Before the Empress could finish speaking, Xuanyuan Han suddenly stood up to take his leave: "Sister-in-law, I suddenly remembered that I have important matters to attend to, so I will return to my residence first."

The Empress also stood up to see him off, and hurriedly said, "Since Imperial Uncle has important matters to attend to, then go and take care of them quickly! I will handle the Crown Prince's affairs."

"yes."

As he spoke, Xuanyuan Han turned and hurriedly left.

Cheng Liang, who had been waiting outside the hall, rushed forward as soon as he saw his master walk out of the hall and asked with concern, "Your Highness, is the Crown Prince alright?"

Xuanyuan Han did not answer his question, but instead asked him, "Do you know that there is a ten-mile-long lotus pond in the Western Hills?"

“West Mountain…Ten-mile Lotus Pond?” Cheng Liang scratched his head, searching his memory for a long time, but ultimately couldn’t recall it.

Xuanyuan Han immediately ordered, "Send people to search immediately."

Cheng Liang asked in confusion, "What does Your Highness want with the lotus pond?"

Xuanyuan Han said in a deep voice, "Near that ten-mile lotus pond, there is a secluded villa belonging to the Empress Dowager."

Upon hearing this, Cheng Liang instantly understood: "Your Highness means... that the Empress Dowager hid Shoubo and his servant in that villa?"

As the two were talking, they had already mounted their horses.

With a shout of "Giddy up!", the sound of horses' hooves rang out, and the master and servant galloped swiftly toward the west of the city.

Inside Donghua Palace, the Empress and her son stood at the entrance, watching Xuan Yuanhan leave in a hurry.

Xuanyuan Hao stared longingly at the doorway that had long since disappeared, and asked the silent Empress beside him, "Mother, do you think Uncle Qin can find the Empress Dowager's villa?"

The Empress placed her hand on Xuanyuan Hao's shoulder and said thoughtfully, "Even I don't know, but this is all we can do to help him. The rest is up to fate!"

"Hao'er believes that Uncle Qin can definitely find that ten-mile lotus pond." Xuan Yuanhao was absolutely convinced.

For a moment, the Empress was filled with mixed feelings and fell into deep thought.

She recalled that when she was a child, her parents followed the late emperor to fight in various battles. In a battle with the enemy, the late emperor was caught in a trap and fell into a predicament.

In order to protect the late emperor, her parents ultimately chose to perish together with the enemy.

From then on, the lonely and helpless child was taken back to the palace by the late emperor and raised by him personally.

Because of her intelligence, obedience, gentleness, and kindness, the late emperor doted on her greatly.

She often stayed by the late emperor's side, enjoying his company.

When they grew up, they were naturally betrothed to the future heir of the emperor.

But she clearly never imagined that the current emperor was actually a fake emperor, a result of the Empress Dowager's substitution of the crown prince.

Having been cherished like a precious jewel by the late emperor, how could she bear to let him suffer such humiliation, to let his true bloodline flow away and his precious jewel dimmed?

But what could a woman like her do against this powerful court?

Torn by conflicting emotions, and after much deliberation, she decided to secretly help Xuanyuan Han to completely overthrow Emperor Jing.

To comfort the spirit of the late emperor in heaven, and to not have wasted the late emperor's kindness and the nurturing grace that even if I were to repay him in my next life, I could never do so.

At this thought, she instinctively felt a surge of hatred that made her teeth itch.

As Xuanyuan Hao stood there, he suddenly asked, "Mother, if one day, Uncle Qin really replaces Father's position, what will happen to you and me?"

The Empress came to her senses and said softly, "Uncle Qin is kind; he will surely treat my son and me well."

After being told the truth by the Empress, Xuanyuan Hao was filled with sorrow and worry.

Just then, the Empress Dowager sent someone to Donghua Palace to deliver a message: "Your Majesty the Empress Dowager requests your presence at Yong'an Palace."

The Empress asked, "Do you know why the Empress Dowager has summoned me?"

The maid replied, "This servant does not know; Her Majesty the Empress will surely find out once she arrives."

This maid was the most loyal to the Empress Dowager. Although the maid said nothing, the Empress had a feeling that she must have discovered the Empress Dowager's secret, and the Empress Dowager already knew about it.

Immediately, the Empress and her son exchanged a glance, and Xuan Yuanhao's eyes were instantly filled with worry for her.

The Empress smiled slightly and nodded gently to him, indicating that he did not need to worry about her.

So, she took steady steps and followed her maid out of the gate of Donghua Palace.

Upon entering Yong'an Palace.

Seeing that the Empress Dowager was calmly sipping a cup of tea, the Empress respectfully curtsied and greeted her: "Your subject greets Your Majesty. May I ask why Your Majesty specifically summoned your subject here?"

Just now, the palace painters presented the Empress Dowager with a portrait of what appeared to be a descendant of the guardian, drawn based on information provided by Shoubo.

The Empress Dowager examined the matter for a long time but couldn't come up with a single clue. Although the matter was of great importance, she decided to ask the clever Empress to help her confirm it.

The Empress Dowager calmly put down her teacup and said, "I ordered the Empress to come over so that she could help me look at a painting."

