Help! The cunning and treacherous minister and I were reborn together!

"Your Majesty's kindness is too much for me to refuse, but I have sworn an oath to be with you for life. If I break this vow, I will be deserted by all and die a violent death!"

Xiao Zong spoke with great passion and fervor, as if he were making a solemn oath before battle.

The officials marveled, "Who would have thought that Lord Xiao was such a romantic!"

The women looked at Madam Xiao with a mixture of envy and jealousy, regretting that they hadn't met a devoted and good husband.

Yuan Zhi covered his face with his sleeve. When had he ever made such a promise?

To refuse His Majesty's bestowal of beauty, he blatantly lied, utterly shameless!

Li Kai stroked his beard and laughed loudly: "Who would have thought that Commander Xiao, who is usually so imposing, could say such nauseating things? Hahaha, what an eye-opener! What an eye-opener!"

Alright, stop looking so miserable. Both the Emperor and the Great Qi Emperor cannot live without you, my dear minister, and we cannot bear to see you die. As for this beauty, if you don't want her, then so be it!

Xiao Zong bowed deeply, "Thank you for your consideration, Your Majesty!"

When Zheng Xiangxiang's plan failed, she twisted the handkerchief tightly and tore it forcefully under the table.

Li Kai became addicted to being a matchmaker, and after scanning the crowd of officials, he spotted another handsome young man.

"I recall that Minister Feng is not yet married?"

Feng Quan's breath hitched. How did this get involved with him?

"Your Majesty, not yet."

"Then these two palace maids shall be bestowed upon you, my dear minister!"

Feng Quan bowed, "Your Majesty, you mustn't!"

"Why?" Li Kai asked, displeased. "You don't even have a wife, what do you have to worry about?"

"minister……"

His mind was a jumbled mess, and he couldn't make heads or tails of it.

Li Kai lost his patience and immediately made the decision, "It's settled then, no objections allowed!"

Zheng Xiangxiang's efforts were all in vain; she felt a lump in her throat, and her face turned purple from holding it in. She stood up and took her leave from His Majesty, saying that she was feeling unwell during her pregnancy and wanted to go outside for some fresh air, which His Majesty readily granted.

As the banquet progressed, everyone drank more and gradually relaxed. No one was stiff anymore; some sat, some lay down, some recited poems, and some sang, creating a lively atmosphere.

Xiao Zong left his seat, and Yuan Zhi followed suit, the two going their separate ways, one to the east and one to the west.

In the abandoned bedroom, the man was excited, his eyes fixed on Zheng Xiangxiang's lower abdomen.

He reached out his hand, "This is my child, our child! God help us, it must be a son, so that when the emperor passes away, that position will be ours!"

Zheng Xiangxiang slapped his hand away. "Don't be too happy yet. Even if the King of Wu falls, there's still the King of Jin, the King of Chu, the King of Yong, plus the eldest grandson of the emperor. When will it be our child's turn?"

The man blew on the back of his hand and said lazily, "Why worry? Didn't Your Highness's childhood sweetheart promise to protect you?"

"But he didn't say he'd help us seize the throne!"

"As long as you are carrying a prince, you will inevitably be involved in the struggle for the throne. At that time, he will have no choice but to help you!"

The man pinched her chin. "Leaving aside the throne for now, Your Majesty, the way you looked at that person in the palace today was quite unusual! Why has Your Majesty never looked at me like that, not even when you were infatuated?"

Zheng Xiangxiang forced a smile. She and he were in the same boat. If he found out that he was only using her, who knew what he would do.

She comforted him, "I've known Xiao Zong for nearly ten years. If I had even a shred of affection for him, I would have married him long ago. Why wait until now? No matter how close he is to me, he's not as intimate as you and I. After all, besides His Majesty, only you, you lecherous scoundrel, have ever crossed my bedchamber!"

The man smiled contentedly, carried her to the bed, and stood by the bed to undo his belt.

Zheng Xiangxiang hurriedly said, "The imperial physician said that the fetus is less than three months old and it is not advisable to have intercourse!"

