“Mother! Please don’t say anymore!” Fu Ruoxi cried out in anguish.

Old Lady Fu ignored him completely, struggling to get up. The wound on her head split open again, and fresh blood seeped through the fine cotton cloth. The dark red blood in the shadowy, damp prison snaked across her face like a thin serpent.

“Your Highness! My son is loyal to his sovereign, but he’s also famous throughout the capital as a filial son. He didn’t want this old woman to die, and even less wanted to implicate the entire Fu family, so he sent those four words, ‘await the opportune moment,’ to the Empress, hoping to placate her so she wouldn’t harm the Fu family! When he drew his sword against Your Highness while all the generals were protecting you, he only sought death! He thought… if he died, the Empress would have no way to use the Fu family and would spare them!”

Old Lady Fu cried aloud: “Your Highness, think carefully—if my son were truly the Empress’s accomplice wanting to assassinate Your Highness, he should have struck when no one else was present to take Your Highness’s life. Why would he draw his blade against the Crown Prince when the Crown Prince’s guards, Princess Zhenguo, and all the generals of the Anping Camp were present?”

“Old Lady! Old Lady, please don’t say more… we’ll discuss this later!” The Crown Prince patted Old Lady Fu’s hand.

Old Lady Fu shook her head, looking at the Crown Prince through her tears: “Your Highness! My son is too filial… even if this old woman dies, I cannot let my life become a burden to my son, preventing him from speaking the truth! But my grandsons and daughter-in-law are innocent. Please, Your Highness… you must save them! Spare their lives!”

Lu Jin stood to the side, his mind rapidly processing everything Old Lady Fu had said.

“Old Lady! Old Lady, rest assured! I have heard everything you’ve said… Just as you said, if General Fu truly wanted to kill me, he wouldn’t have acted when everyone was present! General Fu was coerced by the Empress. I will surely protect the entire Fu family! Old Lady, be at ease—medical treatment is urgent!” After the Crown Prince finished speaking, he turned back and shouted, “Has Imperial Physician Huang not arrived yet?”

Old Lady Fu gripped the Crown Prince’s hands with both of hers, shaking her head: “Your Highness… there’s no need to trouble yourself for this old woman! This old woman… this old woman…”

Having forced herself to finish speaking, Old Lady Fu could no longer hold on. Her entire body slowly went limp: “This old woman… only asks that the Crown Prince protect… protect our entire Fu family.”

After speaking, Old Lady Fu’s hands, which had been gripping the Crown Prince’s tightly, slipped away.

“Old Lady!” The nanny beside Old Lady Fu cried out and knelt.

“Physician! Quickly!” The Crown Prince quickly stepped aside and called to the physician who was kneeling on the ground, trembling.

The physician hurriedly crawled forward on his knees, his trembling hands pressing against Old Lady Fu’s pulse. After a moment, he quickly knelt and kowtowed: “Your Highness… the Old Lady has passed!”

“Mother!” Fu Ruoxi panicked, using his body to ram against the prison door, “Mother! Let me out! Let me see my mother! Mother!”

The poison Old Lady Fu had taken was consumed at the Crown Prince’s mansion—a slow-acting poison designed to frame the Empress with her death.

Old Lady Fu knew that Fu Ruoxi could hear every word she spoke here. She was using her life to force Fu Ruoxi to acknowledge what she had said.

Unless Fu Ruoxi valued the Empress so much that even after his mother had used her life to secure a way out for the Fu family’s children and the entire household, he would overturn his mother’s words and drag his own mother’s reputation into filth even after her death.

Old Lady Fu understood Fu Ruoxi. With Old Lady Fu’s life, plus Old Lady Fu’s reputation, plus the survival of the entire Fu family—this weight was too heavy. Fu Ruoxi… truly could not bear it!

Fu Ruoxi was a soft-hearted person. Previously, he had felt guilty toward the Empress because of their engagement. Now he would only feel more guilty toward Old Lady Fu, who had lost her life.

