Listening to her daughter's heartfelt words, the pregnant Lady Hou went on a killing spree.

"The Empress Dowager is in poor health and hasn't attended any palace banquets for several years, so it's normal that you haven't seen her."

"Mother, if I haven't been able to see the Empress Dowager, how can I prove she's not a spy?"

While the others couldn't hear Ji Yueru's thoughts, they could hear An'an's. By connecting An'an's words, they could guess what Ji Yueru was actually saying.

The Emperor felt a pang of sadness. He didn't believe his mother was a spy, but An'an's words made him suspicious.

The Empress felt a sense of relief.

As long as An'an says enough, the Emperor will definitely let An'an see the Empress Dowager. Once she sees the Empress Dowager, it will be clear whether she is a spy or not.

In fact, ever since she learned that An'an suspected the Empress Dowager of being a spy, the Empress was already 70-80% convinced that the Empress Dowager was indeed a spy.

Otherwise, in her previous life, the emperor would have starved to death and she would have been poisoned.

She was not underestimating the other concubines, but they truly couldn't have achieved such a feat within the confines of the palace.

"You are a princess. It's perfectly normal for you to pay your respects to the Empress Dowager when you grow up. You will meet her someday."

"Your Majesty, I congratulate you on the full moon celebration of Princess Zhaoyang. This is a gift I specially selected, and I hope the Princess will like it."

A young eunuch stepped forward and presented the gift box that Chief Minister Huang was holding. When it was opened in front of the emperor, it contained six jade rabbits of different shapes.

"You're very kind, Huang Aiqing."

Let me see, who sent me this bunny?

Upon hearing this, the Empress raised An'an, whom she was holding, a little higher so that An'an could see the Chief Minister Huang, who was standing below and had not yet sat down.

[It turns out to be Prime Minister Huang; he's a pitiful man too.]

The royals sat upright and solemnly.

They're here, they've been saying it all along. Every family has its share of troubles, even Old Huang's family is no exception.

Mother, do you still remember what happened to Prime Minister Huang in our previous life?

Ji Yueru, sitting at the lower end of the table, calmly sipped her tea.

"Of course I remember."

[Tsk tsk tsk, I never expected that Chief Minister Huang, who was honest and upright throughout his life, would still maintain his integrity in his old age.]

In his previous life, he discovered that his concubine was having an affair. This wasn't unusual; after all, as people age, they inevitably lose some of their physical abilities, and it's quite normal for a concubine to be unfaithful.

Princess Chang'an suddenly spat out the tea she was drinking, and when she saw people looking over, she quickly lowered her head to wipe her clothes, looking very busy.

Zhao Yang's speech is far too vulgar and indiscriminate.

[In my past life, I knew of countless families where concubines cheated on their husbands. Not just the Grand Secretary Huang's old concubine, but also the Prince of Qingyang's, the Minister of the Court of Judicial Review's… I can't even count them all.]

As An An called out a name, the royals' heads turned toward the person An An was referring to.

Prince Qingyang felt that the Emperor and Empress were looking at him strangely. He wondered if there was something on his head, and touched it.

It wasn't just him; the other officials who were named all felt a chill run down their spines.

Unfortunately, Old Huang had a heart condition, and when he was discovered, the shock caused him to suffer a heart attack and die on the spot.

Just as Chief Minister Huang was about to sit down, the emperor's voice came from the seat above.

"Minister Huang, I've noticed that you don't look well lately. You should have a physician examine you when you have time."

"Your Majesty, I thank you for your concern."

Prince Qingyang stood up.

"Your Majesty, this is a congratulatory gift I am giving to Princess Zhaoyang."

As a prince, the Prince of Qingyang naturally sent a much more generous gift. He presented a gift list, and the gifts brought into the palace were sorted and registered by the palace servants.

"You're so thoughtful."

As for the fact that the Prince of Qingyang's concubine had cuckolded him, the emperor didn't utter a single word of warning.

He also remembered the green hat he had worn before. It's better to be green alone than green together. If it weren't for the fact that it endangered Old Huang's life, he wouldn't have even bothered to remind Old Huang.

However, how could such a thing be kept to oneself? The emperor quickly came up with an idea and thought to himself that he was truly a brilliant man.

Next comes the gift-giving ceremony, but not everyone can present gifts in the hall.

The number of people in the entire hall who were qualified to give gifts, including the concubines in the harem, would definitely not exceed one hundred.

The others naturally understood the situation and handed their gifts to the official in charge of registration when they attended the banquet.

"The Marquis of Wuwei presented a painting of a thousand miles of rivers and mountains."

The old master was in poor health, and Lu Li was also a sickly person on the surface. The person from the Wuwei Earl's Mansion who came to the palace for the full moon banquet was Madam Zhao, the Earl's wife.

"No way, are the people from the Marquis of Wuwei's mansion crazy? They're sending me a 'Thousand Miles of Rivers and Mountains' painting when I'm only a month old? Do they want me to rebel?"

The princes gasped; only Princess Zhaoyang would dare to say such a thing, they would never dare to.

However, Princess Chaoyang's words also make sense. What's going on with the people from the Marquis of Wuwei's mansion? Why did they send them a "Thousand Miles of Rivers and Mountains" painting?

Zhao was still gloating. She had gone to great lengths to find this painting of a thousand miles of rivers and mountains, and she was sure the emperor would like it.

Many people were speechless at the sight of Lady Wuwei; her attempt at flattery had backfired spectacularly.

If it were the emperor's birthday, he would be pleased to give the painting "A Thousand Miles of Rivers and Mountains" to him. But Princess Zhaoyang's child is only a month old and still a princess.

What, are you mocking me?

The old man was unaware of the gifts Zhao had prepared; if he had known, he would have certainly given her a good scolding.

Zhao couldn't understand a principle that any normal person could figure out.

Wait a minute, this Zhao guy isn't just clueless, he's trying to kill me!

This painting, depicting a vast landscape, has been soaked in a medicinal solution. If I stay with it for more than an hour, I will surely die.

You've been with me for a while now, hurry up and take it away, take it away!

Ji Yueru panicked and quickly stood up, but someone else was faster than her.

Prince Shun quickly got up and stepped forward, took the painting of a thousand miles of rivers and mountains away from An'an, rolled it up and handed it to the white tiger behind him.

"Your Majesty, Princess Zhaoyang is too young to smell the ink on the painting. It would be best not to expose her to the fumes."

The royal family breathed a sigh of relief. This poison was harmful to both children and adults, but it was not as effective as it was for children.

When presenting gifts, the paintings must be shown to the emperor for his review; this is something everyone knows.

What is the Marquis of Wuwei trying to do? Do they intend to kill all the royal family members?

Zhao was furious. Someone else had delivered a map before, so why hadn't Prince Shun said anything like this? He was clearly targeting their Wuwei Marquis's Mansion.

When Prince Shun handed the map to Baihu, he gave him a meaningful look. The two had developed a tacit understanding over the years of serving as master and servant.

As a palace maid carrying a wine jug passed by, Baihu secretly tripped her, causing her to fall forward and spill all the wine from the jug.

Unfortunately, most of the spilled wine ended up on the scroll that the white tiger was holding.

But just as the wine encountered the blueprints, a sudden change occurred: white foam and white smoke appeared on the rolled-up scroll.