Father, who is both a heir and a descendant, is still biased; the bound system has gone berserk.

Lin Ling trembled, clasped his hands together, and knelt down with a thud. "I owe Princess Anguo a great debt of gratitude. As long as Princess Anguo does not ask me to betray the country and deceive the emperor, I will obey Princess Anguo's orders."

Ying Yufu laughed. "How could I possibly call you a traitor and a deceiver of the emperor? I just want to tell you to be loyal to the emperor and love your country."

The fact that the Lin State Duke's Mansion remained as stable as Mount Tai amidst the upheavals in Bei Xuan in the previous life shows that the Lin State Duke's Mansion was extremely adept at protecting itself.

Forging a good relationship with Lin Shi now is also a good choice.

Lin Ling was taken aback. He quickly glanced at the Crown Prince, then bowed and kowtowed. "Please rest assured, Your Highness and Princess Anguo, my family and I, the Duke of Lin's Mansion, swear to serve His Majesty, Bei Xuan, and Your Highness the Crown Prince to the death."

Ying Yufu smiled with satisfaction.

The Crown Prince said, "I understand the loyalty of Prince Lin. Please rise."

Lin Shizi stood up and looked at Ying Yufu and the Crown Prince with awe.

Who says princes don't live long?

With a goddess-like figure like Princess Anguo by his side, how could His Highness the Crown Prince not live to a ripe old age?

Let alone living to be a hundred years old, living to be two hundred years old is also possible, right?

Lin Shizi lowered his eyes. The Lin State Duke's Mansion had always been neutral and low-key, not taking sides or forming factions, yet it held real power and acted discreetly.

But he suddenly realized that the reason why the Duke of Lin's mansion kept a low profile was because it neither favored the second prince nor the crown prince.

Why does my father keep to himself and rarely interact with anyone?

This time, he unwittingly incurred a great favor from Princess Anguo, and the Linguo Duke's Mansion will probably no longer be able to act discreetly.

Lin Shizi smiled bitterly to himself, hoping that his father wouldn't beat him to death when he returned.

At that moment, loud shouts and cries rang out from outside.

"The beautiful young lady is taking the stage—"

Then came a melodious and cheerful tune.

Musicians, including qin players, drummers, and pipa players, took to the stage.

The private room where Ying Yufu and her group were located had a perfect view of the scenery on the high platform outside.

A petite and nimble girl flew up to the high platform, her long silk ribbons fluttering in the wind, and her white skirt making her look like she was ascending to heaven.

She landed on the high platform as if weightless, standing on one leg like a golden rooster, her hands raised, like a celestial being descending to earth.

Her small face, no bigger than a palm, was covered by a pure white veil, and her dark, cloud-like hair was adorned with silver headdresses, making her look like a snow fairy.

The crowd erupted in excitement.

The music suddenly became more exciting, and Jiaqi swayed her slender waist and danced gracefully.

In an instant, apart from gasps, there was no other sound from the crowd.

Everyone was captivated by Jiaqi's dance.

Ying Yufu was no exception.

This wasn't the first time she'd seen Jiaqi dance, but she was still filled with admiration and envy; Jiaqi's dancing was truly amazing.

She used to think Xiangxiang's dancing was amazing, until Jiaqi appeared.

Just as she was immersed in the joy of the dance, a voice suddenly rang in her ears: "Fu'er has openly bribed the entire Lin family for me. Doesn't this count as forming a clique for personal gain? Guess what Father Emperor will think when he finds out?"

Ying Yufu was startled and her eyes widened. "Your Highness, please don't talk nonsense. We have not formed any cliques. I just want the Duke of Lin's Mansion to take Your Highness seriously."

The Crown Prince's eyes curved into a smile as he said, "This matter must not be known to Father, otherwise I fear he will be too pleased and abdicate in my favor. At that time, we will lose our freedom."

Ying Yufu's pupils dilated.

What is the Crown Prince saying?

If His Majesty knew, would he really abdicate?

Will His Highness the Crown Prince become the Emperor?

Wouldn't that mean being confined to the Hall of Diligent Governance?

That's horrible!

Ying Yufu suddenly realized that being an emperor was not a good job either.

