The Flourishing Era of Female Merchants

Emperor Mingde's eyes narrowed. He glanced at Bai Yi, his face darkening, but said nothing. He quickly turned his gaze to An Mi, "Since you are going to become our royal family's daughter-in-law, you should fulfill your filial duties on Bai Yi's behalf!"

With such relentless pressure, Emperor Mingde gave her absolutely no chance or right to refuse!

Immediately, all eyes turned to An Mi, awaiting her answer. An Mi lowered her brows, a slight smile playing on her lips, and spoke calmly, "This is An Mi's duty, and An Mi will naturally do her utmost, but..."

An Mi paused in her speech, and Emperor Mingde frowned as well, his guard instantly rising. He had known all along that An Mi was no ordinary woman, and now, what tricks was she going to play?

An Mi subtly observed Emperor Mingde's reaction, and the corners of her mouth slightly turned up. "However, An Mi is naturally foolish. In this palace, if I accidentally offend anyone, I will be truly terrified. An Mi is afraid that this joyous occasion will turn into a disaster, which Your Majesty would not want to see either. Therefore, An Mi dares to ask Your Majesty for a favor, and I humbly request Your Majesty's permission."

Emperor Mingde's eyes narrowed further. "Tell me about it."

"If Anmi has done anything wrong, I beg Your Majesty and Empress Dowager to be magnanimous and forgive Anmi's crime." Anmi knelt on the ground, extremely respectful, and spoke each word clearly.

At this moment, almost everyone present understood her intention: she wanted to ensure her own safety!

Even though Emperor Mingde understood Anmi's intentions and was somewhat unwilling, he could only comply with her wishes at this moment, saying, "I grant your request."

An Mi was overjoyed. As long as the Emperor agreed, that would be great!

"Thank you for your kindness, Your Majesty," An Mi said loudly in gratitude.

Without the Empress Dowager, the banquet seemed somewhat eerie. Even the Emperor only ate a few bites before getting up and leaving. The rest of the guests lost their appetite and soon dispersed.

An Mi was with Bai Yi, Qing Lan, and the Prince of Qin. They were on their way back to the Bohai Prince's Mansion, but as soon as they arrived at the palace gate, someone called her back.

An Mi stopped and turned to look at the old eunuch hurrying towards her. She frowned slightly. Although she had entered the Empress Dowager's palace in a hurry today, she had seen this old eunuch before.

With a slight furrow of her brows, An Mi already had a vague guess in her heart. Sure enough, when the old eunuch approached and respectfully bowed to the princes, he said, "Miss An Mi, the Empress Dowager invites you."

Bai Yi's face darkened, and he was about to say something when An Mi preemptively spoke, saying softly, "Thank you for your trouble, Eunuch. May I have a few words with His Highness?"

Seeing that Anmi was gentle and mild-mannered, the old eunuch did not make things difficult for her. He nodded, stepped back a few paces, and waited a few meters away.

“Mi’er…” Bai Yi’s brows furrowed, and the worry in his eyes could not be hidden, even for someone as reserved as him.

An Mi smiled faintly, took Bai Yi's hand, and gently interrupted his worries, "Even if it's tomorrow, you still have to go to the palace. Why not stay tonight? The Empress Dowager is kind and won't make things difficult for me. When Your Highness returns to the manor, just have someone send me some clothes. Our marriage is up to you to take care of it!"

Bai Yi was slightly taken aback and remained silent for a long while. Although his brows were still furrowed, he didn't say much. He simply held An Mi's hand and looked at her for a long time before finally speaking, "Five days from now, I will definitely marry you!"

No one can stop them!

Even the Empress Dowager wouldn't do it!

An Mi smiled, her eyes shining even brighter. The two looked at each other, as if they were the only two people in the night. But those watching from the side felt a pang of sadness in their hearts.

"Mi'er and Third Brother, true love will prevail in the end." Yan Bing chuckled, with a hint of teasing. She glanced at the two of them mischievously, then looked up at her new husband. The tenderness in her eyes was completely different from that of the female bandit leader. She looked exactly like a little woman deeply immersed in happiness.

This sight made the King of Qin beside her fall in love even more, but he still tapped her forehead and said, "You talk too much. Now look what's happened. You've disturbed your third brother and sister-in-law. I think you should take care of your filial duties these next few days!"

Yan Bing was taken aback, but quickly understood. She raised her handsome eyebrows and said, "Your Highness, rest assured. As a daughter-in-law of the royal family, I know that the Empress Dowager has been away from the palace for so long and is not used to many things. It is my duty to go to the palace to keep her company."

Bai Yi and An Mi listened with gratitude. The King of Qin and Yan Bing were thinking of this so that An Mi could have someone to look after her.

Qinglan, who had remained silent throughout, had a bitter smile playing on his lips. The more Anmi was around, the less he wanted to leave, because he wanted to see Anmi a little longer. But now, he felt that this place couldn't accommodate him!

Five days from now, is it Bai Yi and An Mi's wedding?

For some reason, he felt extremely conflicted at that moment.

The Empress Dowager's sudden return to the palace was something he had already noticed with his shrewdness. Why did she return to the palace before An Mi and Bai Yi's wedding, instead of earlier or later? According to the information he had, the Empress Dowager rushed back to the palace and immediately had An Mi accompany her. What did this mean?

Qinglan knew in her heart that the Empress Dowager would definitely stop this wedding and keep Anmi in the palace. It wouldn't be as simple as just fulfilling her filial duties. Would the Empress Dowager make things difficult for Anmi?

If it really puts him in a difficult position, he even hopes that the Empress Dowager can stop it!

You can see Anmi suffering...

Thinking of this, Qinglan's thick eyebrows furrowed involuntarily. Looking at everything in front of her, she felt it was particularly glaring. Even standing here, she felt as if there were thorns under her feet.

Glancing at the gentle smile on An Mi's face, Qing Lan frowned, didn't linger any longer, and turned to walk out of the palace. He suddenly felt that all this happiness had nothing to do with him, but the more irrelevant it was, the more it felt like a thousand thorns were pricking his heart.

Anmi's every smile and frown floated into his mind. Five days later... These words made him gasp for breath and almost dizzy, but he still forced himself to keep going, step by step, with extraordinary determination.

Qinglan isn't someone who easily admits defeat. A wedding? So what if it's a wedding?

Qinglan's tall and straight figure gradually disappeared into the distance, slowly vanishing from Anmi's sight. That desolate loneliness made a trace of helplessness gather in Anmi's eyes.

Will lovers eventually get married?

She and Bai Yi are getting married soon, but what about Qing Lan?

Thinking of Qinglan's wife, Sima Yan, An Mi couldn't help but frown. Sima Yan was not Qinglan's ideal woman, and that concubine... An Mi's eyes narrowed slightly. She knew Qinglan's heart all too well, but what could she do?