The little dark guard who travels between two lives

The fourth prince felt even more guilty when he saw the queen's smiling face. He knew that his mother had criticized the queen behind her back more than once. In fact, he felt that the queen was very tolerant of her mother, such a domineering concubine.

It was precisely because of my mother's daily disrespect towards the Empress, coupled with my father's indulgence, that the eunuchs and maids in the palace were always talking about the Empress's lack of favor.

Although my mother had restrained herself a lot after being demoted, her return to favor this time made the palace maids believe that my mother was the one who was truly favored, and the Empress was still not favored.

Therefore, the Fourth Prince always felt guilty when facing the kind and gentle Queen. This time, the rumors in the palace came from his mother's palace, and the Fourth Prince really felt ashamed to face the Queen.

The Queen looked at the Fourth Prince's awkward look, reached out and pulled the little fat boy into her arms, and comforted him softly: "Jingyu, you are a good child. You don't need to worry about the affairs between adults. Just remember to study hard and practice martial arts. No matter what happens in the future, you must be loyal to your father. This is enough, and your mother will also feel relieved."

The fourth prince almost cried when he heard the queen's earnest words. His mother had never told him these words. She only complained that he was incompetent and could not compare to his brother, the crown prince.

My mother always asked me to compete with the crown prince and win the favor of my father. Once, she even said that she didn't know who would be passed on the throne.

My mother was like this, and so was my grandfather. Every time my grandfather saw me, he would always ask about my studies and martial arts training. He would also always remind me to practice hard and to be better than the crown prince.

My mother and grandfather have never really cared about me. They have never asked me whether I am happy or not. They just let me fight.

But he didn't want to compete with the Crown Prince at all. The Crown Prince was so friendly to him, always took care of him, and gave him a lot of delicious food. Why should he compete with the Crown Prince? He just wanted to be a carefree little prince and just follow the Crown Prince.

The Queen saw that the Fourth Prince was in great pain, so she sighed and hugged him tighter. It was really hard for this child. In fact, the rumor that she was out of favor had been around for a long time, and she was used to it. To her, the rumor had no effect at all.

Because of the restoration of Concubine Shen's favor, the emperor came to tell the queen in advance. A few days ago, the emperor heard from his son that the queen also knew about the poisoning of General Shen and was very worried about the emperor's health. The emperor discussed the strategy with Yu Huaian and Qin Mingxuan and immediately rushed to Kunning Palace.

The emperor was afraid that the queen would worry, so he hurried to Kunning Palace. When the emperor arrived, the queen was sitting in front of the window in a daze. When the emperor walked into the room, the queen was surprised to find someone in the room. When she turned around and saw that it was the emperor, she immediately stood up and saluted the emperor.

The emperor took a few steps forward and supported the queen who was about to bow: "I told you long ago that there is no need for us to be so polite. There is no one here, so just be casual."

The Queen insisted on bowing and took a step back to kneel. The Emperor was startled and quickly stopped the Queen: "What are you going to do?"

The Queen felt guilty and said, "I am guilty. If Xin'er hadn't discovered something was wrong and stopped Shen Concubine, Shen Concubine would have brought poison to harm the Emperor. I shouldn't have arranged for Shen Concubine to serve the Emperor."

The emperor smiled and said: "Will the queen continue to arrange concubines for me in the future?" It was said in the palace that one of the reasons why the queen was out of favor was that the emperor did not like to go to the queen's Kunning Palace.

The reason why the emperor didn't like to go to the queen's Kunning Palace was that the queen always considerately arranged concubines to serve him. The emperor was angry but couldn't bear to get angry with the queen, so he simply didn't go to Kunning Palace.

The queen bowed her head and said, "Before I entered the palace, my mother taught me to be as virtuous as the late queen, and that's what my sister did."

The emperor wanted to get angry again after hearing this, and he grabbed the queen's arm and said, "But I have told you many times that you are not your sister, and you should not listen to what your mother says. Just be yourself. I don't like you to arrange concubines for me."

The queen looked up at the emperor in surprise. Before she entered the palace, her mother had told her earnestly not to be jealous. As a queen, she should be tolerant and should choose women that the emperor liked to serve him like her sister did. This was the demeanor of a mother of a country.

Therefore, after entering the palace, she did as her mother said. No matter which concubine was favored in the palace, she was never jealous or resentful, and she properly arranged the concubines to serve the emperor.

