The eunuch held the imperial edict in his hand and looked at Yao Ying with embarrassment.

Yao Ying was bathed in the brilliant sunlight, her face calm, "Since the emperor has summoned me, why am I avoiding him?"

The eunuch forced a smile: "Your Majesty is very busy and is discussing important matters with the ministers..."

The voice got lower and lower, paused for a moment, and then suddenly rose, "Please accept the order, my lord, so that I can go back and report!"

Yao Ying smiled and stood at the steps, dressed in a fluttering robe, looking elegant and noble.

The eunuch was so captivated by her beauty that he did not dare to urge her any more for a moment.

Suddenly, a triumphant laugh was heard in front of the moon platform. The rustling sound of her dress dragging on the ground was heard, and Concubine Rong, dressed in gorgeous clothes, walked over surrounded by palace maids.

"Princess, you don't have to wait!" Concubine Rong looked at Yaoying with a smile on her face, not hiding her happiness and joy. "The imperial edict has been issued. Your Highness is crazy and stupid. The emperor ordered me to prepare for the princess's wedding. The princess is about to leave the palace, and the emperor is afraid that the princess will be sad. Princess, don't make things difficult for these palace maids. Accept the imperial edict and go back to prepare for the wedding."

She smiled charmingly and gracefully.

"I almost forgot... The husband the princess is going to marry is Chief Yelu. I heard he is quite old! The princess is so lucky to have an older and loving husband."

The Chief Secretary glared at Concubine Rong with a sullen face.

Concubine Rong glanced at Yao Ying and laughed so hard that she fell backwards.

Yao Ying glanced at Xie Qing behind her.

Xie Qing understood, took two steps forward, and slapped Concubine Rong twice on the face with a wave of his hand.

Before Concubine Rong could react, her maid screamed heartbreakingly and rushed forward to tear Xie Qing apart: "How dare you!"

Xie Qing had no expression on his face and slapped him twice with his backhand.

He was a warrior and his blows were quite powerful. Concubine Rong felt dizzy and her well-maintained face soon became swollen.

The palace maids were so frightened that they fled in all directions like headless flies, and their screams echoed throughout the palace.

The Jinwu Guards rushed over upon hearing the noise. They did not dare to question Yao Ying, but drew their swords and pointed them at Xie Qing, angrily shouting, "Stop being so presumptuous, you wicked slave!"

Xie Qing didn't even look at the Jinwu Guards. He grabbed Concubine Rong's wrist and forced her to kneel at Yao Ying's feet.

Concubine Rong's face was covered in blood. She struggled desperately, and her hair was covered with jewels and jadeite. She cursed: "I am the imperial concubine, and you, a wicked slave, dare to be so presumptuous. I will chop off your head! Seventh Princess, I am your stepmother. You dare to humiliate me like this today. I will never let it go! Just wait, just wait for me!"

The surrounding Jinwu guards looked at each other and bravely took two steps forward.

Yaoying glanced at them.

The Jinwu Guards stopped immediately.

Yaoying signaled Xie Qing to lift up Concubine Rong's red and swollen face.

Concubine Rong knelt on the steps, her face blue and swollen, she was angry and afraid, and her whole body was trembling.

Yao Ying looked at her, "Ah Qing is a member of the Xie family. She is my most loyal guard, not a servant."

Xie Qing straightened his back secretly, a hint of pride flashing across his always cold face.

Yao Ying changed the subject, "Your real name is A Rong, and you are a maid of the Xie family. Back then, you climbed into the bed of the master behind my mother's back. My uncle knew your true nature and did not destroy your bond. You are still a servant of the Xie family. My mother is your old master. You dare to disrespect your old master. These slaps are just a small punishment."

Concubine Rong was so angry that she was shaking. "I was personally appointed as Concubine Rong by His Majesty! Just wait, I will let His Majesty discipline you! You have no respect for your elders, you deserve to be sent to marry a foreign prince!"

Yao Ying smiled slightly, like a spring flower in full bloom: "The Yelu tribe wants to marry me. The emperor and the ministers in the court are looking forward to exchanging me for the cavalry of the Yelu tribe. Arong, you are the emperor's bedmate and you know him better than anyone else. Think about it, will the emperor make me unhappy for you now?"

Concubine Rong was stunned, her mouth opened weakly, her anger was gradually replaced by fear, and she trembled even more violently.

