King Cheng fled in fear of punishment. If anyone in the capital still knows why King Cheng stole his mother's body, that person must be the Empress Dowager.

Xie Jingyan looked at the Emperor, "Perhaps the Empress Dowager knows."

The Emperor's gaze remained fixed on Consort Chen's face, his eyes filled with unyielding grief. Upon hearing Xie Jingyan's words, he said, "Even if the Empress Dowager favors Prince Cheng, she will not allow him to do such a thing."

The Empress Dowager protected Prince Cheng and the Empress, which angered the Emperor, who has not forgiven her to this day.

However, the Emperor was certain that the Empress Dowager was unaware of Prince Cheng's theft of Consort Chen's body. If the Empress Dowager knew, she would definitely put pressure on Prince Cheng to bury Consort Chen properly.

The Emperor is certain of this.

Seeing that the Emperor did not believe the Empress Dowager knew, Xie Jingyan coldly said, "Father, do you really believe that the Empress Dowager is unaware?"

A sarcastic tone.

The emperor looked at him.

Xie Jingyan poured cold water on the Emperor's enthusiasm, saying, "On the day Father Emperor issued the decree to execute the entire Yan family, the Empress Dowager went to the Cold Palace to see Mother Consort. Afterwards, she summoned the Minister of Justice and asked him to help preserve a single bloodline of the Yan family. Does Father Emperor know about this?"

The Emperor's heart skipped a beat, and his voice suddenly rose, "How is it possible that the Empress Dowager would allow the Minister of Justice to protect even a single bloodline of the Yan family?!"

...

Shou Kang Palace.

The Empress Dowager sat on her phoenix throne, her eyelids twitching and her mind uneasy ever since she woke up in the morning.

Before she had eaten more than a few bites of breakfast, Granny Zhao brought over some bird's nest soup, saying, "Your Majesty didn't eat much breakfast, so I personally made some bird's nest soup for you to have some."

The Empress Dowager waved her hand and said, "I have no appetite, take it away."

Undeterred, Granny Zhao pleaded earnestly, "Empress Dowager, please treat this servant with kindness and eat just a little, even a single bite..."

Knowing that Granny Zhao meant well, the Empress Dowager couldn't bear to go against Granny Zhao's wishes and prepared to eat a few bites. However, just as she was serving the bird's nest soup, a young eunuch came in and said, "Empress Dowager, the Emperor has left the palace."

The Empress Dowager's hand was about to touch the bird's nest soup when she immediately withdrew it. "The Emperor has left the palace? How come I didn't know about such a big thing?"

The young eunuch said, "That's what's being said in the palace: the Emperor left the palace in plain clothes, accompanied only by Eunuch Yuan and a few guards. Nobody knows what he went out to do..."

The Empress Dowager realized that her unease must be related to the Emperor's departure from the palace.

How can a monarch leave the palace so easily?!

What is it that requires the emperor to handle personally?!

Leaving the palace is one thing, but why not take more people with him? What if he gets targeted by villains outside the palace? What will become of the empire his ancestors fought and sacrificed to build?!

The Empress Dowager was both worried and angry, so angry that her head ached slightly.

"Could it be that His Majesty went to Prince Ling's residence to see the eldest grandson?" Zhao Mama guessed.

The Empress Dowager said, "There's no need to sneak around to see the eldest grandson of the emperor."

Granny Zhao felt that the Emperor hadn't exactly left the palace secretly; he just hadn't ridden in the imperial carriage or worn the dragon robe.

However, she also felt that it couldn't be the Ling Prince's residence. The eldest grandson of the emperor was only a few days old and couldn't run away anymore. Even if he was eager to hold the eldest grandson, he wouldn't be so eager as to go to the Ling Prince's residence to see him. But apart from the eldest grandson, Zhao Mama really couldn't guess who among the palace servants could get the emperor to leave.

The emperor rarely left the palace more than a few times a year, and each time he did, he was always accompanied by a large entourage of officials.

The Empress Dowager sat on her phoenix throne, worried. She wanted to send someone out of the palace to look for him, but she was also worried because the Emperor's attitude towards her was no longer the same as before due to the matter between Prince Cheng and Empress Song. The Empress Dowager was afraid that if she interfered too much, she would displease the Emperor even more.

Just as she was hesitating, a palace maid rushed in and said, "Empress Dowager, the Emperor has arrived."

The Empress Dowager was stunned.

From the day Empress Song was banished to the Cold Palace, no matter how ill she was, the Emperor never visited her at Shou Kang Palace.

The Empress Dowager knew that the Emperor was furious this time, but he had just left the palace and returned so quickly, coming directly to her place. The Empress Dowager felt a little uneasy.

Soon the Empress Dowager met the Emperor. The Emperor had returned from Prince Cheng's residence and came directly to the Empress Dowager in his plain clothes without changing his clothes.

Upon seeing the Emperor, the Empress Dowager said, "Your Majesty is the ruler of the country, and your life is connected to the well-being of all people. How can you be so willful and leave the palace at will..."

Before the Empress Dowager could finish speaking, the Emperor interrupted her, "Isn't the Empress Dowager curious about where I went after leaving the palace and what I did?"

While the Emperor was speaking, Eunuch Yuan was chasing people away.

He waved his hand and sent all the palace maids and nannies away.

This wasn't the first time Eunuch Yuan had dismissed someone in front of the Empress Dowager. The Empress Dowager was too preoccupied with unease to even feel angry.

After all the palace servants had left, the Empress Dowager asked, "Where did the Emperor go after leaving the palace?"

"I'm going to Prince Cheng's residence!"

The Empress Dowager was taken aback and frowned. "What is the Emperor doing at Prince Cheng's residence?"

The Emperor stared intently at the Empress Dowager. "Does the Empress Dowager truly not know what I was doing at Prince Cheng's residence?"

The Empress Dowager grew increasingly uneasy under the Emperor's gaze. She said, "The Prince Cheng's residence only has a concubine and a few maids left. What is there for Your Majesty to visit?"

The Emperor's face was grim. "Prince Cheng stole Consort Chen's body and hid it in the secret ice cellar of his study!"

Swish.

The Empress Dowager suddenly stood up in surprise.

I woke up so suddenly that my vision went black for a while before I could see anything again.

The Empress Dowager trembled with rage, her voice shaking, "That wretched child! How could he do such a thing?!"

Granny Zhao also looked shocked and incredulous.

They all knew that Consort Chen's body had been stolen. Back then, it was Zhao Mama who personally led people to bury Consort Chen, and it was Zhao Mama who led Xie Jingyan to pay respects to Consort Chen. She saw with her own eyes that the coffin was empty and there was no trace of Consort Chen being buried inside.

They all assumed that the Empress Dowager had instructed the Yan family, who were under the protection of the Minister of Justice, to bury Consort Chen separately for easier worship. How could it have been Prince Cheng?!

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!