After being sentenced to death, she came to her senses.

Time flies, and the sweltering summer has arrived in the blink of an eye.

In the past few months, Fang Xiaoran has been trying to help Mo Wen regain his memory, but Mo Wen still can't remember anything. On the other hand, Tao An's condition has improved and he is no longer as uncontrollable as before.

However, we cannot have much communication with them and can only recover slowly.

As for Yinhe, there was still no news of him. Fang Xiaoran had been to the dark alley many times, but had not found out anything. According to what the dark alley said, there were differences in the mechanisms and secret passages. Perhaps he had already left through the mechanisms and secret passages.

If he left, why didn't he come back?

Putting everything else aside, isn't he worried about Jiamu?

Liu Ruyan has been much quieter lately, and she is rarely seen even at tea parties. According to news from her close confidante, Fang Yunyao is very close to her, perhaps because Xue Zhiming was recently dismissed from his post.

Fang Xiaoran already knew that Xue Zhiming was better suited for business than for politics, and it was already quite an achievement that he had managed to survive until now.

But this was undoubtedly a bolt from the blue for the Xue family. Lin Cuilan even came to see her, but Fang Xiaoran refused her every time.

She had done everything she could. It was Xue Zhiming's own fault for not seizing the opportunity, so how could she be blamed?

Lin Cuilan realized that Fang Xiaoran was unwilling to take over the matter, so she had no choice but to go to Liu Ruyan.

After all, they were once members of the Fang family, so their two families could be considered to have some connection. Naturally, Lin Cuilan couldn't let this opportunity pass her by.

Liu Ruyan didn't want to help, but when she thought about how the Xue family had risen to power because of Fang Xiaoran's help, and now they had to come to her for help, how could it not be a slap in the face?

So Liu Ruyan asked Prince Duan to find Xue Zhiming another sinecure, which made the Xue family extremely grateful. They treated Liu Ruyan very well, fearing that the previous incident would happen again.

Because of this, Fang Yunyao had no choice but to get closer to Liu Ruyan. Of course, the two of them had their own agendas and their motives were not pure.

Every summer, Emperor Zhao would take his concubines, ministers, and noblewomen to the summer palace to escape the heat. This year, Fang Xiaoran and Gu Yuqing were among them.

However, the Marquis and the old Marquis did not intend to go. Gu Yuming had important matters to attend to in the camp, and Jiang Yuke was unwell and unable to go. Therefore, only Fang Xiaoran and Gu Yuqing from the Marquis's residence went.

Of course, not everyone has this honor; for example, Liu Ruyan and Fang Yunyao are not qualified to go.

For this reason, Liu Ruyan locked herself in her room and sulked for a long time. But as angry as she was, she dared not speak carelessly about such things. If someone with ulterior motives overheard, it would affect more than just her.

"Why can Fang Xiaoran go, but I can't? Even if she is the young mistress of the Marquis's mansion, I am still the daughter of the Liu family. In the past, His Majesty valued the Liu family the most..." In a fit of anger, Liu Ruyan overturned the tea set on the table.

Hearing a cracking sound, the maidservant was startled and quickly came in to tidy up, comforting her, "The Liu family is not what it used to be, but things will gradually get better. Besides, there's nothing much to do at that summer resort."

"There's nothing particularly worthwhile to go, but Fang Xiaoran went anyway. What will others think of me?"

“Miss, you don’t need to keep comparing yourself to the princess. She is not like you.”

The maid's words were meant to comfort her, but unexpectedly, they struck a nerve with Liu Ruyan.

"Different? How are they different?!" Liu Ruyan suddenly stood up, her anger blazing even brighter. "She's just relying on the Marquis's power, while my Liu family... my Liu family..." She choked up halfway through her sentence, her chest heaving violently, her fingers gripping her sleeves tightly until her knuckles turned white.

Yes, the Liu family is indeed not what it used to be.

But now that they've boarded Prince Duan's ship, they'll make a comeback sooner or later, and then she'll see how arrogant Fang Xiaoran can be.

Fang Menghe has been absent recently. It is said that she stayed by Madam Lin's side all night because Madam Lin was ill, which made Madam Lin very happy.

Whether or not Fang Xiaoran went to the summer palace to escape the heat was of no concern to her. In fact, this was also a covert political struggle, but she could not refuse and had no choice but to go.

The summer palace was built at the foot of Canglan Mountain, nestled against the mountain and beside the water. Its green tiles and red eaves were hidden among the lush trees, and from a distance it looked like a fairy palace.

