The princess was ordained by Heaven.

Chapter 159 Poison

"When you can't rely on others, rely on yourself. If you can't guarantee the goodwill of others, then make sure you have the power yourself."

Song Zhiling was stunned for a long time. Suddenly, she raised her hand to cover her face and let out a few muffled sobs.

She seemed to be laughing, yet she also seemed to be crying.

Has the princess gone mad? She is constantly stirring up the women's rebellious spirit.

But she had to admit that what she said was right.

They are just taking advantage of your inability to fight back, and they are so unscrupulous because they know they will only bear a small or even no cost.

But what if you had the ability to fight back or even kill them?

Everyone says that women should be quiet and gentle. Even daughters of prominent families should prioritize their husbands, families, and children. But if you don't care about yourself, who will?

At this moment, Zheng Xun pointed to the people who were terrified by Le Zhenghong's words: "What do you think they are?"

"He's the murderer."

"No, they are useless."

Zheng Xun and Le Zhenghong didn't even prepare any evidence; they simply recounted the events verbatim, and they were already so frightened that they confessed everything.

This was not due to a change of heart on their part, but rather because Le Zhenghong and Zheng Xun were so powerful that they were unable to challenge them, so they were afraid and passively accepted it.

Everything that followed went smoothly as expected, without any unexpected incidents.

Fortunately, Zheng Xun had given prior instructions, and Le Zhenghong brought enough men and chains. The dozen or so criminals who confessed were handcuffed and shackled, and left under the escort of the yamen runners.

The matter was resolved so easily that Song Zhiling was in a daze for a long time.

With everything over, Zheng Xun put his hands behind his back and strode away: "Let's go."

Just as Song Zhiling was about to follow her, someone grabbed the hem of his clothes.

The person who pulled her back was Granny Shen.

"Young Song... I'm so sorry!"

Granny Shen looked ashamed, her gaze darting away, as if she didn't know how to face her.

Song Zhiling tilted his head in confusion: "My mother-in-law has always taken good care of me, so why would I apologize?"

"It's not you, it's your mother..."

Grandma Shen didn't know how to start the conversation, not because she was ashamed to admit her mistake, but because she didn't want to bring up those unpleasant things.

The two words she cared about most in her life were justice and fairness. She thought she had done everything she could for Song Zhiling, but she didn't expect that she would also make the mistake of blindly following the crowd.

She used to be quite familiar with the Xu family, and she knew what kind of person they were, but when the rumors started spreading, she still believed them.

Song Zhiling remained calm: "Grandma Shen, you don't need to apologize to me. You've been kind to me, and I'll remember your kindness. That's enough."

However, she had wronged her mother, so she had no right to forgive her on her mother's behalf.

Granny Shen released her grip on her sleeve, opened her mouth as if to speak, but then changed her tone: "Young Song, although Granny doesn't know what you're going to do, it must be something important. Young Song, take care of yourself. I'll look after your yard for you. If you need any help, don't hesitate to ask Granny."

Song Zhiling nodded, without the slightest hint of resentment in his words: "Okay, Granny Shen."

Finally, Zheng Xun sent a Qinglong Guard to guide Song Zhiling to find Mu Zhuo, while he himself turned back to the palace.

When Zheng Xun returned home that evening, he was supposed to go to the Imperial Study to handle government affairs.

But the usually diligent emperor was nowhere to be found, and even Li Xiaojun was nowhere to be seen.

The shadow of the emperor's "sudden death" lingered in Zheng Xun's mind. She thought something had happened to him, so she quickly opened the system.

Upon closer inspection, it became clear that the one in trouble was not the emperor, but the new moon.

The poison in Crescent Moon's body is proving difficult to cure, and she has been relying on the adulterated antidotes from the Brown Kingdom to get through this period.

Today, Zhao Lingyin brought over a bottle of medicine. It was a new drug she had just developed, mainly to suppress the toxins in Xinyue's body and create conditions for detoxification as much as possible.

Who knew that Xinyue would start vomiting blood after taking the medicine.

She was swinging on a swing in the yard when she coughed up blood, which spilled all over the ground.

The palace servants were terrified, fearing that if anything happened to her, they would be buried with her. A group of people frantically called for a doctor.

After delivering the medicine, Zhao Lingyin was pulled back before she could even step out of the palace gates, and she is now giving Xinyue acupuncture.

Now that Zheng Xun knew about it, he naturally had to go and see for himself.

Arriving unimpeded at Qinghe Palace, where Xinyue resided, they saw the emperor sitting in the outer room, holding a teacup in his hand, neither drinking nor putting it down. Li Xiaojun stood behind him, his back hunched over even more than before.

"Father?"

Zheng Xun called out "Emperor" twice before he came to his senses.

His tightly furrowed brows relaxed slightly: "Yuan Jia is here."

"Is Father worried about Princess Xinyue?"

"Pure Concubine."

Zheng Xun: "What?"

"I have decided to bestow the title 'Chun' upon Xinyue, and from now on she will be Consort Chun."

Zheng Xun: ?

No way? Could it be that he's really fallen for Xinyue?

Zheng Xun expressed his doubts about this.

She checked the system and finally confirmed that the emperor had not lost his mind.

The Empress had just arrived at Qinghe Palace, but the Emperor, mindful that she had only recently recovered, persuaded her to return home.

