Chapter 424: Chapter 294: Requesting an Imperial Divorce Decree for Mother
Ye Lingyue, now a figure of special status, returned to Heavenly Prison without the guards daring to shackle her.
At the entrance to Heavenly Prison stood a tall silhouette. Upon a closer look, it was Nie Fengxing.
"Uncle Nie, I thought it was who knows who, I almost mistook you for a Longing Wife Stone," teased Ye Lingyue.
Nie Fengxing sighed deeply.
"Your mother won’t let me visit her," Nie Fengxing said with a face full of worry.
He also knew that Ye Huangyu did not want to drag him down.
Being involved with a married man, Nie Fengxing’s future prospects would be completely ruined.
When Ye Lingyue saw that Nie Fengxing’s expression was amiss and asked, she learned of the insults from the people of Fang Hong’s Mansion towards Ye Huangyu.
Could Zhuge Rou dare to strike her mother, and did Hong Fang still hold the divorce decree from back then?
Ye Lingyue was also quite astonished upon hearing this news but soon after, she shook her head.
"Uncle Nie, I’m afraid you all have been deceived. That divorce decree must have issues. Back then, Hong Fang couldn’t wait to drive my mother and me to death, he was the one who most wanted the divorce decree to take effect immediately, to please Zhuge Rou. How could he possibly have kept the decree? If I’m not mistaken, that is nothing but a despicable ploy by Fang Hong’s Mansion to control my mother and me. They discarded us like worn shoes back then, and now seeing some value in using my mother and me, they want her to return to the family. However, they have indeed reminded me, a divorce decree, now that truly is a useful thing," Ye Lingyue spoke with a sneering smile out of anger.
Nie Fengxing was stunned, not understanding the meaning behind Ye Lingyue’s words.
Ye Lingyue reassured Nie Fengxing with a few words and promised him that she would definitely put in good words for him, then she returned to Heavenly Prison.
That night, Ye Lingyue did not sleep, and by dawn, a profound smile appeared at the corner of her mouth.
She had been worrying about what conditions to negotiate with Emperor Xia, but since Emperor Xia wanted to spare Hong Fang’s life, she would comply.
Only this time, even if she didn’t take Hong Fang’s life, she was going to make Hong Fang lose half his life.
Although she had vaguely guessed about the odd disease outbreak in the Xixia Plain, she did not expect it to be so serious.
However, if not for this strange disease, she and her mother couldn’t have been acquitted of their crimes.
The next day, at the morning court, Emperor Xia received more urgent military reports that the odd disease had broken out in several towns across the Xixia Plain.
The officials were at a loss, and after the court session, Emperor Xia went to check on Sixth Prince’s condition, seeing that it had largely stabilized.
Emperor Xia summoned Ye Lingyue again, and this time, she presented her conditions.
"Ridiculous, a woman divorcing her husband, such a thing is unheard of and unprecedented for Us. Moreover, when Fang Hong’s Mansion divorced your mother, it was also because Ye Huangyu breached the ’seven outs’. She was prone to jealousy, childless, and did not gain the favor of Old Marquis Hong," Emperor Xia had been mentally prepared to agree to any conditions Ye Lingyue had, but such a condition still frightened him.
If a divorce decree were really to be issued, it would be more humiliating than killing Hong Fang.
"A sage once said, ’seven outs’ permit a man to divorce his wife, but it was also said that there are ’three no-leaves’ under which a husband must not divorce his wife. The ’three no-leaves’ are: having no place to return after being married off, mourning for three years, and one who went from poor to rich. Hong Fang knew that my mother, due to discord with the family, had no home to return to and still pushed my mother out of the house, violating ’having no place to return after being married off’. He married a wife when poor and divorced her when rich, an act despised by all. Given this, why can’t my mother divorce her husband?" Ye Lingyue had prepared her speech well, pressing on with each word, leaving Emperor Xia defenseless.
"Moreover, it’s just a divorce decree, merely a loss of face. Compared to when my mother and I nearly died in the streets, it’s already many times better. Or is it that face is more important than life? Your Majesty, as long as you grant the divorce decree, this minister’s daughter will certainly exhaust her duties to the end, ensuring peace and safety in our Daxia’s Xixia Plain," Ye Lingyue’s insinuation was very clear.
