The Queen sealed her heart and locked up her love, and the Emperor was trapped in the crematorium

In just three days, it passed in a flash, and the day for the concubines to leave the palace had arrived.

In order to prevent anyone from coming to cause trouble, Xie Yaoqing simply ordered the palace gates to be closed tightly to avoid any more trouble.

But she was worrying too much. Not everyone is as tactless as Concubine Qi. Knowing that their fate of being expelled from the palace was inevitable, they were powerless to fight and could only bear it silently. Whether they were willing or not, they had no choice, otherwise they would end up like Concubine Qi. Concubine Qi never came out after entering the Shenxing Prison. It was said that she died in there after she could not endure a few punishments, and she also dragged down her family behind her.

Even Concubine Qi is like this. Those of them who have no friendship with the emperor at all can only be obedient, keep their tails between their legs, and wait for the emperor's arrangements.

On the morning of the fourth day, a group of concubines arrived at the gate of Kunning Palace early, claiming that they wanted to pay their last respects to Queen Xie Yaoqing as a farewell.

After hearing this, Xie Yaoqing still did not want to show up. She just asked Nanny Fang to pass on the message, asking them to live a good life after leaving the palace.

When Nanny Fang returned, Xie Yaoqing didn't even raise her head, but asked calmly: "Has everyone left?"

"Reporting to Her Majesty, the palace masters have all left, and the carriages for leaving the palace are ready. They will probably be on the carriages and leaving the palace by now."

Xie Yaoqing lowered her eyes and said nothing, staring at her freshly painted nails. The bright color was carefully blended with Impatiens balsamina. It was pink with a hint of red, just like peach blossoms blooming in spring, delicate and beautiful.

Although I don't know what happened to Xiao Chengxu that he did such a crazy and absurd thing, but if he can dismiss the concubines today, then he may also be able to confer a large number of titles on the harem in the future.

After all, he is the emperor. As the Son of Heaven, as long as he is willing, it is not difficult for him to marry as many women as possible into the palace with just one word.

As for when, it was probably when he got tired of pretending and couldn't continue, his true colors would naturally show up. No one could pretend for a lifetime. Xiao Chengxu loved both the country and the beauty.

"One more thing, madam."

Nanny Fang's voice was slightly low, with a hint of emotion, "The Qi family was convicted of treason because of Concubine Qi. More than a hundred people in the family have been thrown into prison. The imperial censor has impeached the Qi family for abusing their power and taking human lives lightly. I'm afraid the Qi family is doomed this time and will be destroyed."

After all, the Qi family is the empress dowager's maternal family. According to common sense, as long as the empress dowager is still alive and the emperor sitting on the dragon throne does not change, the Qi family will be able to continue to enjoy wealth and glory, and there will be no problem in prospering for decades.

However, who could have expected that such great wealth would be so short-lived? In just a few short years, the Qi family was already facing the prospect of collapse.

The ministers of the previous dynasty were also extremely surprised, because the emperor had always been courteous and generous to the Qi family, not only granting many of the family's children high positions and generous salaries, but also frequently entrusting them with important tasks. Everyone originally thought that this was the emperor's intention to use and promote the Qi family, but they did not expect that the emperor's mind was unfathomable and he would punish the Qi family in the blink of an eye.

But then again, this woman from the Qi family was indeed extremely bold and presumptuous. She even dared to plot to assassinate the emperor. She committed such a heinous crime of treason that it would not be an exaggeration even if her entire clan was implicated.

Could it be that he was instigated by the Queen Mother? After attempting to murder the Emperor, a new ruler was appointed, and the Emperor Shao succeeded to the throne. Then the Queen Mother could take advantage of the opportunity to rule the country from behind the curtain and have the power to rule the country?

Some people even thought that there was a woman from the Qi family in the backyard of the Nan'an Palace, and that she had given birth to a boy. The more they thought about it, the more they felt that their guess was correct. For a time, in addition to impeaching the Qi family, many people also began to impeach the empress dowager. The Nan'an Palace was also implicated and was suspected of forming a clique for personal gain and having ambitious intentions.

