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

Chapter 472 A single glance can ruin a lifetime
In the days that followed, Murong rarely visited Xianfu Palace, and the impeachment case gradually came to an end.

The impeachment proceedings finally came to an end in late April.

The investigation uncovered as many as twenty officials involved in the case, and it is a fact that Xie Zhijie colluded with Consort Ning.

Not only was Consort Ning demoted to commoner status and sentenced to death, but Fang Cairen was also punished.

Xie Zhijie, the mastermind, was sentenced to death, and the other related individuals involved were either executed or exiled.

The General's Mansion was implicated by the Ning family. Murong spared the death penalty because of the General's outstanding military achievements, but the entire family was exiled to Lingnan.

Lou Suyi didn't want to see Consort Ning again, but Consort Ning asked to see her one more time, so she went to the North Third Palace again.

A white silk ribbon was placed on the table. Consort Ning sat upright on a mottled round stool. When she saw Lou Suyi arrive, she stood up and knelt down respectfully before Lou Suyi.

"Just say what you have to say," Lou Suyi said calmly.

She didn't think she had anything left to say to Ning Shi.

Before she saw through Ning's true colors, she had no dealings with her. After she saw through Ning's true colors, it became even more impossible for her to have anything to say to Ning.

"This sinful woman only wants to tell Your Majesty that I wasn't like this before," Ning Shi said, clearly eager to confide in someone.

She knew that if she didn't speak up, she would never have the chance to say it again.

She fell in love with Murong at first sight, which is probably what is meant by "love at first sight for life".

At that time, she was as if she were bewitched. Even though her father had arranged a good marriage for her, she still preferred to be Murong's concubine.

Back then, Murong was just an insignificant prince, and no one expected him to become the ultimate winner, yet she remained resolute. What she wanted was never wealth and status, but rather Murong's person and heart.

“Back when we were still in the Prince’s residence, Consort De was more favored by His Majesty, and I wasn’t jealous of her at all. Because I knew that His Majesty didn’t care about Consort De. I think it was only because Consort De was beautiful that His Majesty valued her a little. What was there for me to resent about Consort De? The way His Majesty looked at Consort De was no different from how he looked at me.”

Lou Suyi listened quietly without interrupting Ning Shi.

She wasn't actually interested in Ning's emotional journey of falling in love with Murong, but seeing that Ning was very engrossed in the conversation, she didn't interrupt.

“On the very first day Your Highness entered the palace, I sensed something was amiss. I know His Majesty well; he has no interest in any woman. Not just women, but he has little interest in anyone or anything in the world. Yet Your Highness, a nun, was brought into the palace and arranged to live in Xianfu Palace. His Majesty even sent his personal attendants to serve you. At that moment, I sensed something unusual. I like the feeling of being in control, so I had Consort Fang and Lady Wu make contact, and then had Lady Wu test Your Highness,” Consort Ning said slowly.

Hearing this, Lou Suying understood: "At that time, you were not sure if there was a problem between me and His Majesty, but just to be on the safe side, you still had someone hypnotize Consort Ma and have her tamper with the donation box, right?"

As it turns out, Ning's sense of smell was indeed very keen.

Although she did not do it on purpose, it is a fact that she served the emperor only a few days after entering the palace.

“My intuition tells me that His Majesty treats you differently. I can’t possibly keep an eye on His Majesty’s every move, but instead of going into the inner palace, His Majesty went to Xianfu Palace. That made me uneasy, so to prevent anything from happening, I had Fang take action. As it turns out, my concerns were correct; there is indeed something going on between Your Highness and His Majesty,” Ning said calmly.

The victor is king, the loser is villain; she has nothing to be resentful about.

It can only be said that Lou Suyi was lucky; not only did she enter the palace, but she was also doted on by Murong.

"When you see my big belly, you'll probably want to chew me up, right?" Lou Suyi said with a smile.

Unfortunately, there were too many shocked people at the time, and she didn't really notice what Ning Shi's expression was like. Ning Shi recalled the overwhelming hatred she felt when she saw Lou Suyi's pregnant belly, as if it wanted to annihilate her.

Looking back now, she finds her past self ridiculous.

"When I saw the Empress's pregnant belly, I thought that no matter what, we must not let His Highness the Crown Prince give birth."

At this point, Consort Ning knelt down before Lou Suyi again: "Regardless, I must thank Your Majesty for not going to such extremes. The crimes I committed deserve the punishment of extending to nine generations of my family, but Your Majesty is kind and spared the General's Mansion. I hereby wish Your Majesty the Empress and His Majesty a long and happy life together, with unwavering love!"

She kowtowed three times earnestly.

"It was His Majesty who showed leniency because of General Zhaowu's outstanding military achievements; it has nothing to do with me," Lou Suyi said, speaking the truth.

Consort Ning smiled and said nothing more.

She knew that if Lou Suyi insisted on punishing the General's Mansion, given how much Murong doted on Lou Suyi, he would definitely take drastic measures.

But in the end, everyone in the General's Mansion survived because Lou Suyi did not hold a grudge against the General's Mansion.

When Lou Suyi left the North Third Palace, the sun was at its zenith.

For some reason, she suddenly sighed softly.

“Your Majesty should be happy that the Ning family has been executed,” Jinshu comforted her.

"I really wanted to expose the Ning family back then, but now that I see the once illustrious General's Mansion in such a state, I feel quite saddened," Lou Suyi replied calmly.

Unbeknownst to her, at the same time, Murong went to the Ministry of Justice prison.

Xie Zhijie knew he would be executed soon, and he wanted to see Lou Suyi one last time before he died, but he never expected to be met by Murong.

Murong and Xie Zhijie stared at each other through a cell door. Xie Zhijie's expression remained normal, but his heart was filled with bitterness.

If he hadn't been blinded by greed back then, he wouldn't have ended up in such a miserable state, right?
He clearly had the chance to grow old with Su Yi, but in the end, he missed her.

"You wish to see the Empress, but she is unavailable," Murong said calmly.

Xie Zhijie should have expected this. Many of the servants in Xianfu Palace were sent by Murong. How could his message have reached Su Yi's ears?

"Does Su Yi know that His Majesty is watching her every move?" Xie Zhijie asked in a hoarse voice.

He was covered in injuries and disheveled; where was the refined elegance of a powerful cabinet minister?

"She knew from the beginning that those serving in Xianfu Palace were all my people, and she didn't feel there was anything wrong with it." Murong curled his lips with a half-smile. "But you, on the verge of death, still dare to dream of seeing her again. Do you think you have the right?"

Xie Zhijie turned pale and was speechless.

"She has strong likes and dislikes. She suffered a terrible tragedy because of you back then. What reason does she have to see you again? Do you think you deserve it?!"

"Doesn't Your Majesty have any reservations? I clearly saw her fall into the fire with my own eyes back then; there's no way she could have survived under those circumstances." Xie Zhijie still couldn't understand.

As an emperor, didn't Murong find Su Yi's resurrection strange? Why wasn't he afraid?
Aren't emperors all inherently suspicious?