Huo Zhaoyi did not look pleased. “Your Majesty, should I withdraw?”

“Mm.” Yuwen Jie didn’t even look at her, his tone flat. “Go rest. Once Mother Empress wakes from her nap, go pay your respects to her.”

Pay her respects, again? Huo Zhaoyi tugged anxiously at the Emperor’s sleeve. “The Empress Dowager already gave this consort a hard time recently — how could I possibly disturb her again?”

The whole matter, if you traced it back, could really be blamed on Hua Jinghua. Huo Xianrou had originally intended to win Prime Minister Hua’s favor, and so had sent him a purple jade pendant — only for the Prime Minister to take it upon himself to pass the pendant along to the Empress Dowager instead, claiming it had been a gift from him personally.

At first, Huo Xianrou had actually been delighted, feeling she’d scored a clever point in the Empress Dowager’s eyes. But by the time she’d gone, all smiles, to Huiming Hall to collect her reward, the Empress Dowager had flung a cup of tea straight at her instead.

It turned out the Empress Dowager’s fate chart forbade purple jade — something Huo Xianrou only learned afterward. She’d wanted to explain but couldn’t get the words out, forced to simply bear the blame. As a mere consort in the harem, how could she possibly say the pendant had originally been intended for the Prime Minister?

So now, Huo Xianrou deeply resented Hua Jinghua. Whatever intention she’d once had of winning him over had vanished completely; even hearing that he was coming irritated her.

Yuwen Jie, not sensing this shift in her feelings at all, simply said, “Whether you like it or not, you still need to go. I hear you’ve upset Mother, and I can hardly leave things unaddressed with her.”

The Emperor was, after all, a fairly filial son.

A chill ran through her heart, and Huo Xianrou quickly lowered her head. “This consort understands.”

By the time Hua Chun arrived at Wanbao Hall, Huo Zhaoyi happened to be leaving just then. Hua Chun had meant to nod in greeting, given that the woman had sent her a gift not long ago.

But before she could even slow her steps, Huo Zhaoyi walked straight past her, expressionless, head lowered, not sparing her so much as a glance.

What was that about? Hua Chun blinked, mildly puzzled, and continued inside. She assumed Huo Zhaoyi must simply be in a bad mood and thought nothing more of it.

“Why did you come to the palace so early?” The Emperor was still seated at the table, a full spread of dishes largely untouched.

Hua Chun forced a smile. “This subject misjudged the time and arrived early. I didn’t mean to disturb you — I didn’t expect Your Majesty would notice.”

Was that supposed to make it his fault for being too observant? Yuwen Jie pressed his lips together and gestured for her to come sit.

Hua Chun obediently sat down beside him. The Emperor said nothing further, and the attendants nearby began serving her food without being told.

Feeling oddly touched, she glanced at Yuwen Jie and picked up her chopsticks to eat.

He wasn’t deliberately starving her this time. Hua Chun reflected that people really did need to communicate more to build a proper relationship, deepen mutual understanding, and jointly bring about a flourishing golden age. So going forward, she really ought to communicate and understand the Emperor better…

“You can still eat this much?” the Emperor asked.

Hua Chun blinked, looking at him in confusion. “This subject hasn’t had lunch yet, so naturally I can eat.”

Yuwen Jie paused, lowered his eyes, and continued eating as if nothing had happened.

What did that mean? Hua Chun felt a bit lost, and only after eating a while longer did it click.

That bastard — the reason the attendants had been serving her so much food was because he’d assumed she’d already had lunch, and was deliberately trying to stuff her full!

What had she just been thinking? Communication and understanding? Forget all that — sooner or later, either she’d strangle this Emperor, or he’d have her beheaded.

Chewing furiously on a wild mushroom, Hua Chun declared boldly to the attendant beside her, “Bring me a bowl of rice!”

The attendant, startled by her tone, dashed off to fetch it as if flying.

The corner of the Emperor’s mouth twitched upward.

Having polished off an entire large bowl of rice, Hua Chun was full, and Yuwen Jie set down his chopsticks as well.

“I’m curious about something,” he said, looking at her, his tone flat. “What happened that you came to the palace without even eating first?”

Feeling pleasantly full, Hua Chun answered with a smile, “Nothing in particular.”

The Emperor watched her quietly.

Hua Chun’s smile faltered under his gaze, and she pouted, a little put out. “I had a bit of an argument with my father.”

Yuwen Jie: “……”

A grown adult in her twenties, still getting into arguments with her father and storming out of the house in a huff? Quite the accomplishment.

“Does the Prime Minister understand loyalty, filial piety, benevolence, and righteousness? Filial piety comes second only to loyalty.”

“This subject naturally understands that,” Hua Chun said, mildly annoyed. “But loyalty shouldn’t mean blind loyalty, and filial piety shouldn’t mean blind obedience either. When an elder is in the wrong, I cannot simply do as they say regardless.”

A bit of a rebellious streak, was there? Yuwen Jie’s interest was piqued, and he eyed her. “What was it about? Tell me.”

Hua Chun fell silent, glancing at him cautiously, her eyes full of hesitation. This whole matter was connected to the Emperor himself — how could she possibly tell him?

After a moment’s thought, she shook her head.

Yuwen Jie’s expression darkened, his eyes turning cold. “Speak.”

“In response to Your Majesty, this subject’s father wanted me to send my third sister into the palace for an imperial audience. I felt I couldn’t do that, so I refused him. He felt I was being petty and difficult toward my sister, and reprimanded me for it. In a fit of anger, I left the Hua residence and came straight to the palace.”

She said it all in one breath without stumbling, then, entirely without dignity, gripped the armrest of the nearby chair. “Please forgive this subject!”

