Fearing being killed for his overwhelming merits, the empress decided to marry him.

Zeng Qian didn't know how he left the Prime Minister's residence. He felt dazed and confused, as if he were drunk. He wandered aimlessly on the cold and quiet streets, ignoring even the coachman's calls.

At this moment, the words of Ye Mo's own reproach still echoed in his mind.

"For your own selfish desires, you want me to suggest to His Majesty that Shen Lang's eligibility for the son-in-law selection be revoked?"

Zeng Qian, you're truly hopeless! You even dare to scheme against me?

"Let me ask you, what reason do you intend for me to bring this up with His Majesty?"

"Just because of your grudges with Shen Lang, you're going to put His Majesty in a difficult position?"

"Think about it carefully. Is it really worth you being so petty about such a small matter? How can a third-rank Prefect of the Capital be so narrow-minded?"

"Fine, even if I do as you wish and force His Majesty to cancel Shen Lang's eligibility to be chosen as a son-in-law, aren't you afraid that Shen Lang will expose the evidence that you framed Wang Yuan?"

The late Emperor knew about this, so surely Your Majesty knows as well; it's just that we all keep it to ourselves. But if anyone were to bring it up...

Have you considered the consequences for yourself? At best, your future will be ruined; at worst, your family's official career will be cut short, and you'll never be able to return to the court.

In severe cases, your family will be raided and you will be executed. Your family members will also be exiled to a harsh and cold place, repeating the mistakes of Wang Yuan. No matter what the outcome, can you bear it?

For the sake of a mere centurion in the Jingwei Division, you're willing to gamble away the future and lives of your entire Zeng family. Think carefully, is it really worth it?

"Go back and think it over carefully. Don't come looking for me again until you've figured it out. I don't want to be implicated because of your ignorant actions."

Zeng Qian clenched his fists, his cheeks twitching uncontrollably.

He understood the reasoning Ye Mo had given him perfectly.

But he couldn't swallow his anger at being bullied by a mere fifth-rank military officer.

“Master, since you are unwilling to help me, I will have to find a way myself. I refuse to believe that I cannot deal with a mere Shen Lang!”

In his rage, he unconsciously passed by a luxurious restaurant.

I glanced up casually and saw a familiar figure inside, drowning his sorrows.

"Mu Changge?"

Zeng Qian pondered for a moment, then curled his lip in a smirk.

"I almost forgot, Mu Changge is also a candidate for the Emperor's son-in-law. Since the three candidates are competing peacefully, why not try to win him over to compete with Shen Lang?"

With that thought in mind, he strode into the restaurant.

At this moment, Mu Changge's table was filled with wine jars, and he was completely drunk.

He was originally very confident about a "business deal" in which he spent a lot of money to befriend people from all walks of life in the capital, hoping to gain Jiang Mengxuan's trust by acquiring the ancestral land of Wang Yuan. However, Shen Lang beat him to it.

This gave Mu Changge a strong sense of frustration. Considering how much Jiang Mengxuan had favored Shen Lang these past few days, it made him even more upset.

If Shen Lang were a weak, effeminate man like Shu Yingwen, Mu Changge would have already threatened him, but Shen Lang's strength was something she dared not provoke.

Therefore, he has already ruled himself out of the possibility of becoming the emperor's son-in-law, and has been drinking himself into oblivion on the streets every day for the past few days.

"We're out of wine! Bring us some more, hiccup!"

He hiccuped as he picked up an empty wine jar, stood up unsteadily, and asked the waiter to refill it.

Because he paid a lot of money, the shopkeeper and his staff didn't dare offend him and could only keep bringing him another jar of wine and placing it on the table.

Just as he grabbed the wine jar, his other hand also grabbed the other corner of the jar.

Mu Changge looked up and saw Zeng Qian smiling at her.

"Lord Zeng, what brings you here to see me?"

"Naturally, I've come for your future."

After Zeng Qian finished speaking, he sat down directly opposite Mu Changge.

"You, are you here to laugh at me too?" Mu Changge pointed at Zeng Qian's nose. "If it weren't for you, would I be disliked by His Majesty?"

If you had sold me that land, I wouldn't be in this mess. Now you're talking to me about my future? My future is ruined!

Zeng Qian narrowed his eyes, feeling extremely displeased that Mu Changge had pointed her finger at him and berated him.

But now he had to force himself to be magnanimous, after all, compared to Shen Lang, Mu Changge's attitude had been much better than before.

"Young friend Mu, you can't say that. What do you mean your future is ruined?"

