C191

Early morning the next day, Fang Zinan brought Shang Yiqing to the palace to meet Empress Chen.

Empress Chen had just finished her breakfast and was preparing to go to the imperial garden when she saw Prince Rong and his wife. She couldn't help but say, "You've come at the right time. Take me to the imperial garden."

"I thank the Empress for her kindness." Fang Zinan and his wife followed Empress Chen into the imperial garden.

At that time, the sun was shining high, chloroplast was green, and the flowers were bright, the clear lake was like a jade, the red column was green and watery, a new and joyful scene. Lotus leaves were falling in succession in the lake. A golden red bridge led directly to the center of the lake. It gave off a feeling of elegance under the shade of the flowers.

Shang Yiqing helped Empress Chen up the golden bridge. A light breeze blew, bringing with it the fragrance of flowers, refreshing the heart and soul.

Empress Chen had a calm demeanor, with an indescribable gentleness and serenity.

Fang Zinan glanced at Shang Yiqing, gesturing for her to speak, but she pretended not to see. After they walked down the golden bridge, Shang Yiqing smiled and asked softly, "Empress, I have a matter to attend to."

Empress Chen was in a good mood as she smiled. "If Imperial Concubine Rong has anything to say, just ask. There's no need to be polite in front of me."

Shang Yiqing pursed her lips and asked tentatively, "I heard you want to betroth Ying Ying to King Xuan as your secondary wife?"

Empress Chen nodded slightly. "Yes, I do have that intention."

"Then chenqie dares to ask the empress: Is this Great General Xiao's proposal, or …"

"A few days ago, King Xuan made a request to me. I saw that he was sincere in his words, and was completely infatuated with Ying Ying, so I agreed to King Xuan's request …" Empress Chen glanced at Shang Yiqing and asked, "What's the matter? Has Imperial Concubine Rong heard of this as well?"

Shang Yiqing nodded. "Chenqie has heard of this, but …" She hesitated and said no more.

Empress Chen looked at her with a puzzled expression. "If Imperial Concubine Rong has anything to say, just say it. Why are you hesitating?"

"Empress, chenqie doesn't know the consequences of telling you about this matter. That's why chenqie is a little nervous." He had to keep himself in suspense. If he were to say it out loud, the empress might not accept it and Shang Yiqing would retreat and advance further, hesitating to speak.

This piqued Empress Chen's curiosity even further. The Concubine Rong that she knew was usually quick to speak and rarely stuttered like this. She couldn't help but ask, "Consort Rong, what's wrong with you today? "In the past, you would have said anything directly. Why is it that today …"

Shang Yiqing heaved a long sigh, "Empress, chenqie really doesn't know how to tell you about this matter. Besides, chenqie said it, I'm afraid Empress won't be happy!"

Fang Zinan laughed to himself. He had always known that Shang Yiqing was impetuous, so how could she know how to talk? He even purposely paused and didn't continue speaking, only waiting for Empress Chen to ask.

Empress Chen was indeed tricked, and looked at Shang Yiqing with a mixture of exasperation and amusement. "Imperial Concubine Rong, what are you doing today? If you have something to say, just say it. I like it when you speak the most.

Seeing that the time was right, Shang Yiqing stepped forward and said, "Empress, chenqie heard that Miss Ying Ying is unwilling to marry King Xuan, and that she is even refusing him with her life!"

Empress Chen's expression changed drastically. She was obviously surprised, and she asked, "What's going on here?"

"Actually, Lady Ying Ying didn't want to marry King Xuan at all, and she didn't feel anything for him either. As for King Xuan's sincere attitude, those are his one-sided wishful thinking. Ying Ying does not have any feelings for him, nor are there any feelings between a man and a woman. " Shang Yiqing took the opportunity to say it out loud.

"How can this be? "I've heard that King Xuan and Prince Rong made a ruckus on the streets for Ying Ying and decided to let her marry King Xuan because of her reputation. I didn't expect her to be so unwilling. Could there be a reason behind it?" Ying Ying wanted to fight back with her life on the line, but when Empress Chen heard this, she felt shocked and depressed. She was obviously trying to promote good things, but why wasn't Ying Ying grateful?

"Empress, it's actually like this." Shang Yiqing took in a deep breath. "The fight between Prince Xuan and Prince Rong that day wasn't because of Ying Ying …"

Fang Zinan cast a sidelong glance at her, not knowing how she would continue to make things up, so he didn't say anything.

"If it's not for Ying Ying, then why are you afraid?" Empress Chen felt even more confused. Since it wasn't for Ying Ying, what did King Xuan mean by his words the other day?

My lady, my concubine happened to be shopping with Ying Ying that day. When King Xuan saw Ying Ying, he spoke rudely. My prince saw the situation and approached to argue, but she didn't think that King Xuan had mistakenly thought that Ying Ying liked my prince, and had even pushed Chenqie away — — "When Shang Yiqing said this, her tone changed," The Empress knows that Chenqie was kidnapped that day and had a shoulder injury. Chenqie was in so much pain that she couldn't bear it anymore. "This matter is none other than my concubine's fault for implicating Miss Ying Ying.

Ah!" How could this happen? " When Empress Chen heard this, she was so angry that her face changed! She hadn't forgotten that Shang Yiqing had been kidnapped by an assassin to save her. Besides, Shang Yiqing's injury still made her feel apologetic. I couldn't help but feel pain and pity in my heart, and said heavily: "How could King Xuan lie to me? How preposterous!

Seeing that Empress Chen had been angered, Fang Zinan felt that Shang Yiqing had gone too far with her arrangement of King Xuan. He hastened to persuade her, "Empress, don't listen to the wangfei's nonsense. King Xuan really does like Lady Ying Ying. It's a pity that Lady Ying Ying doesn't have any feelings for him …"

Fang Zinan cut her off, "Prince Rong, I know that you two have a deep affection for each other, so you don't need to stand here and defend Prince Xuan. I believe in Imperial Concubine Rong's words."

"Esteemed Empress, your nephew's words are true …" After all, King Xuan was his own brother. Fang Zinan felt very uncomfortable after seeing King Xuan being misunderstood by Empress Chen. He unconsciously rolled his eyes at Shang Yiqing.

Shang Yiqing turned a blind eye and continued, "Niangniang, chenqie came here today to ask the Empress to retract her order. As the saying goes, 'A forcefully twisted melon is not sweet.' Since Yingying doesn't feel anything for King Xuan, why must she marry him? Furthermore, Ying Ying's personality is also so stubborn. If she were to do something stupid and let someone who doesn't know her true identity find out, she'll say that the Empress isn't kind. Why must she go through all this trouble? "

Empress Chen completely believed Shang Yiqing's words and was currently both angry and alarmed. She nodded her head and said, "Esteemed wangfei is right, I have indeed taken King Xuan's words to heart. Since Ying Ying was unwilling, I naturally can't make things difficult for her. "Forget it, I'll deal with this matter on my own. I'll allow wangfei to go back and tell Ying Ying not to do anything foolish again!"

"This concubine knows that the Empress has always been reasonable and benevolent. As expected, this concubine can clearly see right and wrong. Then, this concubine will thank the Empress on behalf of Ying Ying. Another day, this concubine will bring Ying Ying to the palace to thank the Empress!"