Long Live the Empress

When the Second Prince heard that Song Xinghuai was taken to the Imperial Study by the Ninth Prince, he became extremely nervous and paced back and forth in the study anxiously.

A young eunuch stepped forward and whispered, "Second Prince, the Emperor has just issued an oral decree, sentencing Song Xinghuai to be beheaded at noon tomorrow."

"Then Father, did you say anything else?"

The young eunuch shook his head. "The Emperor and the Ninth Prince did not mention other officials. They only said that this was done by Song Xinghuai alone."

When the Second Prince heard this, he was not relieved. Instead, his heart rose to his throat. He ran to Concubine Shu's palace to discuss with her how to deal with the situation.

By this time, Concubine Shu had also received the news, and was now excitedly instructing the maids to put the gold, silver and jade articles that had been moved to the warehouse back in place.

The second prince looked at his mother at the door and closed his eyes in disappointment. "What are you doing, mother?"

Concubine Shu did not notice the Second Prince's abnormality, and happily stepped forward and grabbed his sleeve. "My son, I have received news that your father let Song Xinghuai take all the blame. This proves that your father values ​​you! He values ​​your grandfather! So you and I don't have to be so cautious. Come sit down and have a cup of tea!"

The palace maid brought a delicate teacup inlaid with gold and jade, and the second prince was so angry that he threw the teacup to the ground.

Concubine Shu was so frightened that she covered her lips and said, "My prince, what are you doing?"

The Second Prince looked at Concubine Shu and sneered, "Mother, are you so arrogant because you saw that your son was not punished by the emperor this time? Mother, have you ever thought about what you would do if your son... How would the emperor treat my grandfather's family?"

Concubine Shu stepped back in fear and suddenly fell on the golden chaise longue. "The emperor... the emperor also said that if... it's okay, right?..."

"Hmph, how many times do you think your son can escape? Do you think you are valued by your father? You are wrong, it is because your father does not want the world to laugh at him, saying that he has a corrupt prince!" The second prince was thinking, how could he have such a stupid mother who only held him back? Then he looked at the queen, they were both women in the harem, but she knew how to plan for the prince...

Concubine Shu was frightened by the Second Prince's words and broke into a cold sweat. She looked at the golden teacup on the table and found that she couldn't lift it up. The Second Prince finished his words, snorted coldly, and left.

In the evening, Song's wife asked to see Yan Liyuan, "I have met with the Lord Nine, and I thank the Lord Nine for keeping the secret today, so that I can keep a clean name and accompany my husband... I beg the Lord Nine to let me see my husband... to say my final goodbye!"

Yan Liyuan waved his hand and asked Wang Yi to make the arrangements. Song's wife kowtowed heavily on the ground, wiped her tears and went out.

In the dark cell, Song Xinghuai lay motionless on the ground. The wounds on his body were festering and he was running a fever.

When Song's wife saw Song Xinghuai, he was already a little confused due to the fever, and was twitching from time to time.

Song's wife wiped the sweat off Song Xinghuai's head with her sleeve. With the weak light, she found that Song Xinghua's lips were purple. "Master, what happened to you?"

Song Xinghuai thought he was hallucinating, and opened his eyes weakly, and saw his wife sitting beside him. He used all his strength to grab his wife's hand, "Madam, why are you here?"

Song's wife cried and grabbed Song Xinghuai's hand, "My husband, I will ask the 9th prince to ask the doctor to come and take a look..."

Song Xinghuai shook his head, "No need, I don't think my husband will survive this night..." As he said that, a mouthful of black blood spurted out of his mouth.

Song's wife was horrified and tried to wipe the black blood from the corner of Song Xinghuai's mouth with her sleeve, but was stopped by Song Xinghuai. "Madam, please stop. I'm poisoned. Don't pass it on to you anymore... cough cough!"

Song's wife cried and shook her head, "When did the master get poisoned? Could it be... the Nine Thousand Years Old?"

Song Xinghuai laughed at himself. "It's not the Ninth Prince, it's the Second Prince..." Song Xinghuai closed his eyes and thought about his past. "I pretended to be poor all my life, and made my wife poor all her life, and she didn't even have a good meal... Finally... Finally, someone did such a cruel thing, and my wife suffered because of my husband..."

Song's wife wiped her tears. "Master, what nonsense are you talking about? Master is the best husband in the world!"

Song Xinghuai wanted to wipe away the tears from his wife's eyes, but his hand dropped halfway.

Song's wife called him softly a few times, but seeing that Song Xinghuai did not respond, she used her trembling fingers to check his breathing, and felt a chill under his nose.

Song's wife hugged Song Xinghuai and cried bitterly. The guard wanted to go forward to check, but was stopped by Wang Yi.

After a long while, Song's wife wiped the blood off Song Xinghuai's face with red eyes, tidied her own appearance, and slammed her head against the wall of the dark room.