The crown prince stood up, frowned, and asked, "What happened?"

The young eunuch, eager to make an appearance before the Crown Prince, whispered, "His Majesty is in Kunning Palace."

Kunning Palace?

The crown prince hesitated for a moment before he remembered.

Kunning Palace was the residence of the Empress, but because the Empress was bedridden for a long time, the palace was closed and gradually forgotten.

The Emperor and Empress's strained relationship was common knowledge in the palace. For the Emperor to suddenly rush over at such a time... could it be...?

The crown prince strode out the door, and Eunuch Feng and the young eunuch quickly followed.

Unexpectedly, the little fox, perhaps unhappy about being left behind, hopped and skipped after them.

The Kunning Palace was so quiet that you could hear a pin drop.

The eunuchs and maids serving in the palace all knelt in the corner with their heads down, not daring to breathe loudly.

If you look closely, you'll see that they are all trembling, clearly terrified.

The emperor stood at the entrance of his bedchamber, his expression complex, unsure whether it was regret, nostalgia, or relief.

Chief Steward Yi bowed and stood to one side, whispering, "Your Majesty...please accept my condolences."

The emperor sighed and remained silent.

They were a married couple, and although they had many conflicts and anger in the past, they also had a sweet past and had a child together.

Now that this person has left so suddenly, he can hardly believe it.

Most importantly... the timing is terrible.

Just then, the Crown Prince arrived.

"Father, has Mother's condition worsened?"

The Crown Prince did not show any signs of anxiety or sadness. After all, he had only come to pay his respects to the Empress on the day he appeared in court, so they could hardly be considered close or familiar with each other.

But he called her "Mother" very naturally, showing the proper demeanor of a junior.

As expected, the Emperor was very satisfied, his expression softened, and he then turned to the side to gesture for the Crown Prince to take a look inside the room.

The colorful curtains and decorations had been removed from the room, making it appear somewhat empty.

On a rosewood bed carved with peonies and phoenixes, lay the emaciated empress, dressed in a phoenix robe and wearing a magnificent phoenix crown, her hands folded over her lower abdomen, as if she were sleeping peacefully...

The crown prince's expression changed, and he asked in a low voice, "Father, what's wrong with Mother...?"

The Emperor nodded and replied, "Yes, the Empress has passed away. Your investiture ceremony as Crown Prince is only three days away. Her passing at this time is truly ill-timed."

The crown prince also felt that the timing was not good, since a funeral would take at least half a month to prepare.

Therefore, the ceremony for appointing the crown prince had to be postponed, the selection of imperial consorts had to be postponed, and his taking over the administration of the court had to be postponed as well...

But there are some things he can't say.

So he remained silent, his expression showing a mixture of difficulty and confusion.

Sure enough, the Emperor couldn't bear to see his son worry, so he immediately said, "There are priorities in everything. Right now, everything must give way to your ceremony of being named Crown Prince."

"You should do as you please. Keep this place a secret for now. We'll announce the funeral after the selection of the new concubine."

The Crown Prince seemed somewhat surprised and asked, "Father, the weather is so hot... and it's time for the deceased to rest in peace. How can you trouble Mother for my sake..."

The Emperor waved his hand and replied, "Don't worry too much. This is the only way to arrange things."

If you feel guilty, then take better care of the Third Princess in the future.

"The Third Princess is the Empress's only bloodline. I'm sure the Empress can rest assured now that she is watching from heaven."

The Crown Prince quickly bowed and said, "Father, rest assured, the Third Princess is my sister. Even without today's events, I would still take good care of her."

"Before, when I was away from home, I was all alone and very lonely. What I envied most was the close and harmonious relationship between the brothers and sisters in the Li family. Now that I have a younger sister, I will naturally spoil her."

The emperor was very pleased to hear this and did not say anything more.

Both Chief Steward Yi and Eunuch Feng were capable; upon receiving the order, they arranged everything in Kunning Palace in less than an hour.

Although it cannot be announced to the world, the Empress is, after all, the mother of the nation, and the dead should be treated with utmost respect, so it is not appropriate to treat her with disrespect.

Therefore, white was hung in Kunning Palace, and the Empress was placed in her coffin.

The coffin was filled with a large amount of ice, leaving only a place for the empress to lie flat.

Even so, a lot of ice was still buried under the half-closed coffin lid.

This is done to keep the body at a low temperature so that it will not decompose.

All the eunuchs and palace maids originally thought they would be sentenced to death and buried with the emperor, but unexpectedly, the emperor was considering appointing a crown prince and choosing a crown princess, and since it was not appropriate to kill, they were spared.

This is an absolutely incredible surprise, like going from death to life.

Everyone wished they had three heads and six arms, desperately looking for work to do, fearing that if they became useless, they would eventually be sent to their deaths...

In Zhilan Palace, the Third Princess had little appetite and listlessly leaned against the window, staring blankly at the flowers and plants in the courtyard.

She was born a princess, so naturally she was extremely proud.

She was unwilling to spend her life with a man who didn't love her.

But having fallen in love, she felt reluctant to tell her father the truth and see the person she once loved being punished.

This is truly a dilemma.

At this moment, Caiyun hurriedly walked in from outside and was about to speak.

The third princess waved her hand impatiently and said angrily, "I've already said I have no appetite and don't want to eat! Don't try to persuade me anymore, it's so annoying!"

Caiyun quickly knelt down and said anxiously, "Princess, it's not that... something's not right at Kunning Palace! I went to deliver peaches to Her Majesty the Empress, but the eunuchs guarding the gate wouldn't let me in. And, it seems the Emperor and the Crown Prince are both there..."

"What?" The Third Princess sat up abruptly, asking in horror, "You mean, you didn't see the Empress Dowager. And Father and Crown Prince are both here?"

“Yes, Princess,” Caiyun said, forcing herself to speak. “This servant guesses that something must have happened, but this servant does not know the specifics.”

The third princess turned pale and stumbled as she ran outside.

The Empress Dowager was bedridden for many years, and the Emperor never visited her.

Now that the Emperor has passed away and the Crown Prince is still here, what could possibly happen?

I'm afraid Mother is not well...

The eunuchs guarding the gate of Kunning Palace dared to stop Caiyun, but they dared not stop the Third Princess.

Even as he made a gesture to step forward, bow, and speak, the Third Princess pushed him aside.

"Get out of my way!"

Inside the gate, all that could be seen was white, and all that could be heard was silence, which made the Third Princess burst into tears.

She stumbled and fell, her hair disheveled and her clothes ruffled. She finally managed to crawl to the coffin, but seeing her mother lying on the ice, she could no longer hold on and fainted...

The Emperor was giving instructions to the chief eunuch of Kunning Palace under the eaves when he heard the commotion and saw his daughter faint.

Fortunately, the crown prince was not far away and quickly caught his sister.

The Emperor grew anxious and stepped forward, scolding, "Why has the Third Princess come here?"

The Crown Prince sighed and replied, "Father, after all, Mother is the birth mother of my younger sister, the princess. Perhaps she had a special connection with me and that's why she discovered this."

The Emperor had no choice but to signal Chief Eunuch Yi and the others to come forward and serve.

Steward Yi quickly fed the Third Princess a sedative pill and then pinched her philtrum.

Soon, the third princess woke up.