She mistakenly got into the bridal sedan chair and married a sickly but powerful minister, becoming

In the study, Prince Yu, dressed in a white robe, held a soft silk cloth in his hand, his eyes lowered as he wiped a gilded Buddha statue in the shrine, his expression very devout.

Only at this time is his heart at peace.

As he expected, Tan Rui was removed from his post.

Emperor Jing'an was warning him, and also warning his ministers who supported him.

But Tan Rui's fate alarmed the ministers who followed him.

Ignoring his repeated instructions, the ministers who supported him sent letters to Prince Yu's residence, saying that someone had heard rumors that Emperor Jing'an was secretly investigating those ministers who supported him, intending to gradually strip them of their power and replace them with others.

They all asked him what to do.

If Emperor Jing'an were to strip them of their authority and completely dismantle his power, he would be powerless to overthrow the Third Prince in the future.

Prince Yu wiped the Buddha statue until it was spotless, but his heart was still not at peace; instead, he became increasingly agitated.

He understood the implication of these ministers' words; they wanted him to strike first.

Prince Yu picked up an incense stick, preparing to light it.

With a "snap," one of the incense sticks in my hand broke.

Just then, a guard's voice came from outside the door: "Master, Madam Ling says that something has happened to Her Highness."

A chilling glint flashed in Prince Yu's eyes: "Bring her here."

"Yes."

The guards went to the front hall, carried Madam Ling to the study, and then left.

Madam Ling's face was ashen, her crown was askew, and her shawl was gone. Her collar and front were disheveled, as if she had just survived a near-death experience.

Looking at Prince Yu's expressionless face, she felt a chill run down her spine.

As soon as she entered Prince Yu's residence, a guard thrust a sword at her chest. If she hadn't said that the Imperial Concubine was in trouble and asked her to deliver a message to Prince Yu, that sword would probably have already pierced her chest.

It was at this moment that she realized that Prince Yu's warning was not just empty talk, but that his patience with the Ling family had truly reached its limit.

Thinking of this, Madam Ling felt a chill run down her spine. She knelt on the ground with a thud and said, half-truthfully, "Your Highness, when you sent someone to the Ling family to deliver a message, your uncle and I listened to you and returned all the orders we had."

"But two days before you sent someone to deliver the message, several large ships had already set sail. We wanted to stop them, but we couldn't. Your uncle and I carefully checked all the cargo on the ships several times and found no items that violated the laws of the Great Zhou Dynasty."

"Unexpectedly, the Third Prince is cunning and treacherous. He bribed the officials of the coastal garrison beforehand to falsely accuse our ship of carrying weapons. Anyone with eyes can see that this is clearly aimed at you."

"Having suffered such a great injustice, we dared not keep it a secret. We immediately sent someone to deliver a letter to Her Majesty, imploring her to ask the Emperor for permission to enter the palace today to explain this injustice to her in detail, so that she can make a decision to extricate the Ling family from this disaster and prevent it from implicating you and Her Majesty."

"Who would have thought that Xiu Dong, that traitor, was bribed by the Third Prince to poison the Empress."

“I was afraid something might happen to the Empress, so I swallowed my pride and went to the Gu family to beg Master Gu to give me a pill that could cure all poisons.”

At this point, Madam Ling, her hands trembling, pulled a porcelain bottle from her sleeve: "Your Highness, please quickly take this antidote pill to Her Majesty."

Prince Yu looked at the porcelain vase in Madam Ling's hand, but did not reach out to take it. Instead, he stared at her face.

Under Prince Yu's gaze, Madam Ling trembled uncontrollably. Just as she was about to collapse, she saw Prince Yu reach out his hand. Before Madam Ling could catch her breath, that hand suddenly grabbed her neck.

"Uh--"

Madam Ling felt as if Prince Yu was about to twist her neck off; she couldn't breathe at all and struggled desperately.

Prince Yu looked at Madam Ling with a chilling gaze, as if he were looking at a dead person: "Gu Zongci is no longer in the capital. If you dare to utter even a single falsehood, go to the underworld and plead your case with King Yama."

Madam Ling was terrified: "I...I'll talk..."

Prince Yu released his grip.

Madam Ling coughed violently. When she recovered, she caught a glimpse of Prince Yu's sharp gaze, which was filled with a terrifying murderous intent. She dared not hide anything and told him everything.

As she finished speaking, her face paled: "Her Majesty wanted to keep you in the capital to help the Ling family avert disaster. I figured that only if Her Majesty fell ill would the Emperor allow you to stay in the capital. In a moment of madness, I had Xiu Dong poison Her Majesty."

Before entering the palace, she had made two preparations. If Consort Ling was unyielding and determined not to care about the Ling family, she would have Xiu Dong drug Consort Ling.

Lady Ling was also afraid that if Consort Ling were to succumb to the poison while she was still in the palace, suspicion would inevitably fall on her. Therefore, she specifically chose a slow-acting poison and mixed it into the lily powder. In this way, even if the imperial physician examined her pulse, he would only diagnose that Consort Ling had been poisoned by food.

At that time, she would present the antidote to Prince Yu, saving Consort Ling's life and making Prince Yu grateful for her help, thus lending a hand to the Ling family.

Unexpectedly, Prince Yu saw through her thoughts.

She hurriedly explained, "If you give the Empress the antidote in time, she will be fine."