The life swap begins with Consort Hua becoming Lady Qin.

"Summon Imperial Physician!"

Yinwu's voice was extremely low, yet it was more chilling than rage.

Li Deyu was so frightened that his face turned pale, and he practically rolled out of the room, urging people to fetch the imperial physician.

The lamplight flickered in the hall, and the lingering, cloying fragrance had not yet dissipated. Combined with the somber atmosphere of the palace lanterns in the winter night, it made people's hearts even more restless.

The imperial physician arrived quickly. As soon as he entered, he sensed something was wrong. He lowered his eyes, not daring to look too closely, and simply stepped forward to take the patient's pulse.

A moment later, beads of sweat appeared on his forehead. He said in a low voice, "Your Majesty inhaled some aphrodisiac incense, but fortunately the dosage was not high. I will prescribe a medicine to suppress its effects, and then apply cold water to the forehead. You should feel better after this."

After receiving treatment, his condition improved significantly.

Yinwu sat on the edge of the couch, the flush on his face mostly gone, but his expression remained frighteningly gloomy: "Where did the incense come from?"

The imperial physician dared not raise his head even more: "It seems to be... acacia fragrance from the Western Regions that flowed into the palace, often mixed into perfumes and cosmetics. Its sweet and cloying scent is most likely to cause people to lose their senses."

Yinwu closed his eyes, took the medicine and drank it all in one gulp. He slammed the bowl down, his voice as cold as ice: "Lock the person up and gag him. No one is to utter a single word tonight."

Li Deyu quickly agreed and was about to leave when he heard him add casually, "If the Empress returns, there's no need to disturb her first."

Li Deyu was taken aback, then quickly lowered his head and agreed.

But how could such a big thing be kept from her?

When Yanzhi returned to the Hall of Mental Cultivation, it was already late at night.

The old woman who threw herself into the well was an old servant in the palace. She had taken in many adopted sons and daughters, had a wide network of connections, and held a high position. As a result, she was used to taking advantage of her age and didn't want to give Xia Dongchun any face, even though Xia Dongchun was Xia Wei's daughter.

During the day, the two had a huge fight, and that night the old woman threw herself into the well. Her roommate insisted that she couldn't bear Xia Dongchun's humiliation and threw herself into the well in resentment.

In reality, Yan Zhi knew perfectly well that her actions in recent days had touched the interests of too many people, and some couldn't hold back any longer and wanted to make a move.

After struggling for most of the night, she personally supervised the sealing of the well and checked the duty roster. Only when the situation was barely stabilized did she return, still feeling the chill of the night.

The hall was brightly lit, yet strangely quiet.

The first thing she saw when she stepped inside was Li Deyu's noticeably pale face.

"What's wrong?" She didn't stop walking, only glancing at him indifferently.

Li Deyu inwardly groaned, but dared not show it on his face. He forced a smile and replied, "Your Majesty, His Majesty was feeling unwell earlier and the imperial physician has been summoned."

Yan Zhi paused, his brows immediately furrowing.

She didn't ask any more questions, lifted the curtain and went inside.

The inner palace was warm and inviting, but the ambergris could not mask the lingering sweetness. Yinwu was sitting by the couch, wearing only a loose undergarment, his face still flushed.

When Yanzhi saw his appearance and smelled that sweet scent, he understood seven or eight parts of the situation.

My first reaction was a cold laugh. The people behind this were really desperate. A human life was not worth them making a fuss about. The most useful thing to do now was to push someone into the emperor's bed and break the convention of not keeping anyone in the harem to be made a concubine.

As long as there are more concubines in the harem and more power, someone will naturally step forward to challenge her as the empress.

By stirring up the waters, they can continue to fish and enrich themselves.

Her mind raced, but she remained outwardly calm as she approached him, reaching out to touch his forehead. Her tone softened slightly, a rare occurrence for her: "What did the imperial physician say?"

Yinwu didn't answer, but just looked up at her.

Yan Zhi was slightly taken aback by his gaze, and patiently asked again, "Are you still feeling unwell? Has the imperial physician been seen? Where is that palace maid now, Li Deyu—"

Before she could finish speaking, Yinwu suddenly reached out and pulled her over.

