The Flourishing Era of Female Merchants

As soon as Han Yu finished speaking, the eunuchs who had been summoned to rescue the princess rushed over. They were about to arrest An Mi as Han Yu had instructed, but An Mi knelt before Empress Feng and said, "Your Majesty, the princess has drowned. Please, for the sake of the Eighth Princess, let An Mi save the Eighth Princess first, and then punish this humble woman."

Empress Feng frowned, how could she give her a chance? However, before the Empress could answer, An Mi swiftly pressed on the Eighth Princess's chest, repeating this several times. The Eighth Princess moved and suddenly spat out a mouthful of water, then coughed violently, spitting out a large puddle of water with each cough. When she had vomited enough, she burst into tears.

"What's going on?" Just then, a deep and majestic voice came from not far away. The Empress was startled when she heard the voice and quickly turned around to look at the person. The person was dressed in bright yellow and was already middle-aged, but his figure was still handsome and upright. Just by looking at his face, An Mi could guess the person's identity.

It turns out that Bai Yi, Qing Lan, and even the King of Donglin's handsome faces must have been inherited from this man!

"Your Majesty, I pay my respects." Empress Feng curtsied.

"Your subject pays respects to Your Majesty," Bai Yi and Qing Lan, who were following behind the Emperor, said in unison.

At first glance, Bai Yi and Qing Lan saw An Mi, who was soaking wet, and both frowned. What was An Mi doing in the palace? What was going on?

"Father, Jin'er almost didn't get to see you again." The Eighth Princess cried even louder when she saw the Emperor. Her fear was not feigned; she had truly felt like she was going to die in the water.

Emperor Mingde frowned. "How did it come to this?"

The Empress lowered her gaze slightly, waiting for Han Yu to report the "facts" of what had just happened to the Emperor. However, she did not expect that An Mi would kneel down first and steal the opportunity to speak.

"Your Majesty, it's all my fault. Something hit my foot just now, and I lost my balance. I tried my best to avoid the Eighth Princess, but the force of the unidentified object hitting my foot seemed to push me onto the Eighth Princess. I couldn't avoid it, which resulted in both of us falling into the water. Fortunately, I can swim and I was able to save her in time, expelling the water from her stomach. The princess is alright, and I'm relieved. Please punish me as you see fit, Your Majesty."

Although Anmi's words were a recounting of what had just happened, they subtly implied both her lack of intention and her contribution.

Bai Yi glanced at An Mi, a faint smile appearing on his lips. Qing Lan's eyes also flickered. Mi'er, Mi'er, seizing the initiative is a great advantage!

Empress Feng's expression changed, but only for a moment. With the Emperor present, she naturally dared not show it too obviously.

Emperor Mingde sized up the woman kneeling on the ground. “You saved Jin’er, how can I punish you? I have never seen you before, and judging from your attire, you do not seem to be a palace maid.”

"Your Majesty, her name is An Mi. She is an embroiderer whom Your Majesty summoned to the capital by imperial decree. Seeing that Your Majesty is busy, I took it upon myself to invite her to the palace. Wasn't it said that she would be embroidering and making clothes for the ladies? I thought I would summon her first and then arrange for her to go to the Imperial Wardrobe. But I did not expect that such a thing would happen." The Empress said gently, walked to An Mi, and personally helped her up from the ground. "Miss An Mi, His Majesty is a wise ruler. You saved Jin'er, which is a meritorious deed. You must not be punished."

An Mi lowered her brows, a hint of irony rising in her heart. Was it the Empress who brought her into the palace?

Just now, she seemed to be pretending to know nothing about her. Hmph, she's figured it out now. The person behind this must be the Empress!

Regardless of her motives for doing this to me, the fact remains that she wanted me to get into the water, or perhaps she wanted me to be punished.

However, she did not expect that the Emperor would arrive at this moment.

As an outsider to the palace, her sudden appearance in the palace would inevitably be investigated by the emperor. Rather than investigating and finding out that she ordered someone to bring An Mi into the palace, it would be better for her to admit it herself. It is nothing unusual for the empress to summon a commoner into the palace.

"Your Majesty, Your Majesty the Empress, although I saved the Eighth Princess, I am also guilty." Although An Mi had already stood up, she was unwilling to let the matter rest.

"Oh? Then tell me, what crime have you committed?" Emperor Mingde couldn't help but take another look at An Mi. Others would probably avoid her like the plague, but this woman was trying to take the blame upon herself.

The Empress's expression subtly darkened, a sense of unease creeping into her heart.

“I shouldn’t have been caught off guard and allowed myself to be plotted against and used.” An Mi lowered her head. “If that attack had been directed at me, it wouldn’t have been a problem. But I’m afraid someone wanted to use me to hurt the Eighth Princess.”

An Mi's words made it all too clear: she was an innocent pawn, and the person who hurt her ultimately wanted to kill the Eighth Princess!

Upon hearing this, the emperor's face immediately darkened. He scanned the surroundings and declared, "Who dares to harm my daughter in my palace!"

“Father, this matter must be thoroughly investigated. Anmi’s life is insignificant, but Eighth Sister’s life is of paramount importance. Consort Yu left behind only this one daughter in the world. If anything were to happen to Eighth Sister, not only would Consort Yu not be at peace in the afterlife, but the Yu family would also be in a difficult position to explain.” Bai Yi frowned his handsome, sword-like eyebrows and spoke up at the opportune moment.

The Emperor's anger intensified, and the palace maids present trembled with fear. An Mi also cautiously observed everyone's reactions, convinced that the person who had ambushed her was still there.

An Mi knew that she couldn't vent her anger on the person who had instigated her for the time being, but she had to find out who had plotted against her, even if it was in front of the Emperor!

Suddenly, one of the palace maids caught her eye. The maid's obvious panic made An Mi feel a touch of irony. This was the same maid who had just accused her of killing the koi!

At that moment, Anmi understood the connection between them. So, it was a case of one plan failing, so another was devised?

Hmph! An Mi snorted inwardly, subtly giving Liu Guang a wink. Liu Guang, being shrewd, followed An Mi's gaze and saw the palace maid. He immediately understood and had an idea.

Hidden in her sleeve, between her fingers, was an incredibly sharp needle, so fine that it would pierce a person's skin without leaving a visible wound. If it were to pierce a vital acupoint, it could even kill instantly. However, at this moment, this needle was not meant to take the other person's life.

With a flick of the finger, the needle pierced the fabric of the sleeve and shot towards the palace maid's knee, so clearly that it was invisible to the naked eye.