At this moment, the sound of horse hooves clattering came from down the long stairs.

The Jinwu Guards looked in the direction of the sound and saw the man on horseback. They were surprised and sheathed their swords and greeted him respectfully.

The two eunuchs did not bother to read the marriage decree and ran into the palace to report it.

"Mr. Pei is here! Mr. Pei is here!"

At the foot of the palace steps, several palace maids gathered around a tall and strong white horse and helped an old man off the horse.

The old man was wearing a gauze fu hat and an indigo round-necked robe. His face was haggard, his temples were gray, and he looked very old. He stopped to catch his breath after walking every two steps.

"Mr. Pei!"

From the front hall, the curved corridor to the moon platform, there were attentive calls. Several eunuchs received orders from Li De and rushed to the old man carrying the sedan chair.

"Mr. Pei is here. His Majesty is very happy and has come out with several prime ministers to greet him. Please take the sedan chair and enter the palace!"

Pei Gong was already over 80 years old, in a trance, with cloudy eyes. He raised his head, looked around, and his eyes fell on Yao Ying.

Concubine Rong's face immediately showed joy.

The Pei family of Wei County was a family friend of the Li family. When Li De started the rebellion, the Pei family followed him. Pei Gong's brothers and sons all died in the battlefield, and he himself was seriously injured while trying to save Li De. Although he saved his life, his body was completely broken, and he stayed in Wei County to recuperate.

Li De respected Pei Gong very much and once said in public that Pei Gong was like his own father.

The discord between the Pei and Xie families was well known to the world, and Pei Gong had publicly expressed his contempt for Xie many times.

Concubine Rong shouted, "Mr. Pei! The daughter of the Xie family has no respect for her elders and beats my stepmother! Please, Mr. Pei, help me!"

The Chief Secretary never expected that Pei Gong, who was thousands of miles away, would suddenly appear in front of him. Beads of sweat broke out on his forehead. When Pei Gong got angry, he even dared to scold Li De!

He stopped Yao Ying and said, "Princess, please step aside for a moment."

Yao Ying shook her head and glanced at Concubine Rong: "The account is not settled yet, just wait."

Concubine Rong shuddered.

Yao Ying turned around and walked towards Pei Gong.

The chief secretary stamped his feet in anxiety.

Yao Ying walked up to Pei Gong and performed the salutation for him.

Pei Gong looked at her, nodded, and stretched out his hand.

The eunuch next to him said quickly: "Mr. Pei, the emperor said that you are old and can ride in a sedan chair..."

Pei Gong sneered, pushed the eunuch away, and patted Yao Ying gently with his old and skinny hand, "You have grown a lot taller."

Yao Ying chuckled: "You are healthier than before."

Pei Gong's cloudy eyes flashed with a smile: "You're coaxing me again."

Everyone was stunned.

In front of the long stairs, Emperor Li De, who hurried over to greet Pei Gong, also had a look of surprise on his face.

Prime Minister Zheng Yu, Governor Pei and other ministers followed behind Li De, watching Pei Gong and Li Yaoying chatting and laughing as they climbed the stairs. They were secretly surprised and exchanged shocked glances with each other.

Lord Pei has always disliked the Xie family. He and the Seventh Princess have never had any contact in these years. How come they are so harmonious?

Pei Dudu was the nephew of Pei Gong. He smiled and went forward to greet him: "I didn't know you were coming. I apologize to you."

Pei Gong glanced at him coldly and ignored him. He walked up to Li De with the help of Yao Ying and pretended to bow.

Li De hurriedly stopped Pei Gong and asked with a smile, "Why are you here?"

Pei Gong directly pushed away the hand that Li De extended, "I am old and useless, and I came here to ask Your Majesty for a favor."

Li De said nothing, his eyes fell on Yao Ying who was standing beside Pei Gong.

Pei Gong held Yao Ying's hand and stood still, saying slowly: "I have no children but Yu Lang as my great-grandson. The emperor promised to marry the princess to the Pei family. I see that the seventh princess is clever, intelligent, gentle and generous, so I want to ask the emperor for a favor. I wonder if the emperor is willing to let her go?"

Before he finished speaking, the ministers' faces changed.

The eunuchs and guards had already quietly retreated, and Concubine Rong was also helped away by the palace maids. The sound of wind filled the corridor.

