Transmigration: The Evil Mother-In-Law Is Actually Innocent!-Chapter 1205: Lifespan

Zhang Yang hadn’t noticed that Prince Liang was distracted at all, still ranting somewhat crazily, "The one I most admire is the Fourth Prince, the most suitable to ascend to the throne is the Fourth Prince!"

Prince Liang gave a sneer, "Today is quite interesting indeed, are you crazy?"

Zhang Yang gestured with his hand, "No, I’m not crazy. I’m a pawn, a pawn of the Zhang family, a fake, I’m the fake Fifth Prince, haha, everyone uses me as a pawn. Isn’t that pitiful? Isn’t it?"

Prince Liang felt that Zhang Yang was going a bit mad, but he didn’t sympathize. Zhang Jinghong was also a pawn. Some people realize something is wrong and save themselves, some just resent everyone, as if they are so innocent.

How one survives in this world, how one lives, depends entirely on one’s own efforts.

Seeing that Prince Liang’s expression hadn’t changed, Zhang Yang stopped laughing, "Don’t you think I’m pitiful?"

Prince Liang didn’t want to waste words with Zhang Yang. Sitting here, he already felt suffocated, fearing being infected by staying too long with a fool, "Aren’t you afraid I’ll tell the Emperor?"

Zhang Yang was intrigued, his expression turning a bit crazy again, "Not afraid, no, I’m not afraid. I only have this one life, hehe, and the Emperor won’t let me die, I’m very useful, to the Emperor, to the Zhang family. See, haven’t I become smarter?"

Prince Liang stood up to leave.

Zhang Yang spoke up, "Fourth Prince, I know you are not content. I can help you, I know the secrets of the Zhang family, they intend to—"

Prince Liang turned around, staring straight at Zhang Yang, "You help me?"

Zhang Yang smiled, "Yes, I help you, help you ascend to the imperial throne, help you eradicate the Zhang family."

Saying this, he pointed to his own head, continuing, "I truly know a lot."

His acting wasn’t too bad, at least in front of Gu Ren, he was a worthless person. Silver was really a good thing, using the silver from the Zhang family to bribe some desperados, getting the information he wanted, it was truly satisfying.

Prince Liang sat down again, and Zhang Yang smiled even more joyfully. The throne, how enticing it was.

At Zhou’s, the Female Officer sent Lin Xi out of the Palace, Xue Han took over Lin Xi, and the Female Officer rushed away without leaving a word.

Xue Han held her daughter tight, "Mother, something’s not right."

Zhulan also felt something was off. Considering how much the Empress valued Lin Xi, she wouldn’t leave without a word unless something had happened in the Palace.

Zhulan took her lively granddaughter, "Lin Xi, did you miss Grandma?"

The little girl had been well-cared for in the Palace, probably taught a lot on speaking by the Empress, able to utter a couple of words, but alas, none were "miss."

Suddenly, the little girl stood and spat out a word, "Poison."

Zhulan supported her granddaughter, stunned. The child must have remembered the word someone uttered by her ear, she and her daughter were playing with the child, who couldn’t say "miss" out of urgency and blurted out what she had heard instead.

Xue Han was terrified, "Go find the Imperial Physician."

Zhulan reassured her daughter, indicating it wasn’t necessary to fetch the chief physician, telling Xue Han, "If Lin Xi were poisoned, the Empress wouldn’t have sent her back."

Xue Han finally calmed down, holding her daughter tighter, "Then, who could it be?"

Zhulan thought it must be the Empress. Now, the whole court knew the Emperor was in poor health. The Empress was over ten years younger than the Emperor. If something happened to the Emperor, the Empress would control the Palace and steady the Crown Prince’s position.

Thus, the Zhang family definitely did not want to see the perfectly fine Empress.

Seeing her mother didn’t reply, sharp Xue Han’s mind buzzed, "No, it can’t be."

Zhulan patted her daughter’s hand, "We’ll know when the news comes."

Inside the Palace, the Empress indeed was poisoned. Despite the Emperor’s vigilance, he couldn’t guard against it. The poison was a powerful secret medicine, even with the quickest detoxification, it still harmed her vitality and affected her lifespan.

Empress sleeping quarters were deathly silent as the Emperor clutched the String of Pearls tightly, "Are you saying this could shorten her life?"

The chief physician bowed his head, "Yes, this secret medicine is extremely potent."

The Emperor’s fists creaked with tension; he knew he would leave the world before the Empress but had never contemplated taking her with him upon his death. It wasn’t just that the Crown Prince needed elders, but also because he couldn’t bear the thought.

The Emperor asked the chief physician, "What about the child?"

The chief physician’s forehead was covered in sweat, "The fifth Prince’s eldest son is the catalyst for the medicine. Although it will not take his life, he has been poisoned. The child is too young and will need careful nurturing in the future."

The Emperor asked, "What if he isn’t carefully nurtured?"

The chief physician swallowed hard, "He would die young."

The Emperor fell silent. The words of the Imperial Physician often carried half-truths, which indicated the child was in a considerably perilous state. At that moment, a Female Officer emerged, "The Empress has awakened."

The Emperor swiftly stood up and proceeded to the inner chamber. The Empress had already sat up but her face was excessively pale and her disheveled hair made her appear even weaker.

The Emperor sat down carefully, "Do you feel any better?"

The Empress’s breath was weak, "What medicine was I given?"

The Emperor explained, "A secret medicine. It only reacts when combined with another. You often visited that child, and the child served as the catalyst."

The Empress urgently asked, "What about Lin Xi, how is Lin Xi?"

Hearing the Empress cough, the Emperor hurriedly reached out to support her, "Lin Xi is fine, she has been sent out of the Palace."

The Empress believed the Emperor’s words and shuddered with fear, "To think that there are even rats in my palace."

The Emperor’s eyes turned fierce. During the Empress’s poisoning, he had considered purging the harem. If the culprit could not be found, then all would be killed.

The Empress knew the Emperor too well and placed her hand over his, "Not now."

They had to wait, now was not the time.

With suppressed fury, the Emperor’s voice turned hoarse, "Even though the poison is cured, it will still affect your lifespan."

The Empress was stunned, then smiled, "That’s not too bad."

Saying so, she raised her hand to touch the Emperor’s face, his visage still made up in a jaundiced hue. This man had promised that after abdicating, he would take her to see the world he began shaping. She was willing to trust him one last time.

The news of the Empress’s poisoning couldn’t be kept secret, and the Emperor didn’t intend to hide it.

Upon hearing the news, Zhulan commented, "It’s hard to tell if it’s real poisoning or just a ruse."

Zhou Shuren replied, "I think it was real."

Zhulan, puzzled, asked, "Why?"

Zhou Shuren explained, "If the Empress wasn’t poisoned, the Female Officer who sent Lin Xi back today would have certainly given some instructions, but she didn’t say a word. This implies that the Female Officer was dispatched by the Emperor in haste without instructions, which suggests that the Empress might be still unconscious from the poisoning."

Zhulan felt a pang in her heart, "Was it real poisoning?"

Zhou Shuren spoke somberly, "The Emperor values the Empress dearly, and he has feelings for her. The manner in which this news has spread is too calm. Based on my understanding of the Emperor, the calmer it appears, the more suppressed it likely is."

Everyone has their breaking point; for him, anyone who touches Zhulan would face his wrath. The Emperor was likely the same.

Human preferences are skewed. The Emperor’s affection for the Crown Prince and Rongchuan surely came from their maternal lineage.

With deep concern, Zhulan murmured, "I wonder how the Empress is faring now."