Chapter 201

Shu Wan was tending to the moss and weeds in the training field. Her ability allowed her to easily control plants. With a slight twist of her foot, the weeds instantly withered away.

After Ye Fanjing was imprisoned, the Ye family’s power had plummeted sharply. Although the family had put forward a new patriarch, it no longer had anything to do with them. Ye Di had also been removed from the line of succession.

Ye Zheng had publicly severed all ties with the Ye family. Whether it was Ye Fanjing, Ye Di, or anyone else in the family, they all hated her with a burning passion, but there was nothing they could do about it, especially now that Ye Zheng had become the Papess of the empire.

She hadn’t told Ye Di where she usually stayed. She only visited him regularly at the Royal Academy.

Every time they met, Ye Di would break down and cry his heart out. Shu Wan sometimes felt a twinge of sympathy for him, but then she had remind herself that even though Ye Di had lost his position as heir, he still had more than enough. Everyone knew that Papess Ye Zheng was his older sister. At the very least, no one would dare to bully him.

For Shu Wan, the most important matter lately was preparing for Ye Zheng’s coming-of-age ceremony. She was in charge of coordinating with the royal family and assisting them in organizing the ceremony that would be held at the palace.

At the same time, she was also there to keep a close watch over their every move.

Ye Zheng hadn’t told her the truth, but from Ye Zheng’s unusual choices, Shu Wan could tell that something major was bound to happen during the coming-of-age ceremony.

Shu Wan held a pair of scissors and carefully trimmed the shrubs into shape, yet her attention wasn’t on the task at all. Her face was clouded with worry.

She felt a bit restless, and a lingering sense of guilt pressed heavily on her heart. She really was a useless mother, she couldn’t help with anything…

“Mother?”

Shu Wan was startled. She turned her head and saw Ye Zheng walking toward her.

“Zhengzheng, why did you come so early?”

The moment she finished speaking, Shu Wan suddenly recalled something and smiled. “Actually, it’s not that early. Your friend arrived even earlier than you.”

Ye Zheng raised an eyebrow. Had Bai Muqing already completed her mission, so quickly?

With so many thoughts still weighing on her mind, Ye Zheng greeted her mother and was just about to go look for Bai Muqing. After taking a couple of steps, she suddenly turned back and caught a fleeting trace of gloom on Shu Wan’s face.

“By the way, Mother, how are the preparations for the coming-of-age ceremony going? Are there any difficulties?”

Shu Wan waved her hand dismissively. “No, none at all… Oh, I noticed the Ye family on the guest list earlier and was thinking of crossing them off. I know you don’t like them.”

Ye Zheng blinked, clearly giving it some thought, then said, “It’s alright, Mother. Since they’re already on the list, let them come. It’ll make things more lively. How has Ye Di been lately?”

“He’s been staying at the academy. He hasn’t really been willing to see me these days, but I don’t think we need to worry about him.”

Ye Zheng nodded. She stepped closer and spent some time trimming the shrubs alongside Shu Wan, chatting idly about everyday matters, before finally waving goodbye and taking her leave.

Now that she had reached middle age, her life had undergone earth-shattering changes. Shu Wan still couldn’t completely adjust to her new life after shedding the identity of “Madam Ye.” Subconsciously, she continued to live by relying on her role as a “mother.”

But Ye Zheng hoped her mother could discover a new social identity. This was also one of the key reasons why she had arranged for her to stay at the Order of Sacred Conduct’s base.

Recently, the Order of Sacred Conduct had begun recruiting once again. Every woman who came here hoped to gain a completely new identity.

Along the way, Ye Zheng ran into many knights engaged in their morning training. A good number of them were newcomers she had never seen before. Quite a few were so startled upon seeing her that they stumbled over their greetings, as though they had just witnessed the descent of the God of Hope. They were utterly stunned, almost speechless, and could barely believe what they were seeing.

Ye Zheng smiled and responded to each of them in turn. Although she felt a bit puzzled by their over-the-top reactions, she wasn’t displeased. If anything, she found them rather adorable.

She walked over to the reception room door, pushed it open, and saw Bai Muqing sitting quietly on the sofa, sipping her tea.

“Good morning, Muqing. Have you had breakfast yet?”

