She thought about those she cared about and those who cared about her, one by one, leaving. Who would be by her side in the future? Thinking of this, she stopped and turned to look at Mo Chou, speaking softly, "Mo Chou, don't worry about Mo You. I won't let anything happen to him."
"Thank you, Master."
Mo Chou said emotionally. She was indeed very worried about Mo You, but hearing her master say this put her mind at ease.
The next morning, the Emperor sent a luxurious carriage to pick them up. Everyone in the Mu mansion got up early to send them off. Mu Qingzhu and Mu Qingxiang reluctantly held onto Qingyao's hand, "Why are you leaving again? You can stay a couple more days."
It was all the fault of those two maids, Xiao Lian and Lu'er, for making Qingyao unwilling to stay at the Mu mansion. The two young ladies glared angrily at Xiao Lian and Lu'er in the distance.
"I'll come back another day, or if you miss me, you can come find me,"
Qingyao said calmly. Although she said this, who would dare to casually go to the Imperial Villa? It wasn't a place one could enter as they pleased.
Mu Hen didn't say anything, as his daughter was now shouldering national affairs and had many things to do. The late Emperor had instructed him to help the new Emperor unify the seven kingdoms. He hadn't been able to accomplish it himself, but his daughter had stepped forward.
Xiao Yu'er stood by the carriage, waving goodbye to everyone repeatedly. Although the maids in the mansion were annoying, her maternal grandfather and two aunts were quite good.
The luxurious carriage drove towards the outskirts of the city. The Imperial Villa was located by the hunting grounds. This place was built by the new Emperor to house royal family members for hunting, the Shanglin Villa. The scenery was picturesque, and the environment was serene. Moreover, the villa was guarded by soldiers, so their group was very safe here, allowing them to do anything with peace of mind.
The carriage drove into the villa, with pavilions, towers, small bridges, and flowing water – a refined and elegant residence.
Pavilions every three steps, towers every five steps, surrounded by rockeries and a vast green lake. Flowers and grass intertwined on the banks, and lush trees provided shade.
As everyone alighted from the carriage, Xiao Yu'er and over a dozen children excitedly dashed off to explore the garden.
Mo Chou and Qingyao smiled, watching their figures. At this moment, several maids and elderly women approached from the side, all sent from the palace. The person in charge was none other than Yi Yun. She bowed respectfully and said in a voice as gentle as flowing water, "Your Highness, this servant Yi Yun greets Your Highness."
Qingyao was startled. She raised a hand and said calmly, "Yi Yun, from now on, call me Miss. Don't call me Your Highness."
Yi Yun was taken aback and immediately changed her address. When they arrived, the Emperor had instructed them to obey everything Your Highness said and not to defy her will in any way. Yi Yun immediately bowed, "Yes, Miss. Please follow this servant."
Yi Yun led Qingyao, Mo Chou, and Mo You towards the main residence of the Shanglin Villa. The other maids and elderly women followed behind, and the group walked inside grandly.
From then on, Qingyao and Xiao Yu'er lived in the Imperial Villa, which was heavily guarded. The Emperor had issued a decree forbidding anyone from entering.
Qingyao was to accompany the envoy to Huangyuan Kingdom, leaving Xiao Yu'er in charge of the arsenal. However, because Xiao Yu'er did not understand martial arts, she had intended to leave Mo Chou behind. But at such a time, leaving her alone might cause her to eat and sleep poorly, so she had to take her.
As for Xiao Yu'er's safety, Qingyao reported it to the Emperor. The Emperor ordered the dark guard Bing Xiao to protect the little princess with a few subordinates.
This finally put Qingyao's mind at ease.
Bing Xiao stayed by the little princess's side and was astonished by what the little princess did. It turned out that the little princess was still a person with extraordinary abilities. This matter could not leak out even a little bit, otherwise, it would surely cause trouble. Therefore, the few of them dared not be the slightest bit careless.
Inside the Imperial Study.
Several people were seated at this moment.
Besides the Emperor sitting at the head, the Prince of Nan'an and Qingyao sat on either side below. Qingyao's face was covered with a thin veil. Except for Prince Murong Liuzun of Nan'an, who immediately recognized her as the Empress, others did not know who this woman was. Then, the Emperor's cold voice rang out.
