Chu Chi heard what Zhao Jie said, but she thought she had misheard. She paused and said, "Your Majesty, what did you say?"

Zhao Jie held Chu Chi's hand tightly and said, "I will marry you and make you my queen."

Chu Chi repeatedly said, "Your Majesty, absolutely not! Marrying me will cause controversy in the court. My mother is the young princess's wet nurse. If you marry me as your queen, who knows what the court will say about the Prince Regent and Princess Qi!"

Zhao Jie was extremely angry and said, "I offered you the position of the Six Palace Master, but you are worried about causing criticism to the Regent and Princess Qi?"

Zhao Jie was so angry that he laughed, "Princess Qi is so lucky to have someone as loyal as you. I know that my sincerity is no better than feeding it to a dog!"

Chu Chi held Zhao Jie's hand and said, "Your Majesty, I don't mean to betray your sincerity. I just don't want to cause any upheaval in the court because of me, and I don't want to cause any discord between you and the Empress Dowager. If you want to marry me as your queen, the Empress Dowager will definitely not agree."

"I'm truly happy that you've appointed me as your Virtuous Consort. I know you have me in your heart, but the position of Empress... I simply cannot bear the responsibility."

Zhao Jie looked at Chu Chi and said, "If I say you can bear it, then you can bear it."

Chu Chi was filled with panic, but the sudden and fierce kiss like fire gradually made Chu Chi calm down.

She just indulged herself in this paradise where only she and Zhao Jie were present.

…

In a lakeside villa on the outskirts of Shengjing City.

When Chu Yan saw Chu Liuli returning from the palace, he asked, "How could His Majesty send back the concubines for no reason? He is already seventeen years old and should be eager to seize power himself. Why would he send all the concubines out of the palace at this time?"

"It must be because of that vixen Chu Chi."

When Chu Yan heard the name Chu Chi, he frowned slightly and asked, "Who are you talking about?"

Chu Liuli said, "It's Chu Chi, the female official in the Shangfu Bureau. I heard His Majesty say last night that he has feelings for her. His Majesty must have sent us concubines back because of her.

Is Chu Chi unworthy at all? I've already inquired about it. Her mother was the wet nurse of the Regent Prince's daughter. She was originally a slave girl in the Qi family and was only freed from slavery after she got married. Chu Chi's lowly background makes her unworthy of staying with Your Majesty.

Chu Yan waved his hand and said to Chu Liuli, "Go back."

Chu Liuli asked, "Uncle, can I still enter the palace as a concubine?"

Chu Yan said to Ning Wei, "Take Liuli to the Queen Mother's palace tomorrow. The Queen Mother will definitely not allow the daughter of a servant of the Qi family to become the Queen."

"Yes, husband." Ning Wei agreed.

Chu Yan looked towards the palace, then slowly withdrew his gaze.

…

At dawn, Queen Mother Zhou met Ning Wei and Chu Liuli. When Queen Mother Zhou saw Chu Liuli in front of her, she was extremely satisfied with her daughter-in-law.

After Ning Wei and Chu Liuli exchanged greetings, Queen Mother Zhou called Chu Liuli to her side and said, "Come and sit next to me. The selection is only two days away. When the time comes..."

Chu Liuli asked, "Empress Dowager, don't you know that His Majesty has canceled the selection?"

Empress Dowager Zhou was completely unaware. She wasn't very sensitive to news from outside her palace, and even with such a major event, she was completely clueless. "What? What's the emperor doing? Why is he canceling the selection?"

Chu Liuli said, "It's all because of Chu Chi. Your Majesty must have been bewitched by Chu Chi. The Qi family is truly capable. They've already set up a beauty trap around Your Majesty..."

Empress Dowager Zhou was stunned and said, "Chu Chi? Is she the young lady-in-waiting that Qi Yuning arranged to work in the Shang Palace Bureau? How could she have captivated Your Majesty's mind? Impossible, absolutely impossible. I have seen that Chu Chi is an honest and obedient person."

Chu Liuli whispered, "Empress Dowager, this servant is truly doing this for the good of Your Majesty. I dare not lie. I saw Your Majesty come out of Chu Chi's bedroom late at night."

Queen Mother Zhou clenched the Buddhist beads in her hand, slammed the table beside her angrily and said, "Come, go call Chu Chi."

Empress Dowager Zhou waited for a long time before the eunuch came to report: "Your Majesty, Minister Chu is not in the Shang Palace Bureau. I found out that Minister Chu went to the Taiji Hall yesterday and has not come out since."

Empress Dowager Zhou stood up angrily and said, "Let's go to Taiji Hall."

When Chu Chi woke up, it was already noon and the warmth beside her had long since disappeared. As she stood up, she heard the voice of Eunuch Xu coming from outside.

"Empress Dowager, His Majesty has ordered that no one is allowed to enter the Taiji Palace without permission!"

"Isn't it okay for Aijia too?"

Queen Mother Zhou pushed the door open angrily and saw Chu Chi still sleeping on the dragon throne with his long hair hanging down behind his head. There were scars on Chu Chi's exposed collarbone. Queen Mother Zhou narrowed her eyes slightly when she saw this.

"I always thought you were an honest man, but I didn't expect you to be a vixen. Were you the one who tricked His Majesty into giving up the selection?"

Queen Mother Zhou walked up to Chu Chi and ordered the nanny beside her, "Chu Chi is disrespectful to me. I have ordered her to be expelled from the palace and never allowed to return to Shengjing."

The maids around Empress Dowager Zhou came forward and dragged Chu Chi away.

Chu Chilian put on her clothes, walked up to Queen Mother Zhou, knelt down and said, "Queen Mother."

Empress Dowager Zhou lowered her eyes to look at Chu Chi and said, "Qi Yuning is very cunning. I was so caught off guard that she actually placed a vixen like you by His Majesty's side. You'd better leave Shengjing City immediately and honestly, otherwise I will not spare your life..."

Chu Chi knew from the bottom of her heart how difficult it would be for Zhao Jie to make her the queen, and she couldn't even get past Queen Mother Zhou.

Chu Chi whispered, "Empress Dowager, I don't want to cause any discord between you and your Majesty and your son because of me..."

Empress Dowager Zhou fiddled with the Buddhist beads in her hand and ordered, "Hurry and drag her out of Shengjing City. Don't let her enter Shengjing City at all."

My dear, there is more to this chapter. Please click on the next page to continue reading. It will be even more exciting later!