But the emperor didn't like to come to her Kunning Palace. Every time he came and talked about the concubines, he would make the emperor unhappy. Every time she saw the emperor swung his sleeves and left her Kunning Palace, the queen was actually very sad. She always felt that no matter what she did, she could not compare to her sister's position in the emperor's heart.

Over time, the queen gradually learned to calm down and put all her heart and soul on the prince. She had heard about the rumors in the palace, but she didn't care at all. As long as the prince was around, the emperor would always treat her well because she had raised him.

The emperor really did not treat me badly. He provided me with everything from food, clothing, shelter and transportation, and he never missed out on any reward. As for the rest, the queen had long since stopped caring about it. My mother was right. I entered the palace to keep my position as the crown prince, and at the same time to preserve the glory of my mother's family. That was enough.

However, every time the queen comforted herself in this way, she felt empty in her heart, as if something that should have been in her heart was pulled out by her own hands. The pain would spread in her chest from time to time and would not go away.

But now, the emperor told her not to listen to her mother and not to follow her sister. The emperor wanted her to be herself. The queen looked at the emperor in confusion. She had been in this deep palace for so long that she had forgotten what kind of person she wanted to be.

The queen thought so, and she looked at the emperor and murmured: "Your Majesty, I have forgotten what kind of person I want to be. If I have done something wrong, please tell me."

The emperor looked at the queen and thought to himself, I want you to be the second young lady of the prime minister's mansion in Plum Forest again, innocent and smiling sweetly, as if there are no worries in this world, the girl who makes people happy just by looking at her.

The emperor still remembered that year in the plum forest, the little girl whispered to her sister that she didn't want to get married, she wanted to travel around the world and see what the world described in the book was like.

But the little girl who aspired to travel around the world ended up being trapped in the deep palace, and could no longer see the world as she had hoped.

Whenever the emperor thought of this, he felt guilty. It was he and the crown prince who trapped the emperor in the deep palace. He felt sorry for the queen, but he was reluctant to let the queen go. He could only sigh, help the queen sit down, and said to her, "Forget it, let's not talk about this. I came here today to tell you that Concubine Shen will be favored again in the next few days, and I will summon her to sleep with me."

The emperor still felt embarrassed to tell the queen that he was going to favor another woman. He looked at the queen's face and hurriedly said, "Don't get me wrong. I have a reason for doing this."

The Queen nodded and said, "I understand. Your Majesty wants to create an illusion for General Shen, so that he will think that his evil plan has succeeded."

The emperor nodded approvingly. The queen was a smart woman. "This is a plan that I, Huai'an, and Mingxuan came up with. General Shen has become a cancer in the court. It's time to remove him."

The Queen hesitated and said, "The Emperor wants to take action against General Shen, but what about the Queen Mother? After all, the Queen Mother has raised and supported the Emperor."

The emperor sighed and said, "I know, but I can't use the country and people left to me by the late emperor to repay the queen mother for her support and care. The queen mother is the queen mother of my Great Yin Dynasty, not the queen mother of his Shen family. I believe the queen mother can figure it out."

The Queen also sighed and said, "I dare not speak rashly about state affairs. I only hope that Your Majesty will pay attention to safety and not take risks." The Emperor smiled and said, "I know, don't worry, the poison Huai'an has been replaced by the secret guards. I will be fine."

The emperor reached out and held the queen's hand, calling out her maiden name: "Ruohua, I'm glad you care about me." The queen's face gradually turned red, she gently pulled her hand away, and whispered: "Your Highness, I have always cared about you."

Zhang Dequan, who was standing outside the palace, heard the emperor's hearty laughter coming from the palace. The other eunuchs widened their eyes in surprise. Didn't they say that the queen was not favored? Why were the emperor and the queen so happy together?

Zhang Dequan looked at the stunned eunuchs with disdain. Humph, who among you can understand the emperor's mind as well as I, Zhang Dequan. Things that will surprise you are still to come.

Those people in the palace who spread the rumor that the Empress was out of favor were really blind. Only I, the great eunuch Zhang Dequan, was truly clear-headed and sharp-eyed! The more Zhang Dequan thought about it, the more proud he became. Listening to the emperor's laughter, the emperor was happy, and he, as a servant, was also happy. The corners of Zhang Dequan's mouth also rose.

The emperor and the queen had a heart-to-heart talk in the palace, feeling refreshed and very happy. But outside the palace, General Shen was quite upset. Because the account books were not cut off, the troops he sent out all returned empty-handed.

