The banquet lasted late into the night, with Minister Shangguan extremely excited and dead drunk. Although disappointed, Madam Zhang and her daughter Shangguan Han had no choice but to put on a brave face and attend to the guests on the side.

Mingde had wanted to leave early, but unfortunately he was too drunk to walk and was forced to drink a few more cups by Prince Dongyang.

As the saying goes, beauties look even more enchanting under the candlelight. Mingde, already blessed with exquisite features, appeared even more alluring with the flush of alcohol, his eyes brimming with the hues of spring.

Prince Dongyang Jinyuan, somewhat tipsy himself, held Mingde's hand and asked with a smile, "Mingde, do you have a younger sister? If so, let this prince have her. Although this prince already has two concubines, your sister will certainly not be treated poorly..."

Shangguan Han's eyes lit up, but to her surprise, Mingde withdrew his hand and said, "This humble official is the youngest son in the family."

She immediately froze, gradually overcome by resentment that she could barely contain. Seeing this, Madam Zhang also became anxious and hurriedly signaled to her husband with her eyes.

Minister Shangguan stepped forward, bowing, and said, "Your Highness, this humble official does have an elder daughter..."

Shangguan Han, forgetting her dignity as an official's daughter, hurriedly lifted her skirt and stepped forward to pay her respects. Jinyuan, his eyes hazy with drunkenness, swept his gaze over her and burst out laughing, "Mingde, is this your elder sister?"

Mingde replied, "Yes."

"Then how come she doesn't resemble you in the slightest?"

Mingde raised his eyes to look at the young lady. The usually arrogant and spoiled eldest daughter had an undisguised greed and desire on her beautiful face; her mother stood not far behind, anxiously looking over, her usually sharp mouth opening and closing as if constantly issuing orders to the servants.

Mingde lowered his long lashes, smiled faintly, and said softly, "If this humble official's sister can serve by Your Highness's side, wouldn't that be the same as this humble official serving by your side?"

He spoke very softly, and only two people heard him. One was Prince Dongyang; Jinyuan instantly sobered up halfway. The other was Zhang Kuo, the trusted eunuch by the Emperor's side, who silently knelt down and heavily kowtowed.

"Oh no, Eunuch Zhang," Mingde hurriedly helped him up personally, "What are you doing?"

Zhang Kuo said, "This slave begs Prince on behalf of Young Master Mingde for one thing."

At this time, Jinyuan was very surprised, but amidst the surprise, there was also a hint of the typical male smugness. It's like when a beautiful person takes the initiative to strike up a conversation with you. Even though you know that beauty already belongs to someone else, you can't help but feel proud and satisfied for a while.

Mingde was very good-looking, which was something Prince Dongyang had long witnessed at the entrance of the Emperor's bedchamber. When such a good-looking person says a few ambiguous words to you, even if they don't mean well, it's enough to make you feel intoxicated for a while.

Immersed in this intoxication and self-satisfaction, Prince Dongyang's face turned cold upon hearing Zhang Kuo's words, "What does Eunuch Zhang beg of this prince?"

Zhang Kuo deeply bowed his body, "This slave begs Your Highness: the night is deep and the dew heavy, Young Master Mingde has a weak constitution, please send him back to rest!"

Just as Prince Dongyang was about to say something, Zhang Kuo added inconspicuously, "If the Emperor summons the young master to the palace in the middle of the night, and if the young master makes any mistake and can't enter, whose fault would that be?"

Prince Dongyang Jinyuan suddenly felt a chill run up his spine.

He knew that his imperial brother adored Shangguan Mingde, to the point of wanting to lock the beauty in a nine-layered palace several times. No emperor would tolerate the beauty he had locked up casting their gaze upon a man outside the deep palace, not even a trivial glance.

More importantly, the unlucky one would certainly not be Shangguan Mingde. How slippery was this person, how could he put himself in such a dangerous situation?

Jinyuan sobered up at once and immediately put on a smile, "Since that's the case, Mingde, you should go and rest. This prince is also a bit tired, it's time to return to the residence."

Mingde smiled faintly. That hint of a smile in the brilliant candlelight seemed to be laced with poison, truly a blade that could scrape the bones. "Since that's the case, this humble official shall take his leave."

In Jinyuan's eyes, there seemed to be a hint of regret in that smile.

Prince Dongyang Jinyuan did not leave immediately due to Minister Shangguan's enthusiastic persuasion, so the banquet was delayed for a while longer.

Mingde lay on the couch in his small courtyard. The winter weather was cold, and the thin cotton quilts were not warm enough, so he did not fall asleep immediately. There was a vague feeling in his heart that something was amiss, as if he had forgotten something important.

Prince Dongyang Li Jinyuan... originally a potential candidate for the throne, but was beaten to it by the Crown Prince Li Ji...

Pledging allegiance with blood, rising in rebellion to establish a nation... so after so many years, he still coveted the throne?

Mingde, would you rather be content with a lowly position and use your beauty to gain favor, than to emulate Wei Zheng and become a founding minister?

Mingde laughed coldly and silently. Even if the Qianwan Emperor was a cruel and tyrannical ruler, he could at least be considered a wise monarch. What about you, Li Jinyuan? Nothing but an opportunist!

He turned over, ready to sleep, when suddenly it was as if a flash of light passed through his mind. Prince Dongyang Jinyuan's voice at that time was deliberately hoarse and cautious, much like that night...

The third person among the three Xiwan assassins who had attempted to assassinate the Crown Prince that night, the one who had revealed his hidden guard identity with a single sentence and later escaped!

