She looked at the little Crown Princess and said, "Tell me, did you harm my Baojia?"
"She's still just an eighteen-year-old girl, just a little wilful from being pampered by her family. Why must you make things so difficult for her that she can't even return to Dragon Flame City?"
Qiao Mu sized her up, then reached out and tugged on her husband's sleeve. "What did she come to me for?"
Was it about the corpse puppets, or Chen Baojia?
If it was the former, she could summon the managers tomorrow at Cai Die Xuan to clarify things.
If it was the latter, sorry, but she couldn't care less about Chen Baojia's affairs.
What did Chen Baojia's life or death have to do with her? It was ridiculous.
They weren't on the same team. Could it be that if Miss Chen died during her training, it would be blamed on her, Lord Qiaoqiao?
Wouldn't that be the biggest joke in the world?
Qiao Mu had never dealt with Empress Dowager Chen before and knew nothing about her.
However, seeing Chen Baojia's usual conduct, and thinking about the Chen family's discipline, she couldn't bring herself to like Empress Dowager Chen either.
Moreover, Empress Dowager Chen was now acting like a muddled old fool who couldn't distinguish right from wrong.
Qiao Mu couldn't help but frown repeatedly.
Mo Lian lowered his head, squeezed her small hand, and softly comforted her. Then he looked up at Empress Dowager Chen and said, "Although Chen Baojia went with us to the Sun Moon Secret Realm."
"But to put it bluntly, we weren't in the same team and didn't know each other well." Crown Prince Mo said coldly, "I've already told Father about the secret realm's collapse."
"As for what happened to Miss Chen after the secret realm collapsed, that's not something we can know clearly."
"At that time, Qiaoqiao and I were in grave danger ourselves, struggling to survive. We truly didn't have the leisure to care about Miss Chen's life or death. We hope Your Majesty the Empress Dowager understands."
This subtle rebuff made Empress Dowager Chen feel a bit stifled.
Chen Baojia was the most talented among the young women of their family. At such a young age, she had already reached the realm of a ninth-level spirit master, and her future prospects were limitless.
But now...
She was missing and had vanished without a trace, how could the Chen family not be anxious?
"Your Majesty, how should this Fuhuang be dealt with?" The personal eunuch, Hu Dequan, walked forward hesitantly, cautiously glancing at the Great Emperor.
The Great Emperor glared. How else could it be dealt with? Naturally, it should be burned.
Crown Prince Mo, however, spoke faintly, "Wait a moment before dealing with it."
"My wife won't take this blame," he said coldly, his gaze lightly sweeping over the Empress Dowager's face. "Tomorrow, we will go to Cai Die Xuan to investigate this matter thoroughly. We cannot allow her to be falsely accused for no reason."
Lord Qiaoqiao nodded vigorously, showing complete agreement.
Empress Dowager Chen's face looked somewhat displeased. Although the Crown Prince hadn't said anything harsh, his words were all directed at her, making her feel utterly annoyed.
Empress Dowager Chen glanced at the young couple again. Seeing that they had held hands tightly the entire time, and although their expressions were faint and showed no great fluctuations, for some reason, it inexplicably felt like they were deliberately adding to her annoyance everywhere.
The Great Emperor didn't even say anything to them.
The Crown Prince was the heir apparent of Shenzhou. How could he disregard his image like this, constantly sticking to the Crown Princess?
Empress Dowager Chen's eyes sharpened.
"The matter of Cai Die Xuan must be investigated, but not by the Crown Prince," Empress Dowager Chen said coldly. "Your Majesty, I believe this matter should be handed over to the Dali Temple for investigation."