I was sold when I opened my eyes! My sick and disabled husband comforts me every night after he wake

Consort Zhen nodded as well.

"Yes, our Northern Wei Kingdom is known for its rule of the world through filial piety. His Majesty usually upholds the principle of prioritizing filial piety above all other virtues. The Crown Prince must not abandon this principle of filial piety!"

Seeing that these people were all trying to morally blackmail Wei Jianning, Lan Zhi immediately stood up and responded generously.

"Which of your eyes saw that I cursed Lady Liang?"

The Emperor immediately snatched the two dolls from Huang Bao's hands and slammed them heavily to the ground.

"The facts are right there, do you still want to deny it?"

The two rag dolls rolled a few times on the ground, then lay there motionless.

Sharp-eyed Yu Jie suddenly stepped forward, picked up the doll, and shouted:

"The words on this are not Lady Liang's name, they are Lan Zhi's."

"what?"

Everyone looked at Yu Jie's hand with suspicion. Consort Liang eagerly snatched the doll covered in silver needles. When she confirmed that the words "Lan Zhi" were indeed written on it, her expression changed drastically.

"What...what's going on?"

Yu Jie picked up another doll from the ground and handed it to the Emperor.

"Father, please look. Both of these dolls have Lan Zhi's name written on them. Even if it's a curse, it's Lan Zhi cursing herself. That can't be considered evidence, can it?"

Upon hearing this, Wei Jianning looked at Lan Zhi with a puzzled expression, and Lan Zhi gave him a bitter smile.

If she hadn't asked Xiaoxin to prepare in advance the moment she saw Xiang'er, she probably wouldn't be able to clear her name even if she jumped into the Yellow River.

Seeing Lan Zhi's innocence cleared in an instant, Wei Jianning immediately flew into a rage and shouted:

"Who was the first to frame Lan Zhi? Step forward."

Yu Jie, with lightning speed, arrived beside Lin Yuwei, grabbed Xiang'er, and threw her in front of everyone.

"Fourth Brother, it's her. She deliberately framed Lan Zhi."

Wei Jianning stared intently at Xiang'er, then suddenly snatched the doll from Liang Fei's hand and threw it in front of her. Raising his voice, he demanded an explanation in a stern tone.

"Who gave you permission to do this? Why did you curse Consort Liang and Lan Zhi?"

Xiang'er picked up the two dolls with trembling hands to compare them, then suddenly shook her head violently.

"No, no, this isn't the doll I put in. The writing on it is different."

At this point, she turned to look at Xiaoman.

“Sister Xiaoman, I’m not lying to you. Look, this isn’t my handwriting. These two dolls must have been tampered with.”

Upon hearing this, Lin Yuwei's forehead began to sweat, and Madam Lin's face turned deathly pale in an instant.

They never dreamed that Xiang'er would confess without being asked, and that she would also implicate Xiaoman.

If Xiaoman exposes Lin Yuwei, and the Emperor discovers that Madam Lin was the instigator of this incident, then the entire Lin family will be implicated, and Madam Lin will become the sinner of the Lin family.

Wei Jianning glared at Xiaoman with eyes that seemed to spit fire with rage, and shouted angrily, "Why did you frame Lan Zhi? Who told you to do this?"

Standing beside her, Lin Yuwei was startled by his shout at first. Then, she stepped forward, pulled Xiaoman aside, and while giving her a meaningful look, questioned her fiercely.

"Xiaoman, what's going on? Does this have anything to do with you?"

Xiaoman was stunned for a moment, then knelt down on both knees, "Miss, this..."

She wanted to explain, but didn't know how to begin.

At this moment, Xiang'er realized that she had made a slip of the tongue and unconsciously admitted that she had put the doll there, and had also implicated Xiaoman.

She looked at Wei Jianning in terror, kowtowing repeatedly as she explained.

"Your Highness, please spare my life! I was confused for a moment and did something wrong. Please spare my life!"

Xiaoman realized what was happening and immediately rebuked:

"Xiang'er, you clearly did this, why are you framing me?"