Xie Yaoqing seemed to have heard what Nanny Fang said, but she also seemed not to have heard it. Her eyes were looking out the window, her thoughts drifting away, she listened quietly, without showing any emotional fluctuations.

The Qi family in this life and the Yongchang Marquisate in the previous life had the same fate. They were both destroyed at the hands of the emperor, and all those luxurious houses, splendor and wealth disappeared without a trace in the blink of an eye.

In the face of imperial power, everyone is as insignificant as a speck of dust.

It is a simple truth: if the king wants his subject to die, the subject must die.

In this life, because Concubine Qi violated a taboo, she angered Xiao Chengxu and led to the downfall of the Qi family.

Then she must have violated Xiao Chengxu's taboo in her previous life, which caused the Yongchang Marquis' Mansion to suffer a disaster.

Nanny Fang silently gazed at the master in front of her who was surrounded by endless sorrow, and couldn't help but sigh in her heart.

After entering the palace, his master became more and more taciturn, and the days when his emotions were all revealed on his face were gone forever.

The Empress had more and more worries, and was less and less willing to talk about them.

After a long time, Xie Yaoqing finally came back to her senses when Nanny Fang called her softly.

At this time, Doctor Qi had arrived at Kunning Palace, ready to take Xie Yaoqing's pulse and examine him.

When Doctor Qi began to check Xie Yaoqing's pulse, Xie Yaoqing suddenly asked, "Doctor Qi, in your opinion, am I capable of having children?"

Doctor Qi bowed and replied: "Your Majesty, there is nothing wrong with your body."

Xie Yaoqing responded softly: "Oh... So according to you, do I still need to take the pregnancy-maintaining medicine?"

The news that the emperor was suffering from a hidden illness had spread throughout the palace, causing a huge disturbance. Regardless of how much discussion and speculation this incident had caused, everyone in Kunning Palace felt sorry for Xie Yaoqing.

Others may not understand, but those who serve in Kunning Palace know very well that the Empress has always longed to give birth to a son or daughter for the Emperor, otherwise she would not have insisted on taking pregnancy-maintaining medicine all year round.

For a long time, people inside and outside the court believed that it was the Queen's own problems that caused her infertility. Who could have expected that the real problem was with the Emperor? Then, what were the countless bowls of pregnancy-preserving medicine that the Queen drank over the years?

"All medicines are poisonous. You can't force offspring. It's better to drink as little medicine as possible to maintain pregnancy." Doctor Qi answered carefully, without any flaws in his words.

Xie Yaoqing nodded slightly to show her agreement, and then asked, "I have heard some rumors recently, saying that the emperor's difficulty in having children is actually due to the emperor, but the emperor is not inhumane. What does Doctor Qi think about this? Has he treated the emperor?"

Doctor Qi's heart skipped a beat, and a thin layer of sweat instantly appeared on his forehead, but he still said calmly, "Your Majesty, you may not know that some men in this world can have sex, but they may not be able to make their wives and concubines pregnant. The reasons for this situation are quite complicated. I am not well educated and have not yet understood the reasons."

"According to what you said, is it true that the emperor is in poor health, and those rumors are not groundless?"

Doctor Qi was so frightened that he dared not say a word and could only lower his head and remain silent.

He was just an insignificant imperial physician. How could he have the courage to tell the Queen directly that the Emperor was ill and had infertility?

As the queen is the master, she can say some things, but he is just a subject. If he dares to agree with her, he will probably lose his life.

Xie Yaoqing didn't want to deliberately make things difficult for Doctor Qi, so he waved his hand to signal him to leave.

Others may not know, but she knows it very well. After all, she and Xiao Chengxu once slept in the same bed, and she knows very well whether Xiao Chengxu is capable of sexual matters between men and women. Therefore, Xie Yaoqing does not believe a word of the rumors that Xiao Chengxu suffers from impotence.

However, Xie Yaoqing had no intention of coming out to clarify the situation for Xiao Chengxu.

Firstly, not many people would believe her; secondly, she was not the one who was embarrassed, so there was no need for her to rush to explain.