Forcing me to become a concubine? Remarrying the Ninth Prince, she'll be pregnant all over the

The emperor put down his jade teacup, took the brocade handkerchief presented by Wei Wujiu, and touched the corner of his mouth.

"I understand you, and I also understand why others say I am incompetent and that you are treacherous and sycophantic..."

The emperor seemed lost in thought, recalling something. He shook his head slightly with a wry smile, and then, with Wei Wujiu's help, rose and paced around the hall.

"But haven't we, you and I, still managed to protect this land and its people? Haven't the barbarian tribes on the borders still bowed their heads in submission and returned the land? Bar Khan was brave and skilled in battle, plotting to make a comeback, but what was the result?"

The emperor thought that after he ordered Wei Wujiu to recover the northern frontier, he would slowly plan to make the Khan of Bal Khan die without anyone knowing. This would not only solve the long-standing problem in the northern frontier, but also support the Khan of the northern frontier with the demeanor of a great power. Furthermore, he did not pay too much attention to the fact that Princess Yong'an was being bullied after the death of her husband, which showed the emperor's magnanimity and benevolence.

This can be described as achieving multiple benefits in one fell swoop.

The emperor smiled and grasped Wei Wujiu's hand tightly: "There have been no wars in the court these past two years, but only you know the difference between these unseen battles and the battlefields where lives are shed and blood is spilled."

"No wonder I am so cruel and tyrannical. It is for the sake of my people and for the sake of several decades of peace and prosperity. The Khan of Bal must die. It is also his fault for being careless. All's fair in war..."

The emperor sighed deeply, "But in my heart, I always feel guilty towards Yong'an; she's only fifteen."

Keeped in the dark, Yong'an had no idea why her husband had died, why she had been targeted and humiliated in the northern frontier, or where the emperor's plan was in her long-awaited return to the capital.

Wei Wujiu remained calm, took a step forward and bowed: "Your Majesty, I am unworthy and dare not claim credit for the country and the people. All my actions are for Your Majesty. Your Majesty is the one who truly cares about the country and the people, a ruler of unparalleled brilliance for all ages."

After obsequiously finishing his flattery, he changed the subject: "Your Majesty, this humble subject has another matter to humbly request Your Majesty's grace..."

Meanwhile, outside the Brocade Palace, the drizzling rain had not stopped; instead, a strong wind swept through, and the rain intensified.

Lin Wantang remained kneeling outside the hall, shivering uncontrollably from the cold. Two incense sticks' worth of time had passed, and not only were her legs numb with cold pain, but her entire body was also ice-cold and in excruciating pain.

Fortunately, suddenly, the eunuchs and palace maids serving outside the palace gathered and headed towards the palace gate.

"Princess Anyang has arrived!"

Listening to her father-in-law's propaganda, Lin Wantang could no longer hold on, and her disillusionment suddenly vanished.

Princess Anyang is the emperor's eldest sister. She is quite old and has been away on official business in Jiangnan for several years. How could she suddenly appear in the palace?

Lin Wantang was surprised and wondered if she had missed any information.

"How is Yong'an these days? I heard she's suffering in the northern frontier. Her father and I were like siblings for many years, and now that he's gone, I miss her dearly. That's why my husband persuaded me to return to the capital to visit her..."

Princess Anyang was a bit older and walked slowly. She was supported by her nanny as she walked towards the palace while talking to Haitang.

"This servant dares to thank the Princess on behalf of the Princess. The Princess is doing well, but she misses the Princess dearly and has often mentioned it to us in private."

An Yang smiled, and was about to ask the nanny for a reward when his gaze fell on Lin Wantang kneeling on the ground. He asked, "What... is this for?"

Upon hearing the words, Lin Wantang turned to the Princess before Haitang could, and bowed respectfully, saying, "This humble woman, Lin Wantang, greets the Princess."

"Lin Wantang?" An Yang was taken aback. "You're Grand Tutor Lin's eldest daughter?"