Zeng Qian poured himself a glass of wine and spoke slowly and deliberately.

"Until His Majesty decides who the Emperor's son-in-law will be, nothing is certain, but you, young friend Mu, are not without a chance."

Upon hearing this, Mu Changge stared blankly at Zeng Qian: "What do you mean by that?"

Zeng Qian smiled slightly: "The reason why young friend Mu is at a disadvantage is because he feels that he is not trusted by the Empress, right?"

"Heh, what do you think? You know perfectly well what I mean."

Mu Changge rolled her eyes at him and started pouring wine into her glass.

Zeng Qian laughed: "What if the powerful families in the capital, or even the local gentry, all support you becoming the emperor's son-in-law?"

Mu Changge was stunned, unaware that the wine in the jar was overflowing from the already filled wine cup.

"Lord Zeng, could you please explain more clearly?"

Zeng Qian said, "What I mean is, as long as you are willing, my Zeng family is willing to support you in becoming the emperor's son-in-law, so that you can smoothly become the husband of the Empress of Great Chu. I wonder, are you willing?"

Mu Changge quickly put down the wine jar, and the wine had sobered up considerably.

"Lord Zeng, why are you helping me?"

"Helping you is also helping me."

Zeng Qian flicked his sleeves.

"You should have heard how arrogant and domineering Shen Lang is, a mere fifth-rank martial artist."

Relying on the Empress's favor, they dared to pressure and threaten me, and even forcibly seized my Zeng family's land.

Moreover, I have already broken ties with him. If he becomes the emperor's son-in-law and a member of the royal family in the future,

Given his dissolute nature, I fear my life would be far more difficult than it is now, perhaps even jeopardizing my life.

After all that, you should understand now, right? No matter what, we absolutely cannot let Shen Lang become the emperor's son-in-law.

And you probably don't want to see that happen, right?

Mu Changge pondered for a moment and nodded: "That's right, Shen Lang is really going too far. So, what should I do?"

Zeng Qian: "The first step, of course, is to regain His Majesty's trust, and the best way to do that is to share His Majesty's burdens."

Mu Changge: "But how can I share His Majesty's burdens? Ever since Shen Lang seized your family's land, His Majesty has never mentioned anything to us that requires our help."

Zeng Qian: "Does the absence of problems mean there won't be any? In a few days, a group of refugees from the south will arrive in the capital. What will you do then...?"

After he whispered a few instructions to Mu Changge on what to do, Mu Changge's face lit up with joy.

After Mu Changge finished listening, he immediately stood up and bowed to Zeng Qian, saying, "Thank you for your promotion, sir. I am deeply grateful."

Zeng Qian smiled and stroked his goatee, quite pleased with Mu Changge's attitude.

"The second step is for me to create momentum for you and try to gain the support of powerful families and officials near the capital."

Even the support of the people—as long as His Majesty hears of your actions, he will surely change his opinion of you.

Mu Changge was overjoyed and knelt directly in front of Zeng Qian: "Thank you, Lord Zeng. If I am fortunate enough to become the emperor's son-in-law, I will definitely repay you."

Zeng Qian laughed and said, "Forget about repaying him, the important thing is that Shen Lang absolutely cannot be selected."

During this time, you must also be wary of Shen Lang using any underhanded tactics; you must not give him a chance to turn the tables.

Mu Changge: "Don't worry, with your support, what do I have to fear from Shen Lang? At worst, I'll send a message to my master, and he'll order a senior disciple from our sect to come to the capital to lend a hand."

"Who is your master?"

Mu Changge raised her head high: "My master is Bai Tianyu, the sect leader of the Xuan Tian Sect. He is the legendary..."

He is the 326th generation descendant of Bai Xinian, the Sword Ancestor, and Shen Zhao, the Primordial Daoist Master, who married tens of thousands of years ago.

"Oh dear, so you're Master Bai's disciple! Why didn't you say so sooner? Hahaha."

Zeng Qian had no idea who Bai Tianyu was, let alone the rumors about Sword Ancestor Bai Xinian and Daoist Shen Zhao.

As long as we can get this guy to force Shen Lang to revoke his status as the emperor's son-in-law, then our goal will be achieved.

"Young Master Mu, I raise a toast to you, wishing you in advance to become the Emperor of Great Chu."

"I am deeply grateful for Lord Zeng's kind offer. Once the matter is resolved, I will certainly reward you handsomely."

The two toasted each other, their eyes filled with anticipation for the future.