Five years after her death, she awoke on the dragon bed.

Chapter 404 Minister Xie, tell me, should I depose the Empress?

Chen Xing frowned and said, "It is a serious crime to speak ill of the Empress. Sister Luo, you should watch your mouth."

"I know Consort An and the Empress are on good terms, but we also have to consider the situation. The fact is, even though the Empress has given birth to two princes, she is still an unlucky person. She actually dared to dream that His Majesty would disband the harem for her sake, does she deserve it?! She deserves to be deposed! Sister should also know that as long as the Empress is in the harem, none of us here have a chance. Now is the time for us to unite against this common enemy!" Consort Luo said coldly.

Chen Xing, however, disagreed: "His Majesty doesn't favor us because we're incompetent. Back then, before the Empress entered the palace, His Majesty didn't..."

She suddenly remembered that Consort Ning had also followed His Majesty from a young age, and now it was Jingren Palace, so these words were not pleasant to hear, and she simply stopped talking.

Consort Ning then spoke up, "Consort An's words are reasonable. To speak ill of Her Majesty the Empress is presumptuous. All of you sisters must be careful with your words and actions."

Luo Xuanshi looked at the others and saw that everyone had a smile on their face. She knew that everyone thought the same as her and wished that Lou Suyi would fall from the height.

In any case, the current situation is very unfavorable to Lou Suyi. Even if His Majesty favors Lou Suyi, he cannot go against all the ministers.

She was just waiting for the day Lou Suyi would fall, believing that His Majesty would soon be unable to withstand it.

Consort Ning took the initiative to change the subject, and the atmosphere became quite pleasant.

After everyone got up to take their leave, Consort Ning said, "I want to rest and recuperate recently, so I won't be receiving guests. If you sisters want to visit Jingren Palace, please come back in a few days."

Chen Xing was surprised, but he could also understand that Consort Ning didn't want to get into trouble.

The current situation is unfavorable to the Empress. Many concubines hope that the Empress will be deposed, and His Majesty values ​​the Empress so much. If His Majesty knew that the concubines in the harem were speaking ill of the Empress behind her back, he would probably think that Consort Ning was stirring up trouble.

Just as Chen Xing was about to leave with the others, Consort Ning called out to her, "Princess An, please wait a moment."

Chen Xing stopped in his tracks: "What are your orders, sister?"

After everyone had left, Consort Ning said, "My sister is different from the others; she is not one to cause trouble. If you wish to see me, please come as usual. You should also know that there are many gossips in the harem, especially at this critical time. I do not want to cause trouble, which is why I wish to close my doors to visitors."

"I understand your concerns, sister," Chen Xing replied with a smile. "Don't overthink it, sister. This is not something we can decide, but it's always good to keep a low profile."

She chatted with Consort Ning for a few more minutes before leaving Jingren Palace.

Unexpectedly, Yuexue followed her out expectantly. Chen Xing pretended not to see her and was about to leave when Yuexue knelt down in front of her: "Your Majesty, this servant knows her mistake. May this servant return to serve Your Majesty? It was all because of the Empress before, but now the Empress is about to lose power..."

"Words can bring disaster. We were once master and servant, and I'm only giving you this piece of advice: don't speak ill of important people, or no one can save you." With that, Chen Xing turned and walked away without looking back.

Consort Luo said that the Empress would lose power, but she felt that with His Majesty's love for the Empress, even if the harem was dissolved, His Majesty would not depose the Empress.

His Majesty is not an emperor who is easily swayed, so how could his ministers easily control him?

Thus, the stalemate between the emperor and his ministers lasted for three whole days, with some ministers even kneeling in the palace for those three days.

Murong finally showed up that day.

He wore a yellow robe embroidered with gold dragons, a jade belt around his waist, and his cold gaze was filled with murderous intent as he looked at the civil and military officials.

Seeing the emperor like this, some felt a desire to resign, but others crawled to Murong's side, saying, "Your Majesty should prioritize the long-term prosperity of the Great Xia Dynasty and not allow a vixen to ruin it..." "Vixen?" Murong sneered, "She is the Empress I personally appointed, the one who bore me children, and the mother of the Crown Prince. The Empress will soon give birth, yet you are forcing me to divorce her. Who gave you the audacity to interfere in my harem affairs?! Do you think you can tell me which concubine I favor?!"

As he spoke, he kicked the minister who was lying in front of him to the ground.

The minister had already been kneeling for two days and was exhausted. Murong's kick, however, used internal force, and the minister instantly collapsed and lost consciousness.

"Remove your official hats and drag them away!" Murong calmly surveyed everyone present. "Anyone else who wants to skip court and go on a hunger strike, step forward now, and I will grant you permission to beg for leave."

Upon hearing this, the minister who was about to come out to offer advice withdrew his foot.

The words of an emperor are law and authority. Everyone could see that His Majesty the Emperor was not joking.

Seeing that no one spoke, Murong sat on the dragon throne: "I can call out names one by one. Those who want me to depose the empress can speak frankly. I will give you the opportunity to choose."

The ministers looked at each other in surprise, not expecting the emperor to use this tactic against them.

This is clearly an attempt to defeat them one by one.

Anyone who tries to force His Majesty to depose the Empress will suffer the same fate as that official.

Murong scanned all the civil and military officials present, his gaze finally settling on Xie Zhijie.

"Minister Xie, tell me, should I depose the Empress?"

No one expected that Murong would name Xie Zhijie first, including Xie Zhijie himself.

Xie Zhijie and Lou Suying's past was no secret; anyone with a bit of gossip knew that Lou Suying had once relentlessly pursued Xie Zhijie. At this moment, it was truly unexpected that His Majesty would first call on Xie Zhijie to express his opinion.

Xie Zhijie lowered his head, his eyes flashing with intense emotions, but finally replied respectfully, "In my opinion, Her Majesty the Empress is virtuous, kind, and self-reliant, and can be regarded as a model for women in the world. Furthermore, Her Majesty the Empress has made meritorious contributions in bearing the imperial heir, and Your Majesty cannot depose her."

"Does my dear minister think the Empress is a witch? You were also at the scene of the incident. Tell me, was the Empress's body completely destroyed back then?" Murong casually twirled the jade ring on his thumb, his gaze falling on Xie Zhijie's face.

Xie Zhijie's heart tightened.

He watched helplessly as Su Yi fell into the sea of ​​fire, never to be seen again. And he was the very culprit who caused Su Yi to end up in such a state.

Murong had chosen him to quell the rumors because he was greedy for power and dared not tell the truth.

He calmed his complex emotions before replying, "The rumors are nothing but alarmist talk. I was there that day, and Her Majesty the Empress was clearly rescued. The claim that she was brought back to life is pure nonsense. I hope Your Majesty will not believe the rumors and will give Her Majesty the Empress justice."

Just then, Qi Yan stepped forward and spoke up: "I was also at the scene at the time. Just as Lord Xie said, Her Majesty the Empress was rescued. Someone is maliciously slandering Her Majesty the Empress. Your Majesty, please do not believe the rumors."

At this point, he knelt down and said, "Your Majesty, I believe this large-scale defamation of Her Majesty the Empress is a malicious act orchestrated by someone. I beg Your Majesty to thoroughly investigate this case and restore Her Majesty the Empress's innocence!"

Roar