After a few days, rumors and speculations began to spread rapidly, and unfavorable gossip about Yu Yaoyao spread throughout the capital. People were talking about this matter everywhere.
Qin's Mansion, Mingxi Pavilion.
Yu Yao leaned against the bed, reading a novella. Dressed in a light blue dress, her abdomen slightly rounded, her long, black hair cascaded carelessly behind her.
A small table next to the bed held a plate of fresh fruit, exuding a fragrant scent.
Sunlight streamed through the window grilles, illuminating her delicate features and outlining her gentle contours.
At this moment, Xiang Ling hurriedly walked in, her expression anxious, "Master, it's not good! Now everyone is spreading rumors about you."
Yu Yao furrowed her brow, placing the novella aside without showing any panic, and looked at Xiang Ling, "What's going on? What kind of rumors are being spread?"
Xiang Ling took two deep breaths and said, "My lady, rumors are spreading outside that you are a spy sent from the Western Regions to sightsee in Jing State, with the intention of causing harm to our state. They also say that the child in your womb has an unclear origin and is not the child of His Highness. They call it an illegitimate offspring. These rumors are being spread with such detail that many people are discussing them."
Yu Yao's eyes chilled slightly, "I know. You may go now."
"Master…" Xiang Ling's eyes showed worry.
Yu Yao waved her hand, "I want to calm down."
"Yes."
Xiang Ling's eyes showed even greater worry, but she dared not defy her orders, so she retreated with discretion.
After Xiang Ling retreated.
Yu Yao inwardly asked the system, "System, who is spreading rumors about me behind my back?"
The system quickly appeared and didn't try to hide anything, "It's the Queen. She resents you for seducing Xuanyuan Zan, so she sent people to spread such rumors."
Yu Yao was so angry that she laughed, feeling it was absurd.
A few days ago, Xuanyuan Zan suddenly appeared at Qin's Mansion and called her over to talk for a while.
I guess someone secretly told this to the Queen's ears, and the Queen is envious and probably holds a grudge against her.
"System, order a long-lasting nightmare pill for the Queen."
Yu Yao leaned against the soft couch, her face cold.
The Queen can sit on the throne and still have such a stable position. It's impossible that she hasn't stained her hands with blood.
The harem is the most ruthless place where people are devoured without spilling bones.
With the addition of the nightmare pill, she doesn't believe the Queen will be able to sleep at night.
If she dreams of the people she once killed every night, the Queen will certainly be terrified.
In the short term, there may not be much impact, but over time, it will inevitably lead to nervous weakness, and eventually she will become completely mad and crazy.
How can a madwoman become a Queen?
The imperial palace, the imperial study.
When Xuanyuan Zan heard these rumors, he was greatly enraged and lost his temper.
"Search! Go and investigate for me. The rumors about the King of Qin are spreading while he is away in battle, this is absolutely malicious, and is disturbing the King of Qin's heart. This is unforgivable!"
The petitions in Xuanyuan Zan's hand fell out, his face was livid, and his roar echoed through the sky.
The palace maids and eunuchs in the Imperial Study were scared stiff, crouching on the ground, too terrified to raise their heads.
Xuanyuan Zan immediately summoned his most trusted eunuch, Li An, and the commander of the Imperial Guard, Zhao Chang, to the palace.
"My Lord, this servant greets the Emperor."
"Your Majesty, this subject greets you."
The two walked into the Imperial Study in single file, bowing respectfully.
Xuanyuan Zan looked at the two who entered the palace, coldly commanding: "Carry out the Emperor's edict. Immediately seal off the information, prevent rumors from continuing to spread, and certainly not to spread to the front lines of Xiyu, lest it disturb King Qin's heart."
"Your servant obeys the order."
"Your subject obeys the order."
The chief eunuch Li An and the commander of the Imperial Guard Zhao Chang respectfully accepted the order.
They then retreated.
Although Xuanyuan Zan didn't fully believe these rumors, he still secretly sent people to investigate.
Yu Yao's identity as a Western Xinjiang killer was secretly removed when it was uncovered in Xuanyuan City.
Xuanyuan Zan's people found nothing.
However, the rumors were quickly suppressed and did not continue to spread.
The Queen was very angry when she saw that the rumors were suppressed and the Emperor did not do anything to that cheap woman.
In the Phoenix Temple, she flew into a great rage, shattering an untold number of porcelain pieces.
The Queen wants to deal with Yu Yao but is unable to do so.
She has been having nightmares every night, not dreams of those ghosts who have been wronged by her and are seeking vengeance.
It's just a dream where she is deposed by the emperor, exiled to a cold palace, and leads a miserable life, going hungry and wearing ragged clothes.
When the night is deep and the people are quiet, the moonlight shines through the carved window screens and falls on the ground of the Queen's palace.
"Ahh..." A shrill scream pierced the silence of the palace chamber.
The Queen suddenly woke up from the nightmare, her face pale, and her expression frightened.
The nursemaid in the side hall heard the noise and hurried over.
She pulled back the layers of bed curtains and asked anxiously, "Your Majesty, what's wrong?"
