Consort Li turned around and saw a little girl standing with her hands on her hips, looking at her angrily.

Xu Ruyun tugged at her daughter and said, "Don't be rude! Quickly pay your respects to the ladies!"

Chiu Chiu turned her head to the side: "She's not worthy of me bowing to her!"

Consort Li raised her hand, intending to slap Qiuqiu.

Unexpectedly, the empress grabbed her hand, which was raised in mid-air.

Consort Li: "She has committed an act of insubordination; I must punish her severely!"

The Empress said, "So you know what insubordination is? You just dared to disrespect me. What should be the punishment for that?"

Consort Li said proudly, "How could she, a mere little girl, be worthy of being compared to me?"

The sixth prince ran to Qiuqiu's side and shielded her behind him.

The Sixth Prince: "Mother, they saved me. Her Majesty the Empress went to Father to seek justice for me. If it weren't for them, I would already be..."

Consort Li asked somewhat ashamedly, "Is this... really true?"

Chuchu took out a small wooden puppet.

The puppet was carved to look very much like the Empress, and the Empress's birth date and time were written on the back of the puppet.

Xu Ruyun was terrified and asked Qiuqiu, "Qiuqiu, don't you know this is a forbidden item? Where did you get it? Throw it away right now!"

Chiu Chiu: "This, of course, was found from Consort Li."

Consort Li: "Don't talk nonsense!"

Consort Li was a little nervous and tried to snatch the puppet away.

But Chiu Chiu cleverly dodged and gave the puppet to the Queen.

The Empress examined the puppet closely, then looked at the birth date and time on the back, and frowned.

The Empress looked at Consort Li and said, "If I hadn't seen it with my own eyes, I wouldn't have believed that you would have any intention of harming me."

[What's this? There are still many poisonous substances in Consort Li's palace that could harm the Empress.]

"Chiu Chiu said, 'The last time Her Majesty fell seriously ill, it was because of her!'"

Chirp chirps, pointing at Consort Li.

Consort Li became agitated and said, "Such a young child, spouting nonsense! Guards, drag her away and beat her to death with sticks!"

Chirp: "Kill me?"

Consort Li felt a chill run down her spine.

When she turned around, the emperor was standing behind her, glaring angrily.

Your Majesty: "Who tried to kill my little bird?"

When everyone saw the Emperor arrive, they hurriedly bowed.

"Greetings, Your Majesty!"

The Emperor said, "All of you, rise. Consort Li, kneel. Tell me, what exactly happened?"

Consort Li stammered, "Your Majesty, she... she framed me!"

The Emperor: "What are you being falsely accused of?"

The Empress showed the Emperor a wooden puppet.

Empress: "Your Majesty, this was found by Qiuqiu in Consort Li's palace."

The emperor was immediately enraged.

The Emperor said, "Consort Li, you don't know that I despise witchcraft the most. Besides, this puppet resembles the Empress, and her birth date and time are on the back. Do you want to kill the Empress?"

Consort Li quickly kowtowed, saying, "Your Majesty, I dare not! Your Majesty, I dare not!"

The sixth prince was at a loss for what to do when he saw what was happening before him.

Chiu Chiu tugged at the Sixth Prince's little hand.

Chiu Chiu: "Little brother, don't be afraid. Chiu Chiu is here. Chiu Chiu will protect you."

The sixth prince nodded, tears rolling down his cheeks.

To avoid being seen by others, he quietly hid behind Qiuqiu.

The Sixth Prince is truly pitiful. He's the most innocent party in this matter. But after all, she's his mother. He must be heartbroken.

"Sixth Prince, I'm sorry. I have no choice. If I don't expose Consort Li, she will harm the Empress in the future. I can't just stand by and watch the Empress be killed."

The Empress looked at Consort Li, trembling with anger.

Empress: "Consort Li, I have always treated you well, why do you want to harm me like this?"

Consort Li remained defiant, saying, "I didn't. She's just talking nonsense. I'll teach her a lesson today!"

Consort Li raised her hand to kiss him, but was slapped across the face.

That slap was delivered by the Empress.

Consort Li covered her face in grievance and pleaded with the Emperor, "Your Majesty, she hit me!"

The Emperor said, "It's fortunate that she hit me. Otherwise, if I had hit her myself, I would have only hit her harder."

Consort Li looked at the Emperor, pointed at Qiuqiu, and said, "Your Majesty, is our friendship of many years not worth as much as this child?"

The Emperor looked at Qiuqiu and said, "No one is allowed to hurt this child! Do you hear me?!"

Consort Li, still looking aggrieved, had no choice but to nod and say, "Yes!"

Empress: "Your Majesty, Consort Li says she was wronged. Why don't we search her palace? That way we can get to the bottom of things."

The Emperor said, "Very well. Empress, I entrust this matter to you. You are also in charge of dealing with Consort Li."

The Empress bowed and said, "Thank you, Your Majesty!"

After the emperor finished speaking, he left.

Before leaving, she didn't forget to hug Qiuqiu.

The crowd: "Respectfully bidding farewell to His Majesty!"

The Empress led everyone in searching Consort Li's palace.

Chiu Chiu also begged to come along and watch the fun.

Sure enough, Consort Li's palace was found to be full of poisons. The poisons were colorless and odorless, and the symptoms of poisoning were exactly the same as those of the Empress at the time.

When Consort Li realized that her scheme had been exposed, she put on a pitiful expression once again.

She tugged at the Empress's robe and said, "Sister, I was wrong! I shouldn't have been jealous. Please forgive me this time! I promise I'll treat you well from now on!"

[Your Majesty, please do not be soft-hearted. If you spare her this time, she will harm you again next time. Your original fate was caused by her. Please, please do not be soft-hearted!]

The Empress took these words to heart.

Previously, the Empress had repeatedly compromised and tolerated, taking care of Consort Li out of consideration for their sisterly bond, and spoiled her in every way. I never expected it would come to this.

The Empress kept a straight face, appearing calm and composed, making it impossible to guess her emotions.

Consort Li began to plead with the Empress again, wiping away her tears.

Consort Li: "Sister, it's my fault! I'll change! Please forgive me this time, okay?"

The Empress: "To harbor witchcraft and poison in the palace is a capital offense!"

Consort Li cried even harder, clutching the Empress's robe tightly, saying, "I don't want to die! Sister, don't let me die! I still have Xing'er, you wouldn't want to see Xing'er so young without a mother, would you?"

Xing'er knelt before the Empress, tears streaming down her face, pleading, "Your Majesty, please don't kill my mother. I can't bear to see her die! Waaah..."

The Empress was slightly moved and raised her finger slightly.

The Empress is beautiful and kind-hearted; it's unlikely she'll kill her. However, sending her to a temple where she can't leave all day would prevent her from causing further trouble.

The Queen was in a dilemma, but after hearing what Qiuqiu said, she thought it was a really good idea.

The Empress helped the Sixth Prince up: "Get up, Xing'er. You are a good child. From now on, come and be raised by me."

The sixth prince sobbed, "What about my mother?"

The Empress sighed and said, "Consort Li will be spared death in consideration of her merit in giving birth to the Sixth Prince. She shall be sent to Beishan Nunnery to shave her head and become a nun. She shall not leave Beishan Nunnery without my order."

Consort Li wiped away her tears and said, "Thank you for your great kindness, Your Majesty!"