The day when the substitute queen Cui Ningxiang "died" happened to be the day when the Chu Emperor Zheng Dun held a full moon banquet for the newborn prince. The fire burned half of the palace wall red, and palace people rushed to report the death of the queen.
Zheng Dun never announced the news of his death, let alone mourning. Prime Minister Xie Yun scolded him for being coldhearted, but he did not defend himself and did not change a word of the imperial edict.
No one knew that Cui Ningxiang started the fire herself, and conveniently blamed Zhao Lu, the former imperial concubine who had long since fallen from power.
The real Cui Ningxiang changed into coarse linen clothes, escaped from the palace and went straight to the border, but was stopped halfway by Zhang Yi, the second prince of Zhao.
He held her waist and whispered: "Princess, I want to be your husband."
Zheng Dun, who was far away in the Chu Palace, was holding the full-moon little prince with his former maid Zheng'er. They looked at the palace wall and said softly: "She left everything behind, except herself."
Where will the fate of the queen go?
