Marry my elder sister? Fine! I'll give you the letter of annulment and marry someone else.

Huanpei hung her head in pity, not knowing how to begin. After a long pause, she whispered, "Your Majesty, do you still remember the dangerous childbirth of the late Empress?"

"I remember."

The emperor spoke in a deep voice, and everyone knew that Huanpei was not saying this to reminisce with the emperor.

He waited quietly for her next words.

Huanpei had a pale smile on her lips, and she could remember everything that happened at that time without trying too hard.

Such a clear scene is still vivid in her mind, and she can even seem to feel the warmth of the late queen's hand when she was barely breathing.

"The queen's fetus was in an abnormal position. She used up every last bit of her strength to ensure the little prince's safe birth."

"I know!"

The emperor was a little annoyed. He really didn't want to recall such painful memories.

Huanpei continued, "Does the Emperor still remember that the deposed Empress, the Imperial Concubine at the time, stayed away from the palace for nearly a whole year?"

In order to check and balance the court, the emperor began to take concubines to fill his harem soon after he ascended the throne.

The imperial concubine is one of them.

Unlike the former queen's stunning talent, the imperial concubine does seem rather ordinary, but it is precisely because of this ordinariness that she makes herself appear to have no ambition or aggression.

The emperor could confidently tell everyone that there was no one in this world who disliked the late queen.

She always takes everything into consideration and makes sure everyone can feel her warmth and kindness.

At that time, the imperial concubine liked to stay by the side of the late queen the most.

It is also because of this that the emperor always meets the imperial concubine when he goes to visit the late queen.

The imperial concubine was considerate and always kept a low profile. Over time, he also fell in love with her.

But just when the emperor had gotten used to this situation, the imperial concubine suddenly started staying indoors.

She no longer went to the Queen's Palace, nor did she take the initiative to visit the Emperor. Even if the Emperor remembered her and occasionally summoned her, she would decline on the grounds of being unwell.

At that time, the late queen had been found to be pregnant, and he devoted himself to her, so after being rejected several times, he never thought of this person again.

When Huanpei mentioned it again, his eyelids twitched and he suddenly had a bad premonition.

Huanpei said calmly, "Your Majesty, the reason why the imperial concubine behaved so abnormally is because she is also pregnant."

The emperor's brow twitched, and he unconsciously tightened his grip on the chair. "That's impossible. I sent the imperial physician to see her before, but the Imperial Hospital never detected any pregnancy."

What's more, it is simply a fantasy to hide such a big thing as pregnancy in the palace.

Huanpei said, "What if the late queen is willing to help her?"

"This is even more impossible. Why would she help the imperial concubine hide this from me?"

Huanpei smiled bitterly, "You are the Emperor, surrounded by good people. How could you possibly know the hardships of the harem? Before the late Empress gave birth to an heir, did you see a child born safely in the palace?"

"You mean the late queen..."

"of course not."

Huanpei quickly denied it, "How could a goddess-like person like the late queen do such a shady thing? It's just that where there are many women, there are endless intrigues. No one wants to give birth to the eldest son first. It was not until the pregnant one was the late queen that everyone tacitly agreed not to touch the child."

"Everyone loves and respects the late queen, who was kind and benevolent, from the bottom of their hearts."

The emperor's eyes were filled with nostalgia and reminiscence, as if he was recalling the time when the late queen was still alive.

Even if he didn't want to admit it, he couldn't deny that the women in the harem loved his queen more than him.

As long as it involves the matter of the late queen, even two old enemies can shake hands and make peace with each other and unite against the outside world.

The reason why the imperial concubine was able to often stay by the side of the late queen was that she had fought hard to get her place.

The emperor tried hard to remain calm. He knew Huanpei didn't have the courage to lie to him, and there was no need for her to tell such a lie again after more than ten years.

"So, where's the baby?"

After asking this question, Huanpei fell silent.

Tears welled up in her eyes as she spoke of another incident, "Not long after the late Empress passed away, I and the former head of the Imperial Hospital both died suddenly. We died suddenly because someone wanted to silence us."

The emperor said in a low voice, "Is it the imperial concubine's child that the former head of the Imperial Hospital was responsible for?"

"Yes."

Huanpei nodded. "After the head of the Imperial Hospital discovered that the Imperial Concubine was pregnant, she went to the late Empress that night to beg for mercy. She was afraid that the child she had finally conceived would be killed, so she asked the late Empress to help her conceal the pregnancy."

"But it wasn't until I successfully delivered two children that I realized she had no intention of making the children public."

"The Imperial Concubine..."

"The two children were switched."

Huanpei said the last few words almost with tears in her eyes. After she finished speaking, she collapsed to the ground with an expression of indescribable regret on her face.

"I was lucky enough to escape death. I wanted to go to the palace and expose her, but by the time I recovered, she had become the queen and sent people to hunt me down. To save my life, I had no choice but to flee far away."

After the words fell, the only sound left in the hall was Huanpei's low sobbing.

The emperor stood up and stepped back suddenly, as if hit by an invisible force.

The shock surging in his heart leaked out inadvertently, his body trembled, and his hands clenched into fists unconsciously.

“Change… change…”

The knowledge that he had never doubted was suddenly overturned, and his whole mind felt a buzzing sound and fell into chaos.

Huanpei said, "The Imperial Concubine exchanged her own child for the child of the late Queen, and the late Queen's child was sent out of the palace."

The emperor opened his mouth but could not make any sound. Mu Qinghan... Mu Qinghan was not his and the late queen's child!

But it’s the child of that bitch Imperial Concubine!

No wonder his late queen was so stunningly beautiful, while Mu Qinghan was so mediocre and stupid.

He stumbled over to Huanpei and said, "Everything you said is true!"

Huan Pei said, "I guarantee with my entire family's lives that I will not lie a single word."

She continued, "The late Queen's sister didn't enter the palace willingly. She never intended to replace the late Queen. The wine in your glass was drugged by the Imperial Concubine. The Imperial Concubine never targeted Mu Qinghan. Everything was the Imperial Concubine's scheme. Only if you completely despise the late Queen's maternal family would no one care that Mu Qinghan doesn't look like the late Queen's family."

The emperor asked, "What about the child I had with the late queen? Where is he?"

Huanpei looked sad, "He has always been by the emperor's side."

She has always been by his side and looks about 60% similar to the late queen, so the answer is obvious.

The emperor's body was stiff, his eyes filled with confusion and astonishment.

He froze like a sculpture for a few seconds, then began to tremble uncontrollably, spreading from his fingertips to his entire body.