall off.

  When Tuoba Hong finally felt tired and wanted to rest, Lin Yan had almost been scolded to tears.

  She ran off quickly and left, passing through the valley where the goats were being raised to return to her own tent.

  At the exit of the valley, she met Xiao Youxiang again.

  She pressed her chest to calm herself down, then smiled and said casually to the official in front of her: "General Xiao, what a coincidence! I've met you for two days in a row."

  "So what brings you here, Your Highness?" Xiao Zhen didn't think it was a coincidence that a concubine would meet with him twice.

  "Sir, you are a clever subject." Lin Yu was generous with her praise: "If the princess's guess is correct, sir, then you must be here to request an audience with the emperor. The path through the mountain valley is the easiest way to see the emperor. From this, it can be seen that you were unable to see the emperor last night, what a pity."

  Xiao Yu Xiang is neither a favored minister nor a powerful minister, so he cannot see the emperor at will. The favored ministers under Emperor Xiaowen of Northern Wei are the generals from Beidi, while the powerful ministers are the rulers of the three major clans of Xiao, Shen and Shangguan.

  "The princess is very good at guessing people's hearts, but this road is not the closest way to the women's camp. Why are you taking a detour?" Xiao Zhen's words did not contain any embarrassment of being teased, he continued to ask: "Princess, what do you have to say?"

  "Oh, General Xiao is so eager to know... Lin Yu stroked the loose hair on her forehead and lifted her sleeve to half cover her face: "General Xiao, I'm here to help you. You're very curious about how the Emperor plans to deal with Mu Wu Wang, aren't you..."

  Just as Xiao Yu was eager to see Emperor Xiaowen of Northern Wei, the Left Chancellor and others were having a long conversation with him through the night. Xiao Yu could guess that the emperor was going to take action against Mu Wu Wang, but he felt that he did not have enough qualifications to serve the emperor at this critical moment.

  For the sake of Emperor Wu of Northern Wei, Emperor Xiaozhao of Northern Wei promoted Chu, but not with the intention of promoting the Right Chancellor, because a minister without clan support was not highly valued. Xiao Yu, the Right Chancellor, understood this and had no choice but to try his best to squeeze into Emperor Xiaozhao's inner circle.

  A minister, how many chances can he encounter in his life to turn the world upside down? If he can really make a name for himself in such things, then his future will be more than just being enfeoffed as a marquis or promoted to a high rank. Xiao Youxiang has had two opportunities in his lifetime, but unfortunately, neither of them was successful. During the struggle for the throne, he didn't get any credit, and now he still hasn't been reused.

  At this time, Xiao Zhen stared wide-eyed after Lin Yuan finished speaking.