I became the tyrant's only belief.

Chapter 495 The Heartless and Blind Man

Upon hearing this, Consort Shu snorted lightly, "Those people in the Imperial Observatory all act according to His Majesty's wishes."

If the emperor did not intend to place the eldest prince in the residence of the eldest princess, would the Imperial Astronomical Bureau dare to say that?

A prince, raised outside the palace, will inevitably be forgotten by the emperor over time.

Yan Hui said, "The eldest prince is unlucky and cannot enter the blessed gate of our Zhaoyang Palace."

In the past, she would have been glared at by Consort Shu for saying such things, but today she only drew a slight smile from Consort Shu, who pointed at her with her finger.

Yan Hui knew she was right, and smiled as she offered a cup of tea. "Please have some tea to cleanse your palate. In my opinion, it's a good thing that the Crown Prince isn't coming to our palace."

"Oh?" Consort Shu took the tea. "How would you define a good thing?"

Yan Hui said, "No matter how good an adopted son is, he can't compare to a biological son. When you give birth to a prince, the master will naturally side with his own grandson, not the adopted one..."

She left a message unspoken, but Consort Shu understood.

Once they have their own biological children, these adopted children, especially those who occupy the position of the eldest prince, become obstacles to their own children's progress and should be kicked aside.

You can develop a bond with cats and dogs, so how much more so with children?

Yan Hui replied, "Your Majesty has always been soft-hearted."

"How can a mother be so heartless to her child?" Consort Shu sighed softly, and with that sigh, most of the pent-up frustration in her chest dissipated.

Thinking of the news that had recently been sent in from outside the palace, she raised her hand and stroked her lower abdomen, asking, "How long has His Majesty favored that Lady Chu?"

Yan replied, "It's been more than half a year."

"More than half a year," Consort Shu murmured, "that's about it."

Yan Hui looked around and said softly, "I heard that the two of them had a disagreement a few days ago. That Chu Shi dared to give His Majesty the cold shoulder, and His Majesty had to put aside his state affairs to coax her. She really doesn't know her place."

“If she were shrewd, I would have a headache.” Consort Shu pondered for a moment and said, “The flowers in the Imperial Garden are in full bloom. How can we waste such a beautiful spring day? Take some people to inform the other palaces that I will be holding a flower-viewing banquet in the Imperial Garden the day after tomorrow. I invite all the ladies from the other palaces to come and chat.”

"Yes, sir." Yan Hui accepted the order and went to carry it out.

*
Inside the main hall of Maohua Palace, the aroma of wine filled the air, and the palace servants knelt on the ground.

A beautiful woman with flushed cheeks leaned against a chaise lounge, one hand supporting her head and the other holding a wine jug high. The clear, mellow wine poured down, most of it falling into her mouth, and a small portion flowing down her fair chin, soaking a large section of her dress and making it exude the fragrance of wine.

"boom!"

The wine jug fell onto the soft carpet, where it rolled around with her three companions. Consort Chun, her eyes glazed with drunkenness, commanded, "Bring the wine!"

"Your Majesty, drinking too much wine is bad for your health. Please stop drinking." Qingyi crawled forward on her knees, her eyes reddening with heartache as she looked at her mistress's drunken state. "If you are angry, take it out on me. Please don't ruin your own health."

"Disrespect?" With a furrowed brow, Consort Chun raised her hand and waved it. "Qingyi, I'm just happy, really happy! Quick, bring me some wine, you drink with me, let's drink until we're drunk!"

She stretched out her hand as if to clink glasses, then pulled it back, poured it into her mouth, smacked her lips, and laughed, "Good wine! Good wine indeed!"

Seeing that Qingyi didn't move, she asked in confusion, "Qingyi, why aren't you drinking?"

"This servant, this servant...drink." Qingyi raised her hand and poured herself a cup, her eyes red as she waved her hand at Chun Zhaoyi, "Look, this servant has finished it all."

"That's wonderful." Consort Chun Zhao grabbed her hand. "That's wonderful, Qingyi, drink with me again."

