Upon hearing this, the emperor quickly came to the rescue.
Li Xingyi explained, "It was a palace servant who saw my brother here and, seeing this scene, was worried that something might happen, so he came to find me."
Qi Min nodded and said, "I see."
Li Xingyi asked, "Royal sister, tell your sister-in-law what they did to offend you?"
Qi Min turned away from Li Xingyi and said, "Sister-in-law, you're here to see your brother, but I'm here to see Ji Xi. So you should take your brother Li Yanzhang with you!"
Just as Li Xingyi was about to say something, Qi Min added, "Oh, by the way, Young Master Li seems to have no sense of propriety. He actually mistook me for the Emperor's concubine just now. Sister-in-law, you should teach him a lesson."
Li Xingyi said calmly, "Royal sister, your brother probably didn't mean it. He's never met you before, so he misunderstood. Don't take it to heart."
Qi Min said, "Alright, since that's the case, I, the princess, will not hold this matter against you. Sister-in-law, you should take your brother and leave."
Li Xingyi said slowly, "Royal sister, Ji Xi grew up with my brother and me since childhood. If he has made a mistake, tell your sister-in-law, and she will punish him for you."
Qi Min turned to look at her and asked hesitantly, "Really?"
Li Xingyi said firmly, "Really."
Ji Xi asked Li Yanzhang in a low voice, "Why is the Empress here?"
Li Yanzhang also whispered, "I don't know either. You should think about yourself first, just in case..."
After hearing this, Ji Xi lowered his eyes and said, "This was originally my fault, and I should be punished."
Li Yanzhang said, "Hey, don't do this. You can accept the punishment, but you'll end up in jail. What if you get a chance?"
Ji Xi looked at Li Xingyi, and Qi Min said, "I already said it once, and I don't want to say it again now. Let your cousin tell you."
Shi Yan then recounted the story to Li Xingyi, who glanced at her after understanding it.
Ji Xi, you really dare to do this! How am I supposed to help you with this mess?
After Shi Yan finished explaining, Qi Min asked, "Well, Sister-in-law, how do you plan to resolve this?"
Li Xingyi said calmly, "Royal sister, could we perhaps avoid prison and try something else?"
Qi Min thought for a moment and said, "How about a different kind? Or how about a hundred lashes?"
Being beaten with a cane can be very deadly. Thirty strokes of the cane can leave a person bedridden for ten days or half a month. Fifty strokes of the cane can leave a person barely clinging to life. One hundred strokes of the cane can be fatal!
Li Xingyi frowned slightly and asked, "Royal sister, perhaps..."
Qi Min seemed to know what she was going to say and immediately said, "Wait! Sister-in-law, it's either going to jail or getting a hundred lashes, you choose?"
Li Yanzhang and Ji Xi both knew what this meant: she wanted Ji Xi dead! Once in prison, Ji Xi would have no one to protect him, and Qi Min could easily order him to be tortured until he died!
Li Yanzhang gritted his teeth and said, "This Princess Huimin is just like her mother, both so ruthless!"
Ji Xi sighed inwardly.
If you knew I also forcibly kissed her, you wouldn't think that way.
Li Yanzhang said this because after the Li Hehua incident, Shi Hui had been intentionally or unintentionally suppressing the Li family and never giving them a kind look! If it weren't for Qi Lie's constant attention and protection of the Li family, the Li family would have ended up like the Shi family long ago.
Ji Xi naturally knew all this, but he thought this way because he knew in his heart how big the trouble he had caused was.
Li Xingyi looked at Qi Min and asked, "Royal sister, do you intend to kill Ji Xi?"
Qi Min found it somewhat amusing after hearing this. She said, "Sister-in-law, I am the Empress Dowager's only child. I have been pampered and spoiled since I was a child. I have lived a life of luxury. But after I returned from praying for my brother, Ji Xi made me, the Emperor's sister, sleep on the city wall for one night. Do you know how cold and hard it was?!"
As she spoke, she began to cry. Upon hearing this, Ji Xi lowered his head in shame, and Qi Min felt wronged.
And my kiss, how could I not let him die!
Li Xingyi naturally knew the whole story, as Shuanghan Sect was the most well-informed, but he couldn't really let Ji Xi die.
She said, "Your Highness, this is indeed Ji Xi's fault. It's not that I don't want you to punish him."
Shi Yan felt a pang of sympathy and stepped forward to wipe Qi Min's tears with a handkerchief. Qi Min cried even harder at this point.
Everyone was at a loss for what to do, but Shi Hui suddenly appeared and hugged Qi Min with heartache, asking with concern, "Min'er, what's wrong? Who bullied you? Tell your mother, and your mother will help you."
Once Qi Min had stopped crying, Shi Hui let go. She immediately saw Li Xingyi, pointed at him, and angrily said, "Li Xingyi! What did you do to Min'er? As the Empress's sister-in-law, how could you let Min'er cry! I shouldn't have let the Emperor marry you as Empress in the first place!"
