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

Wei Rong's breath hitched.

The scene from half an hour ago came vividly to mind.

The way she bit Ling Xianru's lip was out of a "go for it" mentality.

If the Imperial Guards really discover this, they might as well all die together.

Looking back now, it's clear that Ling Xianru, that wicked seed, had a way out from the beginning, but she was forced to do it.

But she didn't hold back at all when she took that bite; she used real force, and instantly tasted the blood in her mouth.

The Imperial Guards spotted him in that instant, and there was certainly no time to clean the wound on his lip.

Xiao Heng must have seen it too.

I just don't know what excuse he'll use to get away with it.

"Arong?" Xiao Heng's fingertips were already touching her lips, tinged with concern. "Was the repositioning too painful?"

Wei Rong breathed a sigh of relief.

She nodded: "You bit too hard."

"Don't let yourself get hurt in the future," Xiao Heng suddenly pulled her into his arms, "It will break my heart."

The person who enveloped her had a warm breath, but seemed slightly unfamiliar. Wei Rong couldn't remember the last time they had relied on each other.

Moreover, he carried a subtle fragrance, not the ambergris used by emperors, but rather the perfumes used by women.

It belongs to Shen Mingxiu.

Wei Rong pushed him away, her eyes clear and her expression gentle: "Thank you, Your Majesty."

Xiao Heng had not seen Wei Rong so obedient and docile in a long time. He was moved for a moment and then instructed Zhu Yi, "Go and bring me the official business that I haven't finished. I will stay here with the Empress tonight."

"Your Majesty," Wei Rong straightened his clothes, "Tomorrow you will be the one to fire the first arrow to bring good luck to the hunt. How dare I take up Your Majesty's place? If you are not well rested, the court officials will say that I am not considering the overall situation."

"Who dares? My empress, whom I serve, needs their criticism?"

"Rumors and gossip are hard to refute. Your Majesty does not wish to be troubled. Separating men and women is an ancestral instruction to prevent men from being disturbed by romantic feelings when hunting."

Wei Rong invoked ancestral precepts, leaving Xiao Heng with no room for further rebuttal.

However, this also caused some dissatisfaction. Shen Mingxiu wished she could stick to him all the time and move into his tent to eat and sleep with him.

When it came to Wei Rong, however, she kept adhering to the etiquette of an empress and showed no interest in being coquettish.

He flicked Wei Rong's nose and chuckled, "When will you ever act cute and try to keep me here? I'll definitely do as you wish."

Wei Rong simply smiled.

It was getting late, and since Wei Rong insisted, Xiao Heng didn't force her to stay and took Zhu Yi back to the camp.

Before leaving, he instructed the palace servants to take good care of Wei Rong and to ask him for help if she needed anything.

Xiao Heng led his men away, and the tent returned to silence.

With medicine applied to her leg, as Wei Rong just said, she indeed cannot get out of bed for the time being.

Physician Qian wrote out a prescription at the table, saying, "Your Majesty's injury looks serious, but it's not. As long as the joint is reset and the swelling goes down, there will be no problem."

Wei Rong did not respond.

Imperial Physician Qian glanced back at her and noticed that the Empress was supporting her forehead with one hand and holding a book with the other, but she hadn't turned the page for a long time, seemingly lost in thought.

He sighed softly.

He was just gathering herbs in the woods when Wei Rong suddenly appeared out of nowhere, startling him.

Even more incredibly, the person who brought her to the ground was Mo Bai.

As far as he knew, Mo Bai was on a mission and had not returned until now.

But—since Mo Bai is with the Empress, it means that the other person is also nearby.

However, for some unknown reason, Wei Rong seemed unusually angry after landing.

She looked coldly at Mo Bai, then at Doctor Qian, who was squatting on the ground.

Suddenly, he opened his mouth and asked, "You recognize them?"

Mo Bai nodded, and Physician Qian wiped his sweat.

Wei Rong then asked Mo Mobai, "Were you in the tree the whole time?"

Mo Bai nodded again.

The Empress's expression could only be described as cold and sinister.

Ignoring etiquette, she vigorously wiped her lips with her sleeve: "Very good."

As for why it's good, and what makes it good, she didn't say a word.

She walked straight to a pit, stepped in without hesitation, twisted her ankle, and a look of pain flashed across her face: "Send someone to inform His Majesty that I have sprained my ankle."

Physician Qian was shocked, wondering what had just happened between her and the Prime Minister.

Even Mo Bai's expression changed.

Looking back now, she was looking for a plausible excuse to get rid of those shoes.

The Empress's shoes were all made by the Emperor and would always be embroidered with phoenixes. If someone were to investigate her relationship with the Prime Minister, they could easily trace the clues back to her.

Imperial Physician Qian sighed inwardly. This was clearly a resourceful and intelligent noblewoman, so why did the emperor not cherish her?

"Your Majesty?" Imperial Physician Qian asked again, "If there's nothing else, may I take my leave?"

Wei Rong then snapped out of her daze and lifted her eyelids, saying, "Hmm."

Physician Qian breathed a sigh of relief, fearing that Wei Rong would take her anger out on him, and ran away quickly with his medicine box.

The camp became even quieter.

Wei Rong had never eaten dinner; she had eaten very little lunch due to the long journey.

Qiaoyu went to the kitchen and asked for a bowl of steamed egg custard. When she brought it back, she noticed that her mistress was in the same position as when she left, with the page of the book still on the same page.

The Empress is in a bad mood.

She could tell.

Is it... because of the Prime Minister?

Just now, Mo Yu took her away, and no matter how much she begged and asked, he refused to tell her his purpose.

But Qiaoyu was not stupid; she could see the subtle differences between the Empress and the Prime Minister these days.

"Your Majesty, your health is paramount. Please eat a few bites of the steamed egg custard."

This steamed egg custard contains some fresh shrimp meat and is drizzled with sesame oil, making it smell delicious and appetizing.

"I have no appetite."

Qiaoyu sighed helplessly: "You haven't eaten all day and you've injured your foot. If this continues, all the little bit of weight I've managed to gain for you will be gone."

Wei Rong doesn't like to gain weight.

These past few years, I've been thinking a lot, which has made me even thinner.

Therefore, her not eating was a huge deal for Qiaoyu.

"Go down, I really can't eat anymore." She had too many things on her mind, and her thoughts were in complete disarray.

Seeing this, Qiaoyu had no choice but to take the food out and instruct the servants outside to keep it warm so that Wei Rong could eat it if she got hungry at any time.

But before she could leave the inner room, she was startled by the person coming towards her, her eyes widening in surprise.

The newcomer was relaxed and showed no sign of unease about barging into the Queen's tent, nor did he seem afraid of being discovered.

Qiaoyu had no choice but to block the entrance to the inner room: "My mistress has gone to sleep, please leave."

The man didn't reply; he simply raised his hand, took the steamed egg custard from her, and started to walk into the inner room.

"grown ups!"

Qiaoyu was like a frightened deer. She knelt down with a thud, wanting to shout but not daring to, for fear of disturbing the guards on duty outside.

"Please don't go in," she pleaded. How could she not be afraid? This man, who never cared about anything, was still a high-ranking official with the power of life and death. Crushing her would be as easy as crushing an ant.

But—how could I not advise against it?

One was the Empress, and the other was a powerful minister who held absolute power.

It's impossible in this lifetime...

If the Empress is implicated, and the Emperor wants to take her life, how can he protect her?

The robe in front of her paused, as if Ling Xianru had stopped to look at her.

Qiaoyu closed her eyes tightly and clenched her palms, waiting for a scolding.