I just want to be a princess, no, you want to be a queen

Chapter 248 Verdict

"Why would the Emperor be so wary of Your Highness in such a military and national matter?"

"Sister, precisely because this is a matter of national importance, the Emperor must be more vigilant against Your Highness. It's just a pity for those soldiers at the border who sacrificed their lives in vain for the Emperor's selfish desires."

Lu Mingze thought of his father, who had defended Yanmen Pass with his last breath, and his voice choked with sobs. "If Pingjing Pass were to be breached, there would be nothing left to defend inside, and no one would be able to save the situation. And who knows how many people would be displaced. The situation my father sacrificed his life for would have been in vain."

"It's fine if he's just guarding against His Highness, but he's actually guarding against you too." Lu Mingyuan was also a little excited: "He thinks everyone is his father and that he can just send anyone to resist the powerful Xiongnu."

Lu Mingze comforted her, "Sister, the emperor hasn't made up his mind yet. There may be some changes."

I don’t know whether these words are meant to comfort my elder sister or to comfort myself.

Lu Mingyuan said, "After the matter concerning Fourth Sister is settled today, we will discuss a good solution with His Highness."

"Forget it!" Lu Mingze held out hope. "His Highness has built up his prestige in the army for several years, but I'm afraid it will crumble because of Tian Qing. He might even be in trouble."

"It's not that serious, right?" Lu Mingyuan asked.

Lu Mingze said, "Tian Qing was a soldier in the army, and he was disabled while protecting the country and the people. He should have been comforted. But instead, he was hated for having his wife taken away. What do you think the soldiers at the border think of Prince Ningyuan? In fact, the best way to deal with this matter is to separate Your Highness and Fourth Sister."

"Aze!" Lu Mingyuan scolded, "Yang'er is our sister, how can you talk like that?"

"Eldest sister, that's not what I meant." Lu Mingze explained, "I'm just happy. I didn't expect His Highness to be so loyal and righteous. Fourth sister didn't marry the wrong person."

Lu Mingyang, who was going to the Censorate early in the morning, walked to her third brother's courtyard, quietly listened to the conversation between her eldest sister and third brother, and then turned and left silently. She explained to Zhong Bo that His Highness had already arranged her affairs, and asked her third brother and eldest sister to have a good rest and not to accompany her to the Censorate.

After returning to Xunyang Pavilion, Lu Mingyang changed his clothes, looked at the cold medicine on the table, and walked over.

The Censorate was even busier than yesterday.

Lu Mingyang walked through the crowd and spotted Chu Mingzheng standing in the corridor. As far as he could remember, he rarely wore a forehead band, especially one inlaid with jade beads.

The crystal green jade could not hide the mess. She saw the lump hidden behind it at a glance, but she could only see the swelling and not the purple wound.

"What's going on?" She reached out and touched it.

The sound of the cane struck Lu Mingyang's heart again and again. Like a thief, she frantically withdrew her hand the moment Chu Mingzheng grasped it.

The hand slipped away in the hand.

Tian Qing looked at the two of them, snorted coldly, and entered the hall.

Chu Mingzheng approached, pulled the woman's hand behind her back, and asked, "What's wrong?"

"Nothing!" Lu Mingyang shook his head.

In public, he kissed her forehead without hesitation and comforted her softly: "Don't be afraid, everything will be over in a while."

"I believe you." Lu Mingyang smiled softly in response. She knew that there was nothing he couldn't do if he wanted to.

Xu Pei personally went to the Imperial Censorate, awaiting the empress dowager's order. The Emperor had always ruled the country with filial piety. The Emperor dared not disobey the empress dowager's decree.

Just going that far would be a disgrace to the royal family.

Xu Pei personally invited Tian's mother to the back hall to persuade her. When Tian's mother came out, her legs were weak. She knelt beside her son and tried to persuade him with a trembling voice. Lu Mingyang couldn't hear her even though he was standing so close. It was obvious that Xu Pei had used some words that were both kind and threatening.

If Tian Qing doesn't agree, will he die?

The drum sounded, and the Imperial Censor sat down on the high platform to review the case again.

Tian Qing insisted on his request from yesterday: "I just want my wife back."

Imperial Censor Wang Shen stood up and saluted Prince Ningyuan and Aunt Xu. "Your Majesty has ordered the Imperial Hospital to examine Princess Ningyuan's pulse."

To show fairness, three doctors from the Imperial Hospital came, including Leng Lingfeng's uncle, Pharmacist Ge.

"Please come in, Princess!" The chief judge of the Imperial Hospital stepped forward.

Chu Mingzheng helped Lu Mingyang sit in her seat and gently rolled up the long sleeves embroidered with azaleas for his beloved wife.