You have to grant it even if you don’t wish to, for if you don’t, at worst, I’ll dust off my bottom and head back to Heavenly Prison to serve a full sentence, a life already in tatters anyway.
One life, in exchange for the lives of hundreds of thousands of people and tens of thousands of soldiers in Xixia, is worth it!
"We cannot agree. Ye Lingyue, We warn you, you are a subject of Our Daxia, do not think that We truly dare not kill you," said Emperor Xia angrily.
Emperor Xia was on the brink of rage when he suddenly heard Lord Liu, the eunuch who served him closely, rush in anxiously.
"Your Majesty, a special envoy from Beiqing has arrived!"
What could Beiqing possibly want by sending a special envoy at this time?
Emperor Xia looked puzzled but dared not delay, commanding Ye Lingyue to leave and personally receiving the special envoy from Beiqing.
As Ye Lingyue was leaving the imperial study, a man casually walked towards her. He was dressed in a dark blue robe, and his deep-set eyes were sharp and intense, exuding a piercing quality that made him look quite formidable.
As he passed by Ye Lingyue, the man paused for a moment, his eyes lifting slightly to glance at her.
The woman, clothed in prison garb, still managed to keep her hair in order, her demeanor as elegant as an orchid. Her impressive New Moon Eyes sparkled with brilliance, marking her as a Southern Country beauty one could not easily forget.
This was the very woman that the man from Beiqing could not stop thinking about.
"Is this Princess Ye?"
Upon hearing the voice, Ye Lingyue turned to look.
"I am Cong Lv, a Second Grade sword-bearing guard from Beiqing. Prince Feng instructed me to greet Princess Ye if I saw her and to tell her that he misses her deeply."
Before Ye Lingyue could respond, Guard Cong entered the imperial study.
Prince Feng missed her?
Her ears reddening, Ye Lingyue couldn’t believe that Prince Feng, with his temperament, would have someone convey such a message to her.
Ye Lingyue had no time to think further as the door to the imperial study was already closing.
When Cong Lv entered the imperial study, his expression turned a few degrees colder. He gave Emperor Xia a simple bow befitting the respect between sovereign and subject.
"Guard Cong, may I know the purpose of Emperor Qing sending you to Xia Capital?"
Emperor Xia was not unfamiliar with this guard; a few years ago, when Prince Feng first came to Xia Capital for convalescence, it was this very guard who had accompanied him.
It was said that this individual belonged to Emperor Qing’s Azure Dragon Riders and despite his young age, he was already a master of the Reincarnation Realm.
"Emperor Xia, Emperor Qing has been informed that there has been a frequent outbreak of disease across the Xixia Plain of Daxia. A large number of Daxia refugees have crossed the border to escape into Beiqing Realm. This has caused significant disturbance to the border stability of Beiqing. Emperor Qing sent me to inquire when Emperor Xia might settle this outbreak. If Emperor Xia has no capable men, Beiqing would not mind sending troops to aid Daxia in managing the Xixia Plain."
Guard Cong spoke in an arrogant tone, which sounded grating to Emperor Xia’s ears.
Emperor Xia’s forehead began to sweat coldly.
The implication of Emperor Beiqing’s words seemed to be an offer of assistance to Daxia, but upon closer listening, they were quite troubling.
"Managing" might well mean never returning—the vast lands of the Xixia Plain would completely belong to Beiqing.
Going back decades, there have always been territorial disputes over Daxia’s Xixia Plain. It was only thanks to the appearance of capable generals like Lan Yingwu and Nie Fengxing during these past dozen years that Beiqing, which had been coveting the Xixia Plain, had somewhat reined in its ambitions.
But now, a strange disease has broken out on the Xixia Plain. Lan Yingwu and Nie Fengxing, due to the affairs of Ye Huangyu and her daughter, one pretends to be sick and refuses to attend court.
And the other is even more straightforward, clamoring to become an eunuch in the palace.
The situation on the Xixia Plain was becoming increasingly precarious.