She accidentally flirted with the villain and was fiercely criticized as the regent for forcibly mar

Xiao Che put down his teacup and went over to her, holding her on his lap. His aloof demeanor revealed his doting affection.

Jiang Ruining buried her face in the crook of his neck and took a deep breath.

It smells so good!

She absolutely loved the taste!

She wrapped her arms around his neck, tilted her head, and asked, "Xiao Che! Do you like me? The kind of liking a man has for a woman?"

Xiao Che was stunned.

I didn't expect her to ask, and to ask so directly.

His steady heartbeat suddenly quickened, and he gave a low "hmm": "I am a man of integrity. If I am not moved, I cannot be moved by love."

Jiang Ruining made many small gestures, touching his hair, his ears, and pinching the back of his neck. There was no lust or teasing involved; it was just a pure enjoyment of touching him. "What about that time at the Duke of Lu's mansion?"

That was their first time.

Xiao Che had disliked being touched since childhood, but he liked her little gestures. He felt at ease being surrounded by a strange yet comfortable feeling. Upon hearing this, he coughed lightly and said, "You are beautiful. The medicine is very strong."

Jiang Ruining chuckled to herself.

The original owner must have gone to great lengths to change his fate.

"I never would have guessed that our Regent Prince is such a superficial person!"

Xiao Che said seriously, "I'm not that kind of man!"

"Oh?" Jiang Ruining's tone rose slightly. "Then since you've taken advantage of me, why don't you propose to me?"

Xiao Che pinched her delicate, pretty nose in annoyance: "Who's taking advantage of whom here?"

"You're changing the subject!" Jiang Ruining said in a muffled voice, "Did you overhear my criteria for choosing a husband?"

Xiao Che scoffed, "Weren't you saying it on purpose for me to hear?"

"Yes!" Jiang Ruining readily admitted, "I wanted to be your husband, but I can't share my man with anyone else, neither physically nor emotionally!"

"So you don't bring it up because I don't ask, just because you want to enjoy life to the fullest with me?"

Xiao Che denied it: "No."

Jiang Ruining didn't reply, but simply raised an eyebrow, waiting for him to explain.

Morning light streamed in through the light blue window screen, and the countless pale gold and crimson petals of phoenix flowers flew into Xiao Che's eyes, stirring up a complex mix of emotions.

There was a long silence.

He spoke in a deep voice, "If I took a concubine, but didn't touch her, would you accept it?"

"No way!" Jiang Ruining shook her head firmly. "Once she's in the mansion, she's just waiting for you to secure the child's position! If you don't touch her, won't she go home and complain? Take Grand Tutor Xu for example, can he tolerate it?"

"Besides, once you enter the household, your status will be legal and compliant. Those noble ladies are all incredibly talented. Spending every day together, who knows if you won't be tempted!"

This is the world of novels.

The male protagonist made a vow to the heavens for the female protagonist, promising to be with her for life.

Why can't the regent be one?

Isn't it reasonable that a cold-hearted and chaste man like him, who only has one wife and is too lazy to deal with other women, would only have one wife?

In any case, she would never accept sharing a husband with another woman, and she didn't want to be endlessly entangled in palace intrigue in the future.

Cutting off the relationship will be painful, but things will always get better!

At worst, I can just move to another place, date a few handsome men, and distract myself!

"A man's heart is too big, it can hold too much. Marriage and romantic relationships only occupy a tiny corner, too easily abandoned and sacrificed. I won't gamble my whole life on this!"

Xiao Che had anticipated her answer. It would be a lie to say he wasn't disappointed, but the woman's eyes and brows seemed to tell of the bitterness of her past life. The sweetness after meeting him was too faint. When they were intertwined, the beautiful color became like the moonlight falling from the new moon, thin and ultimately unable to cover up the past sorrow.

It's only natural that she loves herself.

So, he didn't dare ask her whether she liked him or not.

"If a concubine enters the household and commits a capital crime, it will implicate her close relatives. They dare not complain; they will only try to conceal it and pretend that they are favored!"

