Favored concubine deposed empress? I'll seize your throne and marry you to a powerful minister.

What?!

Shen Mingxiu's tears fell unexpectedly. She stared at Ling Xianru in disbelief: "What did you say?"

"The capital is so vast, how could Your Majesty be so certain that I am devoted to you based on just a few letters?"

Seemingly finding it laughable, he actually laughed, which Shen Mingxiu saw as utter mockery.

Shen Mingxiu found it hard to accept this embarrassing truth. She grabbed a tree for support to steady herself: "You're lying—if it wasn't for me, then who was it for?"

"Then Your Majesty need not worry," Ling Xianru stated bluntly, "If you hadn't saved the carrier pigeon, which recognized you as its master, you wouldn't have received those paintings at all. That's fine, Your Majesty, you've been trying to curry favor with the Emperor all along. What are you complaining about to me here now?"

The truth is not only cruel, but also shameful.

Shen Mingxiu clutched her chest, shaking her head repeatedly, a pained expression on her face: "Impossible, you're lying to me. You only harbor resentment towards me because I married His Majesty. The grass butterflies you wove at the New Year's banquet, weren't they made for me?"

"No," Ling Xianru denied quickly.

"Then who exactly are you protecting?! The person you're trying to use as a stepping stone is already married, not me... so who is it?"

Ling Xianru was already showing signs of impatience: "I've already said, it has nothing to do with Her Majesty."

Jealousy drove Shen Mingxiu to madness. She was unwilling to accept it, and even more unwilling to believe it: "Could it be one of the ladies who participated in the hunt? Were you with her just now to avoid being discovered, and that's why you didn't want to make it public?"

She had no idea what kind of person Ling Xianru was.

Stepping on his tail like that caused Ling Xianru's expression to suddenly darken.

Yet a dangerous smile lingered on his lips: "If Your Majesty were wise, you would know when to stop. Does His Majesty know of your fickle nature?"

Shen Mingxiu trembled all over.

He threatened me so calmly, which contradicted what outsiders described as the cold-hearted and heartless prime minister.

"This official takes his leave. Your Majesty, please make yourself at home."

It was all a misunderstanding caused by a series of unfortunate events. If it weren't for Shen Mingxiu back then, many things could have had a different ending.

But she didn't need to know these things.

He had never even really looked at Shen Mingxiu's face.

Ling Xianru turned and left, leaving Shen Mingxiu standing there.

The sadness in her eyes was gradually replaced by jealousy. Why, why did she have to endure all this?

She looked at the footprints on the ground and curled her fingers.

The imperial guards stepped forward, knelt down, and accepted the order.

"Make a rubbing of this footprint and send it to my camp."

·

Wei Rong leaned against the chaise longue, her left leg barefoot and socks off, her ankle swollen high, a shocking sight against her delicate, flawless skin.

When Xiao Heng hurriedly entered the tent, Physician Qian was repositioning her dislocated joint.

With a snap, Wei Rong suddenly groaned, cold sweat instantly covering her forehead, her fingernails gripping the tassels on the bed, making her look extremely pitiful.

"How did you twist your ankle?" Upon seeing this, Xiao Heng quickly stepped forward and put his arm around Wei Rong, letting her lean against him.

"Greetings, Your Majesty!"

Wei Rong was in so much pain that she bit her lip tightly, enduring the pain for a while before letting go: "Greetings, Your Majesty."

"Stop with the formalities, how about you?"

I caught a glimpse of the fine sweat on her forehead; her stray hairs were damp and stuck to her forehead, she was clearly not feeling well.

Xiao Heng took the handkerchief handed to her by Qiaoyu and gently wiped the sweat from Wei Rong's forehead, a gesture she rarely showed.

Physician Qian applied medicine to Wei Rong and wrapped her injury tightly with gauze before kneeling down to report: "Your Majesty and Your Highness, fortunately, the sprain was treated with ice to relieve the pain in time. Now that the joint has been reset, she will be fine after a few more days of treatment."

