Chapter 960: I've imprisoned the Empress—how to break this!? 13

But Jin Chen hadn't anticipated it; before the Mid-Autumn banquet arrived, he first encountered an accident.

Although his arm was injured, he still had to handle these memorials; most affairs could be temporarily handled by the Grand Tutor, but major decisions still required Jin Chen's judgment.

Since Wen Zhiheng was taken out of the Cold Palace, Jin Chen never entered any other part of the Inner Palace; thus, after this injury, the Imperial Study became a place where the palace concubines vied for favor.

Those who begged and acted coquettish to see Your Majesty directly sent all kinds of soups and tonics; some even tried to bribe Yan Fu'an to let them in to keep Jin Chen company.

Anyone who dared to do such things would be sent out of the palace the next day.

Jin Chen was worried about having no excuse to get rid of them, but this method conveniently allowed him to drive away another batch.

Who knows if this tyrant of a previous self even remembers how many concubines are in the Inner Palace; he can't possibly drive them all away!

But despite all precautions, Jin Chen still couldn't prevent the daily noon soup he had to drink.

Shao Chun then showed his true colors, sneaking into the Imperial Kitchen and adding some ingredients to Jin Chen's personal food bowl.

As he added the ingredients, he thought, Your Majesty has been favoring the Empress for a while now and hasn't visited his Hall of Spring Return in ages.

As a cat that, once favored, would never want to share its affection with another, how could Shao Chun tolerate Wen Zhiheng stealing what was his?

Thus no one noticed anything wrong with the soup; this substance was colorless and tasteless, detectable only with a special silver needle.

After drinking the soup, Jin Chen sighed at the pile of memorials, comforting himself that he would soon be able to find Wen Zhiheng to continue annotating them, while also listening to the Grand Tutor's muttered complaints beside him.

"Your Majesty!"

Shao Chun judged the time was about right, changed into a more charming long robe, and from afar he actually looked even more beautiful and lovely than a young lady.

In Jin Chen's helpless and speechless gaze, he bounced over to his side, pointing and looking toward the Grand Tutor.

With palace concubines present, they could no longer discuss court affairs; the Grand Tutor pretended not to see Jin Chen's gaze forbidding him to leave, shook his sleeves, and bowed his farewell.

Jin Chen: "……"

"How come you're here again?"

He threw down his brush, helplessly pressed his forehead, and felt a restless irritation rising from his heart.

"Your Majesty... since you ignore me, I have no choice but to come find you myself."

Shao Chun withdrew his gaze from the memorials, happily squatting beside Jin Chen, resting his chin on the Dragon Throne, looking up at him: "Your Majesty, the Empress ignores you, but I like you."

As he spoke, it was unclear whether his squatting posture was problematic; his loose collar revealed a large expanse of skin, and Jin Chen, glancing back, could almost see everything below from the neckline.

He tapped his irritated heart, waved a hand to push the person away, his tone turning cold: "Unbecoming, hurry up and get out!"

Shao Chun was shoved to the ground by him, his robe further slipping from his shoulders, looking pitiful as he lifted his eyes and shed tears.

"You're being fierce at me again!"

"You..." Jin Chen suddenly felt dizzy, the heat and agitation not diminishing but increasing.

Looking at the person on the ground, he suddenly realized something; his first reaction was to seal the drug's effect in the meridians with an acupuncture point, thoroughly angering him, and he kicked out.

"Impudent!"

"You dare to drug Me, do you know what crime this is!"

Shao Chun was violently kicked away by him, covering his scraped knee as tears streamed down, crying bitterly, while the hand behind his back silently snatched up one of the overturned memorials and hid it in his sleeve.

"If it weren't... if it weren't for Your Majesty ignoring me these days, why would I have to do this..."

"You still treat me like this; you must have forgotten what you said before!"

Shao Chun cried harder and grew more sorrowful, his accusations mixed with grievance; he wanted to take Jin Chen's hand, but was violently shaken off.

Jin Chen rose to his feet, furious, grabbed a paperweight and threw it at him: "Yan Fu'an! Take him away and lock him up!"

"Eh! This old servant is here."

Yan Fu'an heard the summons and hurriedly pushed the door open, startled by the scene, and quickly called for the guards to come in.

"No! Let me go!"

Shao Chun, frightened until his fur stood on end, bared his teeth at those guards and instinctively tried to hide behind Jin Chen.

But Jin Chen would not indulge him.

"Your Majesty, this is..." Yan Fu'an, thinking back to the conversation just heard, felt something was wrong and quickly proposed, "I'll go fetch the Empress right away."

"Let Huai Feng come to the Side Hall."

Jin Chen had no doubt this drug was from the Saiwai Western Regions, stronger than ordinary medicines, and even sealing the meridians only hindered its effect.

After the time it takes to drink half a cup of tea.

Jin Chen waited in the Side Hall and saw Yan Fu'an arrive, along with... a concubine he had never seen before.

Yan Fu'an entered, first kneeling and prostrating himself on the ground, loudly shouting for Your Majesty's mercy.

"Her Highness the Empress says he's unwell today and not fit to share the bed; I really have no other recourse—this young lord is of low rank, his background clean, and he couldn't be more suitable."

The implication being, even if you had him share your bed and then silenced him, no one would gossip further.

The young lord had a delicate appearance, looking like he had just come of age; Jin Chen had no prior impression of him, and he supposed that his previous self had taken a fancy to some family's young lord and brought him into the palace, only to forget him in an instant.

"Get out!"

Jin Chen smashed a teacup, the anger in his tone uncontainable.

"He hasn't come... why hasn't he come."

"Never before has this happened."

"Never."

Jin Chen clenched his fists, his pupils faintly tinged blue, his mighty aura spreading and filling the entire hall.

Yan Fu'an had already slunk away, and the quiet hall held only the soft sobs of that young lord.

Jin Chen saw that he was truly frightened and coldly rebuked, "Still not getting out?"

"I beg Your Majesty, for lack of favor is lack of virtue; I cannot bring shame to my family, nor do I wish to be punished by the Consort Jingliang of the palace."

Even an unpromoted young lord couldn't change his self-address; how pitiful.

Jin Chen tilted his head to look at him, his gaze sweeping as if in thought, then slowly rose.

【Don't be impulsive, Host! Impulsiveness is the devil!】

0731 hurriedly urged, afraid the Host would be controlled by the drug just like that.

【Detox Pill exchanged, 50 points deducted!】

Jin Chen had just stood up when a pill appeared in his hand.

【... You're sick.】

【Huh? You haven't lost your mind.】0731 let out a sigh of relief.

Jin Chen didn't respond, merely continuing to pace toward the young lord, his attitude softening as he reached out, "Get up, don't kneel."

The young lord timidly looked up at the Nine-Five Supreme before him, trembling as he placed his frail finger on Jin Chen's palm.

"Your Majesty……"

Jin Chen ignored him, glanced out the window, and the anger in his eyes intensified.