FID – Chapter 735

Chapter 735: Why Are You Only Coming Back Now?!

This sudden face-changing stunt left almost everyone around completely dumbfounded.

“…Calm down, everyone. Let me explain,” Xue Qinglian said nervously, eyeing the four people still frozen in their punching stances. He quietly shuffled a step backward. “That person just now wasn’t me.”

A heavy fist came swinging straight toward him.

“You think changing your expression means you’re not Xue Qinglian anymore? Take this!”

“Beat him up! I’ll make you regret pretending!”

If the fight earlier could have been called a draw, now poor Xue Qinglian could only suffer a one-sided beating.

The entire courtyard was filled with curses, insults, and pained yelps.

“Ow, damn it, don’t hit the face! Liu Zhiqiu, you’re despicable!”

“Qian Wanjin, did you just… sneak attack me?! Do you want me to poison you, huh?”

“Everyone, stop! Stop, stop! Ahh, I’m dying over here!”

“You only let me out when you’re getting beaten up? Xue Honglian, damn it, to hell with you!”

Feng Qingbai motioned for Wei Hong and Wei Lan to step back. Given Xue Qinglian’s reduced combat power, Liu Zhiqiu and Qian Wanjin were more than capable of handling him.

Who would’ve thought that after switching faces, even his combat stats would take such a drastic hit?

Glancing at the young girl sitting nearby with her hands propping up her face and an amused, smiling expression, Feng Qingbai’s eyes flickered with curiosity. 

When Xue Qinglian’s face changed earlier, even he had been visibly surprised. But his little girl? She seemed completely unfazed, as if she’d seen something like that before.

Once the scuffle ended, Xue Qinglian, now black and blue, sat in the middle of the courtyard, surrounded by the entire Liu family, ready for a proper interrogation.

“Qinglian, what’s going on here? Why is it sometimes Qinglian and sometimes Honglian?”

“Yeah, and since you know us, why do you always wear that mask like you’re some shady guy who can’t show his face?”

“And don’t forget! You left me dangling from the side of that ship! You better have a damn good explanation for that—or else—”

Qian Wanjin, never one to be left out, pushed forward too. “And what about this?!” He gestured dramatically at himself. “Explain this mess! What was the meaning of turning me into this?! Huh?!”

Xue Qinglian raised his swollen eyelids and shot a glance at Qian Wanjin. “Feng Qingbai is back, and you’re still walking around all covered up like that. Who’s to blame for that?”

He clearly had low IQ, but he was still out here, pushing the limits of dignity.

Qian Wanjin gritted his teeth.

“I’m warning you, one more move and I swear I’ll poison you to death!” Xue Qinglian shifted back a bit, eyeing him warily, then started earnestly explaining to everyone, “That guy wasn’t me! Do I look even slightly like him to you? Besides this face, I mean!”

Liu Zhiqiu frowned and reached out to pinch Xue Qinglian’s face. “He really doesn’t have as many expressions as you, and he definitely doesn’t speak with your… dramatic flair.”

Xue Qinglian clutched his pinched cheek and glared at Liu Zhiqiu with murderous resentment. 

Curse your entire lineage, you bastard!

“This whole situation is really complicated and would take a long time to explain,” Xue Qinglian said, trying to negotiate. “How about I explain it all later, bit by bit?”

Because honestly, he didn’t even know where to start.

Mostly because he didn’t fully understand what was going on himself.

“Then we’ll talk about it later,” Liu Yusheng said after giving Xue Qinglian a glance. “For now, let’s head back to the King’s Manor. Feng Qingbai just returned, and there are many matters that need to be dealt with right away. There’s no time to delay.”

The Liu family nodded in agreement.

There were indeed plenty of things that required immediate attention.

Zhixia’s case, as well as the chaos being stirred up in the court, all had to be handled by Feng Qingbai.

From now on, the real show was about to begin.

The news of the King’s return had already spread throughout the capital. Everyone, both openly and in secret, was recalculating their plans.

Previously, Prime Minister Zuo had worked with the Empress Dowager to suppress and weaken the forces of the King and the emperor. But now that he had returned, the outcome was far from certain.

Upon returning to the royal residence, Liu Yusheng and Fu Yuzheng took charge of settling the family in, while Feng Qingbai summoned Liu Zhixia and Elder Yang to the study for a half-hour private meeting.

The recent events had left the Liu family relatively unscathed, but Elder Yang’s family wasn’t so fortunate. The entire clan had already been sent into exile.

