After finishing dressing up, Xie Shizhu did not move the palace maid away and allowed her to follow behind him.

The two stopped at the Royal Garden.

The palace maid stared at Xie Shizhu's back with a blank look on her face, curious that the queen who usually did not even enter the garden was standing under the pine tree for a long time today.

Xie Shizhu made a running motion, and while the palace maid looked stunned, he climbed up the trunk of the tree and then climbed to the branch.

The palace maid was startled and said urgently: "Queen, please come down quickly. If you are injured, the emperor will definitely be angry."

Xie Shizhu ignored what was going on outside the window and sat on the tree and looked around. As she climbed higher, the scenery she saw was also very broad and clear.

From her perspective, she could completely see the scene of the Queen Mother's birthday banquet.

Singing and dancing, it was very lively.

*

Yan Chou was sitting in the middle, and the ministers came one after another to toast him. He impatiently pushed away the minister's wine, as if he didn't give the minister any face.

The smile on Shangshu's lips froze, and other ministers looked at each other in confusion. Who knew that Shangshu wanted to put his daughter into the harem?

It's a pity that Yan Chou was obsessed with a woman who had subjugated her country and couldn't extricate herself.

The Queen Mother sat next to Yan Chou, coughed lightly, and whispered: "Your Majesty, if you don't drink the Minister's wine, he will be laughed at."

As soon as he finished speaking, Yan Qiu frowned, impatiently took the wine glass, drank it all in one gulp, put the glass on the table, pursed his thin lips tightly, and remained silent.

The minister laughed awkwardly twice, bowed and stepped back, returning to his seat.

After a while, Yan Xiuran slowly came to the Queen Mother, saluted the Queen Mother, and said with a smile: "I wish the Queen Mother good luck, longevity and health. This is the pearl I specially selected for the Queen Mother."

The servant behind him gently opened the luxurious box inlaid with gold wire, and inside was placed a shining pearl.

The pearl is as big as a fist, its texture is crystal clear, its luster is bright and delicate, and you can tell it is a treasure at first glance, it is very rare.

The Queen Mother smiled happily and said, "The Prince Regent is interested."

Yan Xiuran had a warm smile on his face and said, "Empress Dowager, you can do whatever you like."

He glanced at Yan Chou's side with the corner of his eye and saw that the spot that originally belonged to the queen was empty. Yan Xiuran breathed a sigh of relief.

It seems that Xie Shizhu is already waiting for him at the south gate.

Yan Chou narrowed his eyes slightly, his eyes were full of coldness, his fingers were clenched tightly into fists, and his fingertips were blue and white.

After Yan Xiuran gave the gift, it was time to toast to the emperor. He bowed slightly and took the wine glass sent by the maid, "Your Majesty, I wish the country of Xihe peace and prosperity, and to express my sincerity, I will do it first as a token of respect."

Yan Qiu's thin lips curved into a smile that was not a smile, "Regent, wait a minute, you have worked hard for the country for so many years, I should respect you first."

As he finished speaking, a trace of surprise flashed across Yan Xiuran's face. Even the Minister of Civil and Military Affairs was shocked by Yan Chou's words.

The next second, Yan Chou stood up slowly, took the wine glass, and when Yan Xiuran looked at him, he poured the wine in the glass directly into Yan Xiuran's face.

Yan Xiuran's face felt cold, and the brocade robe on his chest was wet. The pungent water stains made him choke and unable to breathe.

Except for the dancers who twisted their waists, no one dared to speak during the birthday banquet.

There is a peaceful and solemn atmosphere surrounding it.

Yan Qiu played with the wine glass with his slender fingertips, raised his eyebrows, and with bloodthirsty and violent anger surging in his eyes, he said slowly: "Prince Regent, does this wine satisfy you?"

Yan Xiuran's fair and elegant facial features flashed with anger, his face softened slightly, and he said: "I am satisfied, thank you Your Majesty. I am not feeling well, so I will leave first."

Yan Chou raised his chin, stared at Yan Xiuran's embarrassed appearance, and sneered without hesitation, "Get out."

Yan Xiuran turned his back, held the hands hidden in his sleeves tightly, and walked away.

The Queen Mother frowned and looked at Yan Chou with disgust from the corner of her eye.

She was silent for a long time, then smiled hypocritically and said, "Your Majesty, Xiu Ran is also your brother."

Yan Chou glanced at the Queen Mother with a sarcastic look in his eyes.

The Queen Mother was startled, quickly looked away, talked to the maid next to her, and changed the subject.

Yan Chou withdrew his gaze and stared at Yan Xiuran's farther and farther back, then turned to look at the empty space beside him, his narrow auspicious phoenix eyes flashing with cold light.

The birthday banquet officially began. The dishes were served in an orderly manner in the imperial dining room. The waiters took the dishes, raised them high above their heads, and placed them in front of everyone's tables one by one.

The Queen Mother seemed to be a little dissatisfied and said: "The Queen has not been seen yet. Your Majesty, no matter how much you love her, you cannot let her be so casual. Besides, the harem has no heirs. It is time to draft a new one."

Yan Qiu stood up abruptly and said the next sentence calmly: "I don't want to trouble the Queen Mother about the harem. I have other things to do, so I'll take my leave first."

His tone was unquestionable, and he quickly left the birthday banquet under the watchful eyes of the civil and military ministers.

As soon as Yan Chou left, the Empress Dowager stopped pretending, her energetic eyes flashed with coldness, she slammed her hand on the table, and gritted her teeth and said: "She really looks less and less like the leader of a country!"

The ministers swallowed in unison, lowered their heads, pretended to eat, and avoided the angry gaze of the Queen Mother.

*

Fuyun saw Yan Chou's figure and hurriedly followed him.

Yan Chou stopped and said with a biting coldness in his voice: "You and I go to the south gate and send a few guards to capture the queen and the regent."

Fuyun: "Yes."

Yan Qiu walked anxiously, his face pale.

Fuyun quickly brought eight guards with him and followed Yan Chou quickly.

Before he reached the south gate, a palace maid knelt down in front of Yan Chou. With her forehead on the ground, she said, "I'm here to see you, Your Majesty."

Yan Qiu looked at the woman kneeling on the ground and said coldly: "Go away."

The palace maid shuddered and quickly raised her head. An eyebrow that was somewhat similar to Xie Shizhu's appeared in Yan Qiu's sight.

Lin Xuan timidly said: "Your Majesty, I just saw the Queen going to the South Gate. Because I didn't see the Queen at the birthday banquet, I wanted to help the Emperor look for the Queen. Finally I saw the Queen at the South Gate. That's

…”

Her voice became softer and softer, and slowly stopped.

When Yan Chou saw her face, his expression didn't change. It wasn't until he heard that Xie Shizhu was at the south gate that an undercurrent surged in his eyes, "What is that?"

Lin Xuan hesitated to speak, and it took a long time to summon up the courage to say: "This slave also saw the regent, and they hugged each other as soon as they met... This slave deserves to die, this slave deserves to die, I saw something I shouldn't have seen."

Yan Chou's body felt like lead, heavy and painful. He exhaled a heavy breath, passed Lin Xuan directly, and headed to the south gate with a cold look.

Fuyun and several guards followed closely.

As soon as they left, Lin Xuan slowly climbed up from the ground, turned around and looked at Yan Qiu's long back, with a triumphant smile on her lips.

She didn't go to the south gate at all, nor did she see Xie Shizhu or Yan Xiuran, but she knew the plot well.
Chapter completed!