Report to the Empress and the Eldest Princess: They're using the system to poach your men.

"His Highness seems to really like Yue Ning's body."

"Cough cough cough-"

Shen Sangwan felt that Wen Yuening would occasionally pull off a shocking and outrageous act.

She didn't seem to be thinking anything in her mind just now; she just pinched the other person's face a little too much. How did she come to the conclusion that she likes the other person's body?

Before Shen Sangwan could ask, Wen Yuening answered her question first.

"Every time Your Highness is with Yue Ning, he either pinches her waist or bites her lip. Now he's even rubbing her cheeks without restraint. If Your Highness doesn't like Yue Ning's body, then what is it?"

A shy blush appeared on Shen Sangwan's face.

Am I really that much of a rogue?

I don't remember doing any of these things.

[My lord, I side with the Empress. You're just a scoundrel; you always liked to take advantage of the Empress.]

Xiao Tong, that conspicuous little thing, always manages to pop up at the right moment to deliver another blow to Shen Sangwan.

"Whose side are you? Are you trying to rebel? Is she your master or am I?"

If Wen Yuening hadn't been there, she would have definitely dragged Xiaotong out and given her a good beating.

Fortunately, she forcibly changed the gender back then and created a little boy, so she didn't feel any pain no matter how much she hit him. If it were the beautiful young woman from the beginning, she probably wouldn't have been able to bring herself to do it.

Knowing that the Empress was there, Xiao Tong figured his master wouldn't do anything to him, so he jumped around as much as he wanted.

The Empress will return sooner or later; you'd better hope she returns to Fengluan Palace later.

"Your Highness, Yue Ning does not wish to return today."

〖 ？ ？ 〗

Shen Sangwan was filled with questions. Good heavens, when did these two team up behind her back?

"That's not a big deal... okay!"

He looked at the person so close to him with a hesitant and incredulous expression.

The other person then fell into Shen Sangwan's lap, and because it was a stool, the two of them almost fell backward.

"Yue Ning noticed that His Highness was always saying one thing and meaning another. He clearly wanted Yue Ning to stay, but he always pretended to be in a difficult position."

"I want my dignified and elegant empress. I don't know this seductive little vixen. Quickly bring back my obedient empress!"

Shen Sangwan wailed inwardly, but her silent cries were deafening to Wen Yuening's ears.

"Does Your Highness truly prefer obedient girls?"

Wen Yuening hooked her arms around Shen Sangwan's neck, her body soft and boneless as she pressed against her, her hands behind her neck constantly fiddling with Shen Sangwan's hair.

This is really killing me.

Unable to resist Li's teasing, Shen Sangwan pushed him away and quickly stood up, "I...I still have to go to Xingde Palace, you...you should go back early."

He slapped his face as he walked out.

"Shen Sangwan, you're really useless."

"Your Highness, Eunuch Fu'an from His Majesty's side has come to deliver a message, saying that His Majesty requests your presence at Xingde Palace."

Shen Sangwan had only made up an excuse, but Shen Yuchen actually sent someone to find her.

After calming herself down, Shen Sangwan answered Shuyi's question through the palace gate, "Yes, I'll go right away."

Then he turned to Wen Yuening and gave her a helpless look.

This means that the emperor was looking for her, not that she was deliberately avoiding him.

Wen Yuening chuckled for a moment, covered her mouth and shook her head, but ultimately didn't say anything more, and kindly let Shen Sangwan leave.

Xingde Hall

When Shen Sangwan arrived, Shen Yujing was sitting on the dragon bed, looking through something.

This piqued Shen Sangwan's curiosity. The previous times she had come, the other party was either throwing things or reviewing memorials. Today, however, he neither lost his temper nor threw anything, so it seemed that nothing serious had happened.

"My older sister is here."

Upon seeing Shen Sangwan arrive, Shen Yujing stood up, closed the booklet in his hand, and then dismissed Fu'an, who was following behind Shen Sangwan.

"Ah Chen, do you have something to discuss with me?"

Shen Yuchen placed the booklet on the table and then showed Shen Sangwan the handwritten note that Cen Qingyu had handed him.

"This was sent to me by Commander Cen. Please take a look, sister."

When Shen Sangwan heard that it was a gift from Cen Qingyu, she tensed up.

He took it and examined it carefully, his expression turning serious, and his brow furrowing.

"Based solely on Commander Cen's words, it's unlikely to be enough to deal with Prime Minister Cen. Besides, they are father and son. Does Achen really believe everything he's told?"

Shen Yuchen tilted his head slightly and swayed from side to side. "I certainly won't believe it easily, but I've already sent people to investigate based on the people involved. I called you here, Sister, to ask what your opinion is on this."

The young emperor did not throw a tantrum about this matter, but calmly considered it and ordered an investigation as quickly as possible, which made Shen Sangwan very gratified.

He thought to himself, "This young emperor has made quite a bit of progress."

"Does Ah Chen want to protect Prime Minister Cen?"

"Why do you ask that, elder sister?"

“If you are determined to protect Prime Minister Cen, then the court will still be controlled by two sides. If you choose not to protect him, then Prime Minister Wen will become the only one in power. A tall tree attracts the wind, and A-Chen can focus on dealing with him. But at the same time, it will make the other side more cautious and difficult to find any fault with him.”

"Then what my elder sister means is that we must protect Prime Minister Cen this time."

Shen Sangwan found a chair, sat down, and shook her head. "Yes and no."

"What Ah Chen needs to do is both protect Cen Xiang and take the opportunity to reduce his power, so that the form remains unchanged while the substance is undermined."

Upon hearing this, Shen Yuchen paused thoughtfully in place.

"There is one more thing I need to tell you, Achen. The border between Dongrui and Song is not peaceful. The Duke of Song has been concealing this from the truth, which may indicate that he harbors rebellious intentions. Achen, you need to make preparations as soon as possible."

"Duke Song recently reported that this year's harvest was poor and that the court needed to allocate grain and money. Could it be that he is lying about the people's plight?"

"Dongrui is very likely to launch a surprise attack on Yuanzhou as the year draws to a close. He may already be in cahoots with Dongrui's Mooreji."

Shen Yuchen slammed his hand on the table, a hint of anger flashing across his face.

"Does he think that since he's so far away on the frontier, I can't do anything about him?"

“Ah Chen, there’s no need to be upset. It’s all just my guess, and it still needs further investigation. I’m telling you this so that you can have a better understanding of the situation.”

"The examination papers of scholars from various regions will soon be sent to Zhongdu. Ah Chen, you can keep an eye out for capable people now. If they can pass the provincial examination next spring, you can recruit them into the court, support them to rise to power, and gradually replace the two prime ministers, thus gradually stripping them of their power."

“What you said is right, Ah Chen has remembered it all.”

"Sister, were you and the Empress on good terms before?"

When Shen Yucheng suddenly changed the subject and brought up Wen Yuening, her eyes darted away.

"Why do you ask that, Ah Chen? I am not familiar with the Empress. We only met at palace banquets."

"Then why did my secret guards see the Empress visiting my elder sister's Weiyang Palace multiple times, and sometimes staying there for a long time before coming out?"

Shen Sangwan was extremely embarrassed when she heard this.

She thought the young emperor didn't know, but little did she know he knew perfectly well.