An Lingrong after rebirth

The emperor listened quietly, his face becoming uglier. He secretly swore in his heart that he must severely punish Bao Que and give Xiaozhu An an explanation.

After receiving the order, Jiang Defu hurried forward to pass on the message, asking the Queen Mother and Concubine Hua to come quickly to discuss how to deal with the matter.

Not long after, after a cup of fragrant tea, Concubine Hua and the Queen arrived at the Yanx Palace one after another.

As soon as she entered the palace, the queen frowned and asked with a puzzled look on her face: "What happened? Why did they mobilize so many troops?"

Qiu Fang, who was standing by, stepped forward hastily, bowed and said, "Reporting to the Queen, Bao Que is a member of our Yanxi Palace, but she...she was so bold as to poison and murder my young mistress!"

Hearing this, the queen's face changed and she asked, "Oh? Is there such a thing? Poisoning?"

Before she finished speaking, Concubine Hua opened her red lips and said in a cold tone, "It is definitely poisoned."

As she spoke, a hint of coldness suddenly flashed in her beautiful eyes.

The Queen frowned and said in a deep voice, "What should we do? Why did Bao Que poison Lady An?"

Concubine Hua sneered and said, "Humph, do you even need to ask? It must be that Baoque is jealous of Lady An's favor, so he has evil intentions."

The Queen shook her head and said, "We can't jump to conclusions on this matter. We need to investigate it carefully."

Hua Fei said impatiently: "What is there to investigate? The facts are in front of us, that Bao Que is the culprit!"

The Queen glanced at Concubine Hua and said, "This matter is of great importance and cannot be acted upon rashly."

Hua Fei curled her lips and said, "The Queen is always so indecisive. No wonder the affairs of the harem are always handled poorly."

The Queen's face darkened and she said, "Hua Fei, what do you mean? When has this palace failed to handle the affairs of the harem?"

Concubine Hua said without showing any weakness: "Hmph, the Queen knows it clearly in her heart."

Seeing the atmosphere becoming increasingly tense and solemn, the queen shook her head helplessly, rubbed her aching temple with her hand, and whispered, "Forget it, don't argue for now."

"Let's bring the precious bird here first and ask him in person." The queen said softly.

So Jianqiu, Zhou Linhai and others followed the order and left. However, not long after, they hurried back and reported to the queen that Baoque had committed suicide out of fear of crime by taking a highly poisonous substance.

"What? She actually committed suicide?" Upon hearing this, Concubine Hua's eyes widened and she cried out in disbelief, "What a foolish servant! How dare she commit suicide so easily?"

"This...what should we do?" The queen was also a little panicked.

The emperor said angrily: "Did he commit suicide or did she kill him?"

For a moment, everyone fell silent and the palace was extremely quiet.

"Someone must have forced her to commit suicide!" Hua Fei stood up suddenly, her face full of anger, and suddenly shouted loudly.

"What exactly do you mean by this?" Upon hearing this, the Queen frowned and looked at Concubine Hua, with a hint of surprise and confusion in her eyes.

Hua Fei took a deep breath, calmed herself down, and continued, "My meaning couldn't be more obvious. There must be someone with ulterior motives behind this who instigated Bao Que to poison her, and then forced her to commit suicide in an attempt to cover up the truth of the matter!"

The queen's face changed and she said, "Hua Fei, don't talk nonsense!"

"Every word I said is true!" Concubine Hua did not show any weakness, "If someone did not force her, why would Bao Que commit suicide? Was it because she did not want to expose the person behind it?"

"Hua Fei, stop talking nonsense!" The Queen's tone was still calm and peaceful, but her eyes quietly revealed a hint of unhappiness that was not easy to detect. "Everything needs evidence. If there is no real evidence, you must not jump to conclusions."

"Evidence? I will definitely find ways to find evidence!" Concubine Hua gritted her teeth and responded without showing any weakness.

Seeing this, the emperor frowned, rubbed his temples, and sighed: "Enough, don't argue here! Queen, Concubine Hua, as the masters of the harem, you should work together to manage the palace affairs. You must give me an explanation for this incident! Return to the palace quickly and investigate carefully to find out who did it!"

The Queen and Concubine Hua looked at each other, both revealing reluctance in their eyes, but they still bowed and slowly left the hall.

The emperor's eyes slowly shifted to An Lingrong and he asked softly, "Lingrong, are you okay?"

