A Grand Spectacle

To an outsider, such a scene might not have revealed much...

But to experienced veterans like Su Qing and Chang'e, the underlying patterns were easy to spot. They could tell that both combatants were holding back.

Watching from the sky, Su Qing couldn't help but chuckle and shake her head. "Wukong has actually learned to play along... I thought he was still the same old straight-shooter with a simple mind!"

Upon hearing this, Chang'e sat down on the cloud and continued to watch the spectacle below.

"Yuer probably wants to get this over with quickly, too. She looks like she's just going through the motions... Heh, it looks like this battle will end soon. Let's get ready! We'll go down and bring her back... Once she's home, I'll have someone to help me handle the paperwork again!"

Su Qing looked down at the expression on Chang'e's face. The excitement and anticipation were practically written all over it.

Su Qing didn't comment, merely offering a hum of agreement as she watched the final stages of this tribulation unfold alongside Chang'e.

Soon enough, Yuer feigned defeat. She fought while retreating and quickly fled the scene.

Seeing this, Wukong gave chase, intending to have a proper talk with her.

If they could settle it with words, that would be best. If not, he would have no choice but to beat her back into her original form and hand her over to Chang'e.

Su Qing and Chang'e followed them.

However, the two remained hidden, trailing from a distance.

They used Sound Transmission to tell Yuer that they had arrived and were watching from the shadows.

Chang'e's voice echoed in Yuer's mind: "Just follow the plan. We're watching from the dark... don't worry."

Su Qing also sent a message: "Relax, Wukong has no intention of getting serious. Just pretend to be defeated when the time is right. We'll show up to take you home then."

Yuer heard the transmissions but didn't respond. She simply increased her flight speed.

Chang'e wasn't worried by the lack of response. She knew Yuer would follow the plan perfectly; there was no need for concern.

Having lived with Yuer for so many years, she understood the girl's personality better than anyone.

Su Qing had been slightly worried at first, but seeing Chang'e's calm demeanor, she relaxed. After all, no one cared more about that little girl than Chang'e did.

Soon, the plot unfolded exactly as described in the original legends.

Wukong found the hidden Yuer.

Yuer put up a 'desperate' fight against him.

In the end, she was 'overpowered' and beaten back into her original form.

'You beast... if not for your master's sake, Old Sun would have given you a few more whacks,' Wukong thought to himself after reverting Yuer to her rabbit form. 'Now I have to be the one to deliver you back...'

With that thought, Wukong prepared to walk over, pick her up, and take her to the Moon Palace.

However, he had only taken two steps when a familiar voice drifted down from the sky, followed by two familiar figures.

These two were none other than Su Qing and Chang'e.

"Great Sage, please stay your hand..." Chang'e called out.

Wukong scratched his head and chuckled. "Greetings, Palace Mistress Chang'e. Hehe, you've misunderstood me. I had no intention of killing your rabbit. I was just going to catch her and bring her to you... I recognize this rabbit; she's your pet. How could I possibly kill her?"

Then, looking at Su Qing, he asked, "But... Big Sister, why are you here too?"

Su Qing spread her hands. "Sister Chang'e invited me along, so naturally, I came."

Wukong had a general idea of what was going on. Palace Mistress Chang'e was probably worried he wouldn't give her face, so she had brought his Big Sister along. After all, no matter whose face he ignored, he could never ignore his Big Sister's.

Wukong scratched his head. "Hehe, since Big Sister and Palace Mistress are both here, I'll return the rabbit to you. But Palace Mistress, you really must keep a closer eye on her next time. Don't let her run out again."

Wukong had intended to return Yuer anyway, so he took the initiative to offer her back without Chang'e needing to say much.

Chang'e nodded slightly. "Rest assured, Great Sage... this little thing won't have another chance to run away."

Wukong didn't press further and simply gave a brief acknowledgement.

He then turned to Su Qing. "Since Big Sister is here, would you like to visit the Kingdom of Tianzhu for a bit?"

