I Became the Eye Candy: Four Bigshots Claimed to be My Dad?

The man prepared to meet her attack, but when he heard the voice, he rapidly retreated and landed on a large tree behind them.

Ye Qianning’s lunge met only air. Looking up, she saw a dark figure land on a nearby tree trunk, and her eyes instantly grew cold.

Even in the dark of night, she recognized him at a glance—Xiliu Yuan, the Crown Prince of Xi Yan!

"Miss Xiang, what impressive skills," Xiliu Yuan said coolly.

A murderous aura emanated from Ye Qianning as she stared at him coldly. "Did you take the Eighth Prince?"

Xi Yan’s diplomatic envoy should have been well on its way out of Beili by now, yet the spies she had assigned to watch them never reported Xiliu Yuan’s departure.

"No," Xiliu Yuan replied.

"If not Xi Yan, then it must be East Shu. I never thought Xi Yan would cooperate with them. What did they promise you?" Ye Qianning was now certain.

’If the Crown Prince of Xi Yan is here, then East Shu must be involved.’

’One brilliant escape artist after another!’

Xiliu Yuan remained silent.

"I must save him today. Let’s get this over with." Ye Qianning had no time to waste.

Xiliu Yuan mused for a moment before speaking. "I have always been curious. Why does someone like you care so much for the Eighth Prince?"

"Enough nonsense." Ye Qianning charged, her saber raised.

Xiliu Yuan watched the large saber approach without flinching or raising a hand to defend himself. He simply asked in a leisurely tone, "I hear the location of Penglai is hidden within someone’s eyes."

Ye Qianning’s saber stopped abruptly, its edge just grazing his skin. Shock filled her eyes. "What did you say?"

"For someone like you, self-interest always comes first. The Eighth Prince has no standing, yet you protect him so fiercely. Could it be you’ve known the secret of his eyes all along?" Xiliu Yuan said coolly, completely unfazed by the blade at his throat.

Ye Qianning instantly recalled Yuan Yintang’s expression at Snow Garden earlier that day—the excitement, the shock, the exhilaration, and the disbelief. ’This must be what he wanted to tell the Beili Emperor.’

’Sang Zhi’s eyes hide the location of Penglai?’

’I’ve examined them closely. His eyes are covered by some kind of film. If it were removed and he was treated with medicine, he’d have a good chance of seeing colors again. But Penglai?’

"Absurd!" she said coldly.

"So you really didn’t know. It seems I misjudged you as being too mercenary."

"Enough talk. If you want to live, tell me where the Eighth Prince is." Ye Qianning tightened her grip on the saber, her gaze turning sharp.

It was as if the moment he uttered a single word of refusal, the large saber would sever his head from his shoulders.

Xiliu Yuan felt a bone-chilling cold but his expression remained unchanged. "You’re so young, yet you carry such a heavy air of malevolence. A saber does not suit you."

Ye Qianning pressed down, the sharp edge of the blade breaking the skin of his neck and drawing a line of crimson.

"My Lord!" a Shadow Guard cried out in alarm.

"To kill the Crown Prince of Xi Yan and provoke a war between our nations, all for a prince who has fallen out of favor... that is a crime you cannot bear. The General’s Manor cannot bear it, and Beili itself certainly cannot." Xiliu Yuan’s voice was as cold and indifferent as always.

Ye Qianning’s hand on the saber wavered, but not because of his warning. It was because she caught the strong scent of blood drifting down from the high cliffs.

It wasn’t the scent of human blood, but of an animal.

ROAR—

A tiger’s roar ripped through the sky, the sound deafening.

Ye Qianning withdrew her saber and glanced upward.

"The highest cliff. Three kilometers to the left, then straight down. The person you’re looking for is there." Xiliu Yuan also turned his gaze upward.

Without a second glance at him, Ye Qianning took the information and acted. A rope shot from her sleeve, and she used it to swing across to the opposite cliff face.

"The favor Xi Yan owed is now settled," Xiliu Yuan said coldly to her receding figure.

"My Lord, your wound," the Shadow Guard said, landing before him.

"It’s nothing."

"My Lord..." The Shadow Guard hesitated.

"Are you wondering why I trusted her?"

"Yes," the Shadow Guard affirmed.

If she had attacked from a distance, they could have intercepted. But with the blade already at his neck, no matter how fast they were, they could not have stopped her if she truly meant to kill.

And without their lord’s permission, they dared not act on their own initiative.

"It wasn’t trust. I just felt like taking a gamble," said Xiliu Yuan.

The Shadow Guard’s heart pounded. "That was far too reckless."

’A gamble... If anything had gone wrong, the consequences would have been unthinkable...’

"The result speaks for itself." Xiliu Yuan gazed in her direction, seemingly in a good mood.

"My Lord, you told her East Shu’s hiding place. If East Shu gets the map, I fear they won’t share its secrets with Xi Yan."

"I never said I intended to cooperate with East Shu. That was merely their own assumption. If the secret of Penglai were so easily uncovered, the world would not have spent a thousand years searching for it in vain."

"Do you mean East Shu’s information is false, My Lord?"

"Half-true, half-false."

Everyone has their own selfish motives. How could East Shu be completely forthcoming about something so important?

’Cooperating with East Shu is simply not a good deal.’

"My Lord, what should we do now?"

"Go up the mountain and watch the show."

Xiliu Yuan leaped lightly over the chasm and headed up the mountain.

The Shadow Guard understood his lord’s intention and flew after him.

「」

「Within the Capital City.」

A large contingent of Imperial Guards surrounded the General’s Manor. The entire staff was taken to the Celestial Prison, where every member of the household was to be rigorously interrogated.

The news sent the entire Capital City into an uproar.

