“Commandery Princess Xianyun couldn’t make it?” the Empress asked angrily, slamming her hand on the table. She didn’t expect Ning Xueyan to be so domineering and defy her order. Had this happened in the past, Ning Xueyan would have been beheaded for her crime, but things were different now. The Emperor was very ill and all the authority was in Ao Chenyi’s hands. Her words were no longer useful.

She had planned to wait for Commandery Princess Xianyun to bear a son and find a way to make the princes and Ao Chenyi face-off until they lost their lives. Then, she would adopt Xianyun’s son and make him the next Emperor. She would become the Empress Dowager, instead of the biological mother, Xianyun. A mere prince’s consort couldn’t be compared to her.

Since the new Emperor would be young, she would be able to govern behind the curtain and take on the role of a regent. She would raise the child on her own, making him into an obedient adult thankful for her role in giving him the throne.

A new-born prince would be a much better candidate than the grown-up Prince Xiang and Prince Fu. Xianyun might be the biological mother, but as a prince’s consort, she wouldn’t be allowed to enter the palace as she pleased. She would then assume the biggest power in a palace without Honored Consorts Ya or Shu. Moreover, Xianyun’s son would have the backing of Lord Peace’s Manor. Lord Peace’s Manor was a much more dependable force than her weak family.

It was all well and good until a major shift happened and knocked her off guard. She didn’t know anything about the incident between the Emperor and Honored Consort Ya. By the time she figured out the situation and rushed here, the Emperor had coughed up blood and fallen into a coma. His condition continued to worsen as he fell in and out of consciousness.

The last time he woke up, he had glared at her and scolded, “Hua Yueying, you bitch.”

It was obvious that he couldn’t recognize her anymore!

She wanted the Emperor to recover. She couldn’t afford to let him die, but his condition put her in despair. She knew that he couldn’t hold on for much longer.

In the past, there was indeed a pact between her and Xianyun. In the worst-case scenario, Xianyun must pave a way for her while she would do her best to protect the Lord Peace’s Manor and its hundred years of legacy. This was also one of the major reasons why she had helped Xianyun marry Ao Chenyi. Both of them knew that Ao Chenyi and the Emperor were destined to be enemies; like fire and water, only one could remain.

Now was the time that she needed Xianyun the most. The moment Xianyun arrived at the palace, she would take her to the Emperor and kill him. She would then arrest Xianyun and push the blame onto Ao Chenyi. She would accuse him of sending Xianyun to the palace to kill the Emperor.

No matter how much the ministers favored Ao Chenyi, he would still lose the throne for this. With the Emperor dead, he would be decapitated. She would then seek out the youngest prince in the palace and make him the Crown Prince. With Lord Peace’s Manor on her side, she was confident that she could control the situation.

After all, the late Empress Dowager had relied on Lord Peace’s Manor to promote the Emperor to the throne. The manor might be weak now, but the influence of a powerful man would linger long after his death. She would flourish with their support. Honored Consort Ya, still imprisoned at the Ministry of Justice for her role in the murder attempt on the Emperor, was unlikely to make a comeback. Honored Consort Shu wasn’t strong enough, so Prince Fu didn’t stand a chance either.

She, with the honor of the Empress, wouldn’t lose to them.

Imperial pardons would follow after the enthronement of the new prince. She could easily arrange one for Xianyun.

She already had a candidate in mind—the six-year-old Tenth Prince. A six-year-old boy was old enough to remember events, but a poor candidate was better than none. The prince’s mother had a low status and wouldn’t be able to fight against her in the future. The mother’s family wasn’t powerful either, so she would likely latch onto the opportunity given to her.

The Empress sat by the Emperor’s bed and formed the perfect plan in her mind. However, she was in for a rude awakening. All was well in the palace, but Ning Xueyan stopped her messenger from seeing Xianyun. How could she not get mad?

In anger, she said sharply, “Let’s go! Prepare the carriage! I’m going to see Princess Yi!” She didn’t think that Ning Xueyan would dare to refuse her in person.

“Your Highness, you can’t go. You have to stay here and serve His Majesty. How can you leave now? Honored Consort Shu is leading the other consorts. If you leave, I won’t be able to stop them from coming in.”

The Empress’ personal maid tried to persuade her from leaving. The Emperor was in a dire condition. Nobody knew when something would happen to him. If he were to die while the Empress was away, nobody could bear the responsibility. Moreover, Honored Consort Shu and the other consorts were waiting outside. It would be disastrous if they took advantage of the Empress’ absence to come in and make the Emperor write a will disfavorable to the Empress.

The Empress stopped rushing out in anger. It was true that she couldn’t leave!

“Servants! Send another person to Prince Yi’s Manor and invite Princess Yi and Consort Yun to the palace,” she said resentfully, gritting her teeth. “Tell them that I have something important to talk to them about but I can’t leave the palace now. It’s mostly about the Crown Prince. I’m supposed to speak to the Crown Prince about this but I’m still a woman after all. It’s more inconvenient now than ever for me to meet another man.”

