After transmigrating into the book, I helped my mother reconcile with her divorced husband.

Xie Chaoyun was ill for two days, and the Pingnan Marquis's mansion was on tenterhooks for two days.

On the third day, palace eunuchs came to his door. Upon hearing the news, Lu Huai, who was drinking with others, hurriedly returned home, just in time to encounter the carriage that was taking Xie Chaoyun to the palace.

He reached out to stop him, and asked urgently, "Is there a problem with your father-in-law?"

Xie Chaoyun, still looking ill, said with displeasure, "What does the Marquis want to happen to my father?"

"Yunniang, you've misunderstood. I'm just concerned about my father-in-law." Lu Huai's expression was not good.

He had just inquired about it, but his father-in-law only glanced at him sideways and ignored him. He brazenly asked Xie Chaoyun, only to be bluntly rebuffed by her again. But he was thick-skinned after all, and pretended not to care, explaining, "I invited my colleagues for drinks because of my father-in-law's matter. Yunniang has been ill for two days, and I've been unable to eat or sleep. So, Yunniang, what exactly brought you to the palace?"

"Since the eunuch has not made it clear, Yunniang dares not speculate. Your Excellency may return to your residence and wait. You will know the result when it is available." Xie Chaoyun said coolly as she lowered the curtain, "Please make way, Your Excellency, lest the Emperor be displeased."

Lu Huai reluctantly stepped aside and watched as the Marquis's carriage headed towards the palace.

The onlookers whispered among themselves, their murmurs reaching Lu Huai's ears.

"Is that General Xie's daughter in the carriage? I heard that the Xie family was surrounded by people from the palace, and they said they were accusing them of treason. But this situation doesn't seem like treason."

"Shh, keep your voice down. Could General Xie really be a traitor? It's something we common folk know, so how could the Emperor not know? Maybe that heartless person is deliberately spreading rumors to cause trouble for the General's mansion."

"That's true. If they were really treasonous, would the Emperor be so lenient? He would have confiscated their property and exterminated their entire family long ago! I think the Emperor sent those Imperial Guards to protect the Xie family. General Xie is protecting the country, and Young Master Xie not only finds us work but also opens the granaries to provide us with food from time to time. Young Master Xie and Miss Xie are both good people. We can't be like those heartless people who speak ill of the General's Mansion and the Xie family."

Lu Huai's face darkened, and he felt a tightness in his chest, as if those people were cursing him.

The Xie family's situation is indeed strange. Given the Emperor's temperament, he would never allow the Imperial Guards to remain stationary while the Xie family is surrounded. Could it be that the previous guess was wrong, and the Emperor doesn't actually want to touch the Xie family? In that case, the letter he submitted might have backfired, causing the Emperor to develop a dislike for him and the Marquis's residence.

Inside the carriage, Qingzhi glanced back and said that the Marquis was standing still.

Xie Chaoyun shook his head, indicating that it was nothing to worry about.

The Emperor likely summoned her to the palace because of that letter; whether it was a reward or punishment remains to be seen, for the Emperor's heart is unpredictable.

Inside the imperial study, all was silent. Xie Chaoyun walked in with her head down, glancing at her elder brothers out of the corner of her eye. Judging from their expressions, they hadn't been reprimanded by the Emperor. She suddenly breathed a sigh of relief and prostrated herself on the ground with her head bowed.

"My wife pays homage to Your Majesty."

The emperor did not speak, but simply waved his hand gently.

The eunuch presented a brush, ink, paper, and inkstone, and said in a shrill voice, "Please, Madam Lu, pick up the brush and write a few words."

Xie Chaoyun nodded, raised his hand, picked up his pen, and wrote a poem.

The Xie brothers couldn't see what she was writing, but they noticed the eunuch's brow twitch slightly, revealing a hint of joy.

After a moment, Xie Chaoyun put down his pen and knelt down again.

The eunuch presented the writing brush and ink.

Xie Chaoyun's calligraphy, especially the unintentional details, was the same as the one below, but different from the forgery. His gaze fell on the poem, and he pondered for a long time until Xie Yubai cupped his hands and said, "Minister Xie is a recognized talent in Beiliang. Why don't you take a look at the poem written by Madam Lu?"

