On our wedding night, my wife acted strangely.

This move, which cuts off the enemy's supply lines, is undeniably ruthless.

In a country, the military is the fist, while the civilian government is the brain and body.

Now that the brain and torso have collectively gone on strike, what use are fists alone? If this continues, the entire Great Zhou Dynasty will inevitably descend into chaos.

Sun Fu also felt that something was amiss.

Why would Liu Wentao suddenly lead a strike? This old gentleman has never handled problems this way before.

"Your Majesty, please calm your anger. Take care of your health..."

Nangong Xiong had long since had enough of the same old platitudes.

"Calm down, calm down! What's the use of all this nonsense? Give me some advice!" Nangong Xiong became angrier as he spoke.

He certainly knew why these ministers were on strike.

It's all because Lin Yi cut off their source of income, which made them resentful.

But what could he do? He was now a puppet emperor, and he had to listen to whatever Lin Yi said.

If that gambling ban hadn't been issued, he might not even be able to afford food now.

Instead of causing trouble for Lin Yi, these ministers put all the pressure on the emperor. This is simply outrageous!

"Your Majesty," Sun Fu said, "this old servant believes that this matter requires further consideration. 'Prime Minister Liu and his associates have cultivated their influence in the court for many years, with their protégés and former officials spread throughout the land, their influence is deep-rooted. Now they are united in their cause and have gone on strike together. If we force them, it may backfire.'"

"So you mean you want me to bow down to them? To rescind the gambling ban and get rid of Lin Yi?" Nangong Xiong sneered. "Hmph, if I could do that, would I need them to go on strike?"

Sun Fu immediately knelt down: "This old servant dares not. This old servant only feels that the one who tied the knot must untie it. The root of this matter still lies with Lin Yi. Perhaps... this old servant could go to the Regent's Palace and act as an intermediary to persuade him. Let him restrain himself a little for the sake of the country. As long as Lin Yi is willing to make concessions and give Prime Minister Liu and the others a way out, I'm sure they won't dare to really abandon their responsibilities."

Upon hearing this, Nangong Xiong tapped the armrest.

Should we send Sun Fu to persuade Lin Yi?

Will this work?

If Lin Yi were a reasonable person, he wouldn't have ended up in this situation. Besides, when has this traitor ever cared about the country and its people?

However, it seems that there is no other way to go at present except for this method.

We can't just let the imperial court remain paralyzed like this, can we?

"Sigh..." Nangong Xiong sighed again.

In the past two weeks, he has sighed more times than he has in the twenty years since he ascended the throne.

"Fine, go and try. Tell Lin Yi that it's my order, and that he shouldn't push things too far. As long as he's willing to let Liu Wentao and the others return to court, we can discuss any conditions."

"This old servant obeys the order." Sun Fu accepted the command and respectfully withdrew.

To be honest, he didn't think he could convince Lin Yi.

The reason he volunteered was simply to take this opportunity to probe Lin Yi's true intentions.

Since regaining consciousness, this young man's behavior has become unpredictable. Everything he does seems reckless, but upon closer inspection, it reveals a deeper meaning.

Sun Fu had a premonition that this collective strike by civil servants might not be a crisis for Lin Yi at all.

Even... this might be exactly the result he wanted.

With these mixed feelings, Sun Fu boarded the sedan chair that led out of the palace and headed towards the Regent's Palace.

......

The Prince's Mansion, Garden.

Nangong Min, dressed in a light purple palace gown, stood by the pond, absentmindedly scattering fish food into it.

The koi fish swarmed around her, leaping and splashing at her feet, creating ripples.

But her mind was not on that at all.

She had been married into the royal family for several days now, and had been carefully playing the role of a virtuous and obedient princess, not daring to make the slightest mistake, for fear of displeasing Lin Yi.

Fortunately, Lin Yi was relatively polite to her.

Although they weren't exactly a loving couple, they at least treated each other with respect, never made things difficult for her, and even entrusted her with managing all the household affairs.

