In front of the dragon chariot.
Consort Zhang fell to her knees and kowtowed, her thin gauze dress trembling slightly in the night breeze.
An exquisite jade hairpin, a gift from the Emperor of Dazhen, still adorned her hair, and a pained expression crossed her lovely face.
Zhao Zheng was momentarily stunned, caught off guard by the woman blocking his path.
He had never laid eyes on Consort Zhang before, so naturally, he had no idea who she was.
Why was she intercepting his dragon chariot in the middle of the night?
Grand Eunuch Cao was not by his side to identify the newcomer—was this not terribly awkward?
Zhao Zheng signaled Gao Li to ask who she was.
Clearing his throat, Gao Li stepped in front of the dragon chariot and glared with tiger-like eyes. "Audacious! Who dares block the dragon chariot? Have you no fear of losing your head?"
A maid behind Consort Zhang showed no weakness at all. "Impudent! How dare you show such disrespect to Consort Zhang?"
Hearing that the woman before him was Consort Zhang, Zhao Zheng instantly understood her intentions.
"Get up," Zhao Zheng said indifferently. "It is so late, My Consort; why are you not staying in Changning Palace? What brings you here?"
Consort Zhang rose to her feet, looking pitiful and forlorn. "Your concubine's heart is heavy with sorrow, so I brought my maid out for a stroll. I never expected to happen upon Your Majesty."
The hour was late, and the palace lanterns cast a dim and uncertain light, preventing Zhao Zheng from clearly seeing Consort Zhang's facial features.
Yet, from her graceful and voluptuous silhouette alone, it was easy to tell she was a curvaceous beauty.
No wonder she had managed to charm the Emperor of Dazhen out of his wits, even moving him to consider naming a different crown prince.
However, Zhao Zheng had no intention of putting on a pleasant face for Consort Zhang.
To him, the woman standing before him was extremely dangerous—she was absolutely not to be touched!
No matter how breathtakingly gorgeous she was, descending like a celestial maiden, compared to Zhao Zheng's own life, she was nothing more than passing smoke.
As long as he could firmly secure that dragon chair in Yuanheng Hall, any woman could be his for the taking.
He, Zhao Zheng, would never sacrifice the greater goal for a trifle!
"The hour is late, and the wind outside the palace is cold. My Consort should return early to rest. Someone, escort the consort back to her palace!"
With those words, Zhao Zheng's dragon chariot continued on its way toward Zhengde Hall, not lingering for Consort Zhang a moment longer.
Consort Zhang's face filled with astonishment as she stood frozen to the spot in disbelief.
Had this happened in the past, His Majesty would certainly have stopped the dragon chariot and personally come over to ask why her heart was troubled.
As long as she proactively threw herself into his arms and pouted coquettishly against his chest, she could easily capture His Majesty's heart.
Never did she expect Zhao Zheng to refuse to play by the rules, denying her any such opportunity altogether.
Watching the dragon chariot pull away, Consort Zhang grew frantic and hastily called out, "Your Majesty! What on earth has happened while you were gravely ill? Why are you unwilling to see me? And why are rumors spreading through the palace that I have fallen out of favor with Your Majesty?"
"If Your Majesty will not resolve my doubts today, I will kneel here and never get up!"
Listening to Consort Zhang's grievances, Zhao Zheng let out a silent, cold laugh.
To think such a willful woman existed deep within the palace, daring to point at the emperor's nose and question him—was she spoiled rotten, or simply utterly lacking in boundaries?
Fortunately, she had once been the Emperor of Dazhen's most cherished favorite consort; had any other woman dared such insolence, she would have been cast into the cold palace long ago!
A sovereign who ruled the world could never belong to just one woman!
If she dared act like a bitter woman abandoned in the inner chambers, she could spend the rest of her life in the cage of the deep palace, never seeing the light of day.
As Zhao Zheng glanced back, he gave Consort Zhang a sharp, piercing look.
It was a merciless, chilling gaze guaranteed to keep her awake this very night.
"For committing an unseemly breach of etiquette before the imperial carriage in the dead of night and offending Us, the Consort is sentenced to three days of confinement to reflect on her errors. Without Our imperial decree, she is not to step half a step outside Changning Palace. Should she speak recklessly to Us again, We shall show her no mercy!"
