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

Qiaoyu knew that this matter was of great importance and dared not delay, so she hurriedly withdrew.

Outside the door, dense clouds gathered, a common sign of the approaching rainy season in spring. Combined with Wei Rong's expression just now, Qiaoyu sensed that the weather was about to change.

The heavens over the Great Jing seem to be even more violent than those over the palace coup four years ago.

She was filled with worry. Four years ago, when the general was alive, the Southern Frontier Army was their greatest source of strength, and the late emperor could do nothing against them.

Four years later, the general passed away. The young master was still young and had not yet achieved much, so it was not yet time for him to take on great responsibilities.

It remains to be seen what will become of the Wei family this time.

But no matter what, they were always of one mind and one heart: if the Wei family prospered, they prospered; if the Wei family failed, they failed.

·

"Your Majesty," Zhu Er cautiously entered from outside the hall, carrying something in his hand. He glanced at Xiao Heng, who was seated with her eyes closed, and lowered his voice even further, "Your Majesty?"

If Xiao Heng is asleep, he can only wait here until the emperor wakes up before reporting on his affairs.

This was a secret report sent from the southern border with urgent dispatch. From the moment Zhu Er received it, he felt as if a hundred ants were crawling all over him.

Xiao Heng propped her head up with her hands, her eyes closed, seemingly fast asleep.

Since the hunt began, the emperor has not been sleeping well these past few days, whether it's because he's not used to the new place or because the summer heat is increasing.

I often wake up several times in the middle of the night, saying I'm having a dream.

This dream doesn't seem like a good one, but for an emperor or dragon to have a nightmare is a bad omen.

Xiao Heng ordered him not to tell anyone.

Let's turn back time to one year ago.

Zhu Yi recalled that he had once handwritten a letter for Xiao Heng, a top-secret letter that was not to reveal any of Xiao Heng's identity.

That letter was addressed to King Sumon.

The letter, though short, described the location and number of the Southern Frontier Army that was about to pass through the Yimeng Mountains.

After that letter was sent, Xiao Heng had nightmares for a long time, just like she is now.

Later, Xiao Heng read a book of witchcraft somewhere, which said that as long as the corpse of a person who was afraid was burned to ashes and scattered into a great river, the karmic obstacles could be broken.

That day, Xiao Heng instructed him to do another thing.

For the past six months or so, I've heard that Her Majesty the Empress has never given up searching for General Wei's remains, showing no sign of giving up.

In truth, Zhu Er knew that she would never find her again.

General Wei's body did not fall into the hands of the Su-Mongols, nor was it devoured by wild animals in the Yimeng Mountains. Instead, it vanished forever in the Lishui River, and could not be retrieved.

So, over the past six months, he had watched Wei Rong rise and fall in the harem, and he felt somewhat melancholy.

But that's just how people are; different positions lead to many things beyond their control.

The Wei family was full of loyal martyrs, which the emperor saw as a threat, a prestige he lacked among the people.

If one day Wei Xing comes to power, and he is no longer satisfied with being a subject, and develops ambition or desire, then the Great Jing dynasty will be changed to the Wei family.

How could Xiao Heng be willing to accept this?

Zhu Er sighed as he thought about this.

"Old man, why are you sighing all of a sudden?" Xiao Heng's slightly angry voice came from above, carrying the displeasure of being woken up.

Zhu Er immediately knelt down, trembling with fear, and said, "This old servant deserves to die for disturbing Your Majesty's peaceful sleep."

Xiao Heng wasn't actually asleep. He'd been plagued by nightmares lately, which had made him somewhat irritable: "Order them to prepare to depart for the palace tomorrow."

It must be due to too much killing that this happened; it would be best to return to the palace as soon as possible.

The longer he lingered outside, the more he felt that things were not peaceful outside the palace. As the supreme emperor, he should not have lingered too long at the hunting grounds.

It's just that there are ancestral precedents to follow, and it's not easy to go against them.