With Xiang Minghou away from the manor, the Emperor’s sudden order to imprison everyone and seal the residence made people wonder: Had Xiang Minghou colluded with the enemy and committed treason while pursuing the "bandits"?

After all, the city’s elite knew full well what kind of "bandits" were being pursued. It was even rumored that their leader was one of Xiang Minghou’s former subordinates.

「The Zhan Family Manor.」

Zhan Yi and his wife were stunned by the news. Their heads buzzed as they listened to the report from their subordinate.

"How is this possible? Colluding with an enemy? Betraying the nation?" Zhan Yi was horrified. ’Could it be?’ he thought instinctively. ’Has the matter of hiding Xi Fengying been exposed?’

"This servant doesn’t know the details yet. I only heard that everyone from the General’s Manor has been imprisoned in the Celestial Prison for interrogation."

A wave of dizziness washed over Zhan Yi’s wife, and she nearly collapsed.

"My dear!" Zhan Yi rushed to support her.

"Pang... Pangtuan... what about her? Is she all right?" she asked anxiously.

Zhan Yi looked at the messenger.

"Miss Xiang was not at the manor. However, we heard that shortly after noon, a child on horseback forced their way through the city gate. Some people say it was Miss Xiang."

"Pangtuan forced her way through the gate? Why would she..."

"Master, Dean Chen has arrived."

"Show him in, quickly."

Zhan Yi helped his wife to a seat before standing to greet their guest.

Dean Chen hurried in.

"Dean Chen, have you heard about the General’s Manor being sealed? Do you know why?" Zhan Yi asked.

Dean Chen’s face was also wrought with anxiety. "I’ve only heard it’s a matter of treason, but I don’t know the specifics. I was preparing to go to the palace the moment I heard, but the Emperor has issued a decree. He will see no one, especially not anyone coming to plead on their behalf."

Zhan Yi fell silent for a moment, a sense of impending doom washing over him. "The Emperor wasn’t even this severe during the Qian Zai Fu affair. I fear this situation is far worse."

"Master, Qian Fu and Old Master Gu are here to see you."

"Dean Chen, Old Master Zhan, what in the world is going on?"

The servant had barely finished speaking when Old Master Gu and Qian Fu burst into the manor and arrived at the main hall.

"We don’t know. We’re in the dark as well, but it seems to be extremely serious." Zhan Yi repeated what Dean Chen had just said, then added, "I heard Pangtuan forced her way out of the city. We don’t know why, but the city guards are searching for her now."

"Could it be that some secret report arrived from Xiang Minghou’s front? Did the Emperor come to suspect him of treason? And the little lass rushed out of the city to find her father?" Old Master Gu speculated.

Dean Chen shook his head. "That little lass is not so impulsive. Something must have happened that was so urgent she couldn’t delay for a single moment. That’s the only reason she would force the gates."

"But what could it be?" Zhan Yi wondered aloud.

"After Pangtuan left the city, a caravan from my Gu family saw the Qian family boy, our own Gu boy, and your Zhan boy all rushing out of the city as well," Old Master Gu added.

"Perhaps they know something. Ugh, and not one of them has sent back a single word, leaving us to worry endlessly."

"I heard the little lass was summoned to the Imperial Palace this morning," Dean Chen said, turning to Zhan Yi’s wife. "Perhaps Noble Princess Consort Zhan knows something about this. I wonder, is there a way for the Zhan family to speak with her?"

Hearing this, Zhan Yi’s wife immediately shot up from her chair. "I’ll go to the palace right now and find her."

"Dean Chen."

As an urgent voice called out, Du Yi, dressed in black civilian clothes, appeared before them.

"You’re Du Yi, the guard the little lass assigned to the Eighth Prince?" Dean Chen asked, not quite recognizing him.

"Yes, I am."

"What happened at the palace today?" Dean Chen asked urgently.

"Around noon today, someone impersonating our young miss lured the Eighth Prince out of the palace. When my young miss learned of this, she rushed out of the Imperial Palace. Before she left, she ordered me to keep an eye on Consort Yuan’s senior brother, Yuan Yintang. Near the Imperial Study, I discovered something of grave importance—a matter that concerns our young miss and the entire General’s Manor," Du Yi reported, his face grim.

"Is it about Xiang Minghou committing treason?" Zhan Yi asked, not paying much mind to the news about the Eighth Prince.

"A map to Penglai is hidden in the Eighth Prince’s eyes."

As soon as Du Yi spoke these words, everyone present was stunned into silence.

The atmosphere in the room instantly became quiet and strange.

"How... how is that possible? The Eighth Prince’s eyes... how could that be...?" Old Master Gu finally managed to find his voice after a long moment.

Zhan Yi’s mouth hung open, his eyes wide with shock. He was at a loss for words.

Qian Fu lowered his gaze, his mind reeling. As he thought it through, he understood the Emperor’s fury. The Emperor had learned of Penglai at the very moment the Eighth Prince had mysteriously disappeared from the palace.

’The little lass left the palace at the same time. It’s clear that someone with malicious intent has twisted the situation. The Emperor must have concluded that she was the one who took the Eighth Prince, hence his rage.’

"The information came from Yuan Yintang. When the Eighth Prince disappeared, Consort Yuan pinned the blame on our young miss. The Emperor was enraged. He ordered the General’s Manor to be sealed and sent Yuan Yintang to the military headquarters to dispatch three thousand soldiers. They are to leave the city and find the Eighth Prince. The order is: kill anyone who stands in their way, with the exception of the Eighth Prince himself." Du Yi dropped to his knees. "I beg you, Dean Chen, please send men to save our young miss!"

’Kill anyone, with the exception of the Eighth Prince?’

The color drained from the faces of Qian Fu, Zhan Yi, Old Master Gu, and Dean Chen as they heard that terrifying order.