Xi Xizhi's eyes widened in surprise. Jiu Kingdom? Isn't that the country that was offered to An Honghan as a pet?
She had heard some things about Liu Guozhu before. No matter how vicious An Ruoyan was, she was still more than a match for that old man. A woman's most important thing is her youth. Once An Ruoyan married him, her life would be ruined. Not to mention that old man's age, she had heard that he had changed queens several times.
Although Xi Xizhi felt some sympathy for An Ruoyan's plight, she couldn't bring herself to persuade An Honghan when she recalled how An Ruoyan had pushed An Yunyi down yesterday, killing two birds with one stone by injuring both of them.
An Ruoyan burst into tears, her face streaked with tears, a sight that evoked pity in everyone.
"Royal brother...Royal brother, I beg you, please don't marry me off to King Liu. I will do whatever you say from now on." An Ruoyan knelt on both knees.
The eunuchs and palace maids stared at her in disbelief. Marrying the Sixth Princess to the King of Liu? Had His Majesty gone mad? Wasn't he the one who doted on the Sixth Princess the most?
In Fengze Kingdom alone, there were many young masters from prestigious families who wanted to marry the Sixth Princess, but His Majesty never agreed. They always thought that His Majesty doted on the Sixth Princess and therefore would not marry her off until a good husband was found for her.
However, these words today completely overturned everyone's perception.
An Honghan remained unmoved and ordered the palace maids to clear the dishes from the table.
Xi Xizhi lay in his arms, secretly peeking out to look at An Ruoyan. An Ruoyan was on the verge of a mental breakdown, tears streaming down her face, ruining her makeup, and kneeling on the ground, too afraid to get up.
"If you want to kneel, then kneel forever. I will not take back what I have said. Your marriage to a distant place is a done deal." An Honghan did not look at her again, lifted his leg and strode to the imperial study to handle state affairs.
An Ruoyan clung to An Honghan's leg frantically, crying out, "Brother... Brother, aren't you the one who loves Yan'er the most? Please don't marry me off to him! Why do I have to marry him off? I don't want to... I don't want to..."
An Honghan disliked being touched by others and said coldly, "Someone, pull the Sixth Princess away."
Two guards grabbed An Ruoyan's arms and forcefully dragged her away from An Honghan.
The ornaments on her hair swayed precariously, her hair was disheveled and scattered around her ears, and tears blurred her face.
Xi Xizhi couldn't stand seeing people cry. Afraid that she would fall into her soft-hearted trap again, she raised her paw to cover her eyes, so as not to feel annoyed if she saw it.
An Ruoyan saw Fengyun Diao's actions and suddenly cried out loudly, "Is it...is it because of Fengyun Diao that you treat me like this, Your Majesty? You weren't like this before. Ever since this sable entered the palace, you've given it all the good things, and you've spoiled it no matter what it does! I'm your own sister! Am I not even as good as a sable?"
Her hysterical screams echoed throughout the entire Panlong Palace.
Many palace maids and eunuchs wanted to cover their ears, but no one dared to actually do so.
Why are we bringing this up again? Xi Xizhi blinked, puzzled. What does your marriage have to do with it?
An Honghan frowned, turned around slowly to face An Ruoyan, and said, "Even now, you still don't understand why I'm treating you this way? An Ruoyan, sometimes, it's better to be pragmatic."
"I don't understand... I don't understand! It's clearly you who has changed, it's clearly you who have given all your love to this beast, so why are you blaming me instead?" An Ruoyan held her head and shouted excitedly, losing her usual beautiful and charming demeanor.
"Chirp chirp..." Hearing the word "beast" again, Xi Xizhi became even more dissatisfied.
An Honghan's expression darkened rapidly, turning icy cold. "Beast? Then what are you? To me, you're not even as good as a beast. Since you're so eager to know the answer, I might as well tell you."
Royal affairs are never to be interfered with by outsiders. An Honghan withdrew all the servants from the hall, and the entire hall was eerily quiet.
An Ruoyan sat disheveled on the floor, gazing at her cold-hearted imperial brother, tears streaming down her face. The phrase "worse than a beast" still echoed in her mind. She was the princess of Fengze Kingdom, a golden branch and jade leaf showered with love and affection—how could she possibly be inferior to a beast!
Xi Xizhi opened her big, round eyes and secretly peeked at An Ruoyan through the gaps between her claws.
"Do you know why I killed all the princes back then, but spared you princesses?" An Honghan's face was terribly cold, and a hint of mockery was revealed when he said this.
Everyone speculated that An Honghan did this simply because the princess posed no threat to him.
Xi Xizhi's curiosity was also piqued, and she stared intently at An Honghan.
An Ruoyan shook her head, looking lost and confused, and asked, "Why...why?"
Intuition told Xi Xizhi that this would be a terrifying answer. She hesitated whether to continue listening; the more secrets she knew, the more dangerous her situation would become. It was said that the more secrets a person knew, the shorter their life would be, and Xi Xizhi cherished her life very much.
The two claws gradually moved from the eyes to the ears, blocking them tightly.
The little ferret looks very cute, especially its adorable round face.
The more Xi Xizhi didn't want to know, the less An Honghan wanted to. Besides, wasn't this weasel only allied with him because it saw that she couldn't protect herself? Only if it felt that its situation was dangerous would it be willing to stay obediently by his side. So An Honghan deliberately pulled its paw away and said coldly, "Don't you know enough secrets already?"
This sable knew more about the Empress Dowager's passing and the Shadow Guards than anyone else.
It seems so...
Whether you know a little or a little, it doesn't matter. Xi Xizhi adopted a gossipy attitude and urged An Honghan to speak quickly.
And so, Little Marten was lured into another trap by a cunning emperor.
Ignored by everyone, An Ruoyan's expression grew increasingly grim.
"Still haven't guessed the answer?" An Honghan's cold voice rang out, devoid of any warmth. "I always make the most of everything I do. Most of the time, marriage alliances between countries and the stability of the relationship between ruler and subject are resolved through marriage. I kept you princesses around only because you still have some use. I don't like... disobedient pawns."
If An Ruoyan behaved herself and didn't cause trouble, An Honghan could still arrange a good future for her. But she kept crossing his bottom line, forcing herself down the path of being a 'discarded pawn'.
Xi Xizhi's eyes widened. On the one hand, she admired An Honghan's intelligence, but on the other hand, she was startled by his calculating nature.
If everyone must have some value to stay by someone's side, then where does one's own value lie?
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