Returning after a three-year escape from death, the tyrant has turned evil.

Chapter 122 Falling into a Jealousy Vat

The man standing at the front immediately knelt down again.

"Your Majesty, I have already ordered a thorough investigation into this matter! I will strive to resolve it before Your Majesty leaves Guanzhong."

Before he could finish speaking, Jiang Lanye suddenly raised his hand to interrupt him.

This casual movement alone was enough to frighten him into silence.

Song Yi also took a sip of tea and couldn't help but look at Jiang Lanye with curiosity.

Is it really that scary? She didn't feel anything.

"If you could find out, you should have given me an answer before I came here."

He said calmly.

"Yes, yes, it is your humble servant's incompetence."

Jiang Lanye stopped looking at him and said, "Get out."

"Wei Chen resigns!"

Seeing that they had all left, Song Yi turned to the side, propped her arm on the small table, and said with a smile, "Jiang Lanye, you're so fierce."

Jiang Lanye glanced at her but remained silent.

He has always been this kind of person, but he is willing to hide his sharpness in front of Song Yi.

After a while, some noise suddenly came from outside the door.

"Father, please let your daughter go in and deliver it; it's just bringing out some food."

"What are you going in for? His Majesty is still inside. I'm worried you might make a mistake!"

"It's just serving food, what could possibly go wrong?"

The official's daughter, surnamed Meng, had just turned seventeen this year. She had wanted to enter the palace earlier, but she was not from the capital, and her father forbade her to go to such a far place, so he had long since made her give up on this idea.

Unfortunately, Jiang Lanye arrived two days ago.

It was quite a grand procession. Miss Meng stood under the corridor, staring blankly as many soldiers walked in, their expressions solemn, standing in perfect order on both sides of the road.

Immediately afterwards, she saw a carriage drawn by two black horses slowly come to a stop.

The carriage curtains were lowered, obscuring the people inside.

Immediately afterwards, a hand with distinct knuckles lifted the curtain, and the man inside slowly stepped out.

This was the first time Miss Meng had seen the emperor in the capital. He was younger than she had imagined, wearing a black robe with narrow sleeves and dragon patterns. He had long legs, a narrow waist, and an upright posture.

For some reason, his face was unusually cold, and his brows were filled with an unyielding chill.

"Congratulations, Your Majesty!"

Miss Meng stared intently at him, her heart pounding, feeling her blood rush to her head, and her cheeks flushed instantly.

Jiang Lanye nodded slightly, but instead of walking in directly, he turned around and carefully carried a woman down from the carriage.

For the next two days, she couldn't find a chance to get close to Jiang Lanye, because Jiang Lanye stayed by Song Yi's side the whole time.

Today, she finally got her chance.

What man in the world doesn't like having multiple wives and concubines? Not to mention emperors, who have three thousand beauties in their harems. Whether there are one more or one less doesn't matter to them. But for Miss Meng, it's a great opportunity to rise to the top.

Thinking of this, she snatched the plate away and said, "I'm going in."

"Hey you!"

Song Yi clutched her stomach as she smelled the aroma of the food.

"It smells so good, Jiang Lanye, I'm starving."

Jiang Lanye looked at her cheeks; the little bit of softness she had managed to regain some time ago had returned because of this incident.

She had just woken up and hadn't had a proper rest before eagerly teasing him; it would be strange if she wasn't hungry now. Miss Meng carried the food in and saw Song Yi sitting to the side. She paused slightly, then smiled and said:
"Your Majesty, Your Highness, this is just ordinary food; I hope you won't find it offensive."

Her voice was exceptionally sweet and sounded very delicate.

Song Yi glanced at her.

Miss Meng had dressed up specially today, with her hair styled in a slanted bun, wearing all the beautiful hairpins and pearls from her boudoir, and applying a layer of makeup, making her skin look exceptionally white.

She placed the wooden plate on the small table, took out the food, and then picked up a pair of chopsticks. Instead of placing them on the bowl, she raised her little finger and offered them to Jiang Lanye.

"Your Majesty, please have your meal."

Jiang Lanye lowered his eyes, glanced at it casually, and said in a calm voice, "Just put it down."

She paused, then said, "Yes."

Jiang Lanye had encountered countless women in the palace who wanted to throw themselves at him; even the Empress Dowager would occasionally try to place women around him.

Over the years, he has met many people, but the only one he has ever loved is Song Yi.

Song Yi had already picked up her chopsticks, too lazy to pay attention to Miss Meng. Just as she was about to pick up some food, she heard Jiang Lanye say coldly to her:
"go out."

Miss Meng hadn't expected Jiang Lanye to be so cold and frightening in private, and immediately said:
"Yes"

Seeing her slink away, Song Yi couldn't help but ask, "You figured it out?"

"what?"

"It seems like she deliberately came to bring you food."

This kind of thing can be arranged for a servant to do. She dressed up specially and came to deliver this gift in person, her eyes fixed on Jiang Lanye. You could tell what she was thinking at a glance.

Jiang Lanye responded indifferently, clearly having noticed but not caring.

He picked up his chopsticks, put some food on Song Yi's plate, and said, "Eat quickly, aren't you hungry?"

Song Yi pursed her lips. She was hungry, but she also suddenly realized that Jiang Lanye's face and identity would be a menace no matter where he went.

"Jiang Lanye, before I appeared in the palace, were there often people throwing themselves at you?"

Jiang Lanye gently lifted her eyelids, having already anticipated that she would care about this matter.

"Not before."

"No? How is that possible?"

Song Yi questioned him softly, clearly not believing him.

Jiang Lanye couldn't help but chuckle at her secretly jealous expression.

"Before you came to my side, the ministers of the previous dynasty all thought that I was not interested in women, and dared not mention this matter rashly, so it really is not true."

Song Yi choked a little.

"So, you mean that after I went to your side, they mistakenly thought that you had become enlightened, and that's why they're so desperate to stuff people into your harem?"

Jiang Lanye's eyes held a faint smile as he said softly, "You are the culprit."

Song Yi choked for a moment.

"Okay, eat up."

Song Yi stuffed a mouthful of food into her mouth and said indistinctly, "But I think that girl just now seemed to have a lot of ideas."

After all that talk, Song Yi ended up coming back to the same point.

Jiang Lanye didn't expect her to care so much about this matter. He said softly, "I have been by your side during the two days you were unconscious. Apart from your palace maid Xichun, no other woman has come near me. Today, when she came in to deliver food, it was the first time we had any contact. But actually, nothing happened. Besides, you were sitting right across from me."

He spoke so much in one breath, patiently explaining each sentence, because he was worried that someone might get themselves into a jealous trap and drown in it.

Song Yi gave a light hum, and seeing his serious expression, she said generously:
"Fine, I won't hold it against you."

(End of this chapter)