Li De was silent for a while, then smiled and said, "Mr. Pei, it's not that I can't bear to part with Qi Niang, but I have already agreed to the proposal of the Yelu tribe."

Pei Gong raised his eyelids: "Oh? Why did I hear that the princess who was going to marry the Yelu tribe was Princess Fukang?"

The minister was sweating profusely.

Li De looked at Yao Ying again.

Yaoying lowered her eyes.

Pei Gong looked around and saw that all the ministers lowered their heads in guilt. His eyes fell back on Li De's face and he said slowly, "Your Majesty, are you going to break your promise to me? Your Majesty made a promise to me in person, and the ministers in the court heard it with their own ears."

Prime Minister Pei looked embarrassed and didn't dare to respond, but he couldn't refuse either.

Pei Gong's sons and grandsons all died for Li De, and they were indeed present when Li De made the promise.

Li De sighed: "Please invite Lord Pei into the palace, and I will explain the whole story to you."

The wrinkles on Pei Gong's face trembled twice, but he did not move: "Your Majesty, there is no need to waste your time. I have heard the details of the Yelu tribe's proposal of marriage."

His voice suddenly rose, and anger surged in his cloudy eyes.

"Your Majesty originally had no intention of arranging a marriage, but the daughter of the Zhu family was arrogant and willful, and she made a random marriage. Your Majesty did not want to break his promise to the Hu people, so he had to arrange the marriage, but the daughter of the Zhu family regretted her decision and refused to marry. At this time, the Yelu tribe changed their mind and said they wanted to marry the Seventh Princess, and Your Majesty wanted to retake Liangzhou... As for you..."

Pei Gong's eyes swept across the faces of the ministers one by one.

"You are grateful for the Zhu family's kindness and don't want to see the Zhu family's daughter marrying far away. Since the Yelu tribe took the initiative to ask for a replacement, you are naturally very happy. So you urged the emperor to accept the Yelu tribe's proposal and marry your own daughter, right?!"

His loud shout startled the ministers and they almost fell to their knees.

Pei Gong looked at Li De and said word by word: "Your Majesty, may I ask whether the Wei Dynasty's surname is Li or Zhu? The daughter of Zhu is precious, while the daughter of Li is worthless? The daughter of Zhu treats diplomatic relations as a joke, and the civil and military officials of the court allow her to do whatever she wants, just because her surname is Zhu. In their eyes and hearts, there is only the Zhu family, and do they still care about Your Majesty, the Son of Heaven?"

The ministers' hearts were pounding and sweat was pouring down their cheeks. When they heard the last sentence, they fell to their knees with a thud.

"Your Majesty is wise! We, the ministers, have absolutely no such intention!"

Pei Gong sneered: "This matter all started because of the daughter of the Zhu family. If it wasn't for the daughter of the Zhu family, how could the Yelu tribe have the courage to ask for the Li princess's hand in marriage? If my Great Wei wants to recapture Liangzhou, do we have to rely on the Yelu tribe?"

The ministers were speechless.

Pei Gong looked around and said slowly, "The Xie family has been managing Jingnan for generations. The family is full of loyal and righteous people. The sons of the family became prime ministers if they were good at literature and generals if they were good at martial arts. They worried about the world first and sacrificed their lives for the country without looking back. When the Hu people went south, the people in the Central Plains were brutally massacred. The Xie family was far away in Jingnan, but they resolutely led their troops north to help the Zhu family fight the enemy. Four generations of ancestors and grandchildren, 100,000 heroic souls, are all buried in the yellow sand."

"Twenty-five years ago, famine broke out in the Dajiang area, with starving people everywhere and epidemics rampant. Wherever the victims fled, local officials ordered them to be driven away. Only Xie Wuliang of Jingnan opened the city gates to receive the victims, set up soup kitchens and medical clinics, and saved countless lives. People from all over the country fled to Jingnan, and he took good care of them all. When the epidemic was over, he sent people to send the victims back to their hometowns, without forcibly detaining them."

"Twenty-one years ago, the emperor was badly defeated in Fuzhou, tens of thousands of Wei soldiers died in the river valley, and Wei County was occupied by the enemy. The Xie family sent troops to save Wei County, donated their stored food to help the emperor recruit soldiers and horses, and recruited the nobles in Jingnan for the emperor. In just one year, they helped the emperor recover all the lost territory and signed an alliance with the emperor."

