The food was laid out on the table, and Song Yaozhu ate slowly, as did Princess Xuan. Only Yongle seemed to have transformed his grief and anger into appetite, stuffing his mouth slowly while his lantern-like eyes remained fixed on Song Yaozhu.

They had only eaten half of their meal when Li Wei's apprentice came to report: "Your Majesty, the Prince of Xiaoyao is at the palace gate, saying he has come to take the Princess back to her residence."

Upon hearing this, the already tense atmosphere at the dinner table became even more oppressive.

Yuwen Wuji put down his chopsticks and looked at Song Yaozhu. He saw that the woman had a shy yet delighted expression on her face.

"Your Majesty, I cannot keep the Prince waiting any longer. Please allow me to take my leave!"

Yuwen Wuji tightened his grip slightly on his lap, thinking, "There's plenty of time. After a while, the Xie family will fall. Let's see what Xie Liwei has to be so arrogant about then!"

Go!

Li Wei immediately understood and ordered someone to prepare a sedan chair.

The imperial concubine's fingernails dug into her palms; the emperor had gone too far!

The strongmen carried Song Yaozhu to the palace gate, where she saw Xie Liwei in a black cloak from afar. He was handsome, with a jade crown and a fair complexion.

Song Yaozhu sat on the palanquin, arms outstretched, "Your Highness, please carry me down!"

Xie Liwei smiled helplessly, stepped forward and opened his arms. Song Yaozhu jumped off the sedan chair and was embraced by Xie Liwei, her legs wrapped around his waist.

This scene, which looked loving and harmonious, made Yongle, who was standing behind, so angry that his mouth twisted in disbelief.

The accompanying eunuch presented a brocade box, saying, "Your Highness, His Majesty said that a woman's skin should not be damaged, and specially sent me to bring you Jade Bone Regenerating Cream."

As he spoke, the young eunuch opened the brocade box in front of Xie Liwei, revealing five exquisite small porcelain boxes inside.

Song Yaozhu gestured for the money to be accepted, saying, "Thank you, sir. Please convey my thanks to the Emperor."

Cai Jin took out a small handful of gold coins and gave them as a reward.

Song Yaozhu waved to Yongle again, "Little Yongle, remember to get up early tomorrow, we'll go to Lord Fang's residence together to learn etiquette from Young Madam Fang~"

Yongle stomped his feet in anger, watching Xie Liwei carry Song Yaozhu into the carriage, and cursed, "What are you so smug about! You bad woman!"

Granny Feng sighed, saying that if she couldn't teach it herself, the Princess Consort of Xiaoyao could teach it for her.

"Mother, I have suffered such a great loss, why didn't you speak up for me in front of my uncle just now!"

Princess Xuan snorted, "What did you say? You deserve to be taught a lesson."

Her daughter has suffered all sorts of losses, but never one like this. It's good to teach her a lesson.

"Mother, won't you avenge your daughter?!"

"I haven't even settled the score with you for causing my mother to lose an estate! From today onwards, your monthly allowance is gone!"

Yongle was so aggrieved that he cried all the way.

After returning home, Princess Xuan told Prince Xuan about what had happened that day.

"Have you found out who spread the rumors about our daughter?"

“She is a servant woman from the Song family,” the servant replied.

"Your Majesty, I cannot understand. Could this be the work of the Prince of Xiaoyao? What is his purpose in doing this? I truly believed that Song San was acting in our daughter's best interest!"

“This doesn’t seem like Xie Liwei’s method.” King Xuan calmly wrote down the events that had occurred on the paper.

"Whether or not your taking in these scholars at the estate is for choosing a son-in-law for Yongle, it will make the Emperor uneasy. Song San's involvement in this matter will also make the Emperor think that Xie Liwei is plotting something malicious."

But after Song San brought the matter to the Emperor's attention, it truly became just a case of women arguing over a man. Although the estate now belonged to the Emperor, the impoverished scholars finally had a foothold in the capital. At the same time, it sent a message to the world: the Emperor was beginning to value scholars from humble backgrounds.

Princess Consort Xuan murmured, "Now that the estate belongs to the royal family, no one outside will dare to gossip about our daughter, otherwise it would be disrespectful to these candidates. And these candidates are those whom the Emperor values; to disrespect them is to disrespect the Emperor."

