Chapter 70: The Gu Dish is not even as good as a beast that can breathe freely
Yan Shu frowned upon hearing this. Empress Dowager Zhao Jing and she were already at odds, so why did she suddenly summon her upon returning to the palace? She must have had some ill intentions.
So Yan Shu looked at the female official in charge and said indifferently.
"The Empress Dowager's coronation ceremony is almost complete. I wonder what the Empress Dowager needs to discuss with me?"
The female official in charge choked upon hearing this and immediately lowered her eyes and replied, "Your Majesty, your words are too formal. The conferment of a queen is a matter of great importance to the nation, following the rituals and regulations of our ancestors and the rules of the six imperial palaces. All the ceremonial and formal details of your future queenhood should be personally reviewed and decided by the Queen Mother. This is a rule passed down by our ancestors."
Yan Shu naturally could not refuse the high-sounding words of the female official in charge.
After all, Empress Dowager Zhaojing is now the Empress Dowager of the Xiao Kingdom. Unless she has done anything obviously wrong, she, as a junior, will naturally have to bow her head when necessary.
So Yan Shu secretly told Qingtao about the matter of the medicinal residue, and went to Suining Palace with a group of people.
When Yan Shu arrived at Suning Palace, Empress Dowager Zhao Jing was leisurely teasing the brightly feathered parrot in the golden cage in the inner hall.
Yan Shu immediately stepped forward and saluted, with a respectful look on her face.
Upon hearing the voice, the Queen Mother lazily put down the bird-teasing stick she was using to tease the parrot, and looked over with her phoenix eyes half-closed.
"The Queen is really a busy person these days. If I hadn't specifically sent someone to invite you, the Queen would have long forgotten that there is such a person as me in this palace."
Hearing the sarcastic word "Queen" from the mouth of Queen Dowager Zhao Jing, Yan Shu felt quite uncomfortable, but she raised her eyes and replied in a neither humble nor arrogant manner:
"Your Majesty, you are too kind. I just returned to the Xiao Palace last night and was a bit busy for a while. Today, I heard that the Empress Dowager wanted to discuss the ceremony and rituals for the Empress's coronation, so I rushed here immediately. If the Empress Dowager specifically asked me to come here, I'm afraid it's not just about this matter, right?"
After hearing what Yan Shu said, it was clear that she didn't want to continue pretending like this.
After all, the only person who least wanted to see her sit on the throne of queen was Queen Dowager Zhao Jing, but she just didn't go as she wished and sat on the throne of Queen of Xiao State. At this moment, Queen Dowager Zhao Jing must have hated her for a long time.
Today, Empress Dowager Zhaojing summoned her to the Suning Palace under the pretext of some etiquette for the empress's coronation ceremony. It was obvious that she had other intentions.
Yan Shu felt that instead of guessing like this, it would be better to speak frankly.
When Empress Dowager Zhao Jing heard Yan Shu's words, she chuckled.
"I haven't seen you for a long time, and Yan Ji is still as straightforward as before." After saying that, she turned to look at Yan Shu, and said in a tone that was neither light nor serious, "Since Yan Ji has already seen through my thoughts, I won't beat around the bush with you. Let's be frank and not speak in secret."
"Actually, I asked you to come here today because I was thinking of you. After all, we were allies in the past, weren't we?"
When Yan Shu heard this, a hint of sarcasm flashed across her eyes.
"Your Majesty, you're such a jokester! I don't think we've ever gotten that close."
When it comes to the current alliance, Yan Shu becomes angry.
When she formed an alliance with Empress Dowager Zhao Jing, she originally hoped for mutual benefit. However, before the alliance was completed, Empress Dowager Zhao Jing wanted to kill her to silence her and prevent future troubles. Her methods were extremely cruel.
It was clear that she posed no threat to Empress Dowager Zhao Jing once she left the palace, yet she refused to spare her life. If her plan had not been exposed that day and she had been captured by Xiao Yu, she would have died at the hands of Empress Dowager Zhao Jing's assassins if she had managed to escape the Xiao Palace.
So now Yan Shu has no good face at all towards Empress Dowager Zhao Jing.
How can we be allies with someone who doesn't keep his promises?
So looking at the frozen face of Empress Dowager Zhao Jing, Yan Shu sneered.
"If the Queen Mother had truly kept her promise, you and I would still be allies. However, the Queen Mother has turned her back on me and is determined to kill me. How can I still trust your words?"
Empress Dowager Zhao Jing was stunned when she heard this and looked at Yan Shu: "Did Xiao Yu tell you this?"
She didn't know that Yan Shu actually knew that she had left assassins to kill her. What's more, the assassins sent outside Xiao Palace were all killed one by one by Xiao Yu. Could it be that Xiao Yu told Yan Shu about this?
Empress Dowager Zhao Jing raised her eyebrows slightly, as if she had thought of something, and smiled at Yan Shu, "Do you really believe what he said?"