The Queen's face was as pale as paper, gasping heavily, her eyes turned to the nursemaid, trembling and saying: "Nursemaid, I dreamed that I was deposed by the emperor and banished to a cold palace. Alone and helpless in that desolate place."
The candlelight in the bedroom flickered in the night breeze, casting an unpredictable expression on the Queen's face.
The nursemaid looked helpless and went up to hold the Queen's hand, gently patting it and comforting her in a soft voice: "Your Majesty, just a bad dream. You are the supreme mistress of the harem and the mother of the realm. How could you possibly end up in such a situation?"
The Queen's brow was still tightly knit, and she was still afraid, "But the dream was so real. I even dreamed of those wronged spirits coming to seek their revenge on me. I am truly scared."
The Queen has been able to sit in this position of a queen, and the number of lives she has taken is not something she can even count.
It's not easy to not be afraid when you dream of those dead ghosts who haunt you night after night, seeking their vengeance.
Outside the window, from time to time, a few calls of the nightingale added a touch of eeriness.
The nursemaid's expression changed slightly, and she felt a chill down her back, but she tried to console her composure:
"Your Majesty, it's probably because of the various things happening in the palace recently that have worried you, which has led to this nightmare."
After a moment of thought, she added, "If Your Majesty is really scared, why not hold a religious ritual in the palace?"
The Queen nodded eagerly, "Okay, you can arrange this tomorrow."
"Alright."
The nursemaid helped the Queen slowly lie down and placed a calming sachet by her pillow.
Seeing the Queen close her eyes and fall asleep again, the nursemaid quietly withdrew.
But she still felt uneasy, as if there was something behind her.
Several days later, a grand religious ceremony was held in the palace.
On the square in the palace, various religious instruments and offerings were laid out. The incense was filled with mist, and the candles flickered.
The high monks were arranged in a row, reciting sutras in unison. Their voices were loud and solemn, as if they could penetrate the clouds.
The King of Qin's Mansion.
Yu Yao heard that the palace was holding a religious ceremony, of course knew why, and a mocking smile curled at the corner of her mouth.
"This is because they've done too much evil and are afraid in their hearts?"
She sat on the soft couch and sipped a cup of fragrant tea, with a mocking smile at the corner of her mouth.
Unfortunately, the ceremony was bound to be useless. It would be a waste of effort.
As night fell, the Phoenix Temple was enveloped in deep darkness.
The high walls of the palace were solemn and imposing, casting ominous shadows under the moonlight.
The ceremony had no effect, and the Queen was still tormented by nightmares night after night.
Every night when the clock struck midnight, she would scream in terror, wake up with sweat, and her countenance grew increasingly haggard.
What was once a graceful and dignified face lost its luster, with deep eye sockets and eyes full of blood vessels.
She was like a bird with a scare, trembling slightly at the slightest breeze or rustle.
Sometimes, the Queen would even speak in a daze when she was awake, muttering some words that others couldn't understand, as if she were arguing with the fear in her dreams.
The palace maids and eunuchs watched in fear, yet none dared to speak.
The Queen's condition caused much speculation among the palace courtiers.
Some sycophantic concubines began to distance themselves from her, fearing that they might be contaminated by her bad luck.
The Queen's close confidants were also worried and anxious, but there was nothing they could do.
Upon hearing about the Queen's condition, Xuanyuan Zan felt sympathy in his heart, but with the busy state affairs, he had no time to give it much attention. He could only order a physician to go and take a look.
However, the physicians who were summoned did not help, and many medicines were taken, but the Queen still continued to have nightmares every night.
The Queen's mental state continued to deteriorate, and she was starting to become somewhat abnormal. She often spoke incoherently and behaved erratically.
The power over the palace that she held was forcibly handed over.
Those who were at odds with the Queen saw this situation and began to spread rumors, saying that the Queen had done too many bad things, so she was having nightmares every night and must be suffering the consequences.
For a while, the rumors about the Queen spread more and more fiercely in the palace.
When Xuanyuan Zan learned that the rumors about the Queen were spreading more and more fiercely in the palace, he was greatly enraged.
On the one hand, he dispatched people to suppress the rumors, and on the other hand, he dispatched people to secretly investigate.
To see if anyone had drugged the Queen.
Xuanyuan Zan did not find anyone who had drugged the Queen, but he did uncover a great deal of evidence of the Queen's past acts of harm.
Those secrets long buried were gradually brought to the surface, and one by one, they were shocking and disturbing.
The lives of the palace maids and eunuchs were not to be mentioned.
Many concubines and princes who had drowned or died from various causes, as well as aborted fetuses, all bore the Queen's hand.
No one knew what had happened, but everyone knew that the Queen had been suddenly banished to a cold palace, and the reason given was that she had lost her virtue and was no longer worthy to be a queen.
The news spread like a gust of wind throughout every corner of the palace.
The news also reached the King of Qin's Mansion, where Yu Yao heard it and happily curved the corner of her mouth.
She won't actively harm people.
But just the same, if anyone dares to do her harm, she will absolutely return it.
A former queen banished to a cold palace, and now a mentally unstable madwoman, no longer posed any threat to her.
No need to pay attention to it anymore in the future.
