A middle-aged emperor, childless, was blessed with a beautiful and pregnant concubine who entered th

Consort Chen had clearly thought of this.

She served Emperor Qianwu for more than ten years and knew him very well.

His Majesty is a man of great talent and ambition, and is domineering and powerful.

Chaoyang miscalculated this time...

She quickly came to her daughter's rescue, saying, "It is precisely because Consort Zhen is His Majesty's concubine that Chaoyang summoned her here so as to clarify the rumors."

She subconsciously stole a glance at Emperor Qianwu, "so that Consort Zhen might be misunderstood, causing... Your Majesty some difficulty..."

Emperor Qianwu's gaze fell on Zhou Mingyi.

She indeed loved the color turquoise; she was still wearing that sky-blue palace dress, her waist slender, standing gracefully.

Emperor Qianwu understood the allure of such beauty better than anyone else.

The Crown Prince… no, of all the men in the world, how many could resist her charms?

The Crown Prince is truly audacious! How dare he covet the Emperor's woman!

Looking back on what happened that night, there are indeed many suspicious points.

As he walked past Chaoyang, the prince held the woman tightly behind him.

The woman remained silent and did not show her face throughout the entire process.

Later, he even jumped into the fishpond.

The Crown Prince and Crown Princess claimed that the woman was forced to "prove her innocence by dying."

But is it really necessary?

Although the Crown Prince's entanglement with a palace maid was a scandal, the Crown Prince was not his biological son, and Emperor Qianwu did not care about the Crown Prince's reputation.

His less-than-stellar reputation, ironically, was just what Emperor Qianwu wanted.

Why was this palace maid so foolish? Why did she choose such a method to prove herself?

Unless, her identity cannot be discovered, and she cannot be implicated by the Crown Prince.

While rumors may not be entirely untrue, they are not entirely unfounded if one were to question them.

If the woman that night was indeed Zhou, she would have had no choice but to jump into the pond to save herself. The palace maid named Qingliu might have happened to be nearby and deliberately impersonated her in order to curry favor with the Crown Prince!

Emperor Qianwu couldn't help but become suspicious.

Consort Zhen was young and beautiful, while the Crown Prince was full of vigor and vitality, yet he was unable to impregnate a woman. Who knew if Consort Zhen had other intentions?

He gently tapped the amber-colored bracelet on the table, creating a deafening sound in the hall where you could hear a pin drop.

"You! Do you have it?"

Zhou Mingyi shuddered and quickly raised her eyes. Her eyes, which were like autumn water, were filled with shock and grievance, as if she could not believe that Emperor Qianwu would suspect her.

She could barely stand, and staggered several steps.

"No, Your Majesty, I didn't!"

Looking at her pitiful and aggrieved appearance, Emperor Qianwu's eyes were deep and unfathomable. In just a moment, he looked at the Empress Dowager.

"Mother, although there's no smoke without fire, everything should be based on evidence."

"If this gets back to Chaoyang, it will offend the children's ears and they should be severely punished."

Princess Chaoyang's eyes suddenly lit up.

"Father, should Consort Zhen be imprisoned...?"

Emperor Qianwu interrupted her, "Investigate. If the evidence is conclusive, I will show no leniency!"

He had nothing to lose about a beautiful but restless palace concubine.

His voice was deep and cold, "But if anyone slanders a palace concubine or offends the princess's ears, I will not let them off lightly!"

Emperor Qianwu's cold gaze fell on Zhou Mingyi. "As for Consort Zhen, she will remain in Weiyang Palace for now. We will make a decision after the matter has been investigated."

Consort Chen was somewhat disappointed.

Consort Zhen was a seductive vixen, and His Majesty ultimately couldn't bear to kill her immediately.

Keeping her in Weiyang Palace is both a form of confinement and a form of protection.

However, they did not have any concrete evidence, and although Consort Chen was disappointed, she dared not say anything more.

The Empress Dowager nodded, "Let's do as the Emperor wishes."

Emperor Qianwu turned and left, and Zhou Mingyi collapsed to the ground.

Consort Zhen has fallen out of favor.

