My Lord, the princess doesn't want you anymore.

As soon as she returned to Jixuexuan, Mei Xueer locked herself in the room alone.

She had long wanted to stop caring about the Dog Prince's affairs, but she couldn't extricate herself from it.

Her mind was a mess and she needed to sort it out.

[Goudan, help me rub it. ]

Goudan: [Goudan doesn’t know whether this Concubine Wan is really crazy or just pretending to be crazy, and what is the purpose of telling you these words.]

Mei Xueer: [If, if what she said is true, combined with what Wen Yi said about Cui Hongjing's past...]

Goudan answered quickly: [The late emperor fell in love with his daughter-in-law, Concubine Jing?] After saying this, he himself found it unbelievable.

[It can only be explained this way.] Mei Xueer pondered for a moment: [Concubine Jing likes osmanthus. After she gave birth to Cui Hongjing, the late emperor ordered people to plant a large area of ​​osmanthus trees in the imperial garden for the person he loved.]

Goudan: [Cui Qimo thought that this was planted by his father for his grandson Cui Hongjing. ]

Mei Xueer nodded: [When Cui Hongjing was four years old, the late emperor planted another sweet-scented osmanthus tree in Prince Jing's mansion. Unlike the large patch of sweet-scented osmanthus trees, this tree was planted by the late emperor himself, together with Cui Hongjing.]

Goudan: [When Cui Hongjing was five years old, Cui Qimo discovered the unspeakable stories between his father and his woman, and became angry and embarrassed.]

Mei Xueer: [He might even think that Cui Hongjing is the child of his biological father and his woman. ]

Goudan quickly agreed: [Perhaps, the late emperor also believed that Cui Hongjing was the son of him and the woman he loved deeply. That's why he spoiled Cui Hongjing to no end since he was a child, and even wanted to make him the crown prince. ]

Mei Xueer slammed the table, "Yes, yes, yes, this way, everything can be figured out. When Cui Hongjing was five years old, the previous emperor died. No matter how he died, maybe he really died of illness, or he was killed by the then crown prince Cui Qimo, anyway, he died. After the previous emperor died, Cui Qimo succeeded to the throne and killed the concubine Jing who cheated on him. 】

[So, before Cui Hongjing was five years old, Cui Qimo, who was kept in the dark, doted on him very much. He only disliked him after he learned the truth. Thinking about it this way, it is normal that Cui Qimo couldn't stand Prince Jing for more than ten years.] Goudan suddenly understood, [Looking at the son in front of him, he was not sure whether he was his son or his brother. No one could bear this.]

Mei Xueer: [But, what role does Concubine Wan play in this, and why did she tell me all this? She is indifferent to her own son Cui Hongxiao, so why does she care so much about Cui Hongjing's happiness, even at the cost of her own life, in exchange for Cui Hongjing's "happiness". ]

Goudan asked tentatively: [Or, is Concubine Wan the biological mother of Cui Hongjing? From what she said, she also cares about Concubine Jing. Could it be that she just treats Cui Hongjing as the son of her best friend? But even if he is the son of her best friend, he is not more important than her own son. Does Cui Hongjing know that there is a mentally ill person in the palace who cares about him? ]

Mei Xueer shook her head: [Another possibility is that this Concubine Wan is an expert who pretended to be crazy and said nonsense. But what is her purpose in doing this? ]

Goudan: [It’s too confusing. My head hurts from thinking about it.]

Mei Xueer: [Or, let's simplify the complex issue and pretend that I have never met Concubine Wan. I don't care about the gossip of the dog prince! I will pretend that I don't know and have never heard of these. ]

……

***

Splendid Palace.

Concubine Wan sat quietly in front of the mirror. Her hair was loose and hanging down naturally. She looked at herself in the mirror, holding a jade comb and combing her hair slowly.

She was not young and her face was not made up at all, but even so, one could still see that she had an extraordinary beauty.