"Eleven years ago, the Chu army launched a surprise attack. The Xie family defended Jingnan to the death in order to contain the Chu army, protect the people from crossing the river, and for the great cause of the emperor. Xie Wuliang was just a weak scholar, but he held out for more than a month against the well-equipped Southern Chu army!"

"Later, the food in the city was gone, and they were powerless to resist the Chu army."

"The Xie family is magnificent."

Pei Gong threw his head to the ground and said, "Before the city was captured, Xie Wuliang had his personal guards cut off his head and presented it to the Chu army to protect the people in the city. This calmed the Chu army's anger and the Zhao family of Southern Chu did not massacre the city."

As he spoke, the sound of the wind suddenly became mournful.

The ministers looked solemn and said nothing.

Pei Gong raised his eyelids, and two rays of light flashed from his hazy and old eyes: "Your Majesty, the Xie family was concerned about the country but forgot about their family. They sacrificed their bodies to help the country. They are worthy of their ancestors, worthy of the people, and even more worthy of Your Majesty! The people of Jingnan will never forget the kindness of the Xie family! Concubine Xie is Xie Wuliang's biological sister. She has only one son and one daughter. Concubine Xie is often ill, and the Seventh Princess is filial and serves her soup and medicine, and never leaves her side. How can you bear to let the Seventh Princess marry in her place?!"

His tone was cold and sharp.

"Your Majesty, the Seventh Princess was named by Xie Wuliang. If Xie Wuliang were still alive, would you let the Seventh Princess marry far away?"

Li De's face was cold.

The ministers knelt on the ground, not daring to say a word, but their faces showed expressions of emotion and shame.

As Pei Gong said, when they learned that Chief Ye Lu wanted to marry the seventh princess, they all breathed a sigh of relief - Zhu Luyun didn't have to get married.

They put so much thought into preserving the last bit of Zhu's bloodline that they totally disregarded the life and death of the Seventh Princess. They had no face to face Xie!

Li De took in the emotional expressions of the court officials.

Pei Gong first mentioned the promise made in the past, then questioned whether the court officials were still loyal to the Zhu family, and then mentioned the Xie family. Even if the court officials were partial to Zhu Luyun, it was impossible for them to publicly approve of letting Li Yaoying marry in place of her.

If he insisted on letting Yaoying go to marry, not only would it disappoint the noble families who followed him, such as the Pei and Xie families, but it would also scare the old ministers of the previous dynasty. Governor Pei and others would be even more resentful.

When the new dynasty was first established, he tried his best to balance the old ministers, aristocratic families, powerful families, poor families, and military generals of the previous dynasty, so as to prevent any one party from gaining dominance. However, the aristocratic families gradually took control of the court.

He couldn't let his loyal ministers down at this time.

The undercurrents in the court are far more important than the 10,000 iron cavalry of the Yelu tribe.

Li De weighed the pros and cons and quickly made a decision.

"The Yelu tribe is seeking to marry Princess Fukang."

After the words were spoken, the ministers did not raise any objections.

The wind howled in front of the palace.

Yao Ying stood beside Pei Gong, her clothes soaked with sweat, her heart beating like a drum, and she slowly closed her eyes.

A few years ago, she accidentally saved the life of Pei Yu, the great-grandson of Pei Gong. Pei Gong promised to do something for her, and this thing must have nothing to do with Li Zhongqian and Concubine Xie.

When she found out that Li Xuanzhen actually wanted her to marry on his behalf, she immediately thought of Pei Gong.

Fortunately, Pei Gong is a man who keeps his promises.

…

Li De asked Pei Gong to stay and discussed the marriage with him.

Yao Ying took her leave.

Prime Minister Zheng watched Yaoying walk away with a complicated expression on his face.

Yesterday, his son Zheng Jingqiu came to him and said that he was in love with the Seventh Princess and asked him to help persuade Li De to stop Li De and the Eastern Palace from marrying the Seventh Princess in his place.

The Zheng family discussed the marriage with the second prince, and although it ended in failure, as long as the Zheng family takes out the previously drafted marriage certificate and token, and with the cooperation of the seventh princess, outsiders can still be convinced.

Prime Minister Zheng flatly refused: "You have offended the Eastern Palace for the Seventh Princess, and your future career will be completely ruined!"

