"How could this be? Impossible, absolutely impossible..."
Li De muttered to himself in disbelief.
After years of hard work and extensive evidence gathering, was this the final outcome?
The Emperor clutched the letter tightly, his face ashen as he watched Yun Shu and Zhan Tian Ye walk out of the grand hall. He was so enraged he couldn't utter a single word!
Everything that had happened recently, all the words spoken, had, in the span of a night, become a farce!
It was as if unseen hands had slapped them across the face, declaring their complete and utter failure!
Princess Ning De's head buzzed. A voice in her mind kept repeating, "How ridiculous! I was so close to the truth, yet I refused to believe it, clinging to self-deception."
Even heaven couldn't stand it.
Even the heavens thought she was too foolish.
Li De, reeling from the immense blow, his face pale, stared fixedly at the entrance of the grand hall. Finally, unable to bear it any longer, he fainted!
The surrounding palace attendants held their breath. Seeing Li De collapse, they dared not approach, instead looking to the Emperor.
The Emperor, consumed by his fury, hadn't even noticed the scene before him.
Princess Ning De, after a long moment, slowly turned her head. She saw Li De lying motionless on the ground and immediately cried out, "Your Majesty, General Li has fainted!"
The Emperor stiffly shifted his gaze to the unconscious Li De. Suppressing the overwhelming dizziness caused by the truth, he coldly commanded, "Summon the imperial physicians."
An hour later.
The Emperor lay sick in bed, the imperial physicians anxiously surrounding the dragon bed, racking their brains to save him.
Meanwhile, Li De, under the care of the physicians, had regained consciousness. However, the awakened Li De remained silent, exuding an aura of chilling dread.
He looked as if he had aged twenty years, and slowly walked out of the imperial palace.
On this very day, rumors circulating in the capital about the true identities of Prince Ye and Prince Jin were completely overturned. It was said that the Emperor had another biological son, that Prince Ye was not his son at all, and that the Emperor had mistakenly identified his son!
As soon as the news spread, it engulfed every corner of the capital.
And on this day, Zhan Tian Ye and Yun Shu moved out of the General's mansion and left the capital with their entourage.
Princess Ning De lay listlessly on her bed, her eyes unfocused as she stared at the ceiling.
Her mind was still a chaotic mess.
A servant had just informed her that Zhan Tian Ye and his party had departed.
The rumors outside had been swiftly reversed. If there wasn't someone manipulating this, how could the rumors have turned so quickly? It turned out that Zhan Tian Ye hadn't been unable to act, but rather was waiting for this very moment to strike, delivering a heavy blow to them.
A knock sounded at her door. "Ning De, may I come in?"
Hearing this, Princess Ning De's eyes welled up, and she softly murmured an assent, her voice hoarse.
The door creaked open, and Zhen Lin slowly entered, his footsteps light.
He feared that any louder noise would disturb Ning De.
"Ning De," Zhen Lin said softly, approaching the bedside and sitting beside Princess Ning De.
The moment Princess Ning De saw Zhen Lin, she could no longer contain her overwhelming sense of grievance. She cried, "Brother! I was so stubborn this time, and I've truly become a joke! A colossal joke! You guessed correctly, he is Prince Ye, not Prince Jin at all. And he doesn't want me. Even as he walked out of the hall, he never once looked at me, nor did he hesitate for a moment."
"He left. He really left. Perhaps I will never see him again in this lifetime."
"Brother, he attacked my Sha Gong (Assassination Palace) and intended to eradicate it. Not only does he not like me, but he's also seeking revenge. Brother..."
Princess Ning De poured out all the words buried deep within her heart. She had never allowed herself to be so vulnerable.
This was the first time.
At this moment, Zhen Lin was her only kin, the person she trusted most. Anyone else might leave her, but her brother wouldn't. He would always be by her side, facing every difficulty with her.
Zhen Lin's eyes were filled with heartache. His own heart was also healing. At this moment, he could only offer gentle comfort, "Everything is external. Ning De, even if it comes to our final moments, you and I still have each other. We are family."
Princess Ning De sobbed uncontrollably.
It was as if she were weeping out all the grievances of the past years.
If Princess Ning De was in such a state, then General Li, who had fainted, woken up, and walked back to his mansion alone, upon hearing the reports from the servants the moment he stepped inside, immediately felt his vision darken, and fainted once more.
Upon hearing the news, Madam Li, who had been angry with Li De, feared that if Li De died, the General's mansion would fall. She quickly sent for a doctor.
After much fuss, Li De finally opened his eyes as dusk settled.
"My lord, you're finally awake! You scared me to death. If anything happened to you, what would become of me and the children?" Madam Li clung to Li De, trembling. She was truly terrified.
Li De was somewhat dazed upon waking. After hearing Madam Li's words, he asked, "What are Prince Ye and his Consort doing at this moment?"
Madam Li was taken aback. "Prince Ye and his Consort?"
Li De grunted, a hint of impatience in his voice. "Speak quickly, what are they doing? I've been overwhelmed with matters these days; don't waste my time."
He hadn't thought his wife was so foolish before, but lately, every action she took seemed utterly foolish.
It truly embarrassed him.
Madam Li replied, utterly bewildered, "My lord, when you returned, the servants should have told you. Prince Ye and his Consort have already left. Only Young Master Xie remained. Furthermore, the entire capital is saying that Prince Ye is not our Xi Xia's Prince Jin, but that the Emperor mistakenly identified him."
What was wrong with her husband?
Why did it seem like he had forgotten so many things?
The servant had told her how her husband fainted, so her husband must have known these things.
Could it be...
That this matter had been too great a blow for him?
He couldn't accept it?
Li De's eyes widened in shock. His muddled mind suddenly cleared, and the scenes that had unfolded in the palace flooded back.
These events struck him like a heavy hammer.
"I was tricked! I was toyed with by Prince Ye! I, a dignified General, was played in the palm of his hand!"
Madam Li, witnessing Li De's increasingly frantic state, was terrified. She cautiously tried to soothe him, "My lord, please don't harm yourself over this matter!"
Li De seemed not to hear Madam Li's words, continuing to laugh maniacally.
Madam Li was completely petrified. "My lord..."
In their decades of marriage, this was the first time she had ever seen Li De so utterly devastated and frenzied.