Chapter 1: Something Happened at the Duke of Ding's Mansion

"Boom—Rumble!" "Bang—Crash!"

It was another night of thunder and lightning. The dark clouds piled up in the sky like mountains, looking as if they might collapse at any moment. The thunder was deafening and the lightning was blinding, involuntarily giving one the sensation that the heavens were about to fall.

Lying in bed, Tang Wanqiu felt a stifling discomfort in her chest, accompanied by waves of intense palpitations.

A sudden, ominous premonition rose in Tang Wanqiu's heart. Could it be that another major event was about to occur in the imperial court tonight?

The last time she experienced these symptoms was when the current Emperor forced his way to the throne.

That year, she was sixteen, the newly arrived Princess Consort of Prince Rong's manor.

At that time, she was merely a naive girl immersed in love, completely unaware that her husband—the seemingly gentle, refined, and non-competitive Prince Rong—was actually a decisive man of action, someone who dared to pierce the very heavens.

After the bloody storm of that night, Prince Rong ascended to the top and became the current Emperor.

As his consort, she rose along with him, being promoted to the Mother of the Nation; for a time, she was seen by everyone as possessing infinite glory.

In the blink of an eye, sixteen years had passed. The scenes of that time had faded, yet only the palpitations of that night remained vivid in her memory, as if they had happened only yesterday.

Perhaps it was because tonight shared too many similarities with that night years ago.

The same thunder and lightning; the same wind and torrential rain; the same sense of restlessness and unease. Thus, those long-buried memories surged forth like a tide, leaving her anxious and tossing and turning in her sleep.

Her mind was filled with trepidation, wondering: what major event would occur tonight?

Tang Wanqiu smiled bitterly. Even if something major happened again, what would it have to do with her, a discarded Empress in the Cold Palace?

In the eyes of the public, she was the glorious, high-and-mighty Empress of the nation. But who knew that she was merely a titular Empress, a discarded queen with no real power.

For these ten years, although she was the Mother of the Nation, she could not manage the internal affairs of the Forbidden Palace.

She was the Empress, yet she had been confined to this Kunning Palace for ten years, never having met the Emperor.

Ten years—she had almost forgotten what that man looked like.

Ten years was enough time for her heart to become as still as water.

If there was anything left in this world worth her concern, it was the lifeline of her maternal family.

Now, she only wanted to do her utmost to use this nominal position of Empress to maintain the balance between her maternal family and the imperial court. This was the responsibility she had to bear as a daughter of the Tang family.

Thinking of this, a warm smile welled up in the depths of Tang Wanqiu's eyes. She wondered if her parents and elder brother at home were doing well.

"Boom—Rumble!"

Another burst of thunder and lightning pulled Tang Wanqiu back from her brief reminiscence. She felt her palpitations growing increasingly severe. She pressed her left hand against her chest, struggling to endure the unease in her heart.

Why was the lightning so terrifying tonight?

Why were her palpitations so intense?

Why did she suddenly feel a sense of eternal damnation?

The feeling of unease grew more intense, and Tang Wanqiu suddenly sat up from her phoenix bed.

"Your Ladyship, did you have another nightmare?" Yu Niang, who had been waiting by her side, saw her mistress's pale face and cold sweat and assumed she had been startled awake by a nightmare. She asked nervously, "Should this servant summon the Imperial Physician?"

She hadn't slept at all; how could she have a nightmare!

"I am fine!" Tang Wanqiu waved her hand, saying urgently, "Quick, send someone out to investigate and see if something has happened at the Duke of Ding's manor!"