The young general and the prince, who was to be married off, fell in love at first sight!

Bai Qiongzhu's pearls arrived a bit late. By the time Lianqiu had carefully selected and delivered them, Lin Shiming had already pitifully finished his lesson and was eating his lunch in big mouthfuls to fill his stomach.

"...Her Majesty said that His Highness the Crown Prince must not make things difficult for the Crown Princess, otherwise Her Majesty will have to stand up for her."

Lin Shiming was so moved that he almost burst into tears.

Mother, you are truly insightful and love your daughter-in-law dearly.

But aren't we a little late?

"Your Highness, has His Highness the Crown Prince made things difficult for you?"

He's already made things difficult for me!

Lin Shiming's face was flushed red, as if the warmth of Lu Yuxi's slap still lingered on his buttocks. He gripped his chopsticks tightly with both hands, wishing he could hide under the table in embarrassment.

"No, no, he just told me to talk to him before doing anything in the future."

Waaaaah, I still have to cover for him!

I have never suffered such a great loss before!

Lin Shiming really didn't have any acting talent, so even though he tried his best to pretend nothing had happened, his flushed face and evasive eyes had already given him away completely.

Lu Yuxi ate her food on the side, glancing up at Lin Shiming's poor acting every now and then, her eyes full of smiles.

Lianqiu, a master of palace intrigue, naturally understood perfectly well that the Crown Princess's behavior was most likely due to the Crown Prince using some "special methods" to teach her a lesson.

But this was, after all, a private matter between the couple, and Lianqiu dared not make any casual jokes, lest the Crown Princess, who was easily embarrassed, become angry.

"That's good then." Lianqiu smiled. "Your Majesty has another matter for me to convey to the two princes."

Lu Yuxi raised her hand: "Auntie, please speak."

"Her Majesty said that Your Highnesses need not worry about the inner palace. She will help suppress the matter with Consort Liang."

She said she would make a good mocking of Consort Liang, so much so that Consort Liang would be too ashamed to leave the house!

With the Empress's intervention, Lin Shiming and Lu Yuxi naturally had nothing to worry about.

"Then thank you very much, Mother."

Lianqiu bowed and took her leave with a smile.

Only Lin Shiming and Lu Yuxi remained in the side hall. Lin Shiming immediately breathed a sigh of relief. He took a sip of cool tea to calm the heat on his face, and his gaze unexpectedly fell on a box of pearls that Lian Qiu had brought to the table.

Lin Shiming picked it up with some curiosity and examined it. The rather large box was filled with more than twenty pearls. He casually picked one up and held it up to examine it carefully.

"I can't see anything special about this bead."

"Eastern pearls are round and large, and are the king of pearls. So we usually use Eastern pearls to represent nobility. Only the emperor, empress and empress dowager can use them. But since the empress dowager has given them to you, you can use them to embellish your clothes or other accessories, as long as you don't give them to others."

"Let's pick some out and make a bracelet." They're so clean and white, they'll definitely look beautiful!

Lu Yuxi nodded and beckoned Zhao Lei, who was guarding the door, to hurry up and get it done.

After Zhao Lei left to carry out his orders, Lu Yuxi served Lin Shiming a few more bites of food.

"Today's events will likely cause quite a stir not only at Prince An's residence and Consort Liang's residence, but also at other people's residences. You have certainly established your authority today. However, relentless attacks in the court will leave others vulnerable. For the next few days, let's not do anything else. Just focus on preparing for the imperial examinations and sorting out the affairs of the palace."

Lin Shiming understood this principle, of course. To deal with people, you have to strike unexpectedly from time to time; otherwise, they'll develop "resistance," and it will become less and less effective.

"Yes, yes, I can take Lin Ha and Lin Qi for a stroll in the Imperial Garden. Oh, and I should also invite my eldest son; I haven't gotten to know him yet!"

It took Lu Yuxi a while to realize that he was referring to Lu Tingsong.

"Okay, I'll go with you."

*

The news of today's morning court session spread throughout the capital in less than two hours; at least everyone with some official rank or status knew about it.

