The Valued Lady is Truly Dominant

Too deliberate.

Song Zhiyuan felt that now everything pointed toward Shang Pu being Xia Yu’s offspring, which seemed overly deliberate, inevitably leading to overthinking. Naturally, this was due to his many years of officialdom, where he couldn’t help but overthink simple matters, complicating them.

Just like when Lord Qingcheng calculated against his own father—the marriage alliance was a guise for the true aim of securing his eldest son’s future. Of course, if the alliance succeeded, his eldest son’s future would naturally be resolved, killing two birds with one stone.

Could there be a chance, for gaining support, to pull in more assistance for Prince Yan?

”Naturally, since Cabinet Minister Ning is not dead, perhaps due to exposure, he might push the blame onto the opposing party to cut losses and survive,” Song Zhiyuan added.

Emperor Chu chuckled: ”Is this even possible? That’s a major pawn for his restoration plan. If this pawn is gone, how could he command the feudal lords, unless he...”

He paused, glancing at Song Zhiyuan.

Song Zhiyuan followed his line of thought, curling his lips. If that pawn was gone, wasn’t there still the Xia named heir?

The Emperor felt somewhat uncomfortable.

”Let’s see how long this old fox hides,” lasting through attrition until he’s done.

Song Zhiyuan had an intuition that the person’s appearance might be imminent; since already exposed to them, not wanting the efforts of the past twenty years wasted, he might take the opportunity for a desperate attempt.

At that time.

The New Year’s Eve palace banquet reached its finale, and court officials and imperial decrees were leaving the palace.

Song Ci lingered and witnessed quite a scene—Princess Consort Ji seemed insane, attempting to force her way into Cining Palace with a Death Exemption Token, hurling abusive accusations, claiming that the Empress Dowager and the Emperor bullied her and her son, ignoring the late Emperor’s will.

Unfortunately, she hadn’t even made it past the Palace Gate when she was forcibly taken away, cursing Song Ci as well, calling her a ’flock of fools.’

Song Ci: ”???”

This shrew can raise hell, scolding everyone indiscriminately.

Song Ci exited the palace, and on the way back to the mansion, she saw carriages carrying the female members of Prince Min Mansion heading toward the Clan Hall, amid heart-wrenching cries that sounded utterly mournful.

Song Ci sighed.

Nanny remarked, ”Reaching there by carriage maintains dignity; if they had to walk from the mansion in this cold weather, they’d surely fall ill.”

”Heard that Princess Consort Min had already caught a cold, hence missed the banquet.”

Nanny: ”She is truly a person plagued by misfortune.”

Indeed, having a precarious status, assigned to Prince Min, unexpectedly entangled in such a treasonous affair—what a tragedy.

”Since the Xia Clan still exists, she likely won’t suffer excessively,” Song Ci commented.

The Emperor would make a show of appeasement, perhaps keeping this only rightful heir to soothe the Xia Clan’s spirit. Her life would be spared, but whether she could regain her previous status depended on her fate.

Suddenly, snow began to fall gently outside.

Song Ci glanced at it, then at the gradually receding escorted entourage, hearing the faint cries, muttering: ”Say there’s a reason, but leaving it till after the New Year? The Emperor definitely understood well.”

To arrest him on New Year’s Eve, that’s truly merciless.

The Emperor felt that conducting major affairs on New Year’s Eve truly picked the right auspicious day, receiving nonstop good news—firstly, the screen incident concluded favorably, with future in-laws returning with ample investigative intelligence, followed by news concerning Wang Yang, reporting suspected traces of Cabinet Minister Ning?