Forced to be a concubine? I turned around and married the scumbag's father.

When Yiyun returned to the courtyard, Yintao saw her in her own room and immediately followed Yiyun into her room.

"What did the princess say to you?"

Yiyun glanced at her: "Didn't I tell you that too?"

Yin Tao raised an eyebrow: "How do you know what the princess said to me? Trying to trick me? No way!"

"The princess told me."

Yiyun sighed, "What do you think we should do?"

Yin Tao looked at her with suspicion: "What exactly did the Princess say to you?"

Yiyun said irritably, "What can we say? Of course, they'll ask what we've done for the Empress, and what other spies we have."

Yin Tao's heart skipped a beat: "You told me everything?"

She glanced quickly at the wooden hairpin in Yiyun's hair.

Still there.

"How could I dare say? But if we don't do something, do you think the Empress will still keep us? If the Empress thinks we're useless, killing us would be as easy as turning her hand. Besides, the Prince Yong's mansion is unlikely to let us out, so wouldn't we just die here quietly?"

Yin Tao turned pale with fright: "She also told you about all sorts of ways to die?"

Yiyun nodded with a worried look on her face, "That was scary."

Gu Hua didn't tell her that the method used to deal with Yin Tao was different, but she could tell from Yin Tao's words and expressions.

At this moment, Yiyun was even more certain that she should trust Gu Hua, not the Empress.

Gu Hua is a cunning person, and in order to win her over, she investigated her father beforehand.

And what about the Empress? Before she decided to come to Juzhou, she had begged the Empress to save her father, and the Empress readily agreed. But she has been here for so long, and the Empress has not mentioned a word about saving her father, and her father is still suffering.

Yiyun already knew who was more reliable and who was more useful.

Whether she could survive by relying on Gu Hua was unimportant to her.

She was willing to die as long as her father could be rescued.

Yin Tao paced anxiously back and forth in the room: "What should we do? The princess is no pushover either."

Yiyun tentatively asked, "Do you want to escape or continue to help the Empress?"

"Escape? How can we escape? The whole world belongs to the emperor, where can we escape to?"

After speaking hastily, Yin Tao suddenly paused: "Escape? It's not impossible. If we escape to another country, wouldn't that solve the problem? But we're trapped here, unable to even leave the mansion."

Yiyun suddenly thought of a way to sneak out of the mansion.

“My father has an old acquaintance who seems to live in Juzhou. I want to find him and see if he's willing to help us. He's a businessman and often travels to other small countries.”

A glimmer of hope flashed in Yin Tao's eyes: "Then go and beg the Princess to let you go out and look for people?"

Yiyun nodded: "I'll go try it right away."

When Gu Hua heard Yi Yun's message, she readily agreed to let her go.

Yiyun left the mansion that same day.

Akabane's men secretly followed.

……

After returning to Bazhou from Juzhou, Li remained depressed.

After her husband, Qian Junheng, returned to the mansion, he unusually came to her courtyard.

Li was overjoyed and hurriedly ordered snacks and tea to be served, asking him attentively if he wanted to stay for dinner.

Qian Junheng waved his hand impatiently: "I have something to do later. Did you see anything in Juzhou today?"

Although Li was disappointed, it was rare that he had come in person and was willing to tell her that he had something to do and couldn't have dinner, so at least there was some hope.

She knew very well that her husband and father had different political views. Her father was a royalist who stood on the emperor's side, while her husband wanted to take a shortcut and curry favor with the empress and the crown prince.

She was caught in the middle, pleasing neither side.

If she sides with her husband, her family will ignore her even more, and she won't gain her husband's favor, ultimately ruining her life.

If she helps her father, but her family can't help her husband, she'll be doomed too.

As Li thought about it, sadness welled up inside her.

She pondered his question and cautiously inquired, "What does my husband want to know?"

Qian Junheng frowned, giving him a look that said, "You're so useless: Prince Yong is recruiting soldiers. Have you seen the number of troops in the city increase?"

Li said after careful consideration, "I saw it, and it was heavily guarded."