Zheng Jing said resolutely: "As long as the Seventh Princess can be saved, my son is willing to never serve in the government again."

Prime Minister Zheng had no choice but to agree reluctantly.

Zheng Jing immediately went to the Seventh Princess to discuss how to make a decision. He was in high spirits when he left, but was downcast when he came back.

Prime Minister Zheng frowned and asked, "Did the Seventh Princess ridicule you?"

The son has mediocre qualifications and is often laughed at.

Zheng Jing shook his head: "The Seventh Princess did not ridicule me."

Li Yaoying did not ridicule Zheng Jing. She was surprised that Zheng Jing took the initiative to help her and was grateful for his timely help. Zheng Zhong thanked him for his kindness and finally said, "Sanlang is a talented man. He will definitely be a pillar of the country in the future. He should not ruin my future. Sanlang does not need to worry about me. I have already found a way to protect myself."

Prime Minister Zheng sneered, how could a young lady protect herself?

However, he still admired Li Yaoying for her ability to remain calm in times of crisis and for being able to think about Zheng Jing's future even at this time.

He thought that Li Yaoying was trying to fool Zheng Jing by saying there was a way to protect himself.

She never thought that she could actually invite Pei Gong.

Prime Minister Zheng frowned.

Chang'an and Weijun are thousands of miles apart, so Pei Gong should have set out long ago. At that time, the Yelu tribe had not yet sent a letter requesting marriage.

Li Yaoying must have sent a letter to Pei Gong when she found out that Dong Gong wanted her to marry on his behalf, so Pei Gong arrived so timely. The marriage decree has not yet been issued, and the emperor can change his mind at any time.

This kind of courage is really rare.

…

The news that Li De had withdrawn the marriage decree soon reached the Eastern Palace.

Zheng Biyu sighed softly. She didn't want to see the Seventh Princess ruin her life because of Zhu Luyun's willfulness.

Wei Ming was greatly disappointed.

Li Xuanzhen reacted calmly. He was neither angry nor relieved.

He just said "oh" lightly, turned around and called his staff to continue discussing how to stop Zhu Luyun from getting married.

Li De did not agree to the marriage, and Chief Ye Lu was very disappointed. He wrote to the king and asked for an audience, making more promises. However, Li De was busy accompanying Pei Gong and did not meet him.

The chief secretary told Li Yaoying worriedly: "Chief Yelu is still greedy and has bribed officials in the Honglu Temple to persuade His Majesty to agree to the marriage."

I don’t know what happened, but Chief Ye Lu, who had never met Yao Ying, suddenly seemed to be possessed by a demon and was determined to get Yao Ying.

Yao Ying had already received Pei Gong's marriage certificate, and she felt relieved: "It's okay. With Pei Gong's marriage certificate, no one dares to force me to marry."

Changshi thought so too.

Now that Pei Gong is protecting the Seventh Princess, the villains dare not act rashly. When the Second Prince returns, there will be nothing to worry about.

The Chief Secretary was looking forward to Li Zhongqian's early return.

After waiting for more than half a month, I finally received the battle report from the south.

Changshi opened the letter, the smile froze on his lips, his eyes went dark, and he fell to the ground.

The letter was quickly delivered to Li Yaoying.

There was a line of unfamiliar handwriting on the letter: Two days ago, the right army led by the King of Qin was ambushed and the entire army was wiped out.

The author has something to say: The second brother will not die, the monk...well, the monk is chanting.

I will be v-ing tomorrow, more updates will be added

By the way, I'm asking for the advance collection of "Becoming the Daughter of a Traitor", a story about imperial examinations and competitions, and the daily life of relying on the traitor father~

What should I do when I suddenly find out that my father, who I depend on for everything, will become a notorious cruel official and my whole family will be cannon fodder?

Ming Yao spread his hands and said: What else can I do? Of course I should live a life of debauchery and have fun!

What should I do if I am forced to marry the son of my enemy before I can even achieve my goal?

Ming Yao laughed: Of course it was a disaster for him and made his whole family angry to death. She deserves the reputation of being the daughter of a treacherous official.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Thanks to the little angels who cast mines: Luna; Bai Day Meng Zhou, 29920081

Thanks to the little angel who irrigated the nutrient solution: Can't control your mouth and can't lose weight; 19375288; RT-Mart's second brother; Mo Zhaoyu; Meng~, Xixi