The Eldest Daughter Reborn: She Provoked the Obsessive Crown Prince and Couldn't Escape

The room was completely silent; although there was no wind, the candlelight still flickered.

After a moment's thought, the Emperor smiled and said, "A father who allows men to freely enter and leave his daughter's room in order to climb the social ladder should be executed!"

Fu Luan asked softly, "If he wasn't a good father, then what about Your Majesty?"

"Hmm..." the Emperor pondered, "If it is a child born to A-Luan, I will certainly cherish it!"

Fu Luan immediately replied with a cold face, "I will not have children, not even in this lifetime!"

She touched her belly, remembering the two children in her past life who were thrown to their deaths by Zhengzheng right in front of her!

That was the child who had shared her heartbeat! And he was just thrown to his death like that! Every time she thought of this, her heart ached as if it were being torn apart!

Even though she had already avenged her great grudge and Zhengzheng was now neither human nor ghost, it was still difficult to quell the hatred in her heart!

Seeing that she looked unwell, the Emperor stopped mentioning the child and instead asked, "But you wanted to kill your father, certainly not because he let me in tonight and allowed me to do whatever I wanted to you..."

"Ah Luan, can you tell me what the reason is?"

Fu Luan said speechlessly, "My father... the Marquis of Chang'an, he killed my mother!"

"Oh? He did it himself? Or did you see it with your own eyes?" The Emperor brushed a stray hair from her temple.

Fu Luan said indignantly, "Nothing happened, but I just know! He allowed Aunt Yan to poison my mother and seize her dowry and the Fu family's property!"

"If Fu Yuan hadn't quickly inherited the Fu family, the Fu family would probably have been devoured by my 'good father'!"

"He didn't like me when I was little..."

When she spoke of hatred, she wanted to grind her teeth to dust! She didn't know why, but she could only open her heart to Yuan Li!

She could probably tell him anything except the fact that she was "reborn"!

"That could be considered a reason, but... if I were to say that I could only choose between 'making Xiao Jiu the crown prince' and agreeing to let you kill your father'..."

"Ah Luan, which one would you choose?"

"What?!" Fu Luan's eyes widened in disbelief.

The Emperor was quite satisfied with her reaction, and then smiled and said, "You have been scheming for months, just to make Xiao Jiu the Crown Prince."

"Your own identity has been exposed, yet you'd rather risk the crime of deceiving the emperor than not find an imposter to replace the 'eldest daughter of the Fu family' and marry her off to Xiao Jiu;

"It's all for Xiao Jiu's sake—so that he can securely ascend to the position of Crown Prince by virtue of the Great Wei ancestral precepts and the glory of the eldest daughter of the Fu family, isn't it?"

"Your feelings for him are gone, but your promises remain... Ah Luan, you've suffered! If you had supported me, things would probably be much easier now!"

Fu Luan asked helplessly, "Is His Majesty... jealous of his own son?"

"Yes...and not just one! After all, 'Chang'e loves young men,' and I, a man in my early thirties, am indeed a bit old to A-Luan!"

"So, which one do you choose? If your father dies, I will expose that imposter's identity, and Xiao Jiu will not be able to become the crown prince even if he marries her."

"If Xiao Jiu becomes the Crown Prince, I will have to save your father's life!" The Emperor touched her forehead and was relieved to see that she did not have a fever.

Fu Luan smiled and said, "What, does Your Majesty think that Xiao Jiu has to rely on his wife to become the Crown Prince? Can't he become the Crown Prince on his own?"

"After all... he's already done it once!"

The Emperor raised an eyebrow and said, "Your 'sister' comes from the countryside. She is only good at 'managing her husband,' but that's not exactly respectable!"

"As for Xiao Jiu... I know my own son well. Without your assistance, it would be too difficult for him to become the crown prince on his own!"

"When he was the crown prince, it was only because of his mother's status that he recognized Empress Zhaoshen as his mother;

"Although he has now recognized Qingluan as his mother at your suggestion, you have now broken off your relationship with him, so you probably don't want to go to the trouble of helping him anymore."

"With his abilities, he certainly couldn't have known how the game would unfold. That's why you brought in Fu Jinlai, hoping to cut the Gordian knot quickly."

"Even if I don't reveal your sister's identity, as long as I don't issue an imperial decree or bestow a marriage upon her, even if your sister lives in the Prince of Yan's residence for the rest of her life, Xiao Jiu will never become the Crown Prince!"

"So, Ah Luan, what's your choice?"

Fu Luan bit her lip and said, "Since His Highness Prince Yan is engaged to the eldest daughter of the Fu family, I hope His Majesty... will follow the ancestral precepts of the Great Wei and reinstate Xiao Jiu as Crown Prince!"

"I will keep my promise and wear that crown with the swaying pendant of the Nine-Flower Jade!"

The Emperor held Fu Luan's hand and said, "A Luan, I promise you, the day you become the Empress will be the day Xiao Jiu returns to the Eastern Palace!"

He then blew out the candle and pressed Fu Luan down, saying, "Sleep peacefully, I'll be watching over you!"

“…Hmm.” Fu Luan replied in the darkness.

For some reason, the unfamiliar fragrance of the Sumanahua made her feel at ease; perhaps she would feel even more at ease in the future...

Three days later, the Emperor issued an edict and announced to the world that he would establish Fu Luan, the second daughter of the Fu family and a first-rank official of the Qi State, as the Empress!

This news caused a stir in both the government and the public!

"The second daughter of the Fu family? A first-rank Lady of Qi? Wasn't she married before? Can someone who's been married become an empress???"

"That's not all! She married the sixth prince who was executed by slow slicing, and he used to be the crown princess! Later, she was also engaged to the ninth prince, the Prince of Yan!"

"Didn't the Ninth Prince get engaged to her sister? I heard that her sister has already moved into the Prince of Yan's residence and driven away most of her concubines!"

"Wait a minute, wasn't she the eldest daughter? How did she become the second daughter?"

"Oh dear, these noble families are such a mess, we just can't understand them! Let's drink!"

There was much discussion both inside and outside the palace, but Fu Luan pretended not to hear it and just went about her own business.

"Grandma, something terrible has happened! The concubines from the Prince of Yan's mansion who were kicked out by the eldest daughter have come to our door!" the maidservant reported in a panic.

Hua Luo spat, "What's the big deal? Is it worth getting so flustered? If you go out and say you're a maid from the Marquis's mansion, who'll believe you!"

The little maid didn't retort, but just stared longingly at Fu Luan.

Fu Luan sighed, "Fine, I'm free now anyway, I'll go take a look myself!"

Before Fu Luan even reached the front hall, the group of concubines swarmed around her, chattering all at once.

"Lady Qi, you must go and see His Highness the Prince of Yan!"

"Yes! His Highness the Prince of Yan is now..."

"You've lost your appetite and your mind, haven't you? Your concubine from the Western Regions has already spoken once, so there's no need for you to repeat yourself!" Fu Luan said irritably.

One of the concubines said, "No! We want Lady Qi to persuade the King of Yan to take us back to his residence!"

The other concubines nodded in agreement.

Fu Luan sat on the seat of honor with a cold smile and said, "Whether it is the Prince of Yan or Fu Jin who expelled you from the mansion, it is your own business."

"Your Prince Yan's residence is really strange! Instead of seeking help from the Prince Yan and the future Queen to handle your private affairs, you keep bothering me again and again?"

"I don't have that ability! Show them out!"

"Madam, you are mistaken... His Highness the Prince of Yan has made it clear that as long as you condescend to see him, he will agree to let us sisters return to the manor!"