He gritted his teeth and got into bed. "I'm sorry."
The Crown Prince stood outside the door, listening to the commotion within, his gaze dark and unreadable.
Just then, a eunuch approached and whispered, "Your Highness, the Crown Prince."
"Yes?"
The eunuch replied, "Your Highness, you should be going to Tai'an Palace."
The Crown Prince nodded. "Alright, I understand."
He turned and said to the two guards in front of the room, "No one is to enter without my permission. Do you understand?"
"Yes, Your Highness, the Crown Prince."
When Xue Xingyue arrived, everyone in Tai'an Palace had already kowtowed to the Jade Emperor and the Empress and taken their seats. She stealthily made her way behind Song Xiuyuan, intending to sit down, but someone did not want her to sit so unnoticed.
"You haven't kowtowed to the Emperor yet!" As soon as the Ninth Princess spoke, Xue Xingyue felt all eyes turn towards her. This scene, under everyone's gaze, made her feel a sense of nostalgia. Back then, she was also the Empress, Princess Xingyue, favored by the Emperor. Her appearance always drew everyone's attention. But times had changed. She knew the Ninth Princess wanted to humiliate her.
However, if she were merely a butcher's daughter, it would be one thing. But she harbored the soul of Princess Xingyue within her. How could this possibly scare her?
But before she could speak, someone had already stepped forward and stood beside her. At this moment, her heart felt even calmer. "Your Majesty, my fiancée is meeting your divine countenance for the first time. It's inevitable that she might be startled by it. I beg Your Majesty not to blame her."
The Jade Emperor would not blame Xue Xingyue for such a minor matter, especially not on the Crown Prince's wedding day.
"Yue'er, why don't you kowtow to His Majesty?" The Empress, by the Jade Emperor's side, suddenly spoke. Everyone present was exceptionally surprised, even the Jade Emperor was astonished.
After all, his Empress had not spoken easily since the Fifth Prince was burned to death in the imperial sleeping quarters. It was truly unbelievable that she would now plead for the Prime Minister's fiancée.
Although the Prime Minister was her nephew, she had never once pleaded for him when he was punished by him.
Therefore, the Jade Emperor carefully observed Xue Xingyue, the one rumored to be a butcher's daughter.
"Lift your head," the Jade Emperor commanded.
Xue Xingyue blinked slightly, then raised her head. The Jade Emperor saw a delicate and beautiful face, unlike the concubines in his harem. This was a face that had never been polluted, not a face that had become unrecognizable from being steeped in the harem. Especially these clear and pure eyes, like a clear spring, seeming to purify the filth within his heart.
He seemed to have returned to his youth, when he was in a pure relationship with the person he loved, without any conflicts of interest.
"Cough, cough… Your Majesty." The Empress beside him suddenly coughed, covering her mouth.
The Jade Emperor came back to his senses and looked at the Empress beside him, seeming a little impatient. "Empress, what is wrong?"
"I feel a little unwell, perhaps…"
"Empress, the envoys from the three countries have not yet paid their respects. Empress, please bear with it for a moment." The Jade Emperor's gaze gradually turned cold.
The Empress nodded. "Yes, I understand."
The Jade Emperor turned to look again at the woman who could make him recall his youth, only to find that Song Xiuyuan had blocked his view.
"Your Majesty, if my fiancée has offended you, I beg Your Majesty for forgiveness!" Song Xiuyuan said, bowing slightly.
The Jade Emperor waved his hand. "My dear minister worries too much."
"Thank you, Your Majesty!" Song Xiuyuan turned and pulled Xue Xingyue to their seats. However, Song Xiuyuan's body still subtly blocked her.
Xue Xingyue's heart had not yet calmed down from the previous emotions. The way the Jade Emperor looked at her was not the gaze of a superior looking at an inferior. It was not her imagining things. Moreover, it was likely that not only she had noticed, but everyone present had probably seen it.
This Ninth Princess was truly her nemesis.
Suddenly, her hand was grasped by a warm hand. She saw it was Song Xiuyuan's hand. His fingers were long and slender, intertwining with hers. Although he did not turn to say anything to her, she knew he was giving her protection, giving her strength, telling her not to be afraid, that he was there for her.
Her heart, which had been chilled by the Jade Emperor's gaze, slowly began to melt.
"Your Majesty, the envoys from the three countries are here!" a young eunuch stepped forward and announced.
"Good, let them in!" the Jade Emperor said.
"Announce, the envoys from the three countries to pay their respects!"
"The envoy from the Qi Kingdom pays his respects!" The leading envoy stepped forward and bowed. "Greetings to the Jade Emperor! Congratulations on the successful marriage of the Crown Prince!"
"Rise!"
"On behalf of the Qi Kingdom, I present a jade statue to Your Majesty!" As soon as the envoy finished speaking, someone carried in a statue nearly two zhang tall. The statue was lifelike, a statue of Nuwa.
"The Qi Emperor is too kind!"
After the presentation, it was the turn of the Star Eternal Kingdom's envoy to pay their respects.
After the envoys from Qi and Star Eternal Kingdoms were seated, the envoy from Star Eternal Kingdom entered last.
As the envoy from the Snow Country entered, they felt everyone's gaze turn towards them because they were all women, dressed in guard attire, yet they were incredibly eye-catching.
The woman leading them wore a veil, but even so, one could tell from her facial contours that she must be good-looking.
"Your subject Hanyue pays her respects to the Jade Emperor!" This woman, named Hanyue, had a pleasant voice.
"Please rise quickly!" The Jade Emperor's eyes sparkled when he saw this woman named Hanyue.
"Congratulations on the successful marriage of the Crown Prince. On the orders of my Emperor, I present ten dancers to Your Majesty. I hope Your Majesty will accept them!" Before she finished speaking, a fragrance wafted over. Women in light gauze and feathered robes entered, their graceful figures faintly visible through the sheer fabric. Their fair skin shimmered, and the half-veiled faces added a touch of mystery to these dancers.
"The Snow Emperor is truly too kind!"
"Jade Emperor, my Emperor hopes to form a matrimonial alliance with the Jade Kingdom."
Upon hearing this, the Jade Emperor looked up and asked the envoy Hanyue, "May I ask what the Snow Emperor intends?"
Hanyue bowed and said, "Since my Emperor ascended the throne, the harem has been empty. This time, my Emperor wishes to choose a man from the Jade Kingdom to marry."
Everyone was shocked by her words.
"May I ask which one the Snow Emperor favors?" The Jade Emperor's expression gradually turned cold. If the Snow Emperor were a man, he would gladly agree. However, the Snow Emperor was a woman of noble status. If she were to choose a man, it would only be his princes. But if his prince were to go to the Snow Country as a bride, wouldn't that be a laughingstock among the other nations? Yet, at this moment, he could not afford to offend the Snow Country, especially since the Snow Country had not yet spoken definitively.