“Your Majesty!” The exclamation didn’t come from Shen Meng but from Liang Rong, the biological sister of Liang Jue. Shen Meng glanced at the expression of Minister Liang; he was indeed an old hand, much calmer than Liang Rong.

Naturally, the Empress wasn’t pleased to have been interrupted by his subjects. She lowered her voice, “Minister Liang, what is the matter?”

Her tone clearly implied that if she didn’t receive a good reason, she wouldn’t easily let it go.

In the moment after Liang Rong shouted out, she regretted it. But words spoken couldn’t be taken back, and retracting them forcefully would only be more embarrassing. So, she quickly organized appropriate words in her mind: “Your Majesty, perhaps you have forgotten that Shen, the Editor, is already married, a marriage bestowed by Your Majesty personally.”

Originally, to ensure Liang Jue’s marriage went smoothly, Liang Jue’s father specially went to the palace to request it. After persuading the Grand Dowager and whispering some words into the Empress’s ears, the marriage was arranged.

As it was a marriage bestowed by the Empress, even though Shen Meng didn’t particularly like Liang Jue, she wasn’t overly harsh on her.

When Liang Rong brought it up, the Empress’s expression became subtly nuanced. Although she was usually too busy to remember the affairs of ordinary people, Liang Jue was somewhat connected to the royal family. Her memory wasn’t so poor that she forgot bestowing this marriage. But human hearts are biased; for the sake of her beloved son, she was naturally inclined to act as a foolish monarch.

Looking at the speaking courtier, she gave off a strong sense of oppression with her low voice: “Of course, I haven’t forgotten. But I hope you understand one thing: if I can bestow her first marriage, I can bestow her second. Or do you think that even bestowing a marriage, I have to listen to your directives?”

At this moment, she didn’t care whether she would make a fool of herself in front of the foreign envoy. After all, if there were any issues with the translators provided by the Ganli Kingdom, it would reflect poorly on them, as they were using individuals recommended by them—citizens of their own country.

Furthermore, if her authority couldn’t even restrain a courtier, that would truly be losing face for the prince of a small kingdom.

Liang Rong, trembling with fear, said, “Your humble servant is fearful. Under the heavens, there is no land that is not the queen’s domain, and on the shores of the land, there are no subjects who are not the queen’s men. All under heaven belong to Your Majesty, and naturally, you have this authority.”

The atmosphere suddenly became awkward. Although the Ganli Kingdom’s prince understood everything, he pretended not to understand what was happening, and only asked the interpreter arranged for him on the spot, “What’s going on? Does Your Majesty think there’s something wrong with the marriage between me and the Crown Prince?”

In the eyes of the interpreter, the prince was just a bit naive and had only a superficial understanding of the culture of this country. Understanding a few phrases of the local language, this high-level communication required the assistance of talented individuals like them.

But what was happening now was impossible to explain to this prince of a small kingdom in a straightforward manner.

She fabricated, “It’s somewhat related. A certain official raised the issue. Diplomatic relations between two countries are a major matter, and decisions shouldn’t be made so easily…”

The prince found this explanation amusing, but he didn’t expose it. Instead, he went along with her words and asked, “But this was decided long ago. My mother said as long as I like it, I can decide on this marriage myself. Does Her Majesty the Empress not even have this authority?”

The prince of a foreign kingdom, don’t understand anything, why so much nonsense? The interpreter was introduced by the Liang family and had a particularly close relationship with Liang Rong. Seeing her friend in such an embarrassing situation, she felt extremely anxious. She couldn’t stand this troublesome prince.

But for the sake of friendly diplomatic relations between the two countries, she kept her silent complaints to herself and continued to smile and fabricate: “Of course, Your Majesty has this authority. They were just discussing the intricate details of the marriage, which made them seem a bit impatient.”

The two princesses, who were trying to win the affection of the handsome prince, both understood some Ganli Kingdom language. Hearing their conversation, they couldn’t help but break out in a cold sweat. However, they understood the importance of presenting a united front externally. They didn’t expose the interpreter’s lie and even echoed her words from time to time.

Several people here were competing in acting skills, while the atmosphere on the other side became unbearable due to the Empress’s temporary silence.

The previously lively performance was forcibly halted, and even the graceful dancers dared not utter a word.

Apart from Liang Rong, who spoke impulsively, Shen Meng, as one of the parties involved, logically should have become the center of attention. Unfortunately, as the one being granted the marriage, hardly anyone would suspect that she would refuse the Empress’s decree. For the moment, it seemed like no one cared about her thoughts.

The Empress slightly quelled his anger and turned to ask Shen Meng, “My subject Shen, you have not yet answered my previous question. What do you think about this marriage?”

She glanced at Liang Rong and Liang Shangshu, her eyes carrying a hint of warning. “Don’t worry about anything else. Just tell me your true thoughts. What do you think of the Third Prince?”

In an instant, all eyes converged on Shen Meng’s face. Xue Ning’s gaze had never left her, but now it was even more focused, blinking incessantly, afraid to miss even the slightest expression on her face.

“The Third Prince is very good, but…” Shen Meng began slowly, a “but” causing Xue Ning’s heart to tense up again. “But, as Lord Liang said, I already have a husband. The Third Prince is too outstanding. Apart from the position of a legitimate husband, there is no other position worthy of him. A husband should not be inferior to his wife, and moreover, my marriage was also granted by Your Majesty. I am unfortunate and truly cannot bear Your Majesty’s favor.”

Xue Ning’s eyes, which had lit up, dimmed once again. The Empress loved this son the most, and Xue Ning had indeed suffered a lot because she hadn’t taken care of him properly when he was young.

Although the Empress had many children, he cherished this one the most, almost pouring all herhis maternal love into him. Therefore, doing something that seemed absurd to make Xue Ning happy was not surprising.

The Empress’s gaze shifted from his beloved son back to Shen Meng. “As long as you think my son is good enough, that’s all that matters. You don’t need to worry about anything else. I only ask you, do you want to marry my Third Prince?”

Shen Meng replied, “I am unwilling.” She didn’t want to repeat the events of her past life.

The Empress’s gaze turned dangerous. “Are you implying that you want to disobey my decree?”