"This is Prince Shen Yu of Huangyuan Kingdom, the seventh prince. He is currently hidden among the envoy delegation and will travel to Huangyuan Kingdom with us. Everyone must protect him well."
Murong Liuzun's deep and charming voice sounded. The Prince of Nan'an restrained his excited emotions and, leading the Minister of Rites and the Minister of War, responded in a deep voice, "Yes, Your Majesty."
"Furthermore, for this mission to Huangyuan Kingdom, everything will be under the Empress's command."
This time, the Minister of War and the Minister of Rites widened their eyes as they looked at Qingyao. So this cold woman wearing a veil was the Empress who had eloped from the palace? The Empress had returned?
Although the Minister of War and the Minister of Rites had questions, they dared not ask further. They carefully glanced at the Empress, seeing that her expression was cold and she was enveloped in frost.
Qingyao originally wanted to state her position, but her current status was more convincing, and she was too lazy to correct them anymore. She had corrected them countless times.
"Yes."
For this mission to Huangyuan Kingdom, there were four people on the surface: the Prince of Nan'an, the Minister of War, the Minister of Rites, and Mo You. Mo You was nominally the prefect of Lin'an City in the Xian Yue Kingdom, and Qingyao had helped him disguise his appearance.
The group left the palace gates and boarded the luxurious carriages outside the palace gates, heading grandly towards the outskirts of the city.
For this mission to Huangyuan Kingdom, there were five hundred soldiers accompanying them. All of them were carefully selected, and each was skilled enough to fight ten enemies. Moreover, each envoy on this mission was extraordinary and possessed formidable martial arts skills. All of this was meticulously arranged by the Emperor. Qingyao knew that he was still worried about them.
Huangyuan Kingdom was a neighboring country to Xian Yue. The Emperor of Huangyuan Kingdom was gravely ill. An envoy should have been sent. The two countries were not far apart; it would take at most half a month, and at least ten days, to reach the capital of Huangyuan Kingdom. Originally, there was no rush for such ceremonial matters. However, as the seventh prince of Huangyuan Kingdom, Shen Yu couldn't wait; he wanted to see his father one last time.
Along the way, Qingyao didn't cause him any trouble. She ordered her subordinates to ride at full speed towards the capital.
News from Fengchen Palace kept coming.
The old Emperor's condition was very serious.
The border defenses were strict, and inspections were thorough.
The eldest prince had control of the palace, forbidding any unauthorized personnel from entering.
These unauthorized personnel included all princes and consorts of the royal family.
The fifth prince, leading his men, had surrounded the palace. Now, the entire capital was on the verge of conflict.
The royal family of Huangyuan Kingdom had two major factions. One was the eldest prince, who was the Empress's own son and the most likely successor to the throne in Huangyuan Kingdom. However, he was cruel by nature, and many court officials did not approve of him being made the Crown Prince.
The other faction was the fifth prince, who was the son of Consort Shu. Consort Shu was backed by the Minister of War, Li family, who was also the second most influential family in the capital, a prominent and wealthy clan. Most importantly, the fifth prince was a capable individual with a good reputation among the people.
Along the way, Qingyao had analyzed the pros and cons. For Mo You to ascend the throne, he had to see the Emperor one last time. The old Emperor had always wanted to appoint Mo You as Crown Prince, so they would have the Emperor issue a posthumous decree.
The second matter was to use the eldest prince to eliminate the fifth prince. This would cause the eldest prince to incur the wrath of the masses. At this time, Shen Jue would present the posthumous decree, which would align with popular sentiment.
Qingyao sorted out the relationships and had Mo Chou go ahead to the Yi family in the capital. Although the Yi family had been demoted to commoners, they still had some influence in the court. This return of Mo You was his opportunity to make a comeback, and he would spare no effort to help him.
Upon receiving news of Mo You's return to the capital, the Yi family immediately sprang into action. Yi Siyuan immediately thought of the saying "a salted fish turning over" and spared no expense in money or manpower to lobby the court.