She really shouldn’t have phrased it that way, but Yuwen Jie’s earlier tone had genuinely startled her. He’d been perfectly civil a moment ago, and then that sudden shift in his expression had hit like a thunderclap.

Narrowing his eyes as he processed what she’d said, Yuwen Jie gave a cold snort. “You’ve got some nerve.”

A cold sweat broke out across her back, and Hua Chun immediately dropped to her knees. “Forgive me, Your Majesty — my father doesn’t understand palace protocol. It’s only that my third sister is of marriageable age, and he wanted her presented to Your Majesty first before arranging her marriage. He was simply placing Your Majesty in the highest regard, with no intention of offense, and no ulterior motive.”

Did he really need to be told whether there was an ulterior motive or not? Yuwen Jie sneered, looking down at the figure sprawled on the ground like a turtle, and said coldly, “Didn’t you just argue with your father over this very thing?”

“Yes,” Hua Chun said hurriedly. “The argument is one matter, but I would never dare to misrepresent my father’s respect for Your Majesty. I beg Your Majesty to see clearly.”

His gaze flickered, his expression softening somewhat, and Yuwen Jie regarded her. “You don’t wish to report your father, then? He made such an unreasonable demand of you — shouldn’t he understand just how strict palace protocol is?”

Her heart sank, and Hua Chun quickly kowtowed. “This subject’s body was given by my parents, and Your Majesty yourself said filial piety comes second only to loyalty. Whatever quarrels happen within a family are of no concern to others. I beg Your Majesty to forgive my father — if punishment is truly necessary, let it fall on this unfilial subject instead!”

This wasn’t something to joke about. However genuinely angry she was at how unreasonable her father had been, having the Emperor punish him was far too severe a consequence — she wouldn’t be able to live with herself. As the saying went, family shame shouldn’t be aired outside; better to settle it behind closed doors. Turning it into a spectacle like Hua Liuying’s affairs would only invite ridicule.

Her forehead pressed to the ground, she felt time slipping by little by little, but the Emperor did not tell her to rise.

The weight pressing on her chest grew heavier and heavier, and Hua Chun nearly burst into tears. Why had her mouth run so fast? She really needed to work on her nerve — she couldn’t just blurt everything out the moment someone frightened her like this.

After a long while, just as Hua Chun was on the verge of tears, Yuwen Jie, standing at the entrance of Wanbao Hall, remarked idly, “Nice weather today. The wind is cool.”

Hua Chun: “……”

She glanced up blankly, and realized the Emperor had already wandered off to the doorway at some point — she’d apparently been kneeling here, addressing thin air, this whole time?!

Had he even been listening to a word she’d said?

Indignant, Hua Chun found the nerve to simply stand up.

Yuwen Jie happened to glance back inside at that exact moment and saw her muttering something through gritted teeth, rubbing her knees as she rose on her own.

Quite bold indeed. Back in the old days, he would have absolutely used this as an excuse to have her backside beaten black and blue.

But now, for some reason, beating her no longer seemed appealing to him at all.

Shaking his head, he continued looking outside and asked, “When is the wedding date?”

Hua Chun blinked, glancing around — there was no one here besides herself and a few eunuchs, so he had to be asking her.

“In response to Your Majesty, mid-month,” she said. “The eighteenth is the auspicious day.”

Only eight days to prepare, though that should be plenty — Qing Niao had no family of her own to invite, so a simple arrangement at the Prime Minister’s residence would suffice.

“Quite the rush, isn’t it…” the Emperor murmured softly.

Hua Chun blinked, glancing at his back with some confusion.

Those three words carried a faint sigh to them — whether she was reading too much into it or not, there seemed to be a touch of wistfulness in his tone, though so faint it might not even have been deeper than a puddle on the road after rain.

She shook her head. “Doesn’t Your Majesty always say I’m not man enough? Well, this time I can finally refute you with confidence — Your Majesty doesn’t even have an Empress yet, and I already have a proper wife.”

That sentence came out sounding oddly off, as though it had bypassed her brain entirely, and her tone even carried a hint of sorrow she hadn’t intended.

For a moment, Hua Chun felt her scalp prickle.

Yuwen Jie slowly turned back around, looking at her.

It was bright outside, while the hall inside remained unlit, appearing somewhat dim. Sunlight bathed him fully, making his richly embroidered dragon robe look all the more magnificent, while the other figure stood there properly, her expression cool and detached.

For some inexplicable reason, in that instant, Yuwen Jie felt a sharp twinge in his chest — fine and pointed, like being pricked by a fine needle. Before he could even register the pain, the sensation had already vanished.

He felt a little lost.

“This subject misspoke.” Snapping back to herself, Hua Chun broke into another cold sweat across her back and lowered her eyes. “Forgive me, Your Majesty.”

Yuwen Jie ignored her, his expression somewhat grim, and swept his sleeves as he headed toward Zichen Hall.

“This way, Prime Minister.” Eunuch Qin, staying behind, gestured for her to follow.

Hua Chun wiped her face and followed him out.

He Chang’an had originally planned to bring Hua Chun into the palace together, but upon inquiring at the Hua residence, he’d learned she had already left for the palace long before.

“That early?” He Chang’an raised an eyebrow and hurried toward the palace as well.

Li Zhongtang, Grand Tutor Tang, and the others had all arrived early. And yet the moment they stepped into Zichen Hall, they found both the Emperor and the Prime Minister already seated at the long table, each quietly reading through memorials.

The senior officials all froze for a moment, exchanging glances, and cautiously stepped inside.

“Your servants pay respects to Your Majesty.”

Yuwen Jie set down the memorial, his expression stern. “Rise.”