The palace hosted the Lantern Festival banquet, attended by all the emperor's concubines, princes, princesses, the Empress Dowager, and the imperial concubine left behind by the late emperor. It was an exclusive event for the royal family, with no foreign ministers in attendance.
During the banquet, a newly favored concubine graced the occasion with a dance.
That same night, the emperor spent time with her, and tragically, he perished during their encounter.
The imperial physicians diagnosed the cause of death as an "immediate stroke." The concubine who had been with him took the blame and was summarily executed.
Su Bin and Qin Zhenzhen shared an understanding that the emperor's demise wasn't a result of a sudden stroke, but rather a conspiracy orchestrated by the Public House.
The intricacies of the plot were unknown to those from the Dragon Phoenix Hall, but the outcome was paramount— the emperor was dead, and the crown prince was next in line.
