In the East Palace, ceremonial music played, and Song Heqing walked into the East Palace hall holding a wedding fan. Looking at the handsome and tall Zhao Chong in front of her, she breathed a sigh of relief. She finally got what she wanted, but she was not as happy as she had imagined.
When Song Heqing was worshiping heaven and earth, he glanced over and wished that Qi Yuning would appear.
Song Heqing looked at her cousin beside her. She never thought that on her wedding day, Qi Yuning was not here. She didn't know how Qi Yuning was doing and whether she had escaped Qin Zhen's pursuit.
"The ceremony is over!"
As soon as he finished speaking, the Minister of Justice hurried in and said, "Your Highness, Your Highness, there's a fire in the prison. Prince Lu, Prince Lu has been burned to death!"
"What?!"
"How is that possible?!"
Qin Yuli was the first to approach the Minister of Justice and said, "I just came back from the prison. Cousin Ze is fine, isn't he? How could he be in trouble? How could this happen?"
The King of Liao looked at Zhao Chong and said, "Ze'er is dead. Could it be you who did it?"
"Fifth brother!" Zhao Chong frowned, "Today is my great day, how could I attack Ze'er? Don't slander me!"
Qin Yuli covered the wound on her abdomen and said, "I don't believe it. I don't believe that cousin Ze will die. I want to see cousin Ze!"
"Ze'er! Ze'er!" Queen Qin, who was sitting in the main hall, clutched her chest and said, "Could something have really happened to Ze'er? Quickly help me get to the Heavenly Prison!"
Zhao Chong didn't care about today's wedding. Now that the ceremony was over, he went forward to support Queen Qin and said, "Mother, don't be anxious. Take your time."
When the group arrived at the sky prison, they found the ground was wet as soon as they entered. When they walked in, they saw a charred cell and a burnt corpse with its face no longer visible.
Qin Yuli stepped forward and knelt on the black watery ground. Her trembling hands moved across the charred corpse in front of her. Seeing the jade token worn by Lu Ze, she stepped forward and hugged the charred corpse, screaming and crying loudly.
"Cousin Ze!"
"Why did you leave? Why did you leave?"
"Empress!"
Queen Qin fainted upon seeing the charred corpse. Zhao Chong rushed forward and hugged the queen, saying, "Mother!"
Zhao Chong was extremely sad and said, "Alas, Ze'er, ah Ze'er, why do you insist on slandering my life experience? In the end, you are hurting others and yourself. Alas! Go in peace."
Prince Ning spoke up, "Your Highness, I think Ze'er's death was not simple. He mentioned the opium before he died. I would like to see my father. I happen to have a Persian merchant in my palace who knows about spices made from opium. Why not let him see if the sweet grass fragrance my father used is actually the same as opium?"
Zhao Chong frowned and said, "My father is in seclusion at a critical moment. He has ordered that no one is allowed to disturb him!"
Prince Ning asked, "Is the Crown Prince afraid that we will disturb him, or is he afraid that the opium incident will be exposed?"
Uncle Qin stepped forward and asked, "Prince Ning, what do you mean by this?"
Prince Ning said, "I don't mean anything. I just want to know if my father is in good health!"
Prince Liao immediately said, "Yes, Father hasn't shown up for almost a month. We must see how he is doing!"
Zhao Chong looked at Uncle Qin, who nodded to the prince. After taking opium for a month, His Majesty had already become dependent on the drug. As long as opium was around, the old emperor was nothing more than a puppet.
Zhao Chong said: "Okay, I can let you meet my father."
Prince Ning and Prince Liao looked at each other, then followed Zhao Chong into the palace and into the Taiji Hall.
As soon as I entered, I smelled a rich sweet fragrance. The Emperor Shi Yuan inside had lost a lot of weight, but he looked contented as he smelled the incense burner in front of him.
"I have reached a critical juncture in my cultivation. Who allowed you to come in? Get out!"
Prince Ning stepped forward and said, "Father, Ze'er said the herb the Crown Prince gave you was poison... I want to verify it!"
Emperor Shi Yuan frowned and said, "My son has always been loyal. I have noticed that you have been scheming since you were a child. Don't you have the same ambition to seize power as the King of Shu? You come to interrupt my cultivation and slander your brother. I tell you, my second son, this throne is mine, and the crown prince is Chong'er. Don't even think about those crooked ideas!"
Prince Ning knew that Emperor Shiyuan was partial to him, but he never imagined that Emperor Shiyuan hated him so much.
Who doesn't want the throne? A prince who doesn't want the throne is either incompetent or a fool. Prince Ning shook his hand and said, "Yes, father."
Zhao Chong looked at Prince Ning arrogantly and said, "Second brother, can you leave now?"
Prince Ning could only bow respectfully and say, "Father, I will take my leave now."
In Shengjing City, the death of Prince Lu in prison became a hot topic. Everyone felt sorry for Prince Lu. After all, Prince Lu was going to get married in a few days, but he died in prison.
"Princess Qi's fate is truly unfortunate. It seems she was born with a star of misfortune. She grew up without a father and a mother, and now her fiancé died just a few days before her wedding."
"During the time since Prince Lu got into trouble, Princess Qi never said a word on his behalf. Now that he's dead, Princess Qi still hasn't shown up."
There was a lot of discussion in the teahouse.
In early April, in Beicheng and Shazhen, the weather gradually became cooler at dusk.
Lingling was sliding down the sand pile, waving her arms and shouting, with a look of joy on her face.
Princess Pingrou caught Lingling from below and said, "Alright, alright. It's getting dark today. Let's play again tomorrow."
Lingling said in Princess Pingrou's arms, "Grandma, Lingling misses Mom and Dad. Lingling is very good, why haven't Mom and Dad come over yet?"
Princess Pingrou touched Lingling's head. There was no news from Shengjing City, and Princess Pingrou was full of worry.
She was not only worried about her own children, but also about her father, the emperor, and her mother.
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