This was the second time Chu Qianli had seen Long Ye since Chu Huaiyu had impersonated her identity last time.
When she saw him last, his complexion had been quite good.
Now, seeing him again, his face was sallow, clearly indicating his time was running out.
"How could this happen?" Chu Qianli immediately rushed over, her fingertips pressing against Long Ye's pulse.
His pulse was weak, his breathing shallow, truly the pulse of someone on the verge of death!
"Grandfather, why..."
"Father has always had a chronic illness, but he never spoke of it for fear of worrying you," Long Feifan's voice was somewhat hoarse.
Although he had known about Long Ye's condition for a long time, seeing him like this now still brought an unspeakable ache to his heart.
"Grandfather..." Chu Qianli bit her lip. At this moment, even she was powerless.
Her grandfather's organ failure was a condition accumulated over many years. Even in the twenty-first century, there was no cure.
Let alone in ancient times with such backward medical skills.
Her grandfather's illness was beyond recovery.
"Your grandfather... is old." Long Ye, supported by Long Feifan, sat up and leaned against the headboard.
He held Chu Qianli's hand, his spirit seemingly good today.
But Chu Qianli knew this was just a final burst of energy, and he wouldn't last much longer.
"Little Lier... don't be sad. Grandfather is old, this is... bound to happen sooner or later."
Long Ye glanced at Long Feifan.
Long Feifan immediately retreated to the door, observed quietly, then looked at Long Ye and nodded.
Once he was sure it was safe, Long Ye tightened his grip, holding Chu Qianli even tighter.
"Little Lier, before, Grandfather... Grandfather sided with outsiders and accused you... of not being Qian Yue's daughter. You... don't be angry."
"I know, Grandfather must have had his reasons for doing so. I'm not angry."
Chu Qianli rubbed the corners of her eyes, forcing herself to calm down.
She knew that if her grandfather sought her out at this time, it must be for something important.
She couldn't waste her grandfather's energy.
"My Lier... is so obedient and sensible. It's good, so good... It's a pity, Grandfather... is not really your grandfather."
Chu Qianli froze, staring at him blankly, disbelieving.
Was she truly not Long Qian Yue's daughter?
Why... why would this be?
"You are not my granddaughter, so Chu Huaiyu, naturally... is not either."
Long Ye took a deep breath, mustering his strength to speak more clearly.
"That day in court, Grandfather refused the blood recognition test precisely because Grandfather knew that neither your blood nor Chu Huaiyu's blood would blend with Grandfather's."
His hand tightened, squeezing so hard that Chu Qianli could clearly feel the pressure.
But why?
Long Ye looked at her for a long time before saying hoarsely, "Because, Qian Yue... is not my daughter at all. She is... the Crown Prince of Long Teng Kingdom, Long Xi Yue."
Chu Qianli had heard of the current Empress of Long Teng Kingdom.
She heard that she was previously the Emperor's uncle, the Empress's own sister.
As for how she became Empress, Chu Qianli was not clear.
Long Ye's gaze fell on an unknown corner.
Recalling that period of time, his mood was indescribably heavy.
"Back then, the Empress, in her foresight, had planted her own people in various countries. Your grandfather, I... I, Long Ye, was a spy arranged by the Empress in Bei Ming Kingdom."
There were never eternal friends, nor eternal enemies, between countries.
Foresight was to prevent cracks from appearing in friendly relations between nations, or even conflict.
As the saying goes, know yourself and know your enemy, and you can win a hundred battles.
This realization was not only held by the Empress of Long Teng Kingdom but by the emperors of all countries.
Therefore, it was inevitable that every country would have spies sent by other countries.
However, the emperors of each country could only place their people, and how high a position those people could attain in the foreign court depended entirely on themselves.
Of course, there were also those who, after living in a foreign country for a long time, no longer wished to obey their own sovereign.
But he, Long Ye, was a subject of Long Teng Kingdom for a day and would remain the Empress's person for life.
He would never betray them.
He was loyal to the former Empress and the Crown Prince.
"Back then, the Crown Prince was framed by Prince Liu, who accused her of colluding with spies from Bei Ming Kingdom and plotting to harm the Empress."
"The Empress died, Long Tian Liu became the new Empress, and the Crown Prince, bearing the stigma, was ruthlessly pursued by Long Tian Liu, chased all the way to Bei Ming Kingdom."
"Fortunately, the former Empress had arranged for an old minister here, and my daughter, Qian Yue, happened to die unexpectedly. So, I let Princess Xi Yue disguise herself as Qian Yue and stay with me."
The hardships and dangers involved, spoken of now, seemed like mist.
But Chu Qianli understood very well the pain and pressure that Long Xi Yue faced at that time.
"There were two other reasons Princess Xi Yue remained in Bei Ming Kingdom. Firstly, the person who colluded with Prince Liu back then was from Bei Ming Kingdom, and it might not have been the current Emperor."
A murderous glint flashed in Chu Qianli's eyes.
Long Ye tightly grasped her hand and said hoarsely, "But I have no evidence. Princess Xi Yue also wanted to investigate this matter at the time, but unfortunately... before she could uncover the truth, she met an untimely end in Bei Ming Kingdom."
Chu Qianli bit her lip, feeling an unspeakable sorrow in her heart.
Long Ye continued, "There is also one more point that compelled Princess Xi Yue to come to Bei Ming Kingdom."
"Grandfather, what is it?" she asked urgently.
Long Ye said, "The Princess needed to find the Imperial Seal of Long Teng Kingdom."
The mysterious power from Bei Ming Kingdom had colluded with Long Tian Liu to seize political power in Long Teng Kingdom.
Their initial agreement was unknown, but it seemed the agreement had fallen apart.
The person from Bei Ming Kingdom had taken the Imperial Seal of Long Teng Kingdom.
When Long Xi Yue learned of this news, while fleeing, she also intended to retrieve the seal.
"After Princess Xi Yue's accidental death, those old subordinates loyal to her also became disheartened."
Long Ye looked at Chu Qianli, his voice hoarse several times, almost unable to speak.
Chu Qianli immediately massaged him to relax him, and it was only after a while that he managed to catch his breath.
"Because with Princess Xi Yue's death, the Empress's bloodline was severed. Even if everyone was unwilling, they were powerless."
"I understand." Chu Qianli nodded, her heart heavy.
Without the royal bloodline, it meant there was no leader, and how could they continue to fight?
Even if they fought, they didn't know what for.
What was the point of avenging the Empress? In the future, who would become the new Empress?
Although Long Tian Liu was the main culprit, she was at least of the Long royal family.
At least, she had more qualifications to be Empress than anyone else.
Therefore, with Long Xi Yue's death, the loyal old subordinates became disheartened and dispersed.
It was truly a sigh-inducing situation.
However, if her grandfather was telling her all this today, was it because...
Chu Qianli looked at him and finally mustered the courage to ask, "Then... am I truly... Long Xi Yue's daughter?"