As she said this, she swiftly rushed to Xiang'er, grabbed her by the neck, and questioned her through gritted teeth.

"I have no grudge against you. I saw that your family was poor and often gave you money to help you. Why are you so ungrateful and trying to frame me?"

She tried to send a signal to Xiang'er, but Wei Jianning unceremoniously kicked Xiaoman away with a 'bang'.

"With the Emperor here, how can you, a mere girl, run wild like this? Today, anyone who doesn't tell the truth will not be spared."

Seeing Wei Jianning's unpleasant expression, Consort Liang glanced at Madam Lin, fearing she might escalate the situation. She rolled her eyes, lightly wiped her lips with her handkerchief, and stepped forward, saying:

"Ning'er, today is my birthday. With so many people watching, I don't want things to escalate. Let's send them to the Ministry of Justice for trial first!"

Wei Jianning, however, snorted in protest.

"They must be acting under someone's orders to frame Lan Zhi. How can I go to the battlefield to face the enemy with peace of mind if I don't find out who's behind this?"

Seeing this, the Emperor quickly stepped forward to smooth things over.

"Ning'er, I will handle this matter and personally oversee it. Today is your mother's birthday, and it is really not appropriate to let these things disturb her good mood."

Wei Jianning looked at Lan Zhi, "Wife, what do you think?"

Even the Emperor suggested that this matter be discussed later, so what could she say?

She nodded immediately.

"Then let's proceed as His Majesty wishes and deal with it later!"

Wei Jianning then waved to the people behind him.

"Send them to the Ministry of Justice's prison first, and let the Ministry of Justice keep a close eye on them. If anything happens to them, the Ministry of Justice will be held responsible."

"Yes."

Several guards stepped forward and took Xiang'er and Xiaoman away. Only then did the Emperor turn to look at Wei Jianning.

"Ning'er, the battle at the front is critical. Why did you suddenly return? Is there a reason you had to come back?"

Clearly, the emperor was very displeased with his sudden return, and his tone was questioning.

Wei Jianning released Lan Zhi's hand, clasped his hands in a fist salute, and replied:

“Father, the Tianwu Kingdom’s first attack was easily defeated by me. I’m sure the people of Tianwu Kingdom will regroup and won’t come to the palace again for a while. I’ll also have some free time, so I thought I’d come back and hold the wedding with Lan Zhi, and announce it to the world, so that she can officially become the Crown Princess. That way, I can feel more at ease while I’m away.”

Upon hearing this, Lin Yuwei immediately turned cold. Just as she was about to speak, Madam Lin quickly pulled her back, signaling her to remain silent.

Her face flushed red, and she looked furious.

Lin Xingliang saw through her thoughts and frowned as he said:

"What does Your Highness mean by this? Every official knows that my daughter, Lin Xingliang's daughter, has already moved into the Crown Prince's residence as a betrothed. You've just returned, and without saying a word, you've already arranged a wedding with Lan Zhi. What do you take her for? This is simply disrespecting the Lin family. You're incredibly arrogant."

Seeing that Lin Xingliang was angry, the Emperor quickly tried to persuade him with kind words.

"Lord Lin, please don't be anxious. This is not a matter that Ning'er can decide alone."

"Father, why can't I decide my own marriage? It's my business who I want to marry, please don't interfere too much."

"Ning'er, you are so willful."

Consort Liang reprimanded him with a cold face:

"Marriage is a major event, not something you can decide with just a few words. Lord Lin is right. You are not only arrogant but also a bit conceited. The matter of appointing the Crown Princess needs to be carefully considered. We cannot be too rash."

Wei Jianning held Lan Zhi's hand tightly and said solemnly:

“I, Wei Jianning, will marry no one but Lan Zhi in this life. If my father and mother do not agree, I will give up my position as crown prince and return to Kangzhuang Village with Lan Zhi.”

"presumptuous."

The emperor's face, which had just been gloomy, turned ashen in an instant.

He raised his hand, pointing at him with trembling fingers.

"Wei Jianning, stop threatening me with your reluctance to become the crown prince. I don't only have one son, and you're not the only one who can be the crown prince. If you say such things again, I...I..."