Now that you're reborn, who would still keep a mistress for their scumbag husband?

Dou Jinzhao knew it well. "Your Majesty, I think that Duke Dingguo and the second sister of the Dou family are a match made in heaven. I was not originally a daughter of the Dou family. Back then, Minister Dou swapped the daughters of the two families, so I impersonated the second sister of the Dou family and took over this marriage that was not originally meant for me."

The emperor felt something was wrong and asked, "You can cure horse plague. Since you want to see me, what do you want?"

Regardless of whether Dou Jinzhao is the daughter of the Dou family, her marriage to Lu Changyuan is a foregone conclusion. Dou Miaojin should not interfere no matter what, and the most inappropriate thing is to take a concubine.

The emperor's reputation in the capital city is not good, and there are times when he reflects on himself, but he will not admit his mistakes.

If Dou Jinzhao wanted compensation, as long as it was not excessive, the emperor would be willing to grant it.

"I'm begging for an imperial decree, Your Majesty. I want to divorce Duke Dingguo!" Dou Jinzhao's tone was firm and there was no doubt about it.

The emperor was drinking a cup of tea. When he heard this, he was so startled that he choked on the tea.

"Divorce?" The emperor coughed for a long time, raised his head and looked at Dou Jinzhao as if he were a madman.

"Yes, I want to divorce Duke Dingguo!" Dou Jinzhao said every word with great determination, "Please grant my wish, Your Majesty!"

"Why do you need my order?" Emperor Yongjia narrowed his eyes dangerously.

Dou Jinzhao was not afraid at all. "I asked the Duke of Dingguo for a divorce several times, but he only wanted to divorce me. I didn't do anything wrong, so I don't want to be divorced. The Duke of Dingguo has great power in the court, and I am just a weak woman. I can only get justice from Your Majesty."

In fact, since it was you who issued the decree to grant marriage to a concubine, then Dou Jinzhao naturally also had to have the decree to grant marriage and divorce, which would also be a good start and a good end.

She didn't want to be outdone.

However, Dou Jinzhao didn't dare to say such words.

While Emperor Yongjia was pondering, the empress came in with her sick body. After receiving the notification, Emperor Yongjia asked Dou Jinzhao, "What if I don't want to issue this imperial decree?"

Dou Jinzhao was neither humble nor arrogant. "I will never hand over the recipe for curing horse plague even if I die. Rather than wasting my life in the backyard of the Duke Dingguo's mansion, I would rather die gloriously. Perhaps one day in the future, it will become a story in the writings of literati."

Not long after the Queen arrived, she heard that Concubine Xie had arrived.

This was the first time Dou Jinzhao saw Concubine Xie. She was extremely beautiful. Compared with the dignified Queen, Concubine Xie was even more charming.

She was wearing a moon-white kesi jacket and skirt with a pattern of eight groups of hundreds of butterflies meeting happily. She had a high bun on her head, and a gold filigree hairpin inlaid with mutton-fat jade and carved with red and blue sapphires and embroidered with butterfly flowers. She was like a peony blooming in April. Her familiar phoenix eyes were cold and only when she saw Dou Jinzhao did she show a hint of imperceptible emotion.

"How come you have time to come here today, sister?" The Queen obviously did not welcome Concubine Xie, but her reputation for magnanimity and tolerance was too loud to allow her to show the slightest jealousy.

Concubine Xie sat down opposite the Queen, with the intention of competing with her. "I heard that the Queen dragged her sick body to see the Emperor, so I thought the Emperor was not feeling well, so I hurried here."

The Queen's face darkened. Only Concubine Xie would dare to be so rebellious.

Emperor Yongjia did not feel that way. Instead, he was very happy. He smiled and leaned towards her. "I am fine. But you, I heard you caught a cold a few days ago. Are you feeling better now?"

The empress frowned and coughed softly. Emperor Yongjia hurriedly asked the empress, "After taking the medicine from Changliu Pavilion, there is still no significant progress?"

The queen was stunned for a moment, then smiled gracefully, "I am much better now."

Concubine Xie, on the other hand, pursed her lips, and said in a naughty way like a little girl, "The medicine the imperial physician prescribed for me is too bitter. I don't want to drink it."

