Inside the Hall of Mental Cultivation.

Consort Hui was brought in. She curtsied unhurriedly, The guilty consort of the former dynasty, Xuexian, greets Your Majesty.

Yan Zheng did not look at her. His gaze swept lightly over the nearby folding screen, and he remained silent.

Meng Yang couldn’t help but ask, Xuexian! How has our young master treated you?

Consort Hui replied, Your Majesty’s kindness to Xuexian is like a second life. My mother was beautiful and caught the eye of the county magistrate. The magistrate falsely accused my father of adultery, forced my grandparents to their deaths, and beat my two brothers to death when they went to report the crime… If I hadn’t met Your Majesty, even if Xuexian could have made a name for herself in the brothels with this face, heaven knows how many years it would have taken to get close to the magistrate, let alone exact revenge.

Meng ​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​​​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​‍Yang nodded. If that’s the case, then why did you betray our young master?

Xuexian has never betrayed Your Majesty! Consort Hui suddenly became agitated. Meng Yang shouted sternly, Never betrayed? Then why did you poison Emperor Murong, making him go mad, kill innocents, and finally die in the Fengtian Hall?!

Consort Hui abruptly looked up. Xuexian did not poison him! He brought it all upon himself!

Everyone was slightly stunned as they watched her take out a square mahogany box from her robes. Golden pills were neatly arranged inside the box, though more than half were already gone.

These are the immortal elixirs that Murong Feng sought from another immortal master after Immortal Master Daliang died. He took three pills every day without fail. He has already finished three boxes, and this is the fourth…

Yan Zheng nodded. Meng Yang took the box and handed it to Chief Physician Zhang, who was standing to the side.

Chief Physician Zhang placed it under his nose to sniff, then tasted a tiny bit. He nodded. Indeed, these are the immortal elixirs the Emperor usually takes. They have not been poisoned.

Meng Yang was puzzled. A cold, clear female voice came from behind the screen. The medicine is fine, but what about the dosage?

Chief Physician Zhang looked up at Yan Zheng, and seeing him nod, he replied, Taking it three times a day is already the limit. If more is consumed, it will indeed cause a person to become delirious, or even unable to recognize others.

And Murong Feng drawing his sword and slashing wildly at the time perfectly matched this condition.

A trace of panic flashed through Consort Hui’s eyes, and she hurriedly said, After you left today, Murong Feng complained of a headache, so Xuexian brought him the elixirs. Normally, he would only take three, but today he kept saying that his throne was lost and that if he didn’t take them now, it would be too late. So he swallowed eight or nine pills in one breath, and went mad shortly after…

Upon hearing this, Yan Zheng gave Meng Yang a meaningful look.

The latter quickly stepped out and returned shortly after, saying, Young Master, I’ve asked. Concubine Yan said that she accompanied Consort Hui to deliver the golden elixirs at the time. Consort Hui exchanged a few words with Murong Feng, and then Murong Feng took them himself. It seems it really had nothing to do with Xuexian.

Yan Zheng’s lips curled into a half-smile. Is that so?

Meng Yang froze for a moment, then heard the voice from behind the screen say, Guard Meng, did you ask clearly what Consort Hui said to Emperor Murong?

This… Concubine Yan said she was too far away to hear clearly. Empress Dowager Su might have heard!

Speaking up to this point, he suddenly realized that Empress Dowager Su was already dead. There was no one left to verify the claim!

Everything here was solely Xuexian’s side of the story, and it was highly likely that she…

That’s right! It was me!

Seeming to know she couldn’t escape, Consort Hui suddenly dropped her disguise and said coldly, Someone told me that Your Majesty was entering the capital to claim the throne, so I told Murong Feng that his throne was lost, and asked why he didn’t just enjoy himself while he still could. But what I don’t understand is, why were you so certain it was me?

