Best friends dressed up in ancient times to become mistresses? You run, I run too!

Jiang Qingyi's eyes lit up when she saw Jiang Xuanyan's sudden arrival, and she couldn't help but feel smug.

Today, she will expose Shen Ningzhu's true colors in front of Jiang Xuan Yan, so that he can see clearly what kind of woman she is.

By then, she didn't believe he would still want her.

"What are you all doing crowding here? What happened?"

Everyone looked at each other, unsure of what to say. As everyone knew, although Shen Ningzhu had not entered the palace, she had at least been a concubine of the Crown Prince.

Rumors circulated that the Emperor had grown tired of Shen Ningzhu, which was why he hadn't given her a formal title.

But they always felt something was off.

She was someone who had served him, after all. Even if the king of a country disliked her, he could simply give her a title and let her enjoy her old age in the palace. It's not like he couldn't afford to feed her. Why leave her out of the palace and invite criticism?

There are also rumors that during the years Shen Ningzhu disappeared, she had become the concubine of countless men. The emperor disliked her for being filthy, and because of the criticism from the world, he hesitated and refused to give her a title.

This claim is even less credible.

If that were the case, for the sake of the royal family's dignity, the emperor would have secretly executed her long ago. Why would he tolerate her returning to the capital and staying for so long?

Moreover, the current emperor is a notorious tyrant, so why would he care what the world says?

Once they understood this, everyone felt enlightened and realized that the Emperor simply wanted to temper her annoying and irritating nature.

If she knows what's good for her, the Emperor might give her a meal; but if she remains incorrigible, and the Emperor loses patience, her death will be imminent.

In short, no matter what, the Emperor will not favor her anymore.

Now, they are no longer afraid that Liu Zhiyi will remember their earlier insults.

After all, in their eyes, Shen Ningzhu was already a dead fish, incapable of causing any trouble.

"Are you all deaf? The Emperor is asking you a question, why are you all silent?" Sanfu flicked his whisk and said sternly.

Jiang Qingyi smiled gently, stepped forward, gave a graceful bow, and said in an affectionate tone,

"Brother Yan, please forgive me. It's all Qingyi's fault. Such a fine banquet was ruined by these lowly people sneaking in and disturbing your enjoyment. Qingyi begs your forgiveness. As for them..."

Jiang Qingyi secretly gave Shen Ningxue a wink.

Shen Ningxue clenched her fists nervously, no longer caring about watching from behind, she lowered her head, stepped forward, and bowed.

"Your Majesty, these two are Shen Ningzhu's biological parents. I just arrived at the banquet and saw them arguing with the guards at the entrance."

"Only when I got closer did I realize that they were looking for their daughter. I felt sorry for them, so I helped them."

Jiang Xuan Yan smiled in a half-smile.

"Oh? So you brought them in?"

Shen Ningxue's heart raced. She didn't understand what Jiang Xuanyan meant by asking this question. Why didn't he follow the script and ask her the question she was asking? Why did they insist on coming here to find their daughter?

For a moment, he didn't know how to answer, and his gaze subconsciously turned to Jiang Qingyi.

"Your servant..."

"What business do you have with Shen Ningzhu?"

Zhao Meihua was terrified. The highest official she had ever seen in her life was a county magistrate, and even then, she would kneel down and kowtow as soon as she saw him from afar, never daring to look at him again.

Now she had actually met the Emperor, the ruler of a nation, someone a commoner like her could never meet.

Unable to resist peeking up, she was met with the young emperor's handsome, godlike face and a fleeting, sinister glint in his long, deep phoenix eyes.

For a moment, I was so scared that I almost wet my pants.

Hearing the authoritative voice from above, he froze, bowed his head to the ground, and dared not utter a sound, his lips trembling as he stammered...

"Your Majesty, this old woman simply misses her daughter too much, so..."

"Missing your daughter? If I remember correctly, Shen Ningxue is your adopted daughter, isn't she? You don't think about the fifteen years of kindness you've shown in raising her, but instead you're thinking about a daughter you've never even met?"

"This……"

Zhao Meihua was speechless when asked the question.

Shen Ningxue quickly said,

"Your Majesty, as the saying goes, blood relatives are connected by blood. It is only natural for them to care about my sister."

Liu Zhiyi sneered, "You're after Zhuzhu's money, aren't you?"

Shen Ningxue muttered under her breath, "She has so much money, what's wrong with taking some out to support her parents?"

"That's right, I'm her biological mother. If she has money but doesn't give it to me, then I'm cursed to be struck by lightning."

Liu Zhiyi laughed angrily.

“Zhao Meihua, how dare you ask Zhuzhu for money? Also, you keep saying that Zhuzhu beats and scolds you, and that she engages in seductive acts. Do you dare to say those words again? Let me remind you, the crime of deceiving the emperor is punishable by beheading.”

Zhao Meihua was so frightened that she collapsed to the ground.

"This this……"

His eyes darted around, and he couldn't even speak clearly; anyone with eyes could tell there was something wrong.

Seeing this, Sanfu shouted again.

"You audacious peasant woman, why don't you confess the truth right now?"

Zhao Meihua was startled, but before she could speak, Shen Ningxue knelt down in a panic, saying that she knew nothing and had been completely deceived by Zhao Meihua and the others, begging the Emperor to spare her life.

Shen Dashan and Zhao Meihua were dumbfounded.

She never expected Shen Ningxue to treat her like this. A surge of anger welled up in her head, and she realized that she had been used.

They then spoke up, saying that the reason they came here today was actually because they were misled by Shen Ningxue.

Shen Ningxue hurriedly explained that she knew nothing, and in her panic, she shouted, "Princess, save me!"

At that moment, anyone with a discerning eye could guess what had happened.

Jiang Qingyi glanced coldly at Shen Ningxue, "Your Majesty, please investigate thoroughly. Qingyi only held a banquet and knows nothing else."

Shen Ningxue tried to explain, but her mouth was covered by a servant and she was dragged away, along with Shen Dashan and Zhao Meihua.

Shen Ningzhu noticed that from the moment she entered the room until now, Shen Dashan had been standing behind Zhao Meihua with his head down.

He neither chimed in nor stopped it, acting like an outsider.

Shen Ningzhu felt a wave of disappointment towards him. Watching them bicker like dogs, she suddenly felt bored. Thinking of something, she blinked, leaned closer to Liu Zhiyi, and asked疑惑地问道,

"Why haven't I seen Shen Dazhuang and Shen Erzhuang?"

A hint of relief flashed in Liu Zhiyi's eyes. "They really couldn't stand what their parents were doing, so they had a falling out with the family. I heard they ran off to the frontier to join the army."

Upon hearing this, Shen Ningzhu also curved her lips into a smile.

In this way, it can be said that their previous sincerity was wasted, since the Shen brothers, Dazhuang and Erzhuang, are reasonable.

As for Shen Dashan and Zhao Meihua, Shen Ningzhu could never understand how such honest and simple people could turn into such people.

Liu Zhiyi shook her head.

Wealth can be a powerful motivator, and sudden wealth after a long period of poverty puts human nature to the test. With Shen Ningxue constantly stirring things up by his side, it's normal for him to change his ways.

However, judging from their different behaviors on several occasions, perhaps they were not completely deceived, but rather realized that Shen Ningxue was not a good person.

However, for their own benefit, they still chose to go against their conscience and cooperate with Shen Ningxue.