Upon hearing this, everyone was shocked. Seeing this, Li Yanzhang immediately began to protect his sister: "Your Majesty the Empress Dowager! Don't wrong Her Majesty the Empress, she did nothing!"
Shi Hui turned around and saw them, then sneered, "Oh! You have accomplices too! Li Yanzhang, that's one thing, but Ji Xi, what are you doing here? Are you here to meet with Li Xingyi in secret?"
"Shut up!" Suddenly, an angry voice rang out. Everyone looked over and saw Qi Dou standing behind Li Xingyi. He walked to Li Xingyi's side and said, "Empress Dowager! I have said I hoped you would be more mindful of your words!"
Shi Hui said, "Yes! But what did Li Xingyi do? She made your sister cry! As the emperor's elder brother, shouldn't you help Min'er teach her a lesson?! It would be best to remove her from the position of empress!"
Upon hearing this, Qi Dou angrily said, "The truth of the matter has not yet been known. How can we prove that Xingyi made Huimin cry? Besides, if Huimin shed tears after Xingyi only said a few words, then I don't think she deserves to be a princess of Qi!"
Upon hearing this, Qi Min's tears fell again. She knelt down and clutched Qi Dou's clothes, choking back sobs, "Royal brother, no, it wasn't my sister-in-law who made me cry. I, I cried because of what happened last night. Please don't... please don't take away my princess title, okay?"
Upon hearing this, Shi Hui hugged Qi Min with heartache, her eyes also filled with tears. This time, Shi Hui didn't speak, afraid that if she said anything more, Qi Dou would really revoke her daughter's princess title. She just quietly hugged Qi Min, her eyes filled with tears, and remained silent.
Seeing Qi Min like this, Qi Dou's anger subsided considerably, and he felt more sorry for her.
Li Xingyi felt pity for Qi Min and looked at her with a slight change in expression.
Although Qi Min is a bit spoiled, she is not a bad person at heart. Besides, it was Ji Xi's fault, so it is unfair to Qi Min.
Li Xingyi looked at Qi Dou and said, "Your Majesty, please let my sister and mother get up. My mother is just feeling sorry for Huimin, and I also blame myself for not handling my sister's matter well."
Qi Dou sighed and said, "Get up, Mother. I don't want to hear you say anything bad about Xingyi anymore. In time, you will discover Xingyi's good qualities."
After obtaining Qi Dou's consent, Li Xingyi reached out and took Qi Min's hand. Qi Min looked at the hand in front of her, then at Li Xingyi, and finally placed her hand on his.
Shi Yan helped Shi Hui up, and Li Xingyi took out a handkerchief to wipe Qi Min's face.
Qi Dou looked at Qi Min and said, "Hui Min, you are Princess Hui Min of Qi. From the moment you were conferred the title, you will always be Princess Hui Min of Qi. I will not revoke your title of princess. Don't worry, I was just saying that in anger."
Qi Min nodded in agreement.
Qi Dou said, "Alright, let's talk about it in Fengyi Palace. Look at this blazing sun, you're getting so tanned."
After saying that, he touched Qi Min's face. Seeing Qi Dou like this, Qi Min knew that he had calmed down and laughed, "No way? How could I be dark-skinned?"
Qi Dou turned around and walked away, echoing, "Yes, yes, you'll always be white."
Qi Min followed after hearing this and smiled happily, while Li Xingyi watched them quietly from behind.
Qi Dou, who was walking ahead, suddenly stopped. He turned around and said, "What just happened should be kept to ourselves. I don't want any rumors or gossip."
As they were talking, he quietly reached out his hand to Li Xingyi's. When he touched Li Xingyi's hand, she glanced at their clasped hands, but did not pull away. She simply let him hold her hand.
“…Hold my hand, and I’ll take you somewhere…” Li Xingyi suddenly heard these words, and an image of a man with an indistinct face and his outstretched hand appeared in his mind.
The scene flashed, and Li Xingyi was walking slowly, holding that person's hand, just like now.
It's happened again.
Li Xingyi glanced at their clasped hands and then at Qi Dou, but ultimately said nothing.
It seems... somewhat familiar.
Qi Dou led Li Xingyi by the hand, and Qi Min teased, "Brother, you said that just now clearly so you could hold your sister-in-law's hand!"
Qi Dou looked at Li Xingyi and said, "Yes and no, I did it for you."
Qi Min smiled and said, "But brother... you said this based on sister-in-law's expression! I don't believe you would do this for us."
Qi Dou said, "Then... let's just say I just wanted to hold Xingyi's hand."
Li Xingyi remained silent after hearing this.
Qi Min walked over to Qi Dou and chatted and laughed with him. Li Xingyi felt particularly warm at the moment. She thought that if they were just siblings from an ordinary family, they wouldn't have to worry about deceit and treachery. This was probably how it was.
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