Finally, he slowly spoke, "I know you have your thoughts, and I have my considerations. The military power in the North is no small matter; a single move can affect the whole situation. I cannot make promises lightly; I must carefully consider them."

His voice carried a hint of weariness and helplessness. He understood that as the ruler of a nation, he had to consider the safety of the entire country and could not make wrong decisions based on personal feelings.

Rong Ning listened quietly, knowing that there was a deeper meaning in her father's words.

She knew it would be a long wait, but she was willing to wait because she believed that as long as she persevered, one day she would get everything she wanted.

"Okay... I understand! Father... there's still a long way to go, no rush."

Rong Ning looked up and smiled, then cupped her hands in a respectful bow. "Father, I have said everything I wanted to say. If there is nothing else, I will return to the Princess's residence now!"

“A-Ning…”

The emperor was speechless for a moment…

"Your subject takes his leave!" Rong Ning ignored him and left.

"Wait a minute..." the emperor called out to her. "Your princess residence is too deserted and has been neglected for too long. Your elder sister's Zhaoqing Palace has been empty all this time, and nothing in the palace has been touched. The Consort has the entire palace cleaned up every few days, so it is very clean. You can stay in the palace today. We will have dinner together later as a welcome dinner for you and the Crown Prince!"

Hmm... that works too, anyway, she wants to see what Zhaoqing Palace looks like now.

Therefore, Rong Ning readily agreed, "Your subject obeys!"

I strode out of the magnificent hall and saw the Crown Prince standing outside like a wooden statue, motionless.

He heard footsteps, turned around, and scanned her to make sure she was unharmed. He breathed a slight sigh of relief, but he couldn't help but scold her, "Before we went in, I told you to speak properly. How come you've completely forgotten what I said?"

Rong Ning glanced at the Crown Prince, a hint of impatience flashing in her eyes, "Brother... I didn't forget, I just couldn't bear it any longer!"

She took a deep breath, trying to calm herself down. "Go in and tell Father Emperor about the situation in the North. I am not important enough to speak, so I can only wait for you at Zhaoqing Palace."

Upon hearing this, the Crown Prince sighed helplessly. He understood Rong Ning's temperament and knew that once she made a decision, it would be difficult to change it.

He said softly, "Alright, you must be tired after such a long journey. Take a good rest. We'll talk about the rest later..."

The prince's tone revealed a hint of weariness and helplessness, but it was also full of concern and love for his younger sister.

"Um…"

Rong Ning nodded perfunctorily, her face showing no trace of lingering affection. She turned and strode away without looking back. She seemed to harbor some unwavering resolve, as if something more important awaited her ahead.

The Taiji Hall and Zhaoqing Palace were not far apart, so Rong Ning decided not to take a sedan chair but to walk there instead.

After walking a few steps, they unexpectedly encountered Luo Chuan.

Luo Chuan was the commander of the Imperial Guards. He had just settled the guards and was preparing to report to the Emperor. Upon seeing Rong Ning, he immediately stopped and instinctively tried to hide, but Rong Ning was already staring straight at him.

He had no choice but to step forward and respectfully bow.

"Your Highness, this humble subject greets Your Highness!"

Rong Ning stopped and, unusually, showed a hint of politeness to Luo Chuan, saying, "Commander Luo, you've worked hard."

"Your Highness is too kind. These are all my duties!" Luo Chuan replied neither humbly nor arrogantly.

"Um…"

Rong Ning nodded slightly, seemingly deep in thought.

Then, as if suddenly remembering something, she reminded Luo Chuan, "Be careful what your father says later, I just angered him again!"

Luo Chuan was speechless upon hearing this, but could only respectfully reply, "Your Majesty, thank you for the reminder!"

"You're welcome... Go ahead..." Rong Ning smiled brightly, as if comforting Luo Chuan, "When Father Emperor is in a better mood, I will bring up the issue of your marriage with him."

Luo Chuan shook his head helplessly, knowing that she had ill intentions, and said, "Your Highness... please don't make fun of me. If Your Highness has nothing else, I will take my leave."

After saying that, he didn't wait for Rong Ning to speak before turning around and leaving immediately, not wanting to stay a moment longer.

Luo Chuan's figure quickly disappeared at the end of the corridor, leaving Rong Ning standing alone with an ambiguous smile on her lips.

Watching his retreating figure disappear so quickly, Aying laughed, "Your Highness, you seem to be targeting Commander Luo quite a bit, and he seems to be afraid of you too!"

“You should be afraid!” Rong Ning said calmly. “If one day Father Emperor tries to interfere with my marriage, he will find a way to make things go wrong on his own, without me having to do anything.”

ah??

marriage?

Commander Luo?

"Princess...why did you think of this?"

How did you come up with that idea?

Rong Ning pulled A Ying over and whispered, "A Ying... in two months, I will be of marriageable age. If nothing unexpected happens, Father will start to consider my marriage."

My elder sister has already married far away to Da Jing. Even if he is as hard-hearted as iron, he probably wouldn't want me to marry far away as well. Even if he wanted to, my elder brother wouldn't agree. They would find a way to keep me in Nanyang City.

But in Nanyang City, there are few distinguished sons of noble families. The powerful clans, good in every way, are unwilling to hand over their best men to me.

But the bad thing is, they look down on it, and I look down on it even more, which will only lead to more chaos.

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!