Help! The cunning and treacherous minister and I were reborn together!

"Yes?"

"Ah."

Su Zhi immediately guessed, "Did Pu Hong give it to you?"

Xiao Zong nodded, "He probably feared His Majesty would kill him, so after entering the palace he presented the blueprints and revealed his identity as a prince."

"It's not a scam, right?"

"Who is His Majesty? He would never give him a chance to cheat. He prepared a letter of state long ago and forced him to sign it. Now, the Southern Frontier City of Cyathea is part of the Great Qi territory!"

Su Zhi felt relieved and shared the results of her investigation with her.

“I just went to the Marquis of Changping’s residence. My grandfather said that the mastermind behind this might be…”

Before she could finish speaking, Xiao Zong covered her mouth, her bright eyes staring at him with a mixture of innocence and annoyance.

Why didn't you let her finish speaking?

"guessed."

His Majesty is discerning and, knowing that Jiang Rou and Pu Hong are both from the Southern Frontier, immediately thought of General Zhao, the Empress's elder brother, who is stationed in the Southern Border.

The moment he ordered the investigation into Jiang Rou's death to be stopped, Xiao Zong knew who the murderer was.

As the mother of a nation, she should still be given the dignity she deserves.

Su Zhi pried his hands away.

"Jiang Xin should be escorted to Xunyong Pass now. General Zhao is very experienced and shrewd. If she can't hold out, the situation will definitely reverse."

If Southern Xinjiang were to form an alliance with General Zhao first, and then use the pretext of Daqi detaining the Southern Xinjiang prince to attack Daqi, it would be another devastating tragedy.

"Don't worry." Xiao Zong stroked her chin and leaned closer to say, "Pu Hong is in the army. If there's no other way, we can use him as a bargaining chip."

All dangers will cease beyond the pass.

May the capital city enjoy lasting peace!

Behind him, Xiao Jianye rode up on horseback. Upon seeing Xiao Zong, he chuckled and reined in his horse.

"I thought it was too late, but when I saw you, I realized it wasn't."

Xiao Zong sat up straight and stared at him intently. "Brother, you are indeed too late."

Xiao Jianye ignored him, tilting his body to glance at the carriage, "Oh, sister-in-law is here too!"

Su Zhi nodded awkwardly, "Big Brother."

The man looked regretful. "Tsk, it's a pity you're pregnant, otherwise I really wanted to bring you along."

Take her with you?

Su Zhi blinked, then realized his identity and smiled knowingly.

This is a negotiation!

"Next time."

"Okay, next time!"

Xiao Jianye saw his younger brother's gaze fixed on his wife, clearly reluctant to part, yet pretending to be nonchalant, and he sighed deeply.

So much for love between parents and children!

"Why don't you two have another private talk?"

"What are you saying? It's time to go."

Xiao Zong lashed Xiao Jianye's mount with his whip, and the horse reared up and neighed loudly, charging away with the person on its back.

Amidst the rousing shouts and curses, Xiao Zong bid farewell gently.

"gone."

Before Su Zhi could respond, the man had already ridden away, leaving behind only a powerful and solitary silhouette.

It was all too rushed. She hadn't even asked if her body could handle such a long journey right after being detoxified.

Night falls.

A cold wind howled, and a chilly aura enveloped the entire Kunning Palace.

The emperor sat on a soft couch covered with fur, his eyes lowered in a sinister manner, as he poured scalding hot tea onto the ground.

Juice splattered onto her well-maintained hands. The woman frowned, her fingers gripping the hem of her skirt, and she raised her head.

"Your Majesty is so angry, why don't you pour the tea on me?"

"You think I don't want to!"

Li Kai smashed a teacup, shouting, "Zhao Shuo, how dare you collude with foreign tribes and undermine my court!"

"If you want to condemn someone, you can always find a pretext. Your Majesty says I did it, but do you have any evidence? Just because my brother is stationed at Xunyong Pass, you suspect our Zhao family of colluding with the Southern Frontier? That's a bit far-fetched!"

