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

Lin Qinglian was furious, annoyed, and frightened. As she paced back and forth, a glint suddenly flashed in her eyes.

"Summon the imperial physician and tell him that I am suffering from a severe headache and request that the imperial physician, Su, come and take a look."

She feigned illness, causing Yong'an to make a huge fuss. Even if she angered the emperor, she could use her headache to clear herself of all blame.

At the same time, despite the persuasion and obstruction of Haitang and the palace servants, Yong'an insisted on coming to the Hall of Mental Cultivation.

"Please trouble Eunuch Hua to convey my request for an audience."

Hua Ershisan, an elderly man, looked somewhat old, but his eyes were sharp. He served as the chief eunuch, serving in the inner palace and wielding great power. He had an eccentric personality. Given the emperor's trust in him, he should have been qualified to be the director of the Eastern Depot. However, the aloof and unapproachable Hua Ershisan adopted Wei Wujiu as his godson.

Many officials speculated that Wei Wujiu's rapid rise in rank within a decade of entering the court was due not only to his valiant military achievements but also largely to the assistance he received from his adoptive father, Hua Ersan.

At this moment, Hua Ershisan, supported by a young eunuch, slowly stepped out of the hall, gave Yong'an a perfunctory bow, and said in a high-pitched voice, "This old servant greets the Princess. The Princess has come at an inopportune time; His Majesty is currently discussing matters with his ministers."

"At this critical juncture, this old servant dares not rashly disturb them."

The implication was that the emperor was busy, and if Yong'an wanted to wait, he should step aside and not block the way; if he didn't want to wait...

Hua Twenty-Three said with a forced smile, "Princess, if this old servant is not mistaken, it seems that the Eldest Princess punished you by confining you to your quarters. It's only been a few days, hasn't it been time to lift the confinement?"

Yong'an was at a loss. Originally, she respected Hua Niansan very much because of Wei Wujiu's relationship with Hua Niansan, but for some reason, this old eunuch had never been very fond of her.

"What you say is absolutely right, but I... have urgent business to attend to and need to see the Emperor as soon as possible."

Yong'an took a step back, and his humble attitude was excellent.

Hua Ershisan chuckled and sighed, "Then I'll trouble you, Princess, to wait a moment."

As he spoke, Hua Ershisan even ordered the little eunuchs to bring chairs and stools so that Yong'an could sit and wait.

But this was the Hall of Mental Cultivation, the imperial palace, and the emperor was inside. Yong'an dared not slack off or be lazy. She hurriedly declined and led Haitang and the other palace servants to the side.

After waiting for three incense sticks to burn, and seeing that the sky had darkened, the ministers gradually left the palace.

Yong'an watched longingly and saw Wei Wujiu among them. She wanted to call out to him, but she couldn't be impolite, so she could only bite her lip and watch with a heavy heart as Wei Wujiu strode away with the ministers surrounding him.

"Princess, this way please."

Hua Niansan also walked towards Yong'an at the opportune moment, nodding slightly as if to invite him.

Yong'an hurriedly responded, but as soon as he took a step, he realized that he had been standing for too long. His legs were sore and numb, and the pain almost made him fall. Fortunately, Haitang helped him, and he finally managed to enter the palace.

The air was filled with the gentle fragrance of sandalwood incense, and the temperature was pleasantly warm.

The palace maids were carefully arranging the meal, and stacks of exquisite delicacies were placed on a small table under the desk in the main hall.

The emperor sat on the dragon couch behind his desk. Perhaps it was the magic pills from the sorcerer or Taoist priest that had worked, but the old emperor, who had been listless, looked radiant these past few days. His improved complexion also put him in a much more relaxed mood.

"Yong'an is here. You still have the temper of a child. You couldn't stand being confined to your quarters by Anyang, so you ran away to find me?"

The emperor casually leaned against the dragon-patterned Shu embroidered soft pillow, and waved kindly to Yong'an to rise. He then raised his chin and pointed to the small table, saying to himself, "Fine, I'll release you from confinement. Sit down and have dinner with your uncle."

Yong'an is the daughter of a prince and is related to the royal family; she is the emperor's niece.

Upon hearing this, Yong'an breathed a sigh of relief, especially when she heard the Emperor refer to himself as his Imperial Uncle, which showed that he was in a good mood. In addition, there were no ministers in the hall, so she smiled and bowed, saying, "Yong'an thanks Imperial Uncle."

Amidst the Emperor's laughter, she was urged to take her seat. After the palace maids had served the dishes and the eunuchs had checked each dish with silver chopsticks to ensure it was not poisonous, the Emperor began to eat. Only then did she respectfully begin her meal.

"Yong'an has been back in the capital for quite some time now, and has met with the ladies of the capital. I heard the other day that you had a quarrel with Grand Tutor Lin's eldest daughter, and that some absurd things happened. Is that true?"

The emperor ate slowly, swallowing his food before asking a question as casually as if it were everyday.

Yong'an lowered his head, about to put down his chopsticks and rise to pay his respects, but was stopped by the emperor: "No need for that. I am now your imperial uncle, there is no need for such formality."

Yong'an thanked the Emperor and said, "Uncle, there are hidden reasons for this. I have also been wronged. It is truly that Lin Wantang is extremely arrogant and rude. Relying on the Emperor's bestowal of marriage, she showed no shame whatsoever for insisting on breaking off her engagement with the Crown Prince, and even thought it was perfectly justified!"

The emperor frowned. The ginseng, shark fin, and duck soup nearby tasted particularly good, so he couldn't help but drink some more. He gestured for Hua Ershisan to get another bowl before saying, "Oh? Is that so? But..."

Lin Rucong was a former official of the previous dynasty who held military power. He led the three armies on a northern expedition as soon as he came of age and made great contributions. He was also granted the title of Marquis of Pingjin and a certificate of merit by the previous emperor.

This is what is commonly known as the "get-out-of-jail-free card".

Logically speaking, such a minister, after the emperor led troops in rebellion and usurped the throne, would surely be executed by various means, just like Lin Rucong's colleagues in the previous dynasty. However...

Lin Rucong's achievements were too great, and he was too popular. After the emperor seized the country, he wanted to stabilize the country, so he had to win the support of the people. He could not and could not kill him immediately. When Lin Rucong saw that the previous dynasty was doomed and his generals and soldiers had suffered heavy casualties, and that he alone was powerless to turn the tide, he made a painful decision to submit to the emperor.

The emperor immediately stripped him of his title of Marquis of Pingjin, but did not reclaim the imperial edict granted to him by the previous dynasty. Instead, he kept a close watch on him and monitored him at every turn. But a year passed, then three years...

To this day, apart from his active remonstrances in the past two years, which aimed to clean up the court and eliminate treacherous officials, Lin Rucong has made no mistakes. He has not formed cliques with former officials, has not plotted rebellion, and has not accepted bribes. He has not even placed his cronies in any of the important positions in the court.

Thus, no matter how much the emperor disliked or disliked him, or how many doubts he had, he had no choice but to let him be. Besides, Lin Rucong had been getting old and unwell for the past two years, and had been staying home to recuperate.

Even so, Lin Rucong was like a wolf or python that had shed its fangs and claws. The emperor both feared him and wanted to use him to enjoy his old age and demonstrate his benevolence.

Therefore, the emperor was reluctant to interfere in the affairs of the Grand Tutor's residence, nor did he want to create unnecessary complications. After a moment's thought, he said, "Grand Tutor Lin is a kind and approachable man. He served two dynasties with integrity and incorruptibility, which is evident to all. With a father like him, how could he raise a daughter who is shameless and ignorant of propriety?"