Ye Zheng closed the door behind her, sat down beside Bai Muqing, and casually picked up the other cup of tea on the table.

“Yes, I ate in your cafeteria. I’m quite full,” Bai Muqing replied with a serious nod.

A flicker of surprise passed through Ye Zheng’s eyes as she looked at her. Bai Muqing had always been particular about food, clothing, and daily necessities. That pickiness wasn’t entirely her own doing, it had been shaped by the high standards of the environment she’d grown up in.

The base’s cafeteria operated on limited funds. The meals were just enough to fill one’s stomach, and the aunties responsible for cooking clearly didn’t put much effort into flavor.

Back when Bai Muqing was still a nun, they would occasionally gather during Church events. If she took even a single bite of food that wasn’t fresh, she’d purse her lips, set down her utensils coldly, and leave the nuns in charge of the meals thoroughly embarrassed. Ye Zheng would always have to step in and smooth things over.

Bai Muqing wasn’t good at lying or pretending. When she set down her utensils, it simply meant she had no appetite, it wasn’t directed at anyone. In the same way, when she said she was “quite full,” it meant she’d truly eaten a lot. It wasn’t just politeness.

Ye Zheng smiled with interest and asked, “How does it compare to the food at the Royal Knight Order?”

Bai Muqing pursed her lips. “I don’t like staying with them. I ate with Bai Mulin once and never went again.”

“In that case, why don’t you join my knight order?”

Ye Zheng had only meant it as a playful tease, but Bai Muqing’s expression tightened even further. She seemed to sink into some kind of inner conflict, and the hand holding her teacup suddenly clenched.

“Ah, I almost forgot something important. Muqing, did you find anything while escorting Sykes to the shelter?”

Ye Zheng quickly shifted the topic.

There was no way Bai Muqing could openly join her faction. She was a member of the Bai family, and the Bai family’s interests were aligned with the royal family. She really shouldn’t have made that kind of joke to someone as serious as Bai Muqing.

The cold and distant young woman sat upright and didn’t respond for a moment. Just as the atmosphere slipped into a faint, uneasy silence, the door was suddenly pushed open.

A young woman in a black uniform strode inside. She dragged over a chair and sat down across from them, then removed the hat that symbolized her position as Public Security Officer and tossed it onto the table. Her short, dark purple hair scattered slightly with the motion.

Ye Zheng looked at her. After not seeing her for quite some time, the other party’s presence could no longer be described as that of a girl. She had become a mature and formidable woman.

“You look perfectly suited to this new position, Captain Wu Shu.”

“Today, you’re as radiant as ever, Your Holiness the Papess. May I kiss the back of your hand to show my respect?”

Wu Shu leaned forward slightly.

Ye Zheng graciously extended her hand. Wu Shu took it, but instead of kissing the back of her hand, she simply gave it a firm, deliberate squeeze. The two of them exchanged a knowing smile.

“I remember now,” Bai Muqing’s cool voice rang out. “One of the guards at the shelter was most likely placed there by Sykes. At the time, I sensed that he secretly passed something to Sykes.”

Ye Zheng paused briefly, realizing that Bai Muqing was answering her earlier question.

Wu Shu naturally picked up the thread of the conversation. “The Crown Prince? Has his hunting ground finally provoked everyone’s anger, so he’s been driven out today?”

She then turned to Ye Zheng. “Your Holiness, you said you had something to discuss with me. Does it concern the Crown Prince?”

Ye Zheng gave a small nod.

After getting her answer, Wu Shu’s brows drew together as she fell into thought. The first reason she’d come today was simple: she owed Ye Zheng a tremendous debt.

Without Ye Zheng, she’d never have reached the position she held now. Even if that position was unstable, and even if she’d taken on intense criticism for choosing it, she had still stepped into an entirely new phase of her life and gained access to power she’d never even dared to imagine before.

The second reason was that following Ye Zheng had never really been a bad choice. More often than not, it came with obvious advantages.

As for the third, after working together several times, something between them had formed that could barely be called “friendship.” For the sake of that fragile bond, she couldn’t just refuse.

