After Shang Changze left, Shang Changge sat alone drinking tea.

After finishing a cup of tea, she had no desire to drink anymore. Bored, she idly spun the still-warm empty teacup, her beautiful face filled with regret.

What to do? She had a feeling that her wedding with General Xiao was going to be canceled.

As expected, the Queen fell seriously ill the next day.

Just as Shang Changge finished eating breakfast, Qingyao hurriedly entered the dining hall.

"Princess, something terrible has happened!"

Shang Changge was already mentally prepared and remained calm. She picked up a piece of jade cabbage with her chopsticks and ate it slowly.

"explain."

Qingyao: "The Imperial Observatory said during the morning court session this day..."

Qingyao looked at Shang Changge with worry, unable to bear seeing her princess's sorrowful expression, she closed her eyes and finished speaking in one breath:

"The Imperial Observatory says that the reason Her Majesty the Empress fell ill is because it was disrupted by your marriage to the General."

The dining room was bright and spacious, filled with the aroma of food.

A deathly silence fell. The maids serving the food froze in their movements, their breaths catching in their throats.

Shang Changge remained unmoved, still holding the bowl and chopsticks, and slowly chewing the jade cabbage.

A moment later, Shang Changge burst into laughter.

The laughter was a long-lost, perverse sound, making the servants inside and outside the dining hall feel a chill run down their spines, their bodies tingle, and their legs go weak.

Oh no, oh no, oh no! Could it be that the princess has suffered too much of a shock and is going crazy because she can't accept it for a while?

Yes, that's true, the princess and the general have such a good relationship...

Now that the Imperial Astronomical Bureau is making such a pronouncement that the marriage is unlikely to happen, what woman would...?

Has Shang Changge gone mad? Not really, since he had anticipated this and had a countermeasure in place.

However, this solution was a poor one for her marriage to General Xiao, so she was in a very bad mood!

Does the old emperor want to let his mother die easily? No, just like the beauty's brother analyzed yesterday, there's no benefit to it.

The old emperor used his stepmother's life as leverage to openly coerce them into voluntarily announcing the annulment of the engagement.

Yes, it means being open and aboveboard.

Otherwise, why would they use such a ridiculous and absurd excuse as the Imperial Astronomical Bureau observing celestial phenomena at night?

This time, the old emperor was going to confront the issue head-on, openly telling his officials that he was dissatisfied with the marriage and the current crown prince.

As for who is satisfied? During this period, there has only been one prince who has been highly regarded by the emperor in the court—Shang Ye.

The emperor was unhappy that the crown prince favored the fourth prince, and even threatened to use the empress's life to disrupt the princess's marriage to the general and weaken the crown prince's power.

Given this situation, what would the Crown Prince's faction do? They would definitely convene an emergency meeting.

In the days that followed, they openly and secretly shot arrows at Shang Ye, the prince who threatened the position of the crown prince and the beauty's younger brother!

Look how pitiful they are.

He had just gained some fatherly love, had just established himself in the court, and was about to make a name for himself when his father impatiently pushed him out to shield him from harm.

The old emperor probably realized that Shang Ye was no ordinary person, and feared that if Shang Ye's power grew too strong over time, he would become difficult to control.

Just in time, this opportunity came in handy, so they quickly pushed Shang Ye forward to take the fall.

It's okay if Shang Ye's power is weakened after this attack; he can recover after a while and then be brought out to take the second hit.

And so on,

Once the faction of the beauty's younger brother and the faction of Shang Ye are both severely weakened, the old emperor will be able to easily wipe out both factions.

Despite his thoughts, Shang Changge didn't forget to eat breakfast.

After finishing his breakfast, he stepped out of the dining hall and saw his handsome younger brother and Jing Xiuming following behind him.

Shang Changge raised an eyebrow and immediately asked with concern, "Have you eaten?"

Shang Changze: "..."

Shang Changze hadn't eaten breakfast and wasn't in the mood for it, but he was glad his older sister had.

Because he brought bad news, his sister might not be able to eat after hearing it.

