That Imperial Concubine is both wicked and cunning! Your Majesty, wake up!

Xiao Yan patiently comforted Song Shuangning. After a long while, Song Shuangning finally came to her senses and got out of Xiao Yan's arms.

"I'm alright, is the Third Prince alright?"

"Hongcheng is fine, but you are." Xiao Yan stroked her pale cheek, his usually calm eyes rippled with heartache.

Today truly surprised him. His first time riding a horse and he encountered such a perilous situation, yet he remained calm under pressure. If it weren't for her courage, Hongcheng might have…

"Ningning, you did very well today."

Song Shuangning smiled faintly: "It's good that the Third Prince is safe and sound."

"Your Majesty, I find the eunuch leading the horse somewhat suspicious."

The heartache in Xiao Yan's dark eyes faded, leaving only coldness and hardness. "I understand. Ningning, don't worry, I will definitely give you an explanation for what happened today."

After returning home, Song Shuangning developed a low-grade fever. The imperial physician said that she was disturbed by the shock and that cold air had entered her body, which caused the low-grade fever.

Song Shuangning half-opened her eyes, gazing at the figure beside the bed.

Perhaps out of guilt and heartache, Xiao Yan stayed by her side. She wanted to make good use of this guilt and heartache.

Xiao Yan had changed out of his riding and archery uniform and into his usual black dragon robe. He was now focused on wringing out a handkerchief.

What he was doing was completely different from his usual dignified and composed demeanor, and it seemed out of place with the black dragon robe he was wearing.

Xiao Yan placed the handkerchief on her forehead, and when it cooled down, he soaked it in cold water again, repeating this several times without showing the slightest impatience.

"Feeling unwell?"

Song Shuangning bit her lip: "This concubine is a little afraid to sleep."

Xiao Yan lay down beside her, gently patting her back, and said softly, "I'm here, go to sleep."

Song Shuangning slowly closed her eyes, and dazedly grabbed Xiao Yan's clothes.

"Your Majesty, don't go..."

"I won't leave." Xiao Yan rested his chin on the top of her head, and only after she fell asleep did he gently get up.

He lifted the brocade curtain, and his originally gentle face instantly turned cold and fierce.

Xiao Yan glanced back into the tent and walked forward.

Li Fuquan followed behind him and said, "Your Majesty, the matter of today has been investigated and clarified."

"Consort Yun mixed intoxicating herbs into the horse feed, while the eunuch leading the horse carried burning rhinoceros horn incense. When these two substances came into contact, the horse would be frightened and run away. Before I could ask him any questions, the eunuch bit his tongue and committed suicide. Following the clues, I investigated his hometown and family, and discovered that he and Consort Yun's maid, Cang Chun, were from the same hometown and had been in contact with each other in private."

After saying that, Li Fuquan cautiously raised his eyes and glanced at the Emperor.

Anyone with eyes could see that Xue Mian was frightened and her intention was to harm the Third Prince. No one expected Consort Zhaorong to be so audacious as to harbor such a heart towards harming a prince.

Fortunately, Consort Song was clever; otherwise, the consequences would have been unimaginable.

Xiao Yan's face was ashen and his eyes revealed his deep anger.

He strode quickly toward Yun Zhaorong's tent.

Inside the tent, Yun Zhaorong was also restless. She repeatedly reassured herself: the little eunuch had already committed suicide, and there was no way to verify the truth.

However, the curtain was lifted from the outside, and when Yun Zhaorong looked up, she met the Emperor's icy gaze.

The Emperor knows everything.

"Your Majesty, I... Your Majesty, I pay my respects."

Xiao Yan was unwilling to argue with her any further, his tone cold and uncompromising: "Was it you who caused Xue Mian's fright today?"

Consort Yun was naturally unwilling to admit it: "It wasn't me..."

"Do I have to place the evidence in front of you before you'll admit it?"

Xiao Yan's expression was cold and frosty, his thin lips were tightly pursed, and with a flick of his sleeve, he knocked the teacups and pastries on the table to the ground.

"Your Majesty..." Yun Zhaorong's legs went weak and she knelt on the ground.

