It was already mid-morning when the emperor’s entourage left the palace gates.

The power struggle between Duan Changchuan and the regent had reached a critical point, there was no telling what the other party would do if he was forced. So Duan Changchuan had secretly replaced several attendants around his carriage with shadow guards. He also had many shadow guards mixed in with the Imperial Guard along the route.

With half of the Imperial Guard and the shadow guards protecting him, and General Rongwu’s troops positioned between the summer villa and Shengjing City, the palace and the villa could be said to be tightly secured.

Early this morning, Duan Changchuan received a message from his uncle, warning him that the villa’s defense was weaker than the Palace’s and that he should be careful. His uncle had stationed a thousand elite soldiers in Shengjing, ready to be dispatched at any time.

Of course, his uncle himself discreetly took up residence in a temple outside the villa. Uncle had been worried about Duan Changchuan after the assassination half a month ago, so Duan Changchuan allowed him to come.

On the night of his departure, Nangong Jin’er and Zhang Dehai left the palace and headed straight to Prime Minister Bai’s residence.

Zhang Dehai was a eunuch who served the late emperor and was the disciple of the former head eunuch. His connections in the palace were not comparable to ordinary servants. In addition, he was “reckless” and “ambitious”. It was easy to make use of him at first glance, so both Prime Minister Bai and the Regent tried to win him over.

Since he became the emperor’s “abandoned piece”, he had been dealing with the two, not offending either side and not taking sides, maintaining a delicate balance. As a result, he knew all of Prime Minister Bai’s confidants. After sending a prior message, he was granted an audience with the Prime Minister that very night.

“Zhang Gonggong, what brings you here to see me? I heard you are now living in the Cold Palace with the empress. Have you thought it through?”

Zhang Dehai smiled and took two steps back, saying, “Yes and no. It’s not me who seeks an audience with the prime minister today, but someone else.”

After that, he asked Nangong Jin’er behind him to come out and introduce herself, “This is Nangong Jin’er, a trusted aide of the empress. She is here on the empress’s behalf to discuss a matter with you.”

Only then did the woman in the black cloak take off her hat, revealing her true appearance.

She stepped forward and made a shallow curtsy, then said in a neither servile nor overbearing manner, “Greetings, Prime Minister Bai. Her Highness has ordered Nangong Jin’er to pay a visit to her mother’s family today to propose a deal.”

“Bai Su?” Bai Yanyuan asked suspiciously, “What kind of deal could she possibly offer? She has been in the Cold Palace for over a month and hasn’t been able to leave. She can’t even protect herself, yet she wants to make a deal with me? She probably wants me to save her. Tell her that I can’t even take care of myself right now and cannot save her. She should focus on staying alive; things will get better for her eventually.”

His words were cold and heartless, not something one would expect from a father.

Nangong Jin’er exchanged a glance with Zhang Dehai, and let out a soft laugh, “I’m afraid Bai Xiang is only right about one thing. You really can’t take care of yourself. Let me be clear, our empress is not here to make a deal with you, she is here to save you.”

“Save me? Her? With what, does she think that becoming empress puts her above everyone? She can’t fall in love with the Emperor after being with him for just a month, right? Does she truly believe the emperor has fallen deeply in love with her? What a joke. Can’t you see what kind of person the current Emperor is now? He can directly execute people in front of civil and military officials, treating the ancestors’ laws as nothing. He kills people at the slightest provocation, how can he care about romantic relationships? Not to mention a man as ruthless as the current Emperor, as long as they stand in that position and become part of the imperial family, love is nothing more than a pastime in their eyes. Go back and let her wake up, tell her to pray for her safety. If the regent and I succeed, she might have a slightly better fate. Don’t think about nonsense all day long.” Bai Xiang’s words were full of sarcasm.

Unable to bear it any longer, Zhang Dehai tried to intervene, but a warning look from Nan Gongjin’er made him swallow his words.

The woman stepped forward and spoke calmly, “Does Prime Minister really believe our empress has been in the Cold Palace all this time? It seems Prime Minister Bai’s power has indeed been suppressed a lot. Now he can’t even get the latest news. On what basis can Her Highness make a deal with you, and on what basis can she save you? On the basis that Her Highness is pregnant with the royal heir in her belly. On the basis that Her Highness asked His Majesty for permission when the pandemic first broke out in Huainan and went there. On the basis that Her Highness is the legendary daughter of the Bai family who descended from the heavens.”

“Heh, our Empress has not only been strategizing but has also been actively working to prevent her father from committing treason and suffering the fate of having his entire family executed where in the future, she would also be implicated. That’s why she ordered us to persuade him. I didn’t expect Prime Minister Bai to be such an arrogant person. Fortunately, Her Highness told me that if the Prime Minister is unwilling then we can let him fend for himself. In any case, His Majesty can distinguish right from wrong. Even if he implicates Her Highness, it won’t be too bad.”

Then without waiting for Bai Yanyuan’s response, Nangong Jin’er motioned to Zhang Dehai, “Let’s go, Zhang Gonggong. It seems the Prime Minister is unwilling to cooperate with us. There’s no need for us to stay, let’s return to the palace. His Majesty asked Her Highness to go to the villa a few days later, we still have a lot of things to do.”

“What did you say? The legendary daughter of the Bai family is Bai Su? She’s pregnant with the royal heir? Nonsense, how can she go to Huainan if she’s really pregnant?”

Nangong Jin’er stopped before sneering, “Her Highness caught a cold a bit in Huainan. Imperial Physician Sun found out when he took her pulse. She’s now four months pregnant. If you don’t believe me then just wait for the royal heir to be born. But I’m not sure if Prime Minister Bai will live to see that day.”

With that said, she continued to walk forward.

However, before she could reach the door, Bai Yanyuan rushed to block her path.

