Chapter 282 (1/2)

Chapter 282: You're the most important

“Why must you make things difficult for yourself? This is a simple matter. She enjoys His Majesty's favor now. That's nothing new. Very few men can be truly loyal, let alone a man from the royal family. You should know that better than anyone.”

Consort Li's anger subsided somewhat. She took a deep breath to calm herself and nodded. “I know what you meant, mama, but you haven't seen her yourself. She's too shameless! I don't know who she is and how she seduced His Majesty. I've never been scolded before, and yet His Majesty punished me again and again for her. How can I take that? She's a n.o.body with no official relations.h.i.+p with His Majesty, and yet His Majesty keeps taking her side! Of course I'd be angry!”

The caretaker darted her eyes around. “If so, Lady Li should turn to your father, the general, for help. Explain what you've been through. He'd have a solution.”

Consort Li thought for a while. It made sense. She quickly drafted a letter to her father. Worried that he wouldn't pay enough attention to her plea, she made Jun Huang out as a woman who shamelessly seduced Nan Jihan and asked him to get rid of her.

General Li considered the letter for a long time. He asked around about Jun Huang and came to the conclusion that there was truth to his daughter's accusation. Besides, he wasn't going to ignore her plea. During the morning meeting the next day, he brought the issue up to the emperor.

“It's said that His Majesty is keeping a woman in the palace. Is that true?” General Li stared at Nan Jihan and asked before a room full of scholar and military officials.

Nan Jihan frowned at him. “Where did the official hear that?”

“It's… Whatever happened in the palace could affect the entire nation,” the general struggled to explain himself, his expression tight. “It's a common topic in the court. This official happened to overhear that.”

Nan Jihan smiled coolly. General Li stood silently at the center of the main hall, worried that he'd drag his daughter down with him.

Nan Jihan's eyes turned frosty. “Do your job and don't try to gather information about my personal affairs. You do this now. Are you going to force me to surrender the throne next?”

He was facing the general, but everyone knew Nan Jihan's warning was for all of them.

“We'd never.” Everyone dropped to their knees. General Li was completely drenched in sweat. He was both defiant and fearful. He didn't know what to do.

Nan Jihan scoffed, his gaze sweeping over everyone in attendance. “My personal affairs are none of your business. If any of you dare contact anyone in the palace, I won't go easy on you. Do all of you understand?”

He raised an eyebrow, his face tight with anger.

General Li nodded nervously. Even after the meeting concluded, he still hadn't recovered from his shock. Everything felt like a fever dream.

Nan Jihan returned to the palace. Consort Li obviously hadn't learned her lesson. After some hesitation, he issued a decree degrading her from the honored consort to a n.o.ble lady. Consort Li almost fainted when she heard. She gritted her teeth in resentment and came close to tearing down her place.

Nan Jihan heard that Jun Huang had woken up before he reached his chamber. He rushed to her room and saw her reading a book on the bed. He frowned and took the book from her, handing it to a maid behind him. “The royal doctor said you shouldn't do anything strenuous. Rest and wait until you've recovered to read.”

Jun Huang nodded with a smile and didn't argue with him. She adjusted her posture, trying to get comfortable, but ended up pulling the wounds on her knees. She sucked in a pained breath.

Nan Jihan hurriedly steadied her with a hand on her shoulder and scolded, “Just sit tight and let the servants do the work.”

Jun Huang snorted. Her face was no longer red from the sunburn. Instead, it was sickly pale. Even her lips were almost free of any color. It made Nan Jihan's heart ache.

“Don't worry. The pain is minor and not important at all in the grand scheme of things.”

“You are the most important thing now,” Nan Jihan snapped with a scowl. “Don't trivialize your discomfort.”

Jun Huang knew Nan Jihan was worried about her, which she wasn't going to dismiss. She'd caused quite a lot of troubles for him lately. She lowered her eyes for a bemused moment before looking up at him and saying apologetically, “I appreciate all the help you've offered me. What can I do to repay you?”