An Lingrong's Rebirth: The Lock of Qingqiu

The empress dowager's birthday celebration lasted for three consecutive days. There was a festive and peaceful atmosphere in the palace. Hundreds of officials came to congratulate, including the powerful Longkodo. He was very proud and smiling. Wearing luxurious court clothes, he walked into the magnificent Shoukang Palace. The gifts he gave to the empress dowager were ten large wooden boxes filled with gifts. When the boxes were opened, the palace was shining because they were all golden.

Longkodo came before the empress dowager and proudly pointed at the ten large boxes to celebrate her birthday, asking her to accept them. The empress dowager then smiled and asked people to carry the ten full boxes of gold to her bedroom. Longkodo was so proud that he lifted the hem of his clothes, inadvertently revealing a yellow jacket he was wearing underneath. The atmosphere suddenly became tense.

The emperor's face changed again and again, and many concubines and civil and military officials present had seen it. There was silence for a moment, and one could hear a pin drop. The yellow jacket is not something that anyone can wear. It is the emperor's exclusive clothing, and only the emperor can wear it. It represents supreme dignity and glory. Longkodo's behavior was undoubtedly a provocation to the emperor and a great disrespect to the emperor. Everyone present was shocked and uneasy.

When the emperor saw Longkodo wearing a yellow jacket, his face immediately darkened. He glared at Longkodo, his eyes flashing with anger, his pupils ready to spit fire. Longkodo probably just wanted to try his luck as the emperor, but he didn't expect that he was careless for a moment and actually exposed himself in front of so many people. He couldn't help but look a little flustered, and fine and dense cold sweat oozed from his forehead.

At this moment, Longkodo's eyes swept across the room and his gaze fell on Concubine Jing. An Lingrong couldn't help but sneer. Was Longkodo inviting Concubine Jing to come forward to help him out?

Concubine Xiang, who was standing next to Concubine Jing, understood the situation clearly. She patted Princess Wen Yi next to her and whispered something in her ear, signaling her to do something.

Princess Wenyi was smart. She picked up a glass of wine from a nearby table, walked up to Longkodo, and said with a smile, "Lord Long, today is the Royal Grandmother's birthday. We are honored to have you attend. Come, Princess Wenyi will toast you on behalf of the Royal Grandmother."

Although Longkodo was an old hand and felt uneasy, he saw that there was only a young girl in front of him and he did not take Princess Wen Yi seriously at all. He thought that Princess Wen Yi was there to help him out. Longkodo stretched out his furry hand, ready to take the wine from Princess Wen Yi's hand, drink it all, and then return to the banquet room to enjoy the feast peacefully. Unexpectedly, Princess Wen Yi's hand shook, and the full glass of wine spilled all over Longkodo's clothes.

Longkodo was startled, and his yellow jacket was immediately wet. He was stunned, looking at Princess Wen Yi at a loss. Concubine Xiang smiled and explained, "Oh, I'm so sorry, Wen Yi was not steady and spilled the wine on you. You, I'll have someone take you to change your clothes."

The emperor's anger subsided a little when he saw this. He knew that Concubine Xiang and Princess Wenyi were trying to help Longkodo out, so he said, "If that's the case, then let Lord Long change his clothes. Today is my mother's birthday, so go and come back quickly."

Longkodo glanced at Concubine Xiang and Princess Wenyi indifferently, then followed the attendants to change clothes. The crisis was finally resolved skillfully, and the palace returned to a festive and peaceful atmosphere.

Longkodo was originally going to go back with Concubine Xiang to change clothes, but as soon as he left Shoukang Palace and had no time to change clothes, Aunt Zhuxi, who was by the Queen Mother's side, rushed over and took Longkodo directly to the Queen Mother's bedroom.

Longkodo was shocked, but he didn't dare to ask any more questions. He had to follow the maid to the bedroom. The queen mother had been waiting for a long time. She looked at Longkodo with a complex emotion in her eyes. Longkodo knew that there had always been some subtle emotional entanglement between him and the queen mother, but under the eyes of the emperor, he really didn't dare to cross the line.

However, the Queen Mother did not seem to care about this. She directly pulled Longkodo over, watched Aunt Zhuxi leave the bedroom and close the palace door with her backhand, and the Queen Mother could not control herself for a moment, and put her whole face in front of Longkodo, and the two of them were unscrupulously affectionate. Although Longkodo was panicked, he was also infected by the Queen Mother's enthusiasm, and he was not afraid.

The emperor and everyone else waited outside for a long time. Longkodo went to change clothes, but he disappeared after a long time. Concubine Xiang, who took Longkodo to change clothes, had already returned. The empress dowager was nowhere to be seen, and Longkodo was also nowhere to be seen. The emperor knew vaguely that something unusual was happening. When he sent Su Peisheng to investigate and learned that the empress dowager had left everyone aside and was being intimate with Longkodo in the bedroom, the emperor was stunned and instantly became furious. The raging anger had completely devoured his consciousness.

The emperor immediately summoned the guards and ordered them to guard the Queen Mother's bedroom and not allow anyone to enter or leave. Then, he personally came to the door of the bedroom, took a deep breath, and pushed open the heavy door. Inside the bedroom, the Queen Mother and Longkodo had not yet had time to pack up, and their figures were particularly dazzling under the candlelight.

The emperor glared at them, his eyes flashing coldly. He approached step by step, and every step seemed to step on the heart of the two. The Queen Mother and Longkodo looked at him in horror, not knowing how to respond. In the end, the emperor just looked at them coldly and told them to put on their clothes. He was waiting for them outside. Today was the Queen Mother's birthday, so it was not appropriate to get angry, but it left the room awkward and silent.

The entire palace was shrouded in a depressing atmosphere, as if a storm would break out at any time.

The emperor's face was stern and his voice was firm as he made public the affair between the queen mother and Longkodo. When the news came out, the court was shocked and the civil and military officials talked about it. Some were shocked, some were angry, and some whispered.

The emperor knew that this move would cause an uproar, but he felt that he had to do this for the sake of national stability and the dignity of the royal family. He ordered all civil and military officials to go to the Queen Mother's Palace together, so that everyone could witness this moment with their own eyes.

All the officials gathered outside the Queen Mother's palace with trepidation, and the atmosphere was extremely solemn. The Emperor stood in front of the palace gate, his eyes were like torches, waiting for the Queen Mother to appear. Soon, the Queen Mother was supported by the palace maids and walked out of the palace gate, her face full of fear and despair.

Seeing the Queen Mother appear, the Emperor took a deep breath and said loudly: "Today, I want to expose a royal scandal, the affair between the Queen Mother and Longkodo." After hearing this, the Queen Mother's face turned pale instantly. She asked in a trembling voice: "Your Majesty, why do you treat me like this?"

The emperor replied coldly: "For the dignity of the royal family and the stability of the country, I have to do this." After hearing this, the queen mother burst into tears and cried out at the top of her lungs: "You are unfilial! I am your mother, how can you do this to me!"

The emperor felt a sharp pain in his heart, but he did not back down. He knew that he had to persevere for the future of the country and the glory of the royal family. He looked at the queen mother coldly and said, "Mother, you should be aware of the consequences of your actions. I cannot tolerate your mistakes just because you are my mother."

After hearing this, the Queen Mother cried even harder. She knew that her mistake was irreparable, so she could only silently endure the Emperor's criticism and the officials' comments. The Emperor also became more determined in his behavior during this storm.