Hearing that he was alright, Chen Ziyun immediately felt relieved and showed a girlish shyness, lowering her head slightly and saying in a sweet voice, "Brother Long, then how did you become like this, and why did you come to see Yun'er so late at night?"

"This is just a fragment of my soul..."

Early the next morning.

The Empress Dowager, expressionless and like a wooden statue, finished her breakfast and, as usual, mechanically asked, "Has His Majesty agreed to see anyone today?"

"Your Majesty, just now the Empress brought some pastries she made herself to visit the Emperor, and the Emperor met with the Empress alone," Qiu Gugu, a newly appointed confidante of the Empress Dowager, replied meekly.

The Empress Dowager asked blankly, "Has Xiao Qiang's illegitimate child been found?"

"Your Majesty, that girl is hiding very well; she hasn't revealed a single trace," Aunt Qiu replied.

The Empress Dowager's empty gaze was coldly fixed on Aunt Qiu's face.

Aunt Qiu felt as if she were being stared at by a corpse, a chill ran down her spine, and she lowered her head even further. She hurriedly said, "I have already given the order, and I have asked them to send several times more people. We must find that girl as soon as possible!"

"The Ninth Prince has been back in the capital for several days. No matter how pretentious he is, he should be in the capital by now. Xiao Qiang and that bastard should be put to use soon. We must find that bastard as soon as possible." The Empress Dowager spoke in a cold and stiff tone, like a walking corpse.

"Yes, Your Majesty." Aunt Qiu and the other palace maids in the room were so frightened by the Empress Dowager's harsh, ghostly voice that they dared not even breathe.

No one dared to utter a sound, waiting for the Empress Dowager to ask the last question she had been asking for days.

Sure enough, the Empress Dowager took a breath and finally asked, "Has Zhaoping returned?"

"Your Majesty, Princess Zhaoping entered the city early this morning. Granny Zheng sent someone to the palace to say that Princess Zhaoping's matter has been settled, but both the princess and Granny Zheng were seriously injured by the bandits, which is why they were delayed on the way. They cannot come to the palace to visit Your Majesty for the time being and need to take good care of themselves." Aunt Qiu quickly finished recounting the news she had received that morning in one breath.

"Great, great," the Empress Dowager's speech finally changed, like a toy puppet that had run out of power, with each word trailing off.

But no one dared to laugh at her.

In the end.

The Empress Dowager clenched her fist and lightly tapped the tea table beside her, then said stiffly, "No wonder the Ninth Prince stationed his troops outside the capital. He must have been unable to control his desire to find Zhaoping, and that bandit discovered something and detained him outside the city."

"Your Majesty, that bandit is a miracle doctor. Will she be able to control the Ninth Prince's thirst for Princess Zhaoping?" Aunt Qiu asked with some concern.

The Empress Dowager said expressionlessly, "You can control him for a while, but not forever. Once the Ninth Prince sees Zhaoping again, he's completely finished. Even if that bandit were a god incarnate, he couldn't control him!"

"That's good, that's good," Aunt Qiu said repeatedly, her face beaming with joy.

The Empress Dowager looked at her coldly this time and commanded firmly, "Smile!"

Aunt Qiu was stunned.

"Such good news, you should all have a good laugh for me," the Empress Dowager said like an old wooden stake.

Aunt Qiu: "...Ha, haha, ha..."

The palace maids inside the room chuckled.

Their smiles looked more like cries.

Holy crap!

The Empress Dowager is becoming more and more perverted!

She needs others to do everything she can't do herself, including expressing her emotions!

Although the palace maids present were all trusted confidantes personally trained by the Empress Dowager, some couldn't help but silently pray in their hearts:

Can someone please hurry up and kill this old hag?

This is so agonizing!