She stared intently behind the screen, only to hear a sigh come from there. Emperor Murong valued his life so much. If no one egged him on, how could he disobey the medical advice? And Consort Hui, if you genuinely intended to deliver the medicine, why wouldn’t you just bring three pills, instead of bringing the entire box?

Consort Hui was left speechless. The person asked again, Who was the one who told you those words?

Consort Hui shook her head. Yan Zheng tapped his finger on the dragon throne. Still refusing to tell the truth?

Consort Hui shuddered all over and prostrated herself on the ground. Your Majesty! Xuexian truly does not know, but that person was not wrong. If you are to ascend the throne, how can the emperor and empress dowager of the former dynasty be allowed to live? Not to mention the emperor and empress dowager, even the consorts, palace servants, princes, and princesses in the inner court should all be killed to prevent future troubles!

Yan Zheng closed his eyes and let out a cold laugh. Another self-righteous fool!

Consort Hui kowtowed heavily twice. Your Majesty! You are someone destined for great things. You must not be soft-hearted!

Yan Zheng waved his hand, not wanting to waste another word on her. However, the person behind the screen suddenly stood up and walked out.

Consort Hui was stunned. It’s you?

She saw a woman dressed in a silver martial outfit, her hair pinned up high in a cloud-like bun, with bloodstains on the hem of her clothes. Who else could it be but Chu Ruoyan?

She sighed deeply. Consort Hui, you have been used.

Consort Hui was astonished as she listened to her speak. Yan Zheng is indeed here for the throne, but he was once a subject of the Murong family after all. A subject usurping his monarch’s throne, no matter how justified the reasons, will always invite criticism. And now, the great chaos has just ended, yet you so quickly caused the deaths of Emperor Murong and Empress Dowager Su. How do you expect the world to view him?

Consort Hui had completely failed to consider this layer. She subconsciously said, But we can’t keep them alive either…

If we can’t keep them alive, we could have killed them later! Meng Yang blurted out, wondering how someone who used to seem so clever had suddenly become so stupid.

House arrest, followed by a sudden death—hasn’t history taught us this already?

Consort Hui’s face turned deathly pale. Knowing she had ruined a major plan, she kowtowed repeatedly without saying a word.

Yan Zheng simply ordered his men to take her away, then reached out and pulled his wife into his arms. Ayan, your complexion doesn’t look too good. Are you tired?

Chu Ruoyan shook her head and looked at him. Who do you think was the one using Consort Hui?

Yan Zheng freed his right hand and wrote the character Jin on a piece of paper.

Chu Ruoyan closed her eyes. Yun Zihao, the Heir of the Prince of Jin. As expected, her cousin was the oriole waiting behind the mantis!

Watching them fight a life-and-death struggle with the Murong family, he waited until the dust settled to swoop in and reap the spoils!

And her second brother… ever since he chased after her eldest brother, there had been no news of him at all…

Her chest felt suffocatingly tight. She stood up and said, I’m going out for a walk.

Yan Zheng held her hand and stood up. I’ll go with you!

But just as they reached the entrance of the hall, they were stopped by rushing officials.

Lord Chief Minister! The late emperor has passed away, and the second prince has abdicated. The realm cannot be without a ruler for even a single day!

Yes, we implore Lord Chief Minister to follow the mandate of heaven, ascend the throne as Emperor, and protect the people of the world!

Please ascend the throne, Lord Chief Minister!

…

Figures knelt down like a crashing wave. Yan Zheng furrowed his brows, but suddenly, the small hand in his grasp gently pulled away.

Ayan?!

Panic flashed in his heart, and he instinctively reached out to grab her, but under the moonlight, the woman gave him a soft smile. Go on.

Having reached this point, if he didn’t claim the throne, there was no way back anyway.

Yun Zihao would absolutely not let things rest. Since that was the case, they might as well gather their strength and fight him to the end!

Seeing the increasingly clear light in her eyes, Yan Zheng’s heart settled.

He spoke slowly, My lords, please rise.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep