The peerless and dark princess

When the brothers Chu Lianyao and Chu Lianyue from Prince Yan's Mansion returned home, they told their elders (Chu Tianxiong and Lu Yishan) that Mu Wange was married to Zuo Ci as the princess by Emperor Chen Yan.

"Chen Yanyue has gone back! If it weren't for the late emperor's face..."

"I wonder whose plan it was? It couldn't have been Mu Heng. Given Mu Heng's personality, he wouldn't have promised Wange to Zuo Ci. After all, he wanted to gain more benefits through Wange, and Zuo Ci wouldn't even be considered by him."

"Hmph, I'm afraid it's because of Xuan'er. Since she's offended us because of Xuan'er, and Li Xiu is on high alert, Li Xiao has already been engaged to the Dong family, and Li Yin is not yet of age, then there are only Wange and her brother left, and Lin'er is only a few years old... In the end, it's us who have implicated Wange."

"But, since the imperial decree has been issued, it's only a matter of time before Wange marries into Prince Heng's mansion. We're already with Zuo Ci, and he's not really a playboy, but my son is thinking about the future, and I don't know if Wange..."

Chu Lianyao expressed his concerns half-heartedly. Zuo Ci was indeed a rare talent. He had done so many things under Chen Yan's nose over the years without being discovered. It was also because of the elegy that they realized that he was pretending.

"Those are things for the future. Now that Chen Yan knows that Wange is spoiled by us and still dares to do this, it shows that he has already done something to our family... Although I still feel uncomfortable about the alliance with Zuo Ci, now that Chen Yan has taken action, we should also..."

Zuo Ci left after dealing with those masked people who came to congratulate him. Of course, the officials in the place where he was on duty would not say anything. After all, this prince was just sent to them by the emperor as a decoration. As long as this prince did not interfere, he could go wherever he wanted. Besides, it was His Majesty who granted the marriage, so if he was not doing well, they did not want to face this prince. They felt more comfortable when he was not on duty. They did not want to be a punching bag at this juncture.

Zuo Ci waited for Mu Wange to receive the imperial edict in the front hall before quietly going to Wange's boudoir. Shi Qi naturally saw it, but did not say anything. She just brought the tea and then went out to wait in case anyone approached.

"Why is Prince Heng not speaking?"

Zuo Ci was silent for a long time, not knowing what to say. Even he himself didn't know why the emperor suddenly granted them a marriage, and who was plotting against them.

"I can't figure out who's plotting against me, and I don't know how to explain it."

"It's not necessarily that he's plotting against you, it could be me. Our enemies are just those few. If you can't figure it out, why not just find it out? Anyway, a playboy and a fool are a perfect match."

When Mu Wange received the imperial edict, she wondered who could be so foolish. Even if Zuo Ci was a playboy, he was still the dignified Prince Heng, and she had the Prince of Yan's Mansion behind her. Furthermore, Mu Heng probably wouldn't do this if he wanted to maximize the benefits of her marriage. But Mu Ruohan? ? Given Mu Ruohan's personality, she probably wouldn't do that.

"Well, you're still in the mood for jokes. So, are you attracted to me?"

"So what if I'm not in the mood? We're allies. Besides, this is an imperial decree. Even you and my uncle can't do anything about it, so what can a young girl like me do? Since it's already happened, let's just think about it in a positive way."

Compared to the awkward mood of Mu Wange and Zuo Ci, Zuo Jiu and Cai Yu were secretly happy. They were the ones who witnessed their master's feelings. They didn't know about anything else, but their master treated the eldest lady (Wange) differently.

"Sister Caiyu, although I don't know what kind of evil demon granted the master and Wange a marriage, this is a good thing."

"Well, after so many years, the palace needs a female master. Miss Mu is a perfect match for the master. We can ask the people outside to tidy up the palace and prepare the betrothal gifts and other things. Also..."

"Sister Caiyu, this is the first time I've heard you talk so much. But I'm really happy for the master."

The two were happy for Zuo Ci. Although Caiyu had objected to Zuo Jiu and Mu Wange's marriage, she had never expressed hostility towards Mu Wange. Now that the young princess had returned to the capital, and Princess Yunhan had married her beloved Dong Jialang, everything was going well. The people in the palace had finally made it.

The happiest person here was undoubtedly Shen Xinyue, who hadn't yet realized what she had done wrong. Meanwhile, Qiao Yan, who was in the Shangshu Mansion, was genuinely happy for Mu Wange. In Shen Xinyue's eyes, her expression was gloating, as her and Mu Wange's "disharmony" was obvious anyway.

"It seems that boy really doesn't want to. After all, he was a brilliant man back then..."

"Your Majesty is wise."

The eunuch did not dare to say anything about Emperor Chen Yan's comments, because he had followed the emperor for so many years and had to pretend that he knew nothing and do his job well, otherwise he would die without knowing how.

"Brother, you said Prince Heng was granted a marriage?"

"Yes, the imperial decree has been issued. It is for Prince Heng and the eldest daughter of Minister Mu's family."

"That's not it. That's not it."

"Yes, your fiancé's cousin---Mu Wange."

"what?"

Not only were Dong Mingrui and the others baffled, but even the other officials in the court were baffled. After all, the fact that this matter had been finalized shocked the entire court. While Zuo Ci was undoubtedly a playboy, Mu Heng also had the daughter of the Second Prince's concubine. Was this a plan to promote Mu Heng?

"What do you think Father is thinking? Is he planning to dethrone me from the throne? It seems I am still too merciful."

Crown Prince Chen Yunjie was furious. Wasn't this a clear attempt to get the Second Prince to win over the Minister of State, Mu Heng? He was still the crown prince, and his father was so partial to Chen Yunfeng, the Second Prince. How would the court officials interpret this? Was it an attempt to suppress the Crown Prince's power, or perhaps even to depose him? He immediately summoned his advisors to discuss the next steps; he couldn't just sit there and wait for death.

Not to mention that several forces could not understand Emperor Chen Yan's actions, the situation with Mu Wange and Zuo Ci was still okay, because Mu Wange felt that since it was the emperor's marriage, she had to marry whether she was willing or not. Her so-called father and uncle who were present were powerless to change the situation. So what? Anyway, she was marrying Zuo Ci, just her nominal husband. Compared with others, she could still accept it.

"Miss, are you really going to marry Prince Heng?"

"This is an imperial decree. Do I, your daughter, have the final say?"

"However, it seems that Prince Heng is not a bad person either."

"Just take it one step at a time."