The news spread like wildfire throughout the entire harem.

No one was surprised.

Consort Liu is a cautionary tale.

If we only consider appearance, Consort Liu was no less beautiful than Consort Zhen, but she still fell out of favor.

Therefore, even if Consort Zhen is as beautiful as a fairy, it is only a matter of time before she falls out of favor.

Their emperor is not a man of lasting affection.

If we're talking about the evergreen tree of the harem, then Consort Chen is undoubtedly the one.

Although His Majesty ordered Consort Chen to apologize to Consort Zhen, it was clear that he was still biased towards Consort Chen.

If anyone dared to drug other concubines, even if it wasn't poison, they would be caught red-handed and at the very least banished to the Cold Palace.

But what about Consort Chen?

His Majesty knew perfectly well that she was the one who did it, and knew that she had ulterior motives, yet he only made her apologize to Consort Zhen.

How ridiculous!

How childish!

It's laughable that Consort Zhen had enjoyed constant favor since entering the palace, thinking her prosperity would last forever, but it all came to an end just like that.

It is clear that this imperial favor is like flowing water, and can never last.

If you want to have the last laugh in this harem, you need to have offspring.

Even a princess.

……

Chang Le Palace.

"Unfortunately, His Majesty ultimately couldn't bring himself to kill that vile woman!"

Consort Chen's expression was relaxed, but she still felt a lump in her throat.

Princess Chaoyang said, "Father is only troubled by the lack of evidence. If the evidence is conclusive, then the Zhou family will be doomed."

Consort Chen clearly understood her daughter's implication, and her eyes suddenly lit up.

"My son, do you have a way?"

Without a second thought, Princess Chaoyang said, "It would be even better if the Crown Prince admitted it himself."

Consort Chen was somewhat disappointed upon hearing this.

"How dare the Crown Prince? He was impeached by the censor for entanglement with a palace maid, and his reputation was ruined. Unless he doesn't want the position of Crown Prince."

"Would Xie Jing really be willing to give up something for a woman?"

Princess Chaoyang's eyes flickered. "Although Father has no sons, the imperial clan is thriving. Who wouldn't want the position of Crown Prince?"

Consort Chen seemed to be deep in thought, then a glint of light flashed in her eyes.

"My son is so smart."

……

At Consort Chen's behest, news from the inner palace quickly reached the Crown Prince's ears.

"What?"

"Are there rumors circulating in the palace about my relationship with Consort Zhen?"

The official immediately said, "Your Highness, please calm down. It's just someone spreading rumors that involve infighting among the concubines in the harem. It has nothing to do with you."

Xie Jing gradually calmed down, but a restless feeling continued to rise deep within him.

Did Xie Jinghong know about his affair with Consort Zhen?

Although he and Consort Zhen had no real relationship, in his imagination she had met him intimately several times.

In the depths of Xie Jing's dark heart, he had long regarded Consort Zhen as his own possession.

If Consort Zhen falls out of favor, if Xie Jinghong stops touching her and banishes her to the Cold Palace... would Xie Jinghong really be willing to give up such a beauty?

The crown prince's eyes were deep and unfathomable as he quickly calculated in his mind.

But he had his back to his subordinates, who did not see his expression. They only thought that the Crown Prince was being cautious and was being implicated by the women in the harem, and were anxiously thinking of a solution.

The Crown Prince took that palace maid as a concubine last time, and he has already been impeached by the censor. This matter must be handled with utmost care.

He said carefully, "Your Highness, you must not be hasty or impetuous. This matter has nothing to do with you. It involves internal strife within the harem. His Majesty has not publicly dealt with Zhou Shi. It is quite normal that you are unaware of this matter."

Xie Jing remained silent for a moment.

He tacitly accepted his subordinates' suggestion and decided to hold back for the time being.

Inside Consort Rong's palace.

"Your Majesty, I never expected that Consort Zhen would fall out of favor so suddenly."

"Consort Chen and Princess Chaoyang won't let this opportunity slip by, will they? They'll certainly spare no effort to create evidence!"

Consort Rong glanced at her personal maid.