"What's there to be afraid of! My offspring are far superior to that sickly old emperor!"

He threw off his belt, tore open his clothes, and was about to pounce on the bed.

suddenly!

A sudden pain shot through his abdomen. He looked down and saw a long knife piercing through his body. Blood gushed from the wound, bubbling and gurgling like boiling water in a kettle.

"what!"

Zheng Xiangxiang screamed in fright.

Xiao Zong swiftly sheathed his sword, kicked the corpse aside, and said coldly, "Shut up if you don't want to die!"

Zheng Xiangxiang covered her mouth, her eyes widening in disbelief.

She had heard from the concubines that Xiao Zong, the commander of the Leopard Guard, was ruthless and cold-blooded. But the Xiao brother in front of her was always as gentle as a spring breeze and considerate in every way. So much so that she had always thought those were just rumors.

But tonight, she witnessed him kill someone with her own eyes, killing him with a single blow, without even blinking.

"You...you killed him!"

After recovering, Zheng Xiangxiang stated her thoughts.

Xiao Zong lowered his eyes and glanced at her. "Yes, I killed him!"

This person's origins are a mystery. He is neither a member of the Imperial Guard, the Leopard Guard, nor the Imperial Medical Academy. It's as if someone guessed that Xiangxiang wanted to get pregnant and deliberately sent a man over.

On the day of the heavy snow, he brought the Leopard Guards to the palace to clean up and unexpectedly stumbled upon Xiangxiang and this man having an affair.

At that moment, he sensed something was wrong and wanted to kill the man. However, Xiangxiang stopped him, saying that this man could give her what he couldn't. Feeling guilty, he let the man go.

Now that Xiangxiang is pregnant, this person can no longer be kept!

Under the eaves, the shadows of the trees sway and are reflected on the pillars of the corridor.

Yuan Zhi stepped into the depths, his shadowy form like a ghost.

The middle-aged man in official robes turned around and asked in a deep voice, "Madam, you have been following me for quite some time. What exactly do you want?"

"To help you solve your problems."

The man chuckled, "What difficulty do I have?"

Yuan Zhi said softly, "My lord, together with my father, had my sister become a medicine mannequin in the hope of curing His Majesty's incurable illness. Who knew that out of nowhere, a graceful and charming Consort Wei, who was also a medicine mannequin, appeared and rose rapidly in rank, surpassing Consort Yuan in favor. My lord, all your efforts have gone to waste. Aren't you resentful?"

The man emerged from the shadows; he was thin and plain-looking, with only his eyes that seemed alive. He was none other than the Director of the Imperial Observatory.

"I remember that ever since you married Commander Xiao, you've often disagreed with your family. Would someone who would sacrifice even their father and sister genuinely help an outsider?"

Yuan Zhi stepped forward and said, “If you continue to be timid and hesitant, you will never achieve the position of the former supervisor in your lifetime.”

Back then, when the former Imperial Censor, for the sake of the people, committed suicide with the Crown Prince at the gate of Juyang, how righteous and awe-inspiring he was! All who witnessed it were moved to tears. Such a person deserves to be remembered in history!

The man slammed his fist on a pillar, yelling, "What do you know, you're just a woman!"

He was furious when he thought about what happened back then.

He and the former supervisor were fellow disciples, but despite him being the elder, the younger brother had taken the position of supervisor before him. When observing celestial phenomena, they both noticed something unusual, but the younger brother never mentioned his name in his memorial to the throne.

Later, his junior brother died suddenly, leaving him with a complete mess. Now, when people mention the Imperial Observatory, they only know about the former director, but nobody knows who Duan Sheng was!

hateful!

Yuan Zhi glanced at him. "If what you mean by being stuck in the past, knowing you're in a trap but refusing to wake up, then I truly don't understand, nor do I want to understand!"

Duan Sheng, who had lived most of his life, was immediately enraged to be insulted by a young girl.

"Such arrogance! I'd like to hear your brilliant ideas."