Princess, she is the one who facilitated the extradition.

The next morning, the emperor slowly woke up and stretched his arms and legs.

After bringing the person back last night, Li Deshun had been curled up on the footstool, keeping watch. Hearing movement on the bed, he quickly got up and asked, "Your Majesty, are you awake?"

The emperor glanced at him and said, "Go back to your room and sleep. If you get sick at your age, I won't be able to explain it to Zhuzhu."

"This old servant is fine."

Li Deshun bowed slightly and cautiously inquired, "Did Your Majesty sleep well last night?"

"not good."

The emperor sat up, looked around, and said, "Tell the crown prince to attend the morning court session today."

Li Deshun hurriedly bowed and went out, instructing the eunuch outside to relay a message to the Crown Prince.

Inside the room, the emperor looked around again but didn't see the clothes that Gui Yao had bought for him the night before.

He could only ask Li Deshun, "Did I go out again last night?"

Li Deshun nodded.

"Did I bring anything back?"

Li Deshun's eyes flickered, and he lowered his head, saying, "Last night His Majesty went to see Miss Gui Yao again. She bought you a dress and gave you a hairpin."

"Um."

The emperor threw off the covers and got out of bed. "Where are the things? Bring them here."

The item had been hidden by Li Deshun in the outer palace, but he quickly retrieved it.

"Does Your Majesty wish to wear this?"

He wanted to help the emperor get dressed.

The emperor waved his hand and put it on himself. He looked at himself in the mirror and a warm glint appeared in his eyes.

The hairpin was a woman's style, and it was inappropriate for him to use it in the palace, so he hid it in his sleeve.

Li Deshun lowered his head, but caught a glimpse of this scene out of the corner of his eye, and he knew the answer in his heart.

His Majesty was sober last night. If he hadn't been unable to find the things the young master had sent, His Majesty would have continued to pretend in front of him.

He said that the young master's spiritual power could not possibly fail.

The emperor looked at himself in the mirror for a long time, then suddenly stared at him intently.

"De Shun, remember whose people you are. Don't say a word you shouldn't."

Li Deshun's back stiffened, and he immediately prostrated himself on the ground, "This old servant dares not."

The emperor snorted, "Alright, you don't need to work today, take a rest."

Li Deshun was filled with trepidation. Although His Majesty treated him well, he knew that serving the emperor was like walking on thin ice. He dared not think or speak any further and withdrew from the emperor's bedchamber.

When he was alone in the room, the emperor walked to the dressing mirror, raised his hand and touched his clothes as if he were touching something extremely precious.

"My daughter is angry with me."

Last night, he asked his daughter if he could visit her again.

His daughter simply flicked her sleeve and knocked him unconscious.

He gave a bitter smile at himself in the mirror. "She can still get angry, which means Zhuzhu still cares about her father."

Otherwise, Zhuzhu wouldn't show him any emotion.

"It's understandable that Zhuzhu is angry. Father, as the king who rules the world, couldn't even protect his own daughter."

He took the hairpin from his sleeve. "If it weren't for that old bastard Deshun's strange behavior, Father might not have recognized you even now."

"The person who harmed you hasn't been found, and this concerns the peace between two countries..."

The emperor sighed heavily as he looked in the mirror, "I cannot acknowledge you yet, nor do I have the face to do so."

He carefully tucked the hairpin into his sleeve, and with only two eunuchs by his side, strolled into the Empress's palace.

It was court time, and his sudden appearance caught the palace servants of Fengyi Palace off guard, who hurriedly made announcements.

The Empress, still asleep, was startled upon being awakened. "His Majesty has arrived?"

As she was speaking, the Emperor lifted the curtain and entered. The Empress quickly rose and curtsied, "Is Your Majesty feeling unwell?"

As long as the emperor was not ill, he attended court without fail and never slacked off, which is why she asked this question.

"I am fine."

The emperor dismissed the palace servants and sat down in a chair. "The crown prince is not young anymore; he should gain more experience."

"Your Majesty has worked hard for half your life, and the Crown Prince should share your burdens."

The Empress rose and dressed, a smile playing on her lips. Her gaze lingered on the Emperor for a moment. "Your Majesty, are you dressed to leave the palace today?"

"I'm not going out."

The Emperor looked at the Empress with a smile, "Did Zhuzhu buy this dress for me?"

"Zhuzhu'er? She's back from delivering something to Nanyao?"

"No."

The Empress, suspicious, took two steps closer to examine the garment.

"The material is ordinary, and the workmanship is ordinary. It looks like a ready-made garment bought from an outside shop."

"This must have been bought by Zhuzhu for His Majesty before, right? None of the things she's had sent back to Dasheng over the years have been cheap."

The emperor neither denied nor said much, but smiled ambiguously and said, "No matter how expensive it is, isn't it still money we sent?"

"What's wrong with Your Majesty today?"

The Empress looked him over carefully. "Why are you still angry with your own sweetheart?"

The emperor also gazed at the empress, thinking, "What a sweetheart she is, while she's suffering outside."

"It's nothing, I just miss Zhuzhu'er."

The emperor withdrew his gaze, "From now on, there is no need to send anything to Nanyao anymore."

Why?

The Empress's smile faltered slightly. "Did Zhuzhu do something to displease His Majesty?"

"My Zhuzhu is the best daughter in the world, what could she possibly do to me?"

The emperor straightened his cuffs, his fingertips casually touching the hairpin. "It's just that I plan to bring her back. Now that she's home, there's no need to send anything over."

