The Emperor’s every word carried a tone of heartbreak. Pei Zhan and Liang Chen, who remained in the grand hall, couldn’t help but feel a heaviness in their hearts. The two said, "Please, Your Majesty, take care." The Emperor took a deep breath, but said nothing. Instead, it was the Empress who lifted her head upon hearing this, looking at the two in front of her. "Do you have anything else to say? Before they arrive, the Emperor and I should know everything that we need to know." Pei Zhan pondered for a moment, then said, "Although Prince Rong and his son’s methods are indeed cruel, there are a few doubts. There are indeed some aspects I find puzzling." Pei Zhan nodded, "I am puzzled. When His Highness the Crown Prince was separated from the Emperor and the Empress, he was already ten years old. From what the Empress just mentioned, His Highness was young and brave, exceptionally intelligent. Logically, since he had already arrived in the capital city, he should have contacted the Emperor. Even if he couldn’t directly reach out, he could have found those meritorious ministers who followed the Emperor in the southern and northern expeditions to explain his identity and ask for an introduction. Why did he quietly appear in the capital city then?" The Emperor and Empress were both troubled upon hearing this. "There is another point," Pei Zhan further said, "The Empress has been searching for the Crown Prince for many years, and since continuous clues about him have been found, proving he did not meet misfortune back then, why has he not actively contacted the Emperor and the Empress all these years?" The Emperor was the new ruler who overthrew the previous dynasty, not an obscure person, someone who turned into the sea of people and couldn’t be found. He was the rebel leader, and wherever the war went, he was there, a figure to look up to. There was simply no possibility of someone trying to find him and failing. Yang Yi, even without the intelligence and wisdom the Empress mentioned, was already ten years old at the time. Placed in a military camp, he was already a robust sapling. If he had not died, he would surely know how to find the Emperor and return to his parents. Yet twenty years have passed! He just disappeared like that; the Empress discovered he did not die and is still in the world. The trail was lost only about six to seven years ago. Why has he not come to see his parents? Considering the task Mr. Ning entrusted Mrs. Ning with before his death, if the deceased is the Crown Prince Yang Yi, then many matters can be explained. As the eldest son of the Empress, he indeed held immense power, able to bestow endless favors on Fu Jun and the Fu Family at the time, elevating the status of the Fu Family and Mrs. Ning and her two sons by an entire level. However, Mr. Ning’s actions were also very strange. Although the Ning Family were merchants, they raised a large amount of military funds for the Great Zhou Court in the fight against Dayue. It could be seen from the Empress’s several mentions of Ning Pochi that Mr. Ning still had some respect in front of the Emperor and Empress. So, when Ning Pochi encountered the Crown Prince Yang Yi and recognized his identity, why didn’t he send information directly to the palace? Instead, did he use such indirect means to arrange for Mrs. Ning to secretly receive him? After Pei Zhan’s voice fell, the Emperor began to pace in the hall, and the Empress steadied her emotions, contemplating deeply while gazing at the ground. "These questions are very pertinent," the Emperor stopped under the curtains, "However, to address one point, I might be able to explain. To us, Yi Yi is irreplaceable. When we first received some news years ago that he might still be alive, we immediately realized that it was not appropriate to make a big deal out of it at this time. "Precisely because his identity is special, he was in danger before our people truly found him. Moreover, Dayue had already initiated attacks on Great Zhou at the time. If the enemy nation found out that our Crown Prince was still adrift and that we, as a couple, valued him so greatly, I fear what we would ultimately receive would be an irreparable outcome. Content orıginally comes from 𝓷𝓸𝓿𝓮𝓵·𝓯𝓲𝓻𝓮·𝓷𝓮𝓽 "So we decided to investigate secretly and sent out people through multiple channels. You never knew we were looking for Yi Yi all these years precisely because we deliberately concealed it. "When he secretly entered the capital seven years ago, perhaps he knew we were searching for him. Upon receiving the news, he also knew it was not appropriate to make a fuss. Therefore, he didn’t alarm anyone." After hearing this, Liang Chen nodded to Pei Zhan, "In this way, it is not without reason. But during the eighteen years of separation, where exactly was the Crown Prince? What was he doing? Why didn’t he come to seek the Emperor?" With this question, the four in the hall fell silent. Without a doubt, the biggest crux lies here.