I was reborn after cheating on the aloof and powerful man.

Chapter 108 Dragon-Shaped Jade Pendant

"The person is already dead?"

"Your Majesty, after the palace maid who caused trouble this morning was knocked away by the young prince, when I led people to arrest her, I found that she had already committed suicide by poisoning herself; as for the other palace maid who was with her, I have already had Eunuch Li take people to the Yeting Prison for interrogation."

Empress Wang, her face contorted with rage, gritted her teeth and said:

"Have Eunuch Li investigate this thoroughly for me, get to the bottom of it!"

"Sister, what's wrong? Why are you so angry?"

"Mother, what has made you so angry?"

Early in the morning, almost everyone in Kunning Palace was startled by Aunt Qiuyue's loud shout.

Upon hearing the words "assassin," everyone was startled and rushed towards the main hall of Kunning Palace without hesitation.

For a time, footsteps and shouts filled the palace, creating a lively atmosphere.

As everyone gathered around the Empress, ready to defend her, Gu Mingfeng, the Empress's favorite grandson, entered the main hall carrying the woman Princess Yongle had brought the day before.

The woman appeared to be injured and struggled, trying to get Prince Gu to release her. Before Empress Wang could ask what her grandson was doing, Aunt Qiuyue led four palace maids in to report.

Therefore, when Consort De brought the Second Prince Lu Zigui to pay their respects today, they walked straight to the outside of the main hall without any hindrance, and just then they heard Empress Wang raging.

"Oh, Wenjuan, what brings you here?" Seeing Consort De and the Second Prince come in to pay their respects, Empress Wang suppressed her anger, her calm face revealing neither joy nor anger.

"Sister, this is the list of gifts that I discussed with the Ministry of Rites. Please take a look. Tomorrow is the first time that Gui'er will lead her brothers to pay their respects to His Majesty. I am a little nervous, so I would like to ask you for a lucky charm."

Seeing that Empress Wang did not respond to her concern, Consort De tactfully revealed the purpose of her visit.

When Aunt Qiuyue came in to give her report, Gu Mingfeng released Fei Xi. Then Consort De and the Second Prince came in, and after Fei Xi greeted Gu Mingfeng, she was protected behind him.

The two dignitaries glanced at her but didn't linger.

Taking advantage of the fact that the noble lady above was not paying attention to her while talking to Empress Wang, Fei Xi curiously turned her head to look at the Second Prince standing in front of Gu Mingfeng.

After the eldest prince was demoted to a commoner, there are growing calls in the court to make the second prince the crown prince.

Consort De was born into the Lin family of Northern Yan and was the granddaughter of Lin Xiaofang, the Grand Commandant of the previous dynasty.

When Emperor Xun opened the country's doors wide and surrendered to foreign powers, Lin Xiaofang remonstrated with him to the death, smashing his head against a golden pillar in the imperial palace. However, this loyalty did not earn Emperor Xun's praise; instead, it angered him, leading to the entire Lin family being punished.

After the world descended into chaos, Consort De's father, Lin Xiangdong, sought refuge with the Prince of Han, who is now Emperor Hua, Lu Wenhe. With such a loyal and righteous descendant coming to serve him, Emperor Hua naturally welcomed him with open arms.

Lin Xiangdong did not disgrace his father's reputation. He followed Emperor Hua in his conquests, risking his life and making great contributions. He was awarded the title of Loyal and Brave General and held the rank of First Grade.

Therefore, although Consort De was of ordinary appearance and had not been favored by Emperor Hua since entering the harem, no one dared to look down on her.

Currently, among all the imperial harem members, the Second Prince's maternal family is the most prominent.

The eldest prince had become a commoner. Without the eldest prince in the family, the second prince took the position of "elder." Those who flattered Consort De regarded her as the biggest winner in the future of the harem.

Despite the praise from everyone, Consort De remained humble and low-key when facing Empress Wang, showing no arrogance whatsoever.

However, although the second prince was over twenty, his still youthful face clearly showed impatience, with an air of smug pride.

At this moment, his arrogance was tinged with a hint of anxiety, and he kept secretly glancing at Empress Wang in front of him, as if trying to discern something from her face.

Fei Xi's eyes flickered as a bold guess popped into her mind.

Although she hadn't gotten up this morning, she noticed the two palace maids as soon as they entered her room.

Hearing something unusual about the two's movements, Fei Xi closed her eyes and pretended to be still asleep.

After the two palace maids left the room, Fei Xi stood up with wide eyes. Her careful gaze swept across the room, and she immediately noticed that the area under the bed and the cabinets had been disturbed.

