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The two of them stood side by side, one tall and one bent, the female's sleeve falling on the male's arm. It didn't look at all like the Empress holding onto the Emperor; instead, it looked as if the Empress was being supported by a eunuch.

Meng Fuyao immediately smiled frivolously.

The consequences of robbing the cradle were indeed brutal…

Upon seeing Meng Fuyao's smile, the Xuanji officials immediately felt their eyes hurt.

Since when had His Majesty been like this? He had always been a handsome man, preserving his youthful masculinity despite his age and only starting to show signs of aging during the past half year. But even so, it couldn't have been as bad as this, what had happened during the last two months of not meeting anyone for him to degenerate into such a state where he couldn't even stand up straight?

An old husband and a young wife, what a scene…

Behind the screen, the Empress of Xuanji supported the Emperor as he sat down. Meng Fuyao had originally thought that she was going to sit at another place beside him, but when she raised her head, she saw the Empress' hands rested elegantly on the Emperor's knee. She actually sat right by the Emperor's side on the throne itself.

The Xuanji officials paled. In the past, no matter how audacious the Empress had been, she had never officially participated in political affairs. His Majesty had been strict about it, letting her run amok in the harem, but never disturbing the imperial court, so what was happening today? Allowing the Empress to sit at the throne, right in front of honored guests from Wuji and Dahan? This, this, this, this… Weren't they going to become the world's greatest joke? Had His Majesty's illness finally muddled his brain?

They raised their eyes to see King Meng, and sure enough, she was once again laughing shamelessly.

Not just laughing, but with her mouth wide open, not just wide open, but laughing hysterically as well.

”Eh, since when did Xuanji have two Emperors? Wasn't it said before that no country can have two leaders? Yet now, we have seen the extraordinary.”

Zhangsun Wuji smiled at the green-faced Minister of Rites beside him and said, ”May the Minister draw up the charter, I will await the ceremony.”

Based on the customs of the Seven Kingdoms' royal families, the ceremony for visiting the Emperor and the ceremony for visiting the Empress were different. Given Zhangsun Wuji and Meng Fuyao's status, they should only have to bow to the Emperor of Xuanji, and the Xuanji Emperor would return the greeting. However, to the Empress of Xuanji, they only had to greet her without bowing. Now that she was sitting at the throne, it naturally became difficult to establish which ceremony to follow.

The Minister of Rites glanced towards the screen, at the arrogant Empress and silent Emperor, unsure how to proceed. In the past, all the ceremonies had proceeded as planned, but now that the Empress was here, what should he do?

The heads behind the screen did not move, and outside the screen, Zhangsun Wuji and Meng Fuyao remained motionless as well, resulting in an awkward yet irresolvable situation. The Minister of Rites began to break out in cold sweat.

Meng Fuyao sat there nonchalantly, picking at her fingernails, clearly bored. She did not feel any pressure at all. At the throne, the Empress felt uneasy and glared at Meng Fuyao, scrutinizing her intently. If that glare could transform into a beast, it would already have attacked.

Hence, upon further rumination, Meng Fuyao realized. 'It seems that this person was Zhangsun Wuji's previous father-in-law and precious mother-in-law? It also seems like, the son-in-law who withdrew from the marriage had brought his new girlfriend in front of them to show off?'

Ah, this was certainly too much! No wonder the two looked so tensed and enraged, sitting there without moving, yet their expressions said it all.

Meng Fuyao naturally refused to admit that she was the girlfriend of a certain person, but it seemed that she couldn't stop others from thinking that way. Moreover, the whole of the Five Regions Continent would think that way after seeing how closely the Crown Prince was watching her.

It seemed that they didn't just think that way, but there were also many strange and hilarious versions that she had heard from two Xuanji officials during the banquet at West Wind Parlour. The gist of the idea was wondering whose girlfriend Meng Fuyao actually was; clearly, it was Crown Prince Wuji beside her, yet she had become a King of Dahan? Why had she frivolously become Xuayuan's Regent King after becoming a King of Dahan? The events were simply impossible for anyone to imagine and the rumors of a love triangle or an even more angled love conflict had arisen. As such, she, Meng Fuyao, had soon become the most frivolous female lead in all of the Five Regions Continent…

Sigh… The mother-in-law stared at her ex-son-in-law, her eyes tearing, then looked at the ex-son-in-law's girlfriend, her claws showing…

When she thought up to this point, she couldn't help smiling brightly. Below, the Xuanji officials were feeling extremely awkward. Not everyone had the ability to make awkward situations as well as Zhangsun Wuji and Meng Fuyao, and by simply sitting there without greeting, even the Wuji and Dahan officials following them refused to stand, such a situation had never happened before. As such, they could only watch and see what would happen silently.

The princes and princesses of Xuanji were also present, and the Eldest Imperial Princess was looking impatient as she raised an eyebrow, looking as if she wanted to say something. However, after noticing the Ninth Princess's slight shake of her head, the Eldest Imperial Princess looked up at the ceiling and snorted, not saying anything else.

The Tenth Princess, Eleventh Prince and Twelfth Prince were sitting together. They were all the Empress' children, and their expressions were unanimous as they flared at Zhangsun Wuji and Meng Fuyao. They clearly wanted to impose pressure on them, but Meng Fuyao didn't care about them but instead glanced at the gentle-looking man sitting beside the Eldest Imperial Princess twice—that person's expression had been neutral from the beginning and was extremely calm. No matter how the people in the hall reacted, he had been the only one who had remained apathetic and expressionless.

Looking at that person, it was Consort Ning's Third Prince? As the only child, he was a rather lonesome individual, yet because of his mother's status, he was arrogant and stubborn. From the looks of it, he did not harbor good intentions either.

Meng Fuyao's gaze swept across the princes and princesses of Xuanji, watching them intently when there was a slight movement from the other side, and the Empress finally spoke.

”What's there to discuss?” Behind the screen, the Empress sneered. Her sharp voice echoed throughout the hall as she said, ”His Majesty and myself are here as husband and wife, how are we not fit to receive respect from the juniors?”