"Hmph, then dare you swear on our son? We'll say that you and your Zhao family have absolutely nothing to do with this matter, that it's all a frame-up. If there's any deception, may Li Heng never rest in peace in the afterlife, never be reincarnated. Do you dare?"

“What is there to be afraid of? I, Zhao Shuo, hereby swear that the affairs of the Southern Frontier are my responsibility, and that of Zhao…”

"Wait, wait, I was so foolish to test your loyalty with a dead man. Let's choose someone else, the eldest grandson, how about it?"

Zhao Shuo stared wide-eyed in disbelief, unable to believe that the man before her was the husband she had spent half her life with.

"How old is the eldest grandson of the emperor? Even if it is an oath, it should avoid being a prophecy. You killed your own son, wasn't that enough? Do you want to kill our grandson too?"

Li Kai was like a vengeful ghost, his pupils radiating a deep green light, relentlessly pressing forward.

"What, are you scared?"

He pulled out her phoenix hairpin, its pointed tip gliding across her cheek. "If you have nothing to hide, you have nothing to fear. How can I trust you if you act like this?"

Zhao Shuo clenched her fists, her breath coming in barely audible gasps, her lips trembling incessantly, as if she were making an extremely difficult decision.

After a long while, she gave up.

"Your Majesty, I surrender. Do as you please!"

"Your Majesty!"

A snow-white figure ran from the back hall, stumbled, and fell to the ground.

Li Kai reached for the sword at his waist, his face wary. "Who are you?"

The woman got up and crawled to the queen's side. When she raised her chin, she revealed a face that was not unfamiliar.

"Xing'er greets Your Majesty!"

Li Kai's eyes flashed with dark light. Since Yuan Rou's death, Xing'er had disappeared. How could she be in the Empress's palace?

"What exactly happened? Is Consort Yuan's death related to you?"

"Your Majesty, please allow me to speak." Xing'er wiped away her tears and said slowly, "The death of Consort Yuan has nothing to do with me, nor with the Empress. It was all the work of Imperial Noble Consort Wei! If it weren't for the Empress's protection, I fear I would not have escaped death as well. I beg Your Majesty to investigate thoroughly!"

"What does this have to do with Xueyao?"

Li Kai's eyes were indifferent; he wondered what other nonsense she could spout.

"To trace back to the source, we must start with the original mistress of this servant, Consort Zheng."

"Xiang'er?"

Xing'er nodded and said, "Consort Zheng, relying on the emperor's favor, was arrogant and ordered me to slap the eldest grandson of the emperor. When the empress sent people to Luanxiang Palace to question me, I was handed over by the consort. When I arrived at Kunning Palace, I thought I was going to die, but fortunately the empress was kind and gave me a chance to live."

Li Kai asked, "So you faked your death to escape?"

"Yes. The Empress's power is weak, and Her Majesty the Empress has to establish her authority in front of everyone in order to protect the eldest grandson of the Emperor. After I was tortured and fainted, Her Majesty the Empress placed me in a safe place and had the imperial physician treat me, which is how I survived."

"Then why did you go to Consort Yuan's palace again?"

"When I heard that Consort Zheng was having a difficult childbirth, I was anxious and wanted to see my mistress. But before I even reached Luanxiang Palace, I ran into Consort Yuan. She thought it was the work of a ghost, so she ordered her servants to capture me."

Later, I explained the situation to Consort Yuan, but she said that if I showed myself in public, I would surely be executed. Therefore, she instructed me to disguise myself as a newly recruited palace maid and see Consort Zheng off on her final journey.

Li Kai's patience ran out. "After all this talk, you still haven't gotten to the point. Do you want me to punish you?"

Xing'er prostrated herself on the ground, "Your Majesty, what you are about to say is too shocking. I have no evidence and dare not speak rashly."

"But it doesn't matter."

Xing'er swallowed hard and slowly raised her head. "Once, when Consort Zheng was drunk, she said in person that she and Commander Xiao had a past relationship."