Only after being reborn did I realize that I was the white moonlight of a powerful minister.

"Are you really sure?" The Emperor glanced at Xie Bohuai once before closing his eyes.

"Your Majesty, I have made my decision."

"Even if I am displeased by this and have to remove you from your post as commander of the town government, would you be willing?" the Emperor asked.

Xie Bohuai didn't hesitate and said directly, "I'd gladly accept it."

Upon hearing this, the Emperor laughed. "Xie Bohuai, Xie Bohuai, I admire your abilities and know your character. I've often wondered what your weaknesses might be, but I never imagined it would be with women. In that case, I grant your request. However, you can leave the Zhenfu Division. It wouldn't be good for people to think I'm contradicting myself, so I'll have to deal with you in some way."

When the Emperor wanted to dismiss Xie Bohuai from his post as commander, Xie Bohuai didn't object. Instead, he nodded and said, "Thank you for your kindness, Your Majesty."

"Go, I'm tired. Do whatever you want with your marriage." The Emperor was exhausted. His health was too poor; it was already a miracle he had lasted this long. If it weren't for Xie Bohuai helping him, he wouldn't have to worry so much, and he would have been dead long ago.

But now, the Emperor knows his days are numbered.

After Xie Bohuai left, the emperor summoned his sons one by one.

In the capital city today, there are only three princes: Prince Cheng, Prince Xian, and Prince Duan. The new emperor is one of them.

By the time they left the palace gates, it was already getting dark. When Prince Cheng heard that Xie Bohuai had been willing to be demoted in order to marry Ye Wanning, he was overjoyed.

“Without the Zhenfu Division, let’s see what Xie Bohuai can do,” Prince Cheng said to his two elder brothers beside him.

The wise prince smiled but didn't respond. He was thoughtful and in no hurry to offer his opinion; instead, he asked the prince what he thought.

Prince Duan caught a cold a few days ago and still has a cough. "Father has his own reasons, and we don't need to speculate. I can't guess, and I don't want to. It's getting late, so let's go back to the manor first."

Watching Prince Duan's departing figure, Prince Cheng snorted, "He's always the best at pretending. If he really had no ambition, why doesn't he leave the capital?"

The wise prince tacitly accepted the prince's statement. The time for the result was fast approaching, and he couldn't afford to be careless now. In his view, his father treated the three of them equally, but the prince was too impetuous, and the prince was someone whose abilities were not yet apparent. Therefore, his chances of winning were the greatest.

"No one is speaking. Has even the Emperor become mute?" Prince Cheng said.

“This is the palace gate, there are many eyes and ears here, you'd better be careful what you say. Even if Xie Bohuai isn’t the commander of the town’s government office, his methods are still enough to make someone suffer.” The Prince Xian said as he walked toward the carriage.

As King Cheng watched the departing carriage of King Xian, he whispered to his attendant, "Does he think he's being cautious enough by not saying a few words? Heh, everyone knows what he's really thinking!"

The attendant nodded in agreement, "Your Highness is truly magnanimous."

"Of course." Prince Cheng was delighted and went straight back to his palace.

As soon as they sat down, Consort Pei brought them food.

Because of the incident at Fanlou, Prince Cheng had been giving Consort Pei the cold shoulder for a few days. Today, however, he was in a good mood and, thinking of the delicate Consort Pei, he let her in again.

"Your Highness." Consort Pei's tone softened considerably upon seeing Prince Cheng again. After being neglected for the past few days, she knew how important Prince Cheng's favor was to her. "This is chicken soup that I personally stewed. I was worried about your health, knowing you've been working so hard."

The chicken soup was fragrant and rich, with a layer of bright yellow oil floating on top. Consort Pei had indeed put a lot of effort into making the soup. Prince Cheng glanced at it and was quite satisfied.

Consort Pei was about to feed Prince Cheng when he took a couple of sips and pulled her into his arms. "It's not that I'm ignoring you, it's that I want you to understand that the reputation of the Prince Cheng's residence is the most important thing. In the future, you can't be so reckless in your actions; you need to think things through, understand?"