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If coercion didn’t work, she would have to resort to persuasion. She believed that she would be able to lure Ning Xueyan here. If it was for something beneficial to Ao Chenyi, Ning Xueyan would surely come with Xianyun. It didn’t matter if Xianyun didn’t come. There was still Ning Xueyan as her scapegoat! She would take Ning Xueyan to the Emperor and frame her all the same.

Ning Xueyan, as Princess Yi, wouldn’t be able to shed off her connection to Ao Chenyi even if she didn’t admit it.

The Empress had made up her mind. Since Ning Xueyan stopped her from meeting Xianyun, she would let the former take the blame. No matter what, she was determined to drag Ao Chenyi down.

“Yes, I’ll send someone right away.” The maid nodded and left.

However, it didn’t take long for the maid to return and report Princess Yi’s reply. Princess Yi said the Empress should say whatever she wanted to Ao Chenyi; she was a mere married woman who didn’t understand politics. She told the Empress not to come to Prince Yi’s Manor for her anymore.

Ning Xueyan’s reply was polite but effectively kicked the Empress to Ao Chenyi’s feet like a rubber ball. She didn’t think that she could be able to fool him, make him visit the Emperor without any precaution, and frame him for murdering the Emperor.

Helpless, she smashed a few pieces of chinaware and went back to serve the Emperor. It seemed that she would have to think of a different solution…

The news of the rebellion of the feudal princes of Annan reached the capital on the morning of the third day and caused a furor. What followed was the princes’ letter of condemnation.

In their letter, they condemned the Emperor for being unkind and unjust. They claimed that it was unforgivable for a monarch to take his brother’s fiancee. Ever since he took the throne, he focused on politicking and currying favor instead of developing the nation. He was also unfilial for ignoring the late Emperor’s will to make his brother the Crown Prince. The accusations continued to pile up.

Of course, the letter intended to express how unkind, unjust, disloyal, and unfilial the Emperor was. In conclusion, the Emperor was better off dead. If a man who deserved heaven’s wrath continued to be the monarch, Annan would rebel. They still had a prince of the former dynasty with them. They were ready to restore the previous dynasty and overthrow the unkind, unjust, disloyal, and unfilial Emperor.

It was a surprise that Annan issued the letter so shortly after Hua Yueying’s scandal broke out, and they even included the scandal in it. Their response was fast.

This was a rebellion and one that included the Emperor. Ao Chenyi and the ministers held a discussion and eventually decided not to inform the Emperor about it. They were afraid that he would die immediately!

The discussion over the command of the troops took a long time. Many suggested Ning Zu’an at first. Even though he didn’t have an official post, he was Prince Yi’s father-in-law. He would become the imperial father-in-law after Prince Yi ascended to the throne. They wanted to avoid offending him if they could.

On the contrary, Lord Guardian suggested a different person, also a general—Ming Feiyong. Ming Feiyong was nominated because he had been defending the border for years and was a much more suitable candidate than Ning Zu’an who had been in the capital all this while.

Many found Lord Guardian’s suggestion to be reasonable. Ming Feiyong was more experienced than Ning Zu’an. The only reason he didn’t have a higher rank was that he used to be the top scorer in the martial arts examination in the previous dynasty, and the Emperor didn’t dare to put too much trust in him.

It was different now. Ming Feiyong was Princess Yi’s uncle and his loyalty wouldn’t be questioned. Moreover, it was said that he doted on his niece. Compared to Ning Zu’an who never cared about Princess Yi in the past, Ming Feiyong was more deserving of Princess Yi’s respect. Ao Chenyi’s trusted aides knew very well how much he cared for his princess.

Therefore, more and more ministers found Ming Feiyong to be the better candidate.

In the end, Ming Feiyong was appointed as the Great General responsible for leading the troops in the war against Annan. Ao Chenyi would keep watch from inside the capital and command the court officials in the Emperor’s place.

It was deep into the night by the time Ao Chenyi finished dealing with political affairs, but upon second thought, he decided to sneak back to Prince Yi’s Manor with a few guards. He had been staying in the palace in the past few days, kept so busy that he couldn’t even return home. He wondered what Yan’er was up to.

Ning Xueyan was still awake. She was sitting by the window with a robe draped over her shoulders, watching the moon in a daze. The news of Annan’s rebellion had just reached the capital today. Ao Chenyi must be busy. Even though she didn’t know the exact situation, she was worried if he had enough rest.

He had learned the news three days earlier than the rest, but it was a hassle nonetheless to form the perfect countermeasure. The three feudal princes of Annan were no easy opponents. They were difficult to handle because they were so far away from the capital. Wen Xueran must be there as well. He was probably the prince of the previous dynasty mentioned in that letter of condemnation. A young prince with the blood of the former imperial family, even if he was just a member of the extended family, could inherit the throne at a time where there were no other imperial kins.

He must have come to take her away that day. Unfortunately, they were ultimately on different paths and boats.

She didn’t tell Ao Chenyi about him. Regardless of it all, Wen Xueran was still her family. But this was the first and last time. If they were to meet again, she would take Ao Chenyi’s side without hesitation. She had always been a cold-hearted woman who cared for those in her heart…