"Do you know how dangerous this is? What if things get exposed..."

Lu Yanzhao forced a smile and reached out to hug her: "Jiaojiao, don't cry!"

"You don't need to worry about anything, just be your princess. I'll protect you from whatever happens next and won't put you in any danger. Trust me, okay?"

Gu Nanjiao sniffled and cried even harder. Lu Yanzhao had no choice but to patiently coax her, gently kissing her hair.

"My darling, please don't cry."

Gu Nanjiao suddenly jolted free, her whole body covered in goosebumps. She wiped away her tears and said, "So...so cheesy. Please be more normal next time."

Unexpectedly, she brought this up. Lu Yanzhao was slightly taken aback, then suddenly laughed: "If I don't call you my precious little darling, what should I call you?" After a pause, Lu Yanzhao tilted his head and teased: "Then... my little princess?"

Gu Nanjiao's face darkened, and she fell silent.

After a moment of silence, Gu Nanjiao spoke first: "How did you know there would be a blood test tonight?"

Lu Yanzhao fell silent!

He was torn about whether to tell Gu Nanjiao what had happened. After all, he didn't want her to be troubled by this. She had her own things to do and was always busy. If she were involved in these shady things, it would truly put her in danger.

Seemingly sensing Lu Yanzhao's thoughts, Gu Nanjiao smiled slightly at him, took his hands in hers, and softened her voice: "You need to know that even if you don't tell me, we're in the same boat. You can't escape me, and neither can I. No matter how bumpy the road ahead may be, even if we have to overcome all obstacles, I will hold your hand and walk with you. So, don't try to tough it out. Just tell me what you need to tell me, okay?"

"Okay!" A strange glint flashed in Lu Yanzhao's eyes. He found a chair, put his arm around Gu Nanjiao, and made her sit on his lap. He buried his head in the crook of her neck, took a deep breath, and said with a satisfied expression, "For the sake of us being together for a long time, I will tell you all the secrets I know without hiding anything. You will tell me your secrets too, okay?"

Gu Nanjiao's heart skipped a beat.

Could it be that her not being the original owner of this body has been discovered? Besides this secret, what else does Lu Yanzhao not know about her?

Lu Yanzhao parted his thin lips slightly and told Gu Nanjiao about his plan.

Stunned for a long time, Gu Nanjiao couldn't come to her senses. This...this...

She felt that what she had heard could be made into a huge TV series, the kind that would definitely be a massive hit.

It turns out that King Cheng was born to the Empress, while Chu Luoxun was born to a palace maid. The events of that year were bizarre and complicated. Behind the switch of the dragon and the phoenix, there was also a trick of substituting the prince for the raccoon dog.

Thinking of the empress in the cold palace, Gu Nanjiao was really curious about what kind of person she was.

Why allow one's own son to be raised under the control of the enemy?

"Does the Bai family know about Prince Cheng's background?" Gu Nanjiao was somewhat puzzled. Judging from Zheng Shanzhang's attitude towards Chu Luoxun, it seemed that they knew nothing about this matter.

She previously believed that Bai Luochen acquired a large amount of wealth to help the Crown Prince ascend the throne, thereby allowing Zheng Shanchang to regain his position as Grand Secretary. Now it seems that this is not the case.

"Of course I know!" Lu Yanzhao frowned, but still told Gu Nanjiao about it.

"But Headmaster Zheng is still kept in the dark, believing that the Crown Prince is the Empress's son. He is doing everything he can to plan for the Crown Prince, and some things are extremely difficult to handle."

Lu Yanzhao greatly admired the Empress, who endured what ordinary people could not and did what extraordinary people could not do. Even though she was in the Cold Palace, the Bai family was still firmly under her control.

The Chu Emperor was inherently suspicious and most averse to the power of maternal relatives. Even without Chief Minister Zheng, the Bai family remained in court; the Bai family was a powerful and deeply entrenched clan, difficult to eradicate. Therefore, in the Chu Emperor's eyes, Chu Luo Xun was not the best candidate for the throne. In contrast, Prince Cheng, backed by Minister Zhou and favored by Consort Yue, was himself brave, resourceful, and intelligent.

Even biological fathers and sons fear being overwhelmed by each other's power.

The Crown Prince and King Cheng were definitely the people the Chu Emperor wanted to eliminate.

Now? The true identity of Prince Cheng has been revealed. His birth mother was just a lowly palace maid, while his adoptive mother, Consort Yue, had a blood feud with his mother. Minister Zhou was suppressed by the Chu Emperor.

A prince without any complicated power struggles behind him is undoubtedly the best candidate for crown prince.

Gu Nanjiao yawned, feeling sleepy and also not wanting to ponder the royal family's intricate schemes; it gave her a headache.

"Let's not talk about this anymore. We've been up all night, let's go to sleep!"

...

The next day, news arrived that Princess Fuyang had committed suicide out of fear of punishment, and Gu Nanjiao was so shocked that she almost dropped the teacup in her hand.

Did she commit suicide out of fear of punishment, or did someone not want her to live?

The answer is definitely the latter. Princess Fuyang's fierce and energetic appearance doesn't seem like someone who would commit suicide.

Thinking of Zhou Yu's words that day, she said she saw Zhou Wan come out of Princess Fuyang's house with a calculating smile on her lips. And Chu Luoxun knew about her background, so it was obvious that Princess Fuyang's death was inextricably linked to the Crown Prince.

"Lu Yanzhao, do you think Chu Luoxun might resort to desperate measures?"

Lu Yanzhao straightened the calligraphy brush in his hand, lowered his rolled-up sleeves, and softly uttered a single word: "Yes!"

"So what should we do?"

"wait!"

Well, Gu Nanjiao didn't get the desperate move Chu Luoxun made, but she did receive quite a few congratulatory gifts.

The Lu residence was bustling with people. Gu Nanjiao had never hosted a banquet for ladies and young women in the capital before, so she didn't know how to entertain them and was completely clueless.

Fortunately, a palace eunuch brought an imperial decree ordering her to enter the palace immediately, saying that His Majesty and the Empress Dowager missed her.

That night, Gu Nanjiao stayed in the palace and told the Empress Dowager many interesting stories, fables, and strange gossips, which amused the Empress Dowager so much that she kept saying that her charming appearance was exactly the same as His Majesty's when he was a child.

Gu Nanjiao's lips twitched, and she felt a little guilty.

Knowing that she could only grit her teeth and move forward, she smiled again and coaxed the Empress Dowager, "Your Majesty, I have a story from Journey to the West that I wonder if you would like to hear?"

The Empress Dowager became interested, her eyes lighting up: "I want to hear it, I want to hear it, but..." The Empress Dowager poked Gu Nanjiao's little nose with a doting look and said: "Don't call me Empress Dowager anymore, just like Prince Cheng, call me Imperial Grandmother!"

"Grand...Grandmother." Gu Nanjiao called out dryly, but her heart ached. She had a feeling that she was impersonating someone else and fawning over their family.

She's a bit like the villainous female supporting character in a novel, the kind who ends up dying without a proper burial.

Shivering, Gu Nanjiao hugged her shoulders, swallowed nervously, and began to tell the story of Journey to the West: "Once upon a time, there was a stone..."

"Jiaojiao, are you cold?" The Empress Dowager's eyes showed a hint of concern as she touched Gu Nanjiao's small hand and frowned. "Your hands are so cold. Go back and rest as soon as possible. We'll tell you the story of Journey to the West tomorrow."