“Mother!” Fu Ruoxi collapsed to the ground, weeping uncontrollably.

Lu Jin had already sorted through the matter in his mind, connecting Old Lady Fu’s words with the entire incident. The cause and effect were crystal clear.

The matter of Old Lady Fu’s poisoning was simple… it could be verified by having a coroner examine the body.

But the Empress’s pregnancy and falsely accusing Fu Ruoxi? How could this be a false accusation?

If Lu Jin remembered correctly, Fu Ruoxi had returned to the capital and been summoned into the palace by the Emperor on July 20th. The Empress was diagnosed as pregnant in August. Though this was a palace secret, Lu Jin had heard some details from his wife…

It was said that the Empress’s monthly cycle came at the month’s end, but by mid-August, it still hadn’t come, so two imperial physicians were summoned to take her pulse. One physician said he couldn’t make a diagnosis, while Imperial Physician Hu, who had always treated the Empress, said it was a pregnancy pulse. However, because the pregnancy signs weren’t good and it was still early, he couldn’t feel it clearly—he would be able to tell more definitively when the pregnancy was further along.

Could it be… the Empress was faking pregnancy?

“Old Lady showed great righteousness. I… will surely protect the Fu family!” After the Crown Prince finished speaking, he ordered his guards to use his carriage to send Old Lady Fu back to the Fu mansion.

Lu Jin accompanied the Crown Prince, standing at the entrance of the Dali Temple prison, watching as the Crown Prince’s carriage carried Old Lady Fu’s body away.

The Crown Prince had known long ago that Old Lady Fu would die today, but… now, watching Old Lady Fu’s body being taken away and remembering her words at the Crown Prince’s mansion, he couldn’t help but feel admiration for Old Lady Fu!

Old Lady Fu had the courage and determination to negotiate terms with him. In such urgent circumstances, she could still devise this method, going to her death alone to help him achieve his goals while preserving the entire Fu family. This was something many men couldn’t accomplish.

The Crown Prince inexplicably thought of Bai Qingyan.

Hearing Lu Jin’s cough, the Crown Prince came back to his senses and spoke with grief in his voice: “Had I known, I wouldn’t have allowed Old Lady Fu to come see General Fu, causing Old Lady Fu to lose her life! But if Old Lady Fu hadn’t come, we probably wouldn’t have learned what role the Empress played in all this!”

Not hearing Lu Jin respond, the Crown Prince turned to look at Lu Jin and asked: “Minister Lu, what do you think of this matter? Do you believe what Old Lady Fu said is true?”

“Everything Old Lady Fu said can be verified, except for the Empress’s pregnancy… This official needs Fu General’s records of entering and leaving the palace, the Empress’s medical records, and records of when His Majesty stayed at the Empress’s quarters for comparison.”

“Perhaps we also need a trusted physician to… carefully take the Empress’s pulse to determine when she conceived, or even whether the Empress is truly pregnant or falsely pregnant, before Minister Lu can conclude.” The Crown Prince’s voice was measured.

“Exactly!” Lu Jin bowed deeply to the Crown Prince.

“The registry of General Fu’s entries and exits from the palace is with me…” The Crown Prince stood with his hands behind his back, looking at Lu Jin. “Later, I’ll have someone send it to Minister Lu! For the Empress’s medical records… I can also have the Imperial Medical Academy cooperate with Minister Lu! And the records of when Father Emperor stayed at the Empress’s quarters—I can also help with that!”

The Crown Prince frowned deeply, sighing as he looked at the light spots cast on the ground by the Dali Temple prison lanterns: “But only taking the Empress’s pulse… the Empress is my legitimate mother. I cannot be disrespectful to my legitimate mother!”

Lu Jin understood the Crown Prince’s difficulty and only said: “Perhaps when His Majesty awakens, this matter can be thoroughly investigated!”

“That’s the only way!”

After speaking, the Crown Prince suddenly turned and bowed to Lu Jin, frightening Lu Jin into immediately kneeling.