Therefore, this small amount of goodwill is not enough to make him infatuated.

But it's true that he has a slight preference for the new moon.

Zheng Xun breathed a sigh of relief, but also felt a little regretful.

Oh dear, I almost thought that my father was so infatuated with his beauty that she could start her job ahead of schedule.

She shook off the unnecessary thoughts in her mind and comforted him, "Father, don't worry. With Zhao Lingyin here, Consort Chun will be fine."

Upon hearing her words, the emperor nodded. Although he did not show any joy, his expression relaxed considerably.

"Go back and approve the memorial first. I will wait here."

Zheng Xun: !

She suspected she was hallucinating, because this was the first time the emperor had ever slacked off.

but……

She thought for a moment, then suddenly said seriously, "Actually, compared to Father Emperor, Xinyue probably wants to see me more."

The emperor glanced at her: "You are far too confident."

"How about we take a gamble?" Zheng Xun turned to Li Xiaojun. "Please trouble Eunuch Li to bring the memorial over. My father and I will wait together."

The emperor snorted: "Aren't you very good at calculations? How come you don't know I'm trying to scare you? Have you dealt with most of today's affairs? The rest are unimportant, we can deal with them tomorrow."

Zheng Xun retorted, "Fortune telling also takes effort! Daily patrols are already exhausting enough; other unimportant matters are not worth my concern."

Her superpowers didn't just fall from the sky; she works very hard every day meditating to restore them, okay?

emperor:……

Suddenly I realized that sending her on patrol was the wisest decision I could have made.

To expend some of her energy, so that I don't always be on edge, afraid that she'll find out about those trivial private matters.

After exchanging a few words, the two fell silent. Zheng Xun, unaware of his thoughts, sat down quietly and waited with him.

Two quarters of an hour later, the door finally opened. Zhao Lingyin instructed the palace servants to take care of Xinyue while she bowed to the Emperor.

"Alright, no need for formalities. How is Consort Chun?"

Consort Chun? Zhao Ling looked confused.

She looked even more haggard than when we first met, and her expression was somewhat confused, making it seem as if she might fall asleep at any moment.

Zheng Xun explained, "It is Princess Xinyue."

Zhao Lingyin came to her senses and continued, "Consort Chun's condition has stabilized. Although this incident was dangerous, it can be considered a blessing in disguise. Now that things are looking promising, I will be able to prepare the antidote within half a month."

She first explained Consort Chun's condition before kneeling down to beg for forgiveness: "It was my overconfidence that led Consort Chun into danger. Please punish me, Your Majesty!"

Instead of punishing her, the emperor asked, "Did you foresee the danger?"

Zhao Lingyin really wanted to yawn, but she remembered that the person in front of her was the emperor, so she could only force herself to stay alert: "Your Majesty has such discerning eyes!"

The emperor neither agreed nor disagreed with her compliments.

Although Zhao Lingyin looked lazy like a snail, even if she was slow, she shouldn't have been unable to leave the palace for two hours.

He could guess with his toes that she did it on purpose.

Why didn't you say so beforehand?

“Consort Chun knows.”

The emperor found her thought process to be truly strange. Putting the emperor and Consort Chun together, it was clear that the emperor was the more powerful one, yet she actually dared to deceive him.

He didn't understand, but Zheng Xun knew what Zhao Lingyin was thinking.

She simply cares more about the patient's feelings.

"Does Consort Chun know? If something really happens, can you or she bear the responsibility?"

The emperor's voice carried a hint of anger; anyone else at this point would probably be terrified.

Having experienced the previous intimidation, Zhao Lingyin had become more perceptive.

However, she looked up at Zheng Xun, and in that one glance, she seemed to regain her confidence, and her back straightened instantly.

Yeah, she's stubborn and never learns from her mistakes.

“Your Majesty, Consort Chun is not a naive child. She can make her own decisions. I have explained all the pros and cons to her. Since she has decided to adopt my method, she has made thorough preparations.”

Zheng Xun listened to her confident tone and seemed to be deep in thought.

Zhao Lingyin had something else she didn't say: she acted because she was 90% certain. But given Xinyue's condition, she had to try even if she was only 40% sure.

emperor:?

If you were 90% sure, why didn't you say so? If you had said so earlier, would he still be angry? Would he still be objecting?

Is he an unreasonable person?

At this moment, Zheng Xun spoke up: "Did Consort Chun ask you to keep it from Father Emperor?"

Zhao Lingyin neither admitted nor denied it.

The emperor's eyebrows twitched slightly, and then he heard Zheng Xun's helpless voice.

"I guess you don't want me to worry?"

emperor:?

That was his concubine, so why did Yuan Jia always feel that she was the one he cared about the most?

Where does her confidence come from?

He soon found out where her confidence came from.

Because Consort Chun woke up.

Zheng Xun and the Emperor entered the room together. Consort Chun's gaze swept past the Emperor and landed on Zheng Xun.

"Princess……"

She pouted, and tears streamed down her face.

Zheng Xun turned his head to look at the emperor, raised his eyebrows provocatively, as if to say: I told you so!

emperor:……

I never imagined that he would one day compete with his daughter for her affections, and that he would lose!

Zheng Xun sat down next to Consort Chun, and the two of them huddled together and talked.