Inside the harem, in the magnificent Fenghua Palace with red walls, green tiles, and splendid flowers, Concubine Xian sat at the table, leisurely making tea for herself with the tea set, waiting for Chu Han to return victoriously.
Outside the palace, Chu Chen, dressed in a python robe, walked in with his hands behind his back. Under Concubine Xian's suspicious gaze, he bowed and saluted: "My Lady Concubine, I haven't seen you for a long time. Are you all right?"
"Prince Su." Concubine Xian raised her hand to straighten her dress and casually asked, "How come Prince Su has the leisure to come and see me today? But what happened to your mother?"
Ever since Han Jieyu was kidnapped last time, the emperor, either out of compensation or because he felt uneasy, made Han Jieyu the virtuous concubine, which could be considered a blessing in disguise.
Although she was still not valued by the emperor, at least no one in the palace dared to bully her anymore.
Chu Chen smiled with an ambiguous meaning and said sarcastically, "My mother is worried about you, my mother is doing well in Jianjia Palace. However, I came to the palace to discuss something with you. You should not mind if I ask for a cup of tea, right?"
Concubine Xian glanced at Chu Chen and raised her hand: "Your Highness, please."
Chu Chen has always been a lively person. Without thinking, he sat down at the coffee table at the side and drank the tea brought by the maid.
Seeing this, Concubine Xian felt disgusted, thinking it was like a cow drinking water, a waste of resources.
The tea in the cup was almost gone. Chu Chen smacked his lips, put the cup aside, and got straight to the point: "Your Majesty, you don't have to wait for Prince Liang. Today, he took people to Prince Ye's mansion in the name of our father to search for evidence of a crime. Unexpectedly, the evidence was eventually found in Prince Liang's mansion. My brother... no, it was Prince Ye. His Highness Prince Ye was sure that someone was trying to murder Your Majesty, and the situation was unclear, so he temporarily kept Prince Liang in the mansion."
Ever since Chu Chen opened his mouth for the first time, Concubine Xian's calm appearance began to break, and she looked extremely flustered. When she heard that Chu Xuan had arrested Chu Han, her face turned as pale as paper.
Seeing this, Chu Chen thought with disdain: You dug your own grave, you deserve it!
"Today, I came to the palace to help King Ye pass on a message to the Imperial Concubine. As the saying goes, if you catch a thief, you have to catch him with the evidence. We have caught him, but my brother said that whether the poisoning will be made public or not depends on the Imperial Concubine's decision."
"You...what do you mean?" Concubine Xian's body was tense. Now Chu Han was held in the hands of others, which was equivalent to holding Concubine Xian's entire life in control. How could she not panic?
Chu Chen was waiting for her to ask this question. Hearing this, he raised his eyebrows and said, "It's simple. As long as Your Majesty is willing to hand over the command of the Imperial Guards from the King of Liang, this matter will be as Your Majesty wishes. Without anyone noticing, the King of Liang will return safely."
“Moreover…” Chu Chen changed the subject, smiling, “If the queen and the King of Liang could be more sensible and stop while they are ahead, my brother would also be able to let the queen and the king of Liang live the rest of their lives in peace because of their brotherly relationship.”
Live the rest of your life in peace? How? Hide in the darkest corner of the harem like before, live like a lowly ant, and depend on others for food?
No, absolutely not. Even if she died, she would never go back to the life she had before, which was worse than death.
She wants to fight for herself and Chu Han.
Concubine Xian clenched her hands so tightly that her nails dug deeply into her palms. The pain reminded her that now was not the time to break up with Chu Xuan.
"Okay, I agree." Concubine Xian stared at Chu Chen fiercely: "I can give you the command of the imperial guards, but you have to release my son first! Who can be sure that you will not turn against me!"
Chu Chen couldn't help laughing, looking at Concubine Xian with strange eyes: "It's really strange, it turns out that people like you who are scheming and ruthless also have times when they are afraid of others. But it's a pity that I came here today to take away the document with the queen's seal. The queen can refuse to give it to me, but without the document, my sixth brother can only suffer a few more days in the palace. My brother said that everything is up to the queen."
There was a dead silence in the hall. Chu Chen looked at the furnishings in the hall as if nothing had happened. He couldn't help but be amazed. It was really magnificent.
After a long while, Concubine Xian gritted her teeth, walked to the desk, picked up a pen, wrote a letter, and stamped it with the concubine's seal.
Chu Han was captured, so even if she had the imperial guards in her hands, it would be useless. The most urgent task was to rescue Chu Han and then take her time to deal with it.
Chu Chen got what he wanted and happily went back to report to his brother.
In Fenghua Palace, Concubine Xian raised her hand and overturned the coffee table to the ground. She was like a completely different person compared to her previous calm and composed appearance.
When Qin Xuelin entered the room, she saw Concubine Xian looking like a mad woman, with debris scattered all over the floor of the hall.
"Your Highness, what happened?" Qin Xuelin pretended to be concerned and walked closer, squatting beside Concubine Xian. "Your Highness, what happened? I heard that Prince Su just came, but did His Royal Highness Prince Liang have an accident?"
Concubine Xian suddenly raised her head, her eyes bloodshot, and said in a hoarse voice: "Chu Xuan is treacherous. He captured Han'er and forced me to exchange him for the command gun of the Imperial Guards!"
Qin Xuelin instantly thought of dozens of reasons why Chu Han was arrested, but wisely chose not to ask any more questions. Instead, she took advantage of Concubine Xian's panic to bring up another matter.
"Your Highness, the Night King holds great power and is eyeing the throne. I know you and His Royal Highness Prince Liang are in a difficult situation now, so I want to take a risk for you. I can help you poison the emperor."
Concubine Xian's face changed drastically, and she hastily denied, "Concubine Hui, what nonsense are you talking about! When did I intend to poison Your Majesty?"
"Your Highness!" Qin Xuelin held Concubine Xian's hand in a soothing manner, and said meaningfully, "I have always been by your side, and I am proficient in some pharmacology. How could I not know that there is something fishy in the medicine your Highness takes every day? It's just that since I entered the palace, Your Highness has taken good care of me, so that I will not be bullied when my country is destroyed and my family is ruined. You have been kind to me, and I can't bear to let you suffer. What I say today is all to repay your kindness."
Concubine Xian fell silent, looking at Qin Xuelin's sincere expression in front of her, she was undecided, but she had to admit that if the emperor died and there was unrest in the court, then she and her son would be able to let go and kill Chu Xuan without any scruples.
"My Lady? Don't you believe me? If I wanted to harm you, I could have reported you when I first discovered that there was something wrong with the medicine, but I didn't. Isn't that enough for you to believe me?"
Concubine Xian gritted her teeth and finally held Qin Xuelin's hand: "Believe me, I believe you!"
Concubine Xian finally gave in. She turned around, took out a porcelain bottle from the secret compartment at the head of the bed and handed it to Qin Xuelin, saying softly, "As long as you let the emperor touch the medicine in this bottle, the poison accumulated in his body for many days will suddenly break out and he will die on the spot. His death will be like tuberculosis."