Thunder

Deep within the inner prison, the damp, musty smell and the stench of blood mixed into a nauseating odor. Eunuch Chang collapsed on the cold straw mat, his eyes wide open, but his pupils were empty. Only Baili Hongyuan's last words, like thunder, echoed repeatedly in his mind.

"Xia Lieyun is your Majesty's uncle..."

"Who appointed the eunuch who met privately with Xia Lieyun? He was also sent by His Majesty."

"You killed his people and ruined his business, and you still want to live?"

"We still don't know who poisoned the Queen Mother, so why did you come to investigate?"

Fragments of memories of that snowy night more than 20 years ago came flooding back to him - a sly look flashed across Xia Rongyun's eyes when he handed over the swaddling clothes; the child was stronger than expected... It turned out that from that moment on, he became an accomplice of this heinous conspiracy, and personally helped a remnant of the previous dynasty ascend the throne!

"Heh... heh..." Eunuch Chang let out a low, bellows-like laugh, a laugh filled with despair and self-mockery. He had served the Empress Dowager for most of his life, thinking himself shrewd, but it turned out he had been a chess piece from beginning to end, a discarded piece that would be crushed by his master's own hands!

"No... I can't die like this..." He sat up suddenly, his skinny fingers tightly grasping the iron bars of the prison door, and shouted at the dark passage: "Come! I want to see the Queen Mother! I want to see the Queen Mother! I have something important to report!"

At almost the same time, although the Cining Palace was filled with calming incense, the atmosphere was so solemn that it was suffocating.

The Empress Dowager reclined on the phoenix couch, her face still pale from her illness. Princess Bao personally brought her a bowl of warming medicinal food, feeding her sip by sip. Besides them, the only other person in the palace waiting on her was the Empress Dowager's most trusted maid.

"Hasn't the Emperor come to pay his respects today?" The Queen Mother spoke slowly, her voice carrying a barely perceptible hint of weakness and coldness.

The maid in charge replied cautiously, "Your Majesty, His Majesty has sent someone to say that he is busy with government affairs and will come to see you later."

The Empress Dowager closed her eyes and snorted softly. Busy with government affairs? Perhaps she was busy cleaning up the mess. She already knew the details of the clash between Wei Chong and Eunuch Chang in front of Prince Bao's mansion. Xia Lieyun... that name pierced her heart like a poisonous sting. Why would the Emperor secretly contact someone from the Nine Nether Sect? And why now? She had been poisoned and unconscious, and while the Emperor appeared concerned upon waking, how could he conceal the inquiry and wariness hidden in his eyes, a pair of eyes that had been navigating the palace for decades?

At that moment, a trusted eunuch hurried in and whispered something in the ear of the head maid. The head maid's expression changed slightly. She quickly walked to the bed and whispered, "Empress Dowager, news has come from the inner prison. Eunuch Chang... is clamoring to see you. He claims to have a great secret... concerning the royal bloodline."

The words "royal blood" struck the Queen Mother like a hammer. She opened her eyes abruptly, a glint of light flashing before fading away, leaving only a gloomy dusk.

"Bring him here." The Queen Mother's voice was not loud, but it was filled with unquestionable majesty. "Do it quietly, don't let anyone know."

"yes."

Princess Bao stood up at the right moment and said softly, "My mother has important matters to attend to, so I will take my leave first."

The Queen Mother glanced at her, her gaze lingering for a moment on her belly, which hadn't yet shown any sign of pregnancy. She softened her tone, which was rare, and said, "You are pregnant. You should rest well. Go."

After Princess Bao left, the palace fell into a dead silence. The Empress Dowager stroked the Buddhist beads on her wrist, her heart in turmoil. Royal blood... What did this old servant, Chang Gui, know? Or rather, what was the Emperor hiding from her?

About an incense stick later, Eunuch Chang, looking haggard and exuding the foul smell of prison, was escorted in by two eunuchs trusted by the Empress Dowager. Upon seeing the Empress Dowager, he scrambled free like a dying man grasping at driftwood, threw himself to the ground, and burst into tears: "Empress Dowager! Your Majesty! I am wronged! I am loyal to you!"

The Queen Mother looked down at him with a cold gaze. "Tell me, what's the big secret? If you lie even a word, I'll make you wish you were dead."

Eunuch Chang raised his head, his face a mixture of fear and a desperate madness: "It's Xia Rongyun! It's Doctor Xia! He deceived you and deceived this servant! That child back then... that child was not a nephew of the Chang family! It was a bastard born by Xia Rongyun and his lover - that shameless fourth aunt of the Qin family!"

"Clang!" The Queen Mother slammed the Buddhist beads in her hand to the ground, sending the fine sandalwood beads tumbling all over the floor. She leaned forward, staring intently at Eunuch Chang, her voice shrill and inflected, "What did you say?! Say it again!"

"It's true! Absolutely true!" Eunuch Chang kowtowed profusely. "Prince Ning told me personally that Xia Lieyun is Xia Rongyun's biological brother, and the current... that person's biological uncle! Your Majesty... he's known about my life story for a long time! He's now contacted the Nine Nether Sect, murdered Xia Lieyun to silence him, and sent me to investigate the Three Soul Poison case. He wants to... he wants to target you. Get rid of everyone who knows the secret, Queen Mother!"

The palace was deathly silent. The Empress Dowager's chest rose and fell violently, her face turning from pale to ashen, then a frightening purple-red. She recalled the Emperor's recent estrangement, the murderous intent in his eyes, and her own inexplicable poisoning...

"Puff——" A mouthful of blood suddenly spurted out of the empress dowager's mouth, staining the bright yellow collar of her clothes red.

"Empress Dowager!" The maid in charge exclaimed and came forward to support her.

But the Queen Mother pushed her away and wiped the blood from the corner of her mouth with the back of her hand. Her old eyes were burning with anger and deep hatred for being betrayed by the person she trusted the most.

"What a great emperor! What a 'good prince' I am!" She spoke each word with such intensity that her voice seemed to come from hell. "If I can help you rise, I can also pull you down!"

She looked at the limp Eunuch Chang, her eyes sharp as a knife: "Chang Gui, do you want to live?"

Eunuch Chang nodded desperately as if he had grabbed the last straw.

"Then write down everything you know about Xia Rongyun and that bastard in detail!" The Queen Mother took a deep breath and ordered the maid in charge, "Convey my imperial decree. Secretly summon Prime Minister Su, Chief Minister of the Cabinet, and Uncle Yu, the Chief of the Imperial Clan Bureau... Also, have Prince Bao come to the palace immediately!"

Thunder roared, and a storm sweeping across the entire power of the Great Sheng Dynasty officially began. At this moment, at the edge of the storm, in the Yuan Clinic, Qin Yousi was carefully polishing a set of shining silver needles. Outside the window, dark clouds slowly gathered, obscuring the moonlight.