Caught off guard, Yan Zhi fell into his arms. Before she could react, a hot kiss landed on her lips.

The kiss came suddenly and erratically, completely devoid of its usual tenderness and affection, carrying wisps of anger, raining down on her lips, neck, and temples.

"Yinwu—"

Yan Zhi was shocked and instinctively tried to push him away, but his wrist was grabbed and he was pulled down into the layers of brocade quilts.

She frowned slightly and scolded him in a low voice, "What are you doing?"

Yinwu suddenly stopped moving, but did not get up. He continued to bury his face in the crook of her neck and said in a muffled voice, "I've been drugged. I feel terrible."

With unspeakable grievances.

Yan Zhi was taken aback.

My heart suddenly softened.

Feeling the uncontrollable heat emanating from him, and recalling what had happened tonight, she finally sighed softly. Instead of pushing him away, she gently stroked his head with tenderness and tenderness, and took the initiative to kiss his cheek.

This is an instruction that couldn't be clearer.

Yinwu became excited instantly.

But Yanzhi soon regretted it.

That night, Yinwu lost his composure almost like never before.

He was more passionate and unrestrained than usual, as if he had to extract something from her, to confirm something.

He always treated her with great care, and even when their feelings were intense, he always remembered to hold back a bit. But tonight, he clearly couldn't care less about that.

Yan Zhi felt uncomfortable with him, her brows furrowing repeatedly. She wanted to scold him, but every time she saw the darkness and grievance in his eyes, she swallowed her words and could only let him act recklessly.

Once everything had calmed down, it was almost dawn outside.

Yanzhi was already exhausted from a long day, and his antics left her feeling weak and limp. She drifted off to sleep the moment her head hit the pillow. In her hazy state, she seemed to hear Yinwu sigh very softly in her ear: "Yanzhi, are you Yanzhi?"

The voice was so low it was almost a murmur, making it difficult to hear clearly.

A strange feeling stirred within her, but she couldn't resist the overwhelming sleepiness and fell into a deep sleep before she could think about it further.

When I woke up again, it was already broad daylight.

Yan Zhi felt something was wrong as soon as he opened his eyes. He suddenly sat up and the sunlight outside the tent shone through the window paper, making his vision go white.

She rarely overslept like this; her brow furrowed immediately, and she threw back the quilt, calling out, "Fuling!"

Fuling hurried in from outside, carefully carrying the clothes, and replied, "Your Majesty has woken up."

Yan Zhi's voice was slightly cold: "Why didn't you call me sooner?"

Fuling dared not raise her head, and only said softly, "It was His Majesty's order. He said that Her Majesty was tired last night and that we servants were not allowed to disturb her."

Yan Zhi paused slightly upon hearing this, and those fragmented memories from last night resurfaced in her mind. She pursed her lips, but ultimately said nothing more. She simply quickened her pace to wash and change, and hurried towards the Imperial Study.

Before even entering the door, I could hear a heated argument coming from inside.

"It is already against propriety for the Empress to hold court behind a screen!"

"Women interfering in politics, like hens crowing at dawn, has never been a blessing for a nation!"

"Now you've arbitrarily changed the selection of concubines and appointed some female officials, causing unrest in the harem and chaos in the six palaces. We implore Your Majesty to rescind your decree, order the Empress to return to the central palace, and forbid her from ever again venturing into the court!"

Yan Zhi paused, stood outside the door, and his expression calmed down.

There was a moment of silence in the room, then Yinwu's voice rang out.

It carried an unusual toughness.

"The selection of female officials by the Empress is my decision."

"The Empress's decision to rule from behind the screen was also approved by me."

"If any of you gentlemen find this inappropriate, please discuss it with me first."

Then a minister inside called out urgently, "Your Majesty—"

"Isn't my word clear enough?" Yinwu interrupted coldly, with a touch of imperial majesty: "My harem isn't made lively by stuffing a few women in; my empire isn't maintained by using the empress as a shield. Anyone who thinks the empress is inappropriate should first submit their memorial to my desk. I want to see who has the audacity to tell me how to manage their own wife and how to handle their own affairs of state."