Chapter 170:

When Emperor Jing arrived at the imperial garden, chaos had already erupted.

Officer Zhou was glaring furiously at the disheveled couple.

When the crowd looked closer, they were stunned beyond belief—the couple turned out to be Minister Zhou and Princess Diwa.

Considering that Minister Zhou had been absent for a long time, everyone suddenly understood the situation.

Father and son both involved with the same woman—what a scandal in a prestigious family.

Minister Zhou was blushing with shame, but Princess Diwa remained calm and composed.

“Someone tell me what exactly is going on here!” the emperor commanded.

Officer Zhou stared at his father, seemingly beyond caring anymore, and immediately knelt down.

“Your Majesty, I beg you to uphold justice. My father has repeatedly committed indecent acts with my wife. Wanting to preserve the family’s honor, I chose to remain silent and only tighten precautions. But these two shameless individuals, unable to do as they please at home, dared to indulge in illicit affairs even within the palace grounds. By disregarding me, they have also disrespected the royal dignity!”

Officer Zhou was clearly furious, holding nothing back.

Upon hearing this, Minister Zhou also immediately knelt and began kowtowing repeatedly.

“Your Majesty, forgive this old minister. I was foolish; I deserve to die…”

No one had ever seen Minister Zhou like this before. After all, arranging his daughter’s marriage to Prince Six had demonstrated his family’s prestige. Now, he had fallen into such a state.

Seeing both men kneeling, Princess Diwa also knelt, but spoke earnestly: “Your Majesty, love cannot simply be judged right or wrong. Officer Zhou has always been busy with court affairs and never treated me kindly. Rosalind may not understand the customs of Nanqin, but any young woman who longs for companionship and suffers loneliness without her husband’s comfort—why shouldn’t she seek solace elsewhere? Men can have multiple wives and concubines, but must women remain faithful to one man forever, unable to pursue happiness?”

Her words shocked everyone present.

Looking at Princess Rosalind, people thought indeed she was a femme fatale. Considering Diwa’s culture, many felt uneasy.

Such a barbarian woman indeed!

Her conduct was far too liberal.

Emperor Jing seemed extremely angry but ultimately said nothing further to Princess Rosalind. He thought to himself that regardless of her behavior, she was still a princess.

“Minister Zhou has shown no virtue or capability and has violated moral codes. He is unfit to continue serving the nation. His current duties are hereby suspended; further details will be discussed in court later. As for Officer Zhou, his misconduct in the palace shall be treated the same as his father’s.”

After dealing with the Zhou father and son, Emperor Jing frowned while looking at Princess Rosalind. Handling the ZHOUs was easy, but what about the Diwa princess? He needed to consider the diplomatic relationship between the two countries.

Looking at the situation, it was clearly inappropriate to send the princess back to the Zhou household.

Sighing deeply, Emperor Jing reluctantly said, “Princess Rosalind grew up in Diwa and may not fully understand our nation’s customs. Since things have reached this point, continuing the marriage is clearly inappropriate. I wonder what suggestions my ministers have?”

Emperor Jing looked at the ministers who had followed him to witness the scene.

Everyone lowered their heads. Even those who usually preached about morality and righteousness found it difficult to speak. If it were an ordinary woman, she might even be drowned in a pigsty, but this was the Diwa princess. This matter concerned the diplomatic relations between two countries. Although they considered Princess Rosalind the main culprit, they also thought Minister Zhou was truly despicable.

Regardless, the Diwa princess was a hot potato—any decision would be problematic.

Everyone remained silent until Princess Rosalind spoke up.

“If Minister Zhou is willing to marry me, I am ready to divorce my current husband and remarry him.”

Her words shocked everyone present. Indeed, this was turning into a dramatic soap opera.

Looking at Minister Zhou, he seemed on the verge of fainting.

Officer Zhou glared at the two with deep resentment.

Princess Rosalind kept her eyes fixed on Minister Zhou.

Everyone was puzzled. No one could understand why the wrinkled Minister Zhou was more favored by Princess Diwa than the refined and scholarly Officer Zhou. Thinking about their own households, they felt uneasy.

It seemed they couldn’t afford to be completely carefree anymore!

Minister Zhou ultimately couldn’t ignore the strange looks from everyone. Besides, he had never intended to have a future with Rosalind.

Initially, she made the first move, and he couldn’t resist temptation, leading to this situation.

Thinking about it, besides his son’s hatred, his wife’s complaints, his colleagues’ contempt, and the emperor’s disapproval, he had gained nothing.

A femme fatale indeed!

“I fully understand I have committed grave mistakes and will never repeat them!”

Rosalind swayed as if unable to bear the moment. After a long pause, she opened her eyes: “Your Majesty, Rosalind respectfully requests a divorce from her husband.”

At this point, Officer Zhou’s opinion seemed no longer significant.

