The prince loves me like his life, but I force him to rebel

After Lin Heng brought Gu Nianzhi to Renxin Hall, he left in a hurry.

Under the guidance of her father-in-law, Gu Nianzhi came to the back garden of Renxin Hall.

A woman in white was squatting on the ground, tending to the flowers and plants.

"Your Majesty, Mr. Gu is here." The father-in-law stepped forward and motioned for Gu Nianzhi to go forward.

"Okay, you can leave first."

The woman in white in front of him stood up and turned around.

She looked very young, about thirty-six or thirty-seven years old. She was dressed simply and elegantly, with almost no makeup on her face, but her skin was fair, tender and smooth. Although she had traveled a long way to return to the capital, she did not look tired at all.

"Your humble servant pays respect to Her Majesty the Virtuous Consort."

Gu Nianzhi quickly bowed to Concubine De according to palace regulations.

"No need to be polite, Mr. Gu. I have been traveling around for nearly ten years and I am no longer used to the red tape in the palace."

The palace maid next to her brought a basin of water. Concubine De washed the dust and mud on her hands, dried her hands, and invited Gu Nianzhi to sit on the stone bench next to her.

"What makes Mr. Gu so uneasy?"

The palace maid brought tea and cakes, and Concubine De personally poured a cup of tea for Gu Nianzhi.

Gu Nianzhi was even more flustered, but Concubine De just didn't take the initiative to ask.

Could it be that he wants to get more information out of me?

Or, is it to make me confess honestly and proactively?

"Your Majesty, I don't know why you summoned me here, but I am a little apprehensive."

"In that case, I'll get straight to the point." Concubine De took a sip of tea, stared at Gu Nianzhi with her phoenix eyes, and asked in a gentle but oppressive tone: "How did you know Yao'er's nickname?"

"This……"

What is supposed to come will come.

Gu Nianzhi knew that he couldn't escape.

"Why did you pretend to be my old friend and get close to Yao'er?"

"My lady, I..."

"Well, no matter the reason or excuse, you have to say it eventually."

Gu Nianzhi took a deep breath. Since Concubine De already knew what he said in front of Sima Yao, his lies must have been exposed. Sima Yao would no longer trust him in the future, so he might as well tell him everything.

"My Lady, I have my own reasons. I am not from here..."

"It was so hard for me to find you, but you are here."

Sima Yao came over like a gust of wind, just in time to interrupt Gu Nianzhi's words.

"Mother, are you reminiscing with Mr. Gu?"

Gu Nian was stunned.

Hasn't Concubine De exposed herself yet?

She looked at Concubine De in confusion, only to see Concubine De smiling gently with the tenderness that a mother has in front of her children, and said to Sima Yao, "It's been a long time since we last met. We have a lot to talk about."

"I have told you everything that happened to Mr. Gu during this period. Are you still worried? Do you want to ask me again?"

"That's not the case. Mr. Gu risked his life for you. If anything goes wrong, I won't be able to explain to his master."

Gu Nianzhi was confused.

Not only did Concubine De fail to expose her own lies, but she also confirmed them.

what is this?

"Mother, if you want to ask, I'm afraid you can only ask another day."

"Why?"

"The emperor has arranged a welcoming banquet for you. It's getting late. You should get ready and attend the banquet later."

"The Crown Prince has just passed away. It's probably not appropriate to hold a banquet at this time. Send someone to inform the Emperor that we can cancel the welcoming banquet."

"Mother, this is just a family dinner. If you come back like this and the palace is silent, others will think that the emperor is resentful of you. I'm afraid your life will be difficult in the future..."

Gu Nianzhi bowed, "Third Prince, please think twice. Madam Defei is right. The biggest event in the palace right now is the death of the crown prince. It is understandable that the emperor would welcome Madam Defei back to the palace to have a welcome ceremony. However, the situation in the palace is complicated and it is inevitable that people will criticize her. It is better to keep a low profile at this time."

"Since both mother and Mr. Gu have said so, I will personally go and explain to father, lest the servants convey unclear messages and cause father to misunderstand."

"Yao'er is very thoughtful. How about this, you tell the emperor that I made his favorite Eight Treasures Blood-Nourishing Soup. If the emperor wants to drink it, he can have it anytime."

Sima Yao bowed to Concubine De, turned around and caught a glimpse of Gu Nianzhi's eyes, who seemed to want to go with him.

He glanced at Concubine De, but Concubine De had no intention of letting Gu Nianzhi leave.

"Mr. Gu, please stay for now. I still have a lot of things to discuss with him."

Gu Nianzhi lowered his head silently and sighed softly. It seemed that he had to tell the truth.

She also wanted to find out why Concubine De didn't expose her.

Sima Yao walked very quickly and his footsteps could no longer be heard after a few seconds.

Concubine De walked slowly to Gu Nianzhi and looked at her carefully, which made Gu Nianzhi even more flustered.

"Mr. Gu is indeed handsome." Concubine De smiled and said, "You are smart and beautiful. No wonder someone would fall for you."

"Beautiful?" Gu Nian was surprised.

Concubine De actually used words to describe women to describe herself. Could it be that she already knew her identity as a woman?

Gu Nianzhi fell to his knees on the ground.

"My thoughts are dull, I hope the queen will explain it clearly."

Concubine De helped Gu Nianzhi up.

"You don't need to know too much. You just need to remember that I left the palace to avoid favor because of Yao'er. Now I return to the palace for you."

"for me?"

Gu Nianzhi was even more confused.

"Someone was worried that you would be implicated by the death of the crown prince, so they asked me to return to the palace to protect you. If I had known that Yao'er had already rescued you from the Ministry of Punishment, I would not have had to come back."

"Empress Defei, didn't you come back because you were worried about the emperor and the third prince?"

Concubine De lowered her eyes and smiled helplessly.

"The Emperor is worth a ton of money, I don't need to worry about him at all. And Yao'er, the less attention I pay to him, the safer he may be."

"My queen...you are not going to leave the palace again?"

"My presence in the palace will only make Empress Xian more fearful and more ruthless towards Yao'er. The world outside is so vast, how can it be compared to the world enclosed by this small palace wall?"

Concubine De looked up at the sky.

A bird flew by.

"Your Majesty, you said that you came back because someone was worried that I would be implicated. I want to ask, who is that person?"

Gu Nianzhi had a vague answer in her mind, but she still wanted to confirm it.

"He wouldn't let me say it, but from the look on your face, I've already guessed it."

"Cen...Yu?" Gu Nianzhi said the name tentatively.

Concubine De did not comment, but continued to look at Gu Nianzhi with a smile.

"You'll find out sooner or later. But not now."

Gu Nianzhi's doubts deepened.

I think the reason why Concubine De didn't pursue the fact that I pretended to know her was because of Cen Yu.

But why did she meet Cen Yu?

Gu Nianzhi is almost certain that Cen Yu is involved in the death of the Crown Prince. Does Concubine De know about this?

After the death of the crown prince, the second prince had an absolute advantage in the court, and the third prince had an even more difficult time. Why was Concubine De so closely related to the person who caused all this?