After the system set its sights on the dragon throne, the princess started courting death every day.

As expected, no one listened to Xiang An's explanations and attempts to dissuade him.

The wind rustles through the locust treetops, the heat dissipates, and autumn deepens.

"Hahahaha..." King Wu laughed loudly, "You have a bright future, you have a brighter future than my nephew."

With a wave of his hand, the eunuchs who had been guarding in the distance came running over with torches. King Wu personally took the torches and handed them to Ding Yinan, laughing, "Go down, let's live forever together."

Ding Yinan's eyes welled with tears, overwhelmed with emotion. Xiang An was so anxious he was about to jump up and down, but before he could utter a word of anger, the system's mechanical voice suddenly sounded: [The system will restart in ten seconds. Please prepare: ten, nine, eight, seven, six... one.]

A flash of white light appeared before his eyes, and after a moment of disorientation, Xiang An sat on Zhang Xiaoxiao's embroidered stool. The loud, noisy voices of people filled his ears, and the fragrance of tea leaves steeped in hot water lingered in his nose.

"System, it hasn't been ten years yet, has it?"

Even if she lay in the coffin for so long that she lost track of day and night, and ten years passed, she couldn't possibly be so blind as to not be able to tell the difference.

Heaven's patience is insufficient.

"Just...that's it?"

Xiang An could hardly believe that the system could say such things.

system:【…….】

"I've shrunk?"

With his fingers outstretched, Xiang An was still trying to figure out what time period the system had sent him to when suddenly, the tightly closed door was pushed open, and Xiao Ru stormed in carrying a plate of pastries.

"Princess, we can't stay in this teahouse any longer. We need to hurry to the palace to see His Majesty, otherwise, those old women outside... Princess, what's wrong? Don't frighten me!"

Xiao Ru frantically dug out Xiang An, who had just rushed into her arms without a care in the world. When she finally saw Xiang An's tear-streaked face, her already simmering anger flared uncontrollably: "Damn gossipy shrew! It's one thing to talk behind someone's back, but to dare tell the princess! She'll say all sorts of filthy things!! I'll go out and tear their mouths apart!!"

He walked out cursing as he went. By the time Xiang An had cried out his heart full of longing, the house was empty. The lively sounds outside had disappeared at some point, replaced by screams and pleas for mercy—not Xiao Ru's voice, it was very unfamiliar.

Following the sound, I went outside and stood on the third-floor corridor, leaning against the railing to look down at the crowd below. In the center of the crowd were four old women with bruised and swollen faces kneeling.

In front of them was a woman whom Xiao Ru was beating. She was skinny, but taller and older than Xiao Ru. She was curled up on the ground, gritting her teeth and enduring the pain, not daring to fight back at all. She covered her head with her hands and did not run away. She just lay there quietly on the ground and was beaten. Her smooth and high-quality jacket and skirt were wrinkled into a ball, looking like a tattered rag. The tea drinkers around were whispering, but no one came to her aid.

Xiang An frowned as he watched the farce unfolding below, but did not utter a word to stop it.

After a short while, the five old women staggered upstairs one after another. After bowing to Xiang An, they quietly entered the house. Some covered their mouths, some covered their eyes, and they were all in so much pain that their eyes and mouths were crooked. However, not one of them cried out in pain, pleaded for justice, or asked the authorities to help them.

Stopping Xiao Ru, the last one to go upstairs, Xiang An raised an eyebrow: "Your skills are impressive, heroine."

"Hmph." Xiao Ru turned her head away and stepped into the house as well.

Xiang An strode forward and blocked her way: "Heroine, you've done a great deed of chivalry, but how are you going to clean up this mess?"

A quick glance down at the tea drinkers below, their necks stretched out like noodles, revealed a scene of bustling activity.

“The guards at the princess’s residence are stationed at the gate; they can’t get out.” Xiao Ru’s delicate brows furrowed, and she slowly knelt down again. “Princess, if His Majesty asks, you should say that this servant betrayed her mistress, harbored selfish motives, and relied on…”

"Are you going to abandon Diao Xi?"

"How did the princess know?" Xiao Ru looked up in shock.

She and Diao Xi had just secretly pledged their love a couple of days ago, and she hadn't even told anyone yet. How did the princess find out?

"Because I am powerful." Xiang An bent down slightly, gently placed one hand on Xiao Ru's forearm and easily pulled her up. "So get to the point, don't put on a life-or-death act in front of me."

"This...Doesn't the princess already know? Why do I have to tell her?" Xiao Ru asked suspiciously.

She mistook Xiang An's longing tears for his tears as tears of being wronged.

Xiang An mistakenly believed that this was some unknown memory of the original owner.

Two misunderstandings combined made a simple matter complicated.

"Tell me in detail first," Xiang An said calmly, offering a vague answer.

“The princess will go inside and say it; the old women inside will know better,” Xiao Ru said hesitantly.

The commotion had just started, and the number of tea drinkers peeping was at its peak. It was only temporary to prevent them from coming and going; they would be released once the matter was resolved. They couldn't be kept locked up for too long, or things would escalate and the Princess's residence would lose face.

A swift and decisive victory is the best strategy.

Inside the room, the five old women, grimacing in pain, knelt down. When they saw Xiang An enter, they endured the pain and called out in unison, "Greetings, Princess Miankang."

He glanced sideways at the old women who were bowing respectfully, but before telling them to get up, he sat down quietly and gestured for Xiao Ru to brew a pot of fresh tea. Then, he slowly picked up the teacup, took a small sip of the tea, and moistened his throat.

He said slowly, "Which family are you from? What did you do wrong? Tell the truth."

The five old women rolled their eyes and remained silent. The fattest and whitest old woman crawled forward on her knees, tears streaming down her face.

"Princess Miankang, your aunt beat us and scolded us in front of so many people today, and we have lost all face."

We endured the pain and gritted our teeth, refusing to reveal that the one who beat us was a maid from the Princess's residence, thus preserving the Princess's honor. Now, we only have our lives left; we beg the Princess to spare us this time, and we promise there will be no next time.

"This is the last time." Xiang An put down his teacup, impatiently. "Which company is it? What did you do wrong? Tell me the truth."

His sharp gaze fell upon them, weighing heavily on their hearts.

To be fair, these old women know Xiao Ru's name and where she works, and they were beaten up by the princess's maid in the teahouse while wearing such a conspicuous high-class jacket and skirt. How could there not be any knowledgeable people drinking tea in the teahouse today?

Presumably, as soon as the guards leave, someone will immediately go to these old women's residence to inform them and collect the reward money. At that time, the old women's lives will be in danger.

Listen carefully to the meaning behind words, and listen to the sound of drums and gongs.

Xiao Ru had already understood that her princess meant to save these old women's lives. But when she lifted her eyelids, she saw five big, foolish old women kneeling below, clearly trying to be clever. The evil fire that had been extinguished in her heart reignited.

Without saying a word, he rolled up his sleeves and slapped each of them, saying with exasperation, "Just answer whatever the princess asks! Stop showing off your cleverness!"

"Yes Yes."

After each of the five women received a slap, they became obedient, their faces swollen as they explained which household they belonged to and why they had left the household that day. Their speech was clear, but they stammered when they talked about why they had been beaten by Xiao Ru.

The five of them couldn't utter a single word, which made Xiao Ru so anxious that she wanted to beat each of them up again.