The mad princess forces love upon him, and the aloof imperial advisor trembles every night.

Chu Xuanjing gripped the pen with trembling hands.

The pen tip hovers over the paper, a drop of ink falls, spreading like a tear stain.

He recalled how his mother held his hand and taught him to write when he was young, speaking softly, "Jing'er, every stroke of this character embodies character and integrity."

Sunlight streamed through the window, and the crabapple blossoms at her temple swayed gently.

now……

He put pen to paper.

Every word is like a knife, cutting into one's own heart.

When he wrote, "My mother has betrayed the country and colluded with the enemy; I, your son, am willing to die to atone for my sins," a metallic taste rose in his throat—the medicine was taking effect.

The excruciating pain felt like a thousand ants gnawing at his heart. He suddenly bent over and spat a mouthful of black blood onto the paper, where it mingled with the ink to form a grotesque pattern.

"The time has come." Cangming calmly watched him convulse on the ground. "Summon the imperial physician."

---

At 6:45 AM, in the Taiji Hall.

The officials stood solemnly, the atmosphere heavy and imposing.

The Chu Emperor sat on the dragon throne with a gloomy expression and obvious dark circles under his eyes; he had not slept all night.

The Empress sat on the phoenix throne, her fingernails digging deep into her palms, her gaze like poisoned needles, piercing towards Chu Xuanjing kneeling in the hall.

The third prince, dressed in blood-stained prison clothes, was escorted by two imperial guards, his hair disheveled and his appearance emaciated.

He lay on the ground, trembling uncontrollably, occasionally letting out suppressed groans of pain.

"You unfilial son!" the Chu Emperor spoke, his voice as cold as iron. "Do you know your crime?"

Chu Xuanjing struggled to lift his head, the blood still wet on his lips:

"Your subject... knows his crime. But your subject's crime is not assassinating your elder brother..."

"shut up!"

The Empress suddenly stood up, the jewels on her phoenix coronet clashing with a crisp, sharp killing intent.

"The evidence is conclusive! The jade pendant found on the assassin was your personal item, and you still dare to deny it?!"

She turned to the Chu Emperor, her voice shrill and tearful: "Your Majesty! This son is heartless and cruel, he has harmed his brother and shaken the foundation of the nation! If he is not executed, how can the court be rectified and the world be at peace?!"

Several old ministers who were loyal to the Empress stepped forward in response, their aged voices mingling together like a flock of vultures circling:

"I second that proposal!"

"The Third Prince deserves to die!"

"Your Majesty, please make a swift decision to serve as a warning to others!"

At this moment, Chu Xuanjing suddenly coughed.

That wasn't a feigned light cough, but a violent spasm that felt like it was shattering one's internal organs.

He bent over, his shoulder blades bulging, and dark red blood gushed from between his fingers, dripping onto the gold bricks and spreading into hideous patterns.

The entire hall erupted in uproar.

"Your Majesty!" A royal physician scrambled into the hall, prostrating himself on the ground, his voice trembling:

"His Highness's pulse is erratic, his internal organs are damaged, and his blood and qi are flowing in reverse. This...this is no ordinary injury; it seems he has been poisoned by a rare toxin!"

"Poison?" The Chu Emperor frowned slightly.

"Yes..." Chu Xuanjing gasped, pulling the blood-soaked letter from his robes, raising it high above his head, his voice shrill and mournful:

"My fault lies in my cowardice and incompetence, in my indecisiveness!"

"It's because... I failed to detect it in time that my birth mother had colluded with the enemy and betrayed the country. In order to support my son's ascension to the throne, she plotted this assassination! After all, my jade pendant was never used to guard against my mother."

Dead silence.

Then, a tsunami-like uproar!

At the very front of the civil officials' procession stood Minister Li—Chu Xuanjing's maternal grandfather and the current head of the Ministry of Revenue. He staggered, his aged face instantly draining of all color, turning as pale as rice paper.

His students hurriedly tried to help him up, but he pushed them away.

"This letter..." Chu Xuanjing's voice lowered, "I found it last night... at the bottom of my mother's old belongings box. When I saw it, I was struck dumb, my heart was breaking... That's why I took some forbidden medicine from the palace, intending to atone for my sins with my death, to redeem my mother's transgressions..."

Before he could finish speaking, he fell forward, and the letter flew out of his hand, landing on the jade steps like a blood-stained, filthy feather.

The eunuch picked it up with trepidation and presented it to the Emperor of Chu.

The Chu Emperor unfolded the letter.