After a while, in the tea room.

Besides the siblings, there was also Jing Xiuming, who explained the Empress's situation in detail.

"Her Majesty the Empress was not affected by her sister's marriage, but was poisoned. However, I cannot clearly identify what kind of poison it is, and I need to go back and consult my master."

Shang Changge: "What are the chances of success?"

Jing Xiuming: "If we want to find the cause of the disease and formulate an antidote in a short period of time, we probably only have a 30% chance of success."

Shang Changge nodded, meaning the chances were slim.

Since it was a threat, the old emperor certainly wouldn't give them too much time to find someone to treat the empress.

This will only increase the dosage of the poison, forcing them to take the initiative to dissolve the engagement.

Jing Xiuming: "My master might have a way, but he only sells medicine and doesn't treat patients or save lives."

Shang Changze, worried about the Empress, ventured to ask, "I wonder if it would be convenient for Doctor Jing to introduce me to your master, whatever she desires..."

"Grandma, this place is so big! The houses here are all so beautiful..."

"Of course, this is Princess Anguo's residence..."

...

...

The voices of an old man and a young man approached from afar, and everyone in the tea room fell silent.

Shang Changge recognized the voices of Granny Hua and Nannan, but she didn't understand how the two of them had entered her princess's residence.

He took a sip of tea to suppress his doubts, then ordered, "Qingyao, go and take a look."

Just as Qingyao was about to agree, she heard a noise at the door.

Several guards blocked the approaching figure's path with their unsheathed swords, and spoke:

"General, halt! His Highness the Crown Prince and the Princess are discussing important matters..."

Before the head guard could finish speaking, he was interrupted by Qingyao, who was sent by Shang Changge, and then Xiao Ji and his group were led into the tea room.

Xiao Ji had already changed out of his court robes, and his expression was cold and stern.

When she saw Jing Xiuming, her eyes narrowed slightly, revealing a violent rage. Looking at Jing Xiuming was like looking at an inanimate object.

He sat down next to Shang Changge, his excessively high nose bridge appearing particularly harsh and ruthless at this moment.

In front of several people in the tea room, he naturally took Shang Changge's hand as usual, indicating that he would not give up on the marriage.

...

Xiao Ji pursed his thin lips into a straight line, seemingly having no intention of speaking, and the tea room fell silent for a moment.

It was Nannan who broke the eerie silence. She recognized Jing Xiuming but didn't call out to him; instead, she pretended not to know him.

The little girl tugged at the hem of Grandma Lala's clothes and asked softly, "Grandma, which of them needs to see a doctor?"

Not in the ghost market, Granny Hua wasn't wearing her red fang mask or her flowery dress covered in colorful patches.

Instead, she was dressed like an ordinary citizen in the capital. Her face was that of an old woman you could see anywhere on the street—old, wrinkled, and with kind eyes.

Jing Xiuming stood up to offer his seat to Granny Hua, choosing not to continue concealing the truth and calling out for help:

"Master."

Shang Changze and Shang Changge looked at the two of them at the same time, unable to hide their surprise.

Shang Changge subconsciously turned her head to look at Xiao Ji, who had brought Granny Hua and Nannan.

Shang Changze looked at Granny Hua, who had sat down, poured her a cup of tea, and gently asked:

"You are Doctor Jing's mentor?"

Grandma Hua: "Oh, it's me, this old woman. This tea looks delicious, thank you, child."

Granny Hua picked up her teacup and took a sip, her mind racing as she glanced at Shang Changze's court robes adorned with four-clawed dragon patterns.

This must be their Crown Prince of Qingyan. He's a handsome and promising young man who will surely become a wise ruler in the future.

Shang Changze: "I wonder if Granny Hua is confident in curing the orphan's illness."

Shang Changze can still trust the people brought by Xiao Ji, his soon-to-be brother-in-law.

Granny Hua neither shook her head nor nodded, but said, "This old woman dares not make a guarantee. I need to personally examine you and ask questions before I can give Your Highness a definite answer."