Ye Qingxue's last few words were spoken with a resounding force, so powerful that the emperor couldn't help but glance at her again.
Ye Qingxue: "The location where Wei Jingtong buried the stolen goods is very well hidden. Ordinary people would not think of it and it would be difficult to find it. So last night, I went out of the city with the eldest son of the Pan family to Jingzhou to look for Wei Jingtong's stolen goods."
"After arriving in Jingzhou, in order to save time, I parted ways with Young Master Pan. Unexpectedly, I encountered bandits in Qingfeng Town who were about to set fire to and massacre the entire town. Princess Rongqing, who had been kidnapped by them, happened to be among them..."
“Princess Rongqing is only seven years old, yet those beasts wouldn’t even spare such a child, groping her in all sorts of ways…”
Ye Qingxue closed her eyes, her face full of anger.
"I could no longer bear it, so my maid Dongbai and I devised a plan to infiltrate the trap, gain the trust of several bandit leaders, and then secretly kill them, thus saving Princess Rongqing and the people of Qingfeng Town."
A glint suddenly flashed in the emperor's eyes as he looked at her. How dangerous it was for a woman to risk her life alongside a maid!
But she not only killed several bandits, but also saved Princess Rongqing. How amazing is that!
Ye Qingxue said, "If Your Majesty does not believe me, you may summon the people of Qingfeng Town or Princess Rongqing to question me. If I have uttered a single lie, I am willing to die to atone for my sins!"
"There's no need for further questioning. I believe everything you say. They say a tiger father begets no dog son, and the ancients were right. You truly are worthy of being the legitimate daughter of the Marquis of Loyalty and Bravery!" The emperor laughed and showered Ye Qingxue with praise.
In fact, after Ye Qingxue came in, he had already asked several people in Qingfeng Town about how Princess Rongqing was rescued. The Prince Yu and his wife had explained everything clearly.
What he didn't understand was the logic behind it all, and the sequence of events. Why did the Pan family say that she went with them to look for stolen goods the night before, and then the Prince and his wife said that she saved Princess Rongqing in Qingfeng Town?
What exactly did she do last night?
How many Ye Qingxues are there in this world?
Now, his two questions have finally been answered.
He called Huaifu in and said, "Ye Qingxue, the eldest daughter of the Marquis of Zhongyong, has made great contributions by reporting Wei Jingtong's embezzlement, rescuing Princess Rongqing, and eliminating three bandit leaders. By imperial decree, she is to be rewarded with 50,000 taels of silver, 100 bolts of Shu brocade, and 100 bolts of other kinds of silks and satins."
Huaifu happily agreed: "Yes, Your Majesty, this servant will take care of it immediately."
The emperor beckoned Ye Qingxue to come closer, his handsome face beaming with an even more benevolent and loving smile.
"Qingxue, you are so outstanding. It is Chi'er's good fortune to marry you as his concubine! I hope your wedding will go smoothly. After the wedding, you will be my daughter-in-law! You must be a good helpmate to Chi'er then!"
The emperor had never known that Ye Qingxue was so outstanding, and thought she was no different from other young ladies. Only tonight did he realize that although she was a woman, she was in no way inferior to her father.
Ye Xiaobai truly gave birth to a wonderful daughter, and Prince Ding is truly blessed.
Ye Qingxue discerned another layer of meaning in the emperor's words—the former crown prince had been deposed and was now a wanted criminal who would be executed once he was found, and the emperor intended to make Prince Ding the crown prince.
Otherwise, the emperor would not have given such instructions.
Ye Qingxue said solemnly, "I'm afraid I'll have to disappoint Your Majesty. Your Majesty may not know this, but before I entered the palace, His Highness Prince Ding had already gone to the Marquis of Zhongyong's residence to annul our engagement."
"What?" The emperor was taken aback, then frowned. "This is impossible! Your marriage to Chi'er was personally bestowed by me, and your father saved his life years ago. He would not disobey the imperial decree, nor would he be so ungrateful!"
Ye Qingxue said, "Your Majesty, since Prince Ding has come to annul the engagement, he must be determined not to marry me. Therefore, I have also agreed to annul the engagement. The letter of annulment written by Prince Ding is still in the Marquis's residence."
The emperor's anger intensified, and he said in a deep voice, "Insolent fool! How dare he break off the engagement without my consent! I will not allow it! Go back to your residence and wait here. I will make him give you an explanation and I will never let him down!"
"Your Majesty, I grew up in the Jingzhou estate and have no feelings for Prince Ding. However, Prince Ding and my second younger sister are childhood sweethearts. They are in love and I do not wish to steal her away. Otherwise, even if Prince Ding marries me into his palace, he will only treat me as an enemy."
"As a princess, I have to be on guard against my husband's hatred day and night. This life is bitter, and I do not wish to live it." Ye Qingxue suddenly knelt down.
"After His Highness Prince Ding broke off his engagement with me, he has now sought to marry the second daughter of the Marquis's family as his concubine, and Prince Ding has even written a marriage contract. Therefore, I humbly request Your Majesty to grant them their wish!"
Ye Qingxue kowtowed to the ground, making a soft sound, like a pebble thrown into a still lake, stirring countless ripples in the emperor's heart.
The emperor was first taken aback, then enraged!
Goodness, it's one thing for Prince Ding Yunchi to disobey the imperial decree and quietly go to the Marquis's mansion to break off the engagement, but he didn't even tell the emperor himself, and then he asked to marry the second daughter of the Marquis of Zhongyong's mansion!
Does Yun Chi still have any respect for his father, the Emperor?
"Summon Prince Ding to see me!" the emperor roared.
In Fengwu Palace, Prince Ding had changed into clean clothes and informed the Empress of Ye Qingxue's response.
The Empress was also surprised that Ye Qingxue, a girl who grew up in the countryside, would refuse!
After realizing what was happening, the Empress pushed Prince Ding out, saying, "Since Ye Qingxue has gone to see the Emperor, she will definitely tell your father about your decision to annul the engagement!"
"It seems there's no way to avoid this. You should leave the palace quickly and find something important to do, even if it's just going on a private tour. The farther away the better, the better. In short, make sure your father can't find you in a short time!"
"After ten days or half a month, when your father's anger has subsided and he has accepted the matter, your mother will have someone write a letter to you, asking you to come back."
"Take care, Mother. Please speak well of me to Father so that I can return soon," Prince Ding said as he retreated out of Fengwu Palace.
The Empress Dowager knew the Emperor very well; if she said the Emperor would be furious, then he definitely would be.
He also knew that although his father seemed kind and gentle on the surface, the consequences would be dire if he were to offend him.
Previously, the Emperor doted on Yun Zhuo, the eldest son of the late Empress. However, after the eldest son committed a crime, the Emperor still deposed him or killed him as he should have.
Prince Ding did not want to take the risk of going against the emperor's wrath. He needed to go into hiding so that his marriage to Ye Yabing could be finalized and his father's anger could dissipate with time.
However, he had only taken a few steps out of Fengwu Palace when Eunuch Huaifu arrived with his men.
He first paid his respects to the Empress, and then said to Prince Ding, "Your Highness Prince Ding, the Emperor requests your presence."
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