Chapter 31: The Prince is a Woman (31)
Early morning.
Hou Rongfa and Ying Fang were both waiting at the door. When the door opened, A-Zhen and Ye Ji emerged together.
Hou Rongfa couldn't help but observe them, but unfortunately, he couldn't see anything unusual.
Inside the carriage, A-Zhen and Ye Ji sat on opposite sides, with a small tea table between them holding some refreshments.
Fortunately, Ye Ji did not have a morning court session today; otherwise, they wouldn't have made it in time. It was precisely because there was no session that he was able to come yesterday.
A-Zhen leaned against a soft cushion, holding Ye Ji's large hand. She would occasionally squeeze his long knuckles or interlace her fingers with his, as if she had found a delightful new toy. Ye Ji flipped through official memorials with one hand, glancing at her from time to time, his mood cheerful.
She had a great influence on him, but she didn't interfere with his work at all.
On the contrary, sitting with her made him even more efficient at processing memorials, as if he possessed inexhaustible energy.
Neither of them had eaten breakfast. Ye Ji's memorials had only just been delivered, so things were a bit rushed, and they hadn't managed to eat.
A-Zhen picked up a pastry and offered it to him. He naturally opened his mouth to eat it, feeling that the vexing matters in the memorials were no longer so bothersome.
A-Zhen then fed him a cup of ginseng tea, which she had arranged for someone to prepare.
"You should have some too," Ye Ji said, remembering she hadn't eaten a single bite. He felt worried; she didn't seem to like eating much, which wouldn't do.
A-Zhen: "Mhm, okay."
She picked up a pastry and ate it with the tea. Seeing her so decisive, Ye Ji had nothing left to say.
"Focus on your work," she said.
After having some refreshments, A-Zhen leaned back against the cushion and stopped moving, though she still held Ye Ji's left hand, their fingers remains interlaced.
Ye Ji didn't feel at all that reading memorials with one hand was an issue; it didn't affect his speed or efficiency in the slightest.
He wished she would hold his hand for a lifetime.
The carriage suddenly stopped. Hou Rongfa asked a question in a low voice, and upon receiving Ye Ji's permission, he hurriedly brought up new memorials.
Ye Ji felt helpless; why were there so many sudden matters today? He had truly run into a busy time.
"Leave them here," he said without looking up, continuing to flip through the papers.
After Hou Rongfa set them down, his gaze lingered on where their fingers were interlaced. He then stole a glance at the lady beside them, only to find her looking at him with a smile. He nearly tripped over himself.
"Thank you for your hard work, Chief Manager Hou," A-Zhen said.
Hou Rongfa: "It is no trouble. It is my honor to share the Emperor's burdens." He forcefully averted his eyes from their joined hands and walked out.
Once outside, he saw the expressionless Ying Fang, nodded to her, and sat down in a nearby spot.
Through the curtain, Ying Fang glanced inside. She feared that her opportunities to sit in the carriage with the Prince would decrease in the future. She felt a bit uncomfortable, but what could she do when that person was the Emperor—and the one the Prince wanted to claim?
No matter how close she was to the Prince, she couldn't get in the way of him being with his beauty.
The carriage stopped at the Prince of Ning's manor for a while before heading toward the Imperial Palace.
The aura around Ye Ji changed instantly, becoming sharper. After finishing the last memorial, he tossed it down with a thud, making the atmosphere inside the carriage turn cold and heavy.
Hou Rongfa found himself somewhat missing the time when Prince Ning had been here just moments ago.
"Speed up," Ye Ji spat out four cold words, sitting up straight. The chill radiating from him was startling.
Hou Rongfa responded, "Yes."
Someone was about to have a bad day.
Why couldn't they learn their lesson? They knew the Emperor could not tolerate certain things, yet they insisted on pushing his boundaries.
***
During the day, both A-Zhen and Ye Ji were very busy. By nightfall, A-Zhen was more free. Aside from that day at the manor, she spent the following days visiting him at the Imperial Palace.
Sometimes, even when she arrived at Chenghua Hall, Ye Ji was still handling affairs. She didn't mind; she would wander around the surroundings or flip through books.
Two days ago, her fourth sister, Ning Yutong, had sent her a letter. She said that in a month, she would propose a divorce from Zhou Yuanjia on the grounds that he was infertile. When the time came, the people from the Earl of Weian's manor would certainly not agree; they would likely cause a scene and might even arrange for people to examine the couple's bodies, perhaps even trying to smear the blame on Ning Yutong.
At the critical moment, Zhou Yuanjia would definitely do such a thing, considering he had once drugged Ning Yutong.
Given Zhou Yuanjia's personality, he would likely prefer to cast Ning Yutong out rather than undergo a formal divorce. But even if it were a divorce, he wouldn't allow himself to be the one with the bad reputation.
