"Ah-choo..."

As soon as Xiao Tian spoke, Zhong Ling, who was silently eating, and Liu Yan, who was quietly drinking, both choked in unison.

The Prime Minister wants to execute you?

You'd better not lose your temper in the court and end up killing someone.

"You don't have to go that far, especially since Liu Aotian might seize the opportunity. I'm worried..." Zi Ruoyan frowned, feeling quite troubled by this Prime Minister.

"You must understand, although the Prime Minister is a civil official, he's quite mysterious. Even I can't see through his cultivation level; his strength is unpredictable."

"Unless absolutely necessary, I don't want to confront him."

Zi Ruoyan was still worried about Xiao Tian's safety, fearing that if he showed up, Liu Aotian would target him, making it unsafe.

Beside her, Zhong Yangming bowed and spoke to Zi Ruoyan again.

This time, Zhong Yangming's tone was more solemn: "Your Majesty, in my recent interactions with the Prince, although he seems frivolous and indulgent, he's an extremely difficult person to deal with."

"Moreover, the Prince often comes up with unexpected moves, surprising people, and he's shameless."

"Facing the Prime Minister in court, he might not necessarily suffer a loss."

"For these reasons, I suggest letting the Prince make an appearance to completely shut down everything the Prime Minister says."

Xiao Tian silently turned his head to look at Zhong Yangming, at a loss for words.

For a moment, he didn't know whether the other was praising him or insulting him.

"Your Majesty, don't worry, the Prince won't suffer any losses." At this moment, Zhong Ling suddenly spoke up, pursing her lips.

Liu Yan nodded in agreement: "Since the Prince has decided, Your Majesty might as well let him go ahead."

Zi Ruoyan looked at the two of them, feeling a bit amused: "You two have a lot of confidence in him."

"Because what Father said makes sense. The Prince is not easy to deal with." Zhong Ling said, glancing at Xiao Tian.

In her mind, images of his earth-shattering, ghost-weeping strength flashed by.

To read the uncut version, go to [p𝘢wread.com].

At this moment, Zhong Lishuang also spoke up beside them: "Your Majesty, this is also an opportunity to confront Liu Aotian."

"With your breakthrough in cultivation, you have more confidence and don't need to fear that old man."

Zi Ruoyan listened to everyone's words, and after a moment of silence, she sighed and looked at Xiao Tian: "I'm really worried, what if in the court..."

"I believe in you!" Xiao Tian interrupted Zi Ruoyan for the first time, looking at her seriously.

Zi Ruoyan wasn't annoyed by the interruption; instead, she looked at Xiao Tian seriously: "Aren't you afraid?"

"My wife is the Empress who conquered the Northern Frontier with a single sword, a peerless beauty who rules the world. What's there to be afraid of?" Xiao Tian praised loudly, his gaze burning as he stared at her.

"..." Zi Ruoyan was silent for a moment, then suddenly stood up before her cheeks could turn red. With a wave of her sleeve, she said, "Since you're so determined, I won't try to persuade you."

"These days, I don't know how many memorials have piled up. I should return to the Palace quickly to deal with them."

With that, Zi Ruoyan turned her back to everyone, leaped into the air, and flew into the nearby Palace.

"Heh heh heh, it's only fair to reciprocate. I can't let you flirt with me without flirting back, right?" Xiao Tian thought of the Empress's reddened ears before she left and couldn't stop laughing.

Still in a hurry to deal with memorials, she says one thing and means another.

"Your Majesty is as diligent and caring as ever," Zhong Lishuang sighed as she watched the trail of light left in the sky by Zi Ruoyan's departure.

Zhong Yangming, Zhong Ling, and Liu Yan all turned to look at her simultaneously.

Is she really clueless or just pretending?

"I've said it before, your mother doesn't understand a thing," Xiao Tian turned his head and quietly complained to Zhong Ling again.

Zhong Ling nodded in agreement.

"Alright, I should return to the Palace to rest as well. Sorry for the disturbance." Xiao Tian stood up, supported by his legs, and waved to Zhong Yangming and Zhong Lishuang.

As Xiao Tian's nominal bodyguard, Liu Yan also stood up to say goodbye.

"Father, Mother, I'll see the Prince off." After saying that, Zhong Ling ran off, catching up with Xiao Tian.

Zhong Lishuang glared, wanting to pull Zhong Ling back, but was stopped by Zhong Yangming.

"Why are you stopping me?" Zhong Lishuang looked at her husband, annoyed. "If something happens to that girl..."

"Zhong'er has always had a bit of a temper, proud and aloof, not caring about others. Now that she's hanging around with the Prince, she's improved a lot," Zhong Yangming explained to his wife. "You know, these days when guests come to our house, she actually greets them."

"And her peers?" Zhong Lishuang asked her husband in surprise.

"She greets them too, although she maintains a certain distance, but at least she no longer looks down on people with her chin," Zhong Yangming answered seriously.

"Really? You're not lying to me?"

"No, it's absolutely true!"

This time, Zhong Lishuang was really shocked.

Their daughter was excellent in every way, with remarkable looks and talent, but the only problem was her arrogance.

Because of their influence and the Empress's, she looked down on ordinary people.

In the past, when guests came to their house, she wouldn't even greet them.

If Zhong Ling didn't look down on people with her nose but with her chin, it was already a blessing.

The more Zhong Lishuang thought about it, the stranger it seemed: "How did that girl change her ways just by hanging around with the Prince?"

"These days, I've come to realize that our daughter is quite afraid of the Prince," Zhong Yangming said with a strange expression. "Whenever Zhong'er is impolite, the Prince scolds her and knocks her on the head."

"Over time, Zhong'er gradually changed."

Zhong Lishuang's eyes widened even more, her mouth agape in disbelief.

Their daughter should have looked down on someone like the Prince the most, yet now she's terrified of him?

At this point, Zhong Yangming also frowned: "Not just our daughter, Liu Yan seems a bit afraid of the Prince too."

"This fear seems more like a form of reverence."

Zhong Lishuang looked at her husband, and after a moment of silence, she said: "So you're saying the Prince might be hiding something?"

"Perhaps there's something about him that Zhong'er and Liu Yan know, but we don't," Zhong Yangming speculated. "At least the Empress Qingyan Wine and the Southern Frontier matter have proven that."

Zhong Lishuang suddenly understood: "I see, so your confidence in letting the Prince appear in court comes from this?"

"Indeed, I believe that when the Prince is in court, he'll give our Prime Minister a surprise," Zhong Yangming smiled, looking at his wife.

Zhong Lishuang frowned again: "What if this Xiao Tian has some ulterior motive, what if he's up to something?"

Zhong Yangming reassured his wife: "Don't worry, he came because of the Summoning Talisman, surely from a weak and impoverished realm, with low strength."

"Besides, he has the Slave Ring on him, he can't harm the Empress."

They had watched Zi Ruoyan grow up and certainly didn't want anything to happen to her.

Ah-choo!

Xiao Tian sneezed, and under the shocked gazes of Zhong Ling and Liu Yan, he tore off the Slave Ring on his arm, adjusted it to a more comfortable position, and put it back on.

For a moment, both of their minds were filled with shock.