The beautiful woman's breath was as fragrant as orchids, and Emperor Yuming felt as if he had been enlightened. He praised her intelligence, which made the Empress giggle repeatedly. Emperor Yuming dismissed the servants, led the Empress to the bedside, drew the bed curtains, and the two of them made love passionately.

"Imperial edict arrives—"

When the imperial edict arrived, Qin Qi was having lunch with his father. Upon hearing this, he and Prime Minister Qin knelt down to receive the edict.

By the mandate of Heaven, the Emperor decrees:

The Prime Minister's daughter, Qin Xi, is dignified and beautiful, possessing both inner and outer grace. Her words and actions embody the virtues of a well-bred lady, and she has now reached marriageable age. Now, there is Lu Huai, the second young master of the Minister of Rites' household, a man of noble character and dignified appearance. Therefore, I hereby decree that the Prime Minister's daughter be married to Lu Huai, with the wedding taking place in two months. So be it!

Qin Xi was stunned and almost forgot to accept the imperial decree. It was only after Prime Minister Qin reminded him that he remembered.

"Thank you for your great favor," Qin Qi accepted the imperial edict from the eunuch, then turned and took some silver from her personal maid and handed it to the leading eunuch. "The sun is shining brightly outside. You must be tired from your journey. Please have some tea."

The head eunuch declined several times before finally accepting the gift, smiling obsequiously and repeatedly congratulating Qin Xi before leading his entourage away from the Prime Minister's residence.

After Qin Qi saw them leave the mansion, he opened the imperial edict again and glanced at it, as if he felt that he had read it wrong.

Prime Minister Qin sighed and said, "Yizhi, I didn't want to involve you in the power struggles of the court, but in the end, it was unavoidable."

Yizhi was her childhood name. Qin Xi looked at her father and fell silent. She knew that although her father held considerable prestige in the court, serving a ruler was like walking on thin ice, especially a suspicious one. Her mother had passed away early, and her father only had her as his daughter; she had nowhere to escape.

Prime Minister Qin picked up his teacup, took a sip, and began to worry about her future. "Minister Lu is a decent person, but Lu Huai... who doesn't know him? A true playboy. But the imperial decree has already been issued, and there's no way to take it back. I'm afraid you'll suffer if you marry him."

Qin Xi didn't think it was a big deal. Although she had never met Lu Huai, she thought it wouldn't be difficult to treat him with respect if she didn't interfere in his affairs.

She comforted Prime Minister Qin, "Father, I'm not afraid. I'm just a little overwhelmed for a moment. My marriage to the son of the Minister's family will be a great help to you. Besides, I come from the Prime Minister's family, so I don't think Lu Huai would dare to bully me."

Prime Minister Qin put down his teacup, nodded, and sighed, "I hope so."

-

The Ministry of Personnel.

Lu Huai was equally stunned upon hearing the imperial edict. He stood up and turned to Minister Lu, "Father, is His Majesty getting old and making a mistake? Is this Miss Qin going to be betrothed to my elder brother?"

Minister Lu glared at him with exasperation, "Shut up, stop talking nonsense. Do you think you can defile an imperial edict like this?" After saying that, he told the steward to take some money and hand it to the leading eunuch.

The eunuch who received the money covered his mouth and laughed, his eyes almost narrowed into slits. "Second Young Master, what nonsense are you talking about? This happy event was personally arranged for you by the Minister! I have to go back and report to His Majesty, so I'll take my leave now."

Minister Lu held Lu Huai's hand with one hand as he saw the group out.

"Father! What's going on!" Lu Huai slammed the imperial edict on the table and asked angrily.

Minister Lu glared at him, picked up the imperial edict, read it again, nodded in satisfaction, and said to him: