The cannon fodder heiress trembled with fear after being recognized as a member of her family.

Everyone present had been working their way up in the imperial court for many years.

When they saw that thing, they naturally guessed what was going on.

Even someone as dull-witted as Marquis Kaiming noticed something was amiss.

"Since Marquis Ruyi dared to accuse Lord Han of witchcraft, he must be right. Changshou, go and see what they dug up?"

Emperor Chu Yuan was suppressing his anger at this moment, and only asked the fourth prince to check the birth date and time written on it.

The fourth prince, unsuspecting, obediently left.

"Your Majesty, do not worry. Those things are nothing to fear."

Luo Jingqian didn't take it to heart.

Some things, when made by ordinary people, are just junk; they don't have any magical effects.

If it's someone extraordinary or unusual, the effect will be different.

He knew exactly who Lu Cheng was.

The thing he placed did not harm the emperor.

He glanced casually at Han Cuiyin and noticed something was amiss.

Han Cuiyin and Han Yueshi stood facing each other, and anyone could see that the two sisters did not get along.

Emperor Chu Yuan followed Luo Jingqian's gaze and then teased Han Zhen, "Minister Han, with your handsome face, how come your daughter is so...unusual?"

Because the relationship between Yan Shunhua and the Prince of Xiaoyao was still unclear, Emperor Chuyuan did not mention it, only referring to his father.

Han Zhen looked embarrassed. "I guess the Yan family doesn't care much about her and always sends her to work in the mountains!"

"If Lord Han had given enough money, your daughter probably wouldn't be suffering like this. The daughter of a divorced woman is destined to be unable to hold her head high in her husband's family."

Luo Jingqian merely glanced at Han Zhen, the sarcasm in his tone clear to everyone.

“Jingqian has finally come to his senses! You wait, your uncle will pick out a good one for you later, so your aunt can rest assured.”

Emperor Chuyuan knew about Luo Jingqian's sect and also knew about Princess Jinghe's worries. Once he understood, there was no need to worry that this child would grow old alone.

As for who enlightened Luo Jingqian, he didn't care.

As long as his aunt submitted a candidate, he would grant the marriage.

"Your Majesty, Miss Yang is a pitiful person."

After Luo Jingqian finished speaking, he merely glanced at Han Zhen and did not continue.

Han Zhen felt a chill run down his back, but he didn't know why.

He was well aware that his two daughters didn't get along.

However, people have varying degrees of closeness and distance. His eldest daughter had grown up with him since childhood. She was well-behaved, sensible, considerate, and filial, and none of the elders in the household disliked her.

Cuiyin is selfish and suspicious. She flips the table at the slightest thing, which is really going too far.

“Your Majesty, Cuiyin has just come from the countryside and is unfamiliar with etiquette. Today’s events were all caused by her. However, her mistake is also due to my failure as her father to teach her properly. If the censor is found guilty tomorrow… I am willing to take full responsibility.”

Han Zhen had anticipated this; he figured there would be many impeachments against him tomorrow, so he might as well be frank and admit it here, which would make the Emperor feel more comfortable.

A subject should not be too domineering; having some flaws is not necessarily a bad thing.

These are all things he learned from his many years in office.

Grand Secretary Wang was more powerful than Grand Secretary Hu, simply because Grand Secretary Wang was somewhat lustful and had some overt dirt on him that the Emperor could use against him.

Grand Secretary Hu was meticulous in his work, though he was indeed somewhat lacking in ability. However, he had no flaws, which is why the Emperor was somewhat wary of him.

Having learned from the mistakes of the previous emperor, Emperor Chuyuan was even more cautious.

Han Zhen was self-aware; if he hadn't abandoned his first wife, his career might not have been so smooth over the years.

Princess Jinghe's faction was very clever.

Emperor Chu Yuan still remembers the kindness shown to him by his aunt.

In the past, the late emperor was young and his ministers were strong. The regents helped the late emperor govern the country. If it were not for the unexpected events, the one who ascended the throne would not have been the first emperor, Yuan.

Only by understanding the emperor's thoughts could Han Zhen rise step by step from a top scholar to the core of power.

He was confident that even if something bad was found during the search, Emperor Chuyuan would not punish the Han family.

He was the knife in the emperor's hand, and the cabinet had long been a thorn in the side of Emperor Chuyuan.

He also had the Emperor Chu Yuan's leverage over his heartless abandonment of his wife and children, and the two sides were in a state of mutual manipulation.

Aside from losing his composure when he saw Yan Shunhua earlier, Han Zhen remained quite clear-headed at other times.

"Minister Han, this matter is probably not simple. You really need to take good care of your household affairs. If something bad were to happen to the Han family again, you might not be so lucky as you are today."

Emperor Chu Yuan's departure from the palace this time was not a spur-of-the-moment decision.

He promoted Han Zhen to the cabinet to test the attitude of the senior officials.

Han Zhen was under forty, making him the youngest Grand Secretary.

It's not surprising that those people are eager to make a move.

His sons also came, and their intentions were laid bare.

Emperor Chu Yuan sneered inwardly, but said nothing more.

After hearing this, Han Zhen felt relieved.

This incident seems more like the work of an enemy than a domestic feud.

In the inner quarters, he still trusted Princess Mingxia very much, and there hadn't been any major troubles over the years.

If things are too peaceful, it's Emperor Chu Yuan who will be unable to sleep.

Han Zhen was somewhat frightened when all four princes came to the Han residence this time.

Sure enough, the emperor couldn't sit still and came over.

"Father, look at this, it's quite interesting." The Fourth Prince gestured to the guard to present the cloth-wrapped item, then glanced at Han Zhen, "Han Zhen's daughter is of immeasurable nobility!"

Han Zhen's heart skipped a beat. Incredibly noble? Wouldn't that mean she'd be the Empress?

He glanced in the direction of his two daughters, and finally his gaze fell on Han Yueshi.

He knew that the mother and daughter were ambitious; otherwise, the eldest daughter wouldn't have provoked the Third Prince at the Mid-Autumn Festival banquet.

Could it be that the Third Prince has truly ascended the throne?

In just a short while, Han Zhen's mind was racing.

Those who shared tea with Emperor Chuyuan exchanged smiles, paying no attention to the light black stone on the cloth.

The words above are all a trick.

"Miss Han's wish for an auspicious title is likely to be dashed."

The fourth prince curled his lips, his eyes full of sarcasm, "If I hadn't run into Prince Luo on his way out of the Duke of Dingguo's mansion, I probably wouldn't have come here and would have missed this show."

With just one sentence, he absolved himself of responsibility.

His arrival at the Han residence was purely by chance; he came with Luo Jingqian.

Luo Jingqian immediately understood. "I have some connection with Miss Yang. She was under house arrest a few days ago, so I just came to see how she was doing."

Han Zhen gave an awkward smile and forced a smile as he explained, "Thank you for your trouble, Your Highness. Cuiyin is already learning etiquette. She can go out when there are banquet invitations."

The atmosphere was a bit awkward, but the fourth prince was the boldest. He approached Emperor Chu Yuan, picked up a cup of tea, and said, "Father, why don't we let these people go? I have some fun to tell you."

Han Zhen couldn't help but glance at him; he had only just realized that the Fourth Prince was so casual in front of the Emperor.

"You may all leave now! Let's leave it at that and not spread this around."

The Kaiming Marquis and his family left quickly, but Lu Cheng kept looking back, unable to figure out where things had gone wrong.

He deliberately smeared something on that little figure, something that would alert Ruyibo's lion dog to something amiss.

How did it turn into that black stone?

He was puzzled, and so was the Earl of Ruyi.

He approached cautiously, kneeling five meters away from Emperor Chu Yuan. "Your Majesty, I truly did not lie. My lion hound really did find a effigy with your birth date and time written on it..."

Just then, the black stone suddenly turned into ashes, and the words turned golden and floated in mid-air.

Han Zhen had no idea how his eldest daughter had managed to do it, so he could only glare at her fiercely and curse her inwardly: "You're so clever!"

Everyone present knew that Han Yueshi was the one who wanted the auspicious name, and now they looked at her with mockery.

Han Cuiyin laughed too, and whispered to Han Yueshi, "The eldest young lady's stupidity is truly astonishing, an eye-opener!"

She hadn't expected that Lianyao wasn't very smart either.

Two idiots together are actually quite frightening.

"Let this matter rest! Minister Han, you handle this as you see fit. I do not wish for such witchcraft to happen again."

Emperor Chu Yuan made the decision immediately and hurriedly returned to the palace.

The carefree king suddenly appeared, and he still had to deal with things; he had no time to play house with the girls from his ministers' families.

"Come to the study with me!" Han Zhen could not spare the time to entertain the Fourth Prince and could only say, "Fourth Prince and Prince Luo, please make yourselves at home. I have things to attend to. Let my second and third brothers keep me company."

"Are we leaving or not?" The Fourth Prince glanced at Han Cuiyin, then nudged Luo Jingqian. "Are you two having a fight? That ugly woman dares to give you attitude?"

"Let's go! You talk too much."

We just brushed past each other again.

Han Cuiyin scoffed, "Boring!"

Granny Chu stood there, not knowing what to do. Why did the young master suddenly act up? She needed to coax the young lady.

"Granny, you go back first. I'm going to the study to watch the play!"