Ping Zhao Lu

As night fell, the silver moonlight shone through layers of clouds and mist, sprinkling on the roof of the palace like mottled fish scales.

Chu Yunxiao raised his head slightly, glanced at the inky sky outside the window, gently pinched his eyebrows, then put down the letter in his hand and called Zhao Dequan.

"The Queen is ready to eat?"

Zhao Dequan's face showed an embarrassment, his lips moving as he hesitated to speak. "I was just about to report to Your Majesty that the Empress... was summoned to the Cining Palace by the Empress Dowager."

Chu Yunxiao's expression instantly turned gloomy, as if a storm was about to come. "What happened?"

Zhao Dequan quickly lowered his head and replied tremblingly, "Your Majesty, it was Young Master Rong, whom the Queen brought with him, who was poisoned. Rumors are swirling in the palace, saying that the Queen... is suspected of murdering Young Master Rong."

"You mean, it was the Queen who poisoned you?" Chu Yunxiao's voice was as low as the cold wind on a cold night.

Zhao Dequan was so frightened that he immediately knelt and kowtowed, "Your Majesty, please understand! Rumors are spreading everywhere in the palace. I dare not speculate!"

Chu Yunxiao glanced at him coldly and said, "Get up and follow me to the Cining Palace."

"Yes." Zhao Dequan stood up as if he had been pardoned.

Before leaving, Chu Yunxiao waved his arm to summon the secret guards, gave a few instructions in a low voice, and then set off for the Cining Palace.

At this time, the Cining Palace seemed to be shrouded in a layer of gloomy haze, and was filled with a depressing atmosphere of silence.

Queen Mother Jiang sat in the main seat, her face sullen. She stared at Xu Zhouye, who stood as straight as a pine tree below, and said sarcastically, "You've really grown up. You don't even bother to greet me."

"Your Majesty, your Majesty, is old, and her memory has probably deteriorated with the passage of time." Xu Zhouye remained calm and composed. "I paid my respects to you as soon as I entered the room."

Queen Mother Jiang's face was cold, "I didn't ask you to get up."

"What do you mean, mother?" Xu Zhouye frowned slightly. "What did I do wrong to make you so unhappy?"

"You're asking even though you know the answer!" Queen Mother Jiang shouted, her voice resonating like thunder in the Cining Palace. "You've only been Queen for less than two days, and you've already caused so much trouble. How can I trust you to manage the affairs of the harem when you're in this state?"

Qinghe, who was standing behind Xu Zhouye, gritted her teeth in anger when she heard these words, and the rage in her heart seemed to be about to burst out.

He wanted to rush forward and speak up for his master, but he knew that he was of low status and could not contradict the empress dowager.

Helplessly, he could only swallow his anger and pray silently in his heart, hoping that his master could fight back and save the situation.

"Mother, who caused this disaster is still unknown. You are so indiscriminately putting all the blame on me. Isn't it hard for me to defend myself?"

Xu Zhouye raised the corners of his mouth slightly, with a barely perceptible hint of sarcasm.

He slowly raised his head and looked directly at the Queen Mother, his eyes revealing a determination and indomitable spirit.

Queen Mother Jiang turned pale with anger at his words, but she couldn't refute him. She could only glare at him fiercely: "After all, you were the one who brought him into the palace and let him stay in your side hall. Now that something like this has happened, you, Queen, cannot escape the blame!"

Xu Zhouye smiled slightly, his tone still relaxed: "Mother, you are really special."

Queen Mother Jiang frowned.

"It's really embarrassing." Xu Zhouye said bluntly, "When something happened, instead of finding the culprit, you come and blame me. Isn't that embarrassing me?"

"Xu Jin!" Queen Mother Jiang's face was gloomy, and her voice was full of majesty. "You are too bold! How dare you contradict me so rudely! In this harem, it is not your turn to act recklessly. You may be the queen, but I am the queen mother!"

Xu Zhouye bowed and said solemnly, "I dare not do that. I only hope that your Majesty will see clearly and not accuse innocent people."