Yan Shu said calmly, "I don't believe the king's words, so do I have to believe the queen mother's words?"
Empress Dowager Zhao Jing just chuckled when she heard this, with a gleam of light in her phoenix eyes.
"If you really believed him so much, why did you secretly investigate the drug residue yourself?"
Yan Shu's face changed when she heard that.
"How do you know?"
"Of course there is nothing in this palace that I don't know." Empress Dowager Zhao Jing raised her eyebrows, looking contented.
"Don't you want to know what medicine Xiao Yu has been drinking?" Queen Mother Zhao Jing raised her hand and gently adjusted her hair. Then she took a few steps closer to Yan Shu, raised her phoenix eyes slightly, looked at Yan Shu and smiled softly, "I can tell you today."
Yan Shu was stunned for a moment: "What do you mean?"
Empress Dowager Zhao Jing chuckled, then looked at Yan Shu with some contempt.
"You don't need to bother looking it up. I'll tell you, that medicine isn't just any other medicine. It's a drug that can cause male infertility."
"Since Yan Ji is so smart, she can naturally guess why King Xiao wanted to drink this medicine without telling you."
Yan Shu's mind suddenly went "boom", and she was completely in disbelief.
A drug for preventing pregnancy? How could it be a drug for preventing pregnancy?
She and Xiao Yu had clearly opened up to each other, and he no longer cared about the past misunderstandings. Why did she keep drinking this contraceptive medicine?
Moreover, during the time he was out of the palace on tour, Xiao Yu treated her with such care and tenderness, as if he loved her deeply. Could it be that he was just pretending?
Yan Shu didn't dare to believe that it was a contraceptive drug, but if Xiao Yu really drank a contraceptive drug, then all the confusion in her heart before would be explained.
No wonder she had been infertile for a long time. She also screened all suspicious things around her, but Miao Gu said it was not her problem.
It was always thought that the aphrodisiac that Xiao Yu drank was actually a contraceptive drug.
No wonder Xiao Yu wanted to hide it from her after she caught him drinking the medicine that day.
In the end, he would rather be considered an aphrodisiac by her than give any explanation.
Yan Shu's heart suddenly felt like it was plunging into an ice cellar.
She didn't understand why Xiao Yu did this.
They had a heart-to-heart talk that day, and he clearly forgave her, didn't he?
Then why did he make her drink contraceptive medicine to prevent her from giving birth to his child?
Looking at the girl's suddenly pale face, Empress Dowager Zhao Jing smiled triumphantly.
"Why do you think a man would rather take a contraceptive drug than let a woman give birth to his child?"
"Yan Ji is a smart person, she can guess it, right?"
"You said it's a contraceptive drug, does that mean it's a contraceptive drug? Why should I believe you?" Yan Shu tried to remain calm, but her face turned pale.
Empress Dowager Zhao Jing smiled faintly, her expression firm: "Why would I lie to you? Go back and check the medicinal residue, and you will know whether what I said today is true or false."
Listening to Empress Dowager Zhao Jing's sarcasm, Yan Shu felt a chill in her heart.
Now that the medicinal residue is in her hands, there is really no need for Empress Dowager Zhao Jing to lie to her.
If Xiao Yu really drank a contraceptive drug, how could she not know the meaning of this action?
Xiao Yu's action was simply because he didn't want her to give birth to his child.
But on the one hand he acted like he loved her very much, and on the other hand he secretly drank the medicine. Yan Shu was really confused.
If you really like her and don't care about the past, shouldn't you be looking forward to having a child with her?
Just like Madam Xin and General Li, after their love and affection, they will naturally give birth to their own child.
So Yan Shu was really confused at this moment.
She suddenly felt that the sweetness they had been enjoying these days was a joke.
Is Xiao Yu just playing with her?
Is it funny to see how trusting and dependent she is on him now?
Is it really like in the previous life, that he just wants to wait until she trusts him wholeheartedly before taking revenge on her?
Yan Shu clenched her palms, her heart in turmoil.
But at this moment, Empress Dowager Zhao Jing suddenly said this to her, and it was obvious that her purpose was not for her own good, so Yan Shu raised her eyes to look at him and said with a firm expression.
"Isn't this the only thing the Queen Mother wants to say today?"
Empress Dowager Zhao Jing raised her eyes slightly, and a smile appeared in her eyes.
"It's easy to talk to an intelligent person. I just want to re-ally with Yan Ji today. After all, you and I now have a common enemy."
Yan Shu frowned and looked at her coldly: "Common enemy? Why does the Queen Mother say that?"
Even if Xiao Yu drank the contraceptive drug, he would not become the common enemy of her and Empress Dowager Zhao Jing.
Empress Dowager Zhao Jing chuckled upon hearing this, "Yan Ji has been in the palace for many days, so she should know that Xiao Yu is not my biological child."
