Having many children brings many blessings; the struggle for power begins with marriage.

After regaining her senses, Ji Yunmeng quickly took the imperial edict from the eunuch who delivered it.

The eunuch was about forty years old, with fair skin and a cautious and respectful demeanor typical of palace eunuchs. He stood to the side with his head bowed.

The eunuch then continued, "Your Highness, if there is nothing else, this servant will return."

Suddenly remembering something, Ji Yunmeng asked, "Was this imperial edict given to you by His Majesty, or did the Empress Dowager send it to you?"

Nowadays, Emperor Zhou has very few trusted eunuchs around him. The eunuchs around him have been replaced one after another. Every once in a while, the eunuchs around him would die or disappear inexplicably. This has left him in a state of loneliness in the palace. Therefore, Ji Yunmeng has no way of knowing whether the eunuchs who come to the palace are Emperor Zhou's people or the Empress Dowager's people.

Upon hearing Ji Yunmeng's question, the eunuch seemed to understand what Ji Yunmeng wanted to know. After all, they were both from the palace, and this eunuch wasn't stupid. He directly said, "Your Highness, this is the imperial edict that I received from His Majesty."

As he spoke, he bowed slightly, his tone respectful, but his eyes quickly scanned his surroundings, as if he were on guard against something.

After confirming that the imperial edict came from Emperor Zhou, Ji Yunmeng was basically certain that her father truly supported her standing on the side of the Zhennan Prince's Mansion.

This means that his father and the empress dowager have different positions, at least from the current perspective. It seems that the last imperial edict was written under the pressure of the empress dowager.

Is his father now planning to use the Prince of Zhennan's mansion to counter the Empress Dowager's faction?

only……

Her father, the Emperor, should know that the Zhennan Prince's Mansion is already in dire straits. The Zhennan Prince's Mansion only has one heir. If Lu Chen dies, the Zhennan Prince's Mansion will fall apart, and the Empress Dowager's faction will definitely try every means to get rid of Lu Chen.

After Lu Chen dies and the Zhennan Prince's Mansion disappears, wouldn't her father's situation be even worse?

Just as Ji Yun was lost in thought, the eunuch's voice came again, "Your Highness, is there anything else you wish to discuss?"

He kept his hands hanging down, a polite smile on his face, though there was a hint of caution in that smile.

Ji Yunmeng came to her senses and said, "It's alright, you can go back now."

The eunuch who delivered the imperial decree then said, "This servant takes his leave."

As soon as he finished speaking, the eunuch delivering the imperial decree turned and left the princess's residence.

Ji Yunmeng glanced down at the imperial edict in her hand. The Empress Dowager's order to confine her to her quarters was only verbal, but her father had specially issued an imperial edict to lift the confinement order. This was clearly to antagonize the Empress Dowager.

This was, after all, an imperial edict issued by Emperor Zhou. The Empress Dowager couldn't possibly continue to confine Ji Yunmeng against the edict. Of course, the most important point was that this edict also showed Emperor Zhou's stance, that is, he was also on the side of the Zhennan Prince's Mansion.

To be honest, Ji Yunmeng really didn't expect that the Zhou Emperor would support her at this time. He had been trapped in the palace and was in a very bad situation. However, even so, he still issued an imperial edict to lift her confinement order, which was already a direct confrontation with the Empress Dowager.

The Empress Dowager will definitely retaliate, and many more people will probably die in the palace.

……

Although Emperor Zhou was already a puppet emperor, there were still many people in the palace watching his every move.

The news of Emperor Zhou's decree lifting Ji Yunmeng's confinement had reached the ears of the court officials, including Empress Dowager Pei Shuhua, in less than an hour.

The Empress Dowager's bedroom.

Inside the hall, calming sandalwood incense burned, and wisps of smoke rose from the gilded Boshan incense burner, swirling in the dim light.

Pei Shuhua sat on the soft couch, her face gloomy. She wore a dark red, wide-sleeved palace dress, with intricate intertwined floral patterns embroidered in gold thread on the collar and cuffs. At this moment, there was not a trace of a smile on her beautiful face, and her eyes revealed a coldness.

She did not expect that the Zhou Emperor would step forward at this time and even issue an imperial edict to Ji Yunmeng, ordering her to lift the confinement order.

The fact that Emperor Zhou lifted Ji Yunmeng's confinement order means that Emperor Zhou supports Ji Yunmeng, which means that Ji Yunmeng's initial actions were indeed at the behest of Emperor Zhou.

Thinking about it this way, Emperor Zhou really wanted to use the power of the Prince of Zhennan's Mansion to counter the Empress Dowager's faction.

Pei Shuhua sneered, then looked in the direction of the Wanshou Hall and muttered to herself, "Looks like he thinks he's all that again."

Her voice was not loud, but it sounded exceptionally clear in the silent hall. The candlelight beside her swayed gently in the night breeze, making her shadow on the screen behind her appear somewhat blurry.