Jiang Ruining thought this method was good, but he was afraid that the other party wouldn't follow his plan: "Women from aristocratic families are mostly shrewd and capable. If you don't make mistakes, what can you do?"

"We can't possibly use those low-class tricks of the little emperor to scheme and lead them to make mistakes, can we?"

"Xiao Che, you can be ruthless and heartless, but I don't want to see you treat people like that, especially women. I can't help but suspect that if one day you stop liking me and find me an eyesore, you will also scheme against me in the same way."

She leaned down and hugged him.

The last sentence has a somber tone.

The book only describes his interactions with the young emperor and the male protagonist in detail to show his almost supernatural intelligence, thus highlighting his ability to deal with and restrain the male protagonist. It does not describe his private methods.

But the methods of the main villain are never exactly honorable!

"I'm scared!"

Xiao Che caught her emotions, hugged her tightly, and lowered his head to kiss her eyebrows and eyes: "Don't be afraid of me. If you don't want me to do something, I won't do it."

Even if I have no choice but to do it, I won't let her know.

She doesn't like it, so it won't reach her ears.

"Besides Madam Xu, I will appoint the other concubines. Naturally, the ones I choose will be either inherently despicable or have already taken someone's life."

"Jiang Ruining, would you be willing to go to any trouble for me?"

Listening to his plan, Jiang Ruining felt that the possibility of monopolizing him was indeed quite high, but...

She doesn't like to prematurely assume a certain identity.

If a woman is too proactive, a man won't appreciate her.

Only when he goes to great lengths and goes to great lengths to propose will she realize how much she cherishes him!

"After you've arranged everything, I'll consider whether to agree. Anyway, I'll just say this: if you touch another woman, or develop feelings for another woman, then it's over between us."

"You know, whatever I want to discover, no matter how well the Regent can act or pretend, I can still find out!"

Xiao Che replied calmly and firmly, "Okay, I will handle it well and show enough sincerity to propose to you."

Jiang Ruining had never experienced such love and respect in either of her lives, and she thoroughly enjoyed it: "But what if I can't give birth to a son?"

She plans to have one or two children, after all, they are both so beautiful and incredibly intelligent, it would be a waste not to have them!

However, he couldn't control whether a child was a boy or a girl, and he also had a throne that needed to be inherited!

Tsk, this is difficult!

Xiao Che dismissed it, saying, "The Tang Dynasty had an empress, and the Great Zhou Dynasty can also have a crown princess!"

He didn't hesitate, didn't regret, and didn't mention having another child. It was as if he wasn't talking about the throne, but about the inheritance of pots and pans, which surprised Jiang Ruining.

The Great Zhou Dynasty had never had a female emperor. Men were high and mighty, treating their wives and daughters as possessions and appendages. In such a country, a crown princess... she, a person from the modern era, never dared to dream of it!

"Do you really think so?"

Xiao Che's eyes showed no obsession with power: "Initially, I fought for survival and revenge. Later, I fought because someone dared to snatch things from me. What belongs to me, I can give away, but I cannot take! If I don't wipe out those villains, I'll lose face!"

"The throne!"

His Highness the Regent snorted coldly.

"I don't care! Since they are my flesh and blood, both men and women are entitled to inherit!"

Jiang Ruining: "..." It's not even close to being settled yet, and they're already talking about having children!

She's making it sound like she's already given birth!

But hearing it really warmed my heart!

To prevent him from becoming arrogant, she cleared her throat and said with a hint of doubt, "Once you have real power, things can get complicated! Power and ambition can corrupt the heart!"

Xiao Che was struck by her clarity of mind.

But what can we do?

All I can do is pamper her, indulge her... and love her!

"I haven't been corrupted, so you can't preemptively accuse me of a crime."

Jiang Ruining shook his head, adopting the air of an old scholar, and said, "Alright! I'll grade you based on your performance! Excellent, Good, or Less than Excellent." He patted his shoulder, "Your Highness, Regent, keep up the good work!"

Xiao Che listened to her ranking system and found it intriguing: "So, what rank am I at now?"