"So that's how it is. Your Majesty almost frightened me."

The Queen patted her chest, then a worried look appeared on her face. "What about the alliance between the two countries? Will Nan Yao agree to it?"

"If Xiao Huaijin were to become my son-in-law, our two countries would be related by marriage, wouldn't that be better than him being a hostage?"

"His Majesty intends to marry Baozhu to Xiao Huaijin?"

The Empress was taken aback. "Baozhu has always been a woman of her own mind. Would she agree to this?"

"If I marry Xiao Huaijin, wouldn't I have to stay in Nanyao all the time? I can't bear to part with him."

"I can't bear to part with him either."

The emperor sighed. "Therefore, I plan to take the owner of Xuanji Tower as my goddaughter. Coincidentally, Xiao Huaijin is fond of her."

"The master of Xuanji Tower?"

The Empress frowned slightly. "I've heard that person's background is unknown, and she doesn't seem to respect the royal family much. What if she sides with Nan Yao in the future..."

"Does the Empress have a better method?"

The Emperor's voice grew harsher, "My Zhuzhu has sacrificed so much for the Great Sheng Dynasty. Now she's twenty-one and still all alone. I feel guilty and want her to come home as soon as possible. Don't you, as her mother, miss your child?"

The Empress could tell that the Emperor was angry, so she could only say, "How could I not miss her? I will obey Your Majesty's will."

"Since you've taken her in as your goddaughter, you, as her mother, have to show your appreciation. You need to maintain appearances and not let Nan Yao look down on you."

The emperor straightened his robes again. "Alright, you'd better get ready. I'm going to take a stroll elsewhere."

He didn't wander around anymore and went straight to the Council Hall.

The Crown Prince sat upright in the secondary seat, listening to the ministers below discuss and present their arguments.

The emperor strolled over and said, "The crown prince is grateful to the owner of Xuanji Tower for saving so many people, and has decided to recognize her as his sister."

I just discussed it with the Empress, and she was very pleased and plans to give a generous gift of personal money as a greeting gift.

"Since the Empress and Crown Prince are so kind, I am not one to be stingy with rewards. I will simply adopt her as my goddaughter and bestow upon her the title of Princess Xuanji. What do you all think?"

This bestowal of honor came so unexpectedly that not only the ministers but even the crown prince were stunned.

"Father, I didn't..."

Your son never said he wanted to adopt a god-sister.

The emperor looked at him with a kind and benevolent expression. "Doesn't the Crown Prince feel grateful to her?"

I'm somewhat grateful, but I can't accept being treated like a younger sister...

But how could I go into details in front of all the ministers?

Looking at the emperor's expression, he realized that his father was using him as a pretext to bestow a reward upon Gui Yao.

Fine, let her be rewarded then. She did indeed do well last time.

The emperor patted the crown prince's arm. "I know you are fair in your rewards and punishments, but I can't rely solely on you and the empress's confidants."

Gui Yao saved the people of Dasheng, so the national treasury should also contribute. Let's renovate that abandoned house in the east of the city and bestow it upon her as her princess residence.

The Crown Prince, "..."

Does he still have to offer his own personal secrets?

"His Majesty……"

A courtier stepped forward to object, saying, "Royal titles are governed by law. For someone not of royal blood to receive the title of royal adopted daughter creates confusion regarding hierarchy..."

"I caught a cold last night, and now I have a terrible headache."

The emperor interrupted him, "You should discuss this matter with the crown prince in detail. If it makes sense, the crown prince will naturally adopt it."

However, one should not underestimate the Crown Prince's authority as heir apparent simply because he has not yet ascended the throne.

After saying this, the emperor rubbed his temples and slowly walked away, supported by a young eunuch.

The minister who was about to object looked at the Duke of Zhenguo, who shook his head slightly, and the man retreated.

The faction of the Duke of Zhenguo supports the Crown Prince. The Emperor publicly stated that this was the Crown Prince's idea, and the Crown Prince did not object. How could they object to their future emperor?

The Duke of Ningguo remained silent.

After Gui Yao left last night, he had his son and daughter-in-law's bodies sent to the temple overnight. He told the outside world that his son had accompanied his daughter-in-law to seek medical treatment in another city, giving his wife and children some time to adjust, and that he would announce the news of their death later when the time was right.

As dawn approached, Gui Yao returned Wang Cirong's body to the Ningguo Duke's Mansion, leaving behind the message that she was tired and asked the Duke's Mansion to help dispose of it.

In reality, it was to make him understand that Xuanji Tower would not use Du Shao's matter to blackmail the Ningguo Duke's Mansion.

The Duke of Ningguo was grateful to Gui Yao, and now, seeing the Emperor's attitude, he became even more certain of Gui Yao's identity.

She is a princess, why should he stop her?

Therefore, when Gui Yao woke up, she received an imperial decree that she had become a princess, and the emperor even bestowed upon her the house where she had been hiding in the black robe.

Gui Yao grabbed the hairy egg and said, "Let's go take a look inside the house."

Just as he stepped out of Xuanji Tower, a lame man, carrying something, knelt down before him with a thud. "May I ask if you are the living Bodhisattva, Miss Guiyao?"

Gui Yao sized him up; he appeared to be in his early thirties, covered in injuries. She nodded. "It's me. What do you want?"

Holding up what he was carrying, the man cried, "Please, living Buddha, save my mother and help her get justice!"

Gui Yao then realized that the man was holding a memorial tablet...