The Flourishing Era of Female Merchants

The dragon robe struck Feng Yu squarely in the face, sliding straight down to the ground. On the robe, the Feng family crest was clearly visible, prominently displayed above the dragon's head. This inevitably fueled Emperor Mingde's even fiercer rage.

Feng Yu lost his composure. Just then, Empress Feng hurriedly entered the imperial study. She quickly saw the scene inside and, combined with the news she had heard earlier, she quickly understood the situation. "Your Majesty, please calm down, this..."

Empress Feng glanced at the dragon robe on the ground, trying to remain calm. "There must be some misunderstanding here."

"Misunderstanding? Am I blind? Take a good look at this too, you can't possibly not recognize it!" Emperor Mingde pointed at the dragon robe on the ground, showing no regard for Empress Feng's feelings. He hadn't forgotten that Empress Feng was, after all, a member of the Feng family, and this matter might even be related to her.

Empress Feng was slightly taken aback. She caught the suspicion in Emperor Mingde's eyes, and her heart skipped a beat. She forced a smile and said, "Your Majesty, the Feng family is loyal to the Great Jin Dynasty and our royal family. They would never have the slightest ambition."

"Then how do you explain this dragon robe?" Emperor Mingde sneered. "Don't tell me it's some kind of setup again!"

"That's not necessarily true!" Empress Feng frowned. "Your Majesty, the Feng family is a target of envy and scorn. If someone tries to frame us with ulterior motives, the Feng family will not be able to escape the consequences."

As Empress Feng spoke, she glanced at Bai Yi seemingly casually. Not only did Bai Yi notice this, but Emperor Mingde also noticed it and his gaze fell on Bai Yi.

Bai Yi, however, showed no sign of nervousness and said calmly, “Your Majesty, who could possibly frame the Feng family? If you don’t want people to know, then don’t do it in the first place. Father, the reason I’ve come to the palace so late is to file a complaint against General Feng.”

"Oh?" Emperor Mingde's eyes narrowed, and Empress Feng's face also darkened. What exactly happened to Feng Yu? What had he done?

"That day, in front of many people, Father Emperor bestowed marriage upon me and An Mi. Now, the entire Great Jin Dynasty should know that An Mi is my fiancée. But Feng Yu, knowing this, still disregarded Father Emperor's decree and the majesty of the royal family, and secretly kidnapped Mi'er with the intention of murdering her. Fortunately, I had been secretly protecting Mi'er's whereabouts, and was able to arrive in time to rescue her. I beg Father Emperor to seek justice for Mi'er and for me!" Bai Yi spoke slowly and deliberately, each accusation resounding with conviction. At the same time, the expressions of Feng Yu and Empress Feng grew increasingly grim...

Upon hearing this, Empress Feng calmed down a bit. The Emperor already disliked An Mi, and whether or not he would take action was still uncertain. However, the most urgent matter was to resolve the issue of the dragon robe as soon as possible. She knew that if it wasn't resolved, not only the Feng family but also she herself would likely be affected to some extent, which was the last thing she wanted to see.

"Your Majesty, the Prince of Bohai also said that Yu'er seems to have offended him. It's hard to say whether this matter of the dragon robe is someone else's deliberate attempt to frame him out of hatred. Asking Your Majesty to make a decision is just a pretense; their real purpose is to put Yu'er to death." Empress Feng's words were sharp, and her meaning couldn't be clearer.

She wanted to use this to exonerate Feng Yu, and if she could drag Bai Yi down with her, that would be even better.

However, she underestimated Emperor Mingde's thoughts. Perhaps just now, Emperor Mingde was still angry about the dragon robe, but after listening to Bai Yi's words, his mood gradually calmed down. His sharp eyes became slightly more profound, and his brows were slightly furrowed. After Empress Feng finished speaking, he remained silent for a long time, making it impossible for anyone to guess his thoughts.

As time passed, Empress Feng's initial hope began to waver, and she felt a sudden unease. She raised her chin and spoke again, "Your Majesty, the Prince of Bohai and our Feng family have a history of conflict. He failed to avenge himself back then, and today, he will surely..."

"Enough!" Emperor Mingde suddenly spoke, loudly interrupting Empress Feng. His cold tone sent a chill down Empress Feng's spine. Even though she wanted to continue to defend Feng Yu, seeing Emperor Mingde's expression, she dared not continue.

Standing to the side, Eunuch Qin frowned slightly, glancing at Empress Feng with pity. Empress Feng was ultimately too naive, suddenly bringing up the events of that year at this crucial moment. It was the Emperor's princess who had died. Because of the Feng family's power, even though the Prince of Bohai wanted revenge, the Emperor, mindful of the Feng family's position in the Jin Dynasty, let the matter drop. Having served the Emperor for so many years, he had seen some of the Emperor's unspoken emotions. He still remembered the Emperor's helplessness back then. For Empress Feng to bring up the past grievances between the Prince of Bohai and the Feng family at this time—wasn't this just reminding the Emperor of his resentment from that time?

Eunuch Qin cautiously looked at Emperor Mingde and indeed saw that his hands seemed to be clenched together.

Emperor Mingde's sudden change in expression also caught the attention of Bai Yi and An Mi. As astute as Bai Yi was, after a moment of stunned silence, a thought suddenly struck him, and a guess surfaced in his mind. Then, Bai Yi's gaze towards Emperor Mingde also changed. Could it be that his father...

Bai Yi's eyes flickered slightly as he quickly dismissed the guess in his mind, deliberately refusing to think about it or explore it further.

Emperor Mingde's shrewd eyes darkened for a moment before a faint smile appeared on his lips. "Empress, Bai Yi is my son. I know him better than anyone. If he wants revenge, he will definitely do so openly and honestly. You saw that a few years ago, didn't you?"

Empress Feng was slightly taken aback and glanced at Bai Yi. Although she hadn't witnessed Bai Yi killing the imperial son-in-law back then, she could still sense Bai Yi's ruthlessness when her father mentioned it, and she understood that her father also harbored resentment about what happened back then.

Back then, if it weren't for the Emperor's words, Bai Yi would have been able to let go of his resentment towards the Feng family. However, she knew that a person's resentment was not so easy to eliminate. Therefore, over the years, she had been secretly on guard against Bai Yi. As he grew stronger in the business world, she increasingly saw him as a ticking time bomb.

"I believe that the grudges of that year have long since vanished from Bai Yi's heart because of the death of the imperial son-in-law." Emperor Mingde's gaze fell on Bai Yi, his eyes narrowed, and his tone was unusually firm, brooking no argument.

Bai Yi was slightly taken aback, but when he met Emperor Mingde's eyes, his expression was firm. "Father, you are wise. What happened back then is long gone."

Whether he has truly let go or not, no one knows.

Emperor Mingde nodded, and the expressions of Feng Yu and Empress Feng changed even more, their bad premonition growing stronger.