When Qiao Zhen woke up, the sun was already high in the sky. Xiao Bao had already slid off the bed by himself and asked Jiao Lan to help him get dressed and have breakfast.
Qiao Zhen felt ashamed. "Little Bao is so sensible, Mommy will reward you with a kiss."
Xiao Bao tilted his head up expectantly.
Qiao Zhen's lips pressed against Xiao Bao's cheek.
Xiao Ling: [Host, don't you think your actions are too modern? You didn't use any honorifics when addressing Shen Zhao, and you showed absolutely no respect for Shen Lan.]
Qiao Zhen: [Do you think I'm a naive and innocent girl? My relationship with Shen Zhao is because he doesn't care about someone as insignificant as me, and he's too lazy to get his hands dirty. The targets in this world have a fatal flaw—arrogance. As for Shen Lan, when I stormed into the palace and revealed that I was a woman, the former was to show him I had power, and the latter was to make him not care about my female identity. After all, not every dynasty can produce a Wu Zetian; to become an empress here is simply a dream.]
Xiao Ling: [What about Cheng Yao'er?]
Qiao Zhen: [Is Shen Zhao and Cheng Yao'er being all lovey-dovey in the study?]
Xiao Ling: [Wow, impressive, host! You even guessed that. Want to guess what they're saying?]
Qiao Zhen rolled her eyes. "I won't guess. Please scan all the animals in the palace that are on the verge of death so I can have Chu Chu infiltrate them and keep an eye on the little emperor."
Xiao Ling sent over the information on the animals: "These are all animals in the zoo that are on the verge of death."
Qiao Zhen looked at the pictures in the file: a white lion, a fluffy dog, an adorable hopping rabbit, newly hatched yellow chicks, oh my, a peacock displaying its tail feathers, and a hungry, ravenous beast. [Chu Chu, which body do you like?]
Chu Chu looked at the information. "I like the majestic white lion."
Qiao Zhen retorted, "I don't think that's appropriate. Choose one: the rabbit, the little yellow chick, or the iron-eating beast."
Chu Chu hesitated for a long time: "I choose the Iron-Eating Beast. It's cute, but one swipe of its claws can kill. That's pretty much what it means to play dumb to fool others."
Qiao Zhen clicked her tongue twice. [Chu Chu has also picked up these flowery, literary ways of speaking.]
Chu Chu immediately entered the body of the dying Iron-Eating Beast, and her treatment was naturally excellent.
Qiao Zhen sent Jiao Lan to find Shen Zhao with Xiao Bao, determined to make Cheng Yao'er suffer. She wanted to see if Cheng Yao'er dared to persecute Xiao Bao in front of Shen Zhao. If Cheng Yao'er dared, she also wanted to see whether Shen Zhao would stand idly by or reprimand Cheng Yao'er if Cheng Yao'er persecuted Xiao Bao in front of him.
Qiao Zhen also asked Xiao Ling to check Shen Zhao's attitude towards what happened this morning.
The result was very disappointing for Qiao Zhen.
As the sun set, Xiao Ling finally relayed the news to Qiao Zhen: "Host, you must hold on! You are our pillar of strength!"
Chu Chu: [What happened?]
Qiao Zhen sighed. "Tell me the result, exactly as it was."
Xiao Ling hesitated before speaking: "[…Shen Zhao discovered that Cheng Yao'er was behind this, so he directly ordered Yu Shu to halt the investigation and declared to those who knew about it that the leads had been blocked.]"
Qiao Zhen's heart sank. She immediately blocked Xiao Ling and Chu Chu; she needed to be alone for a while. When dinner was served, Jiao Lan returned and said that Shen Zhao had kept Xiao Bao and Cheng Yao'er to dine together.
Her heart was completely broken.
Qiao Zhen tidied herself up and went to Zhongrui Courtyard to pay her respects to Shen Zhao, thinking she could bring Xiao Bao back with her. The furnishings in the room were no longer as simple as before; many exquisite items had been added, and she knew without a doubt that this was Cheng Yao'er's request. She curtsied and said, "Greetings, Your Highness."
Shen Zhao didn't seem to appreciate Qiao Zhen's composure much. "Get up."
He wasn't wearing a mask, and the scars on his face were clearly visible. Even Qiao Zhen, let alone Cheng Yao'er, found him extremely unsightly. Only Xiao Bao, a naive child, didn't yet possess a defined sense of aesthetics. In Xiao Bao's mind, his mother was probably the most beautiful woman in the world, and his father the most handsome man.
As for the so-called "father," in this patriarchal world, it can only be Shen Zhao.
"Your Highness, I wish to take Xiaobao back for a meal." Qiao Zhen put on a submissive appearance, but her eyes revealed a disdain that even she could not deceive herself.
Shen Zhao was furious, but he habitually suppressed his anger. "Does this king need your permission to invite the eldest son to dine?"
Qiao Zhen suppressed a sneer in her heart, but remained respectful on the surface, though her words were much more blatant. "I am worried that after dinner, there will still be a living young master in the palace. Your favoritism is none of my business. But Xiao Bao was born after I carried him for ten months, and he should not suffer because of your favoritism."
These days, every word she said to Shen Zhao was about "favoritism." Even a man from an ordinary family would not tolerate criticism from a concubine, let alone the Regent Shen Zhao. He immediately retorted angrily, "If you don't want to stay in the palace, you can pack your bags and get out."
Qiao Zhen didn't hide the sarcasm on her face, "If you're going to leave, take Xiao Bao with you!"
Shen Zhao slammed his chopsticks heavily on the table. "Demote Qiao Shi to a commoner and throw her out!"
The servant stepped forward and escorted Qiao Zhen away.
Qiao Zhen didn't let go. She didn't even feel the slightest anger, only utter disappointment in Shen Zhao. "I hope you won't regret this one day."
Xiao Bao seemed to realize that something was about to happen, and he immediately started wailing again.
Shen Zhao's sword-like eyebrows furrowed, and the scars on his face looked even more ferocious. "Someone, take the eldest young master to the side room, coax him to sleep, and have Jiao Lan come and serve the eldest young master."
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