The Queen Mother snorted coldly, a cold gleam in her eyes. Just as she was about to open her mouth to refute, a loud shout came from outside the palace:

"The Emperor has arrived——"

Chu Yunxiao stepped into the palace and everyone bowed to him.

Chu Yunxiao glanced at the Queen Mother and Xu Zhouye, and said in a deep voice, "I think I came at an untimely time."

Queen Mother Jiang was the first to speak out: "Sheng'er, you came at the perfect time. Your good queen brought people into the palace, and when something went wrong, she tried to shirk responsibility."

Xu Zhouye's face was filled with grievance: "Your Majesty, I have absolutely no such intention..."

Chu Yunxiao raised his hand to signal him not to say anything more, then turned to look at the Queen Mother: "Then according to your opinion, how should this matter be handled?"

Queen Mother Jiang showed a smug look and pretended to be suspicious, saying, "Whether it was a deliberate frame-up or not, we'll know after checking the Queen's bedroom."

Chu Yunxiao pondered for a moment and agreed to the Queen Mother's proposal, "Let's do as you say." Then he looked at Xu Zhouye, "What do you think, Queen?"

Xu Zhouye pursed his lips tightly and remained silent, with a look of worry and concern on his face.

In Chu Yunxiao's eyes, it seemed as if he had suffered a great injustice.

At this moment, Xu Zhouye was thinking: Even if you search the sky and the earth, you won’t find the so-called evidence.

The reason why he could accept this incident so calmly was probably because Rong Yu'an had used this trick against him in his previous life.

The difference was that Rong Yu'an at that time used some tricks and directly relied on the Queen Mother.

The two conspired to plant stolen goods in his bedroom, and when they were found, he was already unable to defend himself.

Chu Yunxiao was furious and confined him to Fengluan Palace for a month. He also accepted the Queen Mother's advice and appointed Rong Yu'an as the King's Attendant and allowed him to live in Lanyue Pavilion.

He had thought that Chu Yunxiao would gradually become distant and indifferent to him during that month. Unexpectedly, this expressionless emperor would stay in his palace every now and then.

However, he did not treat Chu Yunxiao well at that time, nor did he understand Chu Yunxiao's behavior.

In his previous life, his attitude towards Chu Yunxiao was based on mutual benefit, and their relationship was neither too warm nor too cold, just like an ordinary couple who treated each other with respect.

Now that he thought about it, Chu Yunxiao really cared about him, but he was just not good at expressing it. Every time Chu Yunxiao punished him, it was usually mixed with personal emotions.

He would never have figured it out in the past.

Now that I think about it, it becomes clear.

Chu Yunxiao only gets angry for two reasons.

First, she blamed him for not being open-minded and ruthlessly pushing her away whenever she felt the budding of love. Second, she was annoyed that he was too naive and kept being plotted against by others, yet he remained indifferent.

Chu Yunxiao wished he could be more unrestrained and arrogant so that he would not be bullied.

"Queen?"

Chu Yunxiao approached him, frowned slightly, and said in a deep voice.

Xu Zhouye came back to his senses, raised his eyes to meet hers, then lowered his head unhappily, and replied unwillingly, "The Queen Mother and Your Majesty can make the decision. I have no objection."

Chu Yunxiao frowned. How could this mean there were no objections? Clearly, there were strong objections.

Seeing Xu Zhouye's bad complexion, Queen Mother Jiang's expression eased and she pretended to be kind and said, "Your Majesty, there is no need to worry too much. If this matter has nothing to do with you, I will clear your name."

Xu Zhouye sneered.

The innocence was restored, but the reputation was ruined.

The queen ended up having her palace searched.

If this gets out, people will laugh at you.

Besides, Queen Mother Jiang had already determined that he would suffer misfortune, and now she was saying these nice words only to demonstrate her so-called fairness and selflessness.

"Except for Fengluan Palace, the other palaces should be thoroughly investigated. Only in this way can justice be shown." Chu Yunxiao said nonchalantly, "Empress Mother's Cining Palace cannot be exempted either."