Dethroned the Crown Princess? Then she became your mother

He thought over and over again, his lips moved several times, but in the end he couldn't utter a word.

Finally, he mustered up the courage and called softly, "Your Majesty."

Upon hearing this, Murong Shuo slowly turned his gaze towards him.

Eunuch An felt relieved, recalling the cold and indifferent look of His Majesty when he called out to her at the beginning of the night, and he couldn't help but feel secretly relieved.

"It's already early morning." Eunuch An said softly.

Murong Shuo stared at him, then looked away. His slender fingers reached into his arms and took out an exquisite purse.

In the flickering candlelight, he gently stroked the lines on the purse, and put it away after a moment.

The image of the woman's finger pricked by a needle appeared in his mind, and Murong Shuo took a step forward involuntarily.

Seeing this, Eunuch An thought that His Majesty was about to leave, but unexpectedly he stopped after taking a few steps.

He noticed the purse in His Majesty's hand. It was of a simple style and he had never seen it before. He secretly wondered about its origin.

"Take a rest." Murong Shuo said lightly, and then continued to walk out.

Eunuch An quickly agreed and trotted after him, but soon he could only watch the emperor's receding back.

For two consecutive nights, Murong Shuo did not visit the woman, even though her crying face kept appearing in his mind.

On the other side, Zhang Tianai was alone with Chunmei, and finally decided to ask Liu Ma to prepare some food and send it over.

However, the other party's response remained cold, and the deadlock between the two seemed difficult to break.

"Miss, Nanny Liu is here." Chunmei hurried into the room, interrupting Zhang Tianai's thoughts.

Zhang Tianai nodded slightly and motioned for her to come in.

"That person has woken up." Chunmei added. Both of them knew that "that person" here referred to the subordinate who was sent by Madam Liu to carry out a mission but fell ill.

Zhang Tianai knew that this move had made the other party dare not speak easily anymore.

"She didn't dare say anything more. It was all her own mistake." Chunmei said in a low voice.

Zhang Tianai nodded slightly, indicating that she could leave.

Nanny Liu had been waiting outside for a long time and asked with a gloomy face, "Where is your master?" Chunmei looked back without showing any weakness and led Nanny Liu into the house.

"Miss Zhang, the former Crown Princess." Nanny Liu was dissatisfied with the long wait and also had complicated emotions about her current situation.

And Zhang Tianai still maintains that calm and composed attitude.

Zhang Tianai was still pale and frail, with a somewhat sickly air. She said softly, "Madame Liu, you always miss me so much. My former status as Crown Princess is now a thing of the past. I am just Miss Zhang now."

"Why not just call her Miss Zhang?" Zhang Tianai responded directly.

Chunmei quietly stood beside Zhang Tianai, her eyes moving between Madam Liu and Zhang Tianai.

"Miss Zhang, did the emperor mention anything?" Nanny Liu asked cautiously.

Zhang Tianai nodded gently, her voice soft, "As soon as I came back, Aunt Liu rushed to see me. She has also shown concern for me many times before. I am truly grateful. I will always remember your concern."

Nanny Liu was left speechless by Zhang Tianai's directness.

After hesitating for a moment, she finally expressed her worries: "The Emperor seems to have some misunderstandings about you, so I'm naturally worried. Besides, if you don't let me serve you, can Chunmei handle it all by herself? Your Majesty has come here to pray for blessings, you..."

Having said this, she suddenly stopped.

Zhang Tianai smiled calmly: "It's okay, Ma'am."

"Miss Zhang, it would be best for you to stay here peacefully from now on. You don't need to go to His Majesty's place so frequently to avoid criticism. You were once the Crown Princess, and now acting alone will inevitably cause unnecessary misunderstandings. I hope you will be more careful."

Nanny Liu spoke earnestly, as if she had endless things to say after a long separation.

Zhang Tianai heard this and smiled, then asked teasingly, "Madam Liu, are you concerned about me or warning me? Who misunderstood me? The emperor himself didn't say anything."

"Also, when have you ever truly served me wholeheartedly?" There was a barely perceptible hint of resentment in Zhang Tianai's tone.

Upon hearing this, Chunmei looked at Zhang Tianai more intently.

Aunt Liu's expression changed slightly, and she hurriedly explained, "Miss Zhang, of course you can pray alone. It's your freedom."

At this time, there seemed to be some movement outside the door. It was the people sent by the ladies in the palace, who were quietly asking about their situation.

"The ladies in the palace are also paying attention to this matter." Nanny Liu added, appearing a little nervous.

Zhang Tianai responded calmly, "This is permitted by the Emperor. I reiterate that I have received both the warning and the concern. But please rest assured, Ma'am, I know my limits."

As she spoke, she picked up the cup beside her and put it down gently without taking a sip.

Nanny Liu's body trembled slightly, as if she was frightened by Zhang Tianai's aura.

"Madame Liu, you are always so nervous." There was a hint of helplessness in Zhang Tianai's words.

