Nalan Yun'er sat on the cold palace bricks, staring out at the outside world for a long time without moving, no matter how the maid tried to persuade her.
From night to dawn, as the sky began to lighten, a commotion finally broke out at the palace gates. Nalan Yun'er watched as Zheng San led two squads of imperial guards in, holding a bright yellow imperial edict in his hand, a smile on her face that seemed to be a mixture of relief, pain, and disbelief.
She finally raised her hand, and Cuiping helped her slowly stand up. After sitting for so long, her lower body was numb, but she didn't feel anything at the moment.
Zheng San and the Imperial Guards carried no luggage. The guards stood imposingly on either side of him. Zheng San nodded slightly to show his respect: "His Majesty has decreed that the Nalan clan has committed treason, embezzlement, and corruption, plunging the common people and the court into misery. Their crimes are heinous. Furthermore, Nalan Mingyan and his cronies have colluded with the Empress, causing unrest in both the court and the palace. I am deeply saddened by this."
Consequently, the Nalan clan and its followers were all demoted to commoners, their entire families (up to nine generations) were implicated, and their property was confiscated by the court. The Empress, deemed unfit for her position and unable to serve as a model for the nation, was also demoted to commoner status and punished along with the Nalan clan.
Nalan Yun'er had already anticipated this outcome, but she remained frozen in place, refusing to accept the imperial decree. Zheng San did not force her, but simply signaled the imperial guards to take her away. With the empress deposed, everyone in the Yiyuan Palace was in a state of panic. Those with connections had already arranged for jobs in other palaces, while those without connections who tried to escape were caught and brought back.
Emperor Jingcheng did not let them off the hook. After severe torture, they managed to extract a considerable amount of information from the palace servants of Yiyuan Palace. "Hmph," he thought, "he truly underestimated Nalan Yun'er."
The entire Nalan clan and their followers were executed. Nalan Yun'er died in prison after hitting her head against a wall. In the moment when she was covered in blood and about to lose consciousness, she seemed to see the spirited young man from her youth. At that time, they were strangers, but she fell in love with him after just one glance at him at a palace banquet.
He still has feelings for me. Did he come to see me off?
Di Jingcheng looked at the woman lying on the ground, barely alive, his eyes filled with icy coldness. To die like this was too good for her. But to avoid any unforeseen complications, it was better for her to be truly dead.
Nalan Yun'er finally closed her eyes in her beautiful illusion and breathed her last. Zheng San's white silk and poisoned wine were useless; he stepped forward to check Nalan Yun'er's pulse, but she was already gone.
Di Jingcheng turned around and walked out of the cell: "Have the imperial physician come and take a good look at him, lest he's not quite dead yet."
Zheng San glanced back at Nalan Yun'er, who lay forlornly in the filthy prison, and felt a deep sense of sorrow. The once glorious empress had fallen to such a state.
"Your Majesty, rest assured, this servant will certainly handle it properly."
The Nalan clan was wiped out, the court was purged, and a peaceful and tranquil atmosphere prevailed in both the imperial court and the palace. While dealing with state affairs, Emperor Jingcheng still missed Ranla Azi dearly.
He began to oversee the renovation of Chengyuan Hall, a place filled with beautiful memories of him and Azi in his previous life. Even if he could not have her in this life, he could only live on his longing. He stood in front of Chengyuan Hall, looking at the magnificent plaque, a faint sense of loss and sadness permeating his body.
As he slowly walked in, he saw palace servants carefully repairing the palace with the blueprints he had drawn. Every flower, tree, table, chair, and all the furnishings were exactly the same as before.
Overwhelmed by longing, he suddenly began to doubt the meaning of his rebirth.
If the initial joy upon opening his eyes in this life was that Ah Zi was still alive, and he could love her again; but later he couldn't bear to drag her into this complicated palace again, so he quietly left the village; upon returning to the palace and resolving his deepest concern, he began to miss Ah Zi terribly.
He was thinking that if he couldn't be with Azi, what was the point of his rebirth? Was it just to return to the "loneliness at the top"? He felt that this was not what he wanted, and his heart felt terribly empty.
In the past, Azi loved to feed the fish and fly kites by the lotus pond in the Imperial Garden, and Emperor Jingcheng often accompanied her. The day Consort Xian fell into the water, Emperor Jingcheng was just going there for a stroll when he happened to stumble upon her.
Later, he often went there, and sometimes, if he had nothing to do, he could sit there all day. He would stare blankly at the fish swimming in the lotus pond, and feel melancholy as he watched the lotus flowers swaying in the wind. A gentle breeze caressed the willow branches, and the lotus flowers of late autumn began to slowly wither.
Since the day she fell into the water, Consort Xian had figured out her situation and began to enjoy life. She ate and slept, slept and ate, wandered around the palace, fished, flew kites, chased butterflies... She was very happy. Having been in the age of electronic technology for so long, the fresh and natural atmosphere of ancient times was very attractive.
Sure enough, today, with the autumn sky clear and the weather crisp, Consort Xian, unable to stay idle, brought her palace servants fishing again. The servants followed behind her with their tools, their faces filled with worry, especially Yilan.
"Your Majesty, you fell into the lotus pond last time and were sick for several days. Why don't you go fly a kite?" Yilan advised.
"It's alright, nothing. I was just careless that day. It's nothing!" Consort Xian didn't mind at all. She led her people to fish by the octagonal pavilion in the lotus pond, looking calm and relaxed.
She finally understood why some people loved fishing so much, and her heart was indeed much calmer; it was truly a way to cultivate one's character!
The palace servants dared not stray too far from her, fearing she might fall again.
Emperor Jingcheng sat in the pavilion in the middle of the lake, feeding the fish, which scrambled for food in the water. Meanwhile, Consort Xian hadn't caught a single fish all day and was clearly getting impatient.
"Yilan, you were able to catch fish a few days ago, but why are there no fish today?"
Yilan looked up and around at the water, and saw Zheng San in the pavilion in the middle of the lake. She knew who it was without even thinking: "Your Majesty, the Emperor is feeding the fish over there. Perhaps the fish have all run over there."
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