Even if she brings up her aunt's spirit tablet again in the future, she can't guarantee how long she can hold on.
He even had a premonition that sooner or later, his daughter would not only be completely out of his control, but might even stand on the opposite side of him.
This is not a good start.
"Your Highness, this matter concerns her future fortune, how could she possibly break up with you? Not only her, I'm afraid even Lingjia Manor will guarantee superficial harmony. After all, no one wants to bring up the past again. If things go wrong, both sides may suffer. What do you think?"
Princess Kang observed the situation and quickly analyzed the interests involved. Li Hongtao's anger gradually dissipated and he turned to look at her and gave her instructions.
"You're right. If that's the case, then we can't lose out. We have to save face. So, I'll go to the palace right now, and you pack up at home. We'll leave for Lingjiazhuang in a few days."
"Yes, Your Majesty, I will arrange it right away."
As soon as Li Hongtao left, the impeccable dignity on Princess Kang's face completely collapsed, and was replaced by a hideous and terrifying look.
"Haha, this little Jianren is really capable, huh? She was so lucky back then that she was rescued by the people of Lingjiazhuang. Now she has climbed up to such a high branch of Lingjiazhuang. Does she think she can sleep peacefully like this? She is dreaming!"
Upon hearing this, Nanny Wang immediately dismissed her trusted aides and whispered, "Master, why are you so angry now? No matter how powerful this girl Li Yuan is, can she be more powerful than you? She is only eleven years old now. Even if she marries Lingjia Manor, it still cannot change the fact that she is a concubine's daughter. In the future, won't she still have to rely on you to arrange a marriage for her?"
When it comes to marriage, Princess Kang's expression suddenly changes, "Marriage? How can I interfere in her marriage? This matter must be handled by the Queen herself, what does it have to do with me?"
When she thought of this, she felt extremely angry. How could such an ugly thing have such a weird fate?
First, she was assigned to His Royal Highness the Phoenix King of Siyou Country, and later there was talk of her being adopted by Lingjia Manor. If this continued, it would be obvious that something would happen to her, who was originally destined to be abandoned.
The prince has revealed the emperor's intentions several times. Although it has not been finalized yet, even if Li Yuan does not marry King Feng, her future prospects will not be comparable to those of other concubines.
Thinking of this, Princess Kang fiercely retracted her bright red nail polish, and hatred was revealed on her beautiful face.
"Those idiots couldn't even take care of a little kid back then. What use do I have for them? Didn't they think of going down to check after they fell off the cliff? Now they've left behind such a disaster. Are they deliberately trying to make things difficult for me?"
Nanny Wang stood by with her head down and didn't dare to make a sound, but she was shaking her head and sighing in her heart. The possibility of such a young child surviving after falling off the cliff was very slim. Who could have thought that she was really rescued by someone?
Doesn’t this mean that the girl was not destined to die?
Thinking of the crimes committed by the people in Furong Garden over the years, Nanny Wang's heart could not stop trembling. She suddenly became worried that after the Seventh Miss returned home, would she bring up the past and take revenge on them?
If it were any other child, how could they remember something that happened so long ago?
But judging by how she treated King Kang and even wanted to sever the father-daughter relationship, the Seventh Girl not only remembered it, but also remembered it deeply.
When Nanny Wang thought of this, she couldn't help but feel a chill down her spine, and prayed silently in her heart that she was not among the enemies of this Seventh Miss.
Because she sadly discovered that she could no longer remember whether she had ever done anything out of line or excessive to her.
Meiguo Palace
In the solemn and dignified Qinzheng Hall, the old emperor, dressed in a bright yellow dragon robe, sat in front of the desk with a majestic and solemn look, listening quietly to Li Hongtao's statement.
"You mean to say that in one month, this Li Yuan will become the real second lady of Lingjiazhuang?"
Li Hongtao heard the displeasure in the emperor's tone and nodded reluctantly: "Your Majesty, it is indeed the case. I have just received an invitation from Lingjia Manor."
As he spoke, he did not forget to present the invitation.
The emperor took it and looked at it coldly, then laughed sarcastically, "Li Hongtao, you are capable, huh? You haven't even passed away yet, and your daughter has already become a married woman?"
Li Hongtao lowered his head and said, "Your Majesty, this matter was decided by the Ling family without authorization. I had no idea about it beforehand. By the time I found out, these posts had already been widely distributed. It seems that the Ling family doesn't take me seriously at all!"
