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

"Your Majesty, His Highness the Crown Prince seems to be seriously ill. Perhaps I should arrange for someone to take him away and attend to him first. Please don't worry, it's important for you to recover."

Upon hearing that Ling Xian was seriously ill, the old king's breathing became even more rapid.

He tried so hard to sit up in bed, but he just couldn't manage it: "Ah—Xian—"

The Imperial Noble Consort's eyes flickered, and two bodyguards immediately appeared, grabbing Ling Xianru from either side.

"Take His Highness the Crown Prince away and let him rest properly." The Imperial Noble Consort's tone suddenly turned icy.

"Outrageous!" The old king pointed at the Imperial Concubine, his finger trembling. "You—want—to—force—a coup?"

"What are you saying, Your Majesty? I only want to take good care of you. Besides, you still have Ning'er," the Imperial Noble Consort said, holding his hand with obvious concern. "If anything were to happen to the Crown Prince, Ning'er would still be the future of Donglin, wouldn't she?"

Those in the outer hall could easily hear the commotion inside.

Princess Zhao'an found it hard to believe; they were on guard against Ling Xianru from all sides.

But the Crown Prince turned out to be a fragile fry, and the Imperial Noble Consort easily subdued him.

"Imperial Noble Consort, what do you mean? How dare you hold the Crown Prince hostage and threaten the Emperor? Guards! Protect the Emperor!"

The Imperial Noble Consort wasn't the only one eyeing the throne.

Who doesn't want to find a way out for themselves?

If it were another dynasty, regardless of whether Ling Xianru or Ling Xianning ascended to the throne, they would both be destined for a political marriage.

Instead, we should take the initiative into our own hands!

However, they underestimated the Imperial Noble Consort, who had already placed her own people inside and outside the palace.

The guards slowly walked out, holding a knife to Ling Xianru's neck.

Meanwhile, the princesses and concubines were instantly seized by the swarming guards.

The entire Ankang Palace was turned upside down in an instant, from the Crown Prince to the Imperial Noble Consort.

Wei Rong stared intently at Ling Xianru's expression.

It could even be described as bleak and desolate.

Before he even left the inner hall, he suddenly exclaimed, "Pfft!"

He coughed up a mouthful of blood.

Wei Rong could no longer hold back. Almost the instant everyone was still watching Ling Xianru vomit blood, she turned around and snatched the old woman's knife with her bare hands!

The instant she pressed the knife against the old woman's neck, she shouted, "The Imperial Noble Consort has taken His Majesty hostage! Protect the Emperor!"

The hall was in complete chaos.

The guards surged in from all directions. Wei Rong's eyes reddened. She hadn't used a knife in a long time, but when the knife pierced her body, she wasn't afraid at all.

She hacked through the obstacles around her and ran quickly toward Ling Xianru.

Screams of alarm came from inside the hall, along with Ling Xianning's terrified cries: "Mother! Crown Prince!"

"You—vicious woman!" The old king used all his strength to grab the Imperial Concubine's neck, but he had little power: "What have you done to A-Xian!?"

"Hehehe, A-Xian." The Imperial Noble Consort gave a bitter laugh and slapped his hand away. "When did you start caring so much about the Crown Prince? Wasn't it you who allowed the Empress to be murdered? If he hadn't been lucky, he and his unborn child would have died. When he was in exile across the five continents in his early years, you, his father, didn't care at all. Why do you feel indebted now?"

The old king was ashamed after hearing these words. He looked at Ling Xianru, whose face was ashen and whose lips were still stained with blood.

He also didn't know how people's thoughts changed.

In his youth, he wanted to secure his throne, so he allowed infighting within the harem.

He never fulfilled his responsibilities as a father to this son, watching him suffer a lot.

I've also seen him nearly die many times.

He felt no regret then, but now, looking at this face that resembles his first wife, he is filled with extreme remorse.

"I will...I will destroy you!" He used his last strength: "Guards! Guards! Depose Lady Su and throw her into the cold palace, never...never again will she be allowed to take a single step out!"

After saying that, he had no strength left and fell heavily back onto the bed.

"Does Your Majesty think your decree still carries any weight at this moment?" The Imperial Noble Consort chuckled softly, her expression suddenly turning ruthless. "Whether Ling Xianru's life is spared or not depends entirely on my whim!"

"Su Shi, Father Emperor says he will depose you!"

"How dare you! Leave the inner palace at once!"

"The Su family is plotting a rebellion! Why haven't you seized them yet?! Do you all want to become traitors and rebels?!"

However, Wei Rong had no time to pay attention to any of that; her mind was completely focused on Ling Xianru, who was on the verge of collapsing.

Wen Ran had told her that the Gu worms would take a full day and night to die, and before that, they would be a deadly torment for the host.

He needed to take another medicine specially made by Wen Ran to suppress his symptoms before he could feel any better.

She didn't know how many people she had injured, but just as a sword flashed past the guards and was about to strike Wei Rong on the head, a cold light suddenly flashed in front of her.

Mo Bai, who had vanished without a trace, reappeared out of thin air, and the guard who had raised his sword against Wei Rong fell to the ground with a thud.

Without thinking twice, she rushed to Ling Xianru's side.

"How are you?"

She didn't even have time to notice that Ling Xianru's attire after entering the palace was different from her previous one.

He changed into the crown prince's python robe of Donglin. It was rare to see him wear such a bright color as yellow. In accordance with the tradition of Donglin, he also wore a small pearl on his earlobe.

She is a completely new Ling Xianru.

The two guards holding Ling Xianru coldly brought their knives horizontally to Wei Rong, but in just an instant, their chests were pierced through out of thin air.

The two died before they could even react.

As if freed from her restraints, Ling Xian threw herself forward into Wei Rong's arms.

At this moment, Wei Rong could clearly feel that he was trembling, and his body temperature was frighteningly high.

But the first thing he did upon falling into Wei Rong's arms was not to call Wen Ran over, but to take Wei Rong's hand and see the bloody marks on her palm from when she snatched the knife with her bare hands.

A fair and delicate hand with a jagged gash running down its middle.

The darkness in his eyes deepened, and he spoke softly, "Did you hear what Father Emperor said? Depose the Imperial Noble Consort and send her to the Cold Palace."

As soon as he finished speaking, the Imperial Concubine's secret guards inside the hall were immediately surrounded by the Imperial Guards who had surged in.

Ankang Palace was not small, and it was originally under the control of the secret guards. However, with the influx of the Imperial Guards, it became obviously crowded.

This change happened in the blink of an eye.

The Imperial Noble Consort realized something was wrong and wanted to call upon the troops already deployed outside.

"Stop your busy work," Ling Xianru said, putting his arm around Wei Rong, his gloomy face making him appear cold and stern. "Do you think you have a chance of winning?"

"You!" The Imperial Noble Consort exclaimed incredulously, "You did this on purpose? Just to force me to take action?"

If that's the case, then that's terrifying.

How could Ling Xianru, who is rarely in the palace, manage to make such a meticulous arrangement?

"I gave you a chance, but you were useless." Ling Xianru was indeed tormented by the Gu worms and had lost all patience: "Take them down!"

He had anticipated that someone would take action when his father was critically ill.

But if he doesn't wait for them to take action, how can he justify his "rescue"?

"Ling Xianru! You've been away from Donglin for so long, who knows if you've been colluding with Da Jing? This woman, do you dare say she's really a palace maid from the Eastern Palace?"