When I stopped licking, the lady panicked.

Luo Qingxue trembled and lowered her head without saying a word.

Soon, the carriage arrived at the entrance of the Prime Minister's residence.

"Father, why have we come to your residence?" Luo Qingxue asked.

Luo Zongfu said, "Let's tidy up for now."

The coachman pulled back the curtain and said, "Your Excellency, please."

Luo Zongfu nodded and said to Luo Qingxue, "You may leave now. I have something to discuss with the young master."

Luo Qingxue glanced at Lin Xuan and silently got off the carriage.

After the curtain was closed, only Lin Xuan and Luo Zongfu remained in the carriage.

"What does the Left Prime Minister want to discuss with me?" Lin Xuan asked.

Luo Zongfu looked at Lin Xuan expressionlessly and said, "Did Lin Jiangxian ever tell you anything about His Majesty before he died?"

Lin Xuan asked, "What, does the Left Prime Minister think my father is plotting a rebellion?"

Luo Zongfu said, "No, I just want to know how much you know about the relationship between your Lin family and the royal family."

"The relationship between our Lin family and the royal family?" Lin Xuan frowned. "What makes you say that, Left Prime Minister?"

Luo Zongfu narrowed his eyes, stared at Lin Xuan for a long time, and said, "It seems you don't know these things."

"Your Excellency, please speak frankly; there's no need to beat around the bush," Lin Xuan said.

Luo Zongfu said, "Some things need to be said by His Majesty; I have no right to say more."

As he spoke, Luo Zongfu glanced outside, then changed the subject, asking, "What do you think of Qingxue?"

The sudden change of topic caught Lin Xuan off guard.

Is Luo Zongfu's thinking really that jumpy?

"She is knowledgeable, sensible, and intelligent; she is truly a remarkable woman," Lin Xuan said.

Luo Zongfu nodded and asked, "When did you meet her?"

"It's been about a month," Lin Xuan replied.

Luo Zongfu said, "You should know her identity."

"Of course, Third Prince's Consort," Lin Xuan said.

Luo Zongfu said, "Since you know this, then you should think things through. Although the Third Prince and Qingxue do not get along, she is still the Prince's consort after all."

Upon hearing this, Lin Xuan's heart trembled.

This Luo Zongfu seems to know everything.

"Take care of yourself." Luo Zongfu left these words before getting off the carriage.

Lin Xuan frowned, said nothing, and silently followed the carriage down.

After entering the Prime Minister's residence, Luo Zongfu arranged for the maids to serve Lin Xuan by bathing and burning incense.

After Lin Xuan finished packing, he took a carriage into the palace.

Led by the chief eunuch, Lin Xuan entered the court. The civil and military officials on both sides were in neat rows, looking quite majestic.

"Greetings, Your Majesty." The chief eunuch knelt down and kowtowed.

Facing the emperor who sat high on the dragon throne, Lin Xuan merely clasped his hands and bowed, without kneeling.

This scene greatly displeased the civil and military officials.

"Lin Xuan, why do you not kneel before His Majesty?" a civil official stepped forward and rebuked.

Lin Xuan glanced at him and asked, "And who are you?"

The civil official said, "I am the Minister of Rites, a second-rank official of the imperial court."

"I am the heir of the Prince of Zhenbei. The late emperor granted our Lin family the power to obey orders but not summons, and also the power not to kneel before the emperor. You, a mere second-rank official, dare to point at me, the heir of the Prince of Zhenbei? You are not worthy!" Lin Xuan retorted without any politeness.

The Minister of Rites was stunned and looked at Lin Xuan in disbelief.

He never expected that Lin Xuan would dare to speak like that in the imperial court, in front of all the civil and military officials and the emperor.

That's incredibly arrogant!

"You...you are utterly rebellious!" the Minister of Rites roared.

Lin Xuan said, "I am committing treason? Does the Minister of Rites mean that the late Emperor's decree is no longer valid?"

