The new emperor's first decree upon ascending the throne was to forcibly take his cousin as his

Xie Chengyan left without changing his expression, while Xie Chengli smiled happily. Xie Chengming appeared out of nowhere and said, "Why did you have to do that?"

Xie Chengli shrugged. "Don't you find it interesting? My brother always has that same expression, always so kind to everyone, and his smile never changes. I really want to see him lose his composure."

"This is going to be quite a show."

Xie Chengming frowned and asked the question he had been wanting to ask all along, "Third brother, you wouldn't...?"

Xie Chengli turned to look at him. "What does Second Brother want to ask? I was just feeling bored and looking for some fun."

"I heard that the Imperial Concubine intends to bring you into the imperial court."

Xie Chengli's smile faded, but he quickly smiled again. "Second brother, you really should reflect on why you're not popular with girls. Sometimes, you shouldn't say things you shouldn't say."

Xie Chengming rarely laughed. "Girls have their own way of speaking. You're not a girl."

She glanced at him, then turned and left.

Two days later, a document was placed on the desk in the East Palace study.

The text describes everything that happened after Ruan Xianrong and Cheng Qing returned to the capital.

Xie Chengyan read it word for word, and the folded document turned to ashes.

Cao Shenli stood to the side, "The secret guards sent a message by carrier pigeon. It seems that Miss Ruan and this Young Master Cheng met by chance. Young Master Cheng is poor, and Miss Ruan has helped him a lot..."

He paused, carefully observing the prince's expression, and continued, "Over time, the two of them... developed feelings for each other."

After he finished speaking, you could hear a pin drop in the study.

The man twitched the corners of his mouth, his smile cold.

Niannian, his good Niannian.

That was a really big surprise for him.

It was just too late.

He can't let go of it anymore; even though he's chosen his path, he can't leave it.

Some things are destined to be his.

You can't take it away, and you can't escape it.

Even if it means death, we'll be together.

That night, the lights in the East Palace study stayed on all night.

Xie Chengyan quietly sneaked into the Prime Minister's residence and entered through that door again.

In the stillness of the night, the person in bed slept soundly, completely unaware of the person beside them.

He reached out to cover her with the blanket, but soon kicked it off again.

He tidied her hair again, and the sleeping person suddenly raised her hand and waved, "Aqing, stop fooling around."

The atmosphere around them grew colder, and those eyes were even darker than the surrounding darkness.

Even in his sleep, he calls out other people's names.

Niannian, how dare you like someone else?

How dare you even dream of marrying someone else?

The expected storm did not come; Xie Chengyan remained calm as if nothing had happened.

Xie Chengli had hoped to see his elder brother lose his composure, but he was ultimately disappointed.

Even the Empress was surprised that her son could remain so indifferent, not even bothering to inquire at Fengyi Palace. In the end, she couldn't hold back any longer and came to the East Palace on her own initiative.

"You know everything now, so you don't have anything to say?" the Empress asked.

Xie Chengyan remained expressionless. "This marriage was personally arranged by my mother. What do you want me to say?"

"I thought you would cause a huge uproar and invalidate the imperial decree of marriage."

"The imperial decree is null and void, does that mean the marriage can't proceed?"

The Queen was unsure of his meaning. "You really don't care?"

He neither confirmed nor denied it.

"It's good that you can accept it. Before the arranged marriage, I was worried that you wouldn't be able to accept it and would cause trouble for others."

Xie Chengyan chuckled, "Mother, what are you saying? How could your son do such a thing?"

"Then... will you marry Miaoyin?"

Xie Chengyan remained silent; the only sound in the hall was the ticking of the water clock.

After a long while, he suddenly smiled, but the smile didn't reach his eyes. "I respect my mother, and I will listen to you. But mother, are there some things you still don't understand?"

"My father cannot tolerate the Ruan family, but I can. If I ascend the throne, you will be the Empress Dowager, and the Ruan family will still be honored."