Su Qing smiled and shook her head. "No need. I still have to accompany the Palace Mistress to return this little thing to the Moon Palace and give her a proper scolding. I won't have time to wander around."

Wukong nodded. Since his Big Sister didn't want to go, he didn't insist.

"In that case, I'll head back to my Master's side... We aren't far from the Great Thunder Monastery now. Once I've finished obtaining the scriptures, I'll come find Big Sister for a proper chat!"

"That sounds wonderful!" Su Qing nodded with a smile, maintaining a dignified poise.

With that, Wukong didn't linger. After bidding them farewell, he mounted his cloud and departed.

Once Wukong was far away, Chang'e and Su Qing headed toward the Moon Palace with Yuer in their arms.

On the way, Yuer didn't transform back into her human form. She simply curled up in Chang'e's arms and fell into a deep sleep.

It was as if being back in Chang'e's embrace allowed her to finally feel completely at peace, or perhaps she hadn't had a good night's sleep while in the mortal world.

Seeing this, both Chang'e and Su Qing couldn't help but smile.

"This little one certainly sleeps soundly," Su Qing remarked, looking at the rabbit.

Chang'e chuckled softly. She didn't childishly wake Yuer up, but instead stroked her head. "If she wants to sleep, let her. It won't be too late to wake her once we're back."

Su Qing looked at Chang'e with some surprise. She had expected Chang'e, given her usual temperament, to immediately pull Yuer up for a long-overdue chat.

Instead, she was being quite steady.

It seemed Chang'e truly did dote on the little creature.

Su Qing pursed her lips, her face full of smiles. She stopped talking and simply accompanied Chang'e back to the Moon Palace.

Before long, the two women and the rabbit returned to the palace.

The Moon Palace was cold and quiet. Su Qing and Chang'e carried Yuer into the private bedchamber.

Chang'e placed Yuer on the bed and gently stroked her ears.

Yuer seemed to feel it; her ears twitched as if she were annoyed by the touch.

Seeing this, Su Qing asked, "Sister Chang'e, do you not plan to wake her?"

"I was going to..."

Chang'e shook her head and said, "But seeing her sleep so sweetly, I think I'll pass. What about you? Are you heading back? If you're not in a hurry, how about staying for a few drinks with me?"

Su Qing was taken aback by the invitation. With a hint of helplessness, she said, "Sister Chang'e, you really do love your wine. Even with such little time, you want a drink."

Chang'e shook her head and smiled as she leaned in close to Su Qing. "You're wrong. It's not that I simply love wine; I just love drinking with you."

Seeing Chang'e like this, Su Qing's heart skipped a beat. "And what about acting rowdy when you're drunk?"

"I only want to act that way with you! When have you ever seen me lose my mind with anyone else?" Chang'e's eyes were like silk, her gaze enough to make anyone's heart race.

Su Qing took a deep breath and said helplessly, "Sister Chang'e, do you know that the things you say make it very easy for people to... read too much into them?"

"Read too much into them? Who told you that you were 'reading too much' into it?" Chang'e let out a light laugh. "Come on. Looking at you, I'm sure you don't have anything urgent to get back to. Let's have another cup!"

Su Qing felt like she was being completely handled by Chang'e.

That overbearing Palace Mistress!

She sighed and said, "Fine, fine. I'll drink with you."

Seeing Su Qing agree, Chang'e squinted with a smile and nodded. She grabbed Su Qing's hand and pulled her outside.

After they left, Yuer opened one eye a crack.

The little rabbit's mouth twitched, and she muttered to herself, "Master and Su Qing are so wicked, saying those things right in front of me! Do they really think I'm so asleep that I can't hear them?"

Though Yuer was speechless, she had no intention of stopping or disturbing them. If she had wanted to do something, she wouldn't have continued to feign sleep after waking up.

However, she still felt a bit of displeasure...

She just wasn't sure if her annoyance was directed at Su Qing or her Master.

Helpless, she closed her eyes and went back to sleep.

She might as well keep pretending she knew nothing.

It was better to fool herself for a while.

