Du Ling patted the Grand Empress Dowager on her back and said, “The carriage has already left. Let’s go back.” He then signalled to the eunuch nearby.
The eunuch walked up to them and said, “Grand Empress Dowager, it’s cold outside. Let us return to the palace.”
The Grand Empress Dowager nodded and headed back unwillingly, secretly hoping that the pills she had given Rulan would work.
Su Xi-er lay against Pei Qianhao in the carriage and took out the military tally, waving it in front of him. “A quarter of the military power.”
Pei Qianhao smiled. “A quarter of the military power was used as a dowry for Princess Consort Hao, the Imperial Princess of the Western Region. The news has already reached Beimin, and I can only imagine that everyone will look at you differently from now on.”
Su Xi-er knew very well that even though no one dared to openly defy her in the past, most still felt that she was not a good partner for Pei Qianhao due to her humble background.
As Pei Qianhao hugged her tight, he felt a tiny bottle in her sleeve. “What’s this?”
“Royal Grandmother gave this to me; she said it would help to warm my body.” Su Xi-er smiled and snuggled in closer to him. “Royal Grandmother even told me that men can’t resist temptations. She asked me to keep a close eye on you if I get pregnant in future. You’re not a monarch, so you don’t have to take more than one wife.”
Pei Qianhao rested his chin on her head as he said, “You’d be the only one for me, even if I am a monarch.”
Su Xi-er’s heart skipped a beat. A monarch without a harem is something that only happens in a play; no matter how faithful a monarch is, it is still impossible in real life.
Pei Qianhao explained hastily, afraid that she’d misunderstand. “I won’t be a monarch. I’ll only be supporting the monarch.”
“I trust you, A-Jing.” Su Xi-er smiled at him and snuggled against his chest.
They switched to a camel-drawn carriage when they reached the desert, and back to a horse-drawn one before they finally arrived in Beimin after more than ten days on the road.
The guards in the city had already been notified of their arrival, and the commoners were lined up along the streets, eagerly waiting to welcome them back. Who would have expected for Princess Consort Hao to actually be the Imperial Princess of the Western Region! The princess who visited Beimin previously and was full of airs is a fake!
Su Xi-er heard the cheers of the commoners as they rode through the city gates, spotting many joyful faces among the crowd through the curtains.
One of them yelled after getting a glimpse of Su Xi-er’s profile. “I saw the Imperial Princess! She’s much prettier than the fake one from before!”
The crowd was stirred up, and the guards had to stop them from crowding the carriage. Suddenly, one of the commoners knelt and cried out, “Long live the Imperial Princess!”
The surrounding commoners followed suit as they knelt and bowed to pay their respects, and their voices could be heard long after the carriage had disappeared from sight.
The commoners began discussing Su Xi-er after the guards left.
“The Imperial Princess controls part of the military in the Western Region. Her dowry isn’t jewellery, it’s military power!”
“That’s amazing! She can use it against Prince Hao if he ever dares to bully her!”
“No way, Prince Hao is a good man, and would never bully his princess consort.” A young girl commented. The women in Beimin saw Prince Hao as a hero, and he was the ideal partner for many of them, so they wouldn’t allow others to speak bad of him without reason.
