Hearing these words, Li Rong said nothing. Seeing she seemed to be thinking about something, Pei Wenxuan couldn’t help but say, “Your Highness?”

Li Rong thought for a moment, then suddenly said, “Actually, you killed Hongde, didn’t you?”

Pei Wenxuan’s movements paused. Just as he was about to explain, Li Rong pressed her fan against his shoulder.

“Actually, you needn’t say more. I don’t really care anyway. Now that you’ve told me your bottom line,” Li Rong looked up with a smile, “I care even less. Just tell me next time.”

Pei Wenxuan stood somewhat stiffly in place. After a long while, he finally responded, “Your Highness is right.”

Li Rong didn’t speak. She quietly looked at him.

She suddenly realized that in matters of the heart, she and Pei Wenxuan both seemed to have returned to being twenty years old.

Back then, she was a young girl who could act coquettishly and be willful.

And back then, Pei Wenxuan still carried that anxiety and trepidation born from the accusations of his youth.

He was afraid of not being his best self in front of her, and also afraid she would see his dirty and sordid side.

Li Rong couldn’t help but laugh. She turned around, hands clasped behind her back. “Pei Wenxuan, my eyes can accommodate both black and white.”

“But your desire to satisfy my dreamlike expectations,” Li Rong thought about it, “also makes me quite happy.”

After saying this, Li Rong waved her hand. “I’m going back.”

Pei Wenxuan watched her back. The young woman walked along the corridor, her hands holding her fan behind her back. The red tassels on the fan swayed gently with her movements. She took the steps three at a time, lightly bounding up, lively and vibrant.

Li Rong rarely showed this side of herself to others.

She had a thousand faces for a thousand people. Facing Li Ming, she was an indulged eldest daughter with a touch of cleverness. To others, she was the lofty and decisive Princess Pingle. Only in front of him did she bloom like a flower emerging from melted ice.

Seeing her happy, he couldn’t help but smile as well.

After watching Li Rong walk far away, he turned back and returned to his own bedroom.

The next morning after waking, court was the time to formally confirm official reassignments.

Generally speaking, officials determined during the evaluation period rarely saw changes, so the so-called final confirmation was just Li Ming reviewing the list once. If any officials needed to be replaced, they would be brought up separately.

Li Ming hastily glanced at the confirmed list, then looked up at everyone. “Do all of you have any objections to this year’s personnel transfer list?”

Just as Li Ming finished asking, Su Rongqing, as if prepared in advance, stepped forward directly.

“Minister Su?” Li Ming frowned. “What are your thoughts?”

“Your Majesty,” Su Rongqing knelt down respectfully. “This humble subject has limited knowledge and shallow qualifications. Since serving as acting Minister these past days, I’ve felt overwhelmed, only feeling my abilities don’t match my position. For the position of Minister of Justice, please choose another, Your Majesty!”

Hearing this, Li Rong glanced at Su Rongqing.

Voluntarily giving up the Minister of Justice position—this certainly wasn’t his own wish. But after such a major incident, it was normal for Li Ming to seize leverage and have Su Rongqing voluntarily withdraw from competing for Minister of Justice.

But if Su Rongqing didn’t become Minister of Justice, then who would?

Li Rong’s gaze swept across the court for a moment before she heard Li Ming say flatly, “Since Minister Su is requesting to resign himself, I won’t make things difficult. How about this…”

Li Ming contemplated. After a long while, he slowly said, “The Minister of Justice position will remain vacant for now. Daily Ministry of Justice affairs will be coordinated by the Left and Right Vice Ministers. Matters they cannot decide will be reported directly to me. What does Vice Minister Su think?”

Reporting directly to him meant Li Ming would bypass the Ministry of Personnel and directly oversee the Ministry of Justice. Su Minzhi frowned, about to speak, when he heard Su Rongqing say respectfully, “Your Majesty is wise.”

“Good.” Li Ming nodded and continued. “Does anyone else have other opinions?”

