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

Li Sizhen added, "We, as female officials, cannot leave the palace at will."

"But he also often asked his acquaintances, such as his father-in-law or guards, to help him bring back some goods from outside so that he could see the world."

"Those common goods are probably far from as good as the county magistrate describes! How can they be compared to the items in the palace?"

Fu Luan rolled her eyes and laughed, "Many people in the Great Wei might not even know how to appreciate these good things!"

"And what about the Xianbei people? I've heard..."

"They are descendants of the Xiongnu people, and it's already quite impressive that they can speak Chinese."

"Even if we use the 'common goods' that Si Zhen mentioned to deceive them, how could they possibly tell the difference?"

Upon hearing this, Li Sizhen frowned and said seriously, "Your Excellency is mistaken! You yourself just said it."

"This 'Flying Horse of Gansu' is to be presented as a state gift to the Xianbei, who are about to form an alliance with the Great Wei."

"As a 'national gift,' it represents the dignity and prestige of the Great Wei. How can we possibly pass off inferior goods as superior ones?"

"If the alliance is disrupted due to a mishap with the state gift, I'm afraid the Emperor will not let go of the Prince of Youbeiping, whom you have been longing for!"

Fu Luan said with feigned difficulty, "Even if what Sister Sizhen said makes sense, but..."

"I only asked you a question, but you changed the subject and refused to give me a straight answer."

"You wouldn't even help with something as simple as a word; now that it involves a state gift, you're even more..."

Li Sizhen entered the palace at a young age, starting as an apprentice in the Six Departments and Twenty-Four Offices. She was promoted to the sixth-rank official position of Sizhen just two years ago.

Having worked in the palace for many years, how could she not know Fu Luan's meaning?

Although Fu Luan was once the Crown Princess, her divorce from Yuan Lu was a widely publicized affair that was known throughout the country.

She had previously inquired about Yuan Lu, so Li Sizhen couldn't help but be wary of her;

But after hearing about the "Xianbei" and "state gifts" from Fu Luan, Li Sizhen felt that...

Her words are believable; she was indeed sent by Yuan Lu...

Li Sizhen's lips curled up slightly, "Your Highness, there's no need to provoke me with your words. As for this 'Horse Trampling the Flying Swallow' incident..."

Only then did she feel relieved enough to recount the whole story in detail.

It turns out that the Shanggong Bureau had already made the "Horse Treading on a Flying Swallow" a long time ago;

According to palace rules, precious items should first be handed over to the Department of Treasures for recording, filing, and safekeeping, and then retrieved with a signature when needed.

But at that time, the day when the Xianbei envoys arrived in Chang'an was still far off, and Yuanlu was by nature impatient, so how could he really wait until the Xianbei people entered the palace?

Most importantly, he was also eager to temporarily possess that "unconventional and graceful" treasure.

He'll occupy it for as many days as he can—just like how he occupied Fu Luan back then.

For various reasons, Yuan Lu held three identities: "Prince", "Prince of Youbeiping", and "Imperial Envoy".

Just when "Horse Trampling a Flying Swallow" was about to be handed over to the Department of Jewelry, they simply seized it.

The ladies-in-waiting were angry, but there was nothing they could do.

Even the head of the "Six Shang" (a high-ranking official position), the Shanggong, was only a fifth-rank female official.

Even though Yuan Lu was the deposed crown prince, he had already been reinstated as a prince. How could the female officials compete with the emperor's son?

“When he came to steal the things, he said, ‘The eldest daughter of the Fu family is so infatuated with me that she can’t bear to leave me.’”

"'I will return to the Eastern Palace and become the Crown Prince sooner or later!'...Who dares to oppose him?"

"If he really becomes the crown prince again, will we still have a chance to survive?"

"I'm not afraid of being laughed at by the county magistrate, but I'll be old enough to leave the palace in a few years."

"But there is still a younger sister in the palace. She is determined to stay and will not leave until she makes her mark in the palace."

“If I really anger the Prince of Youbeiping, even if I can get away, what will happen to my sister?”

"And so we just watched helplessly as that treasure ended up in his hands!" Liszt sighed.

Fu Luan sneered inwardly, "Hmph, that good-for-nothing wants to go back to the Eastern Palace? Dream on!"

But a good-for-nothing is a good-for-nothing; once something perfectly good fell into Yuan Lu's hands, it spoiled within half an hour...

"So he had Ge Tai find you and asked you to fill this hole with other treasures from the Sizhensi, is that right?"

Li Sizhen nodded, "Yes! This servant personally selected one or two hundred items for the prince, but the prince was not satisfied with any of them;

"I don't know what's wrong with him these past few days, he really hasn't sent anyone over."

“We all assumed that he had found someone else to replace him, and we didn’t dare to make any decisions on his own.”

"I dared not urge them any further, but I never expected..."

"I didn't expect him to send me, his former wife and newly appointed county magistrate, is that right?" Fu Luan smiled, pursing her lips.

Li Sizhen nodded again.

Fu Luan said solemnly, "His Highness naturally has his reasons. I imagine the contents of this state gift have already been communicated to the Xianbei envoy."

"Even though your company's collection is all good, it's not convenient to use other treasures as a substitute."

“You previously said that ‘only the Shanggong Bureau can manufacture treasures that can be used as national gifts;’”

"Now I will ask Sizhen one more time, is this true, or...?"

"If it's just boasting, you might as well tell me sooner rather than later, so I can make other plans!"

"Don't keep dragging your feet. If you wait until the Xianbei envoys arrive in Chang'an before saying this, you're just trying to fool me. I won't stand for it!"

Li Sizhen hurriedly replied, "Of course it's true! How could it be fake?"

Fu Luan smiled and said, "Si Zhen, don't be in such a hurry. I was just asking a question."

"Since it's real, how long would it take the Shanggong Bureau to recreate an identical 'Flying Horse of Gansu'?"

“This…” Li Sizhen hesitated.

Fu Luan didn't ask her if she could recreate "Horse Treading on a Flying Swallow," but instead asked directly about the time, leaving her no room for rebuttal!

"If we mobilize the resources of the Shanggong Bureau, it can be completed in ten to fifteen days at the slowest pace, or in three to five days at the fastest."

“But…” Li Sizhen frowned.

Seeing her distress, Fu Luan took her hand and gently advised, "Tell me what's wrong, and we'll think about it together."

"Although I am no longer the Crown Princess, I still have some sisters in the palace."

"If something really happens, I can at least offer some small help!"

Li Sizhen raised her eyes, and after a while sighed, "The county magistrate's arrival is truly unfortunate!"

"For some reason, the Emperor recently returned from the Prince of Longxi's residence and bestowed upon him a new title of 'Yun Chongyi'."

"Palace maids who served the emperor always started as 'ninth-rank concubines,' and even the better ones were only 'ninth-rank dress maids.'"

"But the Yun family really did have good fortune, and their first official title was 'from the seventh rank of the Imperial Guard';

"Now, less than seven days later, she has been promoted to 'Sixth Rank Noble Consort,' which is the position of a palace mistress!"

"I don't know what abilities this Consort Yun has that have made the Emperor so infatuated;

"Even Consort Mei, who just gave birth to the nineteenth prince, is not as popular as her now!"

"She demands this and that all the time, not to mention the Shanggong Bureau where I am from the Sizhen Division, but the entire Six Shang and Twenty-Four Divisions;

"Everyone has to stop what they're doing and serve this master! I heard..."