Why did you harm Consort Song?

"Why? Because I hate her! How could she possibly win Your Majesty's favor? She's so ordinary."

"And what about Hongcheng? You are also a mother, how could you be so heartless?"

Yun Zhaorong forced a bitter smile, "The Third Prince is more favored by you, while our Second Prince is always ignored by the Emperor..."

"So, you decided to kill me?" Xiao Yan pressed, pressing him further.

"Yes!" Yun Zhaorong's eyes blazed with determination, already prepared for the worst.

Xiao Yan's eyes were filled with disgust; he never expected there to be such a vicious person in the harem.

He whispered sharply, "Li Fuquan."

Li Fuquan bowed as he entered the hall: "This servant is here!"

"Consort Yun is wicked and plots against concubines and princes. She should be executed. However, considering the young age of the Second Prince, I will be lenient with her. She is to be demoted to the rank of Noble Consort immediately. For the next few days, she shall stay obediently in her tent and not step out. After returning to the palace, she shall be confined to Yuehua Palace and shall never leave without my decree."

"As for the Second Prince, send him to the Empress."

Yun Zhaorong felt as if she had been struck by lightning. She crawled over on all fours and grabbed the emperor's robe tightly.

"Your Majesty, I know I was wrong. I beg you not to send Hongtai away. I cannot live without him."

Xiao Yan flicked his sleeves and shouted, "Do you really want Hongtai to be pointed at and gossiped about in the future, saying that he had a mother who murdered concubines and coveted the lives of his siblings? To carry a stain that he can never wash away for the rest of his life?"

Yun Zhaorong relaxed her hands.

Yes, should Hongtai be forced to bear the stain of being the "son of a poisonous concubine," making it difficult for him to move forward in the palace and causing him to be ostracized?

She brought all of this on herself.

She regretted it.

Having had his fill of fun, the second prince skipped and hopped back to his tent, only to be surrounded and stopped by a group of people.

He was just an innocent child, how could he withstand such obstruction?

The second prince was both anxious and angry. With a sob in his voice, he pushed aside the people blocking his way and rushed into the tent.

"Mother."

Consort Yun hugged the Second Prince tightly and whispered in his ear, "Tai'er, from now on you will be moving to the Empress's residence. You must listen to the Empress and remember that it was Consort Song who caused our separation."

The second prince said, "I don't want to, I don't want to go to Mother's place."

"Tai'er, be good!" With that, despite her reluctance, Consort Yun pushed the Second Prince out. Only by becoming the Empress's son could Tai'er have a brighter future.

"Mother Consort—Mother Consort—"

The Empress rushed to Consort Yun's tent and held the Second Prince in her arms. "Hongtai, be good. Let's go back together first, okay?"

Inside the tent, Consort Yun kowtowed deeply: "Your Majesty, I beg you to treat Hongtai kindly."

"I will."

After coaxing the second prince to sleep, the empress sat in a chair, a faint smile playing on her lips, full of meaning.

Although Consort Yun's move was risky, the chances of winning were extremely high. So why was Consort Yun so unlucky?

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

Outside Song Shuangning's tent.

Physician Chen was personally preparing the medicine. Originally, Physician Zhang was in charge of Song Shuangning's health, but Physician Zhang was called away to take care of the frightened Third Prince, so Physician Chen had to take over Song Shuangning's health.

When Consort Yun fell from power, Imperial Physician Chen dared not jump into the fire pit and immediately severed all ties with Consort Yun.

Quan Lu said, "Imperial Physician, let me do it."

Physician Chen said, "No need, I will take care of it myself." Consort Song was favored, and he wanted to take this opportunity to gain the Emperor's favor.

"Imperial Physician, you should rest for a while. I'll look after things here, so don't worry about it." Quanlu chuckled sheepishly, "Leave these small matters to me."

"Alright." Physician Chen rubbed the back of his neck.

After he left, Quanlu took out a packet of powder from his sleeve and quietly poured it into the bowl of medicine.

After doing all this, Quanlu nodded slightly to Tingyu.