Unexpectedly, just as she turned around, she heard Lianxia suddenly call her name again.

"What's wrong?" Jian Yang turned around subconsciously.

In the dim light and shadow, Lianxia suddenly grinned at her, then threw a handful of powder at her.

Jian Yang couldn't dodge in time and was splashed all over her face. Just as she was shocked, a wave of dizziness hit her brain, and then everything went black before her eyes, and she lost consciousness.

It turns out that the person closest to me was the traitor.

This was Jian Yang's last thought before she lost consciousness.

"Lianxia, ​​you did very well this time."

Inside the palace of the Virtuous Consort, Zhou Jing'an looked at Lianxia with eyes full of admiration.

Lianxia looked at the handsome Second Prince and blushed instantly. "Thank you, thank you for your praise, Your Highness."

Consort Xian watched coldly from the side, making no attempt to hide the disgust in her eyes. "You despicable traitor!"

Lianxia's originally flushed face turned deathly pale.

Zhou Jing'an chimed in, "Your Highness, calm down. Getting rid of the Empress will not only avenge you, but also solidify your position in the palace. Why not do it?"

When Lianxia saw Zhou Jing'an speaking up for her, she couldn't help but glance at him shyly.

Consort Xian snorted twice, then glanced at Jian Yang, who was unconscious on the chaise longue, and said impatiently, "Leave the rest to the Second Prince. I'm tired."

Zhou Jing'an smiled and said, "Your Majesty, please go and rest. I will take this girl and the Empress out of the palace shortly."

"good."

After speaking, Consort Xian returned to her bedchamber, leaving only her maidservant to guard the main hall.

Lianxia's heart was already fluttering.

Zhou Jing'an's words about taking her away were like a boulder falling into a lake, creating ripples all over her heart.

It turns out that the Second Prince hadn't been lying to her all along; he truly did love her!

With those words, Lianxia felt all the guilt she had felt for acting as the Second Prince's spy and for betraying Jian Yang vanish.

She didn't think she had done anything wrong.

If a person doesn't look out for themselves, they'll be punished by heaven and earth.

Nobody wants to be a servant who is ordered around for the rest of their life.

Although Jian Yang's personality changed drastically after being poisoned, he no longer beat and scolded her as he used to.

But who can guarantee that she won't suddenly revert to her old ways one day?

It was at this time that Zhou Jing'an extended an olive branch to her, expressing his affection for her and promising to give her a proper title after she left the palace.

No woman could remain unmoved by a prince who was high above her.

She succumbed completely without putting up any resistance.

Lianxia knew her lowly status, and since Zhou Jing'an already had a legal wife, she never dared to dream of becoming the legal wife.

She would be perfectly content as long as she was made a concubine or a secondary wife.

"Lianxia," Zhou Jing'an called to her, "what are you still standing there for? Did you listen carefully to what I just said?"

Although his tone was gentle, a hint of impatience flashed in his eyes.

Lianxia was so engrossed in her thoughts that she didn't notice anything amiss.

She came to her senses and said somewhat awkwardly, "Please repeat it again, Your Highness."

Zhou Jing'an said gently, "I said, why don't you two exchange your clothes and hair accessories first, so that it will be easier to carry out the operation later."

Although Lianxia didn't understand Zhou Jing'an's intention in having her and Jian Yang exchange clothes, she still obediently did as he said.

"Your Highness, I've changed."

Lianxia cautiously went to call Zhou Jing'an, who was standing behind the screen to avoid suspicion.

Zhou Jing'an did not respond.

"Your Highness?" Lianxia asked, puzzled. She slowly walked towards the screen, intending to find out what was going on.

But as soon as she stepped behind the screen, she saw Zhou Jing'an staring at her intently.

The smile was gone from those peach blossom eyes; they looked like the eyes of some ferocious beast eyeing its prey.

No, it's not prey yet, it's staring at a dead man.

The thought filled Lianxia with extreme horror.

She said in a trembling voice, "Your Highness, this servant has exchanged hair ornaments and clothes with the Empress as you requested."

“Very good.” Zhou Jing’an smiled and walked slowly toward her. “This hairpin is in the wrong place.”

As he spoke, he raised his hand, seemingly intending to adjust the position of her hairpin.

Lianxia blushed and lowered her head slightly.

But instead of touching her hair, those large, well-defined hands gripped her neck.

With a "crack," the neck bone shattered.

Lianxia stared wide-eyed at Zhou Jing'an in disbelief.

She couldn't understand why the man who had once been so devoted to her would send her to her death so suddenly.

"This is the last thing you did for me," Zhou Jing'an said calmly.

Lianxia was speechless, her eyes filled with resentment and fear.

Zhou Jing'an manually closed her eyelids, then removed the gold hairpin from her head and slashed her face to pieces.

Even if Lianxia's parents were standing in front of her now, they would definitely not be able to deny that this was their daughter.

After wiping away the bloodstains, Zhou Jing'an summoned his bodyguards and ordered them to throw Lianxia's body into the lotus pond in the Imperial Garden.

Then he picked up Jian Yang and quickly disappeared into the night.

The next day.

The emperor had just finished court and was about to go to his study when a palace maid suddenly blocked his way.

"How dare you!" Eunuch Zhang shouted. "Who dares to block the Emperor's path? Oh, isn't this Miss Xiqiu?"

The person who came was Xiqiu, another maid of Jianyang.

The emperor looked at her swollen eyes and asked, "What's wrong? Is the empress ill?"

Xiqiu shook her head and said through tears, "Your Majesty, the Empress is missing. She hasn't returned to the palace since last night. I've searched every corner of the palace, but I haven't found her anywhere."

The emperor frowned and asked, "Did they go to rest at the other concubines' residence?"

Xiqiu said firmly, "No, if that were the case, Her Majesty would definitely send Lianxia back to deliver the message. But I have been waiting for a long time and have not received any message from Her Majesty or Lianxia."

Upon hearing this, the emperor immediately summoned his guards. He first sent a group of men to inquire with Consort Xian, who was on good terms with Jian Yang, and then dispatched another group to the Prime Minister's residence. He then ordered a thorough search of the residence.

An hour later, a guard reported: "Your Majesty, I have found a female corpse in the lotus pond in the Imperial Garden. She is wearing... clothing..."

"What are you wearing!" the emperor demanded angrily. "Speak up!"

The guard gritted his teeth and said, "The deceased was dressed in the Empress's clothes."

Upon hearing this, the emperor was struck dumb, as if by a thunderbolt.

After a moment, he straightened up and said with a serious expression, "Take me there immediately to investigate."

The guard hesitated, saying, "Your Majesty, the corpse is swollen from being soaked in water, and its face has been mutilated by sharp weapons. It looks extremely gruesome. You'd better not go see it."

"Enough with the nonsense! One more word and I'll punish you for disobeying an imperial edict!"

The guards quickly shut up and had no choice but to lead the emperor toward Lotus Lake.

Xiqiu quickly followed.

She only glanced at it before she started crying and vomiting.

The reason for the crying was that the female corpse's clothes and hairstyle were exactly the same as Jian Yang's, so it was very likely that it was Jian Yang.

The vomiting was due to the fact that the body had been soaked overnight, and its face was slashed and swollen from being submerged in water.