Soon, news of Lady Tazana of the South committing suicide out of shame and indignation spread outside the palace.
The third prince rushed into the central palace with a look of panic and questioned the empress, "Mother, did you send someone to kill Ana?!"
The empress was so angry that she smashed the teacup.
"You unfilial son! You're going to infuriate me!" The Empress pointed at her son's nose and cursed, "She's nothing but a vixen, a used woman, and you dare to question her before me?!"
The third prince flinched and then knelt down with a thud.
He then came to his senses and realized that he was facing the Empress, his mother who had always been extremely strict with him.
The Empress was furious. "It seems you've been out of the palace for too long and have forgotten about that secluded room, haven't you? What, do you want to go back in and lock yourself up for another three days?"
The Third Prince's anger vanished instantly, replaced by a deep-seated fear.
"Mother...Mother, your son was confused." He stammered as he admitted his mistake.
The Empress breathed a sigh of relief when she saw her son kneel down and admit his mistake. "You're still under house arrest. Did you rush into the palace like this to get your father to accuse you of disobeying an imperial decree?"
The Third Prince trembled again. "Yes, I know I was wrong! I will go back and continue to reflect on my mistakes!"
The Empress sighed. "It's also my fault. I didn't allow the palace maids to get close to you when you were young, which is why you were bewitched by that vixen. Well, you've reached the age to choose a consort. I will select a virtuous and gentle principal consort for you. If you value beauty, I will choose two more concubines. You may take your leave now."
The third prince kowtowed before leaving.
The Empress looked at her son's thin figure and gritted her teeth inwardly.
At this moment, her personal maid, Youling, came in and handed her a note.
The Empress's heart skipped a beat. After unfolding the note and reading it, her face darkened.
Youling took the note from the Empress, turned around, opened an incense burner in the corner, threw the note in, glanced at the Empress's gloomy face, said nothing, gave a casual curtsy, and turned to leave.
The Empress could no longer contain herself. "Stop!"
Youling turned around and curtsied, "Does Your Majesty have any further instructions?"
The Queen suppressed her anger; her meaning was simply to follow the instructions on the note and say no more.
The Empress took a deep breath, suppressing the raging anger within her, and waved her hand, "Go."
Youling then gave a smug smile, turned around, and walked out with an air of arrogance.
The Empress gritted her teeth, then suddenly called out to her, "Go see if my bird's nest soup is ready. Add more sugar."
Youling glanced at the time, feeling a little surprised that it was slightly earlier than the usual time the Empress drank bird's nest soup. However, she remembered that the Empress liked sweets when she was in a bad mood, so she assumed that the Third Prince had upset her and didn't pay much attention to it. She went to the Imperial Kitchen as instructed.
A moment later, she brought in the bird's nest soup.
The Empress sat down, took a slow sip, frowned, then stirred the contents of the bowl with a spoon and glanced at Youling indifferently.
Youling was puzzled. "Your Highness, I added two extra spoonfuls of sugar as you always do. What do you mean by that...?"
The Empress waved her hand wearily, "Very well, I have no appetite. Take it out and give it to someone else."
Youling was delighted, nodded, and took the bird's nest out.
Every time the Empress didn't want a good thing, she would ask her to give it away to others, and every time it ended up in her own stomach and pocket.
This time was no exception; she returned to her room and began to enjoy the Empress's bird's nest soup with great pleasure.
The empress inside the palace raised her right pinky finger and was pleased to see that the powder under her fingernail was gone. A cold smile appeared on her lips.
Don't think she doesn't know who spread the news about the Third Prince and Tazana.
It was all because of that wretched girl Youling who passed it on to that person. How could that person, who wished the imperial family members would turn against each other, let go of such a good opportunity?
Thinking again about the order on the note, she was so angry she almost ground her teeth to powder.
Her third prince! When will he ever truly grow up?!
The Third Prince walked out of the palace with a sense of unease.
That day, after paying his respects to his mother, he left the palace, taking the same path that led through the Imperial Garden, where he happened to run into Tazana, who was admiring the flowers.
He was overjoyed to see the beauty he had been dreaming of again.
Tazana seemed to treat him very kindly, smiling brightly at him and handing him a flower, saying it was extremely fragrant.
He only took one sniff and immediately felt lightheaded and dizzy.
He only had a vague recollection of what happened afterward, but that blissful feeling was ingrained in his very bones. So even when Tazara later knelt before her father and accused him of taking liberties with her, he had no words to refute her.
He was confined to his quarters, and she was banished to the cold palace.
In reality, he was secretly plotting to rescue her and bring her back to his Third Prince's residence!
But just a few days later, news of her death arrived!
His first thought was naturally that it was his mother who had poisoned him!
But in the end, he didn't dare to go against his mother. On impulse, he went to the palace to question her, but when he faced her stern eyes, he immediately lost his nerve.
Especially when his mother mentioned that dark room, it was practically a nightmare from his childhood.
Thinking this, he suddenly tripped over something, lost his balance, and staggered two steps before stopping himself from falling.
But as he bent down, his lowered gaze caught sight of a face among the flowers.
He was immediately startled.
Her face was streaked with tears. When she saw that he had noticed her, she wiped her face and jumped out from the flower bushes into his arms, sobbing, "Waaah, Third Prince, please take me away! I'll be your slave, your servant, your horse, I beg you!"
The Third Prince stared in shock at the "resurrected" Tazana in his arms, quickly pulling her behind a rockery to hide her, and asked in a low voice, "What happened?"
Tazana choked back tears, "It was my older brother. He tried to strangle me. I held my breath and pretended to be dead to escape. I dare not go back... Please take me with you! I can be nameless and change my appearance, and I will treat you with all my heart!"
I just want her to live!
The Third Prince's heart soared from the depths of hell to the heavens. He immediately embraced her and repeatedly said yes.
He then pulled her out quietly, and as soon as he saw someone coming, he immediately pinned her against the wall and pretended to be frivolous with her.
Occasionally, palace servants would pass by and see the Empress's eldest son entangled with a palace maid, but they didn't dare to look closely, much less question her, and all avoided the situation.
After sneaking her out of the palace, the Third Prince immediately hid her in the carriage, ignoring the fact that she was wearing dirty clothes that belonged to some palace maid, and began to kiss her.
Tazana reluctantly agreed, and by the time they arrived at the gate of the Third Prince's residence, both of them were disheveled and panting.
The Queen was unaware that Tazana had escaped. She simply followed the instructions on the note, found a few palace servants, and began spreading rumors inside and outside the palace.
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