Wu Shu looked steadily at Ye Zheng across from her. Maybe Ye Zheng needed her and Bai Muqing to keep watch over the royal family and Sykes’s movements? With the Crown Prince currently out of favor, the empire’s succession had become uncertain. It was only natural for Ye Zheng, as Papess, to monitor what the royal family was doing.

“Go on. What exactly do you need me to do?”

“I need your help.”

Wu Shu made a casual “no problem” gesture, lifted her teacup, and had just taken a sip when Ye Zheng spoke again.

“Help me kill Sykes.”

A sudden, violent coughing fit erupted. Wu Shu choked on her tea and took quite a while to recover. When she finally looked up, she met Ye Zheng’s gaze filled with concern. But at that moment, her mind could only grasp that single, insane sentence. Nothing else could register.

“What did you just say?”

“Kill Sykes.”

This time, Ye Zheng’s reply was even shorter and sharper.

Wu Shu completely lost her composure. She instinctively glanced at Bai Muqing, who was also frowning, her snow-white brows drawn together, looking just as stunned by Ye Zheng’s words. In that instant, Wu Shu felt an odd sense of relief—at least there was still someone else here who seemed sane.

After a brief silence, Bai Muqing finally spoke. “When?”

Wu Shu felt like she had just been struck by lightning. When exactly had the world gone this insane without her noticing?

Setting aside Sykes’s status as the Crown Prince of the empire, even attempting to assassinate him was a capital crime. And Sykes himself was a SSS-Class ability user. Compared to facing punishment from the empire, the odds of being killed by Sykes on the spot were far higher!

Why were they suddenly stirring up something this enormous?

Ye Zheng was the Papess! If it ever came to light that she had made a move against Sykes, it could very well ignite an armed conflict between the royal family and the Church. The entire empire would be thrown into unprecedented chaos!

“Ye Zheng, why do you want him dead? This is far too serious. I need a reason.”

Wu Shu fixed her gaze on Ye Zheng, tense and unyielding, desperately hoping she’d give some flawed or absurd explanation, anything that would give her grounds to stop this madness.

This was no joke. It was nothing like the last time, when they had plotted against Pei Xi. Even if they had actually killed Pei Xi back then, Ye Zheng would’ve had plenty of ways to bury the truth. But this time, the target was the Crown Prince of the empire. Even as Papess, there was no way Ye Zheng could eliminate Sykes without leaving behind traces.

“A reason?”

Ye Zheng leaned forward, her chin resting on the hand braced against the tea table. She tilted her head just slightly and fixed Wu Shu with a faintly mischievous gleam in her dark eyes.

“Because he deserves to die.”

Her voice was soft when she said it. Without giving Wu Shu any time to react, she turned toward Bai Muqing. “Muqing, do you think Sykes deserves to die?”

Bai Muqing sat upright, her white pupils staring straight ahead, radiating a cold and imposing presence. When she heard Ye Zheng’s question, she slowly turned her head toward the two of them.

“Yes. He deserves to die.”

When she had first learned who Ye Zheng intended to target, she had been deeply shocked. But after thinking it through, she remembered that she and Ye Zheng had already discovered that Sykes possessed the ability to summon Aberrant Realms. That kind of power was far too dangerous, and it had ended up in the hands of someone as unhinged as Sykes. Sooner or later, he would unleash a disaster the empire couldn’t contain.

That had to be the reason Ye Zheng had made such a decisive choice to eliminate him. Bai Muqing now understood completely.

Wu Shu still couldn’t make sense of any of it. Two gazes from different directions settled on her, the pressure so intense it felt like it might crush her where she sat.

Her eyes flicked rapidly between the two people across from her, desperately searching for even the slightest hint of hesitation. But there was none. Both of them looked at her with steady, unwavering calm, like bottomless abysses that couldn’t be shaken.

In the end, Wu Shu reached out, grabbed the hat from the table, and pulled it down over her face, as if surrendering completely.

“Fine. Tell me how you intend to kill him.”

From the instant Ye Zheng revealed her true target, Wu Shu had already stepped onto a road with no return.

She had no space to refuse. The Papess wouldn’t allow someone who knew her secret to walk away unharmed if they chose to oppose her.

Watching Wu Shu in this state, Ye Zheng gave a faint smile and lightly tapped her fingers against the table. Only then did she begin explaining her plan in earnest.