Li Yan had not expected that his few words would anger his Imperial Father to the point of a heart attack.

After seeing his Imperial Father being hastily helped away, Li Yan panicked.

He was resentful, yes, but only because his father couldn’t treat his sons equally. He had never, from start to finish, wanted to anger his Imperial Father to the point of harming him.

He climbed up from the floor and, leaning on his crutch, walked toward the adjacent room.

As he passed by Prince Zhao, Li Yan paused.

He said viciously, "I will remember this debt for you killing my mother. Sooner or later, I will make you pay with your blood."

Li Ji didn’t even spare him a glance.

Li Yan limped out, leaning on his crutch.

Li Ji walked to the side of the bed and looked down at Consort Liu, who was covered by a white sheet.

Two old nannies stood guard beside her, their hearts pounding in fear. They stared at Prince Zhao without blinking, terrified that he might do something terrible to Consort Liu’s body in a fit of rage.

Just then, they heard Prince Zhao speak coldly.

"Search her."

The two old nannies froze.

’Search her? Search who?’

Li Ji glanced sideways at them and asked impatiently, "What are you standing there for? Check if the Imperial Concubine has anything hidden on her."

Only then did the two old nannies snap out of it.

They scrambled forward and began to clumsily search Consort Liu’s body.

Soon, they found a small porcelain bottle in Consort Liu’s sleeve.

Li Ji had someone summon an Imperial Physician.

The Imperial Physician examined the small porcelain bottle and confirmed it was a container for crane crown red.

The two old nannies scrambled off to report this news to the Emperor and the Fifth Prince.

But Li Ji had already departed Lingxue Hall without a sound.

He made a trip to the Judicial Department.

"I want to see Zijuan."

Ying Shizheng looked troubled. "Your Highness, you’re a step too late. Zijuan smashed her head against a wall and died about the time it takes to drink a cup of tea ago."

To prove he wasn’t lying, he even had someone bring out Zijuan’s body for Prince Zhao to inspect.

Li Ji looked at the bloody hole in Zijuan’s forehead.

To have made such a large gash proved that she had been truly determined to die when she hit the wall.

First, Consort Liu committed suicide by poison, and right after, Zijuan killed herself by smashing her head against a wall.

This was far too much of a coincidence.

Li Ji looked up at Ying Shizheng.

He could clearly hear Ying Shizheng’s thoughts—

’Of all the times to die, why did this palace maid have to pick now? How am I supposed to explain this to my superiors?!’

’It seems this Ying Shizheng is not in on it.’

Li Ji said coldly, "Someone died right under your nose. Is this the extent of your competence?"

Ying Shizheng lowered his head resentfully. "This humble subordinate was wrong."

The Emperor would deal with this matter. Li Ji couldn’t be bothered to waste any more words and simply turned and left.

「Inside Lingxue Hall.」

After the Imperial Physician’s treatment, the pain in the Emperor’s chest gradually subsided.

He sat up with Zuo Ji’s support and looked at the two old nannies kneeling on the floor.

"You said you found evidence of Consort Liu’s suicide?"

The two old nannies presented the small porcelain bottle for the Emperor to inspect.

An Imperial Physician beside them explained that it was indeed a container for crane crown red.

Li Yan refused to believe his mother would commit suicide for no reason.

"Perhaps Prince Zhao killed my mother and then planted this bottle in her sleeve."

One of the old nannies had a hesitant look on her face, as if she wanted to speak but didn’t dare.

The Emperor said, "If you have something to say, say it. Regardless of whether you’re right or wrong, as long as you tell the truth, We will pardon you."

Only then did the old nanny dare to speak.

"After the Imperial Concubine was poisoned, this servant stayed by her side. This servant personally heard the Imperial Concubine tell Prince Zhao that someone named Zijuan forced her to drink the crane crown red..."

She then recounted the conversation between Prince Zhao and Consort Liu word for word.

When he heard that Consort Liu had willingly taken the crane crown red just to save him, Li Yan felt the world spin, and he staggered backward.

Fortunately, an Imperial Physician next to him quickly reached out and steadied him.

"Mother, Mother..."

Tears streamed from his eyes.

Li Yan threw aside his crutch and stumbled toward the adjacent room.

He rushed to his mother’s bedside and fell straight to his knees.

His knees slammed onto the white jade floor with a heavy, muffled THUD.

As if he couldn’t feel the pain, he kowtowed forcefully toward his mother.

Tears dripped down his cheeks, hitting the floor in silence.

"Mother, your son has been unfilial! It was I who caused your death!"

...

After leaving the Imperial Palace, Li Ji didn’t return directly to the Prince Mansion. Instead, for the first time in ages, he went to the Duke Zhen Country Mansion.

When the gatekeeper saw that Prince Zhao had returned, he wanted to stop him but didn’t dare. In the end, he could only watch with a trembling heart as the Prince strode over the threshold of the Duke Zhen Country Mansion.

Li Ji ignored the terrified looks of everyone in the mansion and walked straight into the Buddhist hall where Duke Zhen’s memorial tablet was enshrined.

The place was clearly cleaned daily; both the floor and the incense table were spotless.

The memorial tablet was placed squarely in the center of the incense table.

Candlesticks flanked it on both sides, the white candles burning quietly.

In front of the tablet was a small incense burner.

Li Ji picked up three sticks of incense, lit them, and bowed three times toward the tablet.

The moment he placed the incense sticks into the burner, Princess Rouwan’s furious cursing echoed from outside the door.

"What are you doing back here? You’re not welcome! Get out this instant!"

Li Ji turned and saw Princess Rouwan walking in from outside.

She looked even thinner and more haggard than the last time he had seen her, but the hatred in her eyes was more intense than ever.

Li Ji watched her calmly.

"I just wanted to see Father."

Princess Rouwan spat with disgust, "What right do you have to see the Lord Duke? You bringer of misfortune! Just looking at you makes me sick!"

Li Ji stared at her, then suddenly asked a shocking question.

"Why do you find me so disgusting? Is it because I’m not your and Father’s child?"

Princess Rouwan’s expression froze.

Li Ji asked, enunciating each word, "Am I really Father’s biological son?"

In that instant, fragmented images suddenly surfaced in Princess Rouwan’s mind.

Back then, she had just married Duke Zhen. During the height of their newlywed bliss, she accompanied him to a banquet at the Imperial Palace, where her dress was accidentally soiled.

She was led to a remote room to change her clothes.

The Emperor happened to burst in at that very moment.

What happened next was irreversible.

Even though the Emperor later explained that he had been drugged, and even though he dealt with the woman who had tried to climb into his bed by drugging him right in front of her, what was done was done. She was no longer pure.

Crying, she composed herself and returned to Duke Zhen’s side.

Duke Zhen asked her what had happened.

She didn’t dare say anything, only cried and cried.

After returning home, she wanted to pretend nothing had happened.

But it was as if the heavens were deliberately playing a cruel joke on her—she became pregnant.

To others, a child is a gift from heaven.

But to Princess Rouwan, it was evidence of her lost virtue, a cruel reality she would rather die than face.