After her mind was read, the spoiled brat became the darling of the whole group.

Chapter 222 Give Her a Chance

What does this system mean?

After the eunuch's voice, the Xie family members were slow to react. The imperial edict was in the eunuch's hands, but no one took it for a long time.

The eunuch's smile began to falter.

He looked at Xie Ansheng and said, "General, why aren't you coming to receive the imperial decree?"

Xie Ansheng snapped out of his daze, stood up, walked to the eunuch's side, and took the imperial edict from the eunuch's hand with a complicated expression.

"May I ask, sir, is the Xie Jiaojiao mentioned in His Majesty's decree my niece, Xie Jiaojiao?"

The eunuch looked at Xie Ansheng as if he were a fool: "General, what are you saying? Do you have a second niece?"

"This is a great thing!"

Xie Ansheng forced a smile: "Hahaha, it's a good thing, it's a good thing, I just haven't realized it yet."

"But why did His Majesty suddenly bestow Jiaojiao upon His Highness the Crown Prince in marriage?"

Xie Jiaojiao had only recently arrived in the capital and had only met the Crown Prince a few times.

The eunuch didn't want to reply to Xie Ansheng, but seeing Jun Lanjin standing to the side, he patiently gave Xie Ansheng face.

"I don't know about that. I heard that it was Her Majesty the Empress who specially went to request the decree."

It was the Empress?

Xie Ansheng frowned. He accepted the imperial edict and then had several heavy purses prepared for the eunuchs.

After weighing the purse in his hand, the eunuch finally smiled.

Seeing the doubt and uncertainty on Xie Ansheng's face, and not looking happy, he assumed that Xie Ansheng was trying to figure out the emperor's intentions, so he said, "General, there is no need to worry. There was nothing wrong with His Majesty's bestowal of the marriage."

No.

What could the emperor possibly be dissatisfied with?

Although Xie Jiaojiao's surname is Xie, in the end, her father was just a minor local prefect. It was only Xie Ansheng's title as the Grand General of the State that allowed them to benefit from his influence.

Now, thanks to the General's Mansion, Xie Jiaojiao has obtained the title of Crown Prince's concubine, which can bring the General's Mansion closer to the Crown Prince, but not enough to make the Emperor wary.

Good at calculating.

Xie Ansheng smiled and said, "Thank you for the reminder, Father-in-law."

After the eunuch delivered the decree, he bowed in the direction of Jun Lanjin and then turned and left.

As soon as the eunuch left, the person who had been kneeling stood up instantly.

Madam Xie was somewhat surprised: "How could the Crown Prince allow Jiao Jiao to become his concubine?"

This pearl will become the Crown Princess in the future.

Only Madam Xie was kept in the dark, single-mindedly wanting Xie Mingzhu to become the Crown Princess and eventually the Empress, so as to bring her honor.

Xie Ansheng sighed heavily.

He glanced at Xie Jiaojiao.

Xie Jiaojiao had come to her senses by now. She forced a smile and said, "Second Uncle, this is a good thing."

Regardless, the title of Crown Prince's concubine certainly fulfilled Xie Jiaojiao's purpose in coming to the capital.

Although a concubine is also a concubine, he is, after all, the crown prince.

However, what's upsetting is the ending Xie Xing described in his heart.

No matter what they do, will the outcome be much the same?

This statement was practically a death sentence for them.

Xie Xing glanced at the Xie family members, and apart from Xie Jiaojiao, everyone seemed to look rather unwell.

The atmosphere feels a bit heavy.

System: [Perhaps it's because they wanted Xie Mingzhu to be the Crown Prince's consort, but now Xie Jiaojiao has become the Crown Prince's concubine first. That's unexpected, isn't it?]

[That's true, but it's also strange. In the original story, Xie Jiaojiao was eager to become the Crown Prince's woman, even if it meant being a concubine, and the Crown Prince was reluctant to do so. Why is he now so eager to marry Xie Jiaojiao as his secondary consort?]

System: [This likely involves interests. As I said before, due to some plot deviations, some things changed along the way. To maintain the same outcome, there will be some twists and turns along the way, but ultimately it's still roughly the same.]

The three Xie brothers: "..."

Xie Tongchen listened to the inner voice with a cold face, a trace of struggle flashing in his eyes.

Even if you don't believe it now, you should believe it now.

Even the most foolish person can't keep deceiving themselves.

Since nothing has happened yet, Xie Tongchen wouldn't blame Xie Mingzhu for these things.

He was thinking about how to avoid such an outcome.

After a moment of silence, the old lady finally stepped forward to take charge. She looked at Xie Jiaojiao with gentle eyes and said, "Since the Emperor's decision has been made, Jiaojiao, go back first and write a letter to your parents to tell them the news."

Xie Jiaojiao nodded, and the people present bowed and withdrew.

Xie Xing didn't want to stay here anymore.

She felt uncomfortable seeing Xie Tongchen, so she told Xie Ansheng and left.

Seeing this, Jun Lanjin said calmly, "Congratulations on this joyous occasion for the General's Mansion. I have other matters to attend to, so I will take my leave now."

After saying that, Jun Lanjin followed Xie Xing away.

Xie Ansheng: "..."

He turned his head and saw Xie Yuhe's pale face.

Xie Ansheng's expression hardened, and he immediately realized that Xie Xing might have said something in his mind just now.

"Yuhe." Xie Ansheng called Xie Yuhe over.

The two walked out together.

Only Madam Xie, Xie Mingzhu, and Xie Tongchen remained, all looking bewildered.

Xie Mingzhu wanted to build a good relationship with Xie Yuze.

She took a wooden carving out of her sleeve.

The wood carving features Xie Yuze.

Xie Yuze has loved wood carving since he was a child. Whenever Xie Mingzhu makes Xie Yuze angry, she will use this wood carving to coax him back.

Now, Xie Mingzhu brought the wood carving to Xie Yuze, raised her head, and looked at him with sparkling autumn eyes: "Third brother, although I don't know what Mingzhu did to upset you, this wood carving was carved by my own hands. I'm giving it to you, so please don't be angry with me, okay?"

The maid beside Xie Mingzhu added at the opportune moment, "Miss has been carving for a long time, and her hands are even bleeding from the carving."

Upon hearing this, Xie Yuze subconsciously looked at Xie Mingzhu's hand.

But then a scar appeared on Xie Mingzhu's fair hand.

This wound wasn't there yesterday.

Xie Yuze's expression was complicated.

After all, they had been friends for over a decade, and he genuinely cared for his younger sister.

If it weren't for the fact that Xie Xing's words had been gradually confirmed over the past few days, allowing him to glimpse a corner of Xie Mingzhu's true nature, even just hearing those few words of his heart would not have been enough to shake his feelings for Xie Mingzhu.

but now--

Even her older brother was extremely disappointed in her.

Xie Yuze reached out and took the wood carving, asking, "Is the injury on your hand really from carving this wood carving for me?"

Xie Mingzhu was taken aback when Xie Yuze asked that question.

Immediately, her beautiful eyes filled with tears: "What do you mean by that, Third Brother? Do you not believe that Mingzhu will carve it for you by hand?"

Xie Yuze sighed and said, "Mingzhu, we've watched you grow up since you were little. As your older brother, I truly care about you."

"If you have something on your mind, you can tell your brother."

Xie Yuze ultimately gave Xie Mingzhu another chance.