Mingde suddenly turned around and got out of bed, rushing out the door wearing only his undergarments. Who would have thought that Madam Zhang, having finished the banquet, was angrily coming to the door to settle scores with him. As soon as the door opened, the two collided.

The servants beside Madam Zhang rushed forward, "Madam!"

"Quickly call the doctor!"

"Is there no law anymore?" ...

Madam Zhang wailed and grabbed Mingde, "Damn bastard, just like your cheap mother, daring to commit murder! What are you all looking at? Hurry and take him down and lock him up, call the master!"

Minister Shangguan was nodding and bowing at the main gate, seeing off Prince Dongyang. Upon hearing the servant's report, he nodded and said in a low voice, "Lock him up first, then we'll talk."

The servant quickly retreated. Jinyuan had already guessed what was going on, but his face remained expressionless as he held his head high and boarded the carriage. His personal attendant served him tea and was about to leave when Jinyuan asked, "What did Shangguan Mingde do to deserve family punishment?"

The attendant nodded, "I inquired about it and heard that he offended Madam Zhang."

Jinyuan nodded and after a while said, "What do you think, my imperial brother dotes on him so much, how could he allow others to step on his head and bully him?"

The attendant smiled and said, "How would this servant know? If I may be so bold, perhaps His Majesty just wants to discipline Young Master Mingde's temperament, who knows."

Jinyuan closed his eyes to rest, no one knew what he was thinking, only seeing him smiling coldly at something in the misty tea steam.

"...Discipline his temperament?" Jinyuan seemed to find it very amusing, "That's not it at all, His Majesty never even thought about that... A flower just needs to bloom beautifully when admired, who cares how it blooms when no one is looking at it?"

_

Prince Dongyang Jinyuan had too much to drink. In the middle of the night, just as he had fallen asleep embracing his concubine, an imperial decree suddenly broke in, "inviting" the prince to enter the palace to see the Emperor.

Jinyuan was shocked. He had merely graced the Shangguan family's night banquet with his presence, could the Emperor have found out so quickly?

He hurriedly crawled out of the warm bed and entered the palace in the middle of the night. The Emperor was sitting in Lianyi Palace, with only a yellow pear wood tea table in front of the inner chamber, a nine-curved lotus lantern on the side, and several beauties in pearls and jades vaguely hidden behind the curtains serving him, not a hint of laughter to be heard.

Seeing this, Jinyuan immediately knelt down in a grand ceremony, "Your Majesty summoned this subject tonight, for what reason?"

The Qianwan Emperor put down his small tea cup the color of the sky after rain and smiled, "I heard that my imperial brother intends to marry the elder sister of Shangguan Mingde, is that so?"

Jinyuan hesitated for a moment and lowered his head, "This subject... this subject already has a princess consort as well as concubines and consorts..."

The Qianwan Emperor immediately asked, "Shangguan Mingde is exceptionally beautiful, his sister must be no less. What, does she not catch my imperial brother's eye?"

The implication was clear: You think my little Mingde is not good-looking, right?

Jinyuan repeatedly said, "This subject does not dare! Does not dare! Miss Shangguan is dazzlingly beautiful and virtuous in character, obtaining her would be this subject's great fortune!"

The Qianwan Emperor said "Oh", and before Jinyuan's tense nerves had a chance to relax, he heard him slowly ask, "Does his sister look like Mingde?"

Prince Dongyang Jinyuan immediately broke out in a sweat. At this time, Zhang Kuo, who was standing beside the Qianwan Emperor, coughed and whispered something to the Emperor. After a while, the Qianwan Emperor asked with a smile, "I heard that my imperial brother drank a lot, is that so?"

Jinyuan, being a smart man, immediately followed the path to survival pointed out by Zhang Kuo, "Yes, yes, yes, this subject was greedy with the cup for a moment and drank too much, so my impression of Miss Shangguan is really not very clear..."

He was just thinking that he must thank Eunuch Zhang properly after going out, but who knew the Emperor stood up, came over to help him up with a smile, and said loudly, "Of course, wine does not intoxicate people, people intoxicate themselves!"

Jinyuan broke free from his imperial brother's hand and knelt down with a thud, "Your Majesty, spare my life!"

"Spare you from what?"

"This subject knows his mistake!"

"What mistake did my imperial brother commit?"

Sweat poured down Jinyuan's face. The Emperor's jealousy was too subtle.

The Qianwan Emperor looked at him for a while without speaking, then slowly walked back to the main seat with a smile and sat down on the couch in an extremely comfortable and leisurely manner. Jinyuan knelt with his head lowered, and after a while heard him ask lightly, "Since you went to the banquet, tell me about the new and interesting things to listen to. I am so bored and depressed staying in the palace all day."

Jinyuan wiped his sweat, quickly thinking about what the Emperor meant by these words, what the implications were, while forcing a smile and speaking, "This subject only saw Minister Shangguan and his wife, not others... Speaking of novelty, this subject never knew before that the Shangguan family had such strict family discipline."

He briefly recounted what he heard about Mingde being confined before leaving, originally thinking the Emperor would be very interested, but who knew the Qianwan Emperor interrupted lightly, "I knew about this long ago."

Knew long ago? If you knew long ago, you still tolerated others climbing on top of your beloved's head to bully him?

Jinyuan was quite unable to understand, and could only kowtow, "Your Majesty is indeed perceptive and all-knowing."

The Qianwan Emperor laughed, "My imperial brother and I are not close, if you spent more time with me, you would know. I always know about many things."

Jinyuan was greatly shocked in his heart, but pretended to be frightened on the surface, "Your Majesty is right, this subject was presumptuous tonight."

The Qianwan Emperor waved his hand, "My imperial brother has had too much to drink and must be in low spirits, go back and rest."