After Xiao Fubao's life was stolen, he became the favorite of everyone in the capital

Chapter 419 Secretly Returning to Beijing
The emperor suddenly felt a little guilty. At that time, he was only busy with his affection for Li and did not even ask how to settle the families of the servants.

The emperor also thought about how Li had begged for mercy for her parents and brothers over the years. She cared a lot about the honor of her family and didn't look like someone who would give up wealth and honor for a strange man.

The emperor couldn't help but wonder, how could such a person elope with a man she met for the first time, and whether there was other hidden story behind the old incident.

As soon as his mind reached this point, he couldn't help but feel suspicious, but there seemed to be a layer of fog covering his thoughts, making him unwilling to think too badly of Li.

The Queen Mother was watching her son from the side. Such a shrewd man in state affairs, but he almost lost his soul when he met Li.

"Emperor, I previously sent people to Guanglin Prefecture to investigate the criminal Li Chaosheng, but instead heard of another story. It was said that there was a couple, and the husband favored his concubine, and the wife was not favored. So she asked a Taoist woman who practiced evil ways to get a magic water, and secretly fed it to the husband to drink."

"Since then, the husband has forgotten about his concubines and only treats his wife wholeheartedly, and no one else is in his eyes anymore."

When the emperor heard this, he said, "Mother, these are just jokes. How can you take them seriously? Men dote on their concubines because they are young and beautiful. As for being devoted to their wives, it may be because their wives' families have become prosperous and they need help."

The Queen Mother did not expect that her son did not take this matter to heart at all. She deliberately asked: "Since the Emperor does not believe in these Shinto theories, why did he appoint him as the Imperial Master?"

The emperor shook his head and said, "That year, the capital suffered a severe drought. It was the imperial master who prayed for rain. It's not that I don't believe in Shintoism, but I think that if someone is really proficient in Shintoism, why would he do these trivial things?"

When the Queen Mother heard this, she smiled faintly and asked, "Emperor, do you think that the harem is a trivial matter?"

Although the people sent by the empress dowager did not find the old Taoist priest for the time being, after various speculations, she could only feel that this was the only credible explanation, that is, the emperor was possessed by an evil spirit.

Only this statement can explain why the emperor tolerated Li family like crazy.

"What if this man is not an ordinary person, but a local official, a high-ranking official, or even the king of a country? Then is this matter still a trivial matter in the inner court? Then will this wife only receive the favor of the inner court?"

"This Taoist can transfer the favor of the concubine to the wife. Who knows if he can also exchange it with something else?"

The Empress Dowager's words left the Emperor speechless.

Niuniu was listening to the two people chatting. The little girl rolled her eyes and said, "If there is such a way, then wouldn't it be possible to have whatever I want? This is too scary. What if one day someone wants to take away the love of my family?"

What Niu Niu cares about most is her family. She thinks she is the happiest little girl in the world. She also believes that if anyone wants to steal something from her, it must be her family.

The Queen Mother smiled at the little girl and said, "My dear, you can rest assured here. People who covet other people's treasures cannot tell what is the most precious thing in the world. In their eyes, power and wealth are definitely more important than the feelings between family members.

"Emperor, can you think of the reason why you are partial to Li?" asked the Queen Mother.

The more the emperor thought about it, the more doubts he had in his heart. Just for saving his life, he felt that he should not be such a loyal person. After all, the cruelty displayed by Li now was completely contrary to the ideal wife in his mind.

"I will have people continue to hunt down the Imperial Master. During this period, I will also have people keep an eye on Guanju Palace." The emperor said. The Queen Mother nodded, but she felt that it would not be easy to find someone like the Imperial Master who was involved in Shinto.

The emperor had doubts in his mind, which naturally could not be easily resolved. Not only did he send people to investigate the Li family, he also had people keep an eye on Li Ziqin who was patrolling the border town, and watch whether there were any unusual movements by the Li family in the capital. He also went to the Huguo Temple in person.

However, the senior monks of the Huguo Temple did not notice anything wrong with the emperor, and it did not seem like he was affected by those strange methods.

The people in Guanju Palace were so anxious. She didn't want to eat the rice with lard at all, but every day at mealtime, a big bowl of rice would be delivered to her on time.

Chunying was also standing by, staring at her intently.

"My dear queen, why don't you eat a single bite? Are you dissatisfied with me? If I did something that made you unhappy, you can just tell me directly!"

Although Chunying said this, she had already started rolling up her sleeves, and she looked like she was ready to give someone a severe beating.

Li tried to act as if she was not afraid of Chunying and said, "Don't threaten me. His Majesty has already met with me and said that he would restore my status as a Zhaoyi. It won't be long before I am released. By then, I will be the master of the harem and the imperial concubine second only to the emperor!"

Chunying couldn't help laughing when she heard this and said, "Look in the mirror and see how horrible you look now. If you were the emperor, would you be able to do that?"

Chunying directly handed the mirror to Li.

Li looked at the fleshy face in the mirror and felt her eyes aching. She couldn't help but complain, "You are the one who caused me all this! I was born with a noble destiny! I won't eat this bowl of rice!"

But her rebuttal and struggle were of no use, and only resulted in Chunying's harsher treatment.

Chunying directly pried open Li's mouth and stuffed the bowl of rice into her mouth viciously.

Li didn't want to eat it, but Chunying's grip was too strong.

This happened every time she wanted to lose weight. Chunying forced her to eat more food, but she got fatter and fatter.

Li was looking forward to the National Master continuing to cast spells. She didn't want to live like this at all.

In a house somewhere in the capital city, the imperial teacher, dressed in Taoist robes, stared palely at a plate filled with blood in front of him, muttering to himself.

Around him, candles of various shapes were lit, and all kinds of talismans were pasted all over.
Those talismans seemed to be written in blood. Ordinary people would feel dizzy after taking a look at them and dared not look at them closely.

"Although the Empress in the palace has fallen out of favor, I am still a favorite of His Majesty. Why is it time to go all out?"

The person who spoke was not someone else, but Li Ziqin who was supposed to be patrolling the border town.