Technically, she should have been the one to receive a divorce decree. However, due to her royal status, she could gain maximum benefits, such as obtaining a divorce.

Emperor Jing glanced at everyone and sighed, “Since that’s the case, Princess shall temporarily reside in the palace for now. How about the Yilan Garden?”

Princess Rosalind bowed in gratitude.

Thus, the matter was resolved, but everyone had their own thoughts.

The Zhou family would likely fall into decline after this incident.

Princess Diwa couldn’t stay in the palace indefinitely, and her future remained uncertain.

If one were to say what was most memorable about today’s first birthday celebration, it wasn’t the three infants but the people attending the banquet.

Before long, the news had spread throughout the palace. Soon, even the respectable families outside the palace would learn about everything through palace gossip.

Since the emperor had no intention of concealing it, everyone was happy to have another topic for casual conversation.

The banquet later proceeded as usual, but many people were clearly distracted.

This incident was indeed sensational!

***

Late at night.

Although no incense was burned in the room, the atmosphere remained sweetly intoxicating.

Emperor Jing rolled off December’s body.

Breathing heavily, he pulled December into his arms and stroked her back.

“You seemed a bit tired tonight. Only once and you’re already exhausted,” he said, using his other hand to lift her chin for another kiss.

December leaned in, and they kissed for a long time.

Pulling the blanket over them, December asked, “Was today’s dramatic adultery exposure the ‘small incident’ you mentioned?”

Emperor Jing gently rubbed her hair, “Didn’t get to see the show—do you feel disappointed?”

“Of course not,” she raised her eyebrow.

Emperor Jing smiled warmly, “Such indecent news is best left to hearsay.”

If December had any confusion at this point, she was pretending to be naive. But such deliberate pretense was something December couldn’t and wouldn’t do.

“The princess seems like a stage actress!”

Her tone was somewhat sour, but Emperor Jing was willing to listen.

Hearing that Princess Diwa would temporarily reside in the palace, the palace concubines were gnashing their teeth with envy.

Despite their schemes, seeing the princess’s beauty combined with her personality made them feel extremely uneasy.

“Even if she’s a good actress, she means nothing to me. My heart belongs only to you, my Yue’er.”

If one were to compare the frequency of Emperor Jing and December’s thoughts at this moment, they were clearly not on the same wavelength. December genuinely believed that Princess Diwa was indeed a skilled actress. Otherwise, how could she manipulate the Zhou father and son so thoroughly?

Moreover, the outcome of the incident seemed to align precisely with Emperor Jing’s intentions.

Emperor Jing’s disdain for aristocratic families was like his hatred for mosquitoes and flies.

The hidden motives behind this incident were self-evident.

However, Emperor Jing seemed to think December was jealous. After all, wouldn’t all the palace consorts feel anxious about the princess staying in the palace?

December only hugged his neck without saying much.

After holding December for a while, Emperor Jing succinctly recounted the events in the imperial garden earlier. December laughed with her eyebrows curved.

Actually, before he even entered the room, Tao’er had already vividly narrated the entire incident. Her storytelling method was naturally far more entertaining than Emperor Jing’s current account.

Nevertheless, she didn’t dampen the emperor’s enthusiasm at all.

Chatting and laughing, the couple was quite happy.

Afterwards, Yue’er summarized, “Your Majesty planned this deliberately. With this, Minister Zhou probably won’t dare to show his face again. Not only that, but all the ministers might start worrying about their own wives and concubines.”

Emperor Jing laughed like a fox, “I need to keep them feeling some pressure. I must remind them that even within their own households, things might not be stable. When they’re busy dealing with their own problems, they won’t have the mind to meddle in others’ affairs.”

His words were vague, but December was clever and refrained from asking further questions.

Although the emperor was willing to share court matters, it didn’t mean she had the right to express her opinions.

Emperor Jing didn’t find her silence inappropriate and continued chatting about unstable domestic situations in various officials’ households.

December listened with inner alarm. Did the emperor know about all the affairs in the capital?

And why did he tell her all this without reservation—was it a good thing or a bad thing?

Seeing December’s doubtful gaze,

Emperor Jing kissed her forehead, “Don’t look at me like that. I can’t bear your doubts. I love you!”

December didn’t know how her emotions had been so clearly revealed. Lately, she seemed to be losing control of her emotions more and more, even though she knew it was not good, she kept making the same mistake!

Actually, December was completely mistaken here.

She was just as she had always been—even if she had questions, they were fleeting. The difference was that Emperor Jing at this moment was different from before. He treated her with utmost sincerity, so naturally, he could perceive her subtle changes.

“I never doubted you,” she playfully protested.

Emperor Jing smiled slightly without elaborating further.

Since he didn’t want to talk about it, December naturally wouldn’t dwell on the topic either.

Before long, December brought up something else, making Emperor Jing laugh heartily again.