Rebirth of Poisoned Empress, by 颜若优雅

Chapter 1

"You..."

The woman was incensed. She never expected that even after taking everything from Shen Liang, he was still able to maintain the arrogance of the legitimate son. However... *Men from historical China are able to take on multiple concubines but only one formal, legal wife. Only the wife's children are considered legitimate and can inherit their father's legacy. Concubines and their respective children hold no real status and depending on the time period, may be no better than slaves. At least that's the way it's supposed to be.*

As though she finally recalled something, the woman smiled and approached the man to whisper, "Fifth brother doesn't seem to care about his own life or death. But what about General Zhenguo's Mansion? Is fifth brother also indifferent about them?" *General Zhenguo's Manor would mean everyone who lived with or is relatives with General Zhenguo. This may include distant relatives, concubines of distant relatives, and even the servants who worked there, hence why this could mean and include up to hundreds of people.*

"What do you mean?"

Shen Liang's pupils dilated. It can't be...

Having finally succeeded in deriving Shen Liang's weakness, the woman took a step back, "General Zhenguo's Mansion assumed importance through amassing troops with the intention to rebel. Residents of the Manor, more than a hundred lives, not even the newborns, are to be spared. They have all been beheaded by His Majesty."

"No. That can't be. Grandfather..."

Shen Liang's indifference from having already accepted his death shattered. The dim light flickered and highlighted the horror in his eyes... He was helpless. From the moment he disbanded the Hidden Guards, he had already lost any and all chances of resistance. 

"The Token of Clemency?"

The woman interrupted him and sneered, "fifth brother, you really had everything. Although since the moment your father insisted on marrying Father, he had already broken off all relationships with the General Zhenguo's Mansion, but the old general still took out the token to save you without a second's hesitation. However, how could they possibly imagine that this was all to disrupt their former arrangements? And you, fifth brother, you had disbanded the Hidden Guards yourself. fifth brother, the person who really ruined the General Zhenguo's mansion was you. Hahahahaha!"

"No. This can't be. Qin Yunshen wouldn't..."

Wouldn't what?

The flustered and helpless Shen Liang was unable to continue on. When Qin Yunshen was still the unfavored fourth prince, Shen Liang had already married over and became the consort of the Fourth prince. Afterwards, Marquis Donglin's backing and the Hidden Guards left to him by his Father had been Qin Yunshen's biggest support. Although General Zhenguo did not support Shen Liang's decisions and even his own grandfather and several of his uncles had attempted to persuade Shen Liang otherwise, he had been adamant in his willful behavior. Despite their continuous appraisal that Qin Yunshen was not a man to be trusted, Shen Liang had been nothing but dedicated to Qin Yunshen. However, the moment Qin Yunshen was able to sit steadily on the throne, the first person he dealt with was Shen Liang. He pinned the crime of murdering the former emperor directly onto him. For Qin Yunshen, Shen Liang was nothing more than someone he could easily discard, much less General Zhenguo's Mansion?

Thinking of this, Shen Liang closed his eyes in pain. Tears from remorse burned his eyes. It was him. He was the one who was blind and harmed General Zhenguo's Mansion! He killed them! He killed his own grandfather and the hundred lives of the Manor!

"Ahhhhhhhh!"

The harsh reality was the last straw that caused Shen Liang's collapse. Shen Liang grasped his head and roared. Pain and anguish filled his screams and blood slowly started to pool out.