Zhan Qingcheng’s gaze softened even further in that instant.
He looked down at her; though neither of them made any overtly intimate gesture, the air between them was thick with an unmistakably intimate atmosphere.
Even just a single word, a single glance, or the faintest curve of a smile at the corner of his lips carried a rippling warmth of tenderness.
“I’m sorry you had to suffer.” He had even given Mu Mu his word that he would keep her safe.
Although she was indeed safe now, she had endured so much suffering, gone through so much hardship.
His gaze moved past Feng Jiu’er and landed on Zhan Luoyi.
Zhan Luoyi lowered her head. “Ninth Imperial Uncle, I have not failed the task entrusted to me.”
“Mm.” Zhan Qingcheng nodded, his gaze then drifting back to Feng Jiu’er.
Jiu’er, however, found herself a little confused. What did the Seventh Princess mean by that? Could it be that Ninth Imperial Uncle had specifically instructed the Seventh Princess to protect her?
No wonder the Seventh Princess had made a special trip to the dungeon last night, staying by her side nearly until dawn.
At the crack of dawn, the Seventh Princess had originally intended to go to the palace and plead her case to the Emperor, but never expected the Empress to move up her execution date instead — so the Seventh Princess had immediately rushed back over with her men.
So Ninth Imperial Uncle had already arranged for someone to protect her within the palace before he’d even left. He was truly, truly too good to her!
If not for all these unrelated, eyesore-worthy bystanders crowding the place, Jiu’er genuinely felt the urge to throw herself at him and hug him tight.
Still, that urge could only stay just that — an urge. With so many people watching, how could she possibly do something so shameless?
Besides, Ninth Imperial Uncle’s waist was certainly not something to be hugged carelessly.
The thing was, why did it keep feeling like she’d already gotten her arms around that alluring waist and those alluring legs of his at some point before?
“Ninth Imperial Uncle, it’s not safe here. Why don’t we let everyone go outside first?”
Amid a sea of anxious, hopeful stares, Jiu’er finally remembered to get to the actual point. “Ninth Imperial Uncle, you’ve damaged the load-bearing pillars — this place could collapse at any moment.”
At the word “collapse,” Emperor Qiwen’s knees went weak, and the ministers’ hearts all gave a violent lurch as well!
At long last, Zhan Qingcheng finally nodded. “Fine.”
Whew… the collective sigh of relief was so audible. Everyone’s reverent fear of Ninth Imperial Uncle had reached this extent!
Honestly, there were moments when Jiu’er felt a touch of pity for the current Emperor. Being an emperor reduced to this state — where anyone could threaten him, anyone could lose their temper at him — was simply too pathetic.
The whole group finally made their way out of the main hall, though Zhan Qingcheng showed no intention of leaving just yet.
Everyone knew exactly what he was waiting for; for now, all they could do was keep waiting along with him.
The young eunuchs brought out chairs for everyone, and Emperor Qiwen sank into his, his entire body limp and drained of strength.
No one knew how long had passed before the Chief Eunuch came hurrying back to report. “Reporting to Your Majesty, reporting to the Ninth Prince — the edict deposing the Empress has been read aloud. However, the Empress… Consort Rong, as she now is, is still unconscious and has not yet formally received the edict.”
A wave of icy menace instantly radiated off Zhan Qingcheng’s entire body; everyone immediately trembled in fear again, not daring to so much as breathe.
But the Empress… no, Consort Rong now!
Word had already gotten around that Consort Rong had been injured by the Seventh Princess earlier. Though most people had no idea what Nanmeng Rong had gone through afterward, if her injuries truly were severe, it wouldn’t be strange at all for her to still be unconscious by now.
In any case, the edict had already been issued — there was no turning back from this now. Even if the Emperor were to consider restoring her status as Empress at some point in the future, that would be a matter for another day.
For now, the Ninth Prince had at least achieved his goal — he shouldn’t have any reason left to be angry.
Jiu’er gave Zhan Qingcheng’s sleeve a gentle tug. “She fainted at Yuyang Hall. This time, her injuries really are quite severe.”
