Ah Ping continued, "Your Highness, I come from a poor family and don't dare to marry into your family and become your goddaughter..."

Princess Pingrou smiled and said, "How can I say that I'm marrying above my station? We'll be a family in the future. I feel close to you, so I'll take you as my goddaughter."

"No." Lu Baozhu said jealously, "Mother, you can only have me as your daughter."

Ah Ping secretly breathed a sigh of relief. Pingrou, who was standing beside her, stroked Lu Baozhu's head and said, "You, you are even more childish than Lingling."

Lu Baozhu snuggled in Princess Pingrou's arms and said, "As long as my mother is here, I can be childish."

A trace of jealousy flashed through Qi Yuning's heart. She had been competing with Lu Baozhu for many years, and sometimes she had never been envious or jealous of Lu Baozhu when she got the treasures.

Whenever she saw Lu Baozhu and Princess Pingrou getting along, she could not help but feel jealous.

The group went inside.

Qi Yuning returned to his room. Over the past half month, letters from the manager of the Qi family's businesses had piled up like a mountain.

Qi Yuning hurriedly bathed, changed into a princess's palace dress, and went to the palace with Qi Yu'an to pay a visit to His Majesty.

Then he entered the palace.

Qi Yuning saw Lu Ze, whom she hadn't seen for a few days. He was wearing a bright red official robe. He walked up to Qi Yuning and handed the hot water bottle to her. "I prepared this especially for you."

Qi Yuning took the hot water bottle and smiled slightly: "Thank you."

Lu Ze whispered in Qi Yuning's ear, "His Majesty was furious when he learned of Wen Ban's collusion with the King of Shu. He has banished Concubine Xian to the cold palace and imprisoned the King of Shu."

Qi Yuning's smile faltered as she looked at Lu Ze in confusion. "Just imprisonment? How can that be enough to pay for the lives of thousands of soldiers in my Qi Family Army?"

Lu Ze said, "His Majesty is old. He has been a benevolent king all his life. Now that he is over sixty years old, I'm afraid he won't easily sentence his eldest son to death..."

Qi Yuning frowned when he heard that.

Qi Yu'an, Qi Yuning and Lu Ze entered the Purple Palace and saluted Emperor Shi Yuan who was sitting at the top.

Emperor Shiyuan's hair was much grayer than before, and he looked much older.

Emperor Shi Yuan sighed and said, "Yu'an, Yuning, you two should all get up quickly. I failed to educate my children well and didn't realize that the beast had made such a big mistake for the throne. I feel guilty towards Brother Qi Yang, your parents, and you.

I will not protect the King of Shu, but will demote him and his descendants to commoners, imprisoning them in a desolate and miserable land for the rest of their lives."

Qi Yuning did not stand up, but continued to kneel on the ground and said, "Your Majesty, you are a diligent king who is devoted to the people and has worked tirelessly for the people of the world. The fault lies only with the King of Shu. I beg Your Majesty to punish the King of Shu severely. It will be difficult for the people to win their hearts if the King of Shu is not killed."

Qi Yu'an also knelt and said, "Your Majesty, tens of thousands of soldiers died in Beicheng back then. Many of them were buried in the yellow sand, unable to even return home wrapped in their horsehide.

"My grandfather risked his life to defeat the Northern Desert and expand the territory of Dasheng, so that the fallen soldiers could rest in peace within the Dasheng territory. The King of Shu, as a member of the royal family, colluded with the Northern Desert. His crimes are truly unspeakable and he deserves the death penalty."

Qi Yuning knelt down and kowtowed, saying, "I beg Your Majesty to sentence the King of Shu to treason and punish him with the death penalty of lingchi."

Emperor Shi Yuan looked at the two siblings below, rubbed his temples, sighed, and said, "The King of Shu has committed heinous crimes. I will have him imprisoned in a dark room for the rest of his life, never to see the light of day, to atone for the sins of the soldiers who died!"

"Your Majesty!" Qi Yuning pursed his lips and said, "Your Majesty, the crime the King of Shu committed is treason. A prince is guilty of the same crime as a commoner. Your Majesty is being unfair in letting the King of Shu off so easily."

