Even before the actual day, many people had already sent gifts.

Fortunately, the Empress had already sent Granny Zhou over to lead everyone in taking inventory and registering the items.

The female officials in charge of etiquette have also arrived at the princess's residence to teach Xiang Wan how to bow and how to move around.

The Empress originally intended for Xiang Wan to live directly in her Fengyi Palace so that it would be convenient for her to teach her. However, Xiang Wan already had a residence outside the palace, so how could she abandon such a large house to enter the palace and be subject to its constraints?

Besides, if she ran into the palace, how would she become a live target?

The palace is not like the outside world. To carry out any action, one must have a very extensive network of connections. Moreover, who would dare to plot against the legitimate princess unless they were an old man who had been involved in the palace for decades? Unless it was a matter of life and death!

If she lived outside the palace, things would be much easier.

With so many people coming and going, you could easily slip one or two people in without anyone noticing.

On the actual day, Xiang Wan was woken up early in the morning, washed up, changed her clothes, put on heavy fine clothes, and entered the palace in a sedan chair.

She had been too busy these past few days to see Cheng Yuqing, but unexpectedly, he had secretly sent her a small gift a couple of days ago.

Holding it in her hand, Xiang Wan smiled slightly, in a good mood.

This is a delicate white jade hairpin, small and exquisite, with very fine polishing, perfect for a young girl like her to wear and play with.

Cheng Yuqing is such a hypocrite; he didn't give Xiang Wan a kind look, but I didn't expect him to put so much thought into choosing a gift for her.

He wasn't in the original owner's wishes; saving him was Xiang Wan's selfish desire. Hopefully, this time there will be a perfect ending.

In the Hall of Supreme Harmony, the Emperor sat on the dragon throne, with a phoenix throne beside him, and the Empress looked at him with a smile.

Court officials stood on the left, while concubines and court ladies stood on the right. A bright red carpet stretched from the steps outside the hall all the way to the center of the hall.

Xiang Wan walked forward step by step, the hair ornaments on her head swaying from side to side with her steps.

In early spring, a season of fluctuating temperatures, Xiang Wan was drenched in sweat. Her elaborate robes had five layers, and the palace's underfloor heating hadn't been completely removed, making her look like a rice dumpling wrapped in countless layers—her heart was burning, but this wasn't visible from the outside.

She kowtowed to the emperor and was scolded, then kowtowed to the empress, and then a hairpin was added to her head.

After rising, the master of ceremonies announced: "The ceremony is complete! By imperial decree, the Emperor bestows upon her the title of Princess Chaohua, granting her free access to the palace!"

It's not that Xiang Wan dislikes the name, but she finds "Grand Princess" more appealing. "Morning Glory, Morning Flower"—isn't that just a fleeting moment of blossoming followed by a thousand-year fading?

Stop it quickly, don't think about it anymore. Maybe she's overthinking it.

After expressing her gratitude, she was given another lecture. Xiang Wan was almost unable to hold on any longer; her face was pale and her body was swaying precariously.

Before anyone could congratulate her, Xiang Wan swayed twice in full view of everyone, spat out a mouthful of blood, and collapsed to the ground.

Now, the entire hall was in a panic.

"Wan'er! Quickly, go and fetch the imperial physician!" The Empress was the first to stand up from her phoenix throne and run to Xiang Wan's side.

"Quickly summon Chief Physician Sun, now!"

The emperor was extremely anxious, but he didn't forget to order Eunuch Lu to quickly bring Chief Physician Sun over, as it was an extremely urgent matter!

His most beloved daughter collapsed and vomited blood right under his nose. How could he not be anxious?

The concubines were terrified, their faces turning pale. The court officials and noblewomen clearly hadn't expected to encounter such a thing upon arriving at the palace to witness the ceremony.

Some of those who were thinking further ahead frowned, their expressions of worry genuine. However, it remained unclear whether they were worried about the princess, or about the possibility that something might happen to her and they wouldn't be able to return in a short time.

Among such a group of people, if one were to carefully examine them, one would surely see that some harbored ulterior motives. However, everyone was distracted by Xiang Wan vomiting blood, and no one paid any attention to them.

"Wan'er, how are you? Don't frighten your mother. Just hold on a little longer, Chief Physician Sun will be here soon."

The Empress knelt on the ground and held Xiang Wan in her arms, without considering whether this was in accordance with her status.

The emperor was also anxious. He paced around the area, sending people to fetch the imperial physician. He then issued orders, directly commanding the Imperial Guards to go to the princess's residence and arrest everyone who had visited the residence in the past few days. He also ordered the princess's residence to be completely surrounded and searched for any contraband.

Cheng Yuqing, who also served in the Imperial Guard, frowned when he was suddenly told to surround the princess's residence.

Isn't today the princess's coming-of-age ceremony? Why was such an order suddenly issued? Moreover, the Imperial Guards are responsible for protecting the capital city; how could they be easily sent to the princess's residence on official business?

Despite his doubts, he had no choice but to go along with the emperor, as he could not disobey his orders.

After they left, another group of Imperial Guards arrived and took their place, completely surrounding the Ziyun Palace. At the same time, a middle-aged man in a yellow robe, surrounded by guards on either side, strode in. When questioned by palace servants, the guards immediately opened fire, giving them no chance to breathe.

If Xiang Wan were here, she would definitely recognize one of them as the purple-clad man who escaped by scaling the wall of the madam's room that day.

Of course, she has a cheat code; even if she's not here, she knows who this person is.

Before Chief Physician Sun even arrived, a sweet aroma began to fill the hall. Gradually, some people began to feel weak and sat down on the ground.

One or two cases like this didn't cause a stir. But most people fell ill, and even the Empress, who was completely focused on Xiang Wan, sensed something was wrong.

The emperor, in particular, could no longer stand up and sat on the steps, panting heavily.

Looking around, apart from the large group of people who had fallen, there were very few people left standing. And those few who were still standing went from being terrified at the beginning to becoming calm in just a short time.

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