Wei Rong forced herself to sit up and moved away from Xiao Heng's shoulder: "Your Majesty, I am filthy, please do not offend Your Majesty."

"How could I possibly find fault?" Xiao Heng turned her gaze to the people in the tent. "How have you all served her? If anything happens to the Empress, I will make you all pay with your heads!"

Hearing that Wei Rong had sprained her ankle, he panicked and left Shen Mingxiu behind to come over.

Seeing Wei Rong on the bed, looking pained, he felt even more suffocated.

"Your Majesty, please forgive us! It was our poor service that we failed to take good care of you!"

Wei Rong tugged at Xiao Heng's sleeve: "Why is Your Majesty blaming them? It was I who insisted on going out to digest my food and accidentally slipped and fell, which is why I got hurt."

Qiaoyu touched the ground with her forehead and said in a sad voice, "It's all my fault. Your Highness was digesting your food in the woods when you happened to meet His Majesty and Consort Xian. You were distracted and lost your footing. Unfortunately, I didn't hold on properly..."

The tent was silent. After listening, Xiao Heng looked at Wei Rong and asked, "You went to the woods just now too?"

"I knew long ago that Your Majesty and Consort Xian were loving, but I couldn't help but recall that when we were in the mansion, Your Majesty would also do this with me after dinner. That's when I got distracted and stepped into the pit."

Beside the couch lay Wei Rong's shoes, stained with mud.

Xiao Heng's heart stirred, recalling how he had indeed been completely obedient to Wei Rong when they first got married.

Every day, Wei Rong had a habit of taking a walk after dinner. In order to please her, he would accompany her every day, no matter how busy he was with official duties.

The scenery in the prince's residence was monotonous, so he ordered people to plant various plants, flowers, and fruits, and also built a long corridor along the lake.

On a summer evening, fish can be fed along the long corridor, and koi can be seen vying for food in the water.

In winter, the landscape is covered in snow, and the scenery on both sides of the corridor is different, with the opportunity to admire the rime ice.

Wei Rong would also prepare some interesting food, sitting on a futon on the ground, roasting oranges and dried fruits, which had a unique flavor.

Looking back now, the days before she plotted to seize power were some of the few happy ones Xiao Heng had.

Today, when Wei Rong saw him taking a walk with Shen Mingxiu, she must have been reminiscing about the past and feeling sad, which is why she tripped and twisted her ankle.

He really didn't spend enough time with Wei Rong.

He was slightly moved, and took Wei Rong's hand, feeling its icy coldness: "If you need to digest your food, you could have sent someone to invite me. Why did you have to go out alone?"

"Your Majesty has more important matters in your heart than I do. Tonight I am simply feeling sad for no reason. Your Majesty need not blame yourself."

Her words made Xiao Heng feel even more guilty.

"In March, your hands are still as cold as ice. Someone, bring your empress a hand warmer. And this tent is too simply furnished. Go to my tent and fetch a tiger skin, lest this hard bed hurt the empress."

He released Wei Rong and looked around, his gaze immediately drawn to the shoes on the ground. He found them an eyesore: "These shoes were burned, causing the Empress to fall. When did the Imperial Wardrobe produce such crudely made things? Go to the national treasury and fetch some brocade robes and embroidered shoes from Suzhou, and send them over tonight!"

Upon hearing this, Qiaoyu quickly accepted the order, fearing the emperor's wrath, and picked up her shoes from the ground and ran away.

Xiao Heng was carrying Wei Rong on her back, so she didn't see Wei Rong's indifferent expression behind her.

She was not moved in the slightest by the reward he mentioned, but when she saw the shoes being taken away, a flash of smug satisfaction crossed her eyes.

"Your Majesty, please don't be angry. It's all my fault."

After giving his instructions, Xiao Heng sat back on the couch: "What wrong have you done? From now on, I will spend more time with you."

He noticed that Wei Rong's hair was messy and wanted to reach out to tidy it for her, but when his hand got close, his gaze swept downwards and he suddenly stopped.

Why is there blood on your lips?