"Has the Empress thought this through? Do you want to cooperate with me, or die silently in the Cold Palace?" Tao Rong smiled gently, and just looking at her face, it was hard to imagine that she could say such cruel words.
The Queen took a deep breath, thought for a moment, and said, "I can cooperate with you, but I need to know who is behind you."
Who else could it be but Qin Su? She was originally registered under the name of the Marquis of Loyalty and Righteousness.
"Her Majesty the Empress will find out. But not now." She wouldn't reveal Xue Huai'an here, otherwise Emperor Mingyang's clever mind would definitely become suspicious.
The wisest decision is to say seven parts and leave three parts unsaid.
"Then what kind of deal do you suggest we make?" The deposed empress had perhaps resigned herself to her fate; Jinxiu had been killed, and now she was all alone.
Tao Rong said with a smile, "We can help you become empress again, but you have to work for us and do things for us."
"Alright. But do you really think His Majesty would be so easily tricked?" She and Emperor Mingyang had been husband and wife for many years, and she knew very well what kind of person he was.
To think that you can easily outmaneuver Emperor Mingyang is truly wishful thinking.
"That's not something Your Majesty should worry about." She rose, bowed to the deposed empress, and said, "Then Your Majesty, it's been a pleasure working together."
"By the way, Your Highness, don't even think about going to His Majesty. After all, you don't have any trust in His Majesty now. Rather than humiliating yourself in His Majesty's presence, you'd be better off cooperating with us seriously."
"I understand!" The deposed empress said this almost through gritted teeth.
Tao Rong chuckled again and adjusted the tassels at her temples. "Alright, I'll be going now."
The deposed empress watched Tao Rong's graceful movements, almost grinding her teeth to powder, her eyes seemingly filled with venom. But she knew her current situation; cooperating with her might be the only way out.
It doesn't matter. Once she becomes empress, she'll have plenty of ways to kill that bitch!
However, before the deposed empress could become the new empress, her hopes were quickly dashed—
Tao Rong, who had just stepped out of the palace, was already stiff and pale when she saw Emperor Mingyang. Her lips trembled as she blankly called out, "Your Majesty."
The deposed empress in the inner palace sensed something was wrong. She immediately lifted her skirt and stepped out. The moment she saw Emperor Mingyang, her mind raced, and she hurriedly said to him, "Your Majesty! This vile woman is a spy sent by someone else! Her existence is to bewitch Your Majesty!"
Emperor Mingyang didn't even glance at the deposed empress, staring intently at Tao Rong for a long time.
Tao Rong forced a smile and said, "What are you saying, Your Majesty? I truly love Your Majesty, how could I be a spy sent by someone else?"
She turned to look at the Queen, her eyes filled with warning.
"Your Majesty! You must believe me. I would never tell you a lie!" The deposed empress knelt on the ground, her face contorted with madness. She moved with her knees and grabbed Emperor Mingyang's robes, as if to appear particularly earnest.
Emperor Mingyang's face was terribly gloomy. He said to Deng Quan, "Make proper arrangements for the deposed empress."
These words clearly indicate that there is no intention to restore the deposed empress's status.
Indeed, deposing an empress is not a matter of a few words, and restoring her to her former status is equally complex.
"Come with me." His figure suppressed his anger, his chest heaving.
Tao Rong lowered her head, biting her lip, and followed Emperor Mingyang step by step.
Back at Shangchun Palace, the moment the main hall doors closed, Emperor Mingyang grabbed Tao Rong's wrist, his rudeness completely unlike his usual self.
Tao Rong was thrown onto the bed. She immediately got out of bed and knelt down before Emperor Mingyang, saying pitifully, "Your Majesty, you must believe me. I would never do anything to harm you."
"It's all nonsense from Lady Yang. Your Majesty is all I have now."
She was already extremely beautiful, and now her tearful appearance is even more heartbreaking.
Emperor Mingyang squatted down, pinched her chin with one hand, and forced her to look at him up close.
He hated himself to some extent; even at this point, he still felt sorry for her tears.
Seriously...serves them right! They deserve to have their sincerity trampled on!
"Then tell me, why did you go to see the Yang family today?" Emperor Mingyang was unsure whether to let Tao Rong continue to lie to him or to tell him the truth.
With tears welling up in her eyes, Tao Rong said, "Your Majesty, Your Majesty, I just want to see her. After all, we were once sisters."
Emperor Mingyang sneered, "You had a conflict with her before, what? You're so kind-hearted, you still treat her like a sister even after she bullied you like that?"
Tao Rong grabbed Emperor Mingyang's forearm and cried, "After all, we served Your Majesty together. How can I hold a grudge against her forever?"
Emperor Mingyang was filled with hatred! He hated that she had continued to lie until now!
"fraud!"
He suddenly released her chin and instead grabbed her neck, saying, "Do you know what the crime of deceiving the emperor is? It's enough to implicate nine generations of your family."
"You're not afraid to die for your master, but do you want your whole family to be buried with you? Just for the person you're protecting? To die together?"
His usually gentle and refined eyes became unusually sharp at this moment, fixed intently on Tao Rong. This woman, who had always been so affectionate and sweet-talking with him, now seemed to be a facade. It was all an act with ulterior motives.
"Have I not treated you well? You are of humble birth, yet I defied all opposition to make you Consort Rong, one of the four consorts. I have given you all the riches and honors, and my true heart... I have also given it to you."
"In the end, you're still going to protect that person?!"
Tao Rong was having some difficulty breathing. "Please, Your Majesty, release me, release me."
"If you tell me the truth, I can release your family."
"If I remember correctly, you have a nephew who is a few years old. Do you want him to die at such a young age?"
Tao Rong didn't want to, but she said, "I'll tell you, I'm willing to tell you."
Emperor Mingyang then released her, feeling both heartache and resentment towards her for her condition.
What did I do wrong to her? Why did I treat her like that?
Tao Rong lay on the ground, her fair and slender fingers turning white, and she coughed heavily.
Emperor Mingyang lifted his robes and sat on the bed, the very bed where he had once made love seemed to mock him at this moment.
Emperor Mingyang closed his eyes, seemingly not wanting to look at Tao Rong again.
Tao Rong prostrated herself on the ground, crying as she said, "On the third day after my family was persecuted, I met Prince Xue."
Emperor Mingyang's gaze fell on her, surprised by the person she spoke of.
"He wasn't the heir apparent back then, was he?" She coughed a few more times, her throat a little sore, and her voice wasn't as melodious as usual.
"What? You've taken a fancy to him?" Emperor Mingyang's tone was full of jealousy, but even more so, it was cold and stern.
Xue Huai'an was indeed a man of exceptional beauty and charm, and many women in the capital were fond of him. Could it be that she, too…
Xue Huai'an was a few years younger than him, and it was indeed a talent for him to rise up in the Duke of Cheng's mansion.
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