This is an immense trust.

So these past few days, Nangong Min has been busy handling household chores and getting familiar with all the procedures. Today, she finally had some free time, so she came to the pond to calm her mind.

But people tend to overthink when they have free time.

Especially for newlywed wives like Nangong Min.

She was a little homesick.

It's not that the Prince's Mansion wasn't her home, but rather that she missed her mother, Consort Yang Siyu, very much.

She's been married for so long without any news; her mother must be terribly worried.

I wish I could go back and visit...

"Sigh." Thinking of this, Nangong Min sighed slightly, losing even the interest in feeding the fish. She simply threw all the fish food in, not caring whether the fish would die from overeating.

"Why does Madam sigh?" Lin Yi walked over, accompanied by Yi Fei and Mi Mi.

Nangong Min quickly turned around and gave him a graceful curtsy.

"My husband."

Lin Yi was dressed in a black casual outfit today, looking very approachable. He pulled Nangong Min to sit down at the stone table and said, "I've already told you, there's no need for so much formality at home."

Nangong Min nodded, deeply moved: "Yes, I will obey my husband."

"You always say that, but I've never seen you do it."

"Um... I will try my best." Nangong Min lowered her head somewhat shyly.

The ideas of Confucius and Mencius are deeply rooted in her heart; it's not so easy to change them.

Lin Yi waved his hand: "Fine, whatever makes you happy."

He picked up an apple and tossed it in his hand: "I heard you sigh earlier, is something on your mind?"

"no."

"Are you not used to living in the Prince's mansion?"

Nangong Min shook her head: "No, my husband treats me very well, and the servants in the mansion are all very respectful."

"Why is that?" Lin Yi's gaze fell on her face.

Nangong Min felt a little flustered under his gaze. After hesitating for a moment, she decided to tell the truth.

After all, it's very difficult to outsmart Lin Yi.

"This concubine... just misses her mother a little." She raised her head to meet Lin Yi's gaze, her eyes pleading. "Husband... may this concubine return to the palace to see her mother?"

Before Lin Yi could answer, she bowed again and said, "I know this request is impolite, but if my husband does not grant it, I will never consider it again..."

What's so special about that?

In Lin Yi's modern view, isn't it reasonable for a wife to go back to her parents' home if she misses them?

"Go ahead," Lin Yi readily agreed. "I'll have Lin An prepare a carriage for you. Bring back plenty of tonics from the manor, and please give my regards to my mother-in-law."

Nangong Min was surprised and delighted that Lin Yi agreed so readily.

"Thank you, my husband!" she exclaimed excitedly as she stood up and bowed again.

Lin Yi put his arm around her leg, pulled her into his embrace, patted her waist, and laughed, "Go ahead, it's fine if you stay for a few days. I'll have Lin An take care of things at home for you."

"Mmm!" Nangong Min nodded emphatically, gave Lin Yi a sweet smile, overjoyed, and then turned and left quickly with her personal maid, Liying.

Watching her departing figure, Lin Yi smiled knowingly.

Having a wife like that is truly wonderful.

"Your Highness..." Mimi knelt at Lin Yi's feet, kneading his thighs with both hands, "It's not that I'm being nosy, but the Princess Consort is still a member of the Nangong family. Wouldn't letting her go back to visit her family like this be detrimental to us?"

Mimi tried her best to appear as a woman who wasn't jealous or possessive.

In reality, she just couldn't stand Lin Yi spoiling other women.

Lin Yi patted her head and said affectionately, "It's alright, it won't stop me from spoiling you no matter who goes home to visit their family."

"Hehehe~" Mimi cupped Lin Yi's hand in her cheek and happily kissed it: "Your Highness is so kind~~"

Yifei, standing to the side, rolled her eyes so hard they almost reached the sky. Then, she turned around and saw Lin An walking over.

"housekeeper."

Lin An smiled and nodded to Yi Fei, then said to Lin Yi, "Your Highness, someone from the palace has arrived."