Time flowed on, much like the Silver River in the sky, ever-turning and never-stopping.

In the blink of an eye, more than ten days passed.

During those ten days, many things, both large and small, occurred.

The minor matters aren't worth mentioning.

The major event was that the Commandery Princess had now led her great army to the city gates.

Currently, outside Xingyang City in the mortal world, Commandery Princess Ye Qingyu was clad in armor, holding a long spear, and mounted on a white horse. She looked majestic and imposing.

Behind her, the dense ranks of the army were enough to make anyone's skin crawl.

"Attack!"

With just those two words, the battle began.

Su Qing was not by the Princess's side at the moment.

She was floating silently in the sky, quietly watching everything happen on the ground.

She had already done basically everything she needed to do; the rest was up to the Princess herself.

Her only remaining task was to watch from the side and ensure everything proceeded according to plan.

Su Qing grew bored of watching the mundane army battle, so she looked toward the distant imperial palace.

'It's already come to this, and you still plan to hide without making a move?'

Su Qing narrowed her eyes, thinking curiously, 'You certainly have a lot of patience...'

However, Su Qing was certain that the Prime Minister was not entirely unprepared.

If he truly had no preparations at all, that would be the real mystery.

Su Qing exhaled a breath of turbid air and sat back on her cloud to continue watching.

The siege lasted a long time.

It took two full days and nights of fighting before the Princess successfully secured victory.

During those two days, Su Qing didn't see a single demon intervene. Even when demons did approach the battlefield, they merely watched for a few moments before leaving, having no intention of joining the fray. It was as if they were just there to watch a show, and once the show was over, they ran off.

As for the Prime Minister...

In all that time, he showed no sign of acting. He didn't even come to the front lines.

From beginning to end, he remained within the imperial palace.

As for how Su Qing knew he stayed there the whole time...

It was because since the battle started, the demonic aura coming from the palace had been exceptionally thick.

And as the battle grew more intense and more people died, the demonic aura became even more concentrated.

Even standing outside the city, Su Qing could smell the demonic energy and the heavy stench coming from the palace.

However, only people like Su Qing could smell it.

The mortals and the Princess hadn't noticed the demonic aura or the stench at all. The only thing they could smell was the odor of the dead.

That night, after the Princess successfully took the city gates, Su Qing felt the scent from the distant palace grow even stronger, as if the entire palace were filled with demons.

Su Qing blinked and looked at the distant demonic clouds, muttering to herself, "He's really brewing something big... Although I don't know exactly what he's done, it looks like my clone's strength might not be enough of a guarantee. As expected, I'll have to bring my original body over to deal with this... that will be more secure."

While it wasn't certain that her clone couldn't win, she decided to have her original body handle it personally just to be safe.

Su Qing exhaled a breath of Clear Qi and then landed beside the Princess. "Don't be in a hurry to advance. Wait a while before setting out!"

The Princess knew it was Su Qing speaking to her, so she didn't panic. She simply nodded and asked, "Why?"

"Waiting for someone!" Su Qing explained simply.

"Who?" the Princess pressed.

"One-Leaf Bodhisattva," Su Qing replied.

"A Bodhisattva is coming?"

"Yes!"

"To deal with the Prime Minister?"

"Yes! The Prime Minister seems to be brewing something big! So the Bodhisattva intends to handle it personally. Also, no matter what you see later, do not panic..." To be safe, Su Qing gave the Princess a warning.

Hearing this, the Princess didn't say much. She simply nodded and said, "Don't worry, I've long been mentally prepared."

"Good!" Su Qing nodded with satisfaction.

"I'm a bit curious—do you know what kind of preparations the Prime Minister has made?" the Princess asked after a moment of silence.

Su Qing shook her head. "I don't know..."

"Even you don't know?"

"No, because the Prime Minister's perception is very keen, it wasn't convenient for me to check directly. After all, if I were discovered, the battle would have started prematurely," Su Qing explained simply. "And the legitimacy of your becoming Emperor would be significantly weakened..."

"I see..." The Princess fell silent for a moment.