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

Mrs. Lin's impatient attitude made Lin Yuwei even angrier.

She glared at Lan Zhi, who had just finished dancing, with resentment. When thunderous applause erupted from the audience, her face turned ashen with anger.

Lan Zhi stood before the crowd, performed a graceful and proper curtsy, and the Emperor immediately nodded in praise.

"I never imagined that dancing could be done like this! Your Majesty, you should have Lan Zhi properly train those maids in the music academy. They all receive high salaries, but their dancing is so lifeless. If they dance like Lan Zhi, they can be presentable when foreign envoys come!"

Seeing that Consort Liang's face was pale, the Empress immediately nodded with a beaming smile.

"Your Majesty understands. Your Majesty will definitely ensure that they learn well from Lan Zhi."

The Emperor then nodded and said:

"Alright, you guys decide who wins and who loses this round!"

Without a second thought, the Empress looked directly at Lan Zhi and said:

"I still think Lan Zhi has the upper hand in this round."

Consort Zhen couldn't wait to echo this sentiment.

“I also think Lan Zhi danced well. Watching her made me feel better, so I voted for her too.”

Consort Liang, her face grim, forced back her anger and spoke:

"Although Lan Zhi's dance is lively, it is not as graceful and pleasing to the eye as Yu Wei's. I vote for Yu Wei."

"Ouch~"

Consort Duan suddenly clutched her stomach and cried out in pain:

"I...my stomach hurts so much."

Upon seeing this, Yu Jie, who had been secretly watching from a distance, quickly ran over.

"Mother, what's wrong with you?"

"My stomach... my stomach hurts so much, I can't take it anymore."

Yu Jie looked anxiously at the Emperor.

"Father, let me help Mother back to rest for a while."

The Emperor hurriedly waved his hand in acknowledgment.

"Alright, summon the imperial physician to examine her and see if she has an upset stomach."

Seeing that the Emperor agreed, Yu Jie and her maid helped Consort Duan walk outside.

In fact, Consort Duan was not really sick. This was Yu Jie's idea. If she was caught in a dilemma and could not decide what to do, she should pretend to have a stomachache and get out of the situation as soon as possible.

The situation just now did put her in a difficult position. Judging from the two people's dancing skills alone, Lan Zhi was definitely better. However, if she cast her vote for Lan Zhi, she would be concluding that Lin Yuwei had lost, which would offend Lin Yuwei, the Lin family, and Consort Liang.

She could have lived a peaceful life in the palace, relying on the Emperor's favor towards her daughter, Yu Jie. Why did she have to get involved in this war that had nothing to do with her?

After much deliberation, at the most crucial moment, she chose to feign illness to escape.

With Consort Duan gone, the outcome of the competition was clear. Lin Yuwei, furious, stood up from her seat, pointed at Lan Zhi, and angrily rebuked her:

"To engage in such filthy and unsavory practices in front of the Emperor is truly disrespectful. Your Majesty, I disagree."

The Emperor glanced at her, then sighed helplessly.

“Yuwei, it’s understandable that you’re not as skilled as others, but to make trouble unreasonably is beneath your dignity.”

"Your Majesty, you were the one who allowed me to move into the Crown Prince's residence as a bride. If I am judged to have lost because of this competition, I will not accept it. I am going to marry Brother Ning, even if I die, I will die in the Crown Prince's residence."

"shut up."

Seeing Lin Yuwei's rudeness in front of the Emperor, Lin Xingliang immediately stopped her.

"You're getting more and more willful. How dare you be disrespectful to the Emperor? Are you tired of living?"

"father……"

"Shut up, go back."

Lin Chengda also stood up from his seat at this moment, shaking his head and sighing:

"Yuwei, we're not as skilled as them, so let's go back and practice properly. Stop fooling around here. Come on, let's go home with Grandpa."

"I won't go back."

Lin Yuwei knew in her heart that if she left here today, there would be no possibility for her to marry Wei Jianning again.

She immediately lifted her skirt and knelt before the Emperor.

"Your Majesty, even if Lan Zhi wins today's competition, the position of Crown Princess will be hers. Shouldn't I be qualified to be a concubine?"

Upon hearing this, Lin Xingliang's face immediately turned ashen. He raised his hand and angrily rebuked her:

"Lin Yuwei, you are truly shameless! How can a daughter of the prestigious Lin family become someone's concubine? Have you gone mad?"

Lin Yuwei looked at him without hesitation and said solemnly:

"Father, I have loved Brother Ning since I was a child. I would be willing to be his concubine, let alone a secondary wife. Please grant my wish, Father."

This……

This scene not only left Lan Zhi somewhat bewildered, but Wei Jianning was also quite frightened.

Fearing the emperor might hastily agree, he quickly rose from his seat, hurried to the emperor, clasped his hands in greeting, and said:

"Father, I thank Miss Lin for her kindness, but I will only marry Lan Zhi in this life and will never marry another."

Lin Yuwei lifted her skirt and stood up from the ground, staring blankly at Wei Jianning, questioning him word by word.

"Brother Ning, you promised me many years ago that you would marry me when you grew up. Now I'm standing right in front of you, how can you say such a thing? You've only known that woman surnamed Lan for a few months. What kind of bewitching potion did she give you to make you so devoted to her? She's clearly a country woman. She just knows you're the Crown Prince and wants to climb the social ladder by marrying into your family and seizing the imperial power you hold. Don't be fooled by her!"

Wei Jianning glanced at Lan Zhi and replied solemnly:

"You're wrong. In my heart, she will always be the most outstanding woman in the world. Her attitude towards me was the same when she didn't know I was the Crown Prince. She has too many good qualities, and I am too unattainable in many ways. All along, I have been the one climbing the social ladder for her. It's wronged her to marry me."

His words made Lin Yuwei blush with anger, while Madam Lin was moved to tears.

The Emperor sighed softly and helplessly raised his hand.

“Yuwei, you are an excellent girl, but it’s a pity that you didn’t appear when Ning’er needed care the most. Lanzhi won this competition, and the position of Crown Princess should belong to her.”

The Emperor finally spoke a fair word today, which made Wei Jianning feel gratified, and Lan Zhi's lips finally curved into a perfect arc.

Lin Yuwei gripped the handkerchief tightly in her hand, her breathing suddenly becoming rapid. Then, without anyone noticing, she actually rammed her head into the corner of the table next to her.

"what!"

Amidst gasps of surprise, she collapsed to the ground, and Madam Lin rushed to help her up.

"Yuwei, Yuwei, what's wrong?"

When everyone hurriedly helped Lin Yuwei up from the ground, they noticed that blood was gushing from her forehead. Someone immediately called out...

"Quickly, summon the imperial physician..."

Lin Yuwei was carried out of the main hall of Qianqing Palace, and Lin Xingliang's face had turned black with anger.

He came to the front of the hall, clasped his hands in a fist salute, and said:

“Your Majesty, my daughter is ignorant and should not be blamed for her disrespectful behavior in front of the palace, which has startled Your Majesty. When we return, I will certainly teach her a good lesson.”

The emperor was still shaken by what had just happened.