I Was Supposed to Be the Villainous Consort

Upon seeing the Emperor enter, Song Nanzhen quickly rose to greet him, his expression respectful as he stood to the side.

Feng Yi raised a hand, gesturing for him to rise. "You may rise," he said with a smile. "There are no outsiders here, so there is no need to be so tense."

Song Nanzhen murmured his assent, but he clearly didn’t dare to relax.

Song Yunzhao knew the distinction between sovereign and subject was no laughing matter. Her father would naturally not dare to show the slightest bit of disrespect in the Emperor’s presence.

Unwilling to watch her father be so wary in front of the Emperor, she smiled and said, "It is about time for him to leave the palace. Our family is waiting for Father at home. That we, father and daughter, could meet today is all thanks to Your Majesty’s grace. However, I cannot allow this to trouble Your Majesty further."

Feng Yi glanced at Yun Zhao, seeing she was speaking quite seriously. Just as he was about to say something, he heard Song Nanzhen ask for his leave.

’Alright. They truly are father and daughter.’

Feng Yi could see Song Nanzhen’s nervousness and unease, so he didn’t insist further and had Zhang Maoquan personally escort the man out of the palace.

Song Yunzhao walked her father to the entrance of the hall and said softly, "Dad, you must take good care of your health."

Song Nanzhen chuckled in reply. "Jieyu must also take good care of herself in the palace."

"Of course. You don’t have to worry at all," Song Yunzhao said with a smile.

Gazing at her father’s departing back, her eyes began to sting slightly, and she lifted her head a little.

Feng Yi watched Song Yunzhao from behind the window, taking in her small gesture of lifting her head. He only looked away when Yun Zhao turned to return to the hall.

When Song Yunzhao entered the hall, she went directly to sit beside the Emperor. Looking up at his face, she said with a smile, "Thank you, Your Majesty, for letting me see my father."

"Your father performed a great service providing disaster relief in the south. Letting you two meet is nothing," Feng Yi replied, noticing Song Yunzhao’s slightly red eyes.

Song Yunzhao glanced at the Emperor, then covered her face in embarrassment, her voice muffled as she said, "I’ve made a fool of myself before Your Majesty. I just really missed my dad."

Feng Yi hummed softly in response and took Yun Zhao’s fingertips in his hand, turning his head to look out the window. ’There was no one in his life he particularly missed. Even with the Empress Dowager currently living at the traveling palace, he rarely remembered that he still had a mother in this world.’

Soon, the imperial rewards for the Minister of the Ministry of Justice and his entourage were announced. The Minister of the Ministry of Justice, Han Zhengchun, was promoted to Left Imperial Censor. The previous Left Imperial Censor had been dismissed from office and exiled after his downfall in the cheating scandal. Song Nanzhen was promoted to Minister of the Ministry of Revenue. Although it was only a one-rank promotion, his transfer from the Ministry of Imperial Stables—a semi-retirement post—to one of the Six Ministries showed the Emperor clearly valued and intended to elevate him.

Although Song Nanzhen was initially appointed due to the Emperor’s favoritism toward Song Jieyu, there was no denying he had performed his duties exceptionally well and had genuine accomplishments to his name. Even accusing him of rising through nepotism now felt a bit forced.

Song Nanzhen’s promotion was a joyous occasion for the Song Family. Mrs. Cai wanted to hold a banquet to celebrate. With her husband promoted at this juncture, it would make her daughter’s upcoming marriage more prestigious.

But to her surprise, Song Nanzhen flatly refused. At a time like this, the entire Capital City was watching him and his daughter. Hold a promotion banquet now? Was he afraid the Imperial Censors didn’t have anyone to impeach?

Although he and Lord Han had bonded while providing disaster relief in the south, the Emperor had moved Lord Han to the Imperial Censorate as Left Imperial Censor precisely because he valued Lord Han’s impartiality and courage to speak out. If he were to do something out of line, Lord Han would certainly not cover for him.

The couple had a huge fight over their disagreement. When the topic shifted to Song Qinghan’s and Song Jinxuan’s marriages, things became an even bigger mess.

This also involved Song Qinghan’s dowry. Song Nanzhen wouldn’t interfere with how Mrs. Cai allocated her own dowry among the children, but when he learned that Mrs. Cai hadn’t set aside anything for Yun Zhao at all, he was utterly disappointed.

"She’s already in the palace as a Jieyu, what does she need a dowry for?" Mrs. Cai’s expression became even more hateful as she spoke of this. "If she hadn’t framed her own sister in the palace, the one who stayed should have been Qing Han..."

SLAP!

The room fell silent.

Mrs. Cai stared in disbelief; her husband had actually hit her. But Song Nanzhen was furious, pointing at Mrs. Cai and shouting, "You’ve loathed Yun Zhao since the day she was born. That’s all in the past; I won’t force a mother-daughter bond where there is none. But don’t you know the truth about what happened during the palace selection? You’re deliberately twisting black and white. Who are you dissatisfied with? It was His Majesty himself who personally ordered Qing Han to leave the palace! Are you questioning His Majesty’s decree? If you want to die, go ahead, but don’t drag the entire family down to be buried alongside you!"

Mrs. Cai’s face instantly paled. In her extreme anger, she hadn’t considered that point. Yet, she still refused to admit she was wrong, saying through clenched teeth, "Now that she’s the one who stayed in the palace and has caught the Emperor’s eye, of course, whatever she says is right."