Demoting my wife to a concubine? After being reborn, I turned around and married into the imperial f

If she rushes to the lotus pond at this moment, she may very well fall into the enemy's trap of luring her away from the mountain.

"Grandmother, shall I carry you on my back and we go to the lotus pond together?"

Upon hearing this, the Empress Dowager was taken aback at first, but then immediately realized what she meant.

"good!"

The Empress Dowager put on her outer robe, and Chu Xunzhen knelt down with his back to her.

The Empress Dowager climbed onto Chu Xunzhen's back, and Chu Xunzhen stood up and hurriedly ran forward.

Seeing Chu Xunzhen walking briskly, the Empress Dowager felt as if she were seeing her in a new light.

Upon arriving at the lotus pond, they saw Princess Jiamin splashing around in the water, while Granny Gui had disappeared.

She kept shouting, "Help! Help! Help me..."

Palace servants, carrying torches, approached.

Chu Xunzhen's gaze shifted slightly. She turned to the maids following behind them and said, "Go and fetch two cloaks. Wait here."

"Yes, Ninth Prince's Consort."

The maidservant hurriedly left, and Chu Xunzhen glanced at the palace servants running towards them not far away, then jumped into the water with a splash.

She swam suddenly toward Princess Jiamin.

It was the dead of winter, and the cold wind was blowing down, whistling loudly.

The icy lake water surrounded Chu Xunzhen, making even his internal organs feel frozen.

Princess Jiamin had already choked on several mouthfuls of water.

She stared at the torches on the distant shore, momentarily lost in thought.

Am I going to die?

Suddenly, a hand lifted her up steadily.

She leaned weakly against him.

So soft! How can this person's body be so soft and supple? Was she saved? Did she survive?

She subconsciously relaxed and fainted.

Chu Xunzhen led Princess Jiamin back to shore.

Seeing that she was unconscious, Chu Xunzhen slapped her on the back.

The next moment, she coughed up a mouthful of water and woke up completely.

"You saved me?" Princess Jiamin was somewhat bewildered and incredulous.

She burst into tears.

A cold wind blew against them, and they shivered. A maidservant draped cloaks over them.

But Chu Xunzhen remained cold, which was of no use whatsoever.

Princess Jiamin was shivering from the cold and staggered.

"Quickly! Back to Shou Kang Palace!" The Empress Dowager, seeing her granddaughter and granddaughter-in-law in this state, immediately said, "Jiamin, where is Granny Gui?"

The thought that Gui Mama, who had been loyal and devoted to her, might be dragged down with her, sank into the water.

Princess Jiamin came to her senses, and, fighting off the cold, said in a trembling voice, "Granny Gui is in the washroom; she was knocked unconscious."

The Empress Dowager breathed a sigh of relief.

Empress Ma also came.

With such a major event occurring on the Empress Dowager's side, it's impossible for her to turn a blind eye.

Just then, as she was about to ask something else, she saw the Empress Dowager looking at her coldly and saying, "Whatever it is, we'll talk about it when we get back."

Empress Ma, her heart pounding, replied, "Yes."

Granny Gui was carried back by two maids.

The Shou Kang Palace urgently summoned the imperial physician.

Chu Xunzhen and Princess Jiamin trembled.

Buckets of hot water were carried in.

The two took off their clothes, got into the tub, and soaked.

It took Chu Xunzhen quite a while to recover.

Princess Jiamin was also inside the bucket.

She snapped out of her daze and suddenly saw what was happening in the water. She gasped and almost screamed.

Her face flushed red as she looked at Chu Xunzhen and said, "Sister-in-law, you're so beautiful!"

Princess Jiamin stared intently at the scenery in the water.

Chu Xunzhen: "!"

She casually picked up a handkerchief that was drying on the wooden tub and covered the other person's head with it.

The next moment, Princess Jiamin cried out in dissatisfaction.

When she lifted the veil covering her face, she saw that Chu Xunzhen had already gotten out of the bath and put on her undergarments.

"Sister-in-law, why did you come out so quickly? Why didn't you soak a little longer? What if you catch a cold?"

Chu Xunzhen put on his outer robe, then suddenly grabbed his head and said, "No need."

Princess Jiamin was stunned.

Water droplets trickled down her smooth, flowing hair.

Her hair reached her waist, and she had just finished bathing; her face was as beautiful as a lotus emerging from clear water, naturally beautiful without any adornment.

"Cousin-in-law..."

Princess Jiamin murmured.

She had always thought that her appearance was the result of makeup, but now she realized that this face was Chu Xunzhen's original appearance.

"Go to the bar, be careful, call me if you're in danger. I'll watch over you from outside."

With that, Chu Xunzhen walked out of the room.

Princess Jiamin blushed.

Thinking back to how she had looked down on Chu Xunzhen and even tried to bully her, she felt like slapping herself twice.

Chu Xunzhen was waiting outside Princess Jiamin's room.

She saw the imperial physicians going in and out of Shou Kang Palace.

Half an hour later, Princess Jiamin came out.

She was dressed neatly and looked much more energetic.

Chu Xunzhen asked curiously, "Princess, what happened just now? Why did you fall into the lotus pond?"

Upon hearing this, Princess Jiamin seemed to recall a terrifying scene, and her whole body trembled.

"Sister-in-law, someone knocked out Granny Gui. It was too dark, and I couldn't see anything, but I knew there was someone behind me. That person kept chasing me, and then I slipped and fell into the lotus pond. I shouted for help, and that person ran away."

"Hmm. Is your leg alright? Is it injured?"

Upon hearing this, Princess Jiamin was somewhat dazed.