"So what?" Yan Shu looked up at her with a calm expression.
A hint of coldness flashed across Empress Dowager Zhao Jing's eyes. "Of course it's not that great, but Yan Ji, do you know how despicable the past of the current Prince Xiao was? If it weren't for my Jin'er's unjust death, he, Xiao Yu, would never have had the chance to ascend the throne."
Yan Shu listened coldly, not knowing what Empress Dowager Zhao Jing meant.
Empress Dowager Zhao Jing obviously didn't care about his reaction and just continued talking to herself.
"Xiao Yu is just the son of a dancer. He has been disliked by Lord Ning since he was young. His status is so low that even the lowest-ranking servants in the palace can bully him at will. How can he be compared with my legitimate son? Moreover, Xiao Yu was once the blood poisoning vessel of King Xiao Wei." At this point, Empress Dowager Zhao Jing raised her eyebrows, gently touched her earrings with her bright red nail polish, and then looked at the girl in front of her with a smile.
"By the way, Yan Ji, do you know how sinister that blood parasite is?"
Yan Shu was stunned when she heard this, and her dark, almond-shaped eyes suddenly widened in disbelief.
What caught the eyes of Empress Dowager Zhao Jing was Yan Shu's suspicion and disgust towards Xiao Yu.
The graceful and elegant woman continued to tell her story, with a look of pride in her eyes and eyebrows.
"In the past, King Xiao Wei, seeking immortality, ordered an alchemist to refine the blood of a hundred poisonous insects and a thousand people into a blood Gu. However, this blood Gu required a child with a special constitution and the blood of the Xiao family to serve as the Gu vessel. Xiao Yu was the carefully selected Gu vessel."
"Since the age of eight, Xiao Yu has had a blood parasite implanted in his body. This parasite would burrow into the human body's internal organs, nibbling at them and absorbing nutrients. On every blood-drinking day for King Xiao Wei, a bowl of blood would be drained from Xiao Yu, then carried to King Xiao Wei's chambers by palace servants for him to drink."
"During this period, if Xiao Yu shows any resistance or struggle, he will be whipped and starved for three days. However, the royal family will of course keep him alive so that the blood parasite can continue to grow."
"After six years like this, Xiao Yu has become nothing more than a captive, breathing creature within the Xiao Kingdom's royal family. His only use is the blood within his body that can provide King Xiao Wei with immortality."
Empress Dowager Zhao Jing's words were filled with disdain, and after she said this, her eyes flashed with indignation and hatred: "If Jin'er had not been killed by him, the royal family would have needed a legitimate heir to inherit the throne. How could he have sat on the throne now!"
After Empress Dowager Zhao Jing finished speaking, she looked at Yan Shu coldly, her face full of contempt.
"I'm afraid that the people of this world still don't know that the now high and mighty King Xiao was once trapped in a dark dungeon, even worse than a beast that could breathe freely. I dare to ask, does Yan Ji still like such a lowly body?"
Yan Shu was already shocked when she heard what Empress Dowager Zhao Jing said.
She had no idea that Xiao Yu had such a tragic past.
At this moment, Yan Shu suddenly remembered the appearance of Xiao Yu spitting out snake blood when she was in Yan Palace. Could it be that it was also caused by this blood parasite?
Looking at the girl's face that suddenly turned pale, a hint of pride flashed across Empress Dowager Zhao Jing's eyes.
She took a few steps towards Yan Shu, her slender eyebrows slightly raised.
"I still remember what Yan Ji said. All you wanted was to leave the palace and live a peaceful life. Now you are like this, you are not really in love with Xiao Yu, are you?"
"Although there's no concrete evidence for what Princess Qionghua said in the palace that day, I'm sure you know exactly what happened. Do you think a vindictive person like Xiao Yu would really have no qualms with someone who pushed him into the snake den?"
"If he was truly so magnanimous, why did King Xiao Wei die tragically at his hands? And my Jin'er was also implicated and killed!"
Empress Dowager Zhao Jing looked at Yan Shu with hatred, her voice sharp, "It's all because of the hatred in Xiao Yu's heart. Since he hates King Xiao Wei who treated him as a blood parasite and the Xiao royal family who watched coldly, he will naturally not let you, the Princess of Yan, who pushed him into the snake cave, go!"
"He won't!" Yan Shu raised her voice and looked coldly at Empress Dowager Zhao Jing in front of her.
Unexpectedly, Empress Dowager Zhao Jing burst into laughter, shaking with laughter as she pointed at Yan Shu.
"No? Yan Ji is too naive."
"If Xiao Yu really didn't hate you, why would he dote on you so much and never give you the chance to bear his child?"
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The author has something to say: Some misunderstandings can only be explained thoroughly by young lovers after going through them once. The conspiracy of the previous life is gradually being revealed [kiss]
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