After being forced into a marriage with a wealthy family, the virtuous wife caused a huge uproar.

A female merchant, secretly protected by bodyguards?

Could it have been arranged by Gu Ce?

If Gu Ce made the arrangements, why would he come here on his own? That doesn't make sense.

If it wasn't arranged by Gu Ce, then it must have been prepared for her by the Rong family.

Damn Su, didn't he instruct her to only allow Rong to bring one maid and three servants into the Duke's mansion?

How did the Su family handle things?

It seems this accidental turn of events led Gu Ce to marry a wife who is not easy to deal with.

The original plan was for the Su family to marry Gu Ce a merchant's daughter to humiliate him, but instead, they married him a helper.

Yuwen Yi's anger, which had subsided, surged again uncontrollably: "Return to the capital."

These two words struck the young men he had brought with them like cold, hard stones.

Rong Yingluo had never ridden a horse like this before, and she was really tired. After applying the medicine, she fell asleep immediately.

Gu Ce had no choice but to gently lift her onto the carriage.

But just as they were about to leave, the stable manager came looking for them.

"Lord Gu, um..." The steward was a little embarrassed to speak, but he had to find Gu Ce because of his duty.

"What is it? Just say it." Gu Ce saw Rong Yingluo frown and knew that being held was uncomfortable.

"Young Madam Gu cut the ropes of the suspension bridge, and we need money to repair it." The steward said with a forced smile, his meaning quite clear.

"How much do you want?" Yinghong raised her chin, just like Rong Yingluo when she threw money at people.

"Miss, it will cost five hundred taels." The manager cupped his hands in greeting.

"Here you go." Yinghong generously took out five one-hundred-tael silver notes from her bosom and tossed them to the steward.

The young lady has no shortage of money.

Zhong Sheng felt a pang of regret; why didn't they try to bargain? Three hundred taels would have been enough at most.

Gu Ce carried Rong Yingluo all the way to the carriage, then gently laid her down so that her back wouldn't touch his lap.

On the carriage, Yinghong recounted the events of the day in detail.

Gu Ce's cold face grew even darker.

The Crown Prince had indeed deliberately come to the horse farm to cause trouble for his wife.

At this moment, Gu Ce was even more determined to obtain the position of Prime Minister.

If Minister Gao becomes prime minister, the crown prince's power in the court will be even stronger.

The emperor will become even more powerless.

Back at the manor, Gu Ce had the carriage drive directly to the inner courtyard gate, and then carried the person into the Silver Willow Courtyard.

Rong Yingluo woke up as soon as she put him on the bed.

She turned her eyes and saw her familiar bedroom, realizing that she had returned to the mansion.

She had never slept so soundly before.

When did she let her guard down?

Could it be because she knows Gu Ce is by her side?

It seems that trust will naturally grow between two people who spend a lot of time together. Fortunately, they are not enemies, but partners.

"You're awake?" Gu Ce asked with concern when he saw her open her eyes. "Are you still in pain?"

"A little bit, but bearable." Rong Yingluo was not a delicate woman.

Then came the sound of my stomach growling.

"Hungry?" Gu Ce's tense face finally relaxed a little.

"Hmm, what time is it now? I'm starving."

They hadn't had lunch. She had intended to have some snacks in the carriage, but she ended up sleeping all the way back to the mansion.

"This servant will go and bring the food right away." Granny Zhu didn't know when the young lady would return, but she still sent a maid to bring the food back and keep it warm.

After the two finished their meal together, someone from the palace came and led them directly to the Silver Willow Courtyard by Granny Zhu.

"Miss, this is Aunt Lin, the steward of Consort Yu."

"Greetings, Lord Gu, and Madam Gu. Our Lady and Princess specially sent me to deliver this palace-grade ointment to Madam Gu. If you use this ointment, the wound will not leave a scar if it is not deep." Aunt Lin bowed respectfully and presented a bottle of ointment.

"Please thank Consort Yu and Princess Jinyang for me." Rong Yingluo asked Granny Zhu to put it away.

The fact that she arrived so quickly means that Princess Jinyang told Consort Yu about today's events as soon as she returned to the palace.

After delivering the gifts, Aunt Lin took her leave.

"Husband, what do you think of Consort Yu?" Rong Yingluo asked.

Today's incident has already openly offended His Highness the Crown Prince, and the fact that Princess Jinyang and Consort Yu sent her medicine so quickly shows that they are willing to befriend her.

Aren't they afraid of offending the Crown Prince?

"Princess Jinyang is the youngest child of the current emperor. Before she was born, Nanxia was hit by a major flood, with torrential rains lasting for a month. On the day she was born, the sky suddenly cleared up. Whether it was a coincidence or not, Princess Jinyang was a blessed girl in the emperor's heart."

Therefore, neither Consort Yu nor Princess Jinyang will fall out of favor during the Emperor's reign.

The Crown Prince threatened Princess Jinyang with the marriage proposal today because she is currently the only princess who is not married, which is why she is so afraid.

"If the Western Jin Kingdom insists on a marriage alliance before signing a non-aggression pact, the Emperor, considering the bigger picture, might indeed send her off for a marriage alliance," Gu Ce explained.

"I see. Father was guarding the border that bordered the Western Jin Dynasty."

"That's right. The Western Jin state has been making moves lately. Father has already submitted a memorial requesting an increase in grain and warhorses," Gu Ce said, referring to the political affairs discussed at the morning court session.

"Why are there always wars at the border? Can't we all live in peace?" Rong Yingluo sighed.

"There are many reasons. Our Southern Xia Kingdom is located in the south and is rich in resources, so it is naturally coveted by other countries. Therefore, they want to occupy our Southern Xia land whenever they have the chance."

No emperor doesn't want to unify the world, become a great emperor for all time, and be revered by future generations. Therefore, as long as their national strength is sufficient, they want to launch wars to invade other countries.

When a country encounters a natural disaster and is at its weakest, it is the best time for other countries to send troops.

Once deep-seated hatred develops between the two countries, wars will continue incessantly. Gu Ce explained these political matters to Rong Yingluo with great insight.

As soon as Gu Ce said that, she understood.

"So it seems that unifying the world is actually better for the people," Rong Yingluo said after thinking for a moment.

"That's true, but to unify the world, one has to go through countless wars. That process is extremely cruel. No monarch wants to be the ruler of a fallen kingdom," Gu Ce said with amusement.

Main courtyard.

Gu Qingya was terrified by Rong Yingluo's performance. Her mother had sent her along today to cause an accident for Rong at the horse farm, to make her fall half to her death, or better yet, to die. But instead, she won first place in her first competition.

His Highness the Crown Prince therefore arranged for her to compete against Chen Ying.

As soon as the Crown Prince mentioned returning to the capital, she hurried back to her residence and told her mother what had happened.

"Mother, Rong Yingluo is not human." Gu Qingya said with heartfelt emotion after finishing her story.

"Is the Rong family really that powerful?" Su Jingyi asked with a cryptic expression.

"Mother, I'm not making this up. There were many people there at the time, and everyone saw it." Gu Qingya felt admiration for Rong Yingluo at this moment.

A woman, on her very first day of learning to ride a horse, was able to compete on the horse track used for martial arts examinations.

Is she a god or a demon?

"Has His Highness the Crown Prince really admitted to the bet?" Su Jingyi asked incredulously.

The Crown Prince has already admitted that Rong cheated, yet he still accepted the bet money; this is not normal.