He lowered his eyes, his gaze sweeping over the delicate yet deadly handwriting inch by inch, his face darkening at a visible speed... finally solidifying into an extremely cold and angry expression.

"A letter from the Third Prince of Beiming… assisting my son Xuanjing in seizing the throne… and upon success, ceding three border cities as compensation…" The Chu Emperor read each word aloud, his voice icy cold. "The Li family… how dare they!"

Minister Li finally broke down, collapsing to his knees and banging his head against the ground with muffled thuds that sent chills down one's spine: "Impossible!!!"

"Your Majesty is wise! My daughter was raised in seclusion from a young age, and after entering the palace, she strictly adhered to the virtues of a woman, never even touching a sparrow from outside!"

"How could she collude with the remnants of the Northern Underworld? How could she plan such a meticulous assassination?! This letter must be a forgery! Someone is trying to frame my entire Li family, Your Majesty—!!"

The old minister wept uncontrollably, his forehead bruised from banging his head against the ground, his voice hoarse and strained.

Chu Xuanjing lay on the ground, letting out a bitter laugh.

"Grandfather... I also hope that this letter is fake."

"But this letter paper... is my mother's favorite 'Snow Wave Paper,' which was presented as tribute from Siam twelve years ago. My father bestowed six cuts upon it, but my mother could only afford to copy Buddhist scriptures, saying that she would 'not fail the Buddha's grace, nor the Emperor's grace'..."

His gaze shifted to the letter in the Chu Emperor's hand, his eyes vacant.

"That ink is made of pine soot. My mother thought it was too bitter, so she always liked to add a touch of agarwood... because my father once praised the agarwood scent on her body, saying it was calming and soothing."

"As for the handwriting..." Chu Xuanjing closed his eyes, two lines of tears sliding down his cheeks, "I've been copying it for twenty years. My mother held my hand, teaching me to write stroke by stroke... She said, 'Handwriting reflects the person; it should be upright and honest...'"

He suddenly opened his eyes, his gaze filled with utter despair and madness:

"I'd rather go blind than recognize that this treasonous handwriting... came from my mother's hand!!"

"Father—!" he screamed, using his last strength to kowtow, his forehead slamming heavily onto the gold brick with a dull thud.

"Your Majesty, I am willing to die to atone for your sins!"

"I only beg Father... to remember the twenty years of mother-son bond, and to remember that she bore you children... to grant her... a complete corpse..."

He uttered the last word, then collapsed to the ground, lifeless.

The Chu Emperor slowly rose, the gold threads on his dragon robe shimmering coldly in the morning light. He descended the jade steps one by one, the sound of his boots striking the golden bricks like a death knell striking the hearts of every courtier.

He stopped in front of Chu Xuanjing, looking down at his son who was covered in blood and unconscious.

There was no pity, no anger in his eyes, only a bottomless, scrutinizing, icy pool.

Then, lift your foot.

He kicked Chu Xuanjing hard in the left shoulder blade.

"Snap!"

A crisp cracking sound, the sound of bones breaking, could be clearly heard.

Chu Xuanjing was jolted awake by the excruciating pain. His hoarse scream was stuck in his throat, leaving only gasps for breath.

"Forgery?" The Chu Emperor's voice was soft, yet it caused the temperature in the entire Taiji Hall to plummet. "Are you saying, Minister Li, that my old eyesight is failing, and I can't even recognize the handwriting of my own bedmate from the past twenty years?"

His fingertips traced a tiny, charred tear on the edge of the letter.

"Look here. Twelve years ago, when Xuanjing was six years old, he mischievously knocked over a candlestick and burned half a ream of Snow Wave Paper."

"Mrs. Li was so heartbroken that she couldn't eat for three days and shed tears while looking at the pile of ashes—this missing corner is the mark of the fire that burned it back then."

"I remember she even patched the edges with gold leaf, saying, 'A broken mirror cannot be mended, so let this serve as a memento.'"

Minister Li trembled violently, his lips moved but he could not utter a sound.

"And the scent of ink." The Chu Emperor brought the letter close to his nose, closed his eyes, and took a deep sniff. When he opened his eyes again, the last trace of warmth in them had vanished.

"Agarwood. In the third year of my reign, the southern border sent ten taels of the finest agarwood as tribute."

"I say that this fragrance is most suitable for Lady Li's gentle and refined nature."

"She fell in love with it, and used it to scent clothes, bathe, make ink... she even wanted to imbue every plant and tree in the palace with its fragrance."

He bent down and pressed the letter almost against Minister Li's nose:

"Minister Li, smell this. Your daughter has used this fragrance for twenty-five years. I have also smelled it for twenty-five years."