Thus, the newlywed male crown princess, with her remarkable feat of punishing the prince and dismissing the minister from his post on the third day of their marriage, instantly became the most untouchable person in the capital.

All those who wanted to make a move against the Crown Prince's faction temporarily withdrew their claws, fearing that the unruly Crown Princess would seize the opportunity of this victory to eliminate them all in one fell swoop.

Let's lay low for now.

Lin Shiming had anticipated this outcome, so he paid no attention to it. After waking up from his afternoon nap, he and Lu Yuxi led the two wolves, swaggering through the winding palace paths and into Fengyi Palace, ignoring the astonished gazes of the crowd.

Less than fifteen minutes later, they leisurely led the two wolves out again, this time with a four or five-year-old child in Lin Shiming's arms.

The three men and two wolves spent the afternoon hopping around in the Imperial Garden. Well, it was mainly Lin Shiming, Lu Tingsong, and the two wolves who were hopping around. Lu Yuxi was still very dignified. He was like the patriarch, doing logistics for the whole afternoon.

It wasn't until the sun had set that Lin Shiming and Lu Yuxi, still feeling quite unsatisfied, took Lu Tingsong, whose stomach was rumbling from playing, back to Fengyi Palace. They even managed to snag another dinner for themselves.

They enjoyed two more days of carefree joy, while those outside were filled with dread, constantly suspecting that Lin Shiming was misleading them and that he was definitely plotting something big.

When these words reached Lin Shiming's ears, they amused him. His mischievous impulse, which had been temporarily suppressed after being disciplined by Lu Yuxi a couple of days ago, began to stir again.

"What do you think about me scaring them again when I go to court tomorrow?"

Lu Yuxi glanced at him helplessly, "Alright. Just be mindful of the limits. The candidates for the provincial examination will be entering the examination hall tomorrow evening, so just let them finish the exam in a calm state of mind."

That's true. Before the imperial examinations, candidates would pay close attention to major events in the court, as these were related to the emperor's recent political leanings, so that they could answer questions in a way that would please the examiners.

Lin Shiming's performance a couple of days ago left many candidates confused and panicked. If he does it again tomorrow, several of them will probably be scared to tears on the spot.

Having witnessed countless college entrance examinations in modern times, Lin Shiming still takes the exam very seriously and doesn't want to add any more pressure to students who have studied hard for many years.

Helpless, Lin Shiming could only purse his lips regretfully, "Fine! I'll definitely not say a word at tomorrow's morning court."

*

So, on the morning of the second day, Lin Shiming strode into the Taiji Hall amidst the fearful and uneasy gazes of the crowd.

Then he obediently stood beside Lu Yuxi.

He didn't say a word throughout the entire morning court session. Even when someone tentatively mentioned the chaotic situation at Prince An's residence, he didn't look up.

This left Emperor Longyun and Lin Shihe completely bewildered. They wondered if he had suddenly fallen ill and looked at him curiously several times.

Lin Shiming naturally sensed it, but he endured it.

After a while, another person came out and mentioned that the Ministry of Justice should find someone to act as its deputy. Lin Shiming still kept his head down and remained silent.

Emperor Longyun finally couldn't hold back any longer. He had gone through so much trouble to select these combat experts; surely he wouldn't just abandon his post like this?

"...Princess?"

"My son is here."

Oh, looks like you're not deaf.

"Are you feeling unwell today?"

Lin Shihe also cast a probing and caring glance his way.

"..."

Lin Shiming was so angry he laughed.

Which of the three of us is sick? Huh? Tell me more, who's sick?

"Father, I am not sick, I just didn't wake up properly today."

For the sake of the test takers, I'll tolerate you one more time. It would be best if you just gave up.

Emperor Longyun understood, and then his accusing gaze fell on Lu Yuxi.

"Your Highness, how could you do this before the court assembly... Where is the Crown Princess? Look how much it's affecting his concentration!"

Lin Shiming and Lu Yuxi: "!!!!"