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

Gu Junxi said, "The first step is to thwart Consort Li's coronation ceremony, and then find a way to keep Qingyanzi in check. We must prevent Qingyanzi from making any rash moves before my master enters the capital, or rather, before I develop an antidote for the Gu poison. You also cannot touch the position of Crown Prince."

Doing this is actually buying time for Mu Lingye.

If Qingyanzi were to directly assassinate the emperor and seize the throne, and Mu Lingye were not in the capital, Mu Lingxuan would have a great advantage in becoming the new emperor.

Having lived through two lifetimes, Mu Lingxuan now has a clearer understanding of things.

He saw through Gu Junxi's thoughts and said, "I know what you're thinking. Xixi, I owe you so much, and I don't want to force you to be with me anymore. But I won't hand over the throne to Mu Lingye. I'm willing to compete with him fairly."

"I will not confront Qingyanzi directly until you have figured out the Gu poison. I will also stop the coronation ceremony. I will do this only to seek justice for my birth mother and for myself. Apart from that, I cannot agree to anything else you ask of me."

Actually, that's enough.

If Mu Lingxuan were to tell her that he would give up the throne, she might not feel at ease.

"Okay, then it's settled." Gu Junxi nodded in agreement.

The coronation ceremony was held as scheduled the following day.

Civil and military officials, imperial concubines, and a large group of people stood on either side of the altar, watching Consort Li, dressed in empress's robes, ascend the steps one by one to the front of the Altar of Heaven.

Consort Li accepted the incense offered by Qingyanzi, knelt and bowed three times and nine times, and then personally placed the incense sticks in the burner.

Having taken ninety-nine steps, she was about to take the final one and become the most honored woman in the world. Consort Li felt an unprecedented surge of excitement.

She had endured so many years of hardship in the palace to reach this position, and now her dream was finally about to come true.

Fang Shuli is the strongest!

Consort Li's eyes reddened; she was moved by her own actions.

"Wait a minute."

At this moment, a voice sounded.

Consort Li's heart skipped a beat. She turned her head and saw Mu Lingxuan, who was standing in the most honored position on the left, suddenly step out from the crowd.

Consort Li felt a throbbing in her temple and immediately had a bad feeling.

Ever since Mu Lingxuan left the palace that day, she had sent people to investigate those who had been close to Mu Lingxuan recently, but they found nothing.

She could only keep this matter to herself for the time being, intending to investigate it wholeheartedly after the coronation ceremony.

Unexpectedly, Mu Lingxuan suddenly spoke up to stop it during the coronation ceremony.

No one could stop her from becoming empress.

Consort Li frowned and scolded, "Xuan'er, how can you act so recklessly during such a sacred time as the Heaven-worshiping ceremony? Even if you had a disagreement with your mother over some trivial matters, you can't be so inconsiderate of the occasion. Alright, stand back now, lest your father really punish you."

Mu Lingxuan did not look at Consort Li, but bowed to Emperor Sheng: "Father, I have something important to report."

"Mu Lingxuan, what are you doing? Are you not listening to what your mother said?" Consort Li raised her voice, trying to intimidate Mu Lingxuan with her imposing manner.

Mu Lingxuan had already made up his mind, so how could he be scared off by a few words of reprimand from Consort Li?

He still didn't give Consort Li a glance, remaining neither humble nor arrogant: "Father, what I must say is that Consort Li is not my biological mother. Consort Li disregards human life and is unworthy to be Empress."

Upon hearing this, Consort Li felt a sharp pain in her temples and a sense of dizziness.

She gritted her teeth, and now she could only pretend to be heartbroken and say, "Mu Lingxuan, you have disappointed me too much. How could you doubt your mother just because you listened to a few gossiping palace maids? If you are not my son, then who is your father? Do you have any evidence?"

“Mu Lingxuan, we are mother and son. If you apologize to your mother now, she can pretend that nothing happened today.”

Mu Lingxuan ignored Consort Li's words and simply looked at Emperor Sheng: "Father, I have evidence."

"Where is the evidence? Present it!" Emperor Sheng's face was grim. Even if he was incompetent, he understood that the royal bloodline could not be confused.

Mu Lingxuan took the initiative to reveal that Consort Li was not his biological mother, so he needed to find out who his biological mother was. He couldn't just raise someone else's son for nothing.

Moreover, this son was someone he had raised with his own hands and was the one he had chosen as his heir to the throne.

Consort Li's heart skipped a beat.

Then, on the left, the eunuch who had been keeping his head down raised his head. His face was aged, with a scar on it. She removed her hat, revealing a head of gray hair. She walked up to Consort Li: "Elder sister, do you still recognize me?"

"Fang Shuyan, it's you! How come you're not dead?" It's hard not to be terrified to suddenly see someone you thought had been dead for many years appear before you. Consort Li's face paled, and the incense ash in her hand fell to the ground.

Fang Shuyan glared at Consort Li with hatred: "Yes, you wanted to kill me. Killing me would have covered up the truth. But Heaven doesn't let the wicked go unpunished, so it let me live. I'm alive to expose you."

Fang Shuyan then pointed at Consort Li: "Back then, you couldn't have children yourself, so you tricked me into coming to the palace and used my aunt to blackmail me into taking your place in serving the Emperor. After I became pregnant, you took the child away and killed me, then dumped my body. Do you admit to all of this or not?"

"Your Majesty, you must do justice for me! Fang Shuli is a heartless woman!" Fang Shuyan knelt before Emperor Sheng.

Emperor Sheng breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing that Mu Lingxuan was still his son, but he was also furious that the two women had conspired to deceive him.

He frowned, disdainfully shifting his gaze from Fang Shuyan's aged face to Consort Li: "Consort Li, what do you have to say?"

Consort Li recovered from her initial shock and immediately knelt before Emperor Sheng.

"Your Majesty, you must do justice for me. Xuan'er is indeed the child I had with you. Don't believe Fang Shuyan's nonsense. The reason I was surprised that she wasn't dead was because she clearly died from a serious illness back then. I don't know why she's still alive and even says that Xuan'er is her child."

"I think she must have fabricated some story to deceive Xuan'er. After all, she is indeed my half-sister, and the lies fabricated by this body are indeed more convincing."

Consort Li is truly skilled at arguing. It makes sense, though; if Consort Li didn't possess genuine talent, she probably wouldn't have reached her current position.

Fang Shuyan kowtowed several times and took out the scar on Mu Lingxuan's foot and the old hairpin in her hand, but Consort Li rejected them both.

It was only after Mu Lingxuan found several old servants from the Fang family to testify that Consort Li was gradually driven to her death and stopped struggling.

She stopped pretending and glared at Mu Lingxuan with a ferocious expression.

"Why? Why did you choose this day to expose me? Even if I am not your biological mother, I am your adoptive mother. When I become empress, you will be the legitimate son, which will be beneficial to your future. Why do you want to ruin your own future?"

Upon hearing Consort Li's words, Qingyanzi's eyes narrowed dangerously, staring at Mu Lingxuan like a vicious snake.

Clearly, he had become suspicious of Mu Lingxuan.