The Flourishing Era of Female Merchants

However, the sound was particularly jarring to the few people present.

An Mi subtly tugged at the corners of her mouth, a cool expression revealing her current mood: joy upon joy? Sima Yan truly is a gentle and virtuous lady from a prominent family! This is like pouring oil on someone's head; she's probably not afraid that Emperor Mingde won't be angry!

Qinglan's expression changed drastically. Ignoring the many people watching, he glared fiercely at Sima Yan. Before he could even think of how to respond to Sima Yan's words and appease his father's anger, just as An Mi had predicted, Emperor Mingde's previously suppressed anger erupted completely. His furious voice roared like a lion, "A loving couple that moves heaven and earth? What a loving couple that moves heaven and earth!"

Sima Yan felt a surge of smugness. Ah, Anmi, it's not hard to guess the Emperor's attitude. It would be best if the Emperor disagreed with the marriage and then took his anger out on her!

Emperor Mingde's sharp gaze swept over everyone, and wherever it fell, people trembled with fear and dared not look him in the eye. "Tell me, who is that earth-shatteringly loving couple?"

With Emperor Mingde so enraged, who dared to speak up? Even Empress Feng, who wanted to add fuel to the fire, had to abandon her thoughts. She was unwilling to speak at this moment, fearing that she would incur bad luck, and obediently watched the show from the sidelines. In her view, no matter what the outcome of this matter was, it would be beneficial to her.

"Father..." In the eerie silence, that deep and steady voice still rang out. Even in the face of Emperor Mingde's anger, the voice showed no fear and sounded remarkably relaxed. "Your subject still maintains that you will not marry anyone but Anmi. I humbly request Your Majesty to grant me this marriage!"

An Mi's heart tightened, but along with the worry came a warm feeling flowing through her heart. Bai Yi, Bai Yi, are you really not afraid of Emperor Mingde's wrath?

But those words, "I will marry no one but her," seemed to touch a certain place in her heart. Those words lingered in her ears and she couldn't shake them off.

Emperor Mingde's expression darkened further. He strode over and glared at Bai Yi. "Are you threatening me? Do you mean that I have no choice but to grant this marriage, whether I want to or not?"

To publicly challenge his authority—only Bai Yi would do such a thing. Of all his sons, Bai Yi's abilities were clear to him. If he had designs on the throne, he wouldn't tolerate him. However, Bai Yi was remarkably well-behaved in this regard. The economic lifeline he controlled was also something he feared. If he hadn't weighed these factors, he would have already ordered Bai Yi's punishment in a fit of anger. But... now he couldn't do anything about it.

“Father, you are wise. I am not making a threat, but rather requesting that you grant me a request.” Bai Yi spoke calmly and respectfully, as if he were the one in control of everything in the face of the angry Emperor Mingde.

Is that bold? Bai Yi is not a brainless person. Requesting a marriage decree may anger his father, but his father will not really do anything to him. His father is the ruler of the country, and he has to consider the big picture, doesn't he?

Bai Yi met Emperor Mingde's eyes, and their gazes locked, creating an atmosphere so oppressive it was hard to breathe. It was as if even the slightest prick of a needle could cause a massive explosion.

Everyone couldn't help but secretly admire the King of Bohai. Who else could stand up to the Emperor like this? Perhaps only the King of Bohai had such courage.

After an unknown amount of time, Emperor Mingde finally turned his gaze and slowly landed on An Mi. At this moment, Emperor Mingde showed no anger, yet his thoughts were also unfathomable. Under everyone's gaze, Emperor Mingde walked step by step closer to An Mi.

This action caused some people to worry, some to feel sorry for An Mi, and some even hoped that An Mi would be torn to pieces by the Emperor. Even Sima Yan disregarded etiquette at this moment, removed the red veil from her head, and watched the scene in front of her with great excitement.

Emperor Mingde walked up to An Mi and stopped just a few steps away from her. He looked at her for a long time before finally speaking, "Miss An Mi, please get up!"

Each word seemed calm, but An Mi could sense the anger hidden in his tone. An Mi rose and bowed, "Thank you, Your Majesty!"

Emperor Mingde's gaze rose slightly as An Mi rose, his experienced eyes fixed on her. "Miss An Mi, do you still remember what you said on the Ghost Festival that day?"

After Emperor Mingde finished speaking, he paused and continued, "I remember last time you were betrothed, you disagreed with marrying Bai Yi. Now, to say that you are a couple whose love is so touching is probably untrue, isn't it?"

An Mi knew that Emperor Mingde's next words were just a cover-up. Emperor Mingde was reminding her to remember the promise she made to him when they had a private conversation that day!

An Mi was a clever woman. Before Emperor Mingde uttered those words, he knew that An Mi could understand his implied meaning. When he saw a slight glint in An Mi's eyes, Emperor Mingde's lips curled up slightly, and An Mi understood what he meant.

As shrewd as Emperor Mingde was, he understood the crux of the matter all too well. During the Ghost Festival, he was unwilling to be at odds with Bai Yi, and the same was true now. To maintain the superficial harmony between him and Bai Yi, he had to firmly grasp the key factor of tranquility.

As long as Anmi refuses, she can extinguish Bai Yi's thoughts; this was true before, and it is true now.

Emperor Mingde's gaze was fixed on An Mi; he wanted to get an answer from her that she had rejected Bai Yi!

At this moment, almost everyone's gaze was fixed on An Mi. An Mi, who was under everyone's gaze, remained calm. When a gaze fell on her, she felt it particularly strongly.

Without even looking, she could almost imagine Bai Yi's eyes at that moment, and she could understand what he meant.

Her decision seemed to be the deciding factor. If she refused Bai Yi, Emperor Mingde's anger would subside, and today's matter would naturally be dropped. This would undoubtedly be the best outcome for both her and Bai Yi.

However, under Bai Yi's gaze, she hesitated. Was the answer that Emperor Mingde wanted also the answer that Bai Yi was willing to accept?

An Mi frowned, the words "I will marry no one but An Mi" becoming unusually clear in her mind. She had seen Bai Yi's feelings for her, could she bear to push his heart away again?

An Mi raised her eyes, her gaze sweeping over the group: Qing Lan, Sima Yan, Empress Feng, Emperor Mingde, and finally settling on Bai Yi…

Everyone looked at An Mi, waiting for her response, but no one could guess what she was thinking. Finally, after an unknown amount of time, An Mi slowly spoke, and her words caused everyone present to have different expressions...

"Your Majesty, what the Prince of Bohai said is true. Anmi is in love with the Prince of Bohai and will marry no one else. I humbly beg Your Majesty to grant me the marriage to the Prince of Bohai!"