In case the two of them caused any trouble inside later, it would be better not to be affected.
"Fang Xi, stay here. I haven't punished you yet. Why are you in such a hurry to run away?" The Empress Dowager had long disliked Shuang Xi. She thought he hadn't advised Si Junlin well and had deliberately led him to play in the Eastern Great Marsh, which finally led to his entanglement with this "monster".
But when Su Wan'er walked closer and the Empress Dowager saw her face clearly, she couldn't say a word.
"This is the fairy I told you about, Mother. Doesn't she look extremely solemn? She doesn't seem like an ordinary person."
The Empress Dowager stood up silently. Su Wan'er had been thinking all the way. She really didn't know if, in her current situation, she really didn't need to pay respects as Fang Xi had said. But seeing the Empress Dowager stand up on her own, she was afraid that the latter would even bow to her. So she took a step forward and knelt down.
"I pay my respects to the Empress Dowager." Her father had always taught her to be loyal to the monarch and the royal family. Naturally, she couldn't neglect the etiquette at this moment. Moreover, she might as well take this good opportunity to explain the reason to the Empress Dowager. Maybe she could escape from the palace. She didn't want to be a queen here and be locked under this four - cornered sky all day long.
"Isn't this... Isn't this Su Wan'er? This is the fairy you mentioned." The Empress Dowager didn't know whether she was angry or bitter in her heart.
"Mother, this is indeed the fairy I saw in the Eastern Lake Great Marsh. Maybe she just looks like Miss Su of the Su family." This matter must be used as an excuse to bring forward the queen - conferring ceremony quickly. Otherwise, those old fellows would surely say something.
You.
"If you're willing to marry her, I have nothing to say. Why do you need to find such an excuse?" The Empress Dowager naturally knew what was on her son's mind. After thinking it over, she understood that since Su Wan'er had a certain background, if she wanted to enter the palace and be conferred the title of queen, it would be difficult to silence the courtiers.
"In that case, let's settle this matter quickly. We don't want any unexpected problems."
"Thank you, Mother, for your approval."
"Empress Dowager, Empress... Dowager, please be discerning. I'm the third daughter of the Su family in the current dynasty. I'm not any fairy. My father and brother are both officials in the court. The Empress Dowager can call them here and ask. I didn't enter the palace with the Emperor from the Eastern Lake Great Marsh. The Emperor snatched me from... from my wedding. I hope the Empress Dowager will be discerning and let me go back." Su Wan'er was obviously panicked. Why did the Empress Dowager seem to acquiesce after seeing her? The Empress Dowager couldn't be so stupid as to believe the story of the fairy.
"Someone, Her Highness the Fairy must not have rested well last night. Please take her down quickly."
Xiao Tao immediately understood and tried to pull Su Wan'er away. However, Su Wan'er became more and more panicked. "Empress Dowager, please be discerning. The Emperor, the Emperor forced himself on me! He snatched a civilian girl..."
"Your Highness, please stop talking. If you keep talking like this, it's an act of deceiving the monarch. Please go quickly." Seeing that she really intended to leave the palace with the help of the Empress Dowager, Xiao Tao hard - pulled her back.
It wasn't that Su Wan'er couldn't overpower Xiao Tao, nor that she didn't rest well last night. It was because Su Wan'er saw the expressions of the two people. They seemed to acquiesce. Si Junlin stood there indifferently, and the Empress Dowager stared at her without showing any emotion.
"What's wrong with this child?" The Empress Dowager was very puzzled. Obviously, Su Wan'er was very different from her previous disrespectful self. Instead, she seemed... a lot more naive.
"Why do you say so, Mother?" Hearing this, Si Junlin immediately remembered his fragmented memories of these days.
It seemed that the Su Wan'er in his memory was also different from the current one. That feeling was like... willfulness? Or more straightforward? She was more unrestrained and hated evil more openly in front of him.
"This child wasn't so obedient in the past. Now she can be pulled back by a maid. It's really not easy for her. Presumably, the tough battle in the military camp has tempered her personality?" The Empress Dowager smiled with satisfaction. "This is also a good thing. She has made contributions to our Great Jin. If the Emperor wants to marry her, let him."
Si Junlin immediately perked up, knelt down, and bowed respectfully to the Empress Dowager. "Thank you, Mother. But... what about the courtiers?"
"Don't worry. I'll talk to your uncle. I thought you had really found some monster. If I had known it was her earlier, I wouldn't have made such a big fuss."
Si Junlin finally felt relieved. The Empress Dowager had a deep foundation. Since she had agreed, with the support of a group of old officials led by his uncle in the court, the matter would surely be quieted down.
But for Su Wan'er, it seemed that a storm was about to break out. She was led back to the side hall of the Yangxin Hall in a daze by Xiao Tao.
"Your Highness, it's just the beginning of summer. Have a cup of lotus - tip tea." Seeing that she hadn't said a word for half an hour, Xiao Tao was afraid that she was thinking wildly again.
"Xiao Tao, no. I have to escape." There was determination in Su Wan'er's eyes.
"Your Highness... Why... Why are you doing this?" Xiao Tao was almost crying.
"Who's your highness? I shouldn't have come here at all. I don't know any of you. I'm the third miss of the Su Mansion, a female general conferred by the late emperor. I'm going to fight on the battlefield in the future!" Su Wan'er was extremely excited and almost shouted.
Why? Why was she kidnapped here for no reason? Why was it announced to the world that she had become a fairy? Why did she have to stay here?
"Well said! What a female general conferred by the emperor. The fairy is really extraordinary. She doesn't even care about the position of the queen of our Great Jin. This really corresponds to the old saying: poverty and humble birth cannot make one swerve from principle, and high position and handsome emoluments cannot corrupt one..." Si Junlin couldn't hold back and came to see her.
"You!" Su Wan'er was in a fit of anger. When she saw him coming, she immediately drew out the sword she always carried and pointed it at his throat.
"One cannot be subdued by force..." Si Junlin was very happy now. Since he knew that she had once been his queen, he had only one thought in his mind: to marry her back. Now he smiled and casually pushed the sword aside with his bare hand, firmly believing that Su Wan'er would surely not be willing to hurt him.
But unexpectedly, before he could dodge the sword, he really got stabbed in the shoulder.
"Ouch..."
"Your Highness!" Xiao Tao originally thought that everything would be all right when the emperor came. But who would have thought that Su Wan'er would accidentally stab the emperor.
"You! Why didn't you dodge?" Su Wan'er was also very surprised. She originally thought that anyone would know how to dodge when attacked like this. She just stabbed in a fit of anger and didn't really mean it.
"You go out first." Si Junlin didn't answer but first ordered Xiao Tao to go out.
"Your... Majesty, should I call the imperial doctor?" Xiao Tao seemed to be frightened and was very worried that the emperor would punish Su Wan'er.