No one in the court spoke. Li Ming knew the matter was settled. He closed the list and said flatly, “Then that’s that. After today, everyone should report to their respective reassigned positions according to the list. All offices should prepare to receive them. Additionally, regarding rebuilding the Memorial Office, the Ministry of Rites should also prepare quickly. Before the Memorial Office is rebuilt, to avoid delaying state affairs, I intend to establish a small cabinet to undertake the previous Memorial Office’s responsibilities, reviewing and categorizing memorials for me to ease my burden.”

As Li Ming spoke, not waiting for others to respond, he went on directly. “Grand Secretary Pei, Chancellor Su, Chancellor Shangguan, Marquis Ningguo—from now on, I’ll trouble the four of you to spare some time each day to help me review memorials. If any of you distinguished ministers are too busy with affairs, let me know in advance and I’ll make other arrangements.”

The Memorial Office had been established by the noble families to restrain Li Ming. Now that it had burned down, Li Ming was establishing another Memorial Office called a “Cabinet.” No matter how busy, no one would refuse at this time.

The four named ministers stepped forward to bow. These four encompassed almost all the different factions in the current court, which could be considered fair, so everyone said nothing.

Seeing no one speak, Li Ming continued. “However, all ministers are also extremely busy with daily affairs. Besides these distinguished ministers, perhaps some others will be added, but we’ll discuss that later.”

Hearing this, Li Rong understood Li Ming’s plan.

The most important personnel in this so-called “Cabinet” weren’t actually the four ministers just named, but rather the people who would be added later. After all, these four held high positions with great power and were busy with daily affairs. The Memorial Office work was essentially grunt labor—categorizing memorials by urgency and type to reduce Li Ming’s burden of reviewing memorials.

Without the Memorial Office, Li Ming couldn’t handle it. Now if he assigned this drudgery to these important ministers, could they handle it?

But though the Memorial Office was grunt work, controlling the first stage of memorials entering the palace was indeed important, so no one wanted to relinquish power. Later on, the actual memorial review would inevitably fall to this batch of people who were “added.”

So who would be added was critically important.

Thinking this, Li Rong’s gaze fell on Su Rongqing. Having reached this step, she somewhat guessed Su Rongqing’s ultimate purpose in burning the Memorial Office.

Rather than a Memorial Office that Pei Wenxuan could monitor, better to have a Cabinet that could pave the way for Prince Su.

Li Rong contemplated as she listened to Li Ming and the ministers discuss this small Cabinet’s structure. After court dismissed, Li Rong walked outside the palace, boarded her carriage, and saw Pei Wenxuan waiting for her. She couldn’t help but smile. “We left court together. How did you walk so fast?”

“This humble subject has long legs.” Pei Wenxuan poured tea for Li Rong, smiling. “Since we can’t walk side by side, I wanted to come in first and wait for Your Highness.”

“This dog can really talk.”

Li Rong scolded him with a mix of reproach and smile, then turned to sit down and took Pei Wenxuan’s tea. She continued, “They didn’t mention the imperial examinations today.”

“There were too many matters today,” Pei Wenxuan took a sip of tea and said slowly, “Just wait. An imperial edict will come down soon.”

Hearing Pei Wenxuan’s meaning, Li Rong thought about it. “Who do you think this edict will go to first?”

“How about this,” Pei Wenxuan looked up at her. “I’ll make two bets with Your Highness.”

“Bet on what?” Li Rong raised an eyebrow. Pei Wenxuan thought about it. “First, bet on who the first imperial edict goes to.”

“Second, bet on what the edict that comes to us will say.”

“Alright,” Li Rong agreed decisively. “What about the stakes?”

“What does Your Highness want?”

Hearing this question, Li Rong didn’t know what to want for a moment. Pei Wenxuan always indulged her, so there didn’t seem to be anything worth betting on.

Seeing Li Rong couldn’t think of anything, Pei Wenxuan said, “Then I’ll owe Your Highness one thing. Whenever Your Highness thinks of what you want, you can come to me to collect.”

“Won’t you be at a disadvantage?”

“You have to beat me first.”

“Fine.” Li Rong nodded. “What about you? What do you want?”

