"Is this it?"
The Emperor and Jun Mohan found it hard to believe, and even Leng Ruoli had never heard of such a pill.
"Whether it works or not, we'll know once we test it," Lu Zongran said calmly.
"Very well, I shall ask him myself."
The Emperor was also very curious about this medicine and was eager to verify it personally.
He then walked over to Jun Nansheng, signaled Eunuch Li to bring a chair for him to sit down, and fixed his bloodshot tiger eyes on him.
"What is your name?"
The Emperor deliberately tested Jun Nansheng.
Jun Mohan, standing by the side, suddenly remembered something when he saw the Emperor about to question Jun Nansheng. He immediately leaned into Leng Ruoli's ear and whispered a few words. Leng Ruoli immediately understood his intention and took out a voice recorder from her personal space, opened it, and held it in her hand.
When Jun Nansheng heard someone speaking to him, his brain, as if out of his control, blurted out his name, "My name is Jun Nansheng."
"Whose identity are you impersonating now?" the Emperor tested him again.
"I am currently impersonating the identity of Lu Zongran, the Valley Master of Ghost Valley on Baijie Mountain in Qizhou City, and interacting with various officials and dignitaries."
Jun Nansheng answered truthfully again.
After asking Jun Nansheng these two questions, the Emperor was overjoyed and looked at the old man Lu, saying with a smile, "Valley Master Lu, the pills you made are indeed effective."
"Thank you for your praise, Your Majesty. This humble subject has only used this kind of pill for the first time since creating it," Lu Zongran said, cupping his hands.
"Well, then I shall begin asking him about matters of state. Everyone except the Cold King and his consort, and Valley Master Lu, are to withdraw from the Imperial Study," the Emperor commanded Eunuch Li and Jian Feng on the spot.
Immediately, Eunuch Li and Jian Feng bowed to the Emperor and withdrew from the Imperial Study at their fastest speed.
At this moment, the Emperor's expression turned serious as he began to ask Jun Nansheng, "Jun Nansheng, from whom did you take the Imperial Seal?"
Jun Nansheng was slightly taken aback by the Emperor's question. His brain, once again out of control, said, "I found the Imperial Seal in the secret chamber of Consort Jing's Jinghua Palace. That day..."
Jun Nansheng's words completely shocked the Emperor. He never expected that his imperial consorts were all more formidable than the last. Consort Jing, who had always been indifferent and cold, turned out to be a woman who caused trouble, and her actions were even more excessive than the Empress's.
"Then how did you know the Imperial Seal was in Consort Jing's possession?"
The Emperor asked with great curiosity.
"I discovered a note left by Liu Ruyi in the small wooden house where she used to live. It mentioned who had stolen the Imperial Seal, so I..." Jun Nansheng murmured.
"Liu Ruyi? This woman again. She truly knows how to scheme against us. Even in death, she wants to play tricks on us," Leng Ruoli said with a frown and a cold voice.
"Guards, go and bring Consort Jing here!"
Hearing this, the Emperor's face darkened as he roared towards the entrance of the Imperial Study.
Hearing the order, Eunuch Li and Jian Feng outside hurried towards Jinghua Palace.
At this moment, Lu Zongran splashed some water on Jun Nansheng's face. Jun Nansheng instantly woke up, but he had no recollection of what he had just said.
He raised his eyes and scanned the people in the Imperial Study. Everyone had a dark expression and was staring at him uniformly.
This gave him a bad premonition that they must have done something to him just now.
But all he remembered was that Lu Zongran had fed him a red pill, and then his consciousness had gradually become blurry.
His intuition told him that the red pill Lu Zongran gave him was definitely problematic.
"What did you do to me just now?" Jun Nansheng asked them angrily.
"We didn't do anything to you? We just made you spit out the secrets in your heart," Lu Zongran said coldly.
This made Jun Nansheng even more uneasy.
After about the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, Jian Feng and Eunuch Li escorted Consort Jing to the Imperial Study.
She glanced at everyone in the room, paying particular attention to the Emperor's expression, which was stern and solemn.
This made her feel a sense of unease. After nearly twenty years in the palace, she had never seen the Emperor give her such a look. At this moment, Consort Jing was thinking to herself while respectfully saluting the Emperor.
"Your subject, Consort Jing, pays respects to Your Majesty! May Your Majesty be blessed!"
Consort Jing performed her salutations to the Emperor with proper etiquette, but the Emperor did not immediately ask her to rise, letting her remain kneeling on the ground.
When Jun Nansheng saw Consort Jing being escorted into the Imperial Study, he immediately understood what he had said earlier.
"Consort Jing, can you guess why I had you brought here in the middle of the night?"
The Emperor stared at her, his gaze as cold as a sharp blade.
"Replying to Your Majesty, your subject does not know!"
Consort Jing feigned ignorance. After all, the Imperial Seal was no longer in her possession. Even if the Emperor knew she had stolen it back then, he couldn't find any evidence to prove it.
"Do you recognize this person?" the Emperor said, pointing at Jun Nansheng.
Consort Jing glanced at the unsightly Jun Nansheng and shook her head, replying, "Your subject does not recognize him!"
"Consort Jing, do you truly not recognize him?" the Emperor confirmed again.
"Your Majesty, your subject can swear to heaven that I do not know this person."
Consort Jing's tone was firm, and her eyes met the Emperor's directly, appearing as if she were not lying.
At this, the Emperor and the Cold King and his consort believed her words.
The Emperor revealed Jun Nansheng's identity.
"This person is the sixth son of the late Emperor, my Imperial brother, Jun Nansheng."
In fact, the Emperor was not surprised that Consort Jing did not recognize Jun Nansheng, because Consort Jing had not yet entered Prince Rui's manor (the Emperor's residence when he was still a prince) when Jun Nansheng attempted to seize the throne.
"Your Majesty, your subject has heard of Jun Nansheng's deeds, but has never met him in person," Consort Jing added again.
"Hmm, but Jun Nansheng just said that the Imperial Seal in my hand was stolen from the secret chamber of your Jinghua Palace. How do you explain that?"
The Emperor picked up the Imperial Seal from the desk, felt its weight, and looked at Consort Jing as he asked.
"Your Majesty, your subject knows nothing about the Imperial Seal. He is slandering and framing me."
Consort Jing vehemently denied it.
Upon hearing Consort Jing's words, Jun Nansheng became enraged. He had only intended to watch the show from the side and cause trouble for the dog emperor by having Consort Jing speak. However, this Consort Jing seemed rather tactless.
To his regret, before he could speak, Jun Mohan had already taken the lead.
"Father, thankfully I kept a backup. I had Ruoli record what Jun Nansheng said. If Consort Jing does not believe it, I will have Ruoli play the recording for you," Jun Mohan said calmly to Consort Jing.
At this moment, Leng Ruoli, cooperating with Jun Mohan, opened the voice recorder for everyone.