If he failed to get the account book, it meant that it would soon be sent to the palace by Yu Huaian's men and delivered to the emperor. Shen Taiwei thought of what he had done in Jiangnan, and knew that the emperor would not let him go after seeing the account book. If he did not take action, he would have to surrender.

Shen Taiwei asked his men to invite Doctor Mo and Lu Meisheng to the study to discuss matters. After Doctor Mo came in, Shen Taiwei hurriedly asked: "Mr. Mo, how long will it take for the poison mixed in the incense powder to take effect?"

Mr. Mo replied, "It's better to poison directly than to mix the medicine in the incense powder. Even if we increase the dosage now, it will probably take a month for the effect to show up."

Shen Taiwei lowered his head and calculated the date. It had been half a month since the incense powder was sent to the palace. It should have taken effect by now. In half a month, the emperor would show symptoms of poisoning and be bedridden. He could use this half month to quickly arrange for manpower.

After Mr. Mo left, Lu Meisheng walked into the study. Captain Shen checked the doors and windows again before saying to Mr. Lu, "It's very troublesome that we didn't get the account book. Once the account book is delivered to the emperor in the future, the emperor will definitely take action."

Shen Taiwei slammed the table heavily and said angrily: "The emperor has long wanted to punish our Shen family, but he has never had enough evidence before. But if the emperor gets the account book this time, he will definitely not let me go this time."

Lu Meisheng hesitated for a moment: "The Shen family is protected by the Queen Mother, and the Emperor must give the Queen Mother some face. After all, the Queen Mother has done the Emperor a favor."

Commander Shen sneered: "The royal family has no favors to speak of. They only care about the imperial power. If the emperor valued the queen mother's kindness in raising him, why would he pursue me so relentlessly and insist on finding evidence to put me to death?"

Lu Meisheng stopped talking. Shen Taiwei clenched his fist and said, "Sir, please inform our people to get ready. Please contact Prince Cheng as soon as possible. If necessary, we will need him to provide us with sufficient support."

Lu Meisheng pondered for a moment, and said to Shen Taiwei: "Sir, it is a bit hasty to act now. We may not have enough manpower..."

Shen Taiwei sighed and said, "We can't wait any longer. If we wait any longer, we will just surrender. Fortunately, our trained personnel have entered the capital one after another, and there are my people in the palace and the guards in the capital. With the support of Prince Cheng, it is enough. We just need to wait for the emperor in the palace to be poisoned. That will be a good time for us to take action."

Seeing that Commandant Shen had made up his mind, Lu Meisheng said nothing more and said, "Then I will go down and arrange it immediately."

Marshal Shen watched Lu Meisheng leave in a hurry and sighed in his heart. The day had finally come and he would have to face the emperor face to face.

Looking at the dark night, Shen Taiwei murmured, "Your Majesty, this is a matter of life and death. I can only apologize to you. This battle is bound to be a life-and-death battle. I, Shen Tuo, cannot allow you to oppress me. When I support Jingyu to take the throne, this will be the world of my Shen family."

In the palace, the emperor is now drinking tea in Concubine Shen's palace. After Concubine Shen regained his favor, the emperor favored her even more than when she was a noble concubine. After court, the emperor always liked to sit in Concubine Shen's palace, appreciate the flowers, drink tea, recite poems and paint.

Even when the maids in Concubine Shen's palace criticized the Queen in private that day, the Emperor only punished the two maids and gave Concubine Shen a gentle reminder, telling her to discipline the people in her palace well so that they would not go out and cause trouble for her.

Concubine Shen was immediately moved to tears. She felt deeply guilty at first, but then she became affectionate towards the emperor, expressing her gratitude for his deep affection for her.

Suqin watched her master and the emperor being affectionate, and could not help but secretly admire that the perfume powder brought by the Grand Marshal was really useful. Her master was now radiant and beautiful, and the emperor was also fascinated by her and seemed to be reluctant to leave. He would stay in Shenpin's palace when he had nothing to do. The other concubines in the palace were so jealous.

The emperor was sitting at the desk with Concubine Shen, painting the peonies outside the window. Suddenly, Suqin heard Concubine Shen scream. The emperor held his forehead with his hand, closed his eyes, and suddenly fell to the ground with a heavy thud.

This frightened everyone in Concubine Shen's palace. Concubine Shen was so frightened that she just stared at the emperor lying on the ground, not knowing what to do. Only Suqin was awake, and quickly called a few eunuchs to carry the unconscious emperor to the bed, and then ordered them to go to the Imperial Hospital to invite the imperial physician to come and treat the emperor, and at the same time, to quickly invite the empress to come.