Chapter 375: The Truth (Second Update)

Seeing that the person before her was actually Emperor Jiawen, Rong Zhen's words came to an abrupt halt, and a flash of panic crossed her eyes.

"Father!?"

When Emperor Jiawen saw Rong Zhen, his first reaction was a sense of relief, followed immediately by an endless surge of fury!

Suppressing the fire in his heart, he asked in a heavy voice

"Zhenzhen, why are you here?"

"I... I..."

Facing Emperor Jiawen's interrogation, Rong Zhen actually began to stutter, unable to speak for quite a while.

Chu Liuyue narrowed her eyes and turned to look at Rong Jin and Situ Xingchen, who had just helped the Empress down from the carriage

"Empress, Crown Prince, isn't the Fourth Princess right here, perfectly fine?"

Rong Jin looked up and immediately saw Rong Zhen standing at the entrance.

The words in his throat suddenly stuck, and his face turned a mix of pale and blue.

Beside him, Situ Xingchen's expression also shifted slightly.

How could Rong Zhen be here!?

Didn't Elder Ning say that he saw with his own eyes that Chu Liuyue had taken her into the mountains outside the Imperial Capital?

Since Si Meng died at Chu Liuyue's hands, then Rong Zhen should have been hidden away by her as well!

What was the situation now!?

Rong Jin instinctively looked toward the Empress.

"Mother, this—"

"Impossible!"

Upon seeing Rong Zhen, the Empress's reaction was more violent than anyone else's. She actually broke free from Rong Jin's grasp and stumbled toward Rong Zhen.

"Impossible! Zhenzhen is not here! You must be a fake!"

Her voice was shrill and raspy, making those who heard it feel extremely uncomfortable.

Coupled with her face, which was distorted by shock and panic, she looked even more unsightly.

In Emperor Jiawen's eyes, there was undisguised disgust.

"Empress! Not only are you full of lies and deceiving me, but now you refuse to even recognize your own daughter! You have truly disappointed me!"

No matter what, he had doted on Rong Zhen for over ten years, and he was absolutely certain that the person before him was Rong Zhen!

To prove her innocence, the Empress was actually telling blatant lies; she was truly insane!

Rong Zhen seemed startled by the Empress's outburst and took a nervous step back

"Mother, what do you mean by that? I am Zhenzhen!"

"You are not Zhenzhen! You are not..."

The Empress stared fixedly at the Rong Zhen before her. Although she was still denying it verbally, her voice grew smaller and smaller.

—This person was indeed Rong Zhen!

A sense of despair gradually flooded her heart.

"Speak! Was it Chu Liuyue who sent you here!? It must be her, wasn't it?!"

The Empress was on the verge of a breakdown, appearing almost mad.

Emperor Jiawen's gaze was icy

"Rong Zhen, speak for yourself! What exactly is going on!"

Rong Zhen was stunned by the scene before her and only regained her senses after a long moment.

"I... I am! It was Chu Liuyue who brought me here!"

Emperor Jiawen continued to ask: "When?"

Rong Zhen shot a quick glance at the Empress and lowered her eyes guiltily.

"It... it was just before Chu Liuyue went to Taiyan Academy..."

"The Fourth Princess is joking. How come I didn't know about this? Besides, if I truly wanted to imprison you, of all the places, why would I choose this one?"

Chu Liuyue scanned the surroundings.

"To be honest, this is my first time visiting this place today. On the contrary, I heard from the Third Prince that you, Empress, visit here quite frequently? Is there something I'm so misguided about that I would want to hide the Fourth Princess here?"

Rong Zhen suddenly became frantic.

"It's you... it's you! You harbor resentment toward me, so—"

"It should be the Fourth Princess who harbors resentment toward me, shouldn't it? After all, to be honest, I haven't suffered any losses from you in the past, so how could there be resentment?"

Chu Liuyue spoke with casual indifference.

Though her words were harsh, who among those present didn't know they were the truth?

Rong Zhen had previously made things difficult for Chu Liuyue at the palace banquet, only to end up in an embarrassing position.

Later, when Rong Zhen's Primordial Core shattered and she became a cripple, Chu Liuyue had transformed into an envied genius, even being selected by Mu Qing and given the chance to go to the Heavenly Command Empire.

If there was jealousy, it should be Rong Zhen who couldn't stand the sight of Chu Liuyue.

Rong Zhen felt even more humiliated.

Rong Jiu said indifferently, "Father, now you can believe that what your son said was not false."

Emperor Jiawen's face was terrifyingly grim

"Rong Zhen, step aside. I want to see exactly what secrets are hidden in here!"

If the Empress really did come here secretly often, then there must be something more to uncover!

Rong Zhen bit her lip, hesitating for a moment, but refused to move.

"Father, there is nothing in here. You'd better not come in."

"I said step aside!"

Emperor Jiawen barked a command. Rong Zhen shuddered in fear, her face turning deathly pale.

Eunuch Min pleaded earnestly

"Fourth Princess, please just step aside! Do you really think you can actually stop His Majesty?"

Things had already escalated to this point; if Rong Zhen continued like this, wouldn't she just be looking for trouble?

Rong Zhen's eyes turned red as she looked fearfully toward the Empress.

Emperor Jiawen sneered

"Why are you looking at her! Are my words less important than the Empress's!?"

Rong Jin immediately stepped forward and said urgently

"Father! Please do not misunderstand! This... Rong Zhen didn't mean it like that!"

Emperor Jiawen couldn't be bothered with him and gave the Empress a deep look

"Empress, at this point, will you come inside with me, or will you continue to play the fool here?"

The Empress sobbed, tears falling incessantly, looking quite pitiful.

But to Emperor Jiawen, looking at her now only made him feel more nauseated.

He stepped forward!

Chu Ning immediately followed and said

"Your Majesty, this barrier is somewhat unique. It might not be wise to force our way through. Should I break this barrier first?"

Emperor Jiawen stopped. "Very well."

Primordial Power gathered in Chu Ning's palm, and a powerful pressure gradually spread out!

Then, he raised his hand, and a massive surge of Primordial Power suddenly flew out!

*Boom!*

The transparent barrier suffered a powerful impact, sending ripples outward in circles!

Terrifying fluctuations spread to the surroundings!

Standing inside the barrier, Rong Zhen was caught off guard by the force, causing her to stumble back several steps, nearly falling to the ground.

After finally steadying herself, she looked back in panic, seemingly wary of something.

Just as Chu Ning was about to strike again, Rong Zhen finally couldn't help but shout

"Stop! I'll open the barrier!"

"Rong Zhen!"

Hearing this, the Empress seemed to suffer a sudden shock and immediately screamed!

Rong Zhen was startled and shrank her shoulders timidly: "Mother, Father is already here; he will find out sooner or later..."

As she spoke, her hand was already trembling as she reached for the barrier.

Chu Liuyue's gaze narrowed slightly.

It seemed something was hidden in the palm of Rong Zhen's hand.

*Buzz—*

With a humming sound, the barrier suddenly opened from the middle!

Emperor Jiawen was the first to walk forward!

"Mother!"

Rong Jin cried out in alarm.

When everyone turned to look, they saw that the Empress had suddenly fainted.

Chu Liuyue let out a "tsk."

Fainting at a time like this... seems a bit too late, doesn't it?

Emperor Jiawen seemed completely unbothered and walked straight inside.

Chu Liuyue and Chu Ning followed closely behind.

When they saw the scene within the courtyard, even Chu Liuyue couldn't help but gasp!