Pei Wenxuan coughed lightly and turned away, placing his hands on his knees, seeming somewhat embarrassed. “Ahem, that…”

“Mm?”

“It’s been many years since I’ve seen Your Highness go out to play.”

“You want to go out with me?”

Li Rong smiled. “That’s easy.”

“That, I remember when I went on an outing with Your Highness years ago, Your Highness saw Persian dancing girls perform and was very enthusiastic. That day the weather was hot, the city had many merchants and visitors coming and going…”

“Get to the point.” Li Rong directly interrupted him. Pei Wenxuan couldn’t make up more either. He turned his head and said directly, “I bought an outfit, measured to your size. I know Your Highness can dance.”

Li Rong: “…”

Having said his piece, Pei Wenxuan tucked his hands into his sleeves, his ears completely red, yet still maintained a serious expression. “Does Your Highness bet or not?”

Li Rong didn’t speak. She looked at Pei Wenxuan with interest, her gaze moving from top to bottom and back up again, her eyes seeming to have substance, as if probing something.

Pei Wenxuan kept his body rigid, allowing her to look, like a monk in meditation, completely composed.

“Your Highness?”

Seeing Li Rong remain silent for so long, Pei Wenxuan couldn’t help but prompt. Li Rong scoffed, crossed her legs, and leaned casually against the small table. Her phoenix eyes seemed to hook people as she glanced sideways, her smile meaningful. “Alright.”

Pei Wenxuan picked up a cup of tea from the side and analyzed calmly. “After last night’s events, His Majesty will inevitably think carefully. From His Majesty’s perspective, what can be confirmed is that the Hongde matter was indeed arranged through collusion between Consort Rou and the Su family. So there must be an imperial edict for Consort Rou.”

“As for the remaining three matters His Majesty cannot confirm: first, whether Hongde really identified Su Rongqing; second, who set the Memorial Office fire; third, whether Your Highness colluded privately with the Crown Prince. So His Majesty will most likely punish everyone equally. He removed Su Rongqing’s Minister position, while we haven’t been dealt with yet. But this punishment will inevitably come, so there’s an edict for either me or Your Highness.”

Pei Wenxuan looked up. “This humble subject bets the edict will arrive at our place first.”

“Why?” Li Rong propped her head to look at him.

“Intuition. What about Your Highness?”

“Then I’ll bet it goes to Consort Rou first.” Li Rong’s crossed foot gently swayed, occasionally emerging from under her skirt. The red brocade embroidered shoe with white pear blossoms appeared and disappeared before Pei Wenxuan. His gaze couldn’t help but look over. Li Rong noticed and looked over. “What are you looking at?”

Caught red-handed, Pei Wenxuan withdrew his gaze and smiled lightly. “Nothing.”

After the two returned to the Princess’s mansion together, Pei Wenxuan walked to his courtyard with a stern face. Li Rong chased after him, pulling at Pei Wenxuan as if quarreling, dragging him into the inner courtyard.

Once in the inner courtyard, confirming they were among their own people, the two finally returned to normal. Li Rong spun around to sit at the small table’s edge. Pei Wenxuan went to change out of his official robes. When he came out, they set up a chess board, talking while waiting for the imperial edict.

According to their expectations, the edict would come sooner or later—it was just a question of whose it was.

The two hadn’t even finished one game of chess when Jing Lan stepped in. She bowed respectfully, then said, “Your Highness, news from the palace.”

“Mm?”

“They say Consort Rou contradicted His Majesty last night. Now she’s been stripped of her Noble Consort position and demoted to Concubine Rou.”

Hearing this, Li Rong smiled and looked up at Pei Wenxuan. “Looks like I won.”

“There’s still another round, isn’t there?”

Pei Wenxuan kept his head down. “I haven’t necessarily lost.”

“Either way, you can’t win anymore.” Li Rong waved at Jing Lan, who withdrew. Li Rong looked up. “What shall we bet on next?”

“His Majesty punished Consort Rou. What do you think he’ll punish us with?”

