Watching her like this, Mother will definitely be stimulated and spend all day dressing up beautifully and showing off in front of Mother.
This woman, at first glance, is not a good bird. She's so pretentious, only good at deceiving men. Women don't need to pretend like this with each other, it's exhausting, big sister.
Ximen Xinyue was startled and looked at Xiao Yu'er seriously. Is this the two-year-old little princess?
What a sharp tone, and so domineering, with a personality exactly like her mother, arrogant and full of herself. Ximen Xinyue thought, and smiled faintly, "Is this the Eldest Princess?"
Qingyao said nothing, but Xiao Yu'er was displeased. She retorted fiercely, "With you here, there are no princesses. I don't regret not being a princess."
As soon as she finished speaking, Ximen Xinyue's mouth fell open, and she couldn't speak for a long time. She had imagined countless ways to deal with the Empress, but none of them were for dealing with the little princess. She hadn't factored this person in at all, and in the end, it was a miscalculation. The child taught by this woman is truly a handful.
"Mochou, see the guest out."
Xiao Yu'er, without waiting for a reply, shouted at Mochou below.
Mochou actually disliked the pretentious Ximen Xinyue. Did she come running over just to say these useless things? To fulfill the Empress's wish, she would withdraw herself. If she truly wanted to withdraw, why say all this? She should just leave the palace; why put on such a high-profile display?
"Consort Shu, please."
Ximen Xinyue's face was somewhat embarrassed. She looked up at Mu Qingyao, thinking she would say something. She didn't expect the woman to act as if she hadn't seen anything.
As if these matters had nothing to do with her, Ximen Xinyue swallowed her pride, her anger stuck in her chest. She could only slowly stand up and say respectfully, "Then please rest, Your Highness. This concubine hopes Your Highness can return to the palace as soon as possible. His Majesty has been thinking of Your Highness."
"Mm, thank you, Consort Shu."
Qingyao nodded and watched as the woman led her maid out. Just as Ximen Xinyue stepped across the threshold, she heard Xiao Yu'er's loud voice.
"Mother, this woman is such a fake immortal, pretentious, disgusting, I want to vomit."
Outside the door, Ximen Xinyue's face was like a palette, colorful and mottled. Her eyes were fierce, and her hands in her cloud-like sleeves dug into her flesh. She hadn't expected that hateful woman Mu Qingyao to return, and bring back a little hateful creature, no, a little demon. She had never seen a two-year-old child utter such sharp and strange words.
Mochou watched Ximen Xinyue's face turn red, then white, then green, changing so many times. She felt so relieved, it served her right. Who told her to come and humiliate herself?
"Yiyun, send someone to escort Consort Shu out of Bie Wan."
Mochou commanded, and Yiyun immediately obeyed, ordering the maids to escort Consort Shu out.
In the main hall, Qingyao was admonishing Xiao Yu'er, "This woman is not a simple character. You should provoke her less, don't bring trouble upon yourself."
"I'm not afraid of her," Xiao Yu'er raised her eyebrows, thinking of that woman's soft and watery pretense, and became even more annoyed. She even blamed Mu Rong Liuzun, "Hmph, it's all the men's fault. We won't talk to him anymore."
"Let's go, I want to see if you've been slacking off recently and how many weapons you've forged."
"Okay, let's go," Xiao Yu'er's attention was successfully diverted. She jumped down from Qingyao's lap and led the way out. Qingyao and Mochou followed her, and the group left the main hall and headed towards the storeroom to see how many weapons had been prepared.
At three quarters past the hour of the monkey (7:45 PM), the Emperor, accompanied by General An, appeared at the Royal Bie Wan.
As soon as Xiao Yu'er saw him, her face turned as dark as pitch. She paced back and forth, treating him as if he were transparent. Yet, she kept wandering around the hall, as if to show how angry she was, a very peculiar kind of anger.
Xian Emperor's narrow, sharp eyebrows arched, and a flicker of light flashed in his dark pupils. He said with a smile.
"Mochou, who has offended the Princess to make her so unhappy?"
Mochou had a bitter face. How dare she say that the Emperor had offended the Princess? However, even if she didn't say it, the fact that all three pairs of eyes in the hall were staring at Xian Emperor was enough to make him understand that the culprit was none other than himself.
A flicker of surprise flashed across Xian Emperor's handsome face. How had he offended them? Not only Xiao Yu'er, but Yao'er also seemed vaguely angry. Could it be that they blamed him for not visiting them sooner?
Mu Rong Liuzun's gentle and jade-like smile hung on the corner of his lips. He said faintly, "I was delayed by some matters and did not come to visit you, so Xiao Yu'er is unhappy?"
As soon as his words fell, Xiao Yu'er's face grew even uglier. He was truly narcissistic. Was she someone with an Oedipal complex?
General An, who had been standing below, was terrified. The Emperor was completely different from the person he had seen before. Here, he had shed all his sharpness and dominance, leaving only gentleness and softness. General An had children, so he understood this was a father's doting on his child.
The Emperor also had such a cute side. He had always thought of him as cold and aloof, high and mighty.
The woman veiled above, was she the Empress of Xian Yue? Her cold, deep eyes were filled with the chill of winter, yet in an instant, they revealed a faint, almost imperceptible softness, which was confusing.
"This subject, An Dingfeng, pays his respects to the Empress."
General An stepped forward to pay his respects. Qingyao withdrew her gaze, glanced at the person beside the Emperor. She had heard of An Dingfeng, skilled in both martial arts and literature, a fierce general on the battlefield. After the Emperor regained military power, he reused him. Now, much of Xian Yue's military forces were in his hands. The Emperor bringing him here, she surmised, must be for important matters, so she straightened her expression and looked at Xiao Yu'er to the side.
"Xiao Yu'er, Mother has something to do."
"Yes, Mother. Mochou and I will go down first." Xiao Yu'er obediently walked away, but before leaving, she gave the Emperor a meaningful look, leaving Xian Emperor utterly confused. He looked up at Qingyao, "What's wrong with her?"
"Consort Shu came this afternoon, so she upset her."
Qingyao said faintly, shifting her attention to General An. Her gentle voice sounded, "General An, you are too polite. Please sit down."
Qingyao came down. Where the Emperor was, she had to maintain etiquette; she couldn't be the only one sitting on the high seat. All three sat on the sides below.
"Yao'er, I've asked General An to come so that I can discuss with you the grand plan for the unification of the Seven Kingdoms."
Xian Emperor spoke slowly, his deep eyes gazing at Qingyao opposite him. Although she was veiled, it did not detract from her grace. Even though she was afflicted with the ugly-face curse, she was still the one in his heart. However, now was not the time to talk about feelings.
"Alright," Qingyao nodded heartily. However, An Dingfeng seemed stunned by the Emperor's words. Although he knew this day would come eventually, he hadn't expected it to come so quickly.
And the Emperor seemed intent on involving the Empress.
"Qingyao, how many troops do you need?"
Xian Emperor asked. They needed to draw out a portion of the troops, and they also had to ensure that the country was not affected in any way. If they went out in full force, other countries might launch a surprise attack, and Xian Yue would be the first to perish. Qingyao, knowing this principle, slowly replied.
"Ten thousand troops will suffice. I will have Huang Yuan Country send fifty thousand troops, making a total of one hundred and fifty thousand. However, our ten thousand troops will need to be retrained. Ten thousand troops will need to exert the power of twenty thousand because we will be facing a major power, Dan Feng. Their strength should not be underestimated. Although it is a matriarchal country, it is a land of exceptional people, vast in territory and with a large population. They likely have quite a few troops in their hands, so we cannot be careless."