Canfeng glanced at Yuan Yao and nodded.
At this moment, Yuan Yao said, "Your Majesty, please put Yao'er down."
The emperor lowered his eyes and glanced at her still swollen face: "Does it still hurt?"
Yuan Yao nodded obediently and said, "Yao'er can still handle it."
So the emperor released her.
The Queen beckoned for someone to bring in a new ice pack, then closed the door.
Inside the side hall, only the Emperor and Empress, Yuan Yao, Canfeng, and Li Deshan remained.
The Empress's eyes were gentle and full of heartache: "Yao'er, come here to me, let me apply a face mask for you again."
Yuan Yao obediently walked to the Empress's side: "Your Majesty."
"Poor child." The Empress sat down in her chair and pulled Yuan Yao into her arms.
She picked up an ice pack and gently applied it to Yuan Yao's face.
"hiss……"
The ice caused a stinging sensation in the swollen areas of my face.
Seeing this, the emperor said gloomily, "Yuan Yao's skin is delicate, so be gentle with her."
The Empress, accustomed to the Emperor's expression, said nothing.
She took out a soft handkerchief, wrapped it around the ice pack, and applied it to Yuan Yao's face through the ice pack, asking, "Will this make you feel better?"
Yuan Yao opened her clear, bright eyes and nodded: "Mmm! Much better!"
Your Majesty the Empress is so gentle!
Such a gentle and beautiful woman, yet she became empress, trapped in this cold and icy palace...
I feel sorry for you.
regret.
If the empress hadn't entered the palace and had married a man who loved her, she would surely have lived a very happy life.
Yuan Yao was still immersed in the Empress's tenderness when the Emperor spoke.
The emperor asked, "Canfeng, is that it? What exactly is the deal with that man in black?"
Canfeng hesitated for a moment before speaking, "This subordinate is clumsy with words..."
After speaking, he looked at Yuan Yao nervously.
Lingering wind? Lack of eloquence?
Yuan Yao glanced at him in surprise.
She straightened her skirt before saying, "Your Majesty, before the Empress Dowager returned to the capital, Yao'er was almost poisoned."
Moreover, that person infiltrated the Qianhua Palace kitchen and poisoned it from the roof..."
In her view, putting something that causes her allergies in her environment is no different from poisoning.
Moreover, it seems that the Ninth Prince is unwilling to let outsiders know that she also has allergies?
She tries her best not to say things that she can't say.
The emperor's expression darkened slightly: "I had no idea about this matter!"
It seems that A-Yuan is also keeping it a secret from the outside world.
Yuan Yao stood obediently, her voice soft and sweet as she said, "Because of Father's timely discovery, Yao'er was not poisoned, so this matter can be dropped."
These days, Father has been away from the capital for disaster relief. Fearing that the other party might target Yao'er again, he has instructed Canfeng and the guards to keep a close eye on her.
However, the other party has not yet made a move.
Who would have thought they would hold out until today, intending to take advantage of their numbers to make their move.
The emperor nodded.
A-Yuan is always cautious, so it's normal for him to keep someone by Yuan Yao's side.
However, the other party waited until today to make their move...
This is clearly a scheme to frame A Yuan by plotting against Yuan Yao!
The emperor looked at Canfeng: "That person... is it the Empress Dowager?"
Yuan Yao pursed her lips: "Your Majesty, is Yao'er telling the truth or a lie?"
"Nonsense!" The emperor glared at her, his voice hoarse. "To lie is to deceive the emperor. Do you want to be beheaded?"
"The Emperor would never cut off Yao'er's head," Yuan Yao said in a childish voice.
The Empress covered her lips with her handkerchief and chuckled softly.
It wasn't until the emperor glanced at her that she straightened her expression: "Princess, it's alright to speak the truth in front of the emperor."
There seemed to be some hesitation on Yuan Yao's small face.
She puffed out her cheeks before saying, "That one-eyed man went to Sishichun to spy on me a little over a month ago."
