Wasn't he supposed to be beaten to death? Why did this powerful cousin love him so much?

Since being granted the title of Princess Chenjia, Jiang Sese has never entered the palace again.

After all, Emperor Jingyuan was no idle man.

Even officials below the third rank could only kneel and pay homage from afar during the grand court assembly, rarely speaking a single word to each other in their entire lives. Only high-ranking officials of the cabinet and the six ministries could approach the emperor and present their reports daily.

Only officials of the fourth rank and above could enter the palace to attend court assemblies, while those of the fifth rank and below had to stand outside the palace in an open-air queue to pay their respects.

Therefore, the saying "to see the emperor is like to see the face of the emperor" is absolutely true.

The lady-in-waiting in the mansion quickly brought her a well-fitting shawl and hairpins to straighten her clothes.

The group rode in a carriage, led by two eunuchs, and entered the imperial city through a side gate of the inner palace.

Upon entering the imperial city, they changed into a small sedan chair with a blue canopy. They passed through the palace walls and alleys, and all the palace servants and eunuchs along the way bowed and made way for the sedan chair.

Upon reaching the platform outside the Wenhua Hall, Jiang Sese alighted from her sedan chair, and another eunuch came forward to greet her.

Thinking of the title of princess bestowed upon her by Emperor Jingyuan, Jiang Sese obediently performed the three kneelings and nine kowtows ceremony, saying, "Your subject Sese greets Your Majesty, may Your Majesty be well."

Emperor Jingyuan gestured to stop her from getting up, and then ordered someone to bring over a brocade stool for her to sit on. Only two chief eunuchs remained to stand by her side, while all the other palace servants withdrew outside the hall, leaving the two of them to speak alone.

Emperor Jingyuan glanced at Jiang Sese and wondered why she had been granted the title of Princess, yet she still looked so honest and unassuming.

Princess Chenjia... Isn't his meaning clear enough?

Emperor Jingyuan didn't say a word, just stared silently at Jiang Sese, making her feel a chill run down her spine, but she still had to put on a calm and composed appearance.

Emperor Jingyuan examined it carefully for a long time before finally figuring out where it resembled something else.

It's these eyes.

When Danxia looked at people, the corners of her eyes always slanted slightly upwards, and her eyes held a hint of untamed sharpness. She was arrogant and disdainful of everyone, not even the emperor or the empress dowager.

But the girl obediently concealed that sharp edge in her eyes.

If his Danxia was also… Emperor Jingyuan closed his eyes briefly, then opened them again, his gaze softening and his tone more relaxed, asking as if in casual conversation, “I heard someone has come from Yangzhou?”

Jiang Sese was surprised that Emperor Jingyuan knew about such a trivial matter.

Things need to be compared. Compared to matters of national importance, the people from Yangzhou coming to see her were just trivial matters.

As Jiang Sese was considering how to answer, Emperor Jingyuan casually added, "What brings the Jiang family here?"

Jiang Sese answered truthfully, "Your Majesty, they are members of the Jiang clan from Yangzhou. They brought local products from Yangzhou and also helped me repair the graves of my adoptive parents."

Emperor Jingyuan then asked, "Was anything else confiscated?"

"No," Jiang Sese shook her head and said honestly, "I only accepted local products."

Emperor Jingyuan looked at her, his gaze holding a hint of amusement beyond scrutiny: "I heard that the Sun family also went, but you didn't see them."

Jiang Sese's heart skipped a beat. He knew far too much detail, but she remained calm on the surface: "Yes. I have not met any members of the Sun family."

Why?

Jiang Sese paused for a moment, then said frankly, "When I was down on my luck, they avoided me like the plague. Now that I have been granted the title of Princess, they are coming to my door with lavish gifts; they must have something to gain."

Emperor Jingyuan raised an eyebrow slightly; this temperament was just like Danxia's.

It is said that when one person attains enlightenment, even their chickens and dogs ascend to heaven.

No matter where you are, you will always suffer if you go it alone. So when people gain power, most people's first thought is to help their relatives. Blood is thicker than water, and the clan is the foundation.

Emperor Jingyuan glanced at Jiang Sese and said, "I made you Princess Chenjia, not for you to do this."

Princess, if it were someone else, they might have turned the entire capital upside down.

Emperor Jingyuan had Duan Wei send men to keep an eye on Jiang Sese, but he hadn't expected her to be so obedient. It was truly beyond his expectations.

He thought her honesty and obedience were only because she lacked power, so he thought that if he gave her power, she would surely cause trouble, but she didn't.

I didn't know whether to feel relieved or sigh.

Jiang Sese didn't understand what Emperor Jingyuan meant, and cautiously asked, "Then how should one take the position?"

Emperor Jingyuan never expected anyone to be so honest. He paused for a moment before saying, "Fine, just continue being the official you are supposed to be."

Jiang Sese: "...Oh." This is just torturing me on purpose, isn't it?

They say things that are ambiguous or misleading, causing people to speculate and engage in internal strife.

Therefore, Jiang Sese completely ignored Emperor Jingyuan's words.

Emperor Jingyuan silently looked at Jiang Sese's face. In fact, he and Jiang Sese didn't have much to say to each other. He only summoned her to the palace because he wanted to see her face again.

It's really strange, but when someone sent him a woman who looked almost exactly like her before, he didn't even bother to look at her, he just sneered.

However, Jiang Sese carries half of her blood.

Emperor Jingyuan and Jiang Sese stared at each other in silence. Anyone else would probably be sweating bullets, but Jiang Sese thought that she was a princess. As long as she didn't rebel, she didn't have to worry about her personal safety. So she let Emperor Jingyuan look at her. Let him look, let him look a few more times. It wouldn't hurt her.

Emperor Jingyuan watched for a long time, but he himself found it uninteresting.

It wouldn't be interesting without her.

Emperor Jingyuan coldly began to shoo people away: "Go and see Consort Hui, and leave after you've seen her."

Jiang Sese: "Sigh."

Jiang Sese got up to leave, but then remembered Xie Yujiao's matter and hesitated before turning back: "Your Majesty, I have something to ask..."

Emperor Jingyuan glanced at her, snorted coldly, and spoke as if he knew everything: "Are you asking about Xie Yujiao?"

Jiang Sese thought to herself, "This is truly unbelievable."

Emperor Jingyuan found Jiang Sese's startled appearance amusing.

Emperor Jingyuan already knew what good deeds Xie Yujiao had done and where she went afterward. Jiang Sese certainly didn't need to speak about Xie Jue's affairs. The only things Jiang Sese could speak about, and needed to speak to him about, were the matters concerning Xie Yujiao and Chen Jingxuan.

Seeing that Emperor Jingyuan knew everything about this matter, Jiang Sese asked him how he planned to deal with Xie Yujiao.

Emperor Jingyuan glanced at Jiang Sese and said irritably, "I will not interfere in Xie Yujiao's affairs. However, go back and tell her that if she causes trouble again, she is not allowed to run to the Princess's residence. She should go straight back to her parents' home. I want to see how Xie Junheng deals with her."