The urgent priority now was to overturn the charges against Liu Zhixia and Elder Yang and retrieve their exiled family members.

To clear their names, they had one crucial lead to pursue: Prime Minister Zuo, Zuo Rong.

After the confidential discussion, Feng Qingbai immediately headed to the imperial palace.

The palace remained heavily guarded. With one commander of the Imperial Guard dead, the deputy commander was even more on edge, ensuring that the palace’s defenses were tighter than ever.

Feng Qingbai headed straight for the Qiande Hall. Along the way, eunuchs and palace maids who caught sight of him turned pale and quickly knelt to pay their respects.

When he reached the entrance of Qiande Hall, two squads of elite guards stood watch at the gates. Inside, there was an eerie silence—no sign of anyone.

“Your subordinates greet Your Highness!”

Feng Qingbai cast a cold glance at the guards. These were unfamiliar faces, yet they had been stationed inside the imperial palace without anyone raising questions.

“Step aside.”

The people kneeling on the ground hesitated for a moment before steeling themselves and saying, “We beg for Your Highness’s forgiveness! We are under orders to protect His Majesty here. Without the Empress Dowager’s decree, we cannot let anyone pass!”

Feng Qingbai sneered coldly. “A bunch of treacherous rebels, abusing power and daring to imprison the Emperor. Seize them!”

The brief sound of fighting at the door alarmed those inside the hall.

Feng Mohan leapt off his chair in an instant, shedding his previously despondent demeanor, and ran swiftly toward the entrance. “Imperial Uncle, is that you? Have you returned, Imperial Uncle?!”

The young boy shouted as he ran. The moment he saw that familiar figure clad in purple standing before the door, his eyes immediately reddened, and he threw himself into the man’s arms, hugging him tightly.

“Imperial Uncle, why did you take so long to come back?!”

His voice was choked with emotion, tinged with grievance, carrying a trace of childish petulance, yet filled with unwavering trust.

Feng Qingbai stiffened slightly, clearly unaccustomed to such displays of affection, but in the end, he didn’t push the young boy away. 

Instead, he simply raised a hand and patted his head.

Realizing that clinging to his uncle like that was a bit inappropriate given the situation, Feng Mohan suppressed the sting in his nose, swallowed his emotions, and released the man.

Now that his uncle had returned, he had someone to rely on. No one would dare bully him anymore!

With a cold, sweeping gaze at the subdued guards who had been captured by the Shadow Guard Battalion and the Imperial Guard, Feng Mohan gritted his teeth and complained, “Imperial Uncle, these dogs wouldn’t even let me step outside the hall. You must not let them off!”

“Your Highness, we’ve been wronged! We were only following orders!…”

The captured people tried to plead their case, but Feng Qingbai said indifferently, “There’s no need to defend yourselves now. You’ll have your chance to speak later.”

He cast a glance inside the hall. It was desolate and lifeless. Despite all the commotion outside, not a single eunuch or palace maid had emerged, even after Feng Mohan ran out.

It wasn’t hard to imagine that during his time in captivity, Feng Mohan hadn’t even had a servant to attend to him.

Seeing no point in going inside, Feng Qingbai briefly straightened the young boy’s slightly disheveled attire and said, “To Yangxin Hall!”

“Imperial Uncle, are you going to Yangxin Hall to confront the Empress Dowager?” Feng Mohan asked, his voice full of excitement. His eyes sparkled, and he practically floated as he walked beside Feng Qingbai.

Imperial Uncle was finally going to help him get his revenge!

“The Empress Dowager has been quietly recuperating behind closed doors for many years. Now that she’s come out, it’s only right that we, as juniors, pay her a respectful visit,” Feng Qingbai said calmly.

His gaze cooled as he looked in the direction of Yangxin Hall.

Since the Empress Dowager had prepared such a ‘grand gift’ for him while he was away, how could he not return the favor?

Walking beside his uncle, Feng Mohan straightened his back, puffed out his chest, and marched forward with pride and confidence.

Behind them, the Imperial Guards, escorting the subdued palace guards along with members of the Shadow Guard Battalion, formed an imposing procession as they headed toward Yangxin Hall.

Inside the hall, a servant came rushing in, panic-stricken. “Empress Dowager, it’s not good! The King is here!”

TL’s Note:
I have mistranslated Zuo Xiang in previous chapters. I went back to change them, but:
Zuo Xiang – would be Prime Minister Zuo/Left Prime Minister/Zuo Rong or just Minister Zuo onwards
Thanks for reading!