Tang Dynasty: To win Yang Guifei, they asked Emperor Xuanzong to die.

Upon hearing the news, Li Mao snorted coldly.

—It seems that no matter how much he serves the country, and no matter how hard Gao Lishi tries to clear himself of any involvement, as long as Li Longji is unwilling to believe him, then all his efforts will be in vain.

Li Longji's current attitude towards Xianglan indicates that he still believes there is something going on between Li Mao and Xianglan. However, now that Li Mao has made great contributions and has been repeatedly wronged, Li Longji no longer wants to target Li Mao, but instead targets Xianglan, banishing her to a residence far away from him, which means he no longer favors her.

"Xianglan has been transferred away from Daming Palace by the Emperor. It seems that it will be difficult to get any useful information from her in the future." Li Mao closed his eyes as he looked at the news coming from the palace.

His initial purpose in sending Xianglan to the palace was to gather intelligence.

Now, Xianglan is a useless piece.

Just as Xianglan herself said before, the day she returned to Chang'an would be the day she fell out of favor.

He needed to find a way to get Xianglan out of the palace; otherwise, a woman who had fallen out of favor, had no official status, and no support from her in-laws would likely find it difficult to survive in the palace.

Thinking of this, Li Mao suddenly remembered Yang Yuhuan.

He knew that after losing Xianglan, his father's infatuation and obsession with Yang Guifei would likely intensify. He had to keep a close eye on her and not let the old man lay a finger on his woman!

Said Cao Cao, Cao Cao.

Although Yang Yuhuan could not possibly be in the Prince Shou's residence, there were two other women in the residence who belonged to Li Mao "his own women".

A voice outside announced, "Your Highness, the concubine and Lady Wei request an audience."

Li Mao then remembered that he had not yet given Wei Qiongying a proper title since he brought her into the Prince of Shou's residence, so he quickly invited the two of them in.

Wei Qiongying was gentle and obedient, while Consort Wang was bright and beautiful.

The two women standing in front of Li Mao were quite a sight to behold.

Li Mao asked, "How did you two get along while I was away? Qiongying seems timid and weak, Consort, you didn't bully her, did you?"

Wang thought to herself, "How could I dare?"

However, she replied respectfully, "Your Highness, I, like you, also adore Sister Wei, and I am exceptionally happy to be with her. Sister Wei often says that having me as her older sister makes her even more comfortable than when she was at her maternal home. Don't you agree, Sister Wei?"

Wei Qiongying nodded quickly. Although Madam Wang was occasionally harsh with her, overall she was beyond reproach and treated her with the proper respect a mistress of the house should show to a concubine. Wei Qiongying felt that this was enough for her.

She had a very accurate understanding of her own position: she was merely a tool sent by her father to curry favor with Prince Shou.

“In that case, let’s choose a day to welcome Qiongying into the family and make her a concubine, so that she can be as respected as you!” Li Mao said.

Upon hearing this, both Madam Wang and Madam Wei were stunned.

No one expected that Li Mao, who had only met Lady Wei a few times, would bestow such an honor upon her. Lady Wang had worked diligently in the Prince's mansion for so many years, doing many things for Li Mao, only to be rewarded in the end with a woman who was honored as a concubine on par with her.

Li Mao's thinking was simple: historically, Lady Wei was the principal wife after Yang Yuhuan, holding a higher status than Lady Wang. Furthermore, Wei Qiongying's father was General Wei Zhaoxun, who commanded everything in the Imperial Guards and was the highest-ranking officer in the Forbidden Army. Now that he no longer had Xianglan as a pawn for transmitting intelligence, he needed a father-in-law like Wei Zhaoxun, who could enter and leave the palace and serve the emperor.

In his eyes, there was absolutely no problem with giving Wei Qiongying this title.

Wei Qiongying immediately knelt on the ground and said gratefully, "Thank you for your kindness, Your Highness. I am deeply grateful!"

That evening, Li Mao and Guo Ziyi met together.

The aroma of wine filled the air, and before the two had even touched the dishes on the table, their conversation had already turned to Prince Yong, Li Lin.

"This afternoon, Father couldn't wait to take Li Lin's place." Li Mao put down his wine cup, his eyes not showing the joy of Li Lin being punished, but rather a sorrowful feeling of shared grief.

Guo Ziyi nodded and said in a deep voice, "I have heard that His Majesty was furious and banished Prince Yong to Jiangxi. From now on, he will just be an ordinary farmer in Jiangxi. It is only reasonable for Prince Yong to be demoted to a commoner after he did something wrong."

Li Mao snorted: "Yes, although I was angry, he was still my son after all, so in the end I only demoted him to Jiangxi."

His gaze darkened slightly, and his heart was actually quite heavy.

The story of Prince Yong also taught him a lesson.

That is, as a member of the Heavenly Family, if you want to live well in this world of power and profit, you either have to be a complete social idler or you must firmly grasp the power.

Otherwise, sooner or later he will suffer the same fate as Li Lin!

However, Li Mao did not intend to tell Guo Ziyi these words.

He then prepared to change the subject to something lighter. After thinking for a moment, he took out an invitation from his sleeve and handed it to Guo Ziyi: "Take a look. My wedding day is in a few days."

Guo Ziyi accepted the invitation, unfolded it, and saw that it read: "Your Excellency cordially invites you to attend the wedding ceremony of Li Mao and Lady Wei on the 23rd of this month..."

He immediately burst out laughing, clapped his hands, and said, "Congratulations, Your Highness! You have just achieved military merit and now you have a beauty in your arms. On such a joyous day, we must celebrate properly."

Then, as if remembering something, he asked hesitantly, "But... is everything alright with your sister-in-law?"

There was only one person whom Guo Ziyi could call "sister-in-law," and that was Yang Yuhuan, the princess whom Li Mao had chosen.

Li Mao understood Guo Ziyi's meaning and replied frankly, "Don't worry, Yu Huan is a reasonable person and will know her limits. Moreover, this marriage is for the sake of the greater good, and I believe she will understand me."

As he said this, there was a hint of helplessness in his eyes, but also a hint of determination.

Men of this era must use women as resources, exchanging them back and forth to secure an unbreakable relationship with Wei Zhaoxun. It's not fair to call him a scumbag; the era itself shaped him.

Guo Ziyi immediately understood and raised his wine cup: "Come, come, let's have a good drink today! To celebrate His Highness's double happiness: first, that the injustice has been redressed, and second, that his wedding is imminent!"

The two drank heartily, while their attendants bustled about inside and outside the room, constantly bringing in new wine and dishes.

The entire palace was immersed in a joyful atmosphere, as if the major case involving Prince Yong, Li Lin, had already been resolved...

Seven days later, on an auspicious day, Li Mao and Wei Qiongying's wedding arrived as scheduled.

As dawn broke and the sky was just beginning to lighten, the Prince's Palace was already brightly lit and filled with the sounds of gongs and drums.

The servants bustled about, decorating the entire courtyard in a magnificent manner.

Guests flocked to the ceremony to offer their congratulations and celebrations.