The Kunning Palace was filled with sandalwood incense. The Queen Mother sighed, "I never thought that Ji would be such a person."

Emperor Jingming sighed, "My son didn't expect that either."

Thinking about Concubine Xian who looked kind but had a vicious heart, Concubine Ning who ate roast chicken even when things got serious, and the Empress who actually dared to wave her sleeves at him, Emperor Jingming felt that women were too complicated.

There is nothing they can't do, except what he can't think of.

Thinking about the large number of concubines in the harem, Emperor Jingming suddenly felt that having three thousand concubines in the harem was simply the greatest pressure for being an emperor.

"I have already told the Queen not to let Fuqing come over anymore."

"Mother..." Emperor Jingming's expression changed slightly.

The Queen Mother smiled bitterly: "This time, Concubine Xian instructed Xiao Dengzi to deceive Fuqing in the name of Cining Palace, which gave him the opportunity to kill Fourteen. The incident of the Lantern Festival was also related to Cining Palace. I feel really sorry. I can't let Fuqing get into trouble again for my own selfish reasons..."

Emperor Jingming hurriedly comforted her, "Mother, this has nothing to do with you. Fuqing serving you is her filial duty as a granddaughter."

The Empress Dowager shook her head and said, "Your Majesty, please do not persuade me any more. Time and again, every incident in Fuqing is related to Cining Palace. No matter how I comfort myself, I cannot get over this."

"Which other girl do you like? Let her come over to accompany you."

The Queen Mother sighed, looking dejected: "No, I'd rather just quietly worship Buddha like before."

Emperor Jingming blamed himself: "It's all because of my incompetence. I haven't been able to find the traitor who is causing trouble in the palace, which has caused my mother to be unhappy."

The Queen Mother frowned at Emperor Jingming and asked, "Your Majesty, do you think there is someone behind Concubine Xian?"

Emperor Jingming paused, and explained awkwardly: "My son didn't mean that. I just felt that there were too many incidents in the palace..."

The Queen Mother sighed and pointed out the window: "Your Majesty, look, how big is the sky in this palace compared to the sky outside? So many people stay in this most noble place in the world for their entire lives, unable to leave, so they have more desires and more troubles. In my opinion, this is all normal. The palace will infinitely magnify people's desires. And you are the king of a country, you should look at the world and don't be entangled by these things in the palace."

Emperor Jingming nodded: "Mother, what you said makes sense."

The Queen Mother retracted her gaze and returned it to Emperor Jingming's face: "Does Prince Qi know?"

Speaking of the Prince of Qi, Emperor Jingming's face darkened slightly: "I see. My son allowed him to enter the palace to see Ji Shi for the last time, which also fulfilled their mother-son relationship."

The Queen Mother nodded: "Your Majesty is very thoughtful. After all, Ji was a high-ranking concubine. If she suddenly passed away, some people must be informed of the situation to avoid any trouble. So, has the Prince of Qi returned?"

Emperor Jingming was silent for a moment and said, "He is still kneeling in Yangxin Palace, saying that he came to apologize."

The Queen Mother touched her Buddhist beads and frowned, "Did the Emperor see him?"

Emperor Jingming sneered: "Seeing you makes me upset."

The Queen Mother shook her head and said earnestly, "Your Majesty, Concubine Xian made a big mistake, but Prince Qi is still unaware of it, and he is your own son, so there is no need to be angry."

Emperor Jingming moved his lips but said nothing.

To be honest, he has never had any feelings towards the fourth child. He can't say he likes him, nor can he say he is annoyed with him. Of course, now he is just annoyed with him.

Maybe this is what it means to be incompatible with each other?

When the Queen Mother saw that Emperor Jingming did not listen, she sighed and said, "Your Majesty, you are not only a father to the princes, but also a monarch. You cannot just do it based on your preferences. The throne is vacant now. If the princes have not made any serious mistakes, you should not be too harsh on them, otherwise there will be no one to choose from in the future..."

Emperor Jingming felt a little heavy-hearted after hearing the empress dowager's words.

The crown prince died, Prince Jin made a mistake and had to guard the imperial mausoleum, Prince Xiang was stripped of his title and imprisoned. I thought I had many sons and would not have to worry about heirs, but now, after counting, there are actually only a few left.

"Your Majesty, please be more tolerant towards these children, otherwise you will end up being in a passive position," the Queen Mother said meaningfully.

Emperor Jingming nodded: "Son understands what you mean."

The Queen Mother stopped when she saw that things were going well, picked up the teacup and said, "Your Majesty, please go and get busy."

Emperor Jingming left Cining Palace and returned to Yangxin Palace, where he saw Prince Qi still kneeling there, his boots embroidered with golden dragons resting in front of the staggering Prince Qi who was about to fall.

The King of Qi raised his head, with a sad expression: "Father, your son is here to apologize to you."

As he spoke, he began to kowtow, his forehead hitting the jade brick again and again, and soon there were traces of blood.

Emperor Jingming stood for a while and said calmly: "You can go back. Ji's affairs have nothing to do with you."

"The son pays for the mother's debt. If the mother makes a mistake, it is the son's fault. If the father is angry, please vent it on the son. If you keep it in your heart and hurt yourself, the son's sin will be even greater."

"It has nothing to do with you. Go back."

"Yes." King Qi kowtowed several times before staggering away.

After returning to the quiet and cold Qi Palace, Prince Qi rushed into the study room and pounded the table and cried bitterly.

The death of his mother made his father hate him even more, and the path he had been dreaming of for many years was completely cut off.

The desk shook and a book fell down with a muffled sound.

The sound interrupted the King of Qi's venting, and he stared blankly at the book.

After an unknown amount of time, the King of Qi suddenly jumped up, hurriedly went behind the bookshelf and opened the secret compartment.

There aren't many items in the secret compartment, mainly letters and other things, and these are the most important.

King Qi hurriedly flipped through the letters and pulled out a letter from the bottom.

There was not a single word on the envelope.

King Qi stroked the elegant patterns on the envelope, his expression changing constantly, and finally he gritted his teeth and opened the seal.

The letter was several thick sheets. King Qi glanced at it hastily, then read it again from beginning to end, word by word. He leaned against the bookshelf and murmured, "So that's how it is..."

It turned out that my mother was instigated by the Queen Mother to harm my Thirteenth Sister.

The prince of Qi recalled the last time he paid his respects to Consort Xian. Before leaving, Consort Xian handed him this secret letter and said, "Zhang'er, if one day your mother is gone and you are in a difficult situation, open this letter and read it."

He brought the letter back, suppressed his curiosity and put it in a secret compartment. He spent several days and nights wondering what was written in the letter.

Unexpectedly, not long after that, something happened to my mother.

The image of the Queen Mother's kind face emerged in Prince Qi's mind, which was somewhat unbelievable.

The Queen Mother actually hid so deeply!

With this letter from his mother, he would at least not be kept in the dark. If the empress dowager stood idly by and watched him in the future, he would have something to hold against her.

No matter how filial my father is to the Empress Dowager, this letter is enough to make him suspicious of her, which is certainly something the Empress Dowager does not want to see.

Of course, he would not mention this letter to the Queen Mother unless it was absolutely necessary. This was a backup plan left by his mother so that he would not be used by the Queen Mother and would not be unscathed if the Queen Mother did not abide by the agreement after his death.

Queen Mother...can she really help him sit on that throne?

When the King of Qi left the palace, his heart, which had fallen into despair, came back to life.