Emperor Yongjia was somewhat helpless, and shook his head, his eyes filled with unconcealed fondness, "You, you!"

Concubine Xie had no intention of saying this, and glanced at Dou Jinzhao, "Isn't this the wife of Duke Dingguo? Why is she here with the emperor?"

The emperor explained the whole story, and when he mentioned Dou Jinzhao's request for a divorce, the empress angrily scolded, "That's just wishful thinking. How could there be a divorce? Have you ever seen a noble family get a divorce?"

Before Dou Jinzhao could say anything, Concubine Xie cried out, "Why is the Queen so angry? There is no divorce in noble families. There are always exceptions. In this world, in any place that values ​​etiquette, who would marry a concubine?"

The queen looked very unhappy.

The imperial edict was issued by the emperor. If someone else had said such words, Emperor Yongjia would have ordered his men to drag him away and beat him to death with sticks. However, since these words were said by Concubine Xie, the emperor only cleared his throat, put his hands on his knees, and looked around, as if he was not the one being condemned.

"How about I beg the Emperor to make me the Queen? How about I be on equal footing with the Empress?" Concubine Xie smiled mischievously like a little girl, and Dou Jinzhao was dazzled by her smile.

The emperor was a little embarrassed, "My beloved concubine, please stop teasing me. There are outsiders here."

Concubine Xie was unhappy. "I am speaking from the heart. The emperor can let Duke Dingguo marry a concubine, so why can't he make me the concubine? The emperor is obviously disliking me!"

The queen's face changed drastically, and she started to cough violently. Emperor Yongjia was a little panicked, "Queen, what's wrong with you?"

"Humph!" Concubine Xie was blatantly jealous. She shrugged her nose unhappily and turned to ask Dou Jinzhao,

"I heard that you and Duke Dingguo were childhood sweethearts. You must have had a deep relationship over the years. Do you want to divorce Duke Dingguo because he married a concubine?"

Concubine Xie had kind features and a gentle light in her eyes, as if she was looking at a junior from her own family. Dou Jinzhao's restless heart was inexplicably calmed by her, but he was unwilling to tell the truth.

“It’s not entirely because of the matter of marrying a concubine. Although Duke Dingguo and I have been close since childhood due to our engagement, we are probably not destined to be together.

Duke Dingguo brought the second daughter of the Dou family back from Weizhou. They fell deeply in love along the way. I, your humble servant, have been occupying your nest for so many years and feel guilty. I want to divorce you and end this evil relationship. I also want to help them be together."

Dou Jinzhao thought to himself, Lu Changyuan and I have a blood feud. In my previous life, I was sincere to him, but he shot me with arrows without mercy. This hatred is irreconcilable, as if I had been pierced by thousands of arrows.

Concubine Xie was a deity. After hearing this, she actually burst into tears. She sobbed, her eyes wet with tears, and I felt even more pity for her.

"Your Majesty, this is so touching! Miss Xie is a person of great temperament. Your Majesty, please help the three of them!" Concubine Xie wiped her tears, "Should I leave the palace and help Your Majesty and the Queen? I just realized that I am a superfluous person in this palace."

The queen was irritated and started coughing again, her eyes filled with horror.

The emperor shouted angrily, "What nonsense are you talking about?"

He felt uncomfortable because Dou Jinzhao made fun of him. "Dou Jinzhao? Are you Dou Jinzhao or Xie Jinzhao?"

Concubine Xie said, "Let's call it Xie Jinzhao. It sounds better because we have the same last name."

The queen could no longer tolerate Concubine Xie's arrogance and ridiculed her, "Concubine Xie can't forget her ex-husband. Why is she obsessed with her ex-husband's surname?"

Dou Jinzhao was so shocked that she couldn't close her mouth, her eyes were wide open. She must have heard something terrible. Would the emperor kill her to silence her?

Concubine Xie tilted her head and smiled, "Yes, the Empress is really a worm in my stomach. She even knows this. Speaking of which, I dreamed of my late husband yesterday. He saw me alone in my empty room and scolded the Emperor for me."