Princess Anle did not struggle. She only glanced at the emperor, chuckled softly, and followed the eunuch away.

He brushed past the Imperial Advisor as he left.

The Imperial Advisor had a cold and stern face, exuding an aura of authority and dominance. The murderous intent emanating from him made people afraid to look him in the eye.

In the past, Princess Anle did not dare to look him in the eye when she saw him.

But today, perhaps because he felt he was about to die, he had nothing to fear and glanced at the Imperial Advisor.

The Imperial Advisor had thick eyebrows and almond-shaped eyes, sharp gaze, handsome features, and a face sculpted like a knife, exuding a fierce and ruthless aura.

He felt that the Imperial Advisor looked somewhat familiar, but for a moment he couldn't remember whose face he resembled.

By the time he was imprisoned and subjected to severe interrogation, he no longer had the energy to think about the matter.

The gold lock he exchanged with Lin Xiuyan was lost on his escape route.

Otherwise, if the Imperial Advisor had seen the gold lock he gave to Qu Shuangyue, he might have known about Lin Xiuyan's existence.

The Imperial Preceptor glanced at Princess Anle expressionlessly, his eyes devoid of any emotion.

Upon entering the Imperial Study, he immediately issued a decree: "Liefeng Prefecture must not be touched again within ten years."

After he finished speaking, he gave the emperor a standard bow and then sat down expressionlessly.

The emperor did not mind the Grand Preceptor's actions, because although the Grand Preceptor was ruthless and cold, he was the emperor's most useful weapon.

Most importantly, the Imperial Advisor had no wife or children, no relatives or friends, did not seek power, had no personal feelings, and was wholeheartedly devoted to the country. The emperor respected him greatly.

The emperor sighed softly and said, "If we don't touch Liefeng Prefecture, it will be difficult to abolish the vassal state."

The Imperial Advisor said expressionlessly, "Then we will not withdraw for the time being. Withdrawing now would shake the foundation of the nation."

The emperor also knew that Ye Junfei was now in charge of Liefeng Prefecture and held all the troops in Liefeng Prefecture.

This time, Chu Mengsheng and his nearly 100,000 troops were wiped out, which made the emperor very vigilant, but he also knew that he could not easily move against Liefeng Prefecture at this time.

Because if they were to be moved but not suppressed, the other regional kings would surely cause chaos.

Moreover, this one incident will greatly damage the prestige of the imperial court.

The emperor sighed softly: "I should have listened to the Imperial Advisor and killed Ye Junfei instead of letting him return to the Prince of Pingnan's residence."

The Imperial Advisor glanced at him and said, "There's no need to dwell on the past. Liefeng Prefecture can no longer be touched."

“Ye Junfei is different from Ye Yunlie; he cannot be easily harmed.”

The emperor asked, "So, is this matter just going to be left like this?"

A murderous glint flashed in the Grand Preceptor's sharp eyes: "If we don't let it go this way, are we really going to send a large army to attack Liefeng Prefecture? And then cause chaos throughout the land?"

The emperor felt somewhat uncomfortable upon hearing this, but he also knew that what he said was true.

Previously, all the vassal kings in the world were watching the movements in Liefeng Prefecture. If they won, those vassal kings would behave themselves.

If we lose this time and send troops to attack again, the court will not only lose its prestige, but may also be attacked by the masses.

The emperor sighed deeply: "It seems that we cannot withdraw this time."

The Imperial Advisor said expressionlessly, "If Your Majesty wants to consolidate power, it is no longer realistic to use force to abolish the feudal lords. It would be better to use a more lenient approach."

The emperor asked with some curiosity, "How do we appease them?"

The Grand Preceptor replied, "Divide the power. If the barbarian king has several sons, let his sons divide the power in his hands equally."

"In this way, over time, it will split into two, then four, then eight, and soon the barbarian king will be weakened."

"Moreover, this matter could easily trigger internal strife within the fiefdom of the barbarian king, since each of the barbarian king's sons would want to gain more power."

The emperor's eyes lit up upon hearing this: "The Imperial Advisor's thinking is indeed thorough."

Most ordinary people would be overjoyed to hear the emperor's praise, but the Imperial Advisor remained expressionless.

He simply said, "The Emperor can send the Prime Minister to handle this matter; I will not get involved."

"Since this has happened at the Prince of Pingnan's residence, His Majesty needs to make a gesture and offer some reassurance. The court must keep the matter of the military operation in Liefeng Prefecture a secret."

"Otherwise, given Ye Junfei's personality, he might cause some unpleasant things."

With things having come to this point, the emperor had no better solution and could only leave it at that.

Furthermore, some cleanup work needs to be done. The emperor needs to act as if nothing happened and give the Prince of Pingnan's mansion some money to appease them.

As for Chu Mengsheng's death, it was publicly stated that he died from a relapse of an old injury.

The emperor was very frustrated by these thoughts, but he had no choice but to make this arrangement for the sake of the overall situation.

He sighed deeply and said, "I will handle these matters properly."

When the Imperial Advisor came out of the Imperial Study, he saw the wind chimes on the eaves rustling in the breeze and heard their clear, melodious sound.

He vaguely recalled that many years ago, there was a woman who liked to wear bells on her feet, which made a crisp sound when she walked.

A hint of tenderness appeared in his eyes, but that tenderness quickly faded; they would probably never see each other again in this lifetime.

A man like him, whose hands are stained with too much blood, deserves to die alone.

Even if he occasionally thinks of his childhood sweetheart and his heart softens a little, it will not affect his Dao heart.

A concubine led a five-year-old princess past him. He glanced at her indifferently, but the bloodthirsty aura emanating from him made the little princess tremble all over.

The palace concubine quickly covered the little princess's mouth to prevent her from crying out and angering the imperial advisor.

The Imperial Preceptor was neither surprised nor displeased by this sight; over the years, he had been the one who could stop children from crying.

He will have no descendants in this world, and he has little patience for children.

After he left, the concubine held the little princess and took several deep breaths.

Soon the day of the enthronement ceremony arrived, and the entire city of Liefeng was filled with joy, with red ribbons hanging all over the city.

Lin Xiuyan changed into the princess's formal attire, the heavy dress making her look very dignified.

The elaborate rituals left her almost numb.

If she had known it would be this tiring, she would have preferred not to have this grand wedding!

After kneeling and bowing repeatedly, Lin Xiuyan felt dizzy and her vision blurred.

To maintain her identity, she took a deep breath and struggled to stand up, trying not to faint.

Seeing that her face was a little pale, Ye Junfei asked her, "How are you? Are you feeling unwell?"

Lin Xiuyan said softly, "I am feeling a little unwell, but I think I can manage."

Ye Junfei could tell from her voice that she was clearly weak and listless. Although she had already completed half of the ceremony, there was still a long part to come.

He immediately called over the official in charge of the ceremony: "Skip all the kneeling and bowing afterwards, and only perform the kneeling and bowing ceremony between husband and wife."

The official was startled and said softly, "But Your Highness, this is against the rules."