An Lingrong nodded slightly and replied in a low voice: "Thank you for your concern, Your Majesty. I am fine."

The emperor asked again: "Do you have any idea about this matter?"

An Lingrong hesitated for a moment and said softly, "I dare not speak rashly, but I think this matter is quite strange and needs to be investigated carefully."

The emperor nodded and said, "Well, you are right. I will order someone to investigate secretly, and you should pay more attention."

An Lingrong replied, "Yes, I will obey your order."

When An Lingrong heard this, her body trembled slightly, and her originally calm heart suddenly began to ripple. She lowered her head, not daring to look at the emperor, and began to speculate in her heart.

Was the emperor's words a genuine expression of his concern for her, or was he just saying it out of politeness? All of a sudden, all kinds of thoughts came to her mind, making her a little flustered.

She subconsciously stretched out her slender fingers and gently stirred the corners of her clothes, trying to relieve the tension in her heart. Then, she used her clear and pleasant voice like a yellow oriole singing out of a valley.

She responded softly: "Thank you for your concern, Your Majesty. Lingrong doesn't feel any hardship." Her voice was gentle and soft, just like the gurgling of water, as if she was afraid to break this hard-earned atmosphere of care.

After hesitating for a moment, the emperor finally asked again: "Lingrong, I have decided to stay with you tonight, what do you think?"

As soon as these words came out, it was like a heavy hammer hitting An Lingrong's heart. She felt her heartbeat suddenly speed up, and a warm current quickly rushed to her face, making her fair cheeks instantly become as red as a ripe apple.

She smiled shyly, but her heart was filled with mixed emotions.

An Lingrong paused for a moment before she said softly, "Thanks to the emperor's kindness, I am delighted to have your company."

As she spoke, her eyes sparkled with joy, and at the same time revealed a hint of imperceptible tenderness and affection.

The emperor raised the corners of his mouth slightly, revealing a faint smile, and gazed at An Lingrong tenderly, his eyes filled with endless doting.

He reached out his hand gently and slowly held An Lingrong's delicate hands, savoring the warmth coming from her palms.

"Your Majesty, your hands are so beautiful." An Lingrong parted her red lips and whispered softly. Her beautiful eyes moved and her gaze involuntarily fell on the emperor's slender jade-like fingers.

"Oh? Lingrong actually thinks my hands are beautiful?" Upon hearing this, the emperor couldn't help but chuckle, with a hint of teasing in his voice.

"Yes, the emperor's fingers are slender, strong and powerful, as if they were carefully carved, and it seems that they contain endless power." An Lingrong answered sincerely, with a bright light flashing in her eyes, as dazzling as stars.

The emperor was extremely delighted when he heard this. He gently stroked the back of An Lingrong's hand, carefully feeling the touch of her silky smooth and delicate skin.

At this moment, it seemed as if a flash of inspiration passed through the emperor's mind, and an elusive smile appeared on his face, as if he remembered something very interesting.

Then, the emperor's mouth corners slightly raised, with a cunning light flashing in his eyes. Then he gently stretched out his fingertips and carefully touched An Lingrong's delicate and silky palm.

An Lingrong felt a slight itching sensation from the emperor's fingertips and couldn't help but tremble, but she did not back down. Instead, she tightly grasped the emperor's broad and powerful hands, fearing that they would suddenly leave.

At the same time, she slowly lifted the emperor's hand and gently placed it against her cheek, which was as white and delicate as mutton-fat jade, feeling the unique warmth and tenderness.

At this moment, An Lingrong was like an innocent child, with a playful and curious look in her eyes. She blinked her big watery eyes.

Looking at the extremely noble emperor in front of him, he asked softly, "Your Majesty, your hands are so warm!" There was a hint of coquettishness in his voice, which made people feel pity and love for him.

Faced with the emperor's sudden action, An Lingrong was stunned at first, and then she smiled shyly, her cheeks as rosy as the sunset, as tempting as a ripe apple.

She lowered her head slightly, not daring to look directly into the emperor's eyes, and whispered softly: "I don't know..." Her words revealed the innocent and naive attitude of a little girl. "It's so similar, the voice is similar, even the shy attitude and naughty look are similar."

The entire palace was immersed in a quiet and peaceful atmosphere. The conversation between the two was like a warm spring breeze, gently blowing through each other's hearts, making the two hearts snuggle more closely together.