The princess was ordained by Heaven.

After hearing this, the emperor simply looked at him quietly without making a comment.

Yao Jing grew increasingly uneasy under his gaze.

But he didn't dare ask, and he didn't even dare to make any big movements.

"I remember you and Bao Ye shouldn't have much interaction? I didn't expect that you two have such a close personal relationship."

Yao Jing knelt down with a thud, his head bowing lower and lower.

[Pshaw, isn't it just that Bao Ye left himself a backup plan?]

Bao Ye tells the fairy that he has kept a ledger of the bribes he has received over the years. If anything happens to him, the fairy must save him and his family, otherwise the ledger will definitely appear before the Emperor.

So even though he knew my father favored me, he still spoke up for Bao Ye despite the pressure. He thought he could curb my arrogance, so that with no one targeting Bao Ye, he would have time to deal with the account book matter.

[He'll never guess that I've already memorized that ledger and just slipped it into Lord Duan's hands.]

Duan Yunfeng touched his body in surprise and found a thin booklet.

So, when exactly did the princess put it on him?

He remembered that he hadn't spoken to the princess today; their only interaction was a fleeting brush past each other.

Oh no, the princess is a goddess, so it's not surprising.

He quickly put the booklet in a more hidden and secure place before he felt at ease.

However, Yao Jing is also strange. Contrary to his tall and strong physique, he actually has extremely flexible knees.

Therefore, when the Brown Kingdom's army invaded, he was sent to supervise the army, but at the crucial moment, he opened the city gates and welcomed the Brown Kingdom's army in.

He thought he could use this as a pledge of loyalty to the new dynasty and gain wealth and honor in return. However, disloyal people are despised everywhere, and he was eventually ostracized and died a violent death in the street.

The ministers glared angrily.

Alright, I even forgot about you, kid.

Good, good, as expected, most people who betray their country are not good people.

Fortunately, they were not good people, so they were able to be killed before the worst consequences occurred.

The Minister of Revenue patted Duan Yunfeng on the shoulder urging him: "Lord Duan, you have to hurry, I can't stand dirty things."

Duan Yunfeng's lips twitched slightly: "I'll try my best."

The emperor curled the corners of his mouth slightly, like ice melting away, which eased the tension that had been troubling Yao Jing.

"Alright, Minister Yao, there's no need for such a grand gesture."

"Commander Bao..."

“Bao Ye deserved his punishment. Yuan Jia acted on behalf of Heaven and was truly benevolent. From now on, Yuan Jia’s rank is equal to that of the Crown Prince. I grant her permission to execute him first and report later.”

Zheng Xun lowered her head, her face still expressionless, but the fingertips that were playfully tapping the seam of her clothes at her side betrayed her pleasure.

The emperor rose from his dragon throne, his majestic voice echoing throughout the hall: "Does anyone have any objections?"

Liao Hongsheng shouted loudly, "Your Majesty is wise!"

Other ministers: ...

Why shout so loudly? Why shout so fast? Doesn't that make them look stupid?

So the rest of the people rushed to flatter and agree.

The weighty phrase "equivalent to the crown prince" was naturally forgotten and accepted without question.

Only the Fifth Prince and the Minister of Personnel showed signs of fear.

They racked their brains, but they really couldn't understand what merit Zheng Xun had to receive such an honor.

Wouldn't the Crown Prince mind?

Why did the officials accept it so quickly?

Are those old-fashioned people who used to jump up and down at the slightest deviation from the norm dead?

Unfortunately, they raised questions, but didn't dare utter a single word.

After the court session ended, Zheng Xun prepared to leave, and the Fifth Prince hurriedly chased after him.

But Zheng Xun was walking too fast, and he found himself falling behind, so he had to call out, "Yuan Jia!"

Zheng Xun stopped and turned around, asking, "Fifth Prince, is there something you need?"

The Fifth Prince caught up with her, panting, saying, "Yuanjia is so fortunate to have such protection from Father Emperor."

"Don't you have anything else to say?" Zheng Xun asked curiously.

"I'm just a little envious." He lowered his eyes slightly, his face full of disappointment.

"Oh, you're jealous."

The Fifth Prince's expression cracked.

Of course he was jealous, but could he say it out loud?

He found that his siblings were saying increasingly harsh things, and no matter how clever his words and plans were, they were often rejected before he could even utter a word.

However, he has grown up.

His emotional journey in dealing with them has gone from indifference to madness, and now he has returned to indifference.

So he said casually, "Of course I'm jealous. We siblings share the same father, so why does he treat you so differently?"

What was originally a very narrow statement, when he said it with a smile, had a kind of open-mindedness that seemed to come from nowhere.

Zheng Xun twitched the corner of his mouth: "It's alright, even if Fifth Brother is jealous, he can't do anything to me."

The Fifth Prince laughed out loud to appease her, taking it as a joke.

"The most honorable person in the world has given Yuanjia the most unique glory. It's not just your brother who's jealous of you; who wouldn't be envious and jealous of Yuanjia now?"

His rhetoric this time was much more sophisticated, unlike his previous bluntness, but anyone with a discerning eye could tell that he had something in mind.

Unfortunately, she didn't believe a single word Zheng Xun said, since he had labeled her a "villain" from the very beginning.

"You'll have plenty of opportunities to make people jealous in the future, so you'd better get used to it."

"Little Fifth..." The Second Prince, who had been listening for a long time from a distance, stepped forward with a smile and put his hand on the Fifth Prince's shoulder. "I've never seen you and Yuan Jia be that close before, so why are you talking so much today?"

"It's because I realized that Yuan Jia and I were too distant, so I wanted to cultivate a brother-sister relationship."

"Is that so? Everyone knows what the Fifth Prince is thinking. Saying these things would seem hypocritical. Instead of wasting time talking nonsense here, you should find something to do."

Everyone else is working hard to support Dayong, but he is still scheming against everyone else.

It's no wonder that others target him when he starts fighting amongst himself at a time like this.

The Fifth Prince wasn't angry at all, putting on a good-natured act: "Alright, alright, you siblings have a good relationship, so I won't get in the way here."

The Second Prince snorted and looked at Zheng Xun: "Yuan Jia, what do you think he's planning to do?"

“It’s nothing more than those petty tricks,” Zheng Xun tilted his head and looked at his worried face, then asked, “Second Brother, is something troubling you?”

The second prince knew she was special, so he never treated her like an ordinary child. Hearing her question, he turned his head to look at the courtyard. On a branch, a spider was slowly weaving a complex web.

"I'm just a little worried about Jiao Jiao leaving."

Zheng Jiao was going to Liaozhou. He told his father, mother, and Zheng Jin, but he didn't tell his elder brother or himself.

He is naturally unrestrained and often acts on impulse, which makes him seem unreliable.

He wondered if he was so unreliable that his sisters needed to think so much about him.

He was thinking that perhaps he should also learn to shoulder responsibility.

"Don't worry, my eldest sister is not a reckless person, and with General He looking after her, everything will be fine."

"hope so."

The Second Prince didn't seek an answer from Zheng Xun; he had already made his decision. He wasn't speaking out now to gain approval, but rather to find an outlet for his emotions.

After figuring it out, his gaze became increasingly resolute. Without saying anything more to Zheng Xun, he turned and left.