As for whether Zhou Yuanjia feared A-Zhen, he actually did fear her quite a bit.
But so much time had passed; if his brother-in-law had truly found anything, he would have made a fuss long ago, especially since he had drugged Ning Yutong. There was no reason why Ning would let him off if she had dealt with the Duke's manor.
The fact that the other party hadn't done anything to him meant they surely didn't know.
Ever since he learned of her reputation, he had swept his tracks clean, ensuring his brother-in-law couldn't find any evidence. No matter how powerful her methods were, if she wanted to ruin the Earl of Weian's manor, she would still need evidence and reason.
Otherwise, even if they took the matter to the Emperor, they wouldn't be afraid.
What he didn't know was that A-Zhen wasn't staying quiet because she was unaware, but because she had left everything to Ning Yutong to handle herself. And this time, Ning Yutong's method was different from A-Zhen's; she had no intention of gathering evidence at all.
She simply wanted to drug the relevant people—specifically, with something that would cause permanent infertility.
A-Zhen's people had even prepared medicine for her, which was even more potent than what she had intended to get.
While Ning Yutong's side had not yet begun her move, rumors regarding A-Zhen and Ye Ji had begun to circulate, though they were currently limited to a small circle. Given their extraordinary identities, even if people found it unbelievable, they didn't dare spread it everywhere.
During the morning court session, Ye Ji noticed that some officials had strange looks in their eyes.
It wasn't until the official business was nearly finished that a minister proposed whether it was time to select imperial concubines. After all, Ye Ji was in his twenties, yet there was not a single person in the inner palace.
Thinking of those rumors, many officials were filled with anxiety.
It didn't matter what the Emperor's personal preferences were; what mattered was that Northern Xia had an heir. Selecting just one would suffice; they didn't need many. Truly, their demands were not high.
Ye Ji knew that the ministers' proposal was not without merit, but he found it somewhat annoying.
They meddled too much.
He had no children, but the imperial clan had plenty.
Take his twelfth uncle, for example; he had sons and daughters. In the future, couldn't he just pick a good candidate from among his cousins to train?
"I will not select any."
"I already have ideas regarding an heir." Ye Ji's gaze fell upon Ye Hong, and the ministers followed his gaze.
Ye Hong: "..." What did this have to do with him, a carefree Prince?
If things hadn't been so busy lately, he wouldn't have even wanted to attend court. He shot a resentful look at Ye Ji. *My dear nephew, please don't cause me any trouble, okay?*
At his age, his uncle should be enjoying retirement; he shouldn't be overworked or startled.
He had been feeling depressed, thinking this nephew was dissatisfied with the Prince of Ning's manor and would settle the score sooner or later. Well, turns out the boy had eyes for the place and had already made his move.
Insidious. Cunning.
"In the future, let us pick an heir from the twelfth uncle's lineage," Ye Ji decided firmly. "Stop looking at me; I can't produce any."
The ministers: *Is that something you can just say out loud?*
Although they knew the Emperor had a preference for men, couldn't he be a bit less direct?
"Twelfth Uncle, go back and tell your cousins to work hard. The continuation of Northern Xia depends on them."
Ye Hong wanted to roll his eyes. *This is my dear nephew!*
On second thought, he rubbed his chin. *It's fine; he's telling his sons to work hard, not him.* Ye Hong laughed. Indeed, it didn't have much to do with him.
After the court adjourned, he returned home happily.
As for whether those people would be watching his every move—sorry, but he was about to go on a long voyage; he'd let his sons deal with it.
The matter was settled. The ministers were helpless, but there was nothing they could do; they could not influence this powerful emperor. Regardless, the decision provided some sort of closure, and everyone knew that King Kang was close to the Emperor.
***
"Are you less busy lately?" A-Zhen asked.
Ye Ji's brush did not stop moving, though he glanced up at her from time to time. "Mhm, I've handled what needed to be handled." It turned out he was drawing her.
A while ago, he had purged a group of corrupt local officials, and the follow-up arrangements had been completed.
"That's good then," A-Zhen nodded and said no more. In that case, when her fourth sister took action and the Earl of Weian's manor caused a scene at the palace, there should be no problem.
Ye Ji suddenly asked, "Is it time to divorce another brother-in-law?"
A-Zhen rested her head on her hand and laughed, answering, "The fourth brother-in-law."
"In that case, you still have a sixth brother-in-law you haven't looked after," Ye Ji calculated. "Is there a problem with him?"
A-Zhen's eyebrows arched. "A little, but it won't reach you."
Ye Ji: "It wouldn't matter even if it did." But he also knew that merchant families could never possibly bring their troubles to his doorstep.
Whichever brother-in-law she wanted to divorce, he would help.
The ones in the wrong were definitely those brothers-in-law.
(End of Chapter)