"Who gave you the audacity? You are truly audacious!" The Empress's face turned ashen. "Go to the Imperial Study and reflect on your mistakes for three days, not allowed to leave!"
"Mother~" Princess Xinyue wrapped her arms around the Empress's shoulders and whined in a drawn-out tone.
As she spoke, she kicked Chu Chen and gestured with her eyes for him to speak on her behalf.
Chu Chen remained silent. Instead, he took out the blueprint for a hot air balloon from his embrace and respectfully handed it to Princess Xinyue.
Princess Xinyue then had a sudden realization and, like presenting a treasure, handed the blueprint to the Empress.
"Mother, Mother, this is a gift I'm giving you. Isn't the hot air balloon useful!"
Princess Xinyue said ingratiatingly, "Considering the hot air balloon, you won't be angry with me anymore, will you!"
The Empress, angered to the point of laughter, retorted, "Then tell me, what use is this hot air balloon to me?"
"This..." Princess Xinyue stammered, "This hot air balloon can fly a hundred zhang into the sky. If used on the battlefield, others can't hit it. Then... wouldn't all the enemy's defenses be in our grasp?"
The Empress glanced at Princess Xinyue in surprise, but she immediately realized that these words could never have come from a princess who idled her time away.
Chu Chen subtly stepped back, minimizing his presence as much as possible.
Unexpectedly, the Empress suddenly burst into laughter, "Fine, it is indeed a useful gift. I shall not pursue this matter with you for now."
Immediately, the Empress looked at Princess Xinyue with satisfaction, "Seeing you put in such effort, this period of time has not been entirely wasted."
Princess Xinyue flinched and chuckled, "Mother, it seems you really like this gift. So, merits and demerits cancel each other out, and you're not angry anymore!"
The Empress glanced at Princess Xinyue, "If you dare be so reckless again, I will certainly not let you off lightly!"
"Hehehe." Princess Xinyue giggled foolishly and threw herself into the Empress's embrace, "I knew it, Mother is the best!"
"Your birthday is in a few days. You are no longer a child, and it's time to prepare to choose a consort you favor."
The Empress said indifferently, "You must not disappoint me then."
"What?" Princess Xinyue was stunned. "Choose a consort! I don't want to! I want to stay by Mother's side forever!"
The Empress gave Princess Xinyue a cold look and, without a word, turned and left.
"Mother!" Princess Xinyue shouted from behind, "I will not choose a consort!"
"My mind is made up. You are not allowed to act out this time!"
After uttering these words, the Empress left without mercy, leaving Princess Xinyue no room for rebuttal.
Princess Xinyue was instantly furious, stomped her foot on the spot, and resentfully returned to her palace.
Watching Princess Xinyue's receding back, Chu Chen nodded thoughtfully.
Upon returning to his residence, Chu Chen casually opened the simulator.
Chu Chen continued to ignore unimportant plot points.
[... ]
[Since Princess Xinyue was not in the palace and Xue Yun was often targeted by the Prime Minister in secret, Xue Yun, in his haste, planned to make a move on the princess during her birthday banquet, under the guise of selecting a consort.]
Chu Chen frowned.
He had thought Xue Yun and his companions would lie low for a while, but unexpectedly, due to Chen Yuanliang's secret machinations, they were going to act prematurely.
However, Chu Chen still suspected that these people's brains were not functioning properly.
Princess Xinyue's birthday was such a significant occasion, with heavy military guard. How dare Xue Yun and his few companions cause trouble that day?
[Princess Xinyue strongly resisted the idea of selecting a consort. She disdained those effeminate noble sons and currently had no interest in romantic matters.]
[To escape marriage, Princess Xinyue requested that you escape the palace with her.]
[After formulating a not-so-meticulous or complex plan, Princess Xinyue escaped the imperial palace with you. This, however, precisely provided Xue Yun with the opportunity to abduct the princess.]
[During the escape, you displayed immense power, easily counter-killing Xue Yun and his companions by leveraging your intelligence advantage. This, however, brought you considerable trouble.]
Chu Chen nodded slightly. The life simulations during this period had been very effective. His martial prowess had grown to the point where he could successfully deal with Xue Yun.
[To salvage the imperial family's reputation, the Empress issued an order for you and Princess Xinyue to be brought back to the palace within a month and dealt with severely.]
[The Empress, who was exhausting all efforts to find you and Princess Xinyue, showed a momentary weakness. This was seized upon by Chen Yuanliang, who took the opportunity to usurp some of the Empress's power.]
[... ]
Chu Chen rubbed his forehead and sighed.
He didn't need to see the rest to know how the situation would unfold.
To think that this Prime Minister was truly a talent. He would launch a rebellion whenever he found an opportunity, never giving up a single chance.
Chu Chen pondered for a moment and decided to conduct a few more simulations to see what would happen if he chose not to escape the palace with Princess Xinyue.
However, the subsequent simulations left Chu Chen quite helpless.
No matter how he simulated, he would always end up on Princess Xinyue's "pirate ship" by some twist of fate, ultimately escaping with her.
"It seems unless I can dissuade the princess from leaving the palace, I can't escape," Chu Chen sighed and began to plan his next move.
After a moment of thought, Chu Chen knocked on Princess Xinyue's door.
"Your Highness, what troubles you?"
"Come in," came Princess Xinyue's dejected voice from within.
"I'm so frustrated!" Princess Xinyue beat the soft pillow in her hands forcefully. "Why must I get married!"
"I don't want to get married yet. I want to lead troops into battle. Once married, I won't be able to do anything!"
"After marriage, you can't do anything... What do you mean?" Chu Chen asked tentatively.
"It means I can't do anything," Princess Xinyue said with annoyance. "I can't be an official, I can't lead troops, I can't do anything. I can only be a leisurely princess!"
Chu Chen suddenly understood.
This was likely a rule specifically established to prevent siblings from vying for the throne.
Whether it was a prince or a princess, if they could not wield power, then no one would support them in ascending the throne.
This way, power struggles could be minimized to the greatest extent.
"But this is the Emperor's command. How can you disobey?" Chu Chen said with a wry smile.
"How about we escape!" Princess Xinyue's eyes suddenly lit up. "We have money now, and the capital to escape. As long as we run away, Mother definitely won't dare to force me to marry!"
"Yun Yue Kingdom is vast, but it is all under His Majesty's control. Where can we escape to?" Chu Chen sighed. "This method won't work."
"Then I'll go on a hunger strike to protest, how about that?"