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

Only in this way could Lin Wantang barely manage to carve out a little breathing space.

In her home, where she was in charge, no one could exploit or manipulate her anymore. It was a safe haven where she could feel secure and protected from the storms of life.

Yong'an finally understood and, feeling deeply for Lin Wantang, hugged her tightly: "I didn't understand you before. I blindly believed others and even regarded you as a thorn in my side. Lin Wantang, I offended and belittled you..."

Lin Wantang was stunned for a moment, not expecting Yong'an to realize her mistake in time and admit it. After a moment, she came to her senses and hugged Yong'an back: "Princess is kind-hearted, and I have never blamed you."

"Then let's not stand on ceremony. We've reconciled, haven't we?"

Yong'an released her, smiled, tilted her head back, and concealed the moisture in her eyes: "From now on, let's call each other sisters in private."

Lin Wantang was also somewhat moved, and nodded with a smile: "This humble woman is apprehensive, but it is my great honor to become sisters with the princess. Princess, please forgive me for being so disrespectful."

Yong'an burst into laughter through his tears and grasped Lin Wantang's hand tightly.

The two exchanged a smile and let bygones be bygones, but then there was a knock on the door. Wei Wujiu pushed the door open and came in with a few folded sheets of paper in his hand. He glanced at Yong'an and Lin Wantang's clasped hands, having overheard their conversation outside.

Wei Wujiu remained unfazed, his expression still cold and composed. He handed the few pages of paper to Yong'an: "Now that we've laid it all out, I also have a few things I should frankly state."

"Princess, please take a look at these first."

"What's this?" Yong'an asked in confusion. He took the book and opened it without looking away from Lin Wantang. They looked at it together, but in an instant, both of their faces froze.

Those few pages were not rubbings, but letters written by Shen Huai'an himself several years ago.

The other party was an envoy from the northern frontier.

The contents of the letters were all about ceding territory and paying reparations, and even included the matter of a marriage alliance!

"Back then, the barbarian tribes in the northern frontier rebelled, intending to raise an army to march north and slaughter the Central Plains. At that time, our dynasty had been fighting for years, and our military strength was depleted. The national treasury was running out of money, and it was feared that we could no longer sustain the war. The northern frontier was also aware of this. Since their barbarian troops were also insufficient, they wanted to occupy the territory of the three northern provinces of our dynasty. They specially sent envoys to discuss a ceasefire."

In other words, the northern barbarians only wanted land, money, and food; they never mentioned marriage alliances or even considered the daughter of the emperor of the Central Plains.

At that time, Shen Huai'an, who had just taken over the court, actually recruited many ministers and advocated a ceasefire and peace talks, even at the cost of ceding territory and paying reparations, in the name of bringing peace, stabilizing the court, and benefiting the people.

The words were as beautiful and eloquent as could be, and they even seemed to make some sense, but they did not consider at all the cession of territory and payment of reparations. How humiliating it was for a great nation to bow down to the barbarians of the northern frontier!

Moreover, while Shen Huai'an was aggressively lobbying the emperor, he was also eager to appease the envoys. He even proposed to take the initiative to arrange a marriage alliance, but because the princesses were too young, the choice of the marriage alliance fell to Yong'an, who was only twelve years old at the time.

At the age of twelve, Yong'an was only one or two years older than the princesses. She had to shoulder the heavy responsibility of a marriage alliance and travel far away from home at such a young age. She could not disgrace the integrity of the court, but also had to find ways to deal with the barbarians and make them retreat.

Yong'an carefully read every page of the letter, looking at each word over and over again. Finally, her hand trembled and she let go, allowing the pages to flutter away. Her staggering and trembling body then collapsed to the ground.

"I……"

As soon as Yong'an opened his mouth, his broken voice became hoarse and indistinct: "I always thought... that the barbarians forced us with force and took the initiative to propose a marriage alliance..."

Unexpectedly, Barkhahan had no intention of seeking a marriage alliance. It was Shen Huai'an who, in order to consolidate public support, maintain his position in the court, and remain aligned with the peace-seeking ministers, secretly contacted the envoys and offered a marriage alliance.

It was Shen Huai'an's idea; it was Shen Huai'an who personally delivered his cousin Yong'an into the hands of the barbarians!

Yong'an was so shocked that her face paled, and tears streamed down her face without her realizing it. She slowly touched her arm, then hugged herself tightly, thinking about the nights that Baal Khan had tormented her, and the humiliation and trampling she had suffered at the hands of those barbarians...

She thought she was sacrificing herself for the court and the people, and that it was all worth it to bring about a peaceful and prosperous world. No matter how angry or resentful she was, she could only endure it and keep it bottled up. Even if it tormented her to the point of changing her personality, she could only blame herself for being unworthy of the task. But the result was unexpected... It wasn't the barbarians' fault, but Shen Huai'an's deliberate act!

"Princess? Princess, please don't be like this. Cry, cry it all out, don't hold it in..."

Lin Wantang was very empathetic and hugged Yong'an tightly with heartache, wanting her to cry out loud and vent all the grievances she had been holding in, which would be better than Yong'an being like this.

Yong'an bit her lip, trying to hold back the tears that silently streamed down her face. She trembled as she patted Lin Wantang, saying, "Go...go out...I'm fine...let me have some peace and quiet..."

"Princess, let me stay with you. I don't need to say anything; just let me keep you company..."

Lin Wantang also thought of her past life. At that time, her state of mind was almost the same as Yong'an's at this moment, so she didn't quite know how important it was to have someone by her side.

Seeing Yong'an's near-collapse yet still forced composure, Wei Wujiu sighed helplessly and turned to leave without saying anything. But then Yong'an asked, "R-really? These letters..."

"The handwriting is genuine, and I would never dare to mock the princess."

Wei Wujiu replied, and Yong'an nodded to him, signaling him to leave.

After that, the room returned to silence. Yong'an stopped talking, and Lin Wantang remained silent, simply holding Yong'an's hand and staying by his side.

The two sat in silence for a long time, until the sky outside gradually brightened.

Yong'an's turbulent thoughts recalled the various events in the northern border region during the years of the marriage alliance. The vivid memories were so painful that she could no longer hold back and broke down in tears, covering her face.

Lin Wantang patted her back repeatedly, wiped her face with a handkerchief, and comforted her again and again, saying, "It's all over, Princess, it's all over..."

"I can't get through this!" Yong'an gritted his teeth in anger and resentment, each word almost dripping with bitter blood, each utterance filled with tears, each sound a lament: "How could I possibly get through this! If Baal Khan hadn't died, what would become of me? I would still be tormented and humiliated by him, humiliated and tortured by his concubines, day and night, I would only suffer a fate worse than death!"

Royal relatives are not allowed to commit suicide without an imperial decree. Yong'an is deeply bound by etiquette and law, and no matter how painful it is in the Northern Frontier, she will not choose to take her own life. What awaits her then?

They live worse than pigs and dogs, and in the end, they will only be brutally tortured to death!

And all of this is thanks to Shen Huai'an!

"Shen Huai'an! I must kill him!"