With the conspirators of Prince Wei executed, the concubines imprisoned within the Empress's palace were also permitted to leave. The Empress immediately made her way to the Nanxun Hall. Upon learning that His Majesty had returned to the Zichen Hall, she changed course toward it. Though still shaken, she could not conceal the pleasure swelling in her heart.
Li Chen was gone. The Lu clan had been eradicated. Of the powerful noble families capable of contending with the Crown Prince, only a few remained. As for the Cui clan of Boling, the most deeply entrenched in court, there was no cause for concern. After all, the Cui family's legitimate daughter had married her other son, Li Jing. And since Li Jing had no heir, the Cui clan had no choice but to throw their support behind the Crown Prince.
At this thought, the Empress, seated upright in her phoenix carriage, raised a hand to her brow, a flicker of guilt surfacing in her eyes. Soon. Once the Emperor passed and Li Zhang ascended the throne and solidified his rule, everything would fall into place.
Zichen Hall was now in sight. Imperial guards surrounded it, their numbers several times the usual. The Empress descended from her carriage and proceeded on foot into the hall. The Emperor looked well, engaged in quiet conversation with Gao Fu, though his expression was tinged with gloom. When he saw the Empress, he beckoned to her with a gentle hand.
"You must have been terribly frightened today," he said. "Come, sit."
Overcome with emotion, the Empress hurried to him, failing to notice the subtle change in how he addressed her.
"Your Majesty," she exclaimed, her voice tight with urgency, "What… what in heaven's name has happened?"
"What has happened? Is that something the Empress truly does not know?" His lips curled ever so slightly, his voice laced with quiet skepticism.
The Empress took her seat beside him, her face a portrait of sorrow.
"I've heard the news," she said, shaking her head. "But they were brothers—true brothers! That Prince Wei could strike with such cruelty… it chills me to the bone."
The Emperor neither agreed nor refuted. Her words rang hollow. Within imperial families, fraternal bonds might exist—but rarely endured. Li Chen's downfall had begun when the Emperor learned of his collusion with Gesang Meiduo. From that moment, disappointment gave way to strategic indulgence, allowing Li Chen to grow bolder until he sealed his own fate. Both the Emperor and Empress were seasoned in the art of power. Little needed to be said; intentions were understood.
Before the Crown Prince could ascend the throne, all obstacles—be they in the former court or imperial harem—had to be removed. The Empress, in truth, had nudged Li Chen toward his demise.
Taking a cup of tea from Gao Fu, the Emperor lifted the lid and gently blew away the foam. He did not look at her, merely spoke as if to himself.
"I never imagined Prince Wei would be so reckless. He was supposed to report on the Jinzhou affair today. Instead, he sought to depose the Crown Prince and persuade me to name another heir."
His voice rang clear and strong—evidence of his full recovery.
He had thought this storm would rage on until Li Ce returned from Jinzhou. Yet Prince Wei had proven to be even more arrogant and unhinged than anticipated.
The Empress lowered her gaze. "He was always so dutiful, so obedient… no one could have foreseen this."
"But you foresaw it." The Emperor's words struck without warning. He looked up suddenly. "Otherwise, why would you have sent Xiao Chenzi to inform Li Chen that I knew of his dealings with Gesang Meiduo?"
The Empress looked up, stunned, terror etched across her face. She had suspected His Majesty's illness was not as dire as claimed, but never imagined he saw through everything. Her private schemes laid bare, her meddling in court affairs exposed—her powdered face turned ashen.
"Your Majesty…" she murmured, instinctively rising to kneel. "I… I was only—"
"No more." He waved her off wearily. People are always strict with others, lenient with themselves. The Empress was to blame—but was he not also at fault?
"I tire of this endless deception. But the one who carried out your dirty work… he must go. I will not have new unrest arise in the palace."
He meant Xiao Chenzi. Placing down his teacup, the Emperor patted the Empress's hand, a gesture of feeble reassurance. Then suddenly:
"But how do you explain Li Jing's lack of an heir?"