She sat dignifiedly in front of the mirror, and even without makeup, she still showed her innate nobility.

No one knew what she was thinking. She just held the comb and combed her hair in front of the mirror, combing and combing...

"Did you meet Mei Xueer just now?" Cui Qimo walked in and signaled all the palace servants to leave.

He took the comb from her hand, looked at it, and threw it on the dressing table with an expressionless face.

Concubine Wan did not stand up to greet him, and even ignored him, as if she did not hear him.

"Although I don't know what you said to her, you shouldn't see her - if you really want her to live well!" Cui Qimo's tone was calm, as if he was used to her attitude.

He dragged a chair and sat next to Concubine Wan, looking at her beautiful face. "Last night, a cruise ship caught fire on the Xiangxi River, and forty-one people died. One of them was the Crown Prince of Changguo."

Concubine Wan's hand suddenly paused.

She slowly put down the jade comb in her hand, slowly turned her head, and looked at the extremely noble man in front of her, "Your Majesty is worried that the iron cavalry of Changguo will flatten your Dazhen?"

"'You Dazhen'? Humph, do you still think you are a Changguo person? You have long been a subject of my Dazhen and the imperial concubine of the Dazhen Emperor!" Cui Qimo's tone finally became a little angry.

"Oh, I understand." Concubine Wan sneered, "Your Majesty is probably thinking that if the two countries go to war, I can still be of some use, such as being a hostage in front of the battlefield."

"I have never thought about it this way." Cui Qimo picked up the jade comb on the dressing table and began to comb her hair, but his eyes were looking at the woman in the mirror. "The Crown Prince of Changguo is in my Dazhen territory, and I didn't know about it before. I wonder if the concubine knows what he is doing in Dazhen?"

"I don't know!" Concubine Wan had no expression.

"The one who died was your own nephew, the eldest brother who loved you the most, the biological son of the Emperor of Changguo! Don't you feel even a little sad?"

"Everyone will die one day, it's just a matter of dying earlier or living longer. People who follow the Buddhist philosophy have long taken life and death lightly." Concubine Wan spoke in a slow and steady voice.

With a "bang", Cui Qimo slammed the comb onto the table and said sternly, "My patience is limited."

"I know that the emperor has long wanted to kill me."

Cui Qimo's voice softened again. "I promised her that I would give you a peaceful life. I have had countless women in my life, and I may have given them some true love, but you should know that she is the only one who can truly enter my heart! Therefore, I will definitely do what I promised her, and I will not kill you."

“A peaceful life? Ha… What’s the use of peace in this cold palace?” Imperial Concubine Wan spread her hands, looked around, and laughed: “I only now know that Your Majesty is a man who values ​​love and friendship, hahahaha… I thought that Your Majesty kept me until now because he was afraid of the iron cavalry of Changguo, but it turns out that it is because he has always had Ruyun in his heart and because he values ​​love… It’s really ridiculous, extremely ridiculous…”

She laughed and laughed, almost madly.

Cui Qimo could no longer suppress his inner anger, and he grabbed her neck with a fierce look in his eyes, "You don't have to force me to kill you. You want to die, but I won't let you! In this world, there are many ways that are more painful than death..."

Concubine Wan was a little out of breath, but she was still smiling. That smile looked extremely strange on her face which was distorted by being pinched.

She said in a staccato voice: "At least I know, I know, that the emperor will not do anything now. In a few days, Prince Xiao will be getting married. No, his mother must be present at the wedding..."

The emperor's hand suddenly loosened and he pushed her to the ground, "You still know that you are the biological mother of Prince Xiao?! Your son is getting married soon, you should do what a mother should do!"

After saying this, he flicked his sleeves fiercely and walked out of Jinxiu Palace.

Behind him, Concubine Wan's hysterical voice came, "He has the blood of the Dachang royal family, so he is just a chess piece of yours. Everyone is just your chess piece..."