The Queen was taken aback. "Do you know what you're saying?"

"Although the matter of Hanzhou has come to an end, Mother should know that Father will not let it go. As long as you are still the Empress and as long as Prime Minister Ruan's position is secure, he will not be at ease. Last time, he went to great lengths but failed to bring down the Prime Minister. Who do you think he will target next?"

The Empress's face was slightly pale. The Prime Minister's mansion was powerful, so naturally they wouldn't make any moves for the time being. But as the Empress, the Emperor could do whatever he wanted with ease.

"So Mother should also understand that your time is running out. Instead of worrying about my Crown Princess, you should think about how to protect yourself."

"But even if you ascend to the throne, do you really think you can let the Ruan family go? Aren't you afraid they will pose a threat to you?"

Xie Chengyan sneered, "A ruler has his own methods of managing his subordinates. If a subject really takes advantage of a loophole, it only shows that he is incompetent."

The Empress was alarmed. Fortunately, there was no one else in the palace. These words were truly outrageous.

"Yan'er, what do you want to do?"

Xie Chengyan had returned to normal, even raising his hand to straighten his slightly wrinkled cuffs, exuding elegance and composure.

"Mother, please rest assured, I have always acted with discretion." His tone was gentle, as if his previous coldness was just an illusion. "But marriage is a serious matter, and we should always be cautious. Mother, please don't worry about it."

He bowed respectfully, saying, "Your Majesty, I still have official duties to attend to. Please return to your quarters, Mother."

*

Xiangfu.

After seeing Shen Qinghe off, Ruan Xianrong was summoned by Prime Minister Ruan.

Her father, who was usually kind to her, had been glaring and bristling whenever he saw her these past few days.

"You're all grown up now, you have your own ideas, and you even dare to keep things from your parents. Who agreed to let you get married next month?"

Ruan Xianrong smiled and stepped forward to take her father's arm. "I was wrong, but I really want to marry Aqing. He's living in the mansion now, and it's not a long-term solution. It's so impolite."

"Anyway, Ah Qing and I will get married sooner or later. Recently, my aunt, the Empress, has been trying to arrange a marriage for the Crown Prince, but she is hesitant because of me. Once I get married, my aunt won't have to make things difficult for me."

Ruan Xiang snorted coldly, "You're quite the smooth talker. You're clearly afraid your parents won't let you marry that Cheng Qing, but now you're saying it's for your aunt's sake."

"My quick wit and silver tongue are all thanks to my parents' excellent upbringing."

"You've always been a smooth talker since you were little. It's a good thing you weren't born a man, otherwise who knows how many women you would have fooled?"

"That's my skill too, it shows I have charm."

Mrs. Sun was amused by her words, "You, a young lady, don't you know how to be ashamed? How can you say such things?"

"So what? I am who I am now because of what Father taught me. When Father was coaxing Mother, he was even less ashamed than I was."

Mrs. Sun blushed. "What nonsense are you talking about, child?"

Ruan Xiang coughed lightly, "Alright, I'm not trying to blame you, but marriage is such an important matter. Is it too hasty for you to do this? It would make that young man surnamed Cheng think you can't live without him."

"Now that your aunt has already arranged the marriage, it can't be changed. Well, that's just as you wished."

Having succeeded, Ruan Xianrong solemnly bowed to her parents, saying, "Your daughter is willful, but you have suffered for me all these years."

Madam Sun's heart softened immediately. "Why say such distant things? You are our daughter, and you always will be."

Ruan Xianrong felt a lump in her throat and buried her head in her mother's arms. "Mother, you are so good to me."

"You're saying those things again. You're your mother's daughter. If I'm not good to you, who will I be good to?"

Nestled close to Madam Ruan, she wondered if she should stay by her parents' side forever, just to avoid the male and female leads.

With things settled, my steps became lighter.

They were getting married next month and had a lot of things to prepare. They were excitedly planning to take Cheng Qing to visit Kyoto when they ran into Ruan Zhaoyuan.