Even the crown prince is getting a marriage of convenience? Why are you in such a hurry to stop bein

Xiao Lie smiled and left as if he hadn't noticed anything. Lin Wan'er, feeling guilty and afraid of being exposed, didn't try to stop him.

After Xiao Lie returned to his Qingfeng Garden, Sixteen fell like a leaf and handed a stack of letters to Xiao Lie.

"These are letters that Lin Wan'er's maid, Chunxue, secretly slipped into your study while you were unconscious. After she left, I found them all without missing a single one."

Xiao Lie opened the letters one by one, but after only glancing at them a few times, his face darkened, revealing a hidden rage.

He asked with a sneer.

Do you know what's written inside?

Sixteen shook his head honestly; his subordinates never dared to open documents without permission.

Xiao Lie's voice was cold.

"These are all evidence of my Xiao family's crimes of 'treason and collusion with the enemy'!"

Sixteen was startled, took the document from the young man's hand, and was filled with indignation.

"That Lin Wan'er is truly heartless."

"General Xiao accompanied the late emperor in battle for twelve years, making unparalleled contributions to the founding of the Great Xia. He then guarded the northern border for decades, stabilizing the frontier. Without his contributions, how could the Great Xia have enjoyed so many years of peace?"

"Let alone a Duke of Zhenguo, even the highest honor would not be too much, but this Lin Wan'er actually dared to frame the Xiao family and her with the crime of treason and collusion with the enemy. How can such a person be allowed to live?"

"Your Highness, this woman is only a threat if left alive. We should deal with her now!"

Sixteen pulled a dagger from his boot, leaped up as if to rush out the door and tear Lin Wan'er to pieces, but Xiao Lie grabbed one of his arms and stopped him.

"Kill him? Then wait for His Majesty to punish him, wait for the Three Emperors to impeach him?"

The young man coldly let go, but he fell to the ground.

"Use your brain. Is this something a young lady like Lin Wan'er would do?"

Sixteen stared wide-eyed in astonishment. "Your Highness, what do you mean...?"

Xiao Lie closed his eyes, exhaled deeply, and spoke calmly.

"There's a bigger fish behind this..."

"Who?"

"It's either the emperor or the third prince, but judging from the current situation, the emperor is more likely."

He had just fooled the emperor in the palace, and then Lin Wan'er drugged him to fabricate evidence against him. He didn't believe that these two things were related, or that they were unrelated.

Sixteen calmed down and broke out in a cold sweat.

If he had actually killed Lin Wan'er just now, who knows what kind of uproar would have ensued. The Emperor's third prince was already annoyed and had no excuse to punish the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion. If he had acted impulsively just now, the entire Duke of Zhenguo's mansion would probably have been implicated.

Perhaps even Commander Xiao, who is stationed at the border, will be questioned by His Majesty on some pretext.

Sixteen lowered his head guiltily, looking completely honest.

Xiao Lie glanced at him, reached out to help him up, and sighed softly.

"This matter cannot be rushed; if we rush it, we will fall into a disadvantageous position."

"So... what should we do next?"

Pretend you know nothing.

After all, one is the emperor and the other is the subject. No matter how angry he is, can he really go to the imperial palace to demand an explanation? This way of settling things peacefully is already the best course of action.

Xiao Lie lit the candle and watched as the letters were engulfed by the flames and turned to ashes.

Although he couldn't argue with the emperor on the throne for the time being, Lin Wan'er of Qingzhi Courtyard could certainly give him a good warning.

"Your Highness, Your Highness, Miss is taking a bath; you cannot enter..."

"How dare a lowly servant girl block my way? Get out of my way!"

Xiao Lie kicked Chunxue, who was blocking his way, aside. Chunxue scrambled and tried to follow, but she was met with a gleaming dagger and Sixteen's murderous face.

She jolted awake, screamed, and fell to the ground in fright.

In that brief moment, the young man pushed open the door and entered.

Inside, it was steaming hot and shrouded in mist, which sprayed onto his face, and through the mist, a beautiful, voluptuous body was vaguely visible.

Lin Wan'er blushed, tore off her clothes, and clutched them tightly to her chest, glaring at the young man as if he were her enemy.

"You shameless lecher, get out of here right now!"

Xiao Lie gave a cold laugh, took a few steps forward, and approached her with an air of nonchalance. The light and delicate gauze, after being soaked in water, became thin and transparent, unable to conceal the spring scenery beneath the water at all. On the contrary, because the fabric was wet and clung to her body, her skin was translucent, giving her a unique and alluring charm.

Lin Wan'er isn't a very good person, but her appearance is quite attractive.

"What...what exactly do you want to do?"

Xiao Lie gripped her chin menacingly.

"What's this? You were throwing yourself at me before, and now you're acting like a virtuous woman? Isn't this a bit too much of a performance?"

Lin Wan'er's small face turned red with anger.

With tears welling up in her eyes and her teeth clenched, she stared at Xiao Lie as if she wanted to tear him apart.

But Xiao Lie ignored her little scheme.

Long, slender fingers slid down her earlobe, and Lin Wan'er couldn't help but shrink back, thinking that Xiao Lie was lustful and was about to do something to her. But the next second, his hand turned into an iron clamp and fiercely gripped her throat.

Lin Wan'er barely managed to lift her face, breathing heavily, making a "hoarse" sound in her throat.

"Xiao...Xiao Lie...let go...of me..."

But Xiao Lie simply leaned down slightly and whispered something in her ear, and she immediately lost all color in her face.

"Do you think your tricks are foolproof?"

His tone was chilling and menacing, like a death knell echoing from the deepest hell, which startled Lin Wan'er so much that her eyes widened immediately, her face filled with unconcealed terror.

"How...how did you know?"

"This is the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion, not the Minister's mansion, much less the Third Prince's Kangwang mansion. Lin Wan'er, you think you can play these tricks in my Duke of Zhenguo's mansion? How many lives do you have to risk this?"

"Do you think that if something happens to you in the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion, the Prince of Kang's mansion and the Minister's mansion will stand up for you? Let me tell you, since you married me, you are now a member of the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion. I only need to announce to the outside world that you have contracted a sudden illness and died suddenly, and the Minister's mansion and the Prince of Kang's mansion will not even have a reason to impeach me."

"Your life is not in the Kang Prince's mansion, nor in the Minister's mansion, nor even in the capital city. Your life is in my hands, Xiao Lie's hands. If you cannot understand this, I do not mind using a different method..."

Lin Wan'er's face turned pale. Before she could react, Xiao Lie pulled her out of the tub and, no matter how much she struggled, he still pressed her hard onto the bed.

Lin Wan'er's hands tightened and tightened, her fingertips drawing white marks on the silk quilt adorned with mandarin ducks and peonies. In the end, under the young man's forceful assault, her pain and pleasure were all transformed into broken sobs.

"Xiao Lie... how dare you treat me like this... you'll die a horrible death..."

Xiao Lie raised his face, admiring Lin Wan'er's dazed pupils and her slightly damp, flushed cheeks. He couldn't help but smile ruthlessly, his tone mocking.

"Stop pretending, you're playing along just as well."

He patted Lin Wan'er, the crisp sound making her tense up as if on fire. She closed her eyes tightly, feeling humiliated and ashamed.