Having many handsome men means no worries; pampering them all keeps me in good spirits.

Mo Ting's hands and feet were chained, his hair was disheveled on his face, and thick blood seeped from the corners of his mouth and between his fingers. His clothes were also torn in several places by the whip...

Meanwhile, Ming Lie, the Minister of the Court of Judicial Review, held a red-hot branding iron, about to brand Mo Ting's chest...

Jiang Qingyan nearly collapsed to the ground. In her mind, Mo Ting had always been an ethereal and untainted figure, but now, because of her, he had been dragged into the mire...

Hearing the door kicked open, Ming Lie frowned in displeasure and turned around, about to erupt in anger, but upon seeing Jiang Qingyan's face, he was so frightened that he immediately knelt down: "Your Majesty, this humble subject greets you. I wonder why Your Majesty has come to such a filthy place..."

Jiang Qingyan glared fiercely at Ming Lie, kicked him in the face, and roared, "Who gave you permission to use torture? Who in the court doesn't know that Mo Ting is my man? Have you lost your mind? How dare you treat him like this!"

Ming Lie was suddenly kicked to the ground by Jiang Qingyan, and he quickly knelt down again, his teeth chattering with fear. He stammered, "Your Majesty... this is the Empress Dowager's order... this humble subject is merely following orders..."

A flash of murderous intent crossed Jiang Qingyan's eyes, but she quickly regained her composure. Now was not the time. Ming Lie was the Empress Dowager's man; if the Empress Dowager found out she was so agitated, she might harm Mo Ting in the future…

"Untie his hands and feet. I want to take him back to the palace. The Empress Dowager has already agreed," Jiang Qingyan said coldly.

“Yes…” Ming Lie quickly took out the key from his body, put Mo Ting down from the rack, and then quickly helped him up.

Mo Ting had been tortured to the point of exhaustion and unconsciousness. Jiang Qingyan quickly instructed Eunuch Wang to send someone to carry Mo Ting to the carriage and rush back to Chaoyang Palace.

Before leaving, Jiang Qingyan glanced at Ming Lie, who was kneeling on the ground trembling, and coldly left behind a sentence: "Ming Lie, if you want your head to last a little longer, remember what you should say and what you shouldn't say, and... this world ultimately belongs to me."

Ming Lie nodded. He knew that the Emperor had now completely seized power, but as for the Empress Dowager… well, the Emperor was no longer the same as before, and would likely achieve even greater things in the future. If he were to switch sides now and pledge allegiance to the Emperor, he might still be able to save his entire family's lives…

Inside Chaoyang Palace, Lu Nian was pacing anxiously when he suddenly heard a commotion outside. He quickly opened the palace door and saw two eunuchs carrying Mo Ting, who was covered in blood, into the palace. Jiang Qingyan, standing to the side, was staring at Mo Ting with red eyes as she ran alongside him.

Lu Nian quickly stepped forward to help, assisting Mo Ting to lie down on the couch. He then looked up at Jiang Qingyan, asking worriedly, "Your Majesty... are you alright...?"

Jiang Qingyan shook her head, patted Lu Nian's shoulder and said, "I'm fine. Has Lvyao learned enough of the palace rules these past few days? Go and bring her back from the nanny. We need her here."

Lu Nian reached out and gently wiped away the tears from the corners of Jiang Qingyan's eyes, his eyes filled with heartache, and said softly, "Alright, Your Majesty, I will go and fetch Green Medicine right away."

After saying that, he strode away.

A moment later, Eunuch Wang brought a basin of hot water to the bedside and quickly handed over a handkerchief. Jiang Qingyan took the handkerchief and gently wiped the bloodstains from the corner of Mo Ting's mouth. Tears inadvertently rolled down Mo Ting's face.

She removed all of Mo Ting's clothes, carefully cleaned every inch of his wounds, and gently sprinkled healing powder on them. She only hoped Mo Ting would recover quickly; she would repay him a thousandfold!