"I didn't!" Nanny Liu quickly denied it, but then she realized that she had spoken out of turn and actually referred to herself as "I".

Chunmei couldn't help but interrupt: "Mammy, you're calling yourself 'I' again."

Zhang Tianai smiled slightly, looked at Chunmei, then turned to Aunt Liu and said softly, "Aunt, please go back. I have my own arrangements."

Nanny Liu gritted her teeth and finally nodded helplessly, leaving the room with mixed emotions.

He muttered to himself, "Did the Zhang family ever care so much about every little thing in the past? After returning, they are even more arrogant, which makes people look askance."

As they stepped out of the door, Matron Liu spat from a distance.

Chunmei followed silently, but she was already thinking about how to report all this to Zhang Tianai.

Zhang Tianai thought about it and decided to mention the matter of Madam Liu to the emperor immediately to vent his anger and not to put it off until the future.

But then she thought, if the emperor still condones this trend, wouldn't her tears be in vain?

On the other side, Murong Shuo stood quietly in front of the Buddha statue, staring at the purse in Eunuch An's hand - it was given by a woman, but now he has ignored it.

Unexpectedly, Eunuch An presented it again.

His brows were furrowed, his displeasure evident in his expression.

"Your Majesty, this purse..." Eunuch An spoke cautiously, recalling how much His Majesty treasured the purse the night before, and now it was abandoned, his heart full of doubts.

Murong Shuo gave him a cold glance and signaled Eunuch An to hand the purse back.

Eunuch An was stunned, but he did not dare to disobey and had to obey the order.

Murong Shuo took the purse, examined it carefully, and put it away. He then instructed Eunuch An to deal with the reward for the former Crown Princess.

Eunuch An understood and was about to leave when Murong Shuo suddenly said, "Send a message to the Crown Prince as well."

Eunuch An secretly wondered in his heart, His Majesty's mention of the prince at this moment, could it be related to the purse?

He did not dare to delay and agreed immediately, but he was already thinking quickly about how to convey this message.

Inside the capital, Crown Prince Murong Shenxing was about to take action. The letter he had sent a few days earlier had fallen on deaf ears, and he had already decided to take action himself, but unexpectedly, his father suddenly sent someone to stop him.

His brow furrowed, his mind awash with doubts: How had the emperor known the contents of the letter? Could it be that Zhang Tianai had snitched? What were her motives? Why did the emperor favor that woman?

Murong Shenxing waved his hand to send away his father's envoy, and he already had a plan in mind.

"Brother Prince." Zhang Tianci walked over lightly. She had just received a secret letter from Madam Liu, informing her that her elder sister Zhang Tianai had returned to the mansion from the temple.

It suddenly dawned on him that Zhang Tianai had been meditating in the temple, and there were still many unsolved mysteries in her heart.

Crown Prince Murong Shenxing remained unmoved, so Zhang Tianci slowly told him everything he knew, using the excuse of concern for Zhang Tianai.

"Big Sister should have recovered, otherwise why would she be willing to leave the temple and return home?" She whispered softly, then added, "But is she really well?"

Upon hearing this, Murong Shenxing looked at her with complicated eyes, seeming to want to say something but stopping himself.

"Brother Prince, you don't look well. Is something bothering you?" Zhang Tianci asked with concern.

"Have you sent people to inquire? What did they say? Father even sent people to look for me."

Murong Shenxing pondered for a moment, mentioned his father's summons, but deliberately avoided mentioning the letter.

"How are my elder sister and father related again?" Zhang Tianci frowned, looking confused.

"I'm afraid he has done something despicable again!" Murong Shenxing said with a hint of helplessness in his tone.

"Big sister, please don't do anything out of line again, especially looking for those questionable men. We have to tell Father."

Zhang Tianci already had a plan in mind and wanted his father to thoroughly investigate the matter.

"Tell father?" Murong Shenxing also fell into deep thought, as if weighing the pros and cons.

Suddenly, Zhang Tianci suggested: "Perhaps, I can go and persuade the eldest sister?"

Murong Shenxing looked at her deeply without commenting.

In the temple, the next morning, Zhang Tianai did not deliver meals as usual.

She knew very well that the emperor did not care about such trivial matters.

In the temple, Eunuch An noticed that the meal time had passed. In the past, Zhang Tianai would always deliver the meals on time, but today she was nowhere to be seen.

At first, they didn't take it seriously, but as time went on and they confirmed that no one had delivered the food, the atmosphere began to become tense.

"As for Miss Zhang..." Eunuch An hesitated to speak.

Murong Shuo waved his hand gently, indicating that he didn't need to say more.

Eunuch An had no choice but to give up, but he secretly muttered in his heart that this sudden change seemed to foreshadow something.

Murong Shuo couldn't help feeling a little unhappy. She had insisted on sending it off before, but now she suddenly stopped. It was really confusing.

Another day passed, and the deadlock between the two remained unresolved.

Just as Zhang Tianai was thinking about countermeasures, the prince came in person.

This move undoubtedly makes things more complicated.