Fang Xiaoran sat in the carriage, her fingertips gently lifting the curtain as she gazed at the approaching palace complex, her expression indifferent.

There were quite a few people who came this time, but the imperial concubines did not bring many. Neither the Empress nor Consort Ning appeared. Only Consort Hui served Emperor Zhao the whole time. It is clear that Consort Hui unexpectedly rose to prominence, as the saying goes, "When two clams fight, a third party benefits."

Unfortunately, Consort Hui had no children, so the struggle for the crown prince had nothing to do with her.

Of course, if Emperor Zhao wished, he could also adopt one of his sons into her family.

In a previous life, the palace was besieged and attacked. Prince Duan led the rebel army in a night raid and massacred the palace.

That night, flames soared into the sky, and cries of agony filled the air. It was Zhao Jin who led reinforcements to rescue Emperor Zhao, thus gaining the emperor's trust and laying the groundwork for the future struggle for the crown prince position.

The reason why Prince Duan dared to rebel was because he had secretly created many poisonous people. These poisonous people were not afraid of death and could not feel pain. They tore at the flesh of the living like evil ghosts.

The defeat of the palace guards in the previous life was largely due to the sudden appearance of these poisonous people, which threw the imperial guards into disarray.

As for how Zhao Jin won the rebellion, it was mainly because of her. At that time, she used the Gu Spirit Secret Technique extensively for Zhao Jin, even at the cost of sacrificing her lifespan to pave the way for him.

Unfortunately, after Zhao Jin ascended the throne, the first person he held accountable was her.

Fang Xiaoran dug her fingertips deep into her palm, her eyes surging with bloodlust.

Soon, Fang Xiaoran calmed down. Thinking of those past events, she felt resentment, but she would not repeat the same mistakes in this life. Therefore, she made preparations in advance and secretly used Consort Hui's connections to get close to the eldest prince.

This time, she's going to give the eldest prince a big gift.

Rather than granting Zhao Jin's wish, she would rather send someone completely unrelated to her to that position.

However, she wouldn't interfere too much, at most providing some clues. As for how to deal with the poisoners, she had her own methods and would never harm herself like she did in her previous life.

The eldest prince initially did not believe it, but Consort Hui intended to adopt him into her family and push him to compete for the position of crown prince. He naturally had to seize such an opportunity. However, he was not stupid and believed everything Fang Xiaoran said. He had also secretly investigated and knew that Prince Duan was already getting restless, which reassured him to make preparations.

"What are you thinking about?" Gu Yuqing saw that she looked serious, as if she was thinking about something, so he waved his hand in front of her eyes. Fang Xiaoran suddenly came back to her senses, paused for a moment, and shook her head slightly. "Nothing, it's just that it's my first time coming to the summer palace to escape the heat, so I'm a little nervous."

"Really?" Gu Yuqing's eyes were smiling as he tapped the low table lightly with his fingertips. His tone was lazy yet meaningful. "To be honest, this is my first time too, and I might even be benefiting from your help this time."

As the carriage gradually entered the palace, Emperor Zhao, seeing that everyone was tired from the journey, let them go and rest. He then discussed state affairs with his ministers, while the women were left to Consort Hui's care.

Fang Xiaoran and her group lived in the Bamboo Shadow Courtyard, next to which was Wei Mingyue's Purple Bamboo Pavilion. Wei Mingyue did not like to attend such gatherings. Her father was seriously ill, and she wanted to stay by his side, but the old Duke insisted that she come.

The position of Duke of Rongguo has been handed over to Xie Changge. Now they can only rely on themselves. Even if Wei Mingyue dislikes socializing, she has to bite the bullet and do it now.

Fortunately, Fang Xiaoran accompanied her on this summer vacation, which allowed her to relax a bit and at least have someone to talk to.

As soon as Gu Yuqing returned to the villa, Xie Changge called him out. Seeing that he seemed to have something important to discuss, Fang Xiaoran didn't ask any further questions and let them go.

After tidying up, Ziju walked out of the room and looked at Fang Xiaoran, who was sitting in the courtyard enjoying the cool air, and asked softly, "Princess, it's getting late, why don't you rest first?"

"It's still early, I'll sit for a while longer." Fang Xiaoran smiled faintly, not intending to rest. Upon hearing this, Ziju stayed by her side.

At this moment, a palace maid entered the courtyard and respectfully bowed, saying, "Princess, Her Majesty requests your presence."