"It is indeed my daughter."

An Yang smiled kindly upon hearing this. She had no pretense with Grand Tutor Lin, but the Imperial Son-in-Law had received great kindness from Grand Tutor Lin, so he would naturally treat his daughter differently. Just as she was about to step forward to help Lin Wantang up, Yong An led people out of the palace.

"You bunch of scoundrels! Have you no eyes? It's raining so hard, why aren't you inviting the Princess into the palace?"

Yong'an scolded the servants, then approached the Princess with a coquettish smile: "Yong'an greets the Princess and Aunt. Yong'an was unaware that Aunt had returned to the capital. When was that? Why didn't you inform Yong'an?"

"It is against the rules that I did not travel with the Prince Consort, so I only informed the Emperor."

An Yang offered a brief explanation, then lovingly took Yong An's hand and waved to Lin Wantang, saying, "What are you kneeling here for? The wind and rain are heavy; how can you be so careless with yourself? Get up."

Lin Wantang nodded in gratitude, but instead of rising, she kowtowed again: "This humble woman has offended the princess. My inappropriate attire has offended the princess's taboos. I should stay here to cool off and reflect on my mistake."

This seems like an explanation, but it's actually a complaint.

An Yang's expression froze for a moment, then he looked at Yong An with a hint of disapproval: "Did you break any taboos with your attire? Yong An, have you been acting recklessly again?"

"No way! It's clearly her..."

Before Yong'an could continue her argument, Lin Wantang interrupted her with a respectful voice: "Your Highness is renowned, and the Princess has not wronged me. However, the Princess's embroidered shoes were indeed an abrupt and offensive act against Your Highness."

"Huh? What nonsense are you talking about..."

Yong'an was surprised and wanted to refute, but when she looked down at the shoes she was wearing, she saw that they were indeed embroidered with two white rabbits. The princess's zodiac animal was the rabbit, and it was taboo in the palace to have zodiac animals embroidered on clothes, especially shoes, to avoid offending any master.

It has the malicious intent of deliberately trampling on people's zodiac signs to bring them bad luck.

Yong'an lived in the northern frontier for three years, and soon after returning to the palace, he neglected this matter.

"No, Aunt, these shoes were embroidered when I was in the Northern Frontier..." The more she explained, the worse it got. Even if the shoes were embroidered when she was in the Northern Frontier, Yong'an couldn't forget the ancestral rules and taboos in the deep palace.

Yong'an was filled with resentment and glared at Lin Wantang. He felt that she was doing it on purpose. The seemingly meek old man was kneeling here to accept punishment, but in reality, he was waiting for an opportunity to take revenge and get his revenge!

Lin Wantang made no attempt to hide her feelings, kneeling with her back ramrod straight, coldly meeting Yong'an's gaze before bowing to the Princess: "Your Highness is magnanimous and may feel that the Princess was unintentional and therefore not hold it against me. However, the headdress I wear is made of jade from Chenzhou, not jade from Dongling. I hope Your Highness and the Princess will understand!"

This makes it clear that if Princess Chang doesn't hold Yong'an's unintentional mistake against her, she should first consider that Yong'an deliberately distorted the truth and humiliated Lin Wantang. How should this debt be settled?

An Yang was in a bit of a dilemma, and she also felt that the emperor's sudden summons to Jinxiu Palace at this time was mostly to have her use the Lin Wantang incident to give Yong An a good warning.

But when An Yang thought of Yong'an's deceased father and the years of suffering during the marriage alliance, he couldn't bear it and said, "Look at the mess this has made. Lin Wantang's mistake was unintentional, and Yong'an's mistake was also unintentional. Let it go, get up quickly."

As she spoke, An Yang gestured for the palace servants to hold an umbrella for Lin Wantang, and she also stepped forward to help Lin Wantang up.

Do you really think you can just let things slide with such a trivial matter?