Pampered by the Toughest Man After Divorce
Chapter 1073 - 873: The Arrival of Her Majesty the Empress

Chapter 1073: Chapter 873: The Arrival of Her Majesty the Empress

The Crown Prince watched Nangong Nini savor the cured meat and found it delightful how she could pair a piece of meat with two bites of rice. He couldn’t help but tease her, "How come you never get tired of eating cured meat?"

Nangong Nini smiled and responded, "How could I get tired of it? It was the thing I ate most as a kid. When the autumn winds blew, the cured meat came. The place I lived as a child wasn’t very rich in resources, so we rarely got to eat things in their original flavor. My mother would cure the meat and dry it outside in the sun, so that’s how I had cured meat to eat. I and my..."

She almost mentioned her brother who grew up in the wilds, but she quickly corrected herself: "I and my mother both love it."

The Crown Prince couldn’t help but ask, "Didn’t you grow up in the Capital City of Dajin? How come you couldn’t get fresh food?"

"I... there was a time during my childhood when I didn’t live in the Capital City. During that time, we lived somewhere else, a very dry and barren place."

"So that’s the case," the Crown Prince was honest and simple-minded, and he always took Nangong Nini’s words at face value.

Besides, he didn’t have the mind to delve deeply into Nangong Nini’s story; he was usually too busy with his official duties.

Seeing that the Crown Prince didn’t press further, Nangong Nini felt relieved and continued to eat, and she also picked another piece of meat for Doudou to gnaw on.

The happy family of three was enjoying their time, when suddenly another voice came from outside: "Her Majesty the Empress has arrived!"

Nangong Nini and the princes promptly stood up and went out to greet her.

The Dowager Empress came down from the Palace with a frown on her face the whole way, and when she arrived in the Palace, she dismissed all the servants.

It was like the calm before a storm, and the whole atmosphere became very oppressive.

Nangong Nini had a hunch that the Empress had come specifically for her.

The Crown Prince also instinctively stood in front of Nangong Nini and couldn’t help but ask, "Mother, what’s wrong?"

The Empress kept her eyes fixed on Nangong Nini in the back and ordered the Crown Prince, "Step aside!"

"Mother, why is this happening? Nini saved your life just yesterday."

"Saved my life?" The Empress looked at Nangong Nini, "The specifics of that process, I fear only she is clear about. Did she save me? She clearly meant to harm me!"

The Crown Prince also glanced at Nangong Nini, who shook her head to indicate that wasn’t her intention: "Your Highness, I would definitely not harm the Empress. If I had such thoughts, may thunder strike me dead, and may I never rest in peace."

"Mother, did you hear that? Nini wouldn’t harm you."

The Empress glared angrily at Nangong Nini, "She’s not just out to harm me, but to harm you as well, Crown Prince! You know full well whose person that palace maid is, and who she intended to poison, you are well aware. You pretend to be injured, then let me spell it out for you plainly, that palace maid is my person. She had a packet of poison, which I gave her, asking her to put it on your childhood friend, the Great Prince, to poison your Great Prince to death."

At the Empress’s words, both Nangong Nini and the Crown Prince were greatly shocked.

Nangong Nini knelt on the ground, "Mother, why would you do such a thing?"

The Crown Prince too was puzzled, "Mother, are you doing this out of fear that he would threaten the child’s position?"

"That’s right, because I heard your father wants to depose you and reappoint the Great Prince as Crown Prince. The Empress is doing all this for you. And this woman you married is always looking out only for herself, she doesn’t have you in her heart at all."

"Mother, how can you be so muddled?" The Crown Prince, being a straightforward man, became indignant after his initial shock and said proudly, "Who becomes Crown Prince and who inherits Dashun in the future are all up to father’s decision. This is father’s kingdom; I leave all decisions to him. I would never plot against my own brother for the throne; Mother, you should abandon such thoughts from now on."