Tonight seems to be the transition between summer and autumn. A cool breeze blows, making those dressed in thin clothes shiver.

After a while, Huang Taiji strode in. He already knew what had happened after being announced by the eunuch.

As soon as Huang Taiji stepped into the palace with his left foot, Yan Zhaqiu Rong couldn't wait to speak first, "Your Majesty, you must stand up for me! Consort Chen, Consort Zhuang, and the Empress are all pretending to be ghosts to scare me."

This is a classic case of the guilty party accusing the innocent first.

Huang Taiji glanced at her lightly, "Lan'er caught a cold and has been recuperating at Guanju Palace. Don't make false accusations."

"Impossible." Yan Zhaqiurong quickly shook her head.

"I just came from Guanju Palace and heard Lan'er coughing with my own ears. How could it be false?" Huang Taiji's face grew increasingly grim.

In reality, Huang Taiji did not actually meet Hailanzhu; instead, they were talking through a wall.

Little did they know that the person in the palace was dressed as a blue phoenix. The voice was different, but it didn't matter. By pretending to have caught a cold, no one would be able to tell the difference.

This was all to create the illusion that Hailanzhu was always in her palace.

"She's definitely using a smokescreen," Yan Zhaqiurong firmly believed.

"Shut up!" Huang Taiji didn't want to argue with her anymore. "Don't try to change the subject. What I want to know is, did you kill Yan Zha Qiuyi?"

She wanted to explain, but she had already said it herself, so how could she deny it?

Yan Zhaqiu bit her lip and lowered her head, tacitly agreeing.

Huang Taiji's eyes darkened. "Since you have personally admitted that you killed Yan Zha Qiuyi, and the emperor is subject to the same laws as commoners, then you shall be buried with her!"

Before Yan Zhaqiu could object, Huang Taiji waved his hand and ordered, "Take her to the cliff where Yan Zhaqiu fell into depravity and throw her off."

"No...no, Your Majesty...please forgive me this time, for the sake of my past service to you and for the sake of our Yebushu." Yan Zhaqiu cried out and lunged at Huang Taiji, but was pulled back by the eunuch.

She never expected Huang Taiji to be so resolute.

Huang Taiji looked at her coldly, "You shouldn't have received these things in the first place. You owe her your life, so just give it back to her."

Yan Zhaqiurong kowtowed with tears streaming down her face, saying, "Yebushu is still young and needs my care. He cannot be without his mother."

Huang Taiji didn't take it to heart, saying, "There are plenty of concubines in the harem who don't have children, and I believe they would be better mothers to him than you. Besides, I'm still here."

These words immediately silenced Yan Zhaqiurong. Seeing that this approach was blocked, she used her trump card, "But my father is getting old. How can he bear the pain of a white-haired man burying a black-haired man? For the sake of him taking a knife for you, don't let him suffer this pain."

Huang Taiji couldn't help but chuckle at these words.

On his way to conquer the Solon tribes, he was assassinated by Ming soldiers, but Yan Zhafulin took a knife for him and he survived.

That is why Yan Zha Fulin has achieved his current status.

Unfortunately, it was all a setup.

Huang Taiji said with a forced smile, "If we hadn't mentioned this, I would have almost forgotten about it."

Yan Zhaqiu Rong kept her head down and didn't see Huang Taiji's expression. She thought he had accepted her words, "And everything I've done is out of love for you!"

"So, it was my fault?" Huang Taiji narrowed his eyes and said.

“It’s not the Emperor’s fault, it’s yours,” Yan Zhaqiurong said, waving her hand.

Huang Taiji's lips curled into a mocking smile, "Why are you still unrepentant even when death is imminent!"

He couldn't hold back any longer and slammed his hand hard on the table and chair next to him.

"Bang!"

A loud bang startled everyone in the hall.

Seeing this, Zhe Zhe and Dayuer wisely knelt down, saying, "Your Majesty, please calm down."

"How can I calm down!" Huang Taiji was so angry that the veins on his forehead bulged. He pointed at Yan Zhaqiurong and said, "You and your daughter are truly a den of snakes and rats, making me run around in circles."

"Your Majesty, I do not understand!" Yan Zhaqiurong raised her eyes and looked at Huang Taiji with a puzzled expression.

"You don't understand?" Huang Taiji sneered. "Fine, today I'll make you understand."

This afternoon, Huang Taiji finally learned that the ambush he had suffered years ago was orchestrated by Yan Zhafulin. The so-called Ming army ambush was nothing more than a charade staged by bandits paid by Yan Zhafulin.

Huang Taiji wasn't too angry when he heard about this, but he didn't expect that after Yanzha Fulin became an official, he not only failed to benefit the people, but also secretly sold official positions, forcibly took women, and caused the deaths of many people.

When the rest of the Yanzha clan heard that such a scoundrel had appeared in their clan, they all distanced themselves from him, and no one dared to come forward to plead for him.

Seeing that no one was stopping him, Huang Taiji immediately ordered that Yan Zhafulin beheaded and his head displayed to the public.

This news would have reached Yan Zhaqiurong's ears quickly, but she was only focused on finding Yipinhong and using Namuzhong to poison Hailanzhu, so she had no time to hear anything else.

After she finished her work, she ate the poisonous mushrooms and naturally knew nothing about Yan Zhafulin's beheading and public display.

"How could this happen..." Yan Zhaqiu was stunned. Now she really had no hope of turning things around.

Huang Taiji slowly walked up to her, reached out and grabbed her neck, and whispered in her ear, "When you wanted the Poinsettia and killed Lan'er, you should have died."

Yan Zhaqiurong's face turned increasingly red, she had difficulty breathing, and her entire face turned purplish-black.

"What poinsettia? I don't understand." She struggled desperately, trying to break free of her restraints.

"You're still pretending. Namuzhong has already told me everything. You were the one who hinted that she should offer the poinsettia to Lan'er," Huang Taiji sneered, increasing the pressure on his hand.

"Cough cough cough." Yan Zha Qiu Rong struggled painfully, desperately trying to grab the sleeve of the man in front of her, but she knew she couldn't escape today. However, she still had one question to ask, "If it weren't for Hai Lan Zhu, would you... treat me like this?"

"Perhaps out of consideration for Yebushu, I will cripple you," Huang Taiji said coldly.

He then released his grip, and Yan Zhaqiurong was able to catch her breath.

At this moment, Yan Zhaqiu was filled with extreme regret. She had originally had a sliver of hope for survival, but she had ruined it herself. Before that, she was wondering why she hadn't received any news from Hailanzhu yet; it turned out that Hailanzhu already knew.

“Killing you would only dirty my hands.” Huang Taiji glanced coldly at Yan Zhaqiurong.

"Take him away, and make sure there are no mistakes!" he ordered.

"Yes," the guard replied, bowing with his hands clasped.

"I don't want to die! I'm not reconciled!" Yan Zhaqiu Rong was still struggling, but she was still mercilessly taken away by the guards.

Only when Yan Zhaqiurong's voice could no longer be heard, and Wen Yuan was banished to the Shenxing Division for aiding and abetting evil, did Da Yu'er finally breathe a sigh of relief.

"Go back to your respective palaces!" Huang Taiji said, then turned and left.