The Evil Emperor's Favorite: The Sickly and Poisonous Concubine Goes Crazy

On that day, the Duke of Zhenguo said nothing but accepted the betrothal gift. He neither agreed nor disagreed with the marriage of Su Jingning and Gu Yan'an.

Su Jingning was in the warm room.

The Duke of Zhenguo and his wife sat in front of Su Jingning and looked at him seriously and solemnly.

"Ningning, are you really willing to marry Gu Yan'an?" The Duke of Zhenguo looked at his daughter with a serious expression.

"Yes, my daughter is willing." Su Jingning looked at her parents with serious expressions and nodded firmly.

"Ningning, although Master Gu is a good person, do you like him? Will you be happy if you marry him?" Lady Zhenguo looked at Su Jingning with some hesitation.

"Mom, I believe him." Su Jingning's clear eyes were full of determination.

The lady of the Duke of Zhenguo saw the deep warmth in her eyes when she mentioned Gu Yan'an, and her worries were relieved a little.

The Duke of Zhenguo was silent for a long time before he slowly said to the official Lao Xu behind him: "Lao Xu, go to the Beiyang Palace tomorrow to inform them to find an auspicious day to exchange the engagement letter."

"Yes." Old Xu nodded with a happy look on his face.

Su Jingning looked at the Duke of Zhenguo in surprise: "Father, do you agree that I can marry Gu Yan'an?"

The Duke of Zhenguo curled his lips and snorted at her: "What's the point of disagreeing? I see that you have turned your elbow outward."

Su Jingning smiled embarrassedly.

"I have something to say to Ningning, you go back first." The Duke of Zhenguo said softly to his wife.

The wife of the Duke of Zhenguo glanced at him, knew that he had something to say to her daughter, and then she got up and left.

"Dad, what do you want to say?" Su Jingning wondered why his father wanted to send his mother away.

"Ningning, if you want to marry Gu Yan'an, it's not that Daddy disagrees, but Gu Yan'an is not an ordinary person. You may suffer a lot in the future with him, and there will be many difficulties waiting for you. Are you willing? He is too dangerous. Daddy only hopes that you brothers and sisters are safe and healthy."

The Duke of Zhenguo looked at Su Jingning with a gentle voice.

"Father, I understand, but if I miss him, I might be alone for the rest of my life. So no matter what difficulties we encounter, I want to be with him." Su Jingning looked at the Duke of Zhenguo maturely and said solemnly.

The Duke of Zhenguo's eyes were red as he looked at his daughter. Hey, my daughter has grown up. Forget it, let them do what the young people do.

"Okay. You're old enough to make your own decisions now."

"Thank you, father!" Su Jingning smiled brightly at the Duke of Zhenguo.

"There are two more things my father wants to tell you. Your mother is timid and I'm afraid she will be scared. Don't tell her." The Duke of Zhenguo said seriously to Su Jingning again.

Seeing the serious expression on the Duke of Zhenguo's face, Su Jingning suppressed his smile and looked at the Duke of Zhenguo and asked, "What's the matter?"

"Father is doing something for His Majesty. This thing may endanger the safety of our Su family, but father has to do it anyway. You have always been smart. If something happens to father, uncle, or your brothers in the future, father wants you to protect the Su family. Can you do it?" The Duke of Zhenguo looked at Su Jingning seriously.

Su Jingning stood up slowly and looked at the Duke of Zhenguo with a nervous expression: "What is father going to do? It can endanger the lives of the men in my Su family!"

"Don't worry, this is just the worst outcome. Father will protect you." The Duke of Zhenguo comforted Su Jingning.

Su Jingning still looked at the Duke of Zhenguo unmoved. She had lived her life again just to protect everyone in the Su family, and she would never let any member of the Su family get into trouble.

"Dad, tell me what to do first?" she asked coldly.

The Duke of Zhenguo sighed, and seeing his daughter's insistence, he slowly said, "Father wants to help His Majesty get rid of the Shen family and clean up the court."

Su Jingning was stunned for a moment, lowered his head and thought for a while, with doubts flashing in his eyes. Get rid of the Shen family? The Shen family has deep roots in the court, and their roots are complicated. Although it is difficult to get rid of the Shen family, it will not endanger the lives of the Su family.