At this point, Pei Shuhua looked at the kneeling eunuch in the main hall and said, "His Majesty would never do something so disobedient to me. Investigate and see if any villains have said anything they shouldn't have in front of His Majesty. Find them and deal with them."

The eunuch lay prostrate on the ground, his forehead pressed against the cold gold brick, his body trembling slightly, and only dared to reply with a single "Yes."

Emperor Zhou has been silent for a long time. Whether in terms of his personal strength or his influence in the court, he is far inferior to Pei Shuhua. Therefore, Pei Shuhua does not believe that he would suddenly act so impulsively.

She remembered that the last time Emperor Zhou wanted to assume personal rule, he had made what he thought were perfect preparations before suddenly taking action.

The fact that Emperor Zhou jumped out this time either means that he has lost his mind and believes that he can rely on the Prince of Zhennan's mansion to bring down the Empress Dowager's faction, or that someone said something to him that made him feel that the time was ripe, so he jumped out to confront her.

In Pei Shuhua's view, the reason why Zhou Huang dared to jump out was more likely because he had the support of certain people, which made him feel that he was in control again, so he had to conduct a thorough investigation.

……

The Prince of Zhennan's Mansion.

Moonlight spilled into the courtyard, casting a faint white glow on the bluestone floor. The lanterns under the eaves swayed gently in the night breeze, casting shimmering shadows.

Lu Chen was walking towards his room when a female bodyguard appeared behind him. She was dressed in a dark, tight-fitting outfit, with a thin face and sharp eyes. She knelt silently in the shadows and whispered, "Young Master, there is some news you might be interested in."

Upon hearing this, Lu Chen stopped and turned to look at the female bodyguard, asking, "Oh? What news is it?"

The moonlight shone on his young face, his brows and eyes showing a thoughtful expression.

The female bodyguard said directly, "Emperor Zhou has issued an imperial edict, lifting Princess Yun'an's confinement order."

Hearing this, Lu Chen was slightly taken aback.

Did Emperor Zhou lift Ji Yunmeng's confinement order?

How long was the lockdown before it was lifted?

The Empress Dowager's confinement of Ji Yunmeng was clearly intended to prevent Ji Yunmeng from helping the Zhennan Prince's Mansion. However, only a few days later, Emperor Zhou lifted the confinement. Doesn't this mean that Emperor Zhou was actually on Ji Yunmeng's side?

It seems the Zhou royal family isn't of one mind either.

Just as Lu Chen was pondering why the Zhou Emperor would do this, another female bodyguard appeared in the courtyard. She was also dressed in a tight-fitting outfit and had a cold expression. She knelt on one knee and said, "Your Highness, the King requests your presence in his room."

Lu Chen said, "Okay."

Lu Chen then went to the room of the Prince of Zhennan, where more than a dozen people had already gathered.

Several large candles were lit on the square table in the center of the room. The orange light illuminated the faces of the people sitting around the table. They were the advisors and retainers of the mansion, each with a solemn expression.

Upon seeing Lu Chen arrive, everyone made way for him to stand before the Prince of Zhennan.

The Prince of Zhennan leaned against the headboard, covered with a thin blanket. His face was so pale it was almost bloodless, his lips were dry, and his eyes were sunken. Only his eyes still retained some of their former sharpness.

Lu Chen asked directly, "Father, did you summon me because of something important?"

The Prince of Zhennan coughed heavily a few times, the sound particularly jarring in the quiet room. He coughed so hard that his body hunched slightly. A servant beside him quickly handed him a handkerchief, which he took and used to cover his mouth before asking, "You should know that Emperor Zhou has lifted Princess Yun'an's confinement order, right?"

His voice was hoarse, weak from illness, yet he still tried his best to remain calm.

Lu Chen said, "I just heard it from the guards."

The Prince of Zhennan asked, "What do you think?"

Lu Chen said, "Emperor Zhou may want to use the power of the Prince of Zhennan's Mansion to counter the Empress Dowager's faction. He wants to return to the court."

The Prince of Zhennan said, "According to the information gathered by the secret guards, Emperor Zhou sent a message to Princess Yun'an, saying that Princess Yun'an's affection for you is not wrong, which proves that he does not object to Princess Yun'an being with you." After saying this, he couldn't help but cough.

Lu Chen's mind went blank for a moment.

Is there such a good thing?

However, Ji Yunmeng did not love him; she only wanted the power of the Zhennan Prince's Mansion.

At this moment, a powerful expert at the Earth Realm in the room spoke up, saying, "With this imperial edict from Emperor Zhou, the situation may become even more unfavorable for the Zhennan Prince's Mansion."

The man was about fifty years old, with a short beard, wearing a gray cloth robe, and a thin face. At this moment, his brows were furrowed, and he said in a deep voice, "The Empress Dowager's faction certainly doesn't want to see the Zhennan Prince's Mansion and Emperor Zhou join forces, so they will definitely do something bad to the Zhennan Prince's Mansion next, especially to the Heir Apparent." (End of this chapter)