Dugu Jingyao is reborn as Li Chu's beloved

Chapter 584 A Big Surprise

When Li Xi received the news, he was talking to Ting Lan's unborn child at Ya Lan Garden. Upon hearing the news, Li Xi got up. He was about to get angry, but he was afraid of frightening Ting Lan, so he only said, "You can't even handle this simple matter. You're really useless."

Tinglan, however, stood up despite her pregnant belly and comforted him, saying, "Your Highness, please don't be angry. I've heard that this Lord Gu is known for his integrity and selflessness. The fact that he didn't make things difficult for Your Highness must have been due to the Princess's efforts."

Li Xi found Tinglan increasingly understanding, helped her sit down, and then said, "You're just too kind. She almost made you unable to have children before, and you still spoke up for her?"

Tinglan smiled and said, "Isn't that all in the past? Besides, look, I'm pregnant now, and the baby is safe and sound in my belly. This shows that the princess doesn't really want to make things difficult for me. She just sees that I'm favored and is afraid that if I give birth to a son, I will surpass the crown prince. It's only natural for a mother to think about her children."

Li Xi gently pinched Tinglan's nose without saying anything more. He checked the time and said, "Lan'er, stay home and rest well during your pregnancy. I'm going to the palace to visit your father." Tinglan naturally got up to see Li Xi off.

After leaving Yalan Garden, Li Xi still went to Chunya Pavilion to visit Song Yan and told her to take good care of her pregnancy before leaving. Before getting into the carriage, he instructed the servant at the door, "When the princess returns, tell her that I have something to attend to and will be going out for a while. I will meet her in the inner palace in half an hour." After saying that, he rode away with Li Yuan.

Li Chu and Dugu Jingyao had already arrived at the palace by carriage, and, if Dugu Jingyao could accept it, they hurried to the Fengyi Hall.

In the Empress's bedchamber, the Empress, Li Tan, and Li Ruo were all present, but Emperor Suzong was still unconscious.

Although Li Tan did his best to arrange everything, it was still his first time acting on his own, and he only felt reassured after seeing Li Chu. Li Chu and Dugu Jingyao felt somewhat relieved to see that everything in Fengyi Palace was in good order.

Li Chu asked worriedly, "Mother, how is Father?"

The Empress was still sobbing, so Li Tan spoke up, "Brother, don't worry. We've already had Physician Liu examine him. Thanks to the antidote pills left by my sister-in-law, Father's body has been almost completely cleared of toxins. It's just that he was so anxious and upset when he heard the bad news that he vomited blood and fainted. As long as he follows the prescription and takes it for a while, he will recover completely."

Li Chu knew that the current orderly situation was all thanks to Li Tan, so he didn't hesitate to praise him: "Brother Tan has become much more mature and handles things much more properly."

Li Tan gladly accepted the praise this time, but still humbly said, "Your Majesty is too kind. It was mainly because I learned a lot from Your Majesty and Your Majesty while staying at the Prince of Chu's residence."

However, even Li Ruo acknowledged Li Chu's praise of Li Tan and stopped arguing with him. The Empress was also very proud, as both of her sons were now capable.

However, they quickly returned to the main topic, with Li Chu saying, "Mother, I'm afraid the death of my grandfather is related to the Li family."

Although Li Tan had become much more composed, he still couldn't quite control his emotions. He slammed his hand on the table and stood up, exclaiming, "What?"

Li Chu immediately gestured for him to keep his voice down, fearing that someone might overhear him. Li Tan then quietly cursed Li Xi a couple of times.

Li Ruo couldn't help but curse Li Xi, then sobbed, "Is he even human? My grandfather treated him no worse than my third brother and I, how could he do such a thing?"

Dugu Jingyao shook her head and said, "We don't know exactly what method they used, but we do know that the Emperor was killed by Yang Guifei, and then she committed suicide, but we don't know why."

Li Ruo asked, puzzled, "But what's the point of doing this?"

Li Chu said, "If they think that Father Emperor is terminally ill and want to make Father Emperor even weaker and die soon, and I have just woken up and have not yet resumed my duties in the court, then he is the most suitable candidate for Crown Prince. After all, there are still the two of us princes now."

Dugu Jingyao added, "If he can't get the imperial edict appointing him as crown prince, he might take further action. The main reason is that with Empress Shude's passing, he has no one left in the palace to worry about."

The Empress suddenly muttered, "Does he know?"

Li Ruo asked, "What does he know?"

The Empress then summoned Granny Xu to watch over the situation, and then led a few people aside to tell them about the cause of Empress Shude's death and its connection to Emperor Suzong.

Li Ruo was startled and almost cried out, but fortunately Li Tan covered her mouth.

Others might not know, but Dugu Jingyao did. Murong Linzhi had diagnosed Emperor Suzong with a slow-acting poison, rendering him infertile, yet Empress Shude was pregnant. Wasn't this an illegitimate child? She just hadn't expected that after Emperor Suzong's previous doting affection for Empress Shude, she would end up like this…

Li Ruo said, "Could it be that the Li family knows that Empress Shude's death is related to the Emperor, and therefore they want to repay the debt in kind?"

Li Chu and Li Tan also had their suspicions. Dugu Jingyao looked at their slightly puzzled expressions and whispered, "I'm afraid Consort Du also has spies in the palace. She discovered something and told Li Xi, which is why Li Xi did this."

But all that analysis is useless; the key is how to break the deadlock.

As they were discussing this, Granny Xu came to report that Emperor Suzong had woken up. The group put aside their conversation and went to see him.

When Emperor Suzong saw that Li Chu and Dugu Jingyao had also arrived, he looked at Li Chu with some displeasure: "Jingyao is already so heavily pregnant, and I have nothing serious to do. Why did you send her to the palace for this trip?"

Dugu Jingyao smiled and said, "Father, you have misunderstood Donglang. I was really worried and wanted to come and visit him. Besides, Lin Zhi said that I should be more active, so I came along."

Emperor Suzong knew this was an excuse, so he didn't say anything. The Empress first sent Xu Mama away, and Li Chu also instructed Xu Mama not to tell outsiders, including Li Fuguo, about Emperor Suzong's awakening. Then the group discussed in the bedroom for half an hour.

It wasn't until Li Fuguo reported that the Li family had come to visit Emperor Suzong that he pretended to be unconscious again, and everyone looked worried.