In the afternoon, Princess Jinyi and her family bid farewell to the Sheng family and returned to the palace in a carriage.
Empress Jing'an and the three of them had dinner together that evening. After dinner, Empress Jing'an spoke to Princess Jinyi for a long time. Afterwards, she, Princess Jinyi, and the Crown Prince accompanied the Emperor for an hour.
Before falling asleep, Queen Jing'an murmured to herself, "It's time."
When she woke up again, Empress Jing'an felt her hands and feet were out of control. Her arms were so weak that she had no strength at all. She couldn't even lift her head or rub her eyes, so she could only open them with great effort.
Her heavy eyelids slowly opened. Someone was sleeping with their head resting on their arm very close to Queen Jing'an. After adjusting to the light in the room and looking around, Queen Jing'an knew she was back.
From ancient times back to the modern times, he looked at the person sleeping beside the bed again. Perhaps because he had been looking at him for too long, the person suddenly raised his head and looked at him.
Seeing Queen Jing'an open her eyes, her eyes lit up and she stood up and asked, "Fang Ting?"
After a moment of hesitation, Empress Jing'an looked carefully at the anxious man opposite her. After a moment, Empress Jing'an smiled and said, "Your Majesty?"
In this ancient imperial palace, the sky was just beginning to brighten. Zhou Defa, however, felt as if he had seen a ghost, and sat down on the ground in shock. After a moment's rest, he hurried out of the house. Before leaving, he instructed his confidants to guard the house tightly and not allow anyone to enter.
The prince had already risen and was currently engaged in his morning reading. His subordinate, Xiao Dongzi, hurried in to report, "Your Highness, Eunuch Zhou has arrived."
Hearing this, the prince put down the book in his hand and ordered, "Let him in."
Zhou Defa came jogging, sweat on his forehead. It wasn't even spring yet, and Eunuch Zhou looked like this. Something must have happened.
The prince looked at Zhou Defa, who was kneeling and paying his respects, with a burning gaze and asked, "What happened?"
Zhou Defa kowtowed and said, "Your Highness, Your Majesty, Your Majesty..." After a pause, he finally said the words: "Your Majesty has passed away, and the Queen has passed away. Your Highness, please accept my condolences!"
The young prince's vision went dark, and he slumped back in his chair. A moment later, he sat up straight, clenching his fists, and issued decrees from the imperial study.
"Take the message to General Gan, all soldiers enter defensive mode."
"Inform my elder sister about the matter between my father and mother, and take her to Fengyang Palace."
"The palace guards are on alert. From this moment on, all palace gates are closed and no one is allowed to leave. The Kyoto Guard Battalion has assigned personnel to guard the city gates. No one is allowed to leave, and only those with permission can enter."
"Summon the Prime Minister, the Grand Marshal of the Army, the Minister of War, and the Minister of Rites to the Yangxin Palace."
After the decree was issued, the prince slowly stood up with the help of the armrest of the chair and walked towards Fengyang Palace with a determined look.
On the way, he met Princess Jinyi, who was red-eyed and was supported by the prince into Fengyang Palace. After the two entered the room, the prince looked at the emperor and empress holding hands on the bed, and his eyes suddenly became red.
Princess Jinyi rushed forward and shouted, "Father, Mother, how could you abandon me? I just got back!"
The little princess was taken care of by Xu Lin and stayed in Yiyue Palace. However, she seemed to know that something had happened. The usually lively little princess became unusually quiet today.
The Crown Prince, standing in his original position, stared at the two people on the bed with red eyes. After a long while, the Crown Prince said, "Sister, it's time to call in the imperial physician to examine father and mother."
Princess Jinyi, weeping uncontrollably, turned around and said, "Let them in."
Princess Jinyi, whose face was being cleaned in the side room, closed her eyes with a sad look on her face, recalling her past days in the palace.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
