The Imperial Palace, the Princess’s bedchamber.

Bang!

Thud!

Crack!

Crashing sounds came from the inner chamber.

Inside the room, palace maids and eunuchs knelt on the floor.

Jing Xuan lifted an exquisite vase and smashed it heavily to the ground.

Another one shattered!

Her personal maid Cai’er tearfully pleaded, “Your Highness, please stop smashing things. Don’t hurt yourself. We servants beg you.”

“Get out!” she shouted. “All of you get out, out!”

“Your Highness…”

“Get out!”

Jing Xuan grabbed a crystal cup and threw it forcefully to the ground.

She had completely broken down. Since being confined, she had been smashing things almost every day. These items would be replaced after being smashed, only to be smashed again by her!

During this time, she hadn’t had a moment’s peace!

From her bedchamber, shouts and the sounds of things crashing to the ground often came in the middle of the night. But those palace maids and eunuchs dared not say much, only enduring this temperamental princess’s repeated outbursts of anger.

But today was different from before. Jing Xuan had never been this furious.

Because she was to be married off.

To the Third Prince of the Huyi Kingdom!

When she heard this news, she immediately smashed a jade bracelet in her hand to pieces. She had wanted to find her mother consort but was forcibly stopped and told she was not permitted to leave her bedchamber doors.

So her anger flared.

Regarding her marriage, Consort Xiao had been bringing it up to the Emperor repeatedly these past days, mentioning it over and over. The day before yesterday, the Emperor finally nodded, thinking his daughter should indeed be married off.

Thus, Consort Xiao began arranging her daughter’s dowry items one by one, preparing so much that it piled up throughout the entire hall.

Jing Xuan had originally overheard a conversation between her imperial brother and mother consort. She wanted to run and inform Father Emperor, but who knew her mother consort would be so heartless, keeping her confined until now. During this time, aside from being in her inner chamber, she had barely stepped outside even once. The only people around her were those same few maids.

She was already angry about being confined, and now, how wonderful—they directly notified her of marriage without caring whether she was willing or not.

Moreover, she wasn’t even marrying someone from Dalin, but a Huyi person.

So far away!

That also meant she would never return for the rest of her life, and would never again have a chance to expose her mother consort and imperial brother’s schemes.

Wasn’t that infuriating?

All those palace maids were driven out by her, and she slammed the door shut with a “bang.”

“Your Highness, please open the door.”

“Your Highness, please don’t be angry. What if you damage your health?”

“This servant begs you, please open the door.”

…

Jing Xuan leaned against that large door, looking at the chaotic mess of the inner chamber. Her body trembled faintly, and tears streamed down her face. She was indeed a proud and pampered princess, but she hadn’t done anything wrong. Why should Mother Consort treat her this way?

Wasn’t that infuriating?

She clutched her sleeves tightly with both hands, biting her lip, her face full of despair. At this moment, a ruthless determination suddenly formed in her heart…

The palace maids and eunuchs outside knocked on the door for a long time with no response.

At this moment, Consort Xiao arrived!

Seeing people crowded around the doorway, she was displeased and cleared her throat lightly.

Those people turned their heads and saw Consort Xiao’s stern, displeased face, and all knelt down.

“Greetings to Your Ladyship.”

Each kept their heads lowered.

“What happened?”

Jing Xuan’s personal maid Cai’er replied, “Your Ladyship, the Princess was greatly angered just now and drove all of us servants out, locking the door as well.”

Hmm?

Consort Xiao looked at the tightly closed door. “Why is the Princess throwing another tantrum?”

“Because…” The maid stammered.

“Speak.” A stern voice!

Cai’er, terrified, quickly replied, “The Princess learned she is to be married off, which is why she’s like this.”

“Absurd!” Consort Xiao was furious and glanced at Sang Lan beside her. “Open the door.”

“Yes.”

Sang Lan stepped forward and pushed on the door. Unable to push it open, she knocked, saying, “Your Highness, please open the door. Your Ladyship has come to see you.”

“…”

“Your Highness?”

It was very quiet inside.

Sang Lan turned back. “Your Ladyship, this…”

Thud!

Before she could finish speaking, a sudden sound came from inside.

Consort Xiao’s face showed alarm. She stepped forward and immediately ordered, “Break this door open for this palace.”

Her voice was extremely loud.

Only then did those palace maids and eunuchs realize what had happened. They all stood up and began ramming the door.

It opened with a bang.

What met everyone’s eyes was Jing Xuan’s body hanging in midair, swaying. A white cloth was wrapped around her neck, suspended from the ceiling beam, and her feet were still desperately kicking in the air.

“Xuan’er.”

Consort Xiao cried out, her face full of panic and worry, nearly fainting. Fortunately, Sang Lan beside her supported her.

The palace maids and eunuchs hurriedly brought Jing Xuan down from above!

Fortunately, she still had a breath of life in her, having only fainted.

Immediately, an imperial physician was summoned.

The imperial physician took Jing Xuan’s pulse for diagnosis, prescribed medicine, and said to Consort Xiao, “Your Ladyship, the Princess is out of danger. No need to worry.”

Consort Xiao nodded and quickly rushed to the bedside.

Jing Xuan was still unconscious, her entire face extremely pale. Seeing this, Consort Xiao’s heart filled with worry, tears fell, and she tightly grasped her thin hands.

“Xuan’er, how could you be so foolish? Mother Consort is doing this for your own good!”

Choking!

Heartache!

She silently kept watch by the bedside, never leaving.

Before long, a eunuch entered and bowed. “Your Ladyship…”

Consort Xiao wiped the tears from her face, looked at the eunuch’s expression, then dismissed everyone in the hall, leaving only her personal maid Sang Lan.

“Your Ladyship, Prince Yi has sent word.”

“Speak.”

Thus, that eunuch explained everything clearly from beginning to end.

Consort Xiao’s heart trembled, her expression grave.

The Ministry of Personnel was impeaching Prince Rong, deliberately trying to pin this on her son? How could that be acceptable?

She must investigate this thoroughly. She wanted to see whether Jingrong had reached into the Ministry of Personnel and recruited the newly appointed Minister Peng Yuanhai to deliberately employ a counter-accusation strategy, or if… someone else was behind it all, pulling the strings.

Just as she was scheming in her heart about how to investigate, Jing Xuan on the bed woke up.

She temporarily set aside the previous matter and quickly showed concern for her daughter. “Xuan’er, how are you?”

Jing Xuan’s weak eyes looked at her. Her nose stung, tears welled up in her eyes, and she withdrew her hand that Consort Xiao held, turning her head away.

“Why didn’t you let me die?”

Her voice was pale and weak, yet full of pain.

“Xuan’er, how could you do such a foolish thing? If you died, what would Mother Consort do?”

“Have you ever cared about me?”

“How could Mother Consort not care about you? You’re my daughter. Everything Mother Consort has done, hasn’t it all been for your own good?”

Hah!

Jing Xuan laughed coldly.

“For Imperial Brother’s sake, you’d rather sacrifice me and have me marry off to Huyi. This is my good mother consort, who deceived me from the very beginning.”

“Xuan’er…”

She was at the height of her anger, glaring fiercely at that kind mother by the bedside.

“If not for you, Sister Yu wouldn’t have entered the palace. She wouldn’t have died either. You’re the one who harmed her, and you and Imperial Brother are the ones who caused the death of the First Prince.”