I Miss You

The sky had grown completely dark.

Inside the side hall of the Crown Princess's Palace, Gu Chengyin slowly opened his eyes and exhaled a breath of impure air.

The breath faintly shimmered with a pale azure luster, swirling in the air like a wisp of fine smoke for a moment before dissipating.

Foundation Establishment Realm, middle stage.

Gu Chengyin felt the changes in his true qi after a full day of circulation.

The Azure Cloud Art had completely refined the massive, chaotic influx of true qi.

At this moment, the true qi in his dantian was as dense as mercury and as profound as an abyss, faintly echoing with the sound of wind and thunder as it circulated.

As long as he continued to refine the incoming true qi, his cultivation would steadily improve.

"Just as I thought..."

Gu Chengyin stood up, walked to the window, and pushed open the lattice. The night breeze brushed against his face, carrying the faint fragrance of magnolias from the courtyard.

He gazed at the brightly lit silhouette of the palace in the distance, his mind as clear as a mirror.

He had already seen through most of the causal chain between power and cultivation.

Under the current circumstances, reaching the great perfection of the Foundation Establishment Realm was only a matter of time.

The real bottleneck was actually his status. To advance to the Golden Core Realm, he had to reach the position of being below only one person and above ten thousand others.

And the prerequisite for that position was obviously...

"Luo Zhao ascending the throne as Emperor."

Gu Chengyin muttered to himself. This wasn't entirely a bad thing; at least his short-term goal was clear.

But what about after the Golden Core Realm?

Gu Chengyin frowned slightly.

After the Golden Core, he would need to bind himself to a sect or a clan.

From his current perspective, a sect was clearly the most suitable for him.

By then, even if he were stripped of his official position, as long as the sect remained, his cultivation would not fall.

It seemed that while helping Luo Zhao ascend the throne, he also had to start preparing the foundations for a sect.

Gu Chengyin glanced at the sky outside the window, then turned and walked out.

The Hall of Literary Reason.

That was the place for handling government affairs in the Crown Princess's Palace, and also where Shangguan Yunying spent most of her time.

Logically speaking, the Chief Court Lady should still be there right now, sorting out the files to be handed over.

However, when Gu Chengyin arrived at the Hall of Literary Reason, although the candles were bright, the hall was empty.

There were only a few maids on duty wiping the desks. Seeing him enter, they hurriedly bowed.

"Where is the Chief?" Gu Chengyin asked.

The leading maid lowered her head and replied, "To answer the Chief Steward, Her Highness handled official business all day and returned to her sleeping quarters to rest half an hour ago. The Chief went back with Her Highness."

Gu Chengyin nodded. "Was Her Highness very busy today?"

"Yes, Her Highness met with seven groups of officials today, reviewed dozens of memorials, and personally examined the Ministry of Personnel's archives of official performance evaluations over the years."

The maid added softly, "She only had a bowl of porridge for dinner."

Luo Zhao was indeed taking over the forces.

Gu Chengyin understood clearly in his heart.

With the fall of the Xiao clan, Luo Zhao had to quickly fill the vacant positions and the power vacuum.

As she was about to take control of the Ministry of Personnel, a crucial government office, she naturally had to figure out its ins and outs in advance.

As for Shangguan Yunying accompanying her back to the sleeping quarters, that was also normal.

As the Chief Court Lady, she was qualified to live in the Crown Princess's sleeping quarters so she could serve at any time.

Gu Chengyin pondered for a moment, then walked openly towards the sleeping quarters.

With his current status, there was no need to hide anything.

The eastern side hall of the sleeping quarters.

This place was separated from the main hall by only a corridor. The furnishings were simple and elegant, and half a foot of documents was piled up on the desk.

Shangguan Yunying was leaning over, sorting through one of the stacks. The candlelight traced the gentle and focused contours of her profile.

She had changed into a moon-white everyday dress, her black hair held up by a simple jade hairpin. She lacked some of the majesty of a court lady, but had a bit more of a gentle, domestic charm.