"I..." The Minister of Rites was speechless on the spot, his face turning red with anger.

The emperor on the dragon throne watched all this quietly, a meaningful smile curving his lips.

"Enough. Lin Xuan is the heir of the Prince of Zhenbei, and naturally has the right not to kneel," the emperor said.

Seeing that the emperor had spoken, the Minister of Rites, no matter how dissatisfied he was, could only swallow his anger.

The emperor looked at Lin Xuan and said, "Minister Lin, you truly live up to your reputation as a descendant of the Prince of Zhenbei. You really showed your skills in this martial arts competition."

"I previously appointed you as the new Prince of Zhenbei, but unfortunately you are busy preparing for the martial arts examination and cannot spare the time."

"Now, my dear minister, shouldn't you be ready to take over the position of Prince Zhenbei?"

When Lin Xuan saw the emperor bring up the matter in front of all the civil and military officials, he knew that he would not be able to get away with it this time, so he said, "Your subject will obey Your Majesty's decree."

The emperor smiled and said, "In that case, I hereby appoint you as the new Prince of Zhenbei. A grand investiture ceremony will be held on a chosen date, and you will assume office immediately."

"Your Majesty, I thank you," Lin Xuan said.

The emperor nodded and said, "Do any of you ministers have anything else to report? If not, then let's adjourn the court."

Seeing that the civil and military officials had nothing to report, the emperor adjourned the court.

Lin Xuan turned and walked out of the court, but was stopped by the chief eunuch as soon as he stepped out.

"Young Master Lin, His Majesty needs your assistance," said the head eunuch.

Lin Xuan asked, puzzled, "Is something wrong? Why didn't you say so in court just now?"

The chief eunuch smiled and said, "This humble servant does not know. Please, Your Highness, accompany this old servant to His Majesty's palace."

Lin Xuan nodded silently and followed the chief eunuch to the emperor's bedroom.

Unexpectedly, even after the emperor returned to his palace and took off his dragon robe and changed into casual clothes, he still did not remove his crown.

This made Lin Xuan particularly curious.

Is that thing really that good? They didn't even take it off after court.

"Your Majesty, Lin Xuan has arrived," the head eunuch announced.

The emperor nodded and told the chief eunuch to leave first.

The chief eunuch left the emperor's bedroom and closed the door behind him.

Once the two of them were alone in the room, the emperor turned to Lin Xuan and asked, "Are you Lin Xuan, or Lin Daoxuan?"

This nonsensical question left Lin Xuan momentarily stunned.

Lin Daoxuan? Isn't that their Lin family's ancestor? Could it be that Lin Xuan's appearance has reverted to his ancestral form?

Lin Xuan replied, "Your Majesty, I am Lin Xuan."

The emperor gave him a meaningful look and said, "It seems he is really dead. I thought he had actually found a way to become an immortal."

Lin Xuan frowned, thinking: What exactly is the emperor talking about? What does he mean by "he is really dead"? Who does this "he" refer to? Lin Daoxuan? But as the ancestor of the Lin family, Lin Daoxuan has been dead for hundreds of years.

Seeing Lin Xuan's blank expression, the emperor smiled slightly, no longer dwelling on the topic, and instead asked, "Did you go to Langhuan Pavilion and the Wanzhen Medicine Warehouse?"

Lin Xuan shook his head and said, "Not yet."

"Then you can go ahead and choose your favorite martial arts techniques and elixirs." The emperor waved his hand.

Lin Xuan was somewhat bewildered after hearing this.

That's it? What was the point of him calling me here then?

But after all, he was the emperor, and Lin Xuan did not yet have the power to overthrow the Daqing Dynasty. Therefore, he could only choose to pretend to be a loyal subject.

"Yes." Lin Xuan bowed and turned to leave.

The emperor stared expressionlessly at Lin Xuan's departing figure, when suddenly a meaningful sneer flashed in his eyes.