At that time, Canfeng noticed his presence, but since he didn't make a move, we didn't pay attention to it.
Canfeng had been watching him for a long time and finally discovered that he had entered Huining Palace.
Yao'er was worried about something going wrong, so she asked Canfeng to keep a close eye on things.
Who would have thought that today, at the birthday banquet, they would sabotage the desserts, trying to frame Yao'er and her father...
After speaking, she carefully observed the emperor's expression.
The emperor's face showed little surprise: "As expected..."
really?
So, the emperor also knew that the Empress Dowager's people wanted to harm her and the Ninth Prince?
Yuan Yao tentatively asked, "Your Majesty, why does the Empress Dowager dislike Father and Yao'er?"
Upon hearing this, the emperor's face darkened, and he lowered his head to glance at her.
His complexion wasn't good.
Yuan Yao: "?"
She's still waiting for an answer.
Seeing the Emperor's expression, the Empress quickly said, "Yao'er, Your Majesty must be tired today. Why don't I escort you back to Qianhua Palace..."
"No need," the emperor said, interrupting the empress.
The Empress frowned: "Your Majesty?"
The emperor waved his hand and said to Yuan Yao, "The Empress Dowager is not my birth mother..."
Yuan Yao listened obediently.
She remembered that the emperor had said that his mother and her entire clan were implicated in a "treason" case and had been executed...
The emperor continued, "During the palace turmoil of that year, many princes and princesses perished in the chaos. Those who remained were of little threat..."
Has the Great Qi court ever experienced internal strife?
Yuan Yao was slightly surprised.
She realized that she knew far too little about the Great Qi Kingdom!
Fortunately, she quickly came to a conclusion.
The emperor once said that he had lived in the cold palace for several years.
A prince who has been confined to the cold palace is essentially a discarded pawn. For a discarded pawn to become the emperor of a country, the changes that occurred must have been quite significant!
The emperor said in a hoarse voice, "Back then, after the palace strife, the remaining princes were no longer competitive."
A Yuan drew his sword and killed the crown prince who had humiliated him, paving the way for me with blood, hoping that I would inherit the throne.
But... back then, I was the son of a disgraced concubine. If I wanted to inherit the throne, I had to recognize the empress, who had harmed my mother, as my mother.
Back then, when she was still Consort Hui, the Empress Dowager came to find me and A Yuan in the middle of the night carrying the Empress's head.
She said that I should acknowledge her as my mother and honor her as Empress Dowager, otherwise she would jump off the city wall and announce to the world that I had murdered the emperor and killed my brother...
"The Empress is dead. Of the women in the harem, only Consort Hui is still somewhat useful. Therefore, I and A-Yuan agreed."
"Bringing... the Empress's head to see you?" Yuan Yao felt a slight chill on her neck and couldn't help but swallow.
This Empress Dowager is a ruthless character!
When the emperor ascended the throne, she was just a woman in her forties, wasn't she?
How dare they be so audacious as to kill and behead someone...
That's pretty bold.
Yuan Yao asked curiously, "But why does the Empress Dowager want to kill my father?"
Is there some kind of conflict between my father and the Empress Dowager?
Logically speaking, if the Empress Dowager, the Emperor, and the Ninth Prince are cooperating, then they should be allies!
Just because the country is stable and she has secured her position as Empress Dowager doesn't mean she should kill the Grand Eunuch!
Upon hearing Yuan Yao's question, the emperor's expression grew even more somber.
He lowered his eyelids and said in a hoarse voice, "Back then, the late emperor was in poor health."
"Empress Dowager Hui, who was also Consort Hui, once had a lover in the palace..."
Yuan Yao: "???"
The emperor said with disgust, "Even after Consort Hui became Empress Dowager, she still did not restrain herself and even became pregnant."
Not only was she pregnant, but she also allowed her lover to humiliate a little princess to death!
Before the matter was publicized, A Yuan entered Huining Palace with a sword and killed the Empress Dowager's lover. The Empress Dowager was so shocked that she miscarried...
Yuan Yao was completely stunned.
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