Seeing that Shudezhong remained silent, Mu Linyi turned to look at him.
He lowered his head, silently groaning in his heart. How could he answer such a question?
"Your Majesty, of course not," he replied.
Mu Linyi let out a cold laugh. "No, I brought this upon myself. If I hadn't killed my elder brother, she wouldn't have lost all hope and followed him in death." He turned to look at the glistening lake. The water was as clear as the tear that had lingered in the corner of her eye on the day she left.
She held the poisoned wine in her hand, looking desolate yet with a faint smile on her lips. She looked at him, her eyes filled with disappointment, and said, "Linyi, you'll regret this. One day, you'll regret everything you've done today."
With that, she raised the poisoned wine and drank it without hesitation.
His face contorted in pain as he rubbed his temples. Then he strode towards Concubine Li's courtyard.
Shudezhong finally let out a sigh of relief.
He knew that Concubine Li was so favored because she resembled the former Crown Princess.
Apart from him, few people knew that the woman the emperor had been yearning for day and night for years was actually his sister - in - law.
Among the women in the harem, except for the queen, more or less, they all bore some resemblance to her.
Apart from the late mother of the Third Prince, Concubine Li, who was currently in favor, was the most similar.
At this moment, in the queen's palace, the queen was dressed in plain clothes. She held a string of Buddhist beads in her hand, and a wooden fish was placed in front of her.
She was kneeling on a cushion, devoutly chanting "Amitabha".
Mu Shengze had been there for a while, but every time he was about to speak, the maid standing beside the queen would signal him to wait until the queen finished chanting.
Half an hour later, he couldn't bear it any longer. He stood up and was about to leave.
Only then did the queen slowly put away the wooden percussion instrument in her hand, stood up, and called out to Mu Shengze.
"Son, stop," she said.
Mu Shengze stopped in his tracks and turned to look at the queen.
"Mother," he said.
The queen pulled him to sit down, then lovingly stroked his face.
Mu Shengze was confused by her actions. Just as he was about to stand up and avoid her touch, the queen pressed him back down.
"Son, I called you here today because I want to ask you what your plans are," the queen said.
Mu Shengze was stunned for a moment. "Mother, what do you mean?"
The queen sighed. A few wrinkles could be seen on her unadorned face. "Although I no longer manage the harem and have been confined here, I still know what's going on outside. This time, your father brought back the Third Prince Mu Yefeng. He must have some plans."
"I don't care whether you or your brother will succeed to the throne. But I want to know your own plans."
After all, she had witnessed the struggle for the throne back then.
As a mother, all she wanted was for her children to live in peace and happiness.
"Mother, did you ask Yichen the same question?" Mu Shengze asked.
The queen nodded. "Yes."
"What did he say?"
"He said he had no intention of the throne, but he hoped to hold military power so that he could protect the one he loved and not become someone else's prey in the future."
Hearing this, Mu Shengze burst into laughter. "Which newly - enthroned emperor would tolerate a prince holding military power? He's really naive."
The queen took Mu Shengze's hand, looking at him with worry in her eyes. "I'm asking you. What are your plans? What do you think?"
In front of his mother, Mu Shengze said without any disguise, "Mother, I'm the eldest legitimate son of the emperor. Naturally, I'm supposed to inherit the throne. What other plans could I have?"
"But do you know that since you were young, your father has never liked you two. That's why even though you've been married for several years, the emperor still hasn't made up his mind to make you the crown prince."
Mu Shengze withdrew his hand, stood up, and walked to the window, looking outside.
"Mother, I know that Mu Yefeng's mother was the woman father loved, while you and father were just a political marriage. In other words, father relied on the power of the foreign tribe back then to..."
The queen quickly stepped forward and covered his mouth. "Stop talking! Your father hates others saying such things the most!"
He sneered and removed the queen's hand. "Mother, I'm not stupid. Uncle supports the second brother. He also has the father - in - law who is the magistrate of the capital. Now he holds the military token of the imperial guards. Even if I want to fight for the throne, I can't win."
"That's why I've been staying in the palace obediently since I was confined by father."
The queen seemed a bit relieved. She let out a long breath and said, "Do you know? What I'm most afraid of is not seeing you fight for power with other princes. What I'm afraid of is that one day in the future, you two brothers will turn against each other with weapons in your hands."
Mu Shengze patted the back of the queen's hand. "Mother, don't worry. I will never fight against the second brother. Even if one day the second brother points his sword at me, I won't hurt my own brother."
The queen was moved to tears. She looked at Mu Shengze with tear - filled eyes and stroked his head.
"Good boy. I won't let Yichen point his sword at you. It's getting late. Go back to your mansion."
He nodded, bowed to the queen, and then left the palace.
After returning to his mansion, he lay alone in his room. Suddenly, he realized that in this huge mansion, no one cared about him. While Min Feiyan lived in the back courtyard, and she even had a maid to talk to. Thinking of this, he angrily got up and walked towards the back courtyard.
To his surprise, Min Feiyan wasn't in the mansion.
"Strange. She never leaves the mansion. Where could she have gone?"
At this moment, in the inn, Mo Qinghuan was sitting across from Min Feiyan, looking at her expressionlessly.
"Princess Rui, tell me. What do you want to see me for?"
Min Feiyan sighed. Supported by Zhier, she stood up, walked up to Mo Qinghuan, and knelt down with a thud.
"Sister - in - law, to be honest, I need your help."
Hearing this, Mo Qinghuan sneered. "Need help? I'm afraid I can't do anything for you."
She stood up and was about to leave when Min Feiyan quickly said, "Sister - in - law, to be honest, I'm pregnant. I know it's almost impossible for me to keep this child with my health. But I know you have the ability to help me keep this child."
She tightly held onto Mo Qinghuan's leg and wouldn't let go. The atmosphere became tense for a moment.
Mo Qinghuan finally couldn't bear to see Min Feiyan kneeling on the ground, so she bent down and helped her up.
"Sister - in - law, please help me. If I lose this child, I think I'll never have a chance to have a child in my life."
"Okay, I can promise to help you, but I have a condition. I want you to tell me how you lost your last child."