Jiu’er knew exactly what had happened afterward — there was no way Nanmeng Rong, as things stood now, was merely feigning unconsciousness to dodge this disaster.
Besides, with the edict already issued, there was nothing left to dodge anyway — there was no escaping it.
But this time, Zhan Qingcheng seemed to have made up his mind to see this matter through to the very end.
His icy gaze fell upon the Chief Eunuch, who immediately bowed his head low and asked, with the utmost care, “Y-Your Highness…”
“Send the edict deposing the Empress to the Nanmeng estate. Have Nanmeng Ye receive it personally,” Zhan Qingcheng said flatly.
At this, the Chief Eunuch genuinely found it hard even to breathe, as though he might suffocate at any moment.
Nanmeng Ye was Nanmeng Rong’s own father, with a temper just as arrogant as hers, looking down on everyone around him — he didn’t even hold the Emperor in any regard.
If he himself went to read the edict aloud, might Nanmeng Ye simply draw a blade and cut him down on the spot?
“Your Highness…”
“Mm?” Zhan Qingcheng narrowed his eyes, a dangerous glint flickering in their depths.
“N-nothing, nothing at all. This old servant… this old servant will go right away.” The Chief Eunuch, his face a picture of misery, still had to bow respectfully before hurrying off with a small retinue of men.
Emperor Qiwen remained slumped in his chair, gripped by a sense that nothing could be salvaged now. By this point, he found he no longer cared at all — let them carry on however they pleased.
After all, it wasn’t as though it was even his place to have an opinion on the matter anymore.
Once the Chief Eunuch had departed, Zhan Qingcheng finally walked over to Emperor Qiwen, his tone considerably less cold than before.
“Your Majesty, Mother is unwell. Your brother will go check on her first. Taking my leave.”
With that, without waiting for any response from Emperor Qiwen, he glanced back once at Feng Jiu’er and Zhan Luoyi, then turned and walked off.
Jiu’er and Zhan Luoyi each gave Emperor Qiwen a slight bow in turn, paying their respects, before following after Zhan Qingcheng.
The Feilong Shi’er Qi departed along with them; though the group wasn’t actually all that large in number, it nonetheless gave off an air of overwhelming might with ease — a clear testament to just how formidable their presence was.
A faint trace of unease lingered in Zhan Luoyi’s heart the whole way, though she couldn’t quite say what exactly she was uneasy about — she simply was.
Watching Ninth Imperial Uncle’s retreating figure ahead of her, she wanted to say something, but remembering that the Imperial Grandmother had been frightened earlier and that her current condition was still unknown, Zhan Luoyi could only gather her thoughts and decide to go check on her first before anything else.
Empress Dowager Ning’s chambers were exceedingly quiet, their furnishings modest and plain, yet remarkably clean, carrying a peaceful sense of years passed in quiet contentment.
The bloodthirsty, violent air that clung to the Ninth Prince faded by more than half the instant he stepped into this courtyard.
Jiu’er knew that her Ninth Imperial Uncle truly held this mother of his in genuine reverence and love; even if the two of them weren’t necessarily especially close, he loved her all the same, at the very least.
Empress Dowager Ning truly was a kind and good-hearted woman — just yesterday, in helping her escape, she had nearly been killed by Nanmeng Rong because of it.
Having dragged her into trouble time and time again, Jiu’er, too, badly wanted to go see how she was doing now.
So much had happened over the past two days, and she herself had just come back from a brush with death at the very gates of the underworld — otherwise, she would have come to see her long before now.
The group walked inside. Lian’er, who was attending to the Empress Dowager, looked up at the sight of Feng Jiu’er, her eyes filled entirely with wariness.
The moment she caught sight of Zhan Qingcheng, her eyes immediately welled up, and she rushed forward, her face full of grievance.
“Ninth Prince, you’ve finally come back! The Empress Dowager has fallen quite seriously ill this time — it’s all her fault!”
She pointed at Jiu’er, biting her lip. “She actually took the Empress Dowager hostage just to make her escape!”