"Is that really what Mother Empress thinks?"
Inside the Dragon and Phoenix Palace, Gu Qingfeng looked thoughtfully at his legs. Could he drag Gu Qingling into this mess? Well, he would be more than happy to do so.
"Today, Gu Qingling was summoned to the Hall of Supreme Harmony by the Emperor. I heard he was severely reprimanded, and the Emperor also told Gu Qingling to stay obediently in the palace." Gu Qingyao pursed her lips. "I saw with my own eyes that he was walking with a limp."
Gu Qingfeng remained silent for the time it takes for half an incense stick to burn after hearing this, and then seemed to have made up his mind.
"Yao'er, this is feasible."
This was the first time in so many years that the Emperor had harbored such great suspicion towards Gu Qingling.
Gu Qingfeng patted Gu Qingyao's hand, "With Yao'er guarding Zhaoning Palace, Second Brother can act according to Mother's methods."
Upon hearing this, Gu Qingyao affectionately nuzzled Gu Qingfeng's hand, but Gu Qingfeng's eyes reddened.
In order to avoid revealing the truth too early and alerting the enemy, his sister now forces herself to eat greasy food every day, and he, as her brother, can only watch helplessly as she suffers.
With just one glance, Gu Qingyao saw through Gu Qingfeng's thoughts.
"Second brother, I'm not suffering."
Gu Qingyao smiled sweetly, "As long as things don't turn out the way they did in my dream, I won't feel bitter."
"I'm afraid of harming Mother again." Gu Qingyao's eyes were as bright as if they had just been washed by a mountain spring. "Now that I have a chance to atone for my sins, Second Brother, you have no idea how grateful I am."
She was plagued by nightmares every day, and could only feel at ease when she smelled her mother's scent.
Gu Qingfeng twitched the corner of his mouth upon hearing this; wasn't he the same?
......
Gu Heng, unusually, once again took the initiative to enter the inner palace and went to Consort Yi's palace.
“Consort Yi’s pregnancy is almost three months along.” Inside Zhaoning Palace, Jiang Yu lowered her head and turned the jade ruyi in her hand. “His Majesty must be starting to hope that Consort Yi will give birth to a prince.”
With Gu Qingling suspected and Gu Qingfeng's leg broken, Gu Heng naturally feels a void in his family.
It's laughable that Gu Heng acted like he had a change of heart before; it's truly disgusting.
There was a commotion at the palace gate, and Wanji hurriedly returned, followed by two women.
"Your Highness, Madam Fan and Madam Fan have arrived." Wanji said with a bitter expression. Xu Dong, who was by the Crown Prince's side, led people directly to him, and he had no choice but to bring them to Zhaoning Palace.
After all, they were the Empress's maternal grandmother and aunt.
Upon seeing who it was, Jiang Yu's face instantly turned cold.
"This humble woman pays her respects to Your Majesty the Empress."
[As my maternal family, you have never truly considered my needs. Your minds are only filled with thoughts of Crown Prince Gu Qingling. If you hadn't delivered yourselves to my doorstep today, I would have completely forgotten about your Fan family.]
"Granny Ling, please have a seat."
Upon hearing this, Madam Fan and Madam Fan's expressions stiffened. They felt that Jiang Yu was completely different from before, and she was no longer as affectionate towards them as she used to be.
"Your Majesty, I heard that the Emperor has reprimanded the Crown Prince." Old Madam Fan said with a worried look. "And the Second Prince has also broken his leg. Your Majesty, the current situation is very unfavorable for you."
[It seems the Fan family is still hoping that after Gu Qingling ascends the throne, they will promote their nephews and nieces out of consideration for blood ties!]
Jiang Yu revealed a contemptuous smile, "Where did you get these words, Grandmother? The Emperor has never reprimanded the Crown Prince, and the Second Prince's leg injury will surely heal in time."
"Your Majesty!"
Madam Fan was both anxious and annoyed.
“The two princes are Your Majesty’s only support. You should protect them even if it costs you your life, especially His Highness the Crown Prince.” Madam Fan said, her mouth dry. “You are being a little too neglectful of His Highness the Crown Prince these days.”
"Not caring?" Jiang Yu stared into Madam Fan's eyes. "Just like how you were indifferent to my mother back then?"
In her past life, she broke with the Marquis of Dingyuan's family and once relied on the Fan family.
She made an exception and granted the female members of the Fan family the right to enter the palace to pay their respects at any time, elevating the Fan family to a prestigious and influential clan. But how did the Fan family repay her?
Whenever she refused Gu Qingling's requests, Old Madam Fan would come to the palace to criticize her for going too far and to completely suppress her mentally.
Finally, the daughter of the Fan family entered the Eastern Palace, but called Consort Rong "Mother Consort"!
Madam Fan was taken aback by Jiang Yu's words, and her expression became somewhat embarrassed.
"If I remember correctly, my elder brother once gave a death order forbidding anyone from the Fan family from setting foot in the Marquis of Dingyuan's residence." Jiang Yu put on her long armor. "And from now on, no female members of the Fan family will be allowed to set foot in my Zhaoning Palace!"
"Your Majesty, what is the reason for this?"
Madam Fan was startled and stood up. "Your Majesty, my husband is your blood relative."
Looking at the panicked mother-in-law and daughter-in-law, Jiang Yu smiled slowly: "Blood relatives? I don't have any blood relatives like you. Let me guess, it was the Crown Prince who sent you to the palace to find me, wasn't it?"
In her panic, Gu Qingling actually tried to use me to break the deadlock.
Seeing that the two remained silent, Jiang Yu chuckled and said, "Wanji, see them out."
Even after being expelled from the palace, the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law still couldn't understand why Jiang Yu seemed to have suddenly become a different person.
"Your Majesty, it was my fault for not handling things properly today."
When Wanji returned, he knelt on the ground to beg for forgiveness. He also hated Xu Dong in his heart. He never expected that he would be tricked by this little bastard Xu Dong this time.
"Tell me the whole story of how you met them today."
Jiang Yu's pretty face was icy cold as she keenly caught Xu Dong's name.
[Xu Dong? Gu Qingling's trusted eunuch; I hadn't noticed him before.]
"Alright, I'll fine you three months' salary. You can handle Xu Dong yourself, but keep a close eye on him in the future." Jiang Yu gave him a punishment that was neither too severe nor too lenient. Wan Ji immediately thanked her gratefully, and then gritted his teeth and walked towards the Dragon and Phoenix Palace.
"Your Highness, I'm afraid rumors will spread against you after the Fan family returns." Granny Ling looked worried. The anger in the eyes of the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law was obvious, and they didn't seem to realize their own status.
"It would be good if they made a move, so that we could hurt them in one go."
Jiang Yu's eyes sharpened. She would settle accounts with the sycophantic Fan family, including the old grudges against her mother.
On the other side, Wanji stood smiling and blocked Xu Dong's way.
"Eunuch Xu, are you on your way to deliver food to His Highness?"
Wanji reached out and straightened Xu Dong's robes. "Today you have caught my eye. If good things happen in the future, I will certainly not forget you."
Xu Dong swallowed nervously, a hint of ingratiation creeping into his eyes.
"What are you saying, Eunuch Wan? This servant is just doing my duty."
Before he could finish speaking, a sharp pain shot through his groin, and Xu Dong's face turned deathly pale.
But Wanji slowly wiped his hands and said, "If there is a next time, I won't hesitate to stab you again."
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