First annul the engagement, then sever ties with the empress; the empress reigns supreme.

If the mother and son turn against each other, this could be used as a weapon to attack Mu Lingxuan.

Ning Hanshuang nodded in agreement.

Gu Junxi then asked if there was any news about Mu Lingye and Mr. Suxin.

Ning Hanshuang shook her head dejectedly, holding Gu Junxi's hand: "Xixi, His Highness has only been gone from the capital for a short time, so it's understandable that there's no news. But... your master has been gone from Medicine King Valley for so long, and there's still been no news of him, I'm afraid..."

Ning Hanshuang didn't say the words "more bad than good," but Gu Junxi guessed it. Gu Junxi actually had a vague idea about Mr. Suxin in her heart as well.

If nothing goes wrong on the way, the master's journey should have been completed ten days ago.

“Mother, it’s alright. I was prepared for this. Not only for myself, but also for A-Ling and Little Sister, I will definitely find a way to break this Gu worm as soon as possible.”

"Yes, Mother believes in you." Ning Hanshuang patted Gu Junxi's head.

Ning Hanshuang left and never returned to the Prince Xuan's residence. Mu Lingxuan, on the other hand, would come over for meals almost every morning and occasionally in the evening, but he never did anything inappropriate.

Until that day, when he left, he said to Gu Junxi with tenderness, "Xixi, you don't need to be so wary of me. We have a long time together, and I will make you accept me again."

Gu Junxi did not respond.

She only learned about it from the guards after Mu Lingxuan left.

As long as she doesn't leave the Prince Xuan's residence, Mu Lingxuan allows her to wear a veil and move freely throughout the residence.

Being able to move freely within the mansion was a good thing for Gu Junxi.

Even if Ning Hanshuang doesn't come, she can still learn about the outside situation through the servants in the mansion.

When Mu Lingxuan wasn't around, Gu Junxi would spend all her time researching methods to break the curse, and she would walk around the mansion after meals every day.

Within just a few days, everyone in the manor knew that their Prince Xuan had added a new concubine to his harem after getting rid of Gu Juntang.

Moreover, they were extremely protective of this newcomer, assigning guards to protect her daily.

This newcomer was also extremely mysterious; she walked around the mansion every day, yet no one had ever seen her true face.

For several days in a row, she moved around the mansion without incident, and Mu Lingxuan became less wary of her. The servants in the mansion also went from being curious at the beginning to getting used to it.

Gu Junxi was walking around the mansion as usual when she saw servants arranging red silk in the distance. Curious, she asked them a question.

The maid looked at Gu Junxi with even more respect: "Does Your Highness not know yet? The imperial decree to establish Consort Li as Empress has been issued, and the coronation ceremony will be held in ten days. From now on, His Highness Prince Xuan will be the legitimate heir."

Of course, what followed was left unsaid, but everyone understood.

Gu Junxi understood why the maid was more respectful to her; after all, the Crown Prince's woman was naturally more noble than the Prince's woman.

If Ah Ling knew that Consort Li had become Empress, he would be heartbroken. After all, this was the position of his mother.

Gu Junxi frowned and unknowingly walked to the lakeside in the backyard.

The lake is next to an artificial hill. It's a secluded spot, and very few people walk this path.

The two guards who had been following her disappeared in the blink of an eye. Taking a rare moment of freedom, Gu Junxi used her lightness skill to fly up the artificial hill. Standing on the high ground, she discovered two people pulling at each other behind the rocks.

One of them left a deep impression on Gu Junxi—the old woman in charge of sweeping in the mansion, who had a scar on her face, always kept her head down, and wasn't very good-looking.

Every time I encountered this old woman, she was always respectful and quiet, to the point that she was practically invisible, not the type to get into conflicts with anyone.

Curiosity flashed in Gu Junxi's eyes. She used her lightness skill to leap down and hide in the shadows.

The sound came from that direction.

"Ah Rong, you should take my advice and leave. Now that she has regained her status and is about to become Empress, if she discovers your existence, you won't be as lucky as you were last time."

"But I don't want to leave yet. It wasn't easy for me to stay by his side. I haven't even seen him get married yet."

"You still want to wait until Prince Xuan gets married? You're really crazy. It's fine if you're crazy, but don't drag me down with you. You know how ruthless Consort Li is. Do you want to go through what happened twenty years ago again? Come on, I'll take you away from the manor right now."

The two old women started pulling at each other.

Gu Junxi also extracted key information from their conversation.

After understanding the meaning behind those words, a look of shock flashed in Gu Junxi's eyes.

If her analysis was correct, the old woman with the scar on her face came to the Prince Xuan's mansion because of Mu Lingxuan; she had some special feelings for Mu Lingxuan.

This kind of emotion made Consort Li very wary, and she might even kill her.

Because of this sentiment, twenty years ago, Consort Li had already tried to kill this scarred old woman once.

Twenty years ago was the year Mu Lingxuan was born.

A sudden inspiration struck Gu Junxi, and her eyes lit up.

Suddenly, they found the possible reason for the conflict between Mu Lingxuan and Consort Li.

She stopped hiding and walked out from the shadows to the two old women.

When the two old women saw someone suddenly appear, they turned pale with fear and, with a hint of cunning, bowed to Gu Junxi.

Gu Junxi stared at the scarred old woman and went straight to the point: "I heard everything you said. Tell me, why did you want to wait until Mu Lingxuan's wedding before leaving the Prince Xuan's residence? Why did Consort Li try to kill you after learning of your existence? What exactly happened twenty years ago? What is your relationship with Mu Lingxuan?"

Upon hearing this, the two old women exchanged a glance, then knelt down before Gu Junxi and pleaded, "Master, we don't know what you're saying, we don't understand, please spare us."

"Let them go?" Gu Junxi shook her head: "No one is leaving until you explain yourselves clearly today."

Seeing that pleading was useless, the old woman who had been advising the scarred woman to leave looked up and began to persuade Gu Jun, though it was actually a threat.

"My lord, this old servant advises you not to get involved in this matter. Otherwise, the Imperial Concubine will not let you off the hook. You are currently favored by His Highness Prince Xuan and have a bright future ahead of you, so why get involved in these unknown storms?"

Gu Junxi said, "I just love taking risks. If you two refuse to confess, I'll take you to the palace to see the Imperial Concubine right now. I'm not bluffing, I really do have that ability."

To increase her credibility, Gu Junxi removed the veil from her face.

Gu Junxi used to frequent the Prince Xuan's residence, so there were very few people in the residence who didn't know her.

The old woman who had threatened Gu Junxi immediately recognized Gu Junxi's identity.

She stared at Gu Junxi's face in shock: "You are the Crown Princess... how could you become His Highness's woman!"