Qian Junheng truly looked down on Li's petty nature; being born out of wedlock was just that—being born out of wedlock, and her understanding was shallow.

His tone wasn't as nice anymore.

"Didn't you find anything else?"

Li wanted to tell Gu Hua what he had said, but she was afraid of being scolded by him. Just as she was hesitating, Qian Junheng lost his patience, stood up, and stormed off.

Lady Li hurriedly chased after him, saying, "My lord, the Princess Consort of Yong said we should go with the flow. You should think twice before you act."

Qian Junheng paused, immediately turned around, and hurried back: "You saw Princess Yong?"

Li was overjoyed and nodded hurriedly: "Yes, not only did I see her, but she also gave me a silk tapestry worth three thousand gold pieces as a congratulatory gift for my mother."

"Three thousand gold coins?" Qian Junheng narrowed his eyes slightly.

He nodded slowly: "I've heard that this Princess Yong is very capable, especially in business. The Mu family has been fighting for generations, but they haven't been able to accumulate any wealth. Several cities in the southern border are dilapidated, and the people are suffering. Even if she is made a queen, the tax revenue going entirely to the Mu family army would be a drop in the ocean. Do you know why?"

It was rare for Li to be questioned by him, so she quickly adopted a studious attitude: "How could I know these things? Please teach me, my husband?"

Qian Junheng, unusually patient, replied: "That's because the imperial court has always embezzled half of the military pay given to the Mu family army, and the compensation for the deceased's families has all been intercepted by the Jiang and Yuan families. Those fools in the Mu family clamor for loyalty to the emperor, but they don't consider that if the emperor truly valued the Mu family, how could he turn a blind eye? In the past fifty years, how many people have died in the Mu family army? How much silver has been paid in compensation for the deceased's families? It's probably enough to buy the entire Liang Dynasty."

"However, ever since Prince Yong married this princess, his ability to make money has improved significantly."

Qian Junheng stroked his chin thoughtfully.

Li was extremely excited; this was the most her husband had spoken to her in the past two years.

Although she didn't quite understand what he meant, it was enough that he was willing to talk to her.

All of this was due to Gu Hua's words. Following this, Li said, "So, will my husband listen to what the Princess Consort of Yong has to say?"

"Tch, how can I listen to a mere woman? What does 'going with the flow' mean? Who is the future emperor? Of course I'll go with the flow. Wang Heng is a fool, a bookish fellow who knows nothing about strategy!"

Qian Junheng said in a low voice, "Continue to maintain your relationship with Princess Yong. I'll tell you when it's useful."

Lady Li smiled and nodded: "I will listen to you."

Qian Junheng thought for a moment and said, "By the way, the imperial court has issued an order to make us pay the surtaxes that were previously exempted, and we also have to pay back the taxes that were deducted before. Think about how to get Princess Yong to give us some money."

Li's smile froze. This... she didn't understand.

How could she possibly get the Princess Consort of Yong to give her money to pay taxes in Bazhou?

That's a huge sum of money!

She knew her husband was troubled by this matter every day. After all, if the taxes were to be paid back, the people would have to pay many times more taxes. He would lose his position as the local official and be beaten to death.

"Why do we need to pay back taxes? Didn't His Majesty exempt us from half of the surtax because we were affected by the war in the southern border and the people were suffering?"

"You stupid woman, the Crown Prince is in power now! Don't you understand that debts must be repaid? The Empress is also trying to use this to control us."

Qian Junheng frowned and thought for a moment: "Just tell Princess Yong that since she wants us to make way for the Mu family army, then we should just pay her."

He sneered again: "As for whether or not to give way, that's a matter for later."

Li felt a chill run down her spine: "Wouldn't that be deceiving her? If Prince Yong finds out, will he let us go?"

Qian Junheng's face darkened: "As expected of someone born out of wedlock, you know nothing! I don't even know how your father had the nerve to marry you off to me as my legal wife! If you can't handle this matter, then get back to the Li family. What use are you?"

Li stared blankly for a long time as her husband turned and left.

What... should she do?