After being forced into a marriage with a wealthy family, the virtuous wife caused a huge uproar.

Fortunately, Madam Su said she had successfully administered the poison. The bone-corroding powder was unlike any other poison; it was extremely difficult to detect. The person would die mysteriously, and no one could find out what was wrong.

A woman like that, if she can't be used by him, should die; and since she's Gu Ce's woman, she deserves to die even more.

"Useless thing. You asked me to help you get rid of Gu Ce, and I gave you so much poison, but you still failed after all these years. Instead, you let him grow and now he has become my son's biggest stumbling block."

The future of Nanxia will be my son's responsibility. The future Duke of Zhenguo must be like the current Duke of Zhenguo, able to defend the borders and repel the enemy.

And your foolish son, who has no ambition, is he capable of bearing the title of Duke of Zhenguo?

"Tell me yourself, what have you been doing all these years?" Consort Cao asked, exasperated.

A family like the Su family can't raise a true noblewoman; even after marriage, she can't raise her children well.

She relies on her looks to marry into a wealthy family and elevates her status by becoming someone's second wife.

Consort Cao deeply regretted accepting Su's surrender; she had been incredibly foolish.

"I will definitely discipline Ah Xi properly from now on." Madam Su was so ashamed that she wanted to disappear.

As children grow up, they are no longer under their mother's control. Without a father to look after them, she had to find ways to deal with Gu Ce, manage the household affairs of a large family, maintain her image as a loving mother, and also serve the Crown Prince and the Imperial Concubine. She really did her best.

"Granny Jiang, please study this carefully and see if there's any way." Consort Cao couldn't let her subordinates down; she couldn't abandon Su Shi yet.

She was, after all, the wife of the Duke of Zhenguo. As long as she could persuade the Duke of Zhenguo to support her son, Lady Su would still be of use.

I heard from the Emperor that the Duke of Zhenguo will be returning to the capital before the Lunar New Year this year, and Lady Su will be of great use to him.

"Thank you, Your Highness, and thank you, Granny Jiang." Hearing this, Madam Su felt a little relieved.

Rong Yingluo curled her lips into a smile. The poison she had researched was something that Nanxia couldn't find an antidote for. The Su family wanted to wait for this glimmer of hope, but let them wait for it to be dashed.

That was a valuable item she obtained from a tribe in the Western Jin Dynasty.

It may not take lives, but it can make life worse than death.

After poisoning, the first stage is hair loss, the second stage is scalp itching, and the third stage is the growth of a full head of white hair. It's unknown whether Mr. Su will live to see that day.

Thinking of the bone-corroding powder that she had given to Aunt Feng, she might not let Madam Su live to see the day when her hair turns white.

"Madam, you should find a few more doctors to examine you. I may not be able to develop an antidote, as I have never seen this kind of poison before. Fortunately, it is not fatal, just rather unsightly." Granny Jiang was not confident either, but she still wanted to make things clear that she could not cure every poison.

Mrs. Su was somewhat disappointed, but she had no choice but to accept it.

"You may leave. Behave yourself in the future. Do not come to the palace unless it is important." Consort Cao waved her hand to dismiss Lady Su.

"Your Highness, I have another request." Madam Su knelt down once more.

It was a rare opportunity for her to meet the Imperial Concubine in private, so she had to make the most of it.

"What else is there?" Consort Cao asked, her expression displeased. She was really pushing her luck.

"My daughter, Qingya, is of marriageable age. She is deeply in love with the Crown Prince Xuan. I beg Your Majesty to help her and grant her wish," Madam Su shamelessly pleaded.

"Ha, you really dare to think that way. Gu Ce and his wife just schemed against Princess Xiangyi, and you turn around and want to marry your daughter into the Xuan Prince's mansion. Do you think the Xuan Prince will forgive and forget?" Consort Cao really wanted to call her an idiot again.

"Your Majesty, I know that Qingya is delusional. I am your person, and what Gu Ce and Rong Shi did has nothing to do with me. If Your Majesty is willing to explain this matter to Prince Xuan, he will not hold it against me."

Moreover, over the years, Prince Xuan and the Crown Prince have only maintained a superficial uncle-nephew relationship. I believe you have also tried to win over Prince Xuan, but you have not been able to shake him in the slightest.

