I insist

Chapter 245: Male Concubine Commits Suicide

The Emperor paused, his face darkening as he looked at the Empress Dowager.

"The Emperor hasn't said anything yet, so how can the Empress Dowager be so sure that he will say this? Could it be that the Empress Dowager has something to hide?" The Empress slowly walked in.

The Empress Dowager's expression changed completely when she saw the Emperor. She hadn't expected the Empress to come with him. Could it be that the Empress felt uncomfortable watching her and the Emperor showing affection?

The Emperor then looked at the Empress Dowager and said calmly, "What the Empress said makes perfect sense. Mother, what are you doing..."

Upon hearing this, the Empress Dowager panicked instantly. The fact that the Emperor had even said such things to his mother was proof enough of how angry he was.

Thinking of this, the Empress Dowager quickly explained, looking innocently at the Emperor, "Your Majesty, it's not that I'm guilty. This matter is being discussed everywhere in the palace. This morning, Granny Hua explained it to me."

"And now, Your Majesty, you've come at this critical juncture. If you don't suspect me of having an affair, what else could you possibly suspect me of?" the Empress Dowager said aggrievedly. "I never expected Your Majesty to distrust me so much. I must have misjudged you!"

When the Empress saw this, she instinctively rolled her eyes. She hadn't expected the Empress Dowager to be able to make such a sophistry; the evidence had already been uncovered.

Now that they're in a difficult situation, does the Empress Dowager still want to deceive the Emperor?

A cold glint flashed in her eyes. The Empress had long disliked the Empress Dowager, and now the Empress Dowager's presence could even threaten the Crown Prince's position. She said sarcastically, "Everyone knows the truth. Do you really believe what the Empress Dowager is saying?"

Upon hearing this, the Empress Dowager's expression instantly changed. She glared at the Empress, released her grip on the Emperor's arm, and said sternly, "Don't you dare say anything out of line! You'll get slapped!"

"Slap yourself? What did I say? Why is the Empress Dowager so agitated? Could it be that I have really stepped on her tail? The Empress Dowager wronged others first, how dare she bite back!"

"You!" The Empress Dowager was furious. She had long known that the Empress had disliked her, but she never expected that the Empress would say it out loud at this critical moment!

This is tantamount to kicking someone when they're down!

The thought of this made the Empress Dowager feel a burning rage in her heart.

Just as the two continued arguing, the Emperor flew into a rage, yelling, "Shut up, both of you!"

The Emperor glanced at the Empress Dowager, then coldly looked at the Empress, and said in a cold voice, "The Empress's aggressive behavior towards the Empress Dowager is truly unfilial. Guards, lock the Empress up! Release her only when she has learned filial piety!"

The Empress was furious. She wanted to say something, but the guards had already grabbed her arms and taken her away.

Seeing the Empress being led away, the Empress Dowager smiled slightly. She walked up to the Emperor and said with a wronged expression, "It is my fault that such rumors have spread, but why does Your Majesty not trust me?"

"I have known and loved Your Majesty for so long, and even my child is ready to recognize her as his mother. Is Your Majesty still going to bully me like this?"

Hearing the Empress Dowager's words, the Emperor, who had never believed that she had cheated on him, felt even more guilty. He lowered his head and sighed, took the Empress Dowager's hand, gently patted it in his own palm, and whispered, "I won't do it again. I know my Empress Dowager would not cheat on me, and she would not do what they say."

Upon learning that the Empress had been imprisoned by the Emperor, the Crown Prince rushed to visit her. He saw his mother sitting on the ground in a disheveled state and walked over with heartache in his eyes.

"Mother..."

The Empress slowly raised her head and saw the Crown Prince squatting in front of her. The grievances in her heart were like a surging sea crashing against her. She cried and said, "Why did you only come now?"

The Empress rarely sheds tears in front of others, but now she is not only crying in front of the guards, but also in front of herself. This must be because the Empress has suffered a great injustice.

The Crown Prince hugged the Empress with heartache, gently patted her back, and asked in a low voice, "What happened? Why are you locked up here, Mother?"

Upon hearing the Crown Prince inquire about this matter, the Empress excitedly rose from his embrace, gritting her teeth and sternly saying, "It's all because of that Empress Dowager!"

"The Emperor believes everything the Empress Dowager says, even though the evidence is right in front of him. But he seems to be blind to it! He acts as if he sees nothing and unconditionally believes the Empress Dowager!"

As the Empress wiped away her tears with a tissue, she muttered to the other person, "You have no idea what I just went through! I only said a few words to the Empress Dowager, and the Emperor accused me of filial impiety and locked me up in this wretched place!"

In this palace, the Empress could basically only rely on the Crown Prince. She sniffed and poured out her troubles to the Crown Prince, hoping that he could help her.

"You must quickly help me think of a solution! We can't let the Empress Dowager continue to be so arrogant. If we let her continue like this, it will be my daughter and I who will be bullied!"

Yu Huailin quickly found out about the Empress Dowager's male favorites, and without hesitation, he went directly to the Eastern Palace.

The Crown Prince was already overwhelmed with troubles over the Empress's affairs when he heard that Jia Zhen had arrived. He was puzzled as to why Jia Zhen had suddenly come at this critical juncture.

But then I thought about it again. Jia Zhen had provided me with a lot of useful information before, so I figured this time it wouldn't be too bad either.

Yu Huailin walked up to the Crown Prince, bowed to him, and said with a faint smile, "Your Highness, I have a message that will surely make you very happy when you see it."

"Oh?" The prince raised an eyebrow and gestured for the other party to bring out the item.

Yu Huailin handed the intelligence to the Crown Prince and said with a smile, "I am only responsible for delivering the intelligence to the Crown Prince. As for how the Crown Prince should deal with the people in the intelligence, that is up to the Crown Prince."

"I suppose there's nothing else for me to do right now, so I'll take my leave."

The Crown Prince unwrapped the things that Yu Huailin had rolled up, and upon closer inspection, he discovered that they contained news about the Empress Dowager's male favorites!

The location of the Empress Dowager's male favorites was even written on it.

The information Yu Huailin uncovered was a godsend for the Crown Prince. Although it couldn't directly destroy the Emperor's goodwill towards the Empress Dowager, it could at least give the Empress a chance to vent her anger! The Empress would surely agree.

The crown prince led his men to the location of his male favorite. Looking at the male favorite before him, a hint of disgust flashed in his eyes.

"What do you want to do!?" The male concubine frowned and looked at the prince and his entourage warily. He subconsciously wanted to back away, but he was already inside the house and could not escape at all.

"After all, it was the Empress Dowager who provoked us first, otherwise you wouldn't have been involved. It's just that you'll have to come with us, which will be a hassle," the Crown Prince said in a deep voice.

He gave a look to his trusted aide, who immediately understood and was about to grab the man.

But how could the male favorite let the crown prince and his men succeed? He gritted his teeth and slammed his head against the wall. Blood gushed from his forehead, and he fell heavily to the ground and died.

Seeing this, the crown prince frowned even more deeply.

The trusted aide walked to the crown prince's side, looked at the person lying on the ground, frowned, and asked in a deep voice, "Your Highness, what should we do now?"

The person was already dead, so they couldn't take him directly back to see the emperor.

"So be it. Although we can't kill the Empress Dowager outright, it's good to vent our anger for those behind the scenes." The Crown Prince frowned, looking at the corpse on the ground with disgust. He snorted coldly, turned around, and strode away.