Hearing footsteps, she looked up. Seeing it was Gu Chengyin, her eyes lit up.

She immediately put her index finger to her lips, made a shushing gesture, and lowered her voice:

"Keep your voice down. Her Highness is resting. She worked all day and is truly exhausted."

Gu Chengyin nodded and lightened his footsteps as he walked into the side hall.

As the Crown Princess, especially at this critical moment of power reshuffling, Luo Zhao's hardship was imaginable.

Not only did she have to take over the power vacuum left by the fall of the Xiao clan, but she also had to prepare to enter the Ministry of Personnel, sort out human resources, balance various parties, and so on.

Every task was an arduous battle that drained both mind and body.

Looking back at himself as the Chief Steward of the Internal Affairs Department, Gu Chengyin chuckled inwardly.

On the surface, the Chief Steward held immense power, managing the royal finances, inner palace personnel, imperial items, and many other crucial areas.

But in reality?

The two deputies of the Internal Affairs Department: Lyu Fang was Emperor Luo's man, and Shangguan Yunying was Luo Zhao's person.

Previously, Luo Zhao concurrently held the position of Chief Steward, which was fine.

But as the current Chief Steward, he was just like a mascot.

If anything came up, those two wouldn't even come to him; they would just handle it according to the wishes of their respective backers.

Instead, his position as the Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of Rites was somewhat useful.

However, with the frequent changes in the royal court nowadays—Cui Shifan taking over as Chief Minister, Hu Juzheng being promoted to Vice Minister, Shangguan Yuan entering the Grand Secretariat...

There was no rush on the Ministry of Rites' side for the time being. It wouldn't be too late to go over and take office tomorrow.

"How is it?"

Gu Chengyin approached the desk, his gaze sweeping over the files, and asked in a low voice, "Is the handover going smoothly?"

Shangguan Yunying knew he was asking about the aftermath of the morning court session, and replied:

"Very smoothly. Both the Cui faction and the humble origin faction have been very restrained. Even the Xiao faction hasn't caused any trouble. Everything is transitioning peacefully."

These were all within Gu Chengyin's expectations.

Although the great tree of the Xiao clan had been uprooted, its main trunk, Xiao Song, was still there.

Precisely because of this, the remnants of the Xiao clan did not fight back to the death, allowing the power to be handed over so smoothly.

As long as Xiao Song was still around, given time, they might not be unable to make a comeback.

"Why haven't I seen you all day today?"

Shangguan Yunying suddenly looked up, her eyes filled with concern. "Did you come over now because there is something urgent?"

She tilted her head slightly as she spoke. The candlelight danced in her eyes, reflecting a gentleness that seemed both real and illusory.

A gentle smile appeared on Gu Chengyin's face. "I went back to continue practicing the Azure Cloud Art. I just finished, so I came over to ask about the situation."

He paused, his tone natural. "And also..."

Shangguan Yunying nodded in understanding.

Interrupting cultivation was a great taboo. If it weren't for the necessity of attending the morning court session, Gu Chengyin certainly wouldn't have stopped halfway. It was perfectly normal for him to go back and continue his practice.

However, Gu Chengyin's next words made her heart suddenly race.

She saw the smile on Gu Chengyin's face gradually fade, replaced by a deep, focused expression.

He took a half-step forward, instantly closing the distance between them.

His unblinking gaze locked onto Shangguan Yunying's eyes, every word carefully weighed:

"I missed you."

The side hall instantly fell completely silent.

Shangguan Yunying was stunned.

"Besides that, I feel I should explain something to you."

Gu Chengyin's tone was sincere, carrying a hint of cautious probing:

"What I said during the morning court session was mainly to reinforce my identity as the heir of the Immortal clan. It wasn't real..."

Before he could finish speaking.

A slender finger gently pressed against his lips.

Shangguan Yunying tilted her head slightly, her eyes gentle, looking at Gu Chengyin with a smile:

"You don't need to explain this to me."