Pei Wenxuan held a chess piece, tapping it against the edge of the board. The piece struck the board with a crisp sound. Li Rong was drawn by the sound and couldn’t help but look toward its source.

The young man’s fingers were slender and clean, his knuckles well-defined, his nails trimmed neat and fresh. The way his two fingers held the chess piece was quite beautiful.

“In his actions, what he emphasizes is ‘balance.’ He’s already stripped Su Rongqing of his Minister position. Now he hasn’t touched your Vice Minister position, so my Constabulary Bureau position might not be secure.”

Li Rong smiled. “I guess he’ll move against the Constabulary Bureau.”

“Moving against the Constabulary Bureau is too early. Once you leave, the noble families can dismantle it. He shouldn’t do that.”

“So?”

Li Rong played her move. “What do you think he’ll move against?”

“The news from the palace last night said Consort Rou seemed to cry and make a scene with His Majesty in their room.” Pei Wenxuan’s voice was very soft. “I guess the trouble comes from the rear palace, so perhaps it’s you, Your Highness.” Pei Wenxuan looked up with a half-smile. “Your money will be cut.”

Hearing this, Li Rong’s expression changed. She quickly said, “I’d rather they dismantle the Constabulary Bureau.”

Ever since taking on major affairs, money had been tight. If Li Ming cut her funds further, she really wouldn’t want to continue.

Pei Wenxuan was amused by her suddenly changed expression. He pressed his lips to suppress his smile and placed his piece. “The result isn’t out yet. Don’t panic first. What if he doesn’t touch your money?”

“If he doesn’t touch money, he’ll touch power. Either way isn’t good. Right now I just hope Consort Rou can quarrel with Su Rongqing quickly.” Li Rong sighed as she looked at Pei Wenxuan. “That would live up to your painstaking efforts. My acting has been very hard too.”

Pei Wenxuan smiled without responding, only reminding, “It’s your move.”

The two played for a long while more. Just as evening approached, someone from the palace finally hurried over, summoning Pei Wenxuan and Li Rong to receive the edict.

The two exchanged a glance. Li Rong said softly, “It’s here.”

With that, they both stood up, each properly dressed in official robes, and led everyone to the door to receive the edict.

Seeing the edict-bearing eunuch, they first exchanged pleasantries for a while, then knelt down. The eunuch opened the imperial edict and began announcing today’s results.

Li Rong and Pei Wenxuan both waited to see whether Li Ming intended to take their money or their power.

They waited nervously, then heard Li Ming begin by praising Pei Wenxuan thoroughly.

Both were a bit stunned and couldn’t help but glance at each other.

Then Li Ming praised Li Rong thoroughly as well.

Their hearts grew more panicked. They couldn’t figure out Li Ming’s strategy. Was he planning not to spare either of them?

Finally, they heard the key sentence: “However, though the gentleman is talented and the lady beautiful, heaven envies their union. The two have opposing temperaments, and their marriage cannot continue. I hereby grant Pei Wenxuan’s request and permit them to divorce…”

Divorce.

Hearing this word, Li Rong was stunned for a moment. She couldn’t help but look at Pei Wenxuan.

Divorce??

Pei Wenxuan was also somewhat stunned, but he used his eyes to signal Li Rong to stay calm.

The two looked at each other, back and forth, hesitating for a long while before finally accepting the edict.

After returning to the room holding the imperial edict, Li Rong couldn’t help but ask, “That’s it?”

Pei Wenxuan laughed softly, understanding her meaning. He stood behind her, smiling. “Yes, Your Highness. You didn’t lose your money, you didn’t lose your power. You just lost your man.”

“The Prince Consort is talking nonsense.” Li Rong feared Pei Wenxuan would overthink. She quickly turned around, reaching her arms around his waist. “The person is right here. As long as he doesn’t want to run, even an imperial edict can’t make him disappear.”

Pei Wenxuan smiled without speaking. Li Rong thought about it, stood on her tiptoes, and whispered, “Besides, doesn’t Master Pei think secret meetings with one’s ex-wife are very thrilling?”