"This servant... greets Your Majesty..." Led by Lu Nian, Lü Yao slowly entered the hall and bowed her head in greeting.

Upon hearing this, Jiang Qingyan quickly wiped away her tears with her sleeve, took a deep breath, calmed herself down, and turned to look at Lvyao.

Luyao was dressed in a light green female official's uniform, with a dignified demeanor, which suggested that she had learned the rules very well in the past few days.

Jiang Qingyan quickly got up and walked to Lüyao, took her hand, and whispered, "Lüyao, will you blame me for hiding my identity from you?"

Green Jade lowered her eyes, staring at the hands tightly held by Jiang Qingyan, and her face flushed slightly. She shook her head, "This servant doesn't blame Your Majesty. This servant knows Your Majesty has your reasons, and this servant is very happy now, as I can stay by Your Majesty's side forever..."

Jiang Qingyan smiled and stared intently at Lüyao's flushed face. "Lüyao, thank you. From now on, you only need to stay by my side. You don't need to do any other work in the palace. I just want to trust you. You won't let me down, right?"

Green Medicine's face flushed even more, and her heart pounded faster. The Emperor simply wanted to trust her…

Green Jade nodded excitedly, looked up to meet Jiang Qingyan's gaze, and said firmly, "This servant will serve Your Majesty wholeheartedly and be loyal to Your Majesty for life..."

Jiang Qingyan patted Lvyao's head with satisfaction, then took her hand and led her to the bedside. Looking at Mo Ting, who was unconscious on the bed, she said in a deep voice, "Lvyao, take a look at his injuries and see if you can heal him quickly?"

Green Medicine looked at the stunningly handsome man on the bed and knew in her heart that he must also be one of the Emperor's concubines. But why was he so badly injured?

She placed her fingers on Mo Ting's wrist, listening carefully to his pulse.

After a long while, Green Medicine slowly withdrew her fingers, her brows furrowing involuntarily. This person's pulse was so weak, almost like that of a living dead. It seemed that in addition to the external injuries, there were even more serious internal injuries...

Seeing the complicated expression on Lüyao's face, Jiang Qingyan felt a little uneasy and quickly asked, "Lüyao, how is he?"

Green Medicine sighed softly and replied, "Your Majesty, this man has suffered extremely severe internal injuries. I'm afraid there is only one medicinal herb in the entire world that can cure him..."

"What is it? I'll have someone fetch it from the Imperial Medical Bureau immediately!" Jiang Qingyan turned around and was about to call out to Eunuch Wang outside the door.

Green Medicine quickly stopped her, "Your Majesty, please don't be hasty. This medicine is no ordinary herb; it's the egg of a Tian Shan snow silkworm. There are only two in the world, which Father cultivated by chance. One is with me, and the other is with Father. However… I suppose it has already been taken away by the King of Xia…"

Jiang Qingyan looked at Lüyao expectantly and said excitedly, "Lüyao, I knew you had a way! Then hurry up and take out the Snow Silkworm!"

Green Medicine lowered her eyes and said, "But the snow silkworm in my hand is male, while Father's is female. They need to be placed together overnight for it to lay eggs..."

Upon hearing this, Jiang Qingyan slumped onto the couch, her voice trembling, "So, without the Snow Silkworm Egg, Mo Ting will die soon... I killed him with my own hands..."

Seeing the Emperor so grief-stricken, Lvyao couldn't bear it. She gritted her teeth and said, "Your Majesty, perhaps there is still a glimmer of hope."

Jiang Qingyan suddenly looked up, a glimmer of hope igniting in her eyes, "Speak quickly!"

Green Medicine hurriedly said, "This servant has taken Snow Silkworm Eggs before, so my blood must have the medicinal effects of the Snow Silkworm Eggs. Although it cannot completely replace the effects of the Snow Silkworm Eggs, it may be able to temporarily keep this young master alive."