This question struck harder than the last. Though softly spoken, it robbed the Empress of breath, her ornamental hairpin trembling.
"What… what do you mean, Your Majesty?"
Her hand instinctively withdrew, but he caught it firmly.
"You've always favored him," said the Emperor. "You were harsh with Li Zhang, yet always indulgent with Li Jing, your heart tethered to his every wish. Li Chen claimed Li Jing's childlessness was your doing. I pondered this for a long time and found only one explanation—the Cui clan of Boling."
The Cui clan—descendants of Jiang Ziya, long established since the Han dynasty and hailed as the greatest of noble lineages by the Tang. Over ten of its members had held the position of chancellor. Its women were no less esteemed—one had even risen to Empress under Emperor Zhongzong. And due to shared ancestry, the Cui often received support from the Jiang clan. Take, for example, Jiang Min, Vice Minister of War, who was closely allied with them.
The Empress lowered her eyes. A tear slipped from her lashes, carving a long line down her full cheek.
"Your Majesty," she said earnestly, "Li Zhang and Li Jing—they are both my sons, borne from ten months' labor and pain. My reasons… only you could understand. Jing'er is too pure of heart. Only this way could I shield him from the ravenous ambition of wolves pushing him to vie for the throne. I've lived each day in remorse and agony, as though a thousand ants gnawed at my heart. But to protect him—there was no other way."
"If that was your goal," the Emperor replied, "you should never have let him marry a Cui."
"If he hadn't," she confessed, "Li Chen would have. The matchmaker visited the Cui family for him first. When I heard, I rushed to intervene. Today, with only the Lu family backing him, Li Chen already dares seize power. If he had the Cui clan as well—how could the nation have withstood the power struggle?"
The Emperor let out a heavy sigh.
"Zitong…" He released her hand and slowly stood, leaning on Gao Fu as he made his way toward the inner chambers. "Zitong, all the lofty justifications you've given… in the end, you're simply partial. And greedy."
Partial to Li Zhang—so everything must serve his cause. Greedy for power—so she had to bind the Cui clan to her will.
His voice, tinged with sorrow, was far from the regal authority of a sovereign who had just quelled a palace coup. He looked like a man who had waged a pyrrhic war—killed eight hundred enemies, only to lose a thousand of his own. His back bent, the Emperor coughed softly, step by step returning to his dragon bed.
The Empress remained rooted to the spot. She neither followed nor explained. They had married in youth, weathered storms for decades—not just husband and wife, but comrades in preserving the Tang dynasty. The Emperor was not angry with her. He was grieving for the sons and grandsons he would not live to see.
Even with a heart of iron, no sovereign could extinguish the tender ache of a parent.
The hall was thick with incense. The Empress drew in a long breath and turned to leave. Her attendant, Lady Du Xiaoran, hurried forward to support her. The Empress clutched her hand tightly, as though drawing strength from her alone. But her lapse lasted but a moment—she straightened her posture, her bearing flawless once more.
"Seal the Yushu Palace, where the Lu clan resides," she commanded, her voice low and steady. "Everything else shall await His Majesty's judgment."
Ye Jiao could not wait another moment.
Before she left the palace, the Emperor had asked her to wait. He told her Prince Chu could not dissuade her from traveling to Jinzhou, and if she must go, to take something with her.
His gaze had been layered with meaning, even tinged with amusement. Before long, the item was delivered—a box just over a foot long, bound with a red cord instead of a lock.
Ye Jiao had no mind to inspect it. She rushed back to the Duke of Anguo's estate to change her clothes. As she was about to leave, her sister Ye Rou came chasing after her.
Ye Jiao was on horseback. Ye Rou, unable to keep up, called for Feng Jie to prepare the carriage. As the carriage followed, Ye Rou pulled back the curtain in desperation.
"What on earth has happened? Say something, will you?"
Today truly felt like the end of the world.