Lu Ze said, "Your Majesty, the princess is absolutely right. The King of Shu was not only guilty of treason, but also of conspiracy, trafficking weapons, and mining iron ore. Each of these offenses is punishable by death. If you let him off lightly, I'm afraid other princes will follow suit. Your Majesty, I implore you to severely punish the King of Shu."

Qi Yuning had thought that His Majesty might protect the King of Shu, but he didn't expect that he would treat the King of Shu so lightly.

It's hard not to feel chilled.

More than ten members of his family died because of their loyalty to the Zhao family.

Emperor Shi Yuan looked at his grandson and the two younger members of the Qi family and said slowly, "I am already over sixty years old. How many people have lived to be sixty years old since ancient times? The King of Shu is almost forty now. I know I have let you, the Qi family, down, and I will make amends in the future. But he is still my eldest son after all, and I really cannot bear to take his life."

Qi Yuning said, "Your Majesty's deep love for your son is something I understand, but what about my parents? They still love their son and daughter, yet they abandoned me and my brother, two young children, to rush to the battlefield. They did this to serve Your Majesty and protect the Zhao family. I beg Your Majesty to make a decision for them."

Qi Yu'an, standing aside, bowed and said, "Your Majesty, three generations of the Qi family have protected the borders of Dasheng. My fiancée is pregnant. I ask Your Majesty to allow me to return the Qi family's military power to Your Majesty. I can leave the barracks and take good care of my wife and children in Shengjing City."

Upon hearing this, Emperor Shiyuan stood up and said, "Yuan."

Although the Northern Desert Kingdom had been destroyed for more than ten years, many remnants of the Northern Desert royal tribes did not easily surrender to Dasheng.

Many tribes were scattered around the border between Beicheng and Wan State, becoming bandits in the sand, and they were all suppressed by the Qi family's army.

Qi Yu'an returned the military power, but Emperor Shi Yuan knew that there was no better candidate to shoulder the heavy burden of the Qi Family Army. The subordinates of the Qi Family Army were loyal and could not be replaced at will by the court.

Moreover, if he took away the Qi family's military power, his reputation for being kind and benevolent towards his subjects would surely be criticized.

Qi Yuning said, "Your Majesty, my grandfather left me and my brother his last words to pledge allegiance to Your Majesty. The children of the Qi family are not afraid of dying on the battlefield, nor are they afraid of fighting in the battlefield to defend the Zhao family's territory. However, if the traitor is not eliminated, and those who collaborate with the enemy and betray the country are imprisoned, then the children of the Qi family will be left with nothing but disheartened hearts.

Why should the Qi family fight so hard to defend their territory? They should just have children and live a peaceful life. There is no need to envy the prosperous Lu Guogong Mansion next door while my Qi family is miserable every New Year! "

Emperor Shiyuan looked displeased and asked, "Are you forcing me?"

Qi Yuning looked up at Emperor Shi Yuan and said, "Your Majesty, we are grateful for your care for us siblings, but the hatred for killing our father and mother is irreconcilable. It would be unkind and unjust to fail to avenge the treason that killed the Da Sheng soldiers!"

Emperor Shiyuan angrily said, "Are you saying that I am unkind and unjust?"

Lu Zelian said, "Grandfather, that's not what the princess meant. The Qi family's generals who sacrificed their lives were all brothers of the Qi family siblings. They cannot remain indifferent. Your Majesty, if you don't severely punish the King of Shu, I'm afraid it will chill the hearts of generals across the world."

Emperor Shi Yuan saw the three young men and said coldly, "I will discuss this matter with my ministers at court tomorrow morning. You all should leave."

After Qi Yuning left the Zichen Palace, her eyes were filled with dismay. His Majesty had been so good to her over the years that she had forgotten that imperial power was imperial power.

Lu Ze said beside Qi Yuning, "The King of Shu is your Majesty's firstborn son. Your Majesty is old and cannot bear to harm his own son. However, when the morning court is held tomorrow, the ministers will not protect the King of Shu. The King of Shu will get his retribution."

Qi Yu'an also persuaded Qi Yuning, "Sister, I will definitely avenge my parents."