"Sister-in-law, you knew that Her Majesty the Empress was going to marry me off to the Ninth Prince as a concubine, so why did you still save me?"

"You have no grudge against me, why shouldn't I save you?"

Chu Xunzhen asked with a smile.

Princess Jiamin looked somewhat bewildered and said, "But don't you dislike me? If I become a concubine, wouldn't I have to share your husband with you?"

"Can you do that?"

Princess Jiamin paused.

If it were before, she would have wanted to marry Nangong Yue, the most handsome man in Daning.

But after all that just now, how could she possibly marry Nangong Yue?

She could never betray the person who saved her life.

"Won't."

As Princess Jiamin spoke, the two had already arrived at the Empress Dowager's palace.

Upon seeing the two, the Empress Dowager's eyes immediately lit up with joy: "Jiamin, Zhenzhen, how are you feeling?"

"Thank you for your concern, Grandmother. Jiamin is much better now."

Chu Xunzhen said to the Empress Dowager, "Grandmother, your granddaughter-in-law is fine. But what about the imperial physician?"

"The imperial physician said that my worries were too great and that I was just hallucinating."

Chu Xunzhen was stunned when she heard this.

Hallucination?

Is this huge scarecrow also an illusion?

"Grandmother, please allow me to attend to your illness alone tonight."

Chu Xunzhen's gaze sharpened, and he said firmly.

Princess Jiamin looked over abruptly, gritted her teeth, and said, "No, sister-in-law, if you need to take care of the sick, I will accompany you."

Although she was frightened last night, she was still worried about leaving Chu Xunzhen alone.

The Empress Dowager looked at Chu Xunzhen, then at Princess Jiamin, and became more and more pleased.

"Good, good, you are all good children. But there's no need for that. Tonight I will have the Emperor send more men. You should all rest well in the side rooms."

Chu Xunzhen hesitated for a moment, then said, "Yes, Grandmother."

"I am tired. You should all rest well today. If the Ninth Princess wishes to leave the palace, she may do so at any time."

Chu Xunzhen nodded and said, "Thank you for your grace, Grandmother."

The Empress Dowager is resting.

Just as Chu Xun was about to leave the Empress Dowager's palace, she suddenly smelled a familiar stench of decay.

She immediately turned around and walked towards the direction from which the scent was coming.

Zheng, the old woman standing beside the Empress Dowager, looked at Chu Xunzhen and the other woman's actions with a surprised expression.

Suddenly, Chu Xunzhen walked to a vase at the foot of the Empress Dowager's bed and gently sniffed it.

She lifted the vase and poured out its contents.

The next moment, a moldy, stinking dead rat, along with a piece of red paper, was poured out.

The red paper was bitten in half, but the birth date and time were still clearly visible on the other half.

"This is?"

When Zheng Mama saw the object, she turned pale with fright, while the Empress Dowager, who had been lying on the bed, sat up.

"Someone in the palace is actually using witchcraft."

The Empress Dowager stood up, her gaze fixed on the eight characters on the ground, and said, "Investigate! Is this my birth chart? And in the past three months, who has touched this vase?"

"Yes."

Shou Kang Palace was instantly thrown into chaos.

Chu Xunzhen frowned and said, "Grandmother, it's possible that the person secretly put the item in the vase and then left."

Upon hearing this, the Empress Dowager nodded and said, "The Ninth Princess Consort's words make sense. Do you have any brilliant ideas?"

"If I'm not mistaken, this curse is intended to frame Your Majesty the Empress Dowager. The birth date and time on it should also be yours."

Princess Jiamin looked at Chu Xunzhen, who was speaking eloquently, and was somewhat puzzled.

How can there be so much difference between people? She discovered something else.

The Empress Dowager ordered someone to pick up the red paper, and upon seeing the eight characters inside the vase, she was immediately terrified.

"Someone, burn this paper."

Chu Xunzhen understood.

The eight characters on this are the emperor's eight characters.

Otherwise, as the most honored woman in the palace, she wouldn't be so afraid of even the birth charts of anyone else in the palace.

"Grandmother, let me do it." Chu Xunzhen suddenly spoke.

The Empress Dowager nodded and handed the red paper to Chu Xunzhen.

Chu Xunzhen burned the red paper without hesitation.

As soon as Chu Xunzhen left the palace, she saw Nangong You in the distance.

He was dressed in a white robe with red flowers, making him look flamboyant and glamorous.

Today is his big day.

Ninth Sister-in-law.

Chu Xunzhen nodded indifferently and was about to leave, but Nangong You grabbed her hand and said, "Why are you being so formal, sister-in-law?"

Chu Xunzhen abruptly withdrew his hand and said, "Insolence!"

"Ninth Sister-in-law, I have already requested permission from Father to keep watch here tonight. What? Didn't Ninth Brother come looking for you? Could it be that Ninth Brother has forgotten you are in the palace? Indeed, today the Empress gave him ten beauties, and he is currently indulging in sensual pleasures."

Suddenly, footsteps sounded from behind the two of them.

At the same time, Nangong Yue's familiar voice came over.

"Isn't it wrong for the Third Prince to slander his younger brother like this?"

Chu Xunzhen suddenly looked over.

He wore a light blue robe, with a small bear jade pendant hanging from his waist.

It is Nangong Yue.

Chu Xunzhen strode forward.

Nangong Yue looked worried, suddenly grabbed Chu Xunzhen's hand, and said affectionately, "Sister, I'm late."

Chu Xunzhen looked at him with some worry.

Was the birth chart I saw in the Empress Dowager's bedchamber really aimed at the Emperor? Could it implicate my own prince?