On our wedding night, my wife acted strangely.

Upon hearing this, Sun Fu's face immediately darkened. He turned to stare at Luo Hongtu and hissed, "Lord Luo! Have you gone mad? This is the Hall of Mental Cultivation! The current Emperor is inside! Do you dare say that the person serving His Majesty inside is your wife? Do you want your entire family executed?!"

Startled by Sun Fu's words, Luo Hongtu's legs went weak. He quickly covered his mouth and said repeatedly, "This official misspoke, this official misspoke! Steward Sun, please calm down, this official misheard."

Although he verbally admitted his mistake, Luo Hongtu's inner turmoil only grew stronger.

There's no way I could have misheard!

(A lengthy passage depicting cuckoldry has been shortened by 1000 words.)

You...you...

Seeing that he was about to go berserk, Sun Fu quickly squatted down and whispered in her ear, "Lord Luo, if you want to die, don't drag us down with you!"

"Steward Sun, was this all part of your plan?"

"Our family is scheming? Hmph, you really think too highly of us. When we arrived, Lady Li was already serving His Majesty his meals, and now she's in bed with him. What does that have to do with us?"

Luo Hongtu thought it made sense.

Even if Sun Fu had extraordinary connections, he couldn't possibly force Li to sleep with him.

He is not yet in a position to rule as emperor.

That would be Li demeaning herself.

You slut, I will never let you go!

......

Dawn finally broke.

The commotion inside the Hall of Mental Cultivation finally subsided.

Luo Hongtu knelt outside the screen all night. His legs were numb and he could no longer feel them. His eyes were bloodshot and sunken. He looked like he had aged ten years in an instant.

Sun Fumei slept soundly, and when he came back, he glanced at Luo Hongtu, who was sprawled on the ground, smiled coldly, and waved to the eunuchs around him.

Two eunuchs came over and, like dragging a dead dog, lifted Luo Hongtu and sent him back to the courtyard.

Inside the Hall of Mental Cultivation, Nangong Xiong slowly opened his eyes, stretched, and felt an indescribable sense of comfort throughout his body, even his bones felt relaxed.

Those few cups of Tiger Wine last night were truly miraculous, and with that enchanting palace maid, he felt as if he had returned to his twenties.

"That feels good~~" Nangong Xiong sat up and turned to look at the empty pillow next to him.

The fairy left before dawn, saying she was afraid of being seen and breaking the rules.

Hmm, she's a sensible person, not bad.

According to royal rules, the emperor could only sleep with a concubine if he took the initiative to go to her palace.

Otherwise, any woman who serves the emperor in the Hall of Mental Cultivation must leave after the night is over.

"Sun Fu," Nangong Xiong called out.

Sun Fu carried a copper basin, head down, and quickly entered. He then placed the basin on the shelf and handed a hot towel to Nangong Xiong.

"His Majesty."

Nangong Xiong took the towel and wiped his face, then asked in a good mood, "What was the name of that palace maid from last night?"

"Forehead……"

Sun Fu didn't answer, and Nangong Xiong thought he didn't know either, so he said, "Go and investigate later, and transfer her to the Hall of Mental Cultivation to serve you. This woman has some tricks up her sleeve, and I like her very much."

Sun Fuke pretended to be embarrassed and did not answer.

Seeing his expression, Nangong Xiong asked, "What's with that expression?"

Sun Fu knelt down with a thud, his forehead pressed against the ground, and said in a trembling voice, "Your Majesty, something terrible has happened."

"What happened so early in the morning?"

Sun Fu raised his head, swallowed hard, and said in a terrified voice, "Your Majesty... that woman last night, she... she wasn't a palace maid from Yanxi Palace at all."

Nangong Xiong was taken aback, then threw the towel into the copper basin, speaking in a nonchalant tone.

"So what if it's not? Which palace is any different?"

"No, Your Majesty! She...she is Luo Hongtu's wife, Lady Li!"

"What?!"

As if his tail had been stepped on, Bu Ling jumped out of bed, her eyes wide with disbelief: "What nonsense are you spouting! Li Shi? Luo Hongtu's wife? How is that possible!"

Sun Fu kowtowed repeatedly, his voice trembling with tears.

"This servant dares not deceive Your Majesty! Last night she was dressed as a palace maid and said she was from Yanxi Palace. It was dark, so this old servant didn't think much of it. But later this old servant found that she was skilled in her movements and quite beautiful, so I became suspicious. Therefore, when she left Yangxin Hall in the middle of the night, I sent a eunuch to secretly watch her."

"As it turns out... as it turns out, the eunuch saw her hiding all the way back to the courtyard where Lord Luo Hongtu lives by climbing over the wall! And this morning, I already checked, there's no such person in Yanxi Palace, she is undoubtedly Li Shi!"

After hearing this, Nangong Xiong's mind went blank!

Li Shi!

It was actually the Li family!

Nangong Xiong broke out in a cold sweat.

I actually slept with the wife of a high-ranking official last night!

Moreover, this official was also Lin Yi's nominal father-in-law!

How...how is this possible?

Why would Li Shi not stay in her own courtyard and actively seduce me?

Nangong Xiong is a naturally suspicious person with a quick mind.

They immediately guessed that this was a scheme arranged by Luo Hongtu and the Li family!

"Scheme! This is a scheme!" Nangong Xiong suddenly stood up and kicked over the washstand in front of him.

The copper basin fell to the ground with a loud thud, spilling water everywhere.

"Good! Good for Luo Hongtu! Good for the Li family!" Nangong Xiong trembled with rage, pointing at the door and cursing, "That pair of adulterers dared to conspire against me!"

In Nangong Xiong's view, this was definitely a conspiracy meticulously planned by Luo Hongtu and his wife.

Luo Hongtu deliberately had his wife dress like that to seduce him, so he could find something to use against him and then use it to blackmail him into helping them get the Luo family's assets back!

Or... they were sent by Lin Yi to deliberately ruin his reputation!

Yes, that must be it!

Right now, the matter between the Li family and Lin Yi is causing quite a stir outside. If something happens to me at this time, it will definitely divert people's attention.

This way, her scandal with Lin Yi can be covered up!

and many more!

not only that!

Once the scandal of the emperor forcibly taking the wife of his minister is spread, how will the people of the world view him as an emperor?

How could 200,000 loyalist troops have the face to come to his rescue under the banner of "purging the court of corrupt officials"?

Human imagination is limitless.

Nangong Xiong grew increasingly frightened and terrified: "Luo Hongtu... I took you in and provided for you! And you actually tried to force me to my death!! Sun Fu!"

"Your servant is here!"

"Immediately seal off the news! No one is allowed to spread what happened this morning, or their entire family will be executed!"

"yes!"

"Summon the Imperial Guards! Immediately bind these shameless lovers! Take them to Caishikou and behead them as a warning to others!"

"Ah..." Sun Fu was startled.

Originally, it was thought that Nangong Xiong would secretly kill the two in the palace, but unexpectedly, Nangong Xiong went mad and actually wanted to execute them publicly.

"Your Majesty, this... if we were to publicly behead someone, it would probably cause a stir."

"What nonsense!" Nangong Xiong roared. "Luo Hongtu is plotting to assassinate me! The Li family is his accomplice! Use this charge to have them executed! I want the whole world to know that this is the fate of those who dare to scheme against me! Do it immediately!"

Nangong Xiong had no interest in who arranged for Li to enter the Imperial Garden. He only had one thought in his mind: kill her to silence her and prevent any witnesses from being found out!

As long as Luo Hongtu and Li are dead, what happened last night will forever remain a secret.

"Yes, Your Majesty! I will obey your command and will carry it out immediately!"