The second wave consisted of Princess Jia Hua's people. All of them were completely wiped out by the Northern Chu Emperor, leaving absolutely no trace.
Lord Wen was dealt with because he recklessly sent people to investigate the assassin, which gave the Northern Chu Emperor an excuse to punish him.
"Cousin, don't worry, I will not allow anyone to threaten you," said the Emperor of Northern Chu.
Princess Jia Hua stared intently at the resolute and handsome face of the Northern Chu Emperor: "Aren't you afraid that I'm manipulating both groups from behind the scenes?"
The Emperor of Northern Chu shook his head: "I would never doubt my cousin."
If my cousin really did that, she should have told him beforehand. He's willing to risk his life, so why would she need to go through all that trouble?
Princess Jia Hua softened her heart: "The first group of people has nothing to do with me."
She recalled the situation at the time: "Perhaps Consort Rou was the breakthrough point. When the assassin came, Consort Rou did not seem to be panicked, as if she had known all along."
Princess Jiahua's initial plan was to arrange for an assassin to carry out the assassination, then have Consort Rou obliviously deflect it, thus gaining the title of savior and successfully returning to the capital. In return, she would elevate Consort Rou's position, forcing Empress Dowager Xu to turn against the Eighth Prince.
When the snipe and the clam fight, the fisherman profits.
Consort Rou was completely unaware of these matters; she should have acted very frightened.
Princess Jia Hua's bruises on her wrist hadn't faded yet when Consort Rou pulled her back; otherwise, she wouldn't have been stabbed.
Suffering for nothing.
Despite the frustration, the plan still needs to move forward.
"It's not appropriate for Consort Rou to be kept in the Eighth Prince's residence. Bringing her back to the inner palace to support her will create a sense of crisis for the Empress Dowager. The imperial relatives who support the Empress Dowager will find a way to deal with her." Princess Jiahua said earnestly. There was also an even more important point: bringing Consort Rou into the palace would also be like holding her hostage, restricting Zhao Zhiyan's behavior so that he wouldn't go too far.
The Emperor of Northern Chu gritted his teeth: "I wish I could tear her to pieces!"
"There's no rush to avenge this grudge. For Your Majesty to secure your throne, the most urgent task is to seize the military power from the Eighth Prince and have Empress Dowager Xu personally persuade the imperial clan to support you." Princess Jia Hua wanted to gradually clear the Northern Chu Emperor of the charges against him.
They must never die as some traitorous minister or tyrant, only to have their graves dug up and their bodies left to rot in the wilderness.
The Northern Chu Emperor's fierceness quickly vanished in front of Princess Jia Hua. He nodded and said, "Cousin, you must promise me that you will not take any more risks in the future."
"Alright, I agree."
The Emperor of Northern Chu breathed a sigh of relief and pulled her aside to chat about other everyday matters.
Evening arrived in the blink of an eye.
As expected, two written statements were sent from Ning'an Palace. The two palace maids changed their tune, claiming that they were forced into it and that there was no antidote at all.
The Emperor of Northern Chu ordered someone to send the written agreement to the Eighth Prince's residence.
At the same time, news was released that Princess Jiahua's illness had worsened, and several imperial physicians were staying by her side at Yikun Palace. For a time, everyone in the palace was on edge.
The Emperor of Northern Chu ordered a notice to be posted, promising that whoever could save the princess would be ranked among the Three Dukes and rewarded with ten thousand taels of silver.
The news caused an uproar in Kyoto.
The idea was suggested by Song Yue. She wanted to know if her master from her previous life would reappear, and she waited anxiously for news.
Two days passed in the blink of an eye.
Quite a few people took down the notice. Song Yue was specifically tasked with testing medical skills, but many returned empty-handed, and she herself was quite tired from all the work.
"Princess Consort of Guangjia".
The palace maid curtsied to Song Yue: "The Empress Dowager wishes to invite you to come over."
Song Yue lowered her eyes; this was the eighth time the Empress Dowager had invited her.
"Your Highness, perhaps the Empress Dowager has a way to deal with this?" the palace maid whispered.
Song Yue paused, sensing the unspoken meaning, and after some thought, decided to go.
"Your Highness, please wait!" The old nanny ran over from the side and blocked Song Yue's way. She curtsied and said, "Your Highness, my Imperial Concubine Tai invites you to sit in Jingren Palace."
Jingren Palace was the palace that the Emperor of Northern Chu bestowed upon Consort Rou the day before yesterday. On that day, the Emperor of Northern Chu also elevated Consort Rou's rank, honoring her as Noble Consort Rou.
The palace maid, seeing that she had been intercepted, immediately lost her temper: "How dare you! The Empress Dowager invites the Princess Consort to Ning'an Palace. How can the Imperial Concubine Tai be so ignorant of the rules as to try and snatch her away?"
The old nanny disagreed and reached out to grab Song Yue's sleeve: "It's not too late to go to Ning'an Palace after going to Jingren Palace."
Song Yue raised her hand to avoid the old nanny.
The old nanny was somewhat taken aback.
"Regardless of who arrived first or who is of higher status, I should visit Ning'an Palace first." Song Yue raised her chin and said to the palace maid, "Lead the way!"
The old woman missed her target and looked disappointed.
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