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

"Did Fu Qingbai really say that?"

Xiao Ru became anxious, and He Tao trembled. She nodded timidly, "I wasn't the only one who heard it. Auntie can send someone to the teahouse to inquire."

"Oh dear! Why didn't you say so earlier?!" Xiao Ru pulled Xiang An to leave. "Princess, Fu Qingbai just went to the palace to meet the Emperor. Who knows what nonsense he'll spout to His Majesty? We have to hurry and get to the palace."

"Wait a minute." Xiang An stopped her. Xiao Ru stopped, confused, and looked at her anxiously.

Xiang An turned to He Tao and asked, "Who are these young masters you're talking about, the young master Su and the eldest son of the Qi family?"

"Su Yicheng, the youngest son of the Left Censor, and Qi Yuanshen, the eldest son of the Qi family, a military and noble family."

"them……"

Xiang An was about to ask a question when a servant outside the door interrupted her: "Reporting to the princess, Eunuch Changfu has arrived."

Sure enough, the next moment Changfu appeared with a bow. He stood outside the threshold, as if he were blind and could not see what was happening inside the room. He said with a smile, "Greetings, Princess Miankang. His Majesty has decreed that you be summoned to the palace."

Xiang An came out to greet him: "Father, did you miss me today?" Xiao Ru, who was beside him, promptly stuffed a white crane purse into his hand.

Changfu didn't answer, deftly dodging the question: "Princess, please enter the palace as soon as possible. The Crown Prince's backside is waiting for you."

The eldest prince, Xiang Xin?

Xiang An's eyes widened slightly, and he took a barely perceptible step back, still vivid in his mind the last time Xiang Xin had acted so erratically.

Xiao Ru sensed something was wrong, leaned closer, and said with concern, "Princess."

"It's alright." Xiang An shook her head. "Prepare the carriage. I'm going to the palace. You stay here."

"Princess……"

"Do as I say." Xiang An said, glancing at He Tao, who was sitting on the ground, the meaning of which was self-evident.

"Yes." Xiao Ru understood, and left, turning back every few steps.

Inside the palace.

Inside the hall, Fu Qingbai bowed his head and reported on border affairs. Outside the hall, Xiang Xin was being beaten repeatedly, howling and cursing.

The harsher the scolding, the harsher the beating; the harsher the beating, the more obedient the mouth becomes, only able to howl. Yet, over and over again, from beginning to end, the stubborn one doesn't utter a single word of begging for mercy.

"good."

As the emperor reviewed the memorial submitted by Fu Qingbai, his eyes were full of praise: "Minister Fu has done a great job. You have worked hard all these years. But only by entrusting the border to you and the Fu family can I feel at ease."

Fu Qingbai: "If Your Majesty is at peace with yourself, then it is worthwhile."

"Hahahaha, merit deserves reward!" The emperor laughed heartily. "How about this, I will bestow Princess Miankang upon you in marriage, what do you say?"

"The princess has not yet reached marriageable age."

"I bestow this upon you upon your coming-of-age ceremony." The emperor rose from his high dragon throne and descended the steps step by step. "How is it?"

Fu Qingbai paused slightly, then said, word by word, "...I leave it to Your Majesty to decide."

"I decide? My Princess Miankang, the apple of my eye, did you even see her with your own eyes before she entered the palace? Is that why you can't even bring yourself to ask for her hand in marriage?" The emperor's eyes narrowed slightly. "Or is it that my Princess Miankang is not as good as your military achievements?"

"I don't dare."

"Do you know why the eldest prince was punished with a beating?"

The screams outside the palace grew louder, and Fu Qingbai and the emperor could hear them clearly.

It wasn't that the eunuch who was administering the cane didn't know how to handle it properly; it was that Xiang Xin outside, upon learning that Xiang An had arrived, panicked and the breath she had been holding back due to the pain suddenly dissipated, causing her to cry out in pain.