The girl’s lips secretly curved into a smirk.

Lifting her eyelashes, she looked at him disdainfully.

“Is there anything else Prime Minister Bai?”

“What are your plans? Speak.”

“What Prime Minister Bai wants, and what our Her Highness wants, you should know.”

[What does Bai Su want …]

Bai Yanyuan was as cunning as a fox and immediately understood, that Bai Su wanted to secure her position as empress and make him admit it. Or rather, make the whole world acknowledge that she, Bai Su, is the legitimate eldest daughter of the Bai family.

But if that’s the case, what will happen to his current wife?’

He was the one who came up with the idea of marrying a concubine’s daughter to humiliate the current emperor. If he were to go back on his words now, wouldn’t he become the world’s laughingstock?”

“The Prime Minister seems hesitant. Then consider the emperor’s thoughts on this matter.”

Seeing that he was silent, Nangong Jin’er threw another strike at him.

What was His Majesty thinking?

Hearing this, Bai Yanyuan felt his legs go weak.

That’s right, even he, the Prime Minister, felt humiliated. How much worse would it have been for the Emperor, who had no choice but to accept the concubine’s daughter from the Prime Minister’s residence as his Empress?

In the past, Bai Yanyuan only thought of the current emperor as nothing more than a little rabbit. He didn’t even need to join forces with the Regent to take control of the court.

If it weren’t for the fact that the Regent was bent on power, plus, the Regent had promised him too many benefits, there would’ve been no need for him to fight with the Regent.

But now, it seems the Regent is nothing more than an idiot in the eyes of the little Emperor.

Considering this, Bai Yanyuan hesitated before speaking, “I can recognize her as the legitimate daughter, but my current wife is appointed by the late Emperor himself … That cannot be changed.”

Nangong Jin’er nods in satisfaction, “State what you can offer. Her Highness will handle the rest.”

“If she can ensure my safety and the emperor agrees, I will acknowledge her mother as the legitimate wife. As for my current wife, she will be demoted to a concubine.”

“Of course. The emperor will surely agree. After all … only the child of a legitimate wife is worthy of being the empress of this great nation. Don’t you think so, Prime Minister?”

“Yes … Then did Her Highness mention to you what I can get?” Bai Yanyuan asks in a low voice.

At this point, the old fox finally took the bait.

A smile finally appeared on Nangong Jin’er’s lips as she replied, “Her Highness and the Lord are father and daughter. As the Empress, Her Highness naturally desires a strong maternal family. As long as you withdraw your support now, Her Highness will ensure you retain your position as Prime Minister. Of course, with our current emperor, you won’t be as omnipotent as before, but you will be the legitimate father-in-law of the emperor. At that time, you will still hold a position second only to one and above ten thousand. When Her Highness’s child is born, if it’s a boy he will be the crown prince. If it’s a girl she will be the oldest princess of Datong. Prime Minister, think about it again. Let’s not talk about whether the current Regent still has the life to control the imperial power. His son only has one heir now and will not have any more children in the future. Prime Minister should understand the pros and cons of this.”

Her words were sharp and well-organized, and Bai Yanzhuo’s attitude softened immediately.

After a long silence, he hesitantly says, “Let me think about it again ….”

Nangong Jin’er, showing no signs of urgency, responded calmly, “For such an important matter, of course, you must think it through carefully. But let me remind you, the Regent has already dispatched his son and daughter-in-law to Huainan. If something happens again in Huainan, with the dragon’s wrath, my lady may not be able to speak on your behalf.”

Her words made Bai Yanzhuo’s heart tighten once more.

“I will have an answer by tomorrow.”

“That’s for the best.”

Nangong Jin’er then gave a slight curtsey and left with Zhang Dehai leading the way.

On the way back, Zhang Dehai couldn’t help but give a thumbs up, “Miss Jin’er, you have both courage and wisdom.”

Nangong Jin’er, having completed her task, let out a long breath, “It’s all thanks to the Empress’s teachings. The Emperor, the Empress, and my aunt deliberated for a long time to come up with this plan. I merely conveyed it. Fortunately, everything went as the Empress predicted. I believe Bai Yanyuan will decide before tomorrow.”

“Yes, our Empress is wise and considerate … Speaking of which, Her Highness is really considerate of His Majesty.”

Nangong Jin’er tightened her grip on the brocade pouch.

Early this morning, she and Zhang Dehai secretly went to see His Majesty. His Majesty handed a jade pendant to them, saying that Bai Yanyuan was naturally suspicious. Ordered to use His Majesty’s name to persuade him more quickly and was not afraid that Bai Xiang would not agree.

However, when they later presented the plan to the Empress at the Imperial Astronomer, she rejected it outright

At that time, the Empress had only paused briefly before resolutely rejecting this matter.

“No, if it is done in the Emperor’s name, then Prime Minister Bai will become a meritorious official in the power struggle, and he might use this merit to restrain the Emperor in the future. At that time, Your Majesty will be restricted by the high officials. You must proceed according to the original plan, persuading Bai Yanzhuo in this consort’s name, so that he remains a sinner. The Emperor can then easily control him. Jin’er, keep the Emperor’s jade pendant, but I hope you will return it to him intact.”

That was what the Empress had said that day.

Now, under the starry night sky, Nangong Jin’er gazed at the full moon and let out a long breath.

She tightly squeezed the jade pendant in the brocade pouch and said softly, “That’s great. When His Majesty releases Her Highness from the cold palace, I can return this jade pendant to His Majesty … His Majesty will understand her true intentions.”

Even the great eunuch, who had spent over a decade in the palace, couldn’t help but softly sigh, “That’s great indeed.”

[That’s great.]

[That’s great, to be treated with such devotion …]

No wonder there is a saying: Longing for true love, to grow old together.

They won’t change … right?