"This matter has nothing to do with me, so you should refrain from commenting further."

The palace maid was immediately terrified, "Yes, this servant understands."

Consort Rong had no desire to get involved in the power struggle between Consort Zhen and Consort Chen and her daughter.

Whom did Consort Chen and her daughter want to harm, and what is their relationship with her?

Although she wanted to show her tolerance and magnanimity, and to have the demeanor of an empress, she wouldn't be foolish enough to speak up for Consort Zhen.

The women in the harem are just that—women. If there are too few, it's not a big deal; new ones can always be brought in.

Previously, Consort Liu was too proud and intolerant of others, which is why she lost the Emperor's favor.

As for the Zhou family, they were even more unlucky, getting caught up in such rumors out of nowhere.

Consort Rong shook her head. "Go and light a few more lamps for me."

Upon hearing this, the palace maid immediately replied...

Inside Consort Liu's palace.

When the palace maid told Consort Zhen about the matter, Consort Liu showed an expression of "I knew it."

"Consort Zhen is foolish; she cannot see the truth that emperors throughout history have all been fickle. I kindly advised her, but she wouldn't listen. She is destined to become a victim of the palace intrigues of feudal society. How pitiful and lamentable!"

Han Shu, the palace maid who was always by Liu Zhaoyi's side, had heard so many strange words from her that she was no longer surprised.

She lowered her eyes and remained silent.

Because Consort Zhaoyi was obsessed with papermaking, the palace was filled with paper drying in the sun. When the wind blew, the snow-white paper flew everywhere, inexplicably reminding people of paper money used for graves...

No wonder His Majesty doesn't like to come...

Instead of lamenting Consort Zhen, Consort Liu should focus more on His Majesty; perhaps he will change his mind.

Han Shu couldn't help but say, "Your Majesty, Consort Zhen's fall from favor is our opportunity. Why don't we..."

Before he could finish speaking, Consort Liu interrupted him.

"I'd rather die embracing fragrance on the branch; men have always been fickle. If he won't come, why should I rush to beg him?"

Han Shu: ...

No, His Majesty has come several times, but he has been turned away each time.

After this happened so many times, His Majesty would eventually lose his patience.

That's His Majesty, a man of immense imperial authority. It's already quite remarkable that he's come to see the Empress so many times, yet she doesn't seem to appreciate it at all.

"Never mind, where is the paper I just made?"

Han Shu: "They're drying over there..."

……

Inside the Yunmei Palace.

Seeing Yun Meiren's infatuated look, Lu'er simply didn't tell her.

What are you saying?

Anyway, the beauty doesn't care.

Lu'er now even suspects that her beauty associates with Consort Zhen because she is jealous of Consort Zhen's thick hair and beautiful appearance, and wants to take advantage of the relationship to find someone to drug her and make her lose her hair.

Now that Consort Zhen is clearly out of favor, if she is banished to the Cold Palace or ordered to commit suicide by His Majesty, then her beauty will be the one with the most hair and the most beautiful head in the entire harem.

……

The Imperial Study.

Emperor Qianwu had been reviewing memorials all afternoon when he suddenly felt hungry. He put down his writings, stood up, and announced, "Prepare the carriage for Weiyang Palace..."

As soon as he finished speaking, Emperor Qianwu fell silent.

"Alright, let's go check on Consort Chen. Has Chaoyang not left the palace yet?"

Fu Quan said quietly, "What a coincidence! Her Highness the Princess just sent someone to say that she has prepared Your Majesty's favorite dishes and would like to invite you to dine with her."

Emperor Qianwu remained silent.

On the way to Chang Le Palace, he suddenly asked, "How's the investigation into Consort Zhen going?"

Fu Quan thought to himself, "Although His Majesty doesn't say it, he is actually thinking about Consort Zhen."

Otherwise, why would they inquire about the case's progress so soon after just one afternoon?

As soon as Fuquan approached, Emperor Qianwu smelled a rich fragrance. He took a light sniff and exclaimed, "The finest styrax from the Western Regions."

"I remember, it was bestowed upon Consort Zhen."