Ruan Qing'an pondered for a moment. She hadn't expected Sun Tianyuan to be so quick, going directly to complain to his parents. The Minister was even faster, going directly to the Emperor.
Before Ruan Changhong could speak, Ruan Qing'an said first, "Drive to the palace. I'll handle this matter, Father."
Ruan Changhong frowned slightly. Although Ruan Qing'an had spoken very eloquently before, she had done quite a few outrageous things in the past, and Ruan Changhong was really worried about her handling this matter.
"Let's forget it, Qing'an, let Father go."
"That won't do, Father."
Ruan Qing'an shook his head: "I know you don't believe me yet, Father, but why don't you see my abilities this time? Otherwise, how dare I discuss the future of my Yongle Marquis's mansion with His Highness the Ninth Prince?"
"That's true, after all, he's your future husband..."
Ruan Changhong also thought about it. Ruan Qing'an would have to deal with Ji Wuyu sooner or later, not to mention the chaotic situation. Even if he protected her, he was afraid that Ruan Qing'an would suffer. So it would be better to let her grow up.
After thinking it through, Ruan Changhong stood up and instructed Luzhu: "Go and pack up to send Miss to the palace. Remember to take good care of her."
"Yes, my lord, Green Bamboo knows."
...
When they arrived at the palace, the cold air was still in the air. The fine snow had already stopped, and it was piled up in layers on the vermilion eaves at the four corners. Under the warm sunlight, it seemed to radiate a white glow. Ruan Qing'an, wrapped in a deep red brocade fur coat, walked in the palace.
Her petite figure possessed a delicate beauty; because of her frailty, she coughed softly, and a blush crept up the corner of her eyes.
Green Bamboo carefully supported her: "Miss, are you alright?"
Ruan Qing'an shook her head. When she looked up, she saw the chief eunuch Zhao not far away. She stepped forward and said, "Eunuch Zhao, is His Majesty in the Imperial Study? My father heard that I had hit Minister Sun's son and ordered me to come and apologize immediately, so I rushed over here."
"The Minister has indeed arrived. I will inform him on your behalf, but whether he can enter depends on His Majesty's decision."
"Thank you, Eunuch Zhao."
Ruan Qing'an gave a slight bow and winked at Lüzhu. Lüzhu immediately stepped forward and carefully slipped the silver into Eunuch Zhao's hand.
"Thank you for your trouble, sir. We will wait outside. However, my young lady is not in good health. I'm afraid she will catch a cold if she stands in the snow for too long. I hope you will understand."
Eunuch Zhao naturally understood. He chuckled and tucked the silver into his sleeve: "Alright, I'll go and report to His Majesty right away."
After waiting for a while, Eunuch Zhao hurriedly came out and led the way for Ruan Qing'an. Since he had received money, he also whispered, "Miss, the Minister has indeed come, but what Young Master Sun said was that His Highness the Ninth Prince humiliated him."
Ruan Qingan was taken aback: "What?"
"I was just saying, why did you rush here so quickly, Miss? Don't make the Marquis worry. This time it has nothing to do with you, and His Majesty values the Marquis highly, how could he let you suffer any injustice?"
After speaking in a low voice, Eunuch Zhao allowed Ruan Qing'an to enter the Imperial Study, while he himself stood guard outside the hall.
Ruan Qing'an did not expect that after giving the silver, he would find out such a situation. Instead of causing trouble for himself, Sun Tianyuan dragged Minister Sun to cause trouble for Ji Wuyu.
However, upon entering the Imperial Study, Ruan Qing'an had no choice but to suppress his doubts and take in the situation.
She lifted the hem of her dress and bowed.
"Ruan Qing'an, the eldest daughter of the Marquis of Yongle, attends Your Majesty's presence."
Inside the imperial study, Ji Hao, dressed in a bright yellow dragon robe, was the emperor of the Great Liang Dynasty. In his youth, he was a man of great talent and ambition, who helped the Great Liang Dynasty build a great empire. However, he was now old and looked somewhat frail, suffering from various ailments.
As for Sun Tianyuan and Ji Wuyu, they were both kneeling on the ground, while Minister Sun stood to the side with his back bent, his face filled with undisguised anger.
Ji Hao looked Ruan Qing'an up and down before laughing, "So it's Qing'an. I even held you when you were little. There's no need to be so reserved. Marquis Yongle and I are like brothers. Get up."
"Thank you, Your Majesty."
Ruan Qing'an didn't care how nice Ji Hao's words were. His manners were impeccable. He bowed respectfully and then stood up.
Ji Hao did indeed call them brothers and remember Ruan Changhong's contributions to the Great Liang, but his betrothal to Ruan Qing'an and his least favorite son Ji Wuyu clearly showed that he had long been wary of the Yongle Marquis's mansion. In fact, he might have nominally valued it but secretly wished to kill it.
Even though the Yongle Marquis's mansion no longer holds military power, it still fears Ruan Changhong's prestige among the three armies.
Ji Hao couldn't find fault with her, so he ignored her and said, "I'm still dealing with the matter of Minister Sun's son. Since you and Ninth Prince are engaged, you can just listen from the side."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
Ji Hao looked at Minister Sun: "Speak now, my dear minister."
Minister Sun then said angrily, "Your Majesty, you must avenge my son! For some reason, the Ninth Prince had someone beat my son, almost causing him to fall ill!"
Sun Tianyuan was screaming in pain, looking pitiful and like he had been bullied, which made Ji Hao frown.
Ji Hao had never liked Ji Wuyu, and now he was causing him even more trouble, which made him feel extremely bad.
He turned to Ji Wuyu: "Ninth Prince, how do you explain beating the son of Minister Sun? I am strict about the rules, and my princes should know the rules even more and not do whatever they want!"
"Do you have any conflict with the son of Minister Sun? You're always resorting to violence and verbal abuse—is this how the Imperial Academy teaches you?!"
On the table, a white jade teacup was smashed straight in front of Ji Wuyu, and the shards cut his hand. Clearly, Ji Hao was furious, and this unfair treatment was directed at Ji Wuyu.
Sun Tianyuan, who was standing to the side, couldn't help but sneer.
Ji Wuyu's eyes darkened slightly, and he bowed, saying, "I have nothing to say, Father, whatever punishment you deem fit."
He also said that Ruan Qingan had changed, probably because he had joined forces with Sun Tianyuan to complain about him to Ji Hao.
【Affection Level: -5】
037: [Ahhh! Oh no, the male lead—]
"He misunderstood. This Sun Tianyuan is really in the way..."
Ruan Qing'an couldn't help but feel a headache. Could it be that Sun Tianyuan really had deep feelings for the original owner? He was beaten up but didn't come to her. Instead, he went to provoke Ji Wuyu, an innocent passerby.
Ji Hao had no interest in seeing Ji Wuyu again. He waved his hand slightly and said, "Alright, since that's the case, then—"
"Your Majesty, Qing'an came to the palace for this very reason."
Just then, Ruan Qing'an stepped forward, knelt in front of Ji Wuyu, and bowed, saying, "After all, His Highness the Ninth Prince is engaged to Qing'an and did not want to involve me, so he took it on by himself."
Upon hearing this, Ji Hao was stunned. How did this involve Ruan Qing'an? Sun Tianyuan, who had been yelling loudly, stopped, while Minister Sun looked at her thoughtfully.
Ji Wuyu looked up at Ruan Qing'an and frowned.
What is this woman trying to do...?
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