A monarch's word is law.
The emperor's sudden decree instantly turned Consort Zhang's face ashen.
Memories of past favors surged to her mind, only making Consort Zhang's agony all the more unbearable.
Why?
Why had His Majesty suddenly turned so ruthless?
What on earth had she done wrong to forfeit His Majesty's affection?
No matter how outrageous her behavior in the palace had been in the past, His Majesty had never punished her.
All of this was because of that cheap wench Noble Consort Li, who had completely stolen His Majesty's soul away!
"Noble Consort Li, I am sworn enemies with you!"
***
The night was pitch black and the wind was howling.
A carriage sat parked outside the entrance of the Imperial Prison.
Cao Zhengchun led four trusted guards from the Commander of the Nine Gates into the Imperial Prison.
"Who goes there? How dare you trespass in the Imperial Prison?"
Cao Zhengchun produced a tally and said in a deep voice, "We are acting on His Majesty's verbal decree to release prisoners."
During today's early court session, Cao Zhengchun had spoken up to have the Directorate of Ceremonial cast into the Imperial Prison precisely to force the Emperor of Dazhen to move against the body double.
He had believed that given the Directorate of Ceremonial's standing in the emperor's heart, he could easily shake the Emperor of Dazhen's trust in the double.
Yet he never imagined the Emperor of Dazhen would be so cautious!
With things as they were, he could only bide his time for now and obey the Emperor of Dazhen.
He would first release the twelve eunuchs of the Directorate of Ceremonial and then wait for an opportunity to strike.
Holding a torch, a jailer sycophantically led Cao Zhengchun to the cell block.
"Grand Eunuch Cao, the eunuchs from the Directorate of Ceremonial are in these very cells."
"Open the cells and release them all."
Fumbling for the keys, the jailer unlocked the prison gate.
To his sudden shock, he found Wei Zhongxiang slumped amidst the straw, vomiting blood and already dead!
The jailer let out a shriek, cold sweat pouring down his face.
Realizing something was amiss, several guards hurried over to test the eunuchs' breathing, only to discover not a single one had survived.
"Grand Eunuch Cao, they're all dead!"
With a pale face, Cao Zhengchun grabbed the terrified jailer by the collar and roared, "How did you guard this prison? How did they die? Speak!"
They had been fine during the day—how had they suddenly dropped dead by night?
Cao Zhengchun dared not imagine what the outcome would be if news of Wei Zhongxiang and the others' sudden deaths reached the ears of the Emperor of Dazhen!
At Jiade Villa, the Emperor of Dazhen had repeatedly instructed that Wei Zhongxiang and his men must be released.
He was counting on this faction of eunuchs to keep Grand General Qian Yong and Prime Minister Zhang Juyang in check!
Now that they had suddenly perished, it was nothing short of adding frost to snow for the Emperor of Dazhen.
Cao Zhengchun felt his scalp tingle as he clamped his hand around the jailer's windpipe, nearly choking the man to death.
The jailer's face turned purplish-red, frightened out of his wits and on the verge of tears as panic overwhelmed him.
"Grand Eunuch Cao, spare me! This humble servant... this humble servant truly doesn't know how they died!"
Several guards came over to report to Cao Zhengchun, "Grand Eunuch Cao, Eunuch Wei and the others all died of violent poisoning."
Poisoned?
Who on earth had killed Wei Zhongxiang and the others?
How on earth was he to report this to the Emperor of Dazhen?
Catching sight of the food box inside the cell, Cao Zhengchun's thoughts clicked into place. He loosened his grip on the jailer's neck and asked in a low voice, "Let me ask you, who has been to visit these eunuchs from the Directorate of Ceremonial? You had better tell me the honest truth, and if you utter a single falsehood, I'll cut out your tongue."
Clutching his throat, the jailer coughed repeatedly. Once his breathing calmed somewhat, he stammered, "This servant... this servant only remembers that the Empress sent someone to deliver meals. Other than that, this servant knows nothing at all."
A loud ringing sound exploded in Cao Zhengchun's head, and color drained entirely from his face.
It was the Empress!
Could it really be her?