The Emperor hurriedly rose, "Ah Ning, you must not."
Who didn't know that the Crown Prince of Xue Kingdom was an aloof being? He dared not let the Crown Prince of Xue Kingdom bow to him.
Xue Zi Ning stepped forward, gently pressing the Emperor to sit. "Father, Yan Zhao will be my husband from now on. It is only proper for him to bow to you."
The Emperor felt a tremor in his heart. To his astonishment, the Crown Prince of Xue Kingdom bowed his head, "Father."
The Emperor felt he would have face from now on; the aloof Crown Prince of Xue Kingdom bowed to him, a mere monarch of a small kingdom.
"Good, good..." the Emperor smiled radiantly.
An Ru, standing by, did not shy away from stirring up trouble and urged, "Ah Ning, I am your second sister. Will I have a brother-in-law from now on too? Come on, call me second sister and let me hear it."
Xue Zi Ning smiled and said, "Second sister."
Xue Jing Yun also called out, "Big sister."
An Ru was excited and drank a large gulp of wine.
When it came to An Ping, Xue Zi Ning simply called out, "Big sister."
Xue Jing Yun followed with, "Big sister."
An Ping's hand trembled. Looking up at that clear, handsome face, her heart was filled with greater unwillingness.
"An Ping..." An Ru nudged An Ping beside her. An Ping came to her senses and gave a bitter smile.
Xue Zi Ning was very happy and drank a lot of wine. Although it was fruit wine, she was still drunk.
Finally, Xue Jing Yun carried her away from there.
The Emperor had also drunk a lot and was helped back to his sleeping quarters by his attendants to rest.
At this time, only An Ru and An Ping remained in the great hall.
"An Ping, you were infatuated with the Crown Prince of Xue Kingdom before, and I wouldn't interfere because Ah Ning wasn't with the Crown Prince of Xue Kingdom then. But now it's different. Ah Ning and the Crown Prince of Xue Kingdom are about to get married. You need to be clear about some things and don't do anything out of line."
An Ping looked up at An Ru and said, "An Ru, I don't know what you're talking about."
An Ru snorted, "Don't know? Or are you pretending to be foolish? It doesn't matter. I'll keep an eye on you and absolutely won't let you cause trouble for Ah Ning and the Crown Prince of Xue Kingdom."
An Ping picked up her wine cup and drank a mouthful of wine, saying, "An Ru, you are truly foolish."
"What am I foolish about?" An Ru asked impatiently.
An Ping put down her wine cup and said slowly, "If I could be with the Crown Prince of Xue Kingdom, wouldn't it benefit our An Kingdom? But now, only Xue Zi Ning benefits."
An Ru was stunned and sneered, "I've wasted so much breath, and you haven't taken anything in."
An Ping said, "That's why I say you're foolish. If you could help me achieve my goal..."
"An Ping..." An Ru suddenly stood up, furious, "Do you have any shame? You're still thinking about competing with Ah Ning for the Crown Prince of Xue Kingdom? Have you no shame?"
"An Ru, what are you saying? Aren't I doing this for the good of An Kingdom?"
"Bah..." An Ru said angrily, "For the good of An Kingdom? I don't think so. You're doing it for yourself. Your obsession hasn't subsided..."
An Ru stood up and walked in front of An Ping, saying word by word, "An Ping, I advise you to be well-behaved. Otherwise, I'm afraid even Father won't be able to protect you."
After speaking, An Ru left in anger.
An Ping looked at the table full of delicacies, with no appetite. She swept everything on the table to the ground. "Why? Why does she, Xue Zi Ning, get to have it all? What am I, An Ping, lacking?"
"Princess An Ping, are you dissatisfied with today's dishes?" a cold voice echoed.
An Ping trembled all over. Looking up at the person in front of her, it was a female official. Judging by her attire, her status in the harem was not low.
She was somewhat wary of Xue Zi Ning, but now a mere female official dared to reprimand her?
An Ping stood up coldly and said, "What? You dare to lecture even this princess?"
"Princess An Ping, you worry too much. Your servant sees that Princess An Ping seems dissatisfied with today's dishes, otherwise, you wouldn't have thrown all the dishes to the ground in anger?"
"What are you? How dare you manage this princess?" An Ping was furious.
One by one, they tried to control her. Did they think she was easy to bully?
"This servant is Li Guan Ling, in charge of all matters, big and small, in the harem." Li Fang Hui stated, neither humble nor overbearing, word by word.
"You..." Princess An Ping was so angry she was speechless. In her rage, she swung her palm.
Li Fang Hui thought she would definitely be slapped and did not dodge. However, after a long time, the slap did not fall. She looked up and saw someone blocking in front of her.
She was stunned. This person, "Adult Wen?" she exclaimed.
Wen Yu Xi pushed her back. An Ping, caught off guard, was sent staggering back several steps by the force.
"Who are you? How dare you touch this princess?" An Ping was completely enraged.
Wen Yu Xi looked coldly at Princess An Ping and said, "Princess An Ping, this is Huang Ze, not a place for you to run wild."
An Ping angrily said, "What are you? How dare you speak so disrespectfully to this princess?"
Wen Yu Xi heard this and let out a low chuckle, the hidden darkness in her eyes fully revealed at this moment.
An Ping couldn't help but take a step back. This person made her feel a sense of fear.
"Adult Wen, forget it. I'm fine too." Li Fang Hui said. She didn't want to escalate the situation. She was just upset that Princess An Ping had thrown the dishes on the ground.
Wen Yu Xi stepped forward and said coldly, "Princess An Ping, it's best to be well-behaved. I am not as benevolent as the Emperor. For those who offend me, I usually make them... wish they were dead."
An Ping felt a chill rise from the soles of her feet.
Without a word, she fled from there.
"Adult Wen, you really didn't have to. Princess An Ping is, after all, His Majesty's relative," Li Fang Hui said.
"Li Guan Ling, I'm not doing this to vent your anger. I just find her displeasing," Wen Yu Xi said and left.
Li Guan Ling was stunned, her gaze softening considerably.
"Li Guan Ling, you scared me just now," Lian Nu Guan walked in and came to Li Fang Hui's side, saying with lingering fear.
"There will be many more such incidents in the future. You'll get used to them."
"Li Guan Ling, should we have more people keep an eye on Princess An Ping?" Lian Nu Guan asked.
Li Fang Hui thought of what Princess An Ping had said earlier and said, "Send a few smart palace maids to serve Princess An Ping, and report any news to me promptly."
"Don't worry, I'll do it right away." Lian Nu Guan left.
Li Fang Hui looked at the mess on the ground and called for someone to clean it up.
The next day, someone from Hua Kingdom arrived.
Xue Zi Ning personally met them.
Seeing the arrival, she was somewhat dazed. It was still that handsome face, but now it held more authority.
"Greetings, Your Majesty..." Hua Yun Jin bowed.
"Imperial Father Hua, there's no need for courtesy," Xue Zi Ning said.
After Hua Yun Jin left that day, he returned to Hua Kingdom. In less than a month, the Emperor of Hua abdicated, passing the throne to Hua Yun Jin.
Xue Zi Ning did not know what he had done. She received his letter saying that he had become the Emperor of Hua, and from then on, Hua Kingdom would take orders from Huang Ze.