Hearing this, Pei Wenxuan smiled and turned his gaze to her. “Whether it’s thrilling or not, this humble subject doesn’t know. But Your Highness looks very excited. This point, this humble subject does know.”

Li Rong felt somewhat embarrassed being called out. She coughed lightly. “I’m not that excited…”

Pei Wenxuan’s smile was meaningful. After a moment, he softly reminded, “Being happy inside the mansion is fine, but you still need to put on an act outside.”

“I understand.” Li Rong slyly glanced at him. “I know what to do.”

The night the imperial edict came down, Pei Wenxuan packed his luggage and left the Princess’s mansion, looking as if he didn’t want to stay another moment.

Li Rong chased Pei Wenxuan out of the mansion and stood at the entrance for a full quarter hour.

The next day, the news spread throughout the entire court that Li Rong and Pei Wenxuan had divorced, Pei Wenxuan moved back to the Pei family residence, and Li Rong had chased Pei Wenxuan’s carriage down a whole street, crying bitterly and begging him to return.

People didn’t quite believe it at first, but seeing Li Rong’s seemingly swollen eyes the next day, most believed it somewhat.

Heaven knows how much effort Li Rong put into swelling those eyes.

Late at night in her room, she secretly ate a large bowl of noodles made by a chef from Shu.

Eating while crying, so spicy it was completely satisfying, full of pleasure.

The entire court suddenly felt a bit sympathetic toward Li Rong. By the time court dismissed, Li Chuan finally couldn’t hold back. He privately snuck to the Princess’s mansion, wanting to comfort Li Rong.

At this time, Li Rong was lying in a rocking chair, rolling an egg over her eyes. Li Chuan moved a small stool and crouched beside her, consoling softly, “Sister, don’t be too upset. Brother-in-law Pei must have his own plans. You can marry again later.”

Li Rong ignored him and continued rolling the egg. Seeing Li Rong didn’t even want to talk, guessing she was extremely aggrieved, Li Chuan continued, “I know you like him. Otherwise, with your temperament, you couldn’t have chased a carriage down a whole street. But speaking of which, Sister, your stamina is quite good…”

“Wait.” Li Rong raised her hand, stopping Li Chuan’s words. She removed the egg and looked at Li Chuan with swollen eyes. “Who chased a carriage down a whole street?”

“You did.” Li Chuan spoke as if it were absolute truth. “Everyone knows.”

Li Rong was somewhat bewildered. Li Chuan continued consoling, “Divorce is better than both of you getting in trouble. Don’t be sad…”

“I’m not sad.” Li Rong frowned and slapped Li Chuan’s hand that tried to pat her shoulder. She turned over and closed her eyes to rest. “I’m quite happy.”

They didn’t cut her money or her position. Shouldn’t she be happy?

On the other side, Huale was vividly describing to Consort Rou the scene of Li Rong chasing the carriage crying, happily saying, “You don’t know—I didn’t believe it when I heard, but later everyone in court saw Pingle’s eyes swollen from crying, and only then did I believe it. Mother, you’re still brilliant.”

Huale gave a thumbs up. “Attack the heart, not the body. Now that Pei Wenxuan proposed divorce for power, given Li Rong’s temperament, she probably can’t tolerate him in her heart anymore. Li Rong alone—how could she be Mother’s opponent?”

Consort Rou listened to Huale’s words with a smile on her face. Though she didn’t agree, she didn’t deny it either.

After being suppressed by Li Rong for so long, from having her power to oversee the six palaces stripped to now being demoted to Concubine Rou, she finally let out a breath.

She knew Li Rong couldn’t bear to part with Pei Wenxuan. So when Li Ming wanted to punish Li Rong’s finances, she intervened and persuaded Li Ming—they still needed to guard against Pei Wenxuan and Li Rong harboring ulterior motives and joining forces again.

Now seeing Li Rong cry like this, she finally felt much more comfortable.

As expected, in Li Rong’s heart, men were still more important than power and money.

This was their biggest difference, and the fundamental reason she would win.

She, Xiao Rou, didn’t care about men.

She could be ruthless.