Bai Shi and Su Xuening, who hadn't gone far, saw Xuan Yuan Yu carrying Su Huiyan and running past them in a hurry, followed by a group of eunuchs.

Seeing the disheveled backs of the two people in front of her made Su Xuening feel incredibly happy!

Su Huiyan must be furious. Su Renyi is going to be beheaded, and she herself has been demoted. Her future rank will not even be as high as that of the Dowager Consort. She will have to bow to the Dowager Consort. Isn't she going to have a stroke from anger?

However, those two slaps from the Dowager were indeed very satisfying.

Su Xuening felt increasingly pleased with herself and took Bai Shi's arm, praising, "Mother Consort is mighty!"

Lady Bai chuckled, raising her eyebrows haughtily: "That's right! I'll see who dares to bully my daughter-in-law from now on!"

"Mother~" Feeling Bai Shi's overwhelming affection, Su Xuening was so moved that her nose tingled, and she leaned her head on Bai Shi's shoulder.

Madam Bai was incredibly soft-hearted, and affectionately patted Su Xuening's head: "With your mother here, no one will dare to bully you!"

...Looking at the two of them walking side by side, Xuan Yuanzhan suddenly felt a pang of sadness, and for a moment he didn't know who to envy more!

Bai Fuya didn't find a wife for him at all; she clearly found a wife for herself!

Look how much he spoils Su Xuening! He's clearly done everything he's supposed to do, not giving him a chance to shine at all. What kind of place can he possibly have in Su Xuening's heart?

And he's a patient, yet neither of them cares about him!

The three of them split into two carriages and left the palace together.

When they arrived at the palace gate, Bai saw the people still crowding around and shouting. Deeply moved, she lifted the curtain and said to Granny Shang, "Go and tell those people that His Majesty has fulfilled their demands. Su Renyi will be executed at the Meridian Gate at noon tomorrow. Also, starting tomorrow, our Holy Prince's Mansion will distribute porridge and grain for a month to thank the people for their support today."

"Yes," Granny Shang replied, and then went over to convey Bai's words to the people.

When the people heard that Lady Bai was going to distribute porridge and grain for a month, they all knelt down in excitement before her, saying, "Thank you, Your Highness, for your generosity in distributing grain. Long live Your Highness!"

Lady Bai smiled, lowered the carriage curtain, and told the driver to drive.

Before the carriage had gone far, the people cheered.

"The Holy Queen Dowager is truly generous; she even opened the granaries and distributed grain for a month."

"We never expected that the Emperor would actually listen to our cries and order Su Renyi's execution!"

"Since His Majesty is able to listen to advice, he can be considered a wise ruler!"

"This Su Renyi received military merit from General Su, yet he still wanted to kill the man's children. He has a terrible conscience. Heaven is going to punish him!"

Inside the carriage, Su Xuening listened to the cheers and shouts of the people and couldn't help but look at Xuan Yuanzhan: "This time, we are really grateful to you for finding these people. Otherwise, we don't know what the outcome would have been today!"

She realized that the Emperor was too easily swayed. If it weren't for the Empress Dowager and the commoners at the gate today, the Emperor would never have made such a hasty decision to behead Su Renyi.

Thinking that Xuan Yuanpeng had even suspected him just now, Xuan Yuanzhan snorted coldly: "Su Renyi is unrighteous and has committed many evils. In fact, the Zhong family had already aroused public anger yesterday. I just found a few people to start it. The people who came later were all spontaneous. It can only be said that Su Renyi has brought this upon himself!"

Su Xuening thought of the people's love and respect for her father yesterday. If her father knew in the afterlife that the people of Dongchu still remembered his merits, he would be gratified!

"No matter what, the matter is resolved, so our efforts weren't in vain," Xuan Yuanzhan said, touching his aching chest.

Su Xuening nodded silently, looking at his slightly pale face, and said with some heartache, "At least you didn't suffer that sword wound for nothing!"

Su Renyi was stripped of his title, his family property confiscated, and he was beheaded and his head displayed to the public. Su Huiyan was demoted from a concubine to a lower-ranking concubine and stripped of her imperial seal. This was the best outcome she had anticipated!

This time Su Huiyan wasn't involved, so she knew she couldn't completely destroy Su Huiyan with one blow. However, she was quite surprised that the Emperor would demote her rank.

Su Xuening suddenly looked up and asked Xuan Yuanzhan, "Why does Your Highness think the Emperor punished Su Huiyan as well?"

After all, there was no evidence to prove that Su Huiyan was involved, and Su Renyi hadn't implicated her either. If the Emperor wanted to protect Su Huiyan, he could have done so without hesitation; even the Dowager Consort couldn't object. Yet, the Emperor directly punished Su Huiyan as well!

Although she was only demoted to the rank of concubine, the fact that she had been demoted meant that Su Huiyan was definitely stripped of her power to manage the harem. This must have been a fatal blow to Su Huiyan!

It's really hard to guess what the Emperor is thinking. He might have been forced to deal with Su Renyi by his mother and the people at the palace gate, but his handling of Su Huiyan is quite subtle.

In his previous life, didn't the Emperor tolerate Su Renyi and Su Huiyan's evil deeds without restraint just for the sake of the Su family army's military seal? The Emperor clearly did the same thing before, so what happened this time? Does he no longer care about the Su family army?

The answer is clearly no. The Emperor could not possibly be indifferent to the Su family army, yet he has dealt with Su Renyi and Su Huiyan one after another. Could it be that...?

Just as Su Xuening guessed the answer, Xuan Yuanzhan narrowed his eyes and sneered, "I reckon he wants to take command of the Su family army himself!"

The answer to this question had already been figured out by Xuanyuan Zhan ever since Xuanyuan Peng promised to give him and his mother an explanation.

For an emperor, it is best to keep military power in his own hands.

However, the Su family army is quite special. From its inception, military power has always been in the hands of Su Renzhong.

Of course, Su Renzhong was always extremely loyal to Xuanyuan Peng. In fact, Xuanyuan Peng's successful ascension to the throne was due to Su Renzhong's support. Even after Xuanyuan Peng became emperor, Su Renzhong continued to lead the Su family army to expand his territory and guard the borders, achieving remarkable military exploits and making outstanding contributions to Xuanyuan Peng!

Xuanyuan Peng treated Su Renzhong well because of this, but Su Renzhong died on the battlefield. Unexpectedly, the good fortune that followed benefited Su Renyi and Su Huiyan.

Previously, Xuan Yuanpeng had been extremely tolerant and indulgent towards Su Huiyan and Su Renyi because of the Su family's military seal. This time, however, he so readily executed Su Renyi and demoted Su Huiyan as well, making his intentions quite obvious.

Su Xuening raised an eyebrow and gave Xuan Yuanzhan an approving look.

He was thinking the same thing as her, and she understood the Emperor's thoughts.

but……

"It's a pity that the Emperor's thinking is a bit naive; it's impossible for him to control the Su family army."

"What do you mean?" Seeing Su Xuening's confident expression, Xuan Yuanzhan frowned suspiciously.

Throughout history, there have been countless instances of emperors controlling military power. Even though the Su family army had always been under the control of Su Renzhong, Xuanyuan Peng is an emperor, and if he wants to take control personally, how could the Su family army not submit?