It's not even as good as free trade.

Her expression was more serious than ever before: "Your Highness, His Majesty must not know about this."

The crown prince couldn't help but chuckle. "I hope so."

Ying Yufu said worriedly, "I really didn't mean to win over the Duke of Lin's mansion. It's just that I can't see through them. In my dream... they were all too well, which made me curious."

The Crown Prince nodded and said, "I know. Everything Fu'er has done is for me and for Bei Xuan."

Ying Yufu's heart stirred; the Crown Prince understood her.

"Hmm." She gave a haughty "hmm," then turned her head to stare at the high platform in front of her, but could no longer concentrate on Jiaqi's dance.

When the music stopped, the beautiful young woman finished her dance and then began another.

Chi Yue and Lin Shizi were both watching absentmindedly.

Ying Hengzhi had been secretly observing Ying Yufu all along.

Shangguan Fei was in high spirits, praising the dance repeatedly, becoming the only one in the private room who was completely absorbed in watching it.

Even Shangguan Sheng couldn't help but glance at Ying Yufu with curiosity from time to time.

He also discovered that Ying Yufu possessed extraordinary abilities.

After the dance ended, other songs and dances were performed on the high platform, and the crowd gradually became noisy again.

Most of the discussions revolved around the dancing of young women in their prime.

And discussions about Jiaqi's appearance.

Because Jiaqi has never unveiled her face.

After leaving the private room, Ying Yufu and her group walked to the lobby on the first floor. A group of people pushed and shoved a young man out of the Red Sleeve Pavilion. The man was disheveled and did not get angry after being hit. He simply got up from the ground, dusted off his clothes, and stood there indifferently.

"Yuan Jingchen, I thought you had a temper. Why didn't you fight back after being hit? You're just playing the victim here, but nobody's going to stand up for you."

A rather arrogant voice pushed through the crowd of onlookers and walked over.

Those who had pushed and shoved the young master earlier greeted him respectfully.

"Second Young Master."

Yuan Shuohai waved his hand, walked directly to Yuan Jingchen, looked him up and down, and sneered, "My dear brother, look at your pitiful appearance. Your clothes are all worn out. If outsiders see you, they'll think our Yuan family has mistreated you."

No wonder Miss Jiaqi glanced at you twice just now.

Yuan Jingchen gave Yuan Shuohai a cold stare.

At this moment, a subordinate whispered a reminder: "Second Young Master, the Master instructed you to keep a low profile when you come out."

"Where have I not been low-key?" Yuan Shuohai scoffed, glancing at Yuan Jingchen opposite him. "The one causing trouble is clearly my good brother. Didn't you see even Miss Jiaqi handing him the flowers she was holding?"

The subordinate said, "Second Young Master, there's no need to be angry. Miss Jiaqi must have taken pity on him, that's why she glanced at him."

"That's true, after all, my good older brother has a handsome face that attracts girls, but what good is that?"

She's just a pathetic wretch who relies on others' pity.

Yuan Shuohai mocked.

A hint of anger flashed in Yuan Jingchen's eyes.

"Who are they?" Ying Yufu asked.

The Crown Prince said, "They are members of the Yuan family from Fengzhou. One of them is the son of Yuan Bujin, the military commander of Fengzhou, from his first wife. The other, who is more domineering, is the second son of his current second wife."

Ying Yufu nodded; it turned out he was the son of a local official.

She didn't pay any more attention to it. After all, as long as they didn't cause trouble at Hongxiu Pavilion, whatever they did in private was none of her business.

Just then, Yuan Jingchen glanced indifferently at Yuan Shuohai, then turned and left.

That one glance ignited Yuan Shuohai's anger, and he threw a punch, sending Yuan Jingchen flying.

As luck would have it, Yuan Jingchen bumped into Ying Yufu and her group.

Judging from the angle, it doesn't involve Ying Yufu and the Crown Prince, but rather Shangguan Fei is in danger.

Shangguan Fei's expression remained unchanged. She reached out and helped Yuan Jingchen up, asking in a deep voice, "Are you alright?"

Yuan Jingchen closed his eyes, turned around, and met Shangguan Fei's beautiful and heroic eyes.

He was startled.