The Empress’s Schemes and the Emperor’s Fury

Three feet of ice is not frozen in a single day—The Empress has always despised Serena Feng. When the Emperor decreed that Princess Serenity must marry into Northlyn, her hatred reached its peak; she wished she could have Serena executed by slow torture.

Not to mention the Empress's own legitimate daughter—even the daughters of concubines are rarely sent away for marriage alliances. Most 'alliance princesses' are chosen from among distant relatives and then given a princess title. Serenity is the first and only legitimate Empress-born princess among the Four Kingdoms to be married off in this way.

A sharp crack echoed—

The cup landed on the red carpet and rolled several times without even a chip, but the young palace eunuch's forehead was split open, blood streaming down his cheek. He didn't dare make a sound, stifling his pain.

Hmph. William Walker and General Warren Yu—does Serena Feng really think those two are reliable? The Walker Clan will never get involved in the succession struggle. They don't care who sits on the throne; they only care who offers them the greatest benefit. If you want their support, it's better to marry a Walker daughter than take Serena Feng as a side-consort.

"Thank you, Your Majesty, thank you…" The young palace eunuch, grateful to be alive, scrambled away.

Senior Matron Rong withdrew. That very night, several palace maids threw themselves into wells, a few young eunuchs were beaten to death for 'offending a noble,' and several guards suddenly dropped dead…

"Summon the Empress to audience!" (The ritual call echoed through the hall, signaling the start of a formal imperial audience.)

Senior Matron Rong retreated quietly. That night, the palace was swept by silent deaths: several palace maids threw themselves into wells, a handful of young eunuchs were beaten to death for 'offending a noble,' and a few guards suddenly collapsed and died—each incident erasing a thread that might lead back to the Empress.

A smile appeared on the Empress’s face, but she hadn’t had time to savor it before a chief eunuch arrived to report: the people sent to investigate the Imperial Menagerie Grounds had returned.

"Quick, summon them." The Empress hurried back, sitting down to hide her unease.

"Greetings, Your Ma—"

The eunuch hadn’t finished his words before the Empress cut him off: "Enough. What’s happened at the Imperial Menagerie Grounds?"

"Reporting to Your Majesty: the Imperial Menagerie Grounds have been sealed. I tried everything but couldn’t find out what’s happening inside…"

"What? The Imperial Menagerie Grounds are sealed? Who gave the order?" The Empress was furious. The Crown Prince didn’t have the guts, and Prince Rowan would never overstep like this. No one else could possibly do it.

Terrified, the young eunuch kowtowed, his heart pounding: "It was Ninth Royal Uncle. He suddenly appeared at the Menagerie and immediately ordered it sealed—no one allowed out, only in. It took me a lot of effort to learn that Ninth Royal Uncle has detained the Crown Prince, Prince Rowan, Crown Prince Terrence, Young City Lord Reid Yale, and Miss Su Wan, saying he’ll thoroughly investigate the giant python incident."

A sharp crack—The Empress’s fingernail snapped clean off, leaving a sharp sting in her hand.

"Did you find out who was injured?" With such a spectacle, could it be Serena Feng was bitten by the venomous snake?

At this thought, the Empress calmed down again. As long as Serena Feng died, everything would be easy to handle.

"I don't know, Your Majesty." The eunuch lowered his head, trembling all over.

The Empress, infuriated, snatched up the teacup from the table and smashed it down at the young eunuch.

Panicked, the young eunuch shrank back, but remembering the Empress's temper, forced himself to kneel and shut his eyes, enduring the blow.

Smack—

The cup landed on the red carpet and rolled several times without even a chip, but the eunuch's forehead was split open, blood streaming down his cheek. He didn't dare make a sound, stifling his pain.

The Empress found the sight irritating: "Get out…"

"Thank you, Your Majesty, thank you…" The young eunuch, grateful to be alive, scrambled away.

Matron Rong withdrew. That very night, several maids threw themselves into wells, a few young eunuchs were beaten to death for 'offending a noble,' and several guards suddenly dropped dead…

"Rest assured, Your Majesty."

The old nurse withdrew. That very night, several maids threw themselves into wells, a few young eunuchs were beaten to death for 'offending a noble,' and several guards suddenly dropped dead…

The Empress didn’t alert the Emperor about the Menagerie incident. She issued an edict directly, scolding Ninth Royal Uncle for his outrageous conduct and ordering him to lift the lockdown and release Crown Prince Terrence, Young City Lord Reid Yale, and Su Wan. But Ninth Royal Uncle detained both the messenger and the edict.

"Ninth Royal Uncle, aren’t you afraid the Empress will accuse you of disrespect?" Serena Feng grew more and more confused about what Nolan was trying to do—this kind of brazenness was practically handing the Empress leverage against him.

"She’s too busy saving herself to report me." Nolan looked utterly unruffled.

Seeing this, Serena Feng said nothing more. Judging by Nolan’s demeanor, he must have some trump card… but still—

They’d interrogated suspects for hours, but not a single person confessed. If this kept up, things would turn against them.

The best time to solve a case is within twenty-four hours—after that, clues and evidence get contaminated, and the longer it drags on, the less they’ll be able to find.

Serena Feng looked at Nolan, worried. Today’s incident was an accident, so sudden that Nolan probably hadn’t had time to prepare.

"Enough, don’t worry. Even if we can’t get to the bottom of the Menagerie incident, the Empress won’t sleep well tonight. If you’re worried, we can keep interrogating—we’ve got the whole night, no rush…" Nolan saw Serena Feng was exhausted and originally wanted her to rest.

But seeing how anxious she was, he knew she wouldn’t sleep until things were settled.

Just as Serena Feng expected, when the Empress heard her messenger had been detained, she didn’t get angry—instead, she smiled and put on full formal regalia.

"Come, I’m going to see the Emperor."

Inside the Grand Harmony Hall, the lights blazed. The Emperor had summoned his top ministers to discuss urgent matters. The atmosphere was tense; several officials kept their heads down, not daring to speak. The Emperor’s face was grim, and he said nothing.

When the young eunuch entered, he didn’t even dare breathe loudly. The Emperor’s chief eunuch noticed and quietly scolded him: "You clueless mutt, can’t you see His Majesty is meeting with the ministers? Don’t interrupt unless it’s urgent."

The young eunuch wore a miserable expression: "Sir, the Empress says she has urgent business to report. I didn’t dare not deliver her message."

"The Empress? Fine, you may go." The chief eunuch’s face darkened as he returned to the Emperor’s side and quietly reported to him.

"The Empress? She’s well informed. I only just ordered the arrests, and she already knows? Well, my dear Empress!" At last, the Emperor’s fury erupted.

"Let the Empress enter. I want to ask her myself: what have I ever done to mistreat her, that she dares act like this?"

The old ministers didn’t dare breathe, each staring at their toes—anyone who spoke up for the Empress now would be a fool.

"Summon the Empress to audience!"

...

The Empress entered with a regal, dignified smile, unaware that what awaited her in the Grand Harmony Hall was the Emperor’s wrath…

Log in to unlock all features.