"If my daughter marries into the Xuan Prince's mansion, there will be a loophole. When the Crown Prince ascends the throne, the Xuan Prince will become his greatest support, even more powerful than the Duke's mansion." At this moment, Madam Su's mind was racing.

Consort Cao narrowed her eyes.

Indeed, she and the Crown Prince tried many times to win over Prince Xuan, but to no avail.

Prince Xuan only focused on serving the Emperor and never got involved in the affairs between the Crown Prince and Gu Ce. Occasionally, he even sided with Gu Ce, which greatly annoyed her.

Marrying Gu Qingya to the heir of Prince Xuan would indeed be a wise move.

"Go back first. I need to discuss this matter with the Crown Prince. I will let you know when we have a good discussion." Consort Cao was successfully persuaded by Madam Su.

But she still needs to hear what the Crown Prince has to say.

At this time, the Crown Prince was still under house arrest, and some things could not be rushed.

Su Shi withdrew from Qixia Palace.

Rong Yingluo also found an opportunity to quietly slip away.

She was on her way back to the Queen's Qiwu Palace when she heard voices as she turned a corner of a palace. She immediately stopped, lightly leaped onto the roof beam of the corridor, and then turned the corner from there.

It turned out that Gu Qingya was blocking Yuwentai from speaking.

How could Yuwen Tai be in the harem? Even if he were the emperor's own nephew, he would not normally enter the harem unless he was accompanying a female member of his family.

It's either Princess Xuan or Princess Xiangyi.

"Your Highness, I have requested an audience with Princess Xiangyi several times, but she has ignored me. Please pass on a message to her for me."

That day, I really did push my sister-in-law into the water as she asked; I did not break my promise.

It was my elder brother who ruined the princess's plans; it had nothing to do with me.

But the princess blamed me for it; I'm innocent.

Gu Qingya put on a pitiful look, with tears welling up in her eyes, making most men feel sorry for her.

"Alright, you'd better not contact my sister too much lately. She's been forced into an engagement with the Liu family's young master and she'd love to kill you." Yuwen Tai was also furious about his sister being violated by Liu Changhua.

The king originally intended to use his sister to forge a good marriage alliance, thereby gaining a strong ally for the Xuan Prince's Mansion.

What is the Liu family anyway? They only have their wealth and status today because of Consort De.

If it weren't for Consort De's good fortune in giving birth to the second princess, Consort De's position wouldn't have fallen to her, and the Liu family wouldn't be enjoying its current glory.

Having little real power, such a family is of little use to the Xuanwang Mansion.

"But I really didn't break my promise." Gu Qingya certainly didn't really want to apologize to Princess Xiangyi.

She only saw Yuwentai and wanted to talk to him more, hoping to seduce him.

"I believe you, is that alright?" Yuwen Tai had lost patience with Gu Qingya.

He would never be interested in Gu Qingya.

She was merely the daughter of the Duke of Zhenguo's second wife; her upbringing was far inferior to that of noble ladies raised in truly distinguished families.

His Crown Princess must be able to shoulder the responsibility of being the mistress of the Xuan Prince's Mansion.

Gentle and kind, knowing when to advance and retreat, and understanding the rules.

Gu Qingya is nothing more than a dog by her sister's side.

The two chatted below, while Rong Yingluo quietly approached from the roof beam, her movements extremely careful, afraid of attracting Yuwen Tai's attention.

She overheard their conversation, but didn't get any useful information.

Gu Qingya simply wanted to get closer to Yuwen Tai.

Rong Yingluo thought of what Su Shi wanted.

Furthermore, the ambition of Prince Xuan that she and Gu Ce analyzed made it seem like a good idea to pair these two up.

She was eager to see what Xuan Wang would do.

Rong Yingluo moved closer and secretly sprinkled a little powder down, which landed right on Gu Qingya.

Almost no one noticed.

After scattering the confetti, she left. She hid behind a tree and watched from afar as the two talked under the eaves.

Sure enough, not long after, Gu Qingya, as if she had gone mad, grabbed Yuwen Tai and kissed him.

Even more strangely, Yuwen Tai also tightly embraced Gu Qingya's waist, the two of them lost in their own illusions, unable to extricate themselves.

Just then, Rong Yingluo saw two beautiful women in palace attire walking towards her from the other side of the corner with their servants. She could see the two women being intimate as soon as she turned the corner.