The emperor's eyes sharpened, and a cold smile appeared on the corner of his lips: "You take it seriously? Haha, I am very curious now, what exactly prompted you to allow Princess Kang to kill your own daughter? Li Hongtao, do you think it is necessary to explain to me?"
Li Hongtao was shocked and his expression changed suddenly. He obviously didn't expect that the emperor had already found out everything that happened that year in such a short time.
So, how much did he know?
It is said that this matter has many implications and if one is not handled properly, the whole thing may be lost.
If I don't tell him, what if the emperor has already found out? Wouldn't that mean I'm guilty of deceiving the emperor?
"Why? Is it so hard to talk about it?"
The emperor saw Li Hongtao's dilemma and was displeased.
"Do you know that once this matter is thoroughly investigated by the censor, not only you, but even I will not be able to protect you. What kind of deep hatred makes you treat a child like this? Even so, you still expect the Ling family to discuss it with you? That child has been with the Ling family for seven years. How much affection do you think she has for you?"
Thinking of the information he had seen, every detail was detailed of Li Hongtao's crimes, even the fact that Li Yuan did not save him in the Dark Forest and that Li Yuan ignored him several times in the City That Never Sleeps, all of which were recorded.
A girl who is always talking about breaking off the father-daughter relationship is enough to show that she has no feelings for this family at all.
And what Li Hongtao did was indeed despicable, but it was the word "filial piety" that forced Li Yuan to follow some things that she was always unwilling to do.
For example, saving him, or accepting this marriage.
It is obvious how detrimental this would be to the future of their Mei country.
No matter what, Li Yuan has the surname Li. Just based on this surname, as the ruler of this country, what can Li Quan do to her?
But now, her surname was about to change, and Li Quan, the emperor, obviously could no longer hold back.
"Your Majesty, this is my family affair, and I dare not bring it up. But since Your Majesty asked, I dare not hide anything. In fact, I am not sure whether Li Yuan is my daughter. Back then, when my concubine was found to have an affair with someone, she was already pregnant."
"After she gave birth to the child, I secretly executed her because I couldn't confirm her identity, so I left her in the backyard to fend for herself. Then something strange happened. The child was normal when she was born, but as she grew older, her skin became darker. She didn't eat much, but she became fatter and fatter, in stark contrast to normal children."
"I also asked someone to look at it privately, but I didn't find anything wrong. But three years later, one day, I received a letter, which warned me not to abuse Li Yuan. As a prince, how could I be threatened? So I became more and more disgusted with Li Yuan. Unexpectedly, this child was so tough that she couldn't stand the abuse and ran away. We originally wanted to drive her away, but she fell off the cliff accidentally..."
"Then, seven years later at Ling Wentian's birthday banquet, I recognized her unique figure and skin color, and realized that she was not dead. Not only was she not dead, she was actually still in Lingjia Manor."
"I wanted to take her away directly at that time, but she disagreed and fought desperately. The Ling family still protected her. I had no choice but to send someone to kidnap her in the middle of the night. At that time, the emperor ordered me to choose a concubine for King Feng. Undoubtedly, Li Yuan became the best candidate in my eyes. At that time, I never thought about how capable a maid from the Ling family could be. I didn't expect..."
He didn't expect that she was not only powerful, but also valued by the Ling family, and even saved them from the danger in the City That Never Sleeps. This was something he could never have imagined at the beginning.
After listening to Li Hongtao's explanation, Li Quan combined it with the information from previous investigations and found that there was no discrepancy, especially regarding Li Yuan's biological mother, who did mention "adultery". He immediately frowned and said, "So, after all the developments, you are still the one who is wronged?"
"I dare not, but I am still not sure of Li Yuan's identity, so I have no so-called father-daughter relationship with her. Since Lingjiazhuang is holding such a grand ceremony for joining the family, I am thinking whether I should break up with Li Yuan at this time."
Before he finished speaking, Li Yuan suddenly stood up and said, "What did you say? You want to sever your father-daughter relationship with Li Yuan? Now? When the Ling family wants to adopt her as their adopted daughter?"
Li Hongtao showed a trace of helplessness and distress: "Your Majesty, I don't want to do this either, but Li Yuan is now married to Lingjiazhuang. Her surname may be changed soon. By that time, Li Yuan is not from Prince Kang's Mansion, so how can she be bound by the arranged marriage?"