"I'm afraid what my father wants to do is more than just getting rid of the Shen family?" She looked at the Duke of Zhenguo and his voice was firm.

There was a flash of surprise in the eyes of the Duke of Zhenguo: "Ningning? What do you know?"

"I don't know anything! Father, do you want to help His Majesty take back the Netherworld Guards and the East China Sea Navy from the Queen Mother?"

Su Jingning had a stiff face and looked at the Duke of Zhenguo and said coldly that she didn't know what was worth her father risking the entire Su family.

The Queen Mother of the Great Zhou, the mother of the current emperor, was a feared figure. Although she had lived in seclusion in Foyin Mountain in Qingzhou in recent years and seemed to have withdrawn from the court, it was she who had gradually strengthened the defeated Shen family to its current supreme position in the court with a solid foundation.

Rather than being followers of the Prince of Chen, the people in the court who followed Duke Shen Jiaqing were more likely to be followers of the Queen Mother who lived in seclusion in Qingzhou. When the previous emperor died, they feared that the new emperor would not be able to control the court officials, so they temporarily handed over the Netherworld Guards to the Queen Mother.

The Nether Guard was originally created by the previous emperor and was directly under the previous emperor. It only obeyed the previous emperor's orders and monitored all officials for the previous emperor. It inspected the institutions in various parts of the Great Zhou. The system was complex and powerful. The Nether Guard was also considered the royal dead servant, and obeyed the orders of the Nether Order. When the previous emperor was alive, because of the existence of the Nether Guard, the court was clean and all officials were clear. After the previous emperor passed away, the order should be the current Majesty, but the Queen Mother took the Nether Guard for herself and has not yet handed it over to Your Majesty.

But since the Queen Mother took over the Nether Guard, she began to interfere in the court, promoted her cronies, and gradually revealed her ambition. She turned the Nether Guard into her own sharp weapon, eliminating the court officials who had complaints against her one by one, and replenished her own manpower. In those years, the court of the Great Zhou Dynasty was full of blood and gore, loyal officials died unjustly, villains prevailed, and everyone was in danger.

The Emperor of Zhou was new and had been under the supervision of the Empress Dowager for many years. Even if he was unwilling, he had no energy to resist. Later, when the Empress passed away, the Empress Dowager suddenly withdrew from the court and went to the Foyin Mountain in Qingzhou. She rarely returned to the capital.

After His Majesty personally handled all the affairs of the court, the bloody days finally came to an end. However, most of the good ministers in the court had already left, and the remaining ones were far less wise and loyal than those during the reign of the previous emperor. After that, Emperor Zhou opened a new imperial examination, but most of the court officials were still the Queen Mother's people. The people he selected were either dismissed for mistakes or imprisoned by others, and could not be reused.

Although the Queen Mother has withdrawn from the court, she still holds the sharp blade of the Great Zhou Dynasty, the Nether Guard, in her hands, which has a deep grip on the court officials, and she also controls the navy, which is the key to the eastern part of the Great Zhou Dynasty. Therefore, although she has left the court, she still has power in the court and is deeply feared by His Majesty and the officials.

Su Jingning was reborn. She knew the horror of the Queen Mother of the Great Zhou and the Netherworld Guards under her command. She didn't want her father to risk the lives of the Su family.

In her previous life, the Queen Mother of the Great Zhou died three years later, at the hands of Gu Yan'an. But she didn't know why Gu Yan'an wanted to kill her, she only knew that Gu Yan'an had suffered a lot at the hands of the Queen Mother.

It was only today that Su Jingning understood why Gu Yan'an killed the Queen Mother, but His Majesty the Great Zhou did not punish him. It was as if this happened quietly, a taboo that no one dared to mention. It turned out that His Majesty the Great Zhou wanted to kill the Queen Mother. It is said that the emperor is heartless, but I didn't expect it to be like this.

"Father, this is too risky! If anything goes wrong, it will endanger the entire Su family." Su Jingning looked at the Duke of Zhenguo and shook his head.

The Duke of Zhenguo did not expect that Ningning could guess his purpose so easily.

"Dad will do his best to protect the Su family. Only if this is accomplished can the Su family's future be safe."