"I know, it was because of my brother that I was momentarily blinded by lust. I knew I was wrong then, and I beg Your Highness to give me a chance to make amends." Consort Pei had taken a bath before coming, and now she was sitting on Prince Cheng's lap, her warm fragrance filling his embrace. Prince Cheng took a sniff and could no longer restrain himself.

After their passionate lovemaking at the desk, Prince Cheng embraced Consort Pei and said, "You'll soon see Ye Wanning's retribution for what happened at Fanlou. Xie Bohuai begged Father for a marriage decree, but Father had already said he would choose another suitable wife for Xie Bohuai. However, Xie Bohuai insisted on marrying Ye Wanning, a widow, so Father dismissed him from his post as commander. Think about it, Xie Bohuai used Father's favor to bully others in the capital, offending so many people."

"Very many!" Consort Pei's eyes immediately lit up. "Xie Bohuai has been disliked by the Emperor and is no longer a commander. There will definitely be many people seeking revenge in the future. Once Ye Wanning marries him, her life will definitely not be easy!"

This time, Consort Pei's mind worked better.

Prince Cheng nodded in satisfaction, "That's exactly right. We'll just wait and see. There are plenty of people in the capital who want Xie Bohuai dead; we won't even need to lift a finger. As for Ye Wanning, she'll get her comeuppance. How you deal with her then is entirely up to you."

"I want her to be buried with my brother!" Consort Pei gritted her teeth in hatred at the thought of that vixen Ye Wanning. If Ye Wanning hadn't seduced him in the street, her brother would still be alive and well.

She hated Ye Wanning to the core.

Meanwhile, Ye Wanning had already received the imperial decree to marry him.

When the Ye family received the imperial decree, they were still confused and didn't understand what was going on.

The Ye brothers hadn't even realized it until Ye Wanning said she had accepted Xie Bohuai's marriage proposal. Jiang Si, being a woman herself, was more observant and asked Ye Wanning if she was only thinking of marrying Xie Bohuai for the sake of the Ye family.

"That's not entirely true." Ye Wanning reassured her family not to worry. "I've had quite a lot of experiences. I originally thought I could live my life alone, but I never expected that someone would care about me so much. I do have thoughts for the Ye family, but I've also thought about myself. So you don't need to worry about me. Now that I'm back, I'm sure I'll live a good life from now on."

Jiang Si: "But..."

"Second sister-in-law, you really don't need to worry about me." Ye Wanning took Jiang Si's hand.

Jiang Si sighed, "Alright, this is fate between you and Lord Xie. Since you are willing to marry him, your family will definitely prepare a generous dowry for you so that you can marry in style."

Madam Lin also said, "Yes, now that the family's situation is better, and with the dowry left for you by the princess, you will definitely not suffer anymore."

They were always uneasy about Ye Wanning marrying Xie Bohuai, and thought they should prepare more money. They figured that since Xie Bohuai cared about Ye Wanning, he wouldn't make their life too bad.

It wasn't until the next day when Ye Mingde went to court that he learned Xie Bohuai had been removed from his position as commander. After court, he went to Xie Bohuai's residence with a sullen face. He thought the Xie family would be worried about this matter, but everyone inside and outside the house was happily preparing for the wedding banquet, and no one was worried about Xie Bohuai's demotion.

Qingshan was the first to see Ye Mingde and came over happily. "Greetings, Lord Ye. You must be here to see my master. He went to Fanlou early this morning to invite the head chef. Please come in and have some tea. I'll send someone to inquire right away."

Ye Mingde asked in surprise, "Your family members have all lost their official positions, so why are you all so happy?"

"Official positions can be earned back once lost. But your marriage is a once-in-a-lifetime event, so there's no rush. My master is very capable; he'll surely rise to the highest rank someday. Don't worry, Miss Ye. She won't suffer with my master; he'll definitely earn her an official title. Come, come, come inside. There are people coming and going in the courtyard; we don't want to run into you." Qingshan cheerfully invited Ye Mingde inside. He wasn't really anxious; it was just that he had lost his position as commander.

Even if someone else becomes the commander of the town government, would the people in that town government dare to disobey their master?

No one would dare to do that.

The official position is just a title; the town government is still under the control of the master. Even if Qingshan isn't very bright, he understands this.