The Flourishing Era of Female Merchants

The jailers felt a chill run down their spines, and they exchanged glances, seemingly pondering their next move.

Suddenly, one of the jailers seemed to realize something and hurriedly said, "Quickly, quickly report to the Emperor that General Feng Yu committed suicide in the Imperial Prison out of fear of punishment!"

The jailer prayed silently, wondering how the emperor would react upon hearing this news!

The next morning, the jailer quickly relayed the news to the palace. The jailer who reported the news personally saw that Empress Feng, who had appeared in the prison the night before, was also by the Empress's side. In addition to Empress Feng, the Prince of Bohai was also present, sitting opposite the Emperor and playing chess.

The jailer was startled; this situation was completely unexpected. For a moment, he forgot the words he had prepared.

Emperor Mingde frowned slightly, his hand holding the white characters paused for a moment, and he didn't put it down for a long time. His face showed his displeasure at being disturbed.

Empress Feng, seeing this, said gently, "Speak quickly if you have something to say. The Emperor is playing chess with the Prince of Bohai. You can't afford to disturb his enjoyment!"

The jailer was startled, then realized that this was no place to be afraid. One wrong move and he could lose his head! He couldn't afford to take that risk!

The jailer knelt on the ground and hurriedly said, "Your Majesty, Your Majesty, the prisoner Feng Yu in the Imperial Prison committed suicide last night out of fear of punishment."

Emperor Mingde paused slightly, but soon a faint glint of light flashed in his eyes. Bai Yi heard this and a smile subtly appeared on his lips. Suicide out of fear of punishment? Was it really suicide out of fear of punishment?

Bai Yi glanced at Empress Feng, his eyes flashing. As far as he knew, the old master of the Feng family would not arrive in the capital until the day after tomorrow. He thought that even if Feng Yu was going to "commit suicide out of fear of punishment," he would at least meet the old master of the Feng family once he arrived in the capital.

But to his surprise, it happened much earlier than he had anticipated. He wondered who this "suicide out of fear of punishment" was related to. Was it Empress Feng? Or Old Master Feng?

However, he felt that both of them were involved. If it was Empress Feng's idea, then why didn't she act sooner? Why did she act two days before Old Master Feng arrived in the capital? If it was Old Master Feng's idea, then Old Master Feng had no henchmen in the capital, did he?

No, if we're talking about henchmen, then yes, we do have some. Isn't Empress Feng just Old Master Feng's man in the capital?

After careful consideration, Bai Yi quickly grasped the situation.

Ha! That Feng Yu is truly pitiful, abandoned so early! Doesn't even the old master of the Feng family intend to see him one last time?

"What's going on?" Emperor Mingde asked, feigning anger, but inwardly he was remarkably calm. Beneath this calm, he seemed to possess a sense of superiority, as if he were in control of everything. Feng Yu was dead—wasn't that exactly what he wanted? However, what he wanted was not just this!

Empress Feng paused slightly, then twitched her lips and spoke before the jailer could, "Your Majesty, it's like this. Last night, I went to the Imperial Prison, thinking that Yu'er had committed such a grave mistake, and as his aunt, I should naturally teach him a lesson on Your Majesty's behalf. However, I didn't expect to hear the news of Yu'er's suicide as soon as I arrived at the prison. I quickly entered the cell and indeed saw Yu'er lying on the ground. I was furious. Yu'er was a serious criminal in the Imperial Prison, and before Your Majesty could even interrogate him, he did such a thing. Perhaps he truly realized his mistake and was afraid. However, the jailer was also suspected of negligence. Therefore, in my anger, I ordered the execution of the jailer in charge. I acted too rashly in this matter, and I beg Your Majesty to punish me!"

Empress Feng's expression turned solemn as she finished speaking. She even stood up, walked to Emperor Mingde, and knelt on the ground.

Emperor Mingde was not surprised upon hearing this; in fact, he felt a sense of schadenfreude. After all, this empire belonged to him. So what if it was Empress Feng? So what if the Feng family was powerful and influential? They still had to do whatever he wanted!

"Is that really so?" Emperor Mingde's voice remained terrifyingly gloomy.

"Your Majesty, I dare not conceal anything. You may question the jailer. He has witnessed everything." Empress Feng glanced at the jailer, and because of her words, everyone's attention instantly shifted to him.

Under the gaze of everyone, the jailer seemed to be suffocating, but he still had to "testify," nodding hurriedly, "Yes, what the Empress said is true."

Emperor Mingde's anger seemed to ease somewhat, but his brows remained furrowed, showing signs of deepening. His calm voice slowly rang out in the hall, "The Empress is Feng Yu's aunt. Although Feng Yu committed such a heinous act, blood ties still exist. The Empress usually values ​​Feng Yu highly. It is only natural for her to take her anger out on the jailer who guarded him because he 'committed suicide out of fear of punishment.' As for punishment, it can be waived."

Empress Feng was overjoyed upon hearing this and let out a long sigh of relief. "Your Majesty is wise and understanding. Thank you for your compassion."

"but……"

Just when Empress Feng thought the matter was over so easily, Emperor Mingde's voice rang out again, his voice filled with indescribable difficulty. Empress Feng looked up and saw Emperor Mingde's tightly furrowed brows, her heart skipped a beat, "Your Majesty... is something amiss?"

"This is inappropriate, extremely inappropriate!" Emperor Mingde shook his head, and the entire hall fell into a solemn atmosphere once again because of his words. Emperor Mingde sighed deeply, "I originally planned to deal with Feng Yu's matter properly after Old Master Feng arrived in the capital, but I did not expect that Feng Yu would commit suicide in the imperial prison out of fear of punishment. News from the front line says that Old Master Feng should arrive in the capital the day after tomorrow. With his death, how am I supposed to explain this to Old Master Feng?"

In the end, Emperor Mingde sighed deeply again. Bai Yi saw this and a faint smile appeared on his lips. His father was indeed an old fox. His plan was to have the Feng family execute Feng Yu themselves, so that he would owe them nothing. On the contrary, the Feng family seemed to owe his father something. Now that things were developing according to his father's plan, he was in a dilemma. Ha! His father had played this role quite well!

However, he was more eager to see what would happen when Old Master Feng arrived in the capital.

Thinking of Old Master Feng, Bai Yi unconsciously tightened his grip on the black stone with his two fingertips, as if he were crushing someone else with it.

Empress Feng frowned, and only now did she suddenly understand the Emperor's purpose in ordering her father to come to the capital. Could it be that he wanted to force her father to take action?

In this way, the Emperor was spared a lot of trouble, leaving the Feng family in such a difficult situation! Even if the Feng family blamed the Emperor for this, it wouldn't be legitimate!