The noise was so loud that it worried the emperor. The eunuch guarding the gate hurriedly poked his head out, glanced sideways, his face expressionless, and his toes gleamingly parted—a minor injury, the least forceful.

The eunuch who was about to administer the caning noticed the obvious signal. His hand holding the cane trembled, and he reduced the force of the cane. He cried out in his heart, "This is the eldest prince. Of course we know the emperor won't beat him to death. We also know we can't afford to offend him. We've already used the lightest force, but the eldest prince is howling like he's about to die. How are we supposed to know what's going on? We're innocent!"

Even from across the courtyard, the screams were still incredibly piercing. Xiang An, who had been summoned to the palace, paused at the courtyard gate: "Brother?"

Changfu: "Yes."

Xiang An hesitated in front of the courtyard gate. If she were the original owner of this body, she would have rushed in to protect Xiang Xin from everything. But now, she was already being kind to the pervert by not kicking him when he was down.

Seemingly sensing Xiang An's thoughts, Chang Fu stepped in front of her and said, "It's no use for the princess to go in now. The executioners are all imperial guards. Apart from taking a few lashes with the eldest prince, you won't be able to do anything."

Xiang An pretended not to listen and took a step outwards. Chang Fu followed suit and took a step outwards to block her. After several unsuccessful attempts, she finally gave up: "Fine, fine, I won't go in. Take me to see my father, and I will beg him."

"Yes." Changfu was overjoyed and bowed to lead her forward.

Upon reaching the entrance, he saw four people already kneeling outside, waiting to be summoned. He recognized two of them—Qi Yuanshen and Su Yicheng. He vaguely remembered the faces of the other two, but did not know their names, though their appearances surpassed those of the first two.

He glanced at Changfu silently, but Changfu only returned a smile before standing properly in his place.

The hall was completely silent at this moment.

After a few breaths, Fu Qingbai calmly said, "Your subject does not know."

"Half the reason is that he hit you. You are my subject, while he is still a prince who hasn't even entered the court. The law does not allow him to hit a general with an official position like you. I ask you, why don't you say that he hit you and is trying to deceive the emperor?"

"I do not wish Your Majesty to be troubled by trivial matters."

In fact, just moments before entering the palace, Fu Qingbai had dismounted and was still inside the palace gates when Xiang Xin suddenly appeared out of nowhere and, without a word, punched him in the face.

With a blurry glimpse in his vision, Fu Qingbai tilted his head and seized Xiang Xin's hands, instantly immobilizing him and easily resolving the situation.

"Guess why he got beaten up."

The emperor's gaze was fixed on the tall, upright young man before him, who was only seventeen years old and in the prime of his youth. Even though he was the emperor, he sometimes felt that his youthful appearance had faded in his presence.

Fu Qingbai: "I didn't recite anything today."

It was common knowledge in the court that Xiang Xin disliked memorizing texts and reading. Many ministers were dissatisfied and concerned about this. If it weren't for his status as the eldest son of the legitimate wife, the position of crown prince might have been established long ago.

Even if the emperor were not established, many ministers would push for his enthronement, unlike the current situation where things are left to their own devices.

"Not memorizing the text is a minor matter." The emperor seemed both helpless and relieved. "He begged me not to bestow Miankang upon you in marriage. As for you, you are entirely at my disposal. Now everyone is happy."

A fleeting hint of panic crossed Fu Qingbai's eyes, but his years of battlefield experience had honed his ability to remain calm and rational in times of crisis, allowing him to subconsciously detect the chilling undercurrent in the emperor's expression.

Fu Qingbai remained calm and composed: "Yes."

"Fu Qing." The emperor sat back on his dragon throne, a half-smile on his face. "The laws of the Yuan Kingdom stipulate that anyone who marries a princess can never serve as an official in the court."

"Your Majesty, I thank you."

"The matter of the teahouse concerns the integrity of the royal family. If you have no interest in it, I have already summoned Su Yicheng, Qi Yuanshen, Miankang, and others to the palace. Changfu."

Changfu: "Yes."