As she was speaking, the maid who had just gone to fetch the Empress took a scroll from a desk and unfurled it.

The Empress Dowager said, "Perhaps I have truly aged these past two years. Empress, please take a closer look for me. I feel as if I have seen this woman in the painting somewhere before, but I can't quite place her! Empress, have you seen her somewhere before?"

The Empress's gaze fell upon the painting, and she widened her eyes in surprise, recognizing at a glance that the person in the painting was Yi Shangyun.

But why was the Empress Dowager suddenly holding her portrait?

After only a moment's thought, the Empress was stunned: "Could it be that the Empress Dowager already knows that the cloud on the robe is the matter of the guardian's descendants?"

Suppressing her extreme fear, the Empress tried to calm herself down and tentatively asked, "I wonder who is in this portrait... This woman has such a pure and refined appearance, and such an elegant temperament, that she seems like a celestial being. I think that such a woman could only exist in a painting."

The Empress Dowager was clearly surprised by the Empress's reaction and asked, "Don't you think this woman looks somewhat familiar, Your Majesty?"

The Empress shook her head: "This woman is probably one of a kind in this world."

The Empress Dowager then muttered to herself, "Could it be that my eyes are playing tricks on me, and I've really remembered it wrong?"

At this point, the Empress pressed further, "I wonder where Your Majesty obtained this portrait of a woman, and what purpose does it serve?"

Upon hearing this, the Empress Dowager snapped out of her reverie and pretended to say, "Oh, this is the child of one of my distant relatives. It is said that he was lost a couple of years ago. I feel sorry for my relative who has lost her only child, so I wanted to help her find him. If we can find him, that would be the best outcome."

The Empress immediately exclaimed, "There really is such a beautiful girl in the world! If so, then I will send people to search for her carefully."

As he spoke, he asked, "May I ask the court painters to make several copies of this portrait so that it can be distributed and used to find the missing person?"

Upon hearing this, the Empress Dowager hurriedly declined, saying, "Oh, no need for that, no need. I will send people to look for it myself. Perhaps it will all be in vain, and it may really be lost and never be found! There are too many trivial matters in the palace, so the Empress need not worry about me."

Seeing how carefully she was hiding the portrait, the Empress became even more certain of her thoughts, and pretended to express her gratitude: "Your subject thanks Your Majesty for your understanding."

At this moment, the Empress Dowager drank another cup of tea and suddenly asked, "By the way, I heard that when Princess Qin came to the palace to pay her respects last time, she was accidentally stabbed in the Imperial Pharmacy. It has been more than a month now, has she recovered yet?"

Upon hearing this, the Empress was startled and quickly said, "She is much better now, but I just heard from Prince Qin that the Princess Consort is still feeling a little unwell. Prince Qin will personally bring her to pay his respects to Your Majesty in a few days."

"Um"

The Empress Dowager agreed, and then instructed, "Alright, the weather is getting hotter and hotter. I'm feeling a bit tired myself. Empress, you may go and attend to your business."

"In that case, I shall take my leave."

As she spoke, the empress turned to leave.

Just as she was about to step over the threshold, the Empress Dowager's voice suddenly came from behind her again: "Sit properly in your position as Empress and don't meddle in other people's business, or you will bring disaster upon yourself."

In fact, the Empress Dowager's trusted maid had already informed her that the Empress had secretly entered the palace on the day Shoubo entered.

However, the Empress's status was special, as both her parents died protecting the late Emperor, which meant that even the Empress Dowager could not easily do anything to her.

The Empress Dowager obviously couldn't do anything about her for the time being, so she could only keep her around for now. However, if one day she really jeopardized the Empress Dowager's plans, the Empress Dowager would naturally no longer tolerate her.

Upon hearing this, the Empress could only grit her teeth and silently endure, saying, "Your subject will obey Your Majesty's teachings."

After the Empress left, the Empress Dowager hurriedly instructed her maid: "Carefully put this portrait away, and make sure it does not fall into the hands of others."

The maid replied confidently, "Yes, Your Majesty, please rest assured."

Then, a thought crossed his mind, and he asked, "What should be done with the painter who created this painting?"

A murderous glint appeared in the Empress Dowager's eyes.

The maid instantly understood her intention and said, "This servant understands. This servant will go find someone to deal with him right away."

The Empress Dowager instructed, "This matter must never be known to the Emperor."

"I understand," the maid replied, and then moved into the inner hall to hide the painting.

The Empress Dowager, however, remained puzzled, muttering to herself, "Why does this woman look so familiar? When and where have I seen her before..."

Seeing the Empress stagger out of Yong'an Palace, looking dazed, the maidservant hurriedly stepped forward to support her and asked with concern, "Your Majesty, what's wrong? Why do you look so pale?"

The Empress was so frightened that she couldn't even lift her legs. She grabbed her maid's arm tightly and ordered in a low voice, "Go, quickly help me get away from here..."

Only after leaving Yong'an Palace did the Empress regain some of her senses and ask the maid beside her, "In all these years, have you heard of any relatives of the Empress Dowager who have chosen a concubine?"