Chapter Fifty-Three: Empress, Are You Stirring Up Trouble?

"Prince Jing is the pillar of the nation. It would be best if he had a wise wife to help manage his household. I hear the princess is in poor health and has never taken charge of the family." The empress did not wait for Xiao Jingxuan to reply before her next words followed swiftly, sounding as if she were seeking faults. Su Jingluo sipped her wine quietly, while secretly observing the empress and Xiao Jingxuan.

"It is of no concern," Xiao Jingxuan replied coolly.

"How can that be? Perhaps I meddle too much, but I remember in your youth you and Wanwan were closest. You made a perfect pair. Wanwan was frail before, but now she seems well. Does Prince Jing not have her in mind?" Hearing the empress speak, Su Jingluo thought she must be mad—an empress matchmaking for a prince. If anything, the empress should drop the 'perhaps' and admit she is not only meddlesome but entirely unnecessary.

"I already have a princess," Xiao Jingxuan said calmly. "Wanwan shines like the sun and moon; how could she degrade herself to the dim glow of a firefly and become a concubine?" His words made Lin Wanwan's gaze burn even hotter. Su Jingluo wished she could give them a bed; with one praise after another, they seemed ready to roll in the sheets.

"That is true. I know Jingluo well, though she is frail and lacks the ability to manage the household, her temperament is gentle and she understands propriety. If Wanwan became the primary wife, Jingluo would not mind, would she?" Understand your own sister! What does 'gentle and understands propriety' mean—just that I’m easy to bully? I mind very much. If she becomes the main wife, what am I supposed to do? Su Jingluo clutched her wine glass, ready to erupt.

Yunbai cautiously ate her meal, listening to talk of 'primary wife' and 'Wanwan,' not quite grasping their meaning.

"Xiao Chengze, what does your mother mean? What is she saying to my father?" Yunbai frowned, asking Xiao Chengze, feeling that his mother was up to no good, but the words were so convoluted she couldn’t understand.

"Mother wants your mother to step down and let that Lin Wanwan become the princess. Then your mother will be bullied," the older Princess Chunying, who had roughly understood, explained, looking at Xiao Yunbai with sympathy.

"Why?" Yunbai's face darkened as she gritted her teeth.

"Exactly, why? Yunbai’s mother is wonderful. What does the empress know?" Xiao Chengze clenched his fists, indignant.

"What do we do now? The empress has spoken; it seems Yunbai’s mother will really become a concubine." Beside them, Qiuhe was also unhappy, pouting and sharing Yunbai’s anger.

The empress's actions today were disgraceful, blatantly bullying Prince Jing’s princess for lacking family support. Everyone thought her suggestion was unreasonable, but no one dared step forward to oppose it.

"No, I refuse!" Suddenly, Yunbai stood up, her eyes blazing with hatred as she glared at the empress and Xiao Jingxuan.

"Yunbai, you are only a child. Don’t you want another mother to dote on you and give you more brothers and sisters?" The empress, who had been smiling, now flashed a hint of displeasure in her eyes.

"I don’t care. Only those born from my mother count as siblings," Yunbai replied, giving the empress a sidelong glance.

"Yes, Yunbai is right. Aside from those born of his mother, only I count as his brother," Xiao Chengze wiped the oil from his mouth and stood up to support his friend.

In the entire hall, only these two children stood up to oppose.

"Silence! Crown Prince, sit down. This matter is for Prince Jing to decide. Is it your place as children to interfere?" Even the crown prince dared contradict her; the empress’s face could not conceal her anger as she scolded Xiao Chengze, dragging Yunbai into it as well.