They only had a vague understanding of the situation. The Crown Princess served Li Zhaoxian closely, fanning him.

Lianzhi lowered her eyes and looked at the tightly closed door, gently shaking her head. It was time for the Crown Princess to pay the price for her impulsiveness.

A commotion arose outside, and Li Zhaoxian was overjoyed. He couldn't imagine such a spectacle except for an emperor's procession.

Sure enough, the emperor led Xie Qianzhong through the door. The crown prince knelt down excitedly to pay his respects, and Xie Qianzhong and the palace servants following behind him bowed to the crown prince.

"Father, you've finally arrived." Li Zhaoxian looked at the emperor with burning eyes, while glancing at Xie Qianzhong, who remained silent beside the emperor.

"What do you want to say to me?" The emperor's face was displeased. There were still piles of memorials in the imperial study. If the crown prince hadn't repeatedly emphasized that he should come in person, he wouldn't have wasted this time.

"Your subject does indeed have important matters to report." The Crown Prince dismissed everyone else around him, leaving only his confidants.

"Your Majesty, I must report the Crown Princess for adultery with Xie Qianzhong!" Li Zhaoxian knelt down. "Xie Qianzhong is an important minister in the court, but the Crown Princess is my family member. I cannot swallow this insult. I beg Your Majesty to do me justice!"

Li Zhaoxian's words were resounding, sunlight falling on his fair neck. Song Tangli knelt down beside him, her figure delicate and frail.

"Oh?" The emperor's eyes were deep and unreadable, revealing neither his joy nor anger. Xie Qianzhong stood calmly behind the emperor, remaining silent.

"Father! The Crown Princess was taken out of the Crown Prince's residence by Lord Xie last night and hasn't returned all night!" Li Zhaoxian's eyes reddened, filled with grief and indignation. No matter how you look at it, this was a shameful thing.

If it weren't for the need to drag Xie Qianzhong into this, I would have dealt with it secretly.

"What does Lord Xie have to say?" The emperor's attitude was clearly calm. He knew perfectly well that Xie Qianzhong's unhurried demeanor meant that things were not as the crown prince had described.

Upon seeing Song Tangli beside Li Zhaoxian, the emperor roughly guessed what was going on.

"I have never done such a thing!" Xie Qianzhong said neither humbly nor arrogantly.

"Father, he's lying! If you take people to investigate his residence, the Crown Princess will definitely be there!" Li Zhaoxian said excitedly.

"Who told you this?" The emperor skipped over the topic, his eyes glancing at Song Tangli beside him with a seemingly casual look.

Song Tangli's heart skipped a beat, and she raised her head again. This wasn't her fault.

"It was the Crown Princess who told me that Ah Li is a kind person, and she was just admonishing me." Li Zhaoxian intended to win some favor from the Emperor for Song Tangli.

"Your Majesty clearly confined the Crown Princess to her quarters, yet she still did such a thing!" Li Zhaoxian was utterly humiliated; no man could remain calm in such a situation.

"You've confined the Crown Princess?" The Emperor narrowed his eyes slightly, scrutinizing the Crown Prince. "You've confined the Crown Princess for no reason?"

Li Zhaoxian opened his mouth, hesitated, and hesitated. The reason was simply untenable, and he was too embarrassed to say it aloud.

The emperor was very disappointed. The crown prince's concubines were a means to control the court and should not be allowed to act arbitrarily.

The crown prince clearly did not understand this principle.

Song Tangli's eyes flickered with resentment: "Your Majesty, the most important thing now is to deal with my sister's matter..."

"When did it become your place to interrupt when I was speaking with the Crown Prince?" The Emperor showed Song Tangli no kindness whatsoever, his face so gloomy it seemed as if it could drip water.

He wondered if the daughter of the Song family, who had been carefully raised and nurtured for more than ten years, was so ill-mannered that she should retire from the military and return home as soon as possible.

Song Tangli's face turned pale, and she lowered her head, not daring to speak.

The emperor let out a long sigh of relief and looked at Cui Xi and Xiao Xizi, who were kneeling to the side: "Get up first, and tell me where the Crown Princess is."

Seeing that several palace servants swayed as they stood up, the emperor became even more disappointed in the crown prince. He was so swayed by his emotions that he took his anger out on others without understanding the situation.

This is the most incompetent approach.

Cui Xi then repeated what she had just said, and the emperor nodded: "Go and wake up the Crown Princess."

Li Zhaoxian and Song Tangli exchanged a glance, both of them looking relieved. As long as their father knew they hadn't lied, he wouldn't dwell on what had happened before.

Only Shan Xing realized something was wrong when he saw Xie Qianzhong's nonchalant expression.

Cui Xi quickly got up and went inside. Unexpectedly, Song Tangxue was already dressed and sitting by the window. A small hole was poked in the window, allowing her to see the situation in the courtyard.

Cui Xi's heart suddenly calmed down, and Song Tangxue became more and more like a god in her heart, omnipotent.

"Your Majesty, you scared me to death!" Cui Xi gasped for breath and wiped the sweat from her forehead.

Song Tangxue, in a good mood, pointed to the chair next to her and said, "Thank you for your hard work. Sit down and rest for a while. We'll go out later."

This "hard work" was just an excuse she made for herself. She originally planned to leave when Song Tangli brought Li Zhaoxian to her door.

Unexpectedly, Li Zhaoxian, that fool, gave him an unexpected surprise by boldly attracting the emperor's attention.

He immediately retreated back inside, listening to Li Zhaoxian and Song Tangli's smug plan, his little scheme written all over his face.

Especially Song Tangli, if she had a tail like a dog, she would have been a blur long ago. Song Tangxue just let her mentality gradually swell up.

Despite struggling with herself for so long, Song Tangli still can't learn to be low-key.

Cui Xi waved her hands repeatedly: "Your Majesty, let's go out now that you're ready. The Crown Prince and Crown Princess are waiting outside."

Cui Xi couldn't bear to see Song Tangxue suffer. Even though she hadn't done anything wrong, the Crown Princess always came to cause trouble for Song Tangxue.

“If I show up dressed neatly now, they’ll think I’m doing this on purpose,” Song Tangxue explained helplessly. “I’ll go out later.”

Cui Xi suddenly realized that she was also struggling to cope. The dual torment of mind and body caused her to sit down wearily, glancing outside from time to time.

Unfortunately, she had covered the door when she came in, so she couldn't see anything now. She looked away with some regret and met Song Tangxue's ambiguous smile.

"Did Your Highness already know?" Now that her worries were gone, Cui Xi asked again, "The Crown Princess and His Highness the Crown Prince have been waiting outside all morning."

"Let those two act like turtles looking at green beans, let them make a fuss. In the end, it is the evildoers who will suffer the consequences..."

Outside, the emperor sat down at the stone table, with Li Zhaoxian and Song Tangli standing obediently to his side, and Xie Qianzhong standing on the other side, as if it were none of his business.

The silence was broken by the opening of the door and the anxious voice of a young girl. With her hair simply tied up, Song Tangxue quickly walked to the emperor and knelt down to pay her respects.

Li Zhaoxian and Song Tangli stared at her in disbelief. Song Tangli was the most devastated. This whole thing started because of her, and now what was she going to do?