The treasury of the Prince’s Mansion held many valuable items, all collected for the Prince by the late emperor during his reign.
Now, these items were finally being put to good use.
He had watched the Prince grow up, treating him like his own child.
He was also the first to know of the Prince’s intentions.
With the arrival of this imperial marriage decree, many noble ladies in the capital tore their handkerchiefs to shreds.
In the Lotus Garden of the Chancellor’s residence, the spring scenery was vibrant, with petals dancing lightly in the air, yet it could not conceal the heavy atmosphere indoors.
Lin Wanqing, the Chancellor’s legitimate daughter, stood by the window in a plain-colored long dress. The handkerchief she tightly clutched in her hand had been unconsciously crumpled beyond recognition by her fingertips, as if mirroring her current state of mind—chaotic, entangled, and even furious.
Sunlight filtered through the carved window lattice, casting mottled patterns on her pale and tense face. Her eyes, usually as clear as autumn water, now burned with resentment and anger.
She abruptly turned around and hurled the now-tattered handkerchief fiercely to the ground.
“Xuanyuan Yi, how could you marry someone else, how could you…” she murmured softly. The name felt like a sharp blade, cutting through her already fragile heart.
She closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and tried to calm the surging emotions, but tears betrayed her, sliding down and dripping onto the bluestone floor. They splashed into tiny ripples, much like the waves of turmoil in her heart that refused to settle.
Since childhood, she had admired Zhennan Wang Xuanyuan Yi. No one knew how much effort she had put into making herself worthy of him.
She had long reached the age for marriage prospects, yet for him, she had waited for his triumphant return, repeatedly rejecting the fine young men her mother had selected for her.
But who could have imagined that, upon his triumphant return, just when she thought her chance had finally come, someone else had snatched him away.
If this person were a noble lady like herself, she might have accepted it. But the one who had taken him was Xia Xing’er, a divorced woman who had just received her Divorce Decree yesterday. How could she possibly accept this?
No, she had to seek out her father. Her father would surely have a solution.
At this moment, she could no longer afford to maintain the modesty expected of a young lady. With her maid in tow, she headed straight for Chancellor Lin’s study.
In the Chancellor’s study, Lin Wanqing knelt beside her father, her eyes red and swollen. Her hands were clenched into fists, her nails nearly digging into her palms, yet she could not hide the intertwined light of resentment and despair in her eyes.
Chancellor Lin Yuanfeng, still dressed in his court robes, wore a deep frown of concern on his brow.
Seeing his daughter disregard all decorum and barge into the study without being announced, he scolded, “Wanqing, look at yourself. What kind of behavior is this? If others saw you in this state, what would they think?”
Lin Wanqing paid no heed to her father’s words at this moment and spoke directly, “Father, your daughter has long admired Zhennan Wang. Please, help me.”
Lin Yuanfeng’s face visibly darkened. He had invested so much in this daughter, not for her to marry a man on the brink of death.
His daughter must bring benefits to the family; otherwise, it would have been better not to have her at all.
Slowly, he retrieved a scroll of secret correspondence from his sleeve and placed it gently on the desk.
“Wanqing, read this first, then speak with your father.”
His voice was low and heavy, each word striking Lin Wanqing’s heart like a heavy hammer.
With trembling hands, she slowly unrolled the scroll of secret correspondence. On it were densely recorded “evidence” of Zhennan Wang Xuanyuan Yi’s “collusion with the enemy and treason.”
Those words, like icy daggers, pierced her heart one by one, filling her with an unprecedented chill and despair.
“Father, this can’t be. He wouldn’t do such a thing. Someone must be framing him.”
Lin Wanqing refused to believe that Xuanyuan Yi could commit treason and collude with the enemy. He had just achieved a great victory over the Northern Di, signing a ten-year peace treaty to prevent further war. How could such a god of war possibly betray his country?
Seeing his daughter in such a state, Lin Yuanfeng decided to tell her the whole truth to make her give up.
“Of course Xuanyuan Yi couldn’t have committed treason. The Northern Di people would love to drink his blood and eat his flesh—how could they possibly cooperate with him? This is the will of the one above. All the evidence was prepared by me and Grand Tutor Liu Yuan together.”
Upon hearing this, Lin Wanqing felt as if struck by lightning, her face turning deathly pale. She asked in a trembling voice, “Father, are you saying… this is His Majesty’s intention? Why? Why would he treat Xuanyuan Yi this way?”
Lin Yuanfeng let out a long sigh, his expression complicated. “The emperor’s mind is unfathomable. Xuanyuan Yi’s achievements overshadow the sovereign, and he commands a powerful army—it’s inevitable that he would arouse suspicion. As for the imperial marriage decree, His Majesty never mentioned it before. Something must have changed unexpectedly.”
After a moment of contemplation, Lin Yuanfeng continued, “You are my daughter. Even without the decree, I would never have allowed you to marry him.”
With that, he stood up, turned his back to her, and gazed out the window, leaving Lin Wanqing with a solitary and resolute silhouette.
Lin Wanqing stood frozen in place, her heart a turmoil of conflicting emotions. It was true that she liked Xuanyuan Yi, but she loved herself even more.
Changxin Marquisate
Everyone had gathered in the main hall, their expressions grim.
“Xing’er, why do you think the emperor made such a move, issuing an imperial marriage decree at this critical moment?”
Xia Chengsheng was utterly perplexed. Unable to figure it out himself, he turned to ask.
All eyes were on Xia Xing’er, and no one noticed the unnatural expression on Marchioness Liu Youran’s face.
She might have known the reason, but she wasn’t sure whether she should speak up. After a moment of hesitation, and before Xia Xing’er could respond, Liu Youran spoke calmly.
“I might know the reason.”
Everyone turned their gaze toward her.
Xia Chengsheng asked with slight surprise, “My lady, what reason do you know?”
Under their collective stare, Liu Youran felt somewhat uneasy. She cleared her throat before slowly explaining.
“Three years ago, Zhennan Wang Xuanyuan Yi once came to propose marriage to Xing’er, but I refused him.”
Xia Qingyun was so shocked that he jumped up from his chair, staring at his mother in disbelief. He stammered, “Mother, you… you’re saying… A-Yi once proposed to Little Sister?”
Liu Youran glared at her second son, annoyed by his reaction.
“Sit down properly. Look at you, always jumping around like a monkey, making a fuss over every little thing. It’s utterly unbecoming. If it weren’t for Wan’er taking a liking to you, you’d still be single.”
Bai Wan’er immediately stepped forward to defend her husband. “Mother, my husband is wonderful. Being able to marry him is Wan’er’s good fortune.”
Everyone was forced to endure a mouthful of “dog food.”
While their parents couldn’t say much, Xia Qingfeng, as the eldest brother, could. He brought his hand to his mouth and pretended to cough.
“You two, stop being so lovey-dovey right now. We’re discussing serious matters.”
Bai Wan’er, hearing her brother-in-law speak like this, couldn’t help but blush and shyly hid behind Xia Qingyun.
“Mother, you said Zhennan Wang once sought to marry Xing’er—why didn’t any of us know about it? And why did you refuse?”
Not only Xia Qingfeng couldn’t understand, but none of the Xia family could make sense of it.