The harem is too complicated; the empress, a lazy bum, wins by doing nothing.

Chapter 303 Take action
go out?

It's the middle of the night!
When Zhen'er thought about how Shen Qingwan had almost been discovered when she went out disguised as a palace maid, she felt a wave of panic.

"Your Majesty." Zhen'er moved her lips, wanting to say a few words of advice, but then she saw Shen Qingwan glance at her.

At just one glance, she was so startled that she shuddered and quickly shut her mouth.

Okay!

She was born the Empress's person, and she died the Empress's ghost.

Since Her Majesty the Empress wanted to stroll in the garden in the middle of the night, there was no reason for her to refuse.

"Your Majesty, please wait for me."

Hearing her shout, Shen Qingwan suddenly stopped in her tracks, and Zhen'er took a step forward and bumped directly into her back.

Shen Qingwan: ...

Zhen'er: !!!
"This servant knows her mistake!" Zhen'er was so annoyed that she couldn't speak. She had been in the palace with the Empress for so many years, but she still couldn't get rid of her impetuousness. Fortunately, it was just the two of them.

"Slow down." Shen Qingwan said speechlessly, without any intention of blaming her.

"Your Majesty, shall we still go to the Imperial Garden? This servant is a little scared." Zhen'er was genuinely scared, not just saying it.

The thought of Shen Qingwan almost being caught red-handed by Emperor Yuanwu when he came to Kunning Palace dressed as a palace maid still sends chills down my spine, even though so much time has passed.

Moreover, Emperor Yuanwu was still lying in his bedchamber in Kunning Palace. What would he do if he woke up in the middle of the night and found that the Empress was not in the palace?

"While you're dawdling here, I could have gone out for a walk and come back in time," Shen Qingwan said, frowning.

"But..." Although Zhen'er followed behind Shen Qingwan, her mouth couldn't keep up with her thoughts, and she still wanted to persuade her to go back, "What if we get discovered?"

"What's there to be afraid of? I'm not wearing a palace maid's clothes today. So what if someone sees me? What rule in the palace says that the Empress can't leave the palace at night?" Shen Qingwan rolled her eyes.

Zhen'er thought about it seriously for a while and felt that what she said made sense. In the entire harem, the Empress was the most powerful, and indeed no one dared to say anything.

But no matter how she thought about it, something felt off, though she couldn't quite put her finger on it.

Shen Qingwan didn't know where she was going. She just felt that Emperor Yuanwu was lying in Kunning Palace and wanted to go out for a walk. As she wandered aimlessly, she vaguely heard people talking on the other side of the wall.

The spring breeze, though not as biting as winter, made the person's voice a little distorted, making it difficult for her to hear clearly.

Shen Qingwan stopped walking, and Zhen'er stopped as well.

"He's already... If you don't make a move now, when are you going to make a move? Wait, wait, do you really want to wait until..."

It seemed that the people on the other end had sensed something was wrong, and they fell silent halfway through their sentence.

Shen Qingwan looked towards the corner of the wall and saw a dark figure approaching her step by step. Even though they were the ones talking in the corner in the middle of the night, why was her heart pounding so hard, as if she had been caught doing something shameful?

Just as that dark figure stopped at the corner.

Terrified, Zhen'er grabbed Shen Qingwan and ran away. She mustered all her strength and swallowed all her panic, afraid that she would scream out loud in the next second.

The two ran until they entered the gate of Kunning Palace, then leaned against the palace wall, panting heavily.

"Your Majesty, don't you...don't you think that you're really...not suited to...going out at night?" Zhen'er asked, hunched over and panting heavily. Shen Qingwan, pale from running, also asked, "Why...why is it...why is it not suitable for me to go out at night?"

Zhen'er swallowed hard and turned her head to the side. "Think about it, last time when you left the palace in the middle of the night, you met Prince Rui in the Imperial Garden. This time, although we don't know who it is, we reckon they're not good people either... Just now... if we hadn't run fast, do you think that person would have chased after us and killed us to cover it up?"

Murder?
Shen Qingwan didn't think it was that serious. Even if she really wanted to kill someone to silence them, she would have to have the ability and skill. Although the number of guards patrolling the palace at night would decrease, it didn't mean there wouldn't be any at all.

The guards were well-trained and could easily scale the wall with a single leap. Especially since Emperor Yuanwu was staying in Kunning Palace tonight, they would be even more vigilant about any activity here.

Even if that shadowy figure possessed exceptional martial arts skills and killed her with a single strike, it would likely be difficult for him to escape unscathed.

Assassinating the empress is a capital offense punishable by the extermination of nine generations of one's family.

If one is not absolutely certain, one will naturally not act rashly.

But what Shen Qingwan was thinking about was, who was the woman who had just spoken in the corner? She felt like she had heard that voice somewhere before, but she couldn't quite place it.
Since she was speaking, it proves that someone was speaking with her at the time. So who was the person speaking with her?

In the middle of the night, to be so discreet must mean there's something shady going on.

Hands-on?

What exactly are they plotting?

Could it be Consort Wen and Mo Gan Junyi?
However, upon closer reflection, this woman's voice doesn't seem to match that of Consort Wen. Who could it be?
"Your Majesty, let's not stand here anymore. You should go back to your palace quickly. What if the Emperor wakes up later..." Zhen'er's face was full of worry.

"Don't worry, he won't wake up," Shen Qingwan said confidently, straightening up as she did so. "Alright, let's go in."

Zhen'er's expression was somewhat indescribable; her features were almost contorted together.

Shen Qingwan: ? ? ?

She increasingly realized that Zhen'er was truly timid!

"Alright, we've arrived at Kunning Palace. Kunning Palace is our own territory, no one dares to do anything to us." Shen Qingwan patted her shoulder reassuringly twice.

"No, Your Majesty, your mouth..."

Zhen'er's face grew increasingly pale, and she almost vomited the next second.

Shen Qingwan: ? ? ?

Shen Qingwan then realized that the dipping sauce she had eaten for dinner contained a whole head of garlic. She had originally intended to use this method to spoil Emperor Yuanwu's mood and avoid his advances...

She took a step back, embarrassed. "Go and get me some milk."

milk?

Zhen'er remembered that Shen Qingwan didn't usually like drinking milk, so why was she being asked to get such a thing in the middle of the night?

"Send it directly to the palace later."

Zhen'er nodded.

Shen Qingwan watched her departing figure, her brows furrowing slightly. Today, she had put some sleeping pills in Emperor Yuanwu's tea. She had asked Su Tianhe to do this. It wasn't that she didn't trust Zhen'er, but she felt that in the harem, the less you knew, the longer you could live.

She used to think that as long as she was a decoration in the harem, a useful decoration, she could live a lazy and unambitious life...