The chief judge of the Imperial Hospital put his hand on the princess's arm, his expression gradually changing, "Your Highness, Aunt Xu, the princess is not pregnant."

"This is impossible!" Before everyone could react, Pharmacist Ge took the lead and stepped forward, grabbed Lu Mingyang's arm, and then let it go in disbelief.

He had originally wanted to come here to show off his medical skills, but he didn't expect that Princess Ningyuan didn't take the medicine.

Lu Mingyang slid off the stool, grabbed the corner of Chu Mingzheng's clothes, and cried loudly: "I did not mean to deceive Your Highness. Please save me."

She knelt before him, so humble, so afraid. But Chu Mingzheng only felt cold, colder than the heavy snow when he first arrived at the border.

"Why?" Chu Mingzheng wanted to know, but she lowered her head and he couldn't see her eyes at all.

Inside and outside the hall, Lu Mingyang became the sole villain, drowned in a torrent of curses. Xu Pei put away the ornate imperial edict and left in anger. The Imperial Censor assigned the heinous woman, Lu Mingyang, to the victim, Tian Qing.

At this point, the only thing left is the last step, tattooing.

Women who are unfaithful to their husbands will have the word "淫" (lust) tattooed on their faces to warn other women in the world to be virtuous. However, they can be forgiven because of the generosity of men.

The Imperial Censor struck the gavel and asked Tian Qing, "Can you offer a ransom?"

Tian's mother reminded her son: "Son, we have no money left."

The ransom for a tattoo varied from place to place. The highest ransom was in the capital, the capital of the emperor, where one hundred taels of silver was required. For the wealthy and powerful, it was a small sum, but for the common people in the capital, it was still a considerable sum of money.

The silver that Nian'er gave him was presented as physical evidence, and the silver that Lu Mingyang gave him was almost spent.

Tian Qing looked at the woman kneeling in front of King Ningyuan.

Their eyes crossed.

Lu Mingyang hurriedly let go of Chu Mingzheng's clothes, knelt down and crawled over, grabbing Tian Qing's arm and begging, "Brother Qing, I have money, I can give it to them, please don't let them tattoo me. Brother Qing, please love Xier, Xier will serve you well in the future."

Chu Mingzheng looked over, and the humble figure gradually became blurred. He remembered that day when she knelt among the flowers and begged him for protection.

Like a dodder flower, boneless yet incredibly resilient, it stubbornly climbed up and entwined itself around his heart. But now, had the dodder found a new host?

Footsteps sounded, and Lu Mingyang turned her head to look. The glaring sunlight blocked out the man's blurry figure until it disappeared. She could finally smile.

"Get out of the way, get out of the way..." Yang Nianshu finally broke free from the yamen runners, ran in, and hugged the trembling second sister. "Don't touch my second sister. I'll give it to you, all to you."

She pulled off the gold hairpins and pearl rings on her head one by one and threw them towards the plaque hanging high above the mirror.

……

"Sister Yuan, Sister Yuan..." Yang Nianshu ran into the Chengyang Marquis Mansion crying.

In the main hall, meals were being served one after another. Lu Mingyuan was sitting nearby, reading a book while waiting for his sister, when he unexpectedly saw Yang Nianshu stumbling.

"What's wrong?" Lu Mingyuan supported Yang Nianshu and subconsciously looked towards the mansion gate, looking for a familiar figure.

"My second sister was taken away by Tian Qing. He wanted to take her back to Shangyang Village, and I couldn't stop her." Yang Nianshu cried and told Lu Mingyuan what happened in court.

Lu Mingyuan asked Yang Nian'er to lead the way to the inn where Tian Qing lived.

The inn was packed with people watching the excitement. Qin Xin led a team of armed female soldiers to scare off the onlookers. Lu Mingyuan climbed the stairs and heard Tian's mother's scolding and urging.

"Change it for me quickly."

She hurried over and opened the door.

Tian's mother was stripping Lu Mingyang of his beautiful and expensive clothes. It was because of these things that the woman betrayed her son.

She became more and more ruthless and directly pulled off Lu Mingyang's earrings.

"what are you doing!"

Yang Nianshu stepped forward and pushed Tian's mother. Lu Mingyuan hurriedly hugged his sister and protected her behind him. The group gathered in front of the bed.

"Nian'er, stop messing around!"

Lu Mingyang reminded Nian'er, holding up the washed, pale coarse cloth in his hand, and said, "Aunt, it's not that I don't want to change clothes, I just want to find a place where no one is around to change."

Tian's mother stood firm and asked angrily, "What did you call me?"

"Mom!" Lu Mingyang shouted.

"Hey, it's good that you know." Mother Tian looked at her son who was lying on the bed without saying a word and ordered, "You are my daughter-in-law. You are here for my son to see. Why are you pretending to be shy? Change here."