Upon seeing this, Zhu Er quickly agreed and then said, "Your Majesty, an urgent report has arrived from the southern border."

Xiao Heng stretched out a hand, and Zhu Ai handed the item to him.

After reading it, Xiao Heng's expression changed drastically, and she slammed the secret letter on the ground: "Fu Wentao is missing? Why has he disappeared?!"

Fu Wentao has disappeared?!

Zhu Er was unaware of the contents of the letter and was so shocked that he began to tremble all over.

Fu Wentao has disappeared. Does this mean someone has already investigated him? If they find out he faked his death, then everything else is shrouded in mystery—and the death of General Wei—

"Your Majesty!" Zhu Er kowtowed on the ground, "Your Majesty, please think of a way. If Fu Wentao is captured by someone with malicious intent, the consequences will be..."

Xiao Heng knew perfectly well that the consequences would be a hundred times worse than he had imagined.

I shouldn't have spared that worthless life in the first place; it has brought endless troubles, truly endless troubles!

"By my decree, search thoroughly for Fu Wentao. If he is ever found, execute him without mercy!"

Xiao Heng's eyes were bloodshot, and he smashed the inkstone on the table to the ground.

No wonder I've been feeling restless lately, no wonder I always feel a chill in the air.

Is it Wei Rong?

Xiao Heng didn't have time to think it through. She strode out, her imposing and gloomy aura driving her into Wei Rong's tent.

Before the guards could even pay their respects, they could hear the sounds of things being smashed coming from inside the tent.

The guards looked at each other, wondering what was wrong with the emperor.

Inside the tent, Xiao Heng gripped Wei Rong's neck, her eyes bloodshot as she demanded, "What have you done? What have you done behind my back?!"

The feeling of suffocation was just as pronounced this time as it was last time.

Wei Rong grabbed his wrist, demanding he let go: "Let go—what's wrong with you now?"

She had been pretending to be a snake long enough, and now that Wei Xing had already set off, she no longer wanted to endure it.

Xiao Heng narrowed her eyes dangerously, and suddenly tightened her grip.

The finger bones dug deep into her slender neck, the purplish marks deepening, the suffocating pressure gripping Wei Rong's lifeline.

The flickering candlelight inside the tent illuminated his eyes, making them appear a mad, scarlet red, revealing his sinister and ruthless nature.

"Pretend? You still dare to pretend now?"

Wei Rong's breathing became labored, her chest heaving violently. Her fingertips gripped his wrist tightly, yet she refused to show the slightest fear. She raised her eyes, her gaze cold and icy as she silently stared at the emperor before her, who possessed the entire world yet was a man of venomous heart.

"Your Majesty's arrival here in the middle of the night, with all sorts of threats, shows that you have something to hide."

Her voice was hoarse, yet every word was sharp, piercing his deepest taboos.

"Your Majesty is panicking. Why? You're afraid that what happened back then can't be covered up, that the world will find out that you personally plotted against loyal officials and used someone else to kill your father."

Xiao Heng shuddered, and a murderous intent surged in her eyes.

She actually said it out loud!

She really does know everything!

He abruptly released her, shoving her violently to the side of the bed.

Wei Rong's back slammed against the wooden railing, causing a dull pain, but she managed to sit up straight without flinching.

The wind howled outside the tent, the night in the hunting grounds was bitterly cold, and a few raindrops drizzled down, accompanied by rumbling thunder, foreshadowing an impending cataclysmic storm.

Xiao Heng slowly approached, looking down at her with a chilling gaze: "So you really do know everything. Wei Rong, you've been lying in wait for half a year, just to turn against me today?"

"Yes."

Wei Rong readily agreed, her frankness startling him.

"Xiao Heng, if a person betrays, he will be betrayed in return. You owe my father, the Wei family, and the two hundred souls who perished in the Southern Frontier justice."

Just then, a series of hurried footsteps shattered the darkness outside the tent.

Qiaoyu came in from outside and announced in a deep voice, "Your Highness, the young master has arrived."