Rebirth of a Lost Nation: Princess, Please Respect Yourself

"Did you see that? That guy from the Ye family is here again today!"

"Yes, she is indeed being too proud. Now that that person has returned, how can she be crowned the Crown Princess?"

"Well, it's really pitiful. For three years, she has worked hard, like an old servant, taking care of His Highness, and now she has to give up her position to the one who has returned. But she can't get angry, so she can only swallow her anger. It's pitiful, pitiful!"

"You can't say that. Who can say right or wrong in matters of the heart? That person has everything going for him, and now that he's back, the Ye family girl has no choice but to admit defeat. Who told her she doesn't have the same powerful backing as the Chi Clan and Nan Chu?"

"Tsk, the Ye family isn't bad either, right? However, looking at the attitude of the young lady from the Ye family now, I know she's not stupid. As long as she brings in the reward for her merits, she might even be able to become the ruler of the Eastern Palace. Even if she becomes a concubine, she'll be incredibly wealthy in the future!"

"That's true... Miss Ye!"

The maid was talking excitedly when she saw a figure slowly appear in the flower garden beside her. She was shocked and stammered, "Miss Ye". She then hurriedly pulled another maid to her knees.

Ye Jiayun's expression was surprisingly bad. She didn't seem to care much about the offense in their words just now. She just asked with a pale face.

"Who did you just say came back?"

The two palace maids looked at each other, buried their heads and answered in a low voice.

"The young master of the Chi tribe is the former Princess Zhaohua."

Ye Jiayun's hand, hanging in the flowerbed, tightly grasped the thorny branch, "She's not dead?"

"It is said that he was saved by a Chi tribe priest."

"Ha." Ye Jiayun laughed, then waved her hand, her face no longer showing the gentleness she once had. "Go away."

After hearing this, the two palace maids hurriedly stood up, bowed and retreated in a panic. In a flash, they disappeared.

Ye Jiayun lifted up her clenched hands, and the flower was pulled up with its roots and petals together. It fell to the ground along with the red scratches on her body caused by the thorns. In a moment, it broke into pieces.

"Jiang Lige, how come you are so lucky?"

She questioned softly, then suddenly raised her voice in frustration.

"Call him and he'll come, dismiss him and he'll go. Do you really think Ning Yunxiao is just a dog in front of you?! No problem, I will prove to him that I am the one who deserves him!"

……

In addition to Ye Jiayun, there was another person who was particularly concerned about the reconciliation between Ning Yunxiao and Jiang Lige——

King Xiaoping.

In the study, documents piled up like a mountain on the desk, but Prince Xiaoping had no intention of dealing with them.

Instead, he raised his head and took a few gulps of wine, but unfortunately, the wine made his sorrow even greater.

The more King Xiaoping drank, the angrier he became. Finally, he couldn't help but smash the wine jug in his hand to the ground, sending fragments flying everywhere.

"Jiang Lige returned unharmed, and it's not enough that he even entered the capital openly right under my nose. And you idiots, none of you noticed! What a shame! What a shame!"

King Xiaoping cursed angrily, then with bloodshot eyes, he picked up the objects at hand and smashed them. Precious antiques and four treasures of the study were all damaged, and the crisp sound of shattering was endless.

King Xiaoping's confidants stood aside with their heads bowed, looking at each other, not daring to speak, for fear of becoming victims of King Xiaoping's wrath.

Seeing that they didn't say anything, King Xiaoping became even angrier. He grabbed one of them, kicked him, and roared.

"You bunch of useless people, what's the point of keeping you around? If you can't even get any information, what use do I have you for?"

The henchman who was dragged over and kicked staggered a few steps, but dared not complain at all. He knelt down and kowtowed, saying, "Your Highness, please calm down. It was my incompetence that prevented me from gathering the information in time. I will investigate immediately and get to the bottom of Jiang Lige's background!"

Prince Xiaoping's rage remained undiminished. He pointed at the debris scattered across the floor and said in a cold voice, "Investigate? What's the point of investigating now? The people have already entered the capital! How can the shattered porcelain be restored to its original state? Now Jiang Lige has been forced to join the Chi Clan for no reason. In this way, doesn't this give Ning Yunxiao new leverage? It's simply hateful!"

When King Xiaoping said this, one of his confidants, who usually had a good reputation, finally stepped forward cautiously and spoke.

"Your Highness, please calm down. Talking about anything else now is meaningless. I believe that although Jiang Lige is ostensibly the representative of the Chi Clan, her relationship with them is not monolithic. If she can pry other Chi Clan forces into fighting her, she might become a force that can suppress Ning Yunxiao."

King Xiaoping glanced at the person who spoke, thought for a moment, and nodded.

"Okay, I'll leave this matter to you. Only success is allowed, not failure."

"Yes, Your Majesty."

……

As soon as Prince Xiaoping's men left, the secret guards entered the East Palace and reported every word of the news from Prince Xiaoping to Ning Yunxiao.

Ning Yunxiao listened without stopping his hands. The peel fell along the blade in circles, and he removed the core and cut it into pieces. Then he put it into a jade plate and handed it to Jiang Lige who was standing beside him.

He did not comment on the matter of King Xiaoping, but instead gave Jiang Lige some advice.

"Try it, but don't be too greedy for the coolness."

"Oh." Jiang Lige accepted the jade disc and responded obediently, then got to the point. "It seems that Prince Xiaoping can't sit still anymore."

Ning Yunxiao replied nonchalantly, "Prince Xiaoping has never been one to keep to his lot. What's so strange about that? I think everything is just right."

"Just right?" Jiang Lige was a little puzzled.

"Yes, that's just right. The late old Prince Ping had made great military achievements. If the young Prince Ping was just making minor moves like this, His Majesty wouldn't be able to do anything to him. But if he were to collude with foreign enemies, it would be a different story. That Dunzhu from your Chi tribe is also a bit restless. You were soft-hearted and spared her life. If she doesn't value it, we can get rid of her together this time to save you some trouble."

Seeing Ning Yunxiao's calm demeanor, Jiang Lige knew that he must have had a plan in advance, so he simply threw up his hands and became a hands-off boss.

"Since Your Highness has already set up the stage, I will just wait and watch the show."

King Xiaoping did not let Ning Yunxiao down, nor did he make Jiang Lige wait too long.

When Sheng Ling signed the vassalage contract with the Chi tribe, a group of Chi people secretly sneaked into the palace banquet, with crossbows coated with poison, aiming directly at Emperor Sheng Wu.

The group's goal was very clear: to assassinate Emperor Shengwu.

As long as Emperor Shengwu dies, Shengling will be in chaos, and it will be easy for Prince Xiaoping to provoke civil strife.

As for the Chi clan, Emperor Shengwu died at the hands of the Chi clan, so naturally there was no possibility for the two clans to become vassal clans. The only way left for the Chi clan was to restore their country.

Prince Xiaoping and Dunzhu were making their plans, but Ning Yunxiao had already laid a tight net. The moment the crossbow arrow flew out, the lights around the palace banquet suddenly went out, and the entire hall was plunged into darkness.