Exile

At that thought, Consort Shu pulled away from Empress Lin's embrace, lifted her skirts, and dropped heavily to her knees. The thud made Xiao Jinyi and the others flinch.

Consort Shu kowtowed to Emperor Wu'an. "Your Majesty, I beg you to seek justice for Jiayi and punish the Li Family severely!

"They have disregarded rank and station, disrespected the imperial family, and harmed an imperial child. They must not be let off lightly. Punish them without mercy as a warning to others!"

Emperor Wu'an had already intended to punish the Li Family severely. Hearing Consort Shu's plea, he immediately ordered Quan Xi to grind ink and wrote out an imperial edict on the spot.

Emperor Wu'an handed the edict to Xiao Jinyi and told him to proclaim it. Xiao Lie and Bai Lixi left with Xiao Jinyi, though they were heading home rather than accompanying him to deliver the edict. Emperor Wu'an and Empress Lin stayed to comfort Consort Shu and her wronged daughter.

Meanwhile, at the Li Family residence, the mistress of the household was poring over the account books to see how much money they had left and planning the upcoming wedding celebrations. She had never once considered what they would do if their scheme were exposed.

Neither the mistress nor the head of the Li Family had ever imagined their plan could fail. They believed they had planned everything thoroughly, with several contingencies in place.

Worried that Xiao Jiayi might not eat any drugged pastries or dishes, they had simply applied the drug to their own daughter instead. They had told her to cling to Xiao Jiayi so the soporific fragrance on her body would spread to the princess.

They had also feared that arranging it at their home would make the imperial family suspect them of