"Okay." Qingyi agreed, winked at the palace servants kneeling in the hall, and whispered, "Bring me some hangover soup."

Upon hearing this, Consort Chun shouted, "No hangover soup!" "Alright, no hangover soup, this servant will drink with you." Qingyi coaxed her mistress while secretly waving to the palace servants.

The palace servants quietly withdrew, leaving only the master and servant in the hall.

"Qingyi, I want to drink more." Consort Chun was so drunk that she could no longer support herself and collapsed softly onto the chaise longue. Her light gauze skirt spread out on the chaise longue, like a flower in full bloom.

"Alright, let's drink. I'll drink with you." Knowing she was quite drunk, Qingyi wrung out a handkerchief to wipe her face. "You should take a nap first. I'll stay with you."

"I won't sleep." She turned over on the couch, her flushed cheeks pressed against the soft pillow, her breath carrying the scent of wine. "Qingyi, what's the use of all the effort I've put into taking care of my health, drinking bowls of bitter medicine down my throat? His Majesty isn't coming. How am I supposed to give birth alone?"

"Your Majesty, don't be discouraged," Qingyi gently advised. "There's still a long way to go, and His Majesty will see your good qualities."

"Who cares if he can see it or not, I don't care." Consort Chun slapped the soft pillow hard. "If he weren't the emperor, I wouldn't pay any attention to him."

"That heartless, blind man! He gave the Phoenix Seal to Consort Shu but not to me, nor to the prince. How am I any worse than that kind-faced but ruthless Consort Shu?"

"So what if she got the Phoenix Seal? That woman is so smug she's practically wagging her tail. She's putting on airs in front of me, acting all high and mighty. She's not even empress yet, and she's already starting to flaunt herself. His Majesty hasn't even deposed her yet. Isn't she afraid of being praised too high and then falling in two!"

"Hmph, does Your Majesty really think that woman is easy to deal with because she doesn't fight or compete? Bah! It's all an act. Don't think I don't know what she's done. What do you mean by 'for the princess'? She has a guilty conscience!"

Qingyi hurriedly looked at the palace door, only to breathe a sigh of relief when she saw it was closed. Her tone was helpless. "My Ladyship, you're truly drunk." How could you dare say something so dangerous?

"I'm not drunk! I'm not drunk!" Consort Chun waved her hand, raising her glass in a gesture. "Drink!"

"Yes, yes, drink, drink." Qingyi answered while wringing out the handkerchief again to wipe her hands, and said softly, "Your Highness, I know you are suffering. Since there is no one else here today, please take advantage of the alcohol and say it all out. I will listen."

"I'm not suffering, I made my own choice." As she said this, a tear welled up in the corner of her eye, which quickly disappeared into the soft pillow, leaving a damp mark.

Qingyi gently coaxed him to sleep, thinking she had finally gotten him to bed, when suddenly she heard the person on the bed say, "Qingyi, what would happen if I didn't go to the palace?"

Qingyi was taken aback, then said, "Madam will definitely find you a suitable husband who is of equal social standing."

“I don’t like any of those things,” Consort Chun muttered. “A pack of jackals, I don’t like them.”

Qingyi sighed, "Miss."

The long-unheard address came out of his mouth, and both the speaker and the listener were stunned.

The hall fell silent for a moment.

Just then, there was a knock on the palace door.

"Bang bang bang."

Qingyi cleared her throat and asked in a loud voice, "What is it?"

"Miss Yan Hui from Zhaoyang Palace has arrived, requesting an audience with Her Majesty," the young eunuch outside the door announced. "Will Her Majesty grant her an audience?"

Given Consort Chun's current state of being able to blurt out anything, how could Qingyi dare to let Yan come back to see her?

She said to Consort Chun, "Your Highness, I will be right back."

The palace doors opened and then closed again.

The beautiful woman on the couch yawned and, amidst the aroma of wine filling the room, fell asleep.

(End of this chapter)