"Having mastered the Eight Trigrams Formation of Western Sichuan, she holds the military tally in her sleeves. Women have always willingly accepted this role; why must a general be a man? She cuts her own Shu brocade battle robe, and on her peach-blossom horse, she requests a long spear. How many extraordinary men in the world would willingly march ten thousand miles to the battlefield! She vows to endure the elements, drinking blood instead of rouge. The triumphant song on horseback is a melody of peace, not the song of a princess leaving the border. She sweeps away the southern Chu with a broom, and a wave of joyous shouts shakes the earth. Look at her mother on the Ling Pavilion, where a portrait of a beauty is painted first."

Xie Yubai held the paper and read it aloud, word by word. When he finished reading, his gaze unconsciously fell on Xie Chaoyun. His sister had never changed from beginning to end. His eyes reddened, and he held the paper and said, "Although I don't know who wrote this poem, it seems to describe my sister's state of mind before her marriage."

"No one knows a sister better than her brother. I am also very curious: who wrote this poem by Lady Lu?"

"Your Majesty, I overheard this poem by chance and found it to resonate deeply with my feelings, so I wrote it down. If it offends Your Majesty's eyes, please forgive me."

The emperor laughed heartily and stood up from his dragon throne: "How could such a fine poem offend my eyes? In my opinion, this poem must have been written by Lady Lu. In my Northern Liang, only a lady possesses such a spirit that rivals that of men."

"Your Majesty, my wife..."

Xie Chaoyun didn't know how to explain that she had heard Yuan'er recite the poem. She had also asked about its origin, and Yuan'er, while munching on a steamed bun, told her that it was written by an emperor to a female general. The emperor's surname was Zhu, and the female general's surname was Qin, and her name was Qin Liangyu. However, in history, there was no record of a general with the surname Qin.

Fortunately, the emperor didn't dwell on the topic. Instead, he had the eunuch produce the letter she and Yuan'er had tampered with. The top one was written in imitation of Ji Wanwan's handwriting, while the bottom one was her own. The letter paper had tea stains, which Yuan'er must have asked the princess to do.

Her calculations were meticulous, and every step was planned perfectly.

"A ruler should not employ those he doubts, and he should not doubt those he employs. I should not have doubted the Xie family, nor should I have doubted the loyalty of the old general and you, the Xie siblings. Only after this incident have I realized your loyalty to Beiliang and to me." The emperor said with great emotion.

"Among all the civil and military officials in the court, who hasn't done a little thing or made a small contribution and is already eager to let me know and try every means to ask me for a reward? Only your Xie family, one or two of you are as stupid as donkeys, and you haven't even opened your mouths." The emperor was angry at their lack of ambition.

The Xie brothers were unjustly scolded by the Emperor, and dared not utter a word of complaint, kneeling there with their heads bowed. Xie Chaoyun wanted to laugh, but clenched her hands and held back.

"Get up. Do you still want me to help you up personally?" The emperor raised his hand. "The person who reported the Xie family is despicable. He even forged Madam Lu's handwriting and tampered with this letter. If it weren't for that clumsy girl Ping Le accidentally knocking over her teacup and spilling tea on this letter, I would have been fooled by that villain."

Xie Yubai took the letter and found that the letter paper had two layers. The top layer was extremely thin and had altered some of the contents of the letter, making it difficult to tell whether the letter was genuine or fake.

The original letter, written by the younger sister to her father, described how she used her business profits to purchase grain, medicine, and other supplies for the soldiers and civilians on the border. She instructed her father to distribute them as needed and, if anyone inquired, to say they were distributed by the imperial court, so that the soldiers and civilians would be grateful to the emperor and defend the borders of Beiliang. However, the revised version portrayed the father as embezzling imperial funds and conspiring with his sister to transport all the supplies to Nan Chu for profit. Nan Chu was a remote region where most people were nomadic herders. Transporting so many supplies to Nan Chu would be tantamount to providing a better life for its people, thus raising suspicions of treason.

Although the emperor was wary of the Xie family, he was not a foolish ruler. With the empress's encouragement, the emperor sent a trusted confidant to investigate. What he found almost moved him to tears.