"To outsiders, this was a farce, but in the end, it was the poor scholars who benefited!"

“His Majesty has always been troubled by the powerful families’ control over the court. Every year during the imperial examinations, he wants to promote people from humble backgrounds, but he is always suppressed by them. How can His Majesty tolerate these people riding on his head?” Prince Xuan sighed and put down his brush. “Grand Tutor Song is the tutor of the princes and enters the palace every day. Perhaps this matter was instructed by His Majesty and carried out by Princess Xiaoyao.”

Princess Xuan was secretly shocked, patting her chest in unease, and said, "Thank goodness, I did nothing. If I had really taken revenge on Princess Xiaoyao, wouldn't the Emperor have thought that our Xuan Prince's Mansion was plotting a rebellion?"

Prince Xuan nodded. “We shouldn’t do anything. Since the Emperor can’t tolerate the aristocratic families, he will definitely make a big move during the imperial examination. At that time, the prisons of the Dali Temple will probably not be enough to hold them all.”

Princess Xuan sighed, "This Princess Xiaoyao hasn't read many books, but she's quick-witted. I'm always worried that Yongle will suffer if he follows her.

"It's good to teach her a lesson, so she won't cause me trouble every day! It doesn't matter whether she gets married or not, the important thing is that she can't continue to be so stupid!"

Fearing the emperor's suspicion, the couple did not have a second child after Yongle was born. As a result, Yongle was spoiled in his childhood. However, now that the emperor wields more power, he is increasingly suspicious of his brothers.

King Xuan sighed deeply. How wonderful those days were before he became part of the imperial family...

Meanwhile, Song Yaozhu was carried back to Tingxue Courtyard by Xie Liwei and thrown onto the bed. Xie Liwei was seething with anger and wanted to slap her, but he was afraid of hurting her and making her distant. But if he didn't slap her, he would be furious, so he raised his hand and slapped her buttocks.

Song Yaozhu scrambled out of bed, clutching her bottom, and shouted, "Why is Your Highness hitting me!"

They still spanked me on the butt!

How presumptuous! How ambiguous! How shameful!

"I think you've gotten too bold, daring to do anything," Xie Liwei sneered.

He originally thought that Song Yaozhu only wanted to use Prince Xuan to settle those candidates, but the moment he arrived at the palace gate, he realized that Song Yaozhu did not want to use Prince Xuan, but the Emperor!

Only when the emperor intervenes will those impoverished students see hope, and even if they are oppressed at this time, they will have the determination to go to the capital.

The powerful families would also be careful to restrain their actions and avoid causing trouble at this time, lest they become the chickens to be killed to scare the monkeys.

She wanted to ensure that those candidates had the opportunity to go to the capital for the imperial examinations.

"I'm afraid your good intentions will be in vain. Do you think it's just the place that's ruined?"

Song Yaozhu paused, "What do you mean? Officials in the capital dare to accept bribes?"

She assumed that local officials, taking advantage of the distance from the emperor, were acting like tyrants and disregarding the law. After all, how could someone as autocratic as Yuwen Wuji tolerate anyone defiling his most cherished power right under his nose?

“If they didn’t dare, how could my sister be isolated and helpless in the deep palace? Those parasites were raised by Yuwen Wuji himself, and now he wants us to pull them out for him.” Xie Liwei said with great disdain.

"I'm warning you, you better behave yourself these days. If you make any more moves, be careful the dog emperor might really suspect you!"

Song Yaozhu immediately rolled over and hid inside the bed.

"No, no, Your Highness, you must protect them!"

Xie Liwei felt a surge of anger welling up inside him, and with nowhere to vent it, he punched her on the bottom again in frustration.

"Oh!" Song Yaozhu wailed, "Xie Liwei, you're making a fuss over me!"

Why didn't you say you were molesting me when you were taking off my clothes?

"How can that be the same? You're a man, and I'm a woman!"

"So you realized you were a woman at this point?"

Song Yaozhu suddenly stopped, then grabbed Xie Liwei's hand and pulled it to her chest, saying, "I told you to pull it back! I told you to pull it back, okay!"

Xie Liwei's ears turned red instantly, and he broke free from her hand and rushed out the door.

Song Yaozhu lay on the bed, humming softly as she brushed a stray hair from her forehead.

Little brat, you're still too green to mess with me!