The Duke of Zhenguo looked at Su Jingning firmly. He believed that his daughter would understand and had faith in her ability to protect the Su family without them.

Su Jingning looked at the determination in the Duke of Zhenguo's eyes and immediately became discouraged. She knew that she could not persuade her father.

"Your Majesty and Father, when are you going to start? Do your uncles and brothers know about your plan?" She lowered her eyes and asked in a cold voice.

"Well, it will start in a month when your second uncle arrives in Yunzhou." The Duke of Zhenguo replied in a deep voice.

"Dad, you're telling me now! What if something really happens to you? What if I can't protect Mom, my sisters and my aunts?" Su Jingning became even angrier. Her father really thought highly of her.

The Duke of Zhenguo was speechless for a moment, looking at his angry daughter, not knowing how to answer.

"How is Father going to deal with the Shen family, the Queen Mother's Netherworld Guards, and the East China Sea navy?"

"If father told me, perhaps I could lend a helping hand to you. I don't ask for anything. I just want you to stay with me." Su Jingning looked at the Duke of Zhenguo with red eyes and a pleading tone.

At this moment, she felt powerless for the first time after her rebirth. This was beyond her expectation. This did not happen in her previous life. Did she miss something in her previous life? Or, did the things she did after her rebirth change something?

"Ningning, you shouldn't know about this. This is the only way to save your lives." The Duke of Zhenguo said softly to his daughter with red eyes.

"If father doesn't tell me, I can't agree to let him protect the Su family. Father should know that even if you don't tell me, I have plenty of ways to find out!" Su Jingning said with a cold face.

"Your Majesty and I have set up a trap. Once it starts, the Su family will fall into trouble and confuse the Queen Mother's minions. Then Your Majesty will use the Shen family as bait to force the Queen Mother to take action. Only in this way will there be an excuse for the Queen Mother to hand over the Netherworld Guards and the East China Sea Navy."

The Duke of Zhenguo finally said that he knew his daughter's ability, and even if he didn't tell her, she would be able to find it out herself.

Su Jingning pondered for a long time without saying anything. The father and daughter sat quietly for a long time before she said to the Duke of Zhenguo in a deep voice, "I know, father. I will do my best to protect the Su family."

Su Jingning's mind is in a mess now. She needs time to sort this out and find a way to protect the Su family.

The Duke of Zhenguo nodded with satisfaction. He believed that Ningning would not let him down.

"And one more thing."

"Dad, please speak."

The Duke of Zhenguo looked at Su Jingning and hesitated for a while before saying, "Can you arrange a meeting with Lord Mo Linyuan for my father?"

"Father wants to see my master?" Su Jingning looked at Zhenguo with some confusion.

"It is said that Lord Mo Linyuan is an expert in medicine and poisons, and knows all the poisons in the world. My father has a friend who was poisoned by Liushang." The Duke of Zhenguo said in a deep voice.

"Liushang poison? That's a poison only found in the Nanji royal family, but didn't the Nanji royal family perish long ago?" Su Jingning didn't expect that there would be such a poison in this world.

"But Master never leaves Mo Linyuan, and Father is afraid that he will not be able to see Master. How about this, I will write a letter to Master to ask if there is any antidote for this poison. If so, Senior Brother Ci'an will soon arrive in the Imperial Capital. With Senior Brother's medical skills, he will definitely be able to detoxify Father's friend."

Among all their fellow disciples, only Senior Brother Ci'an inherited the true medical skills from the master. If the master can cure Liushang's poison, then Senior Brother Ci'an can definitely do it as well.

"Are you talking about Song Ci'an, the young master of Mo Linyuan?" asked the Duke of Zhenguo. He had heard of Song Ci'an's great name, the resurrected dead, the flesh turned into bones, the medical immortal Song Ci'an. If he couldn't meet Master Mo Linyuan, meeting this legendary young medical immortal might be able to save King Beiyang.

"Okay, then when will your senior brother arrive in the capital? I'll send someone to pick him up." The Duke of Zhenguo said in a deep voice.

Su Jingning frowned: "Senior brother's whereabouts are erratic, I don't know, but it should be soon. If he goes to the Imperial Capital, he will definitely come to look for me."

The Duke of Zhenguo pondered for a moment and nodded. As long as the King of Beiyang could be saved, it would be fine.