Shocking! In this matriarchal society, every man wants to marry me!

A commotion arose in the crowd, and they looked at each other in bewilderment. The news of the Empress Dowager's death that had spread from the palace a few days ago had turned out to be true!

Le Xingxi understood Le Wentao's plan: to shift the blame for Le Wentao's wrongdoing onto Le Xingxi. How utterly despicable!

All eyes turned to Le Xingxi. The blame was being dumped on her, but Le Xingxi wasn't about to suffer in silence!

Just as he was about to retort, a servant tugged at his clothes. Le Xingxi turned his head to look at the servant with some anger. It was Zhong Niang!

"The second thing is that Consort Le is now pregnant with my child, and I am overjoyed!"

"From this moment forward, I hereby appoint Yue Wentao as Imperial Consort. If the child in her womb is a girl, she shall be named Crown Princess! If it is a boy, he shall be named Eldest Prince!"

Le Wentao could hardly contain his joy. He knelt on the ground, respectfully kowtowed, and said, "Thank you for your great kindness, Your Majesty!"

The officials all sincerely congratulated His Majesty.

However, at this moment, an untimely voice rang out, standing out amidst the congratulations. It was General Yue's voice: "Your Majesty, this old minister disagrees!"

General Yue's voice rang in Yue Wentao's ears like a thunderclap. Yue Wentao looked at her mother in shock and asked, "Mother, what are you saying?"

General Yue walked up to Yue Wentao and slapped him across the face. Yue Wentao looked at his mother with red eyes and said, "Mother, you have never hit me before?"

General Yue turned to His Majesty and said respectfully, "Your Majesty, please dismiss everyone!"

His Majesty nodded and waved to the ministers, who then tactfully withdrew.

Le Wentao felt as if his dignity had been shattered by that slap. He looked at his mother and demanded, "Mother, why did you hit me?"

"I hit you? Don't you know why?"

"Do you even remember that you have a mother like me? Do you remember that you have a younger brother from the same father? Your father passed away early, and I raised you two brothers. I taught you from a young age to love and support each other. I never imagined you would treat your brother like this!"

"I didn't believe it when Zhongtian presented all the evidence to me, but the evidence is irrefutable, how can you refute it!"

Le Wentao turned her vicious gaze to Le Xingxi beside her, her eyes filled with resentment, "It was you! What did you say to Mother?"

Le Xingxi looked at the somewhat crazed Le Wentao: "Mother has always protected you. I told Mother the truth, but she didn't believe me. Today, you went too far!"

General Yue closed his eyes to hide the disappointment in them, looked at Yue Wentao, and said, "I saw it with my own eyes. You deposed your own brother from the position of Imperial Consort in public."

"This is only what I saw. What did you do to your brother in places I couldn't see?"

Le Wentao had no way to refute it; he knew perfectly well what he had done.

He simply walked quickly to his mother, knelt on the ground, and hugged her legs, pleading, "Mother, I am your most beloved son, and also, Mother, I am carrying your dear granddaughter. My child and I are both your family!"

General Yue looked at Yue Wentao with eyes full of disappointment: "Xingxi is also my son. How can you be my son like this?"

These words dealt a heavy blow to Le Wentao, who slumped to the ground in dejection.

Suddenly, a sharp sword pierced straight towards Le Wentao's back. This was the sword that Zhongtian had given to Jiang Yuxiao. The sword was wrapped thinly around her waist and was completely inconspicuous.

The stinging pain behind him made Le Wentao turn around and look at His Majesty. He seemed to have become somewhat accustomed to His Majesty's betrayal. A tear rolled down his cheek, and he turned his head to show Le Xingxi a deep-seated hatred.

"It's all your fault, it's all your fault, Yue Xingxi! You stole Mother's love, you stole His Majesty's love! We have the exact same face, what right do you have? What right do you have?"

Le Xingxi looked at Le Wentao: "Because you have a greedy, foul, insatiable, and rotten soul!"

Le Wentao's eyes were fixed on Le Xingxi, oblivious to everyone else. He murmured, "Le Xingxi, I'll make you die, I'll make you die!"

After saying that, he used his heavy body to slam into Le Xingxi.

Zhongtian stepped out from behind Le Xingxi and protected her.

The crazed Yue Wentao was held down by General Yue, who used his strong arms to tightly restrain him.

His Majesty stared fiercely at Le Wentao, pointing his sword at Le Wentao's heart, wanting to stab him hard. He wanted to take advantage of his illness and make him sick. He could still have children, but Le Wentao had to die!

However, General Yue shielded Yue Wentao with his own body. Yue Wentao nestled in General Yue's arms, clutching her chest and saying, "Mother, my heart aches so much! My heart aches so much!"

"Your Majesty, I will take Yue Wentao back and keep a close watch on him. It is the mother's fault if the child is not properly taught; it is my fault! Your Majesty, please take good care of your health. All the civil and military officials are looking forward to your return to court!"

This barrage of accusations made His Majesty's expression even worse, but he still spoke up: "General Yue, I can spare Yue Wentao, but Yue Wentao has shown contempt for the monarch, deceived the emperor, and is utterly unfit to be a proper consort. He should be stripped of his title and demoted to a commoner!"

Yue Wentao curled up in General Yue's arms as if she were dead. General Yue sighed and nodded.

"Your Majesty, what about my youngest son?"

His Majesty glanced at Le Xingxi standing beside him, a thousand thoughts flashing in his eyes before finally settling on a look of relief.

"Forced love is never sweet, and I thought love could be forced! But I once tried to fall in love with Yue Wentao, and I couldn't! So, the chances of Xingxi falling in love with me in this lifetime are slim. After this incident, I understand that love and hate are both delusions. Enough is enough!"

"I did not hold a wedding ceremony with Le Xingxi, and I will remove his name from the imperial register. I will also erase all traces of him in the palace. Xingxi, leave the palace. I... hope you can be happy!"

A smile appeared on Yue Xingxi's face. He knelt on the ground sincerely and said, "Thank you, Your Majesty!"

He glanced at Yue Xingxi for five seconds, then resolutely turned his gaze to General Yue: "General Yue, the court has many important matters piling up. May I go to court?"

General Yue nodded, his expression one of submission and obedience befitting a subject to his ruler: "Of course, Your Majesty, you are a wise and sagacious ruler. Your commands are met with utmost respect, and we ministers will follow your lead without question!"

Jiang Yuxiao nodded: "...That's good then."