The matter of Zhuang Yuexi losing face in front of the Empress Dowager was not immediately known. However, the Phoenix Seal of Empress Dowager Zhuang was broken - the phoenix on it was knocked off, and the eunuch Qin had taken it to the Shanggong Bureau for repair.
Furthermore, Zhuang Yuexi had moved out of the Imperial Palace around this time, leading many to speculate whether she had been responsible for breaking the Phoenix Seal.
However, the news from Renshou Palace was not easily obtained, and those from the Zhuang family remained tightlipped, leaving the matter unconfirmed.
Xiao Liulang was oblivious to the palace affairs. He was just off-duty and looked rather gloomy.
It wasn't because he was being ostracized by his colleagues, or that a scholar in charge of the academy was secretly setting him up, but the sight of Liao Quan waiting by the road as soon as he left the Hanlin Academy.
"What happened?"