What's even more infuriating is that the pastries her master had prepared for her last night were opened and rummaged through by those two palace maids.

Fei Xi could tolerate being framed and falsely accused, but she couldn't stand having her master's leftover snacks touched!

But she did not speak immediately. The rules of the inner palace were strict, and she needed to wait for the Empress to summon her.

Surprisingly, the little palace maid who wanted to frame her was so impatient.

After being rescued by Prince Gu, Fei Xi originally wanted to apply some medicine and rush to the little palace maid who had been knocked away, hoping to find out who was behind it all.

But for some reason, Prince Gu was acting strangely, personally applying medicine to her wounds. When she heard Aunt Qiuyue say that the little palace maid had died, she disregarded the fact that Prince Gu was still bandaging her wounds and wanted to go and see what was wrong.

Who knew that Gu Mingfeng, that bastard, would actually pick her up and carry her all the way to Empress Wang before letting her go.

Thinking of this, Fei Xi was filled with rage. Taking advantage of the fact that no one was paying attention while Consort De was speaking, she kicked the person in front of her.

Gu Mingfeng noticed the subtle movements of the person behind him, turned around and glared at the woman behind him, then secretly tugged at her hair.

The two's subtle actions went unnoticed by others, but they were noticed by Aunt Qiuyue, who had been observing the two out of curiosity about their relationship.

Seeing the two of them playing around like children, Qiuyue remembered something, and a smile flashed in her eyes, as if she was happy to see the two of them getting along so well.

"Guier, this safety buckle was specially left for you by your mother. Tomorrow, you can lead your younger brothers to congratulate your father on his birthday and set a good example as an elder brother. Your father and I have seen your filial piety."

Lu Zigui accepted Empress Wang's reward with some disappointment, glancing resentfully at the hem of Empress Wang's skirt.

"Thank you for the reward, mother."

After seeing off Consort De and her son, Empress Wang smiled and beckoned to Gu Mingfeng in a kind tone.

"Feng'er, come here, let your grandmother see if you're hurt."

“Grandmother, Feng’er is doing well. Feng’er’s martial arts skills are second to none. He can easily handle a mere petty thief. Even if there are ten or a hundred assassins, Feng’er can protect you and won’t let anyone have a chance to hurt you.”

"Oh, hey, Grandma believes in you and is counting on Feng'er to protect her. Good child, remember to rest when you practice martial arts, don't overwork yourself."

As she spoke, Empress Wang pulled off a dragon-shaped jade pendant from her waistband and handed it to Gu Mingfeng.

"Come to your grandmother's place. You did a great job protecting her today, and you deserve a reward. Here, take this and play with it."

Gu Mingfeng naturally recognized the origin of the dragon-shaped jade pendant that Empress Wang had handed to him.

When his maternal grandmother, Empress Wang, first entered the palace, Emperor Hua was overwhelmed with grief upon seeing his wife who had "come back to life," and he burst into tears.

Emperor Hua then placed his personal jade pendant into Empress Wang's hand and said:

“I knew my wife had died, and there was no greater sorrow than a broken heart. Now that I have seen my wife return, how could I betray my heart again?”

Even though Empress Wang had no sons and her family background was not illustrious, Emperor Hua overruled all objections and made his first wife Empress because of her words, "She has not betrayed my heart."

Later, rumors circulated in the palace that if Empress Wang took a liking to any prince and raised him under her care, Emperor Hua would likely make that prince the crown prince.

The jade pendant that witnessed the emperor and empress's relationship was regarded as a promise from Emperor Hua to Empress Wang.

A hint of surprise flashed in Gu Mingfeng's eyes, but he quickly suppressed it and happily accepted the Empress Wang's reward, hanging it directly on his belt.

Empress Wang's smile deepened upon seeing that her grandson did not refuse. Zhang Wang's gaze swept across the room, and he immediately spotted Fei Xi in the corner.

"Good child, step forward. You must be quite frightened today. How did you discover that those two palace maids were suspicious?"

"Your Majesty, when I woke up this morning, I discovered that the package I kept as a talisman had been touched. I have long admired Your Majesty's benevolent reputation, and I have relatives and friends who have received Your Majesty's kindness and affection. I thought that under Your Majesty's tutelage, no one would be so unruly. Yet this unruly palace maid not only rummaged through my package but also spoke disrespectfully to Aunt Qiuyue, who was admonishing her. This person's behavior is so abnormal; she must be hiding a secret."

After speaking, Fei Xi took out the items that the two palace maids had placed under her clothes and bed in her bosom:

"Your Majesty, please look, these are the things that the two palace maids secretly placed in my room in an attempt to frame me."