Warlord of the Xili Kingdom
Justice Emperor Zhihu

The Palace.

Emperor Zhihu sat down unsettled. He kept pacing back and forth because his mind was in a mess right now. His third son, Zhaozu, has been declared a rebel by the Palace Council for protecting the masked robbers who often make trouble in the Capital Territory.

Now, the Queen Mother and the Empress were not at her residence, and her bodyguards said that the two women who ruled the Palace turned out to go outside the Palace at different times. The Queen Mother had left three days ago, and the Empress two days ago.

According to the information conveyed by the bodyguard, the two women of different generations went to the southern border. The emperor himself had already guessed that the purpose of the two would definitely be to meet his third son.

"What should I do if Zhaozu comes home with them? Should I punish him for the decision of the Palace Council?" the Emperor then thought again. "No ... no! I cannot be rash in my actions. Zhaozu must have had a reason behind his protection. Yes, he must have known something so dare to take a big step like this" he said later. "But, why won't he negotiate with me and choose to settle it himself?"

The Emperor again thought of the reason why his Third Prince was doing protection against criminals. He knew very well the nature of his son who was always wise to others. It was likely that there was something big that his son was hiding, but did not want to burden the Emperor with the matter.

Zhaozu was indeed unlike any other Prince. He always solves the problem to the very root. The Third Son never complained about anything and always chose to work outside the Palace, such as becoming a Warlord.

Different from Prince Zhaohan, Zhaoyan, Zhaokang, or Zhaobu. They tend to laze around inside the Palace and have fun with the Concubines. The third son chose the battlefield to vent all the emotions in his heart.

As the Emperor was thinking about this huge matter, a Concubine came to him. Without notice, the Concubine directly walked into the Emperor's residence and embraced his arm so gently.

Yep. Which other concubine would have always dared to behave like that if not Consort Wang Xiumeng, the mother of Prince Zhaohan and Zhaoyan. The woman considered herself to be the Emperor's favorite concubine, as the Ruler's man had never been angry with her. Whatever Consort Wang's wishes or decisions, they were always granted by the Emperor. So everyone assumed that Consort Wang was the Emperor's favorite concubine.

"Your Majesty. Why do you look so upset? Is something troubling your mind?" he asked while leaning his head on the Emperor's shoulder. By acting spoiled, then I can control the Emperor, Consort Wang thought.

The Emperor rubbed Consort Wang's head, then stood up and walked towards the window. His face looked up at the sky, with his mind wandering somewhere. It seemed, he was reluctant to tell a story, especially about the Empress and her Son. Although the Emperor had four wives, but never once did He mock them in the back, especially to his other wives.

The Emperor tried to be fair to the Empress and her three concubines. He did not discriminate his affection for his four wives, nor his children. The princes have the same rights, but according to the rules of the law of the Kingdom.

Supposedly, Zhaohan as the First Prince who bears the title of Crown Prince. However, since he was only the son of a concubine, Zhaozu was the son of the Empress despite being the Third Prince. The Empress and her Son were given higher positions and were entitled to the throne of the Empire without following the competition. That's what made Zhaohan hate him all this time, even though Zhaozu honestly did not want the throne.

If Zhaozu is unable to carry out his duties, or dies, then his position will automatically change to the hands of Zhaohan as the First Prince. Although the concubines protested against the policy, Emperor Zhihu could not do anything because it was a rule that was made hereditary from the previous Emperor.

"I am a bad father to my five Sons. Unable to educate and also share affection fairly, and not knowing what they all want." the Emperor said with a sad face.

Consort Wang approached the Emperor again with a friendly smile. "Who said you were a bad Dad? For me and also our two Sons, you are an exemplary role model. Always fair and ..."

"But to me no," suddenly the voice of the Empress sounded there making the two turn their heads.

The empress glanced at a glance without smiling kindly. She refused to say hello to the woman standing next to her husband. "If you're a good father, please take my Son back to the Palace. I beg you, Your Majesty!" empress Pinta with a quivering tone. His chest felt tight when he remembered the rejection from his son who did not want to go back home.

"Xia. What the hell's going on? Why are you talking like that?" the Emperor asked directly to hug the Empress' body when he saw the tears falling on her cheeks.

The Emperor's cordial call to the Empress made Consort Wang's heart slightly hurt. He never called her by her little name, even under any circumstances. His lips trembled, then he lowered his head before leaving. Hoping for the Emperor to stop his steps, but it turned out to be mere wishful thinking. The Emperor ignored Consort Wang's departure from his room, and he merely clutched the body of Empress Jian who was crying sobbing.

Perhaps, Consort Wang looked too highly at his position in the Emperor's heart. However he remembered it very well, the persistence of the Emperor when he refused to choose a concubine. But because the Queen Mother and the Royal Council forced her to remarry, she was forced to accept the Princess of the Nobles who became a follower of the Queen Mother. Despite this, the Emperor was always fair to his concubines.

And that was also what the Queen Mother applied to her princes, who forced them to have more than one wife. Only Zhaozu was against the rule that the Queen Mother had made, and had one wife, Yun Xin'er.

The Third Prince was unwilling to share his love let alone body with any woman other than Xin'er. For Zhaozu, enough female Xin'er would accompany him until the end of his life. Although it had to be against the Queen Mother and the Royal Council, but he did not care as long as he could live only with his wife, Yun Xin'er.

•

The Emperor was silent for a moment after hearing the story Empress Jian had told him about their third Son. His forehead shriveled when he heard that his son-in-law Xin'er was still alive and that they were together.

However, the news of Xin'er's death has spread throughout the Jhajhanan mainland, and her body has been buried. How could he possibly live again? The impossible was in the Emperor's mind at the moment.

Slowly the Empress told him about Xin'er according to what her bodyguard had obtained, that her daughter-in-law was helped by a group of people who claimed to be Masked Robbers.

The robbers take care of Xin'er's wounds and bring her to join her group to do good and evil. Their crime, as the Royal Council is talking about, is to rob the Nobles. And his kindness is to share the fruits of their plunder with the little people in need.

The emperor now understood the reason behind Zhaozu's willing attitude to protect the masked robbers. Aside from their generous attitude, the other reason was that Xin'er joined the criminal group.

However, robbery is still a big crime even though the results are given to the small people, because they kill the Nobles who are the target of their robbery. Therefore, Emperor Zhihu decided to immediately arrest all the masked robbers and bring back his son and daughter-in-law.

"Immediately prepare our elite forces. There is an important mission that must be carried out immediately at this time. Lead them to the border of Dorokdok City, and I will lead them myself!" the Emperor's word to his personal bodyguard.

"Your Majesty. Don't punish my son!" lirih the Empress begged as the Emperor passed from before her.

Emperor Zhihu stared expressionlessly, then took out his sword and armor. After that, he left in front of the Empress without saying a word. Although the Empress shouted to her name, the Emperor ignored her and immediately went with his troops to the border of Dorokdok City.

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