Entering the palace means entering a high position; I'm His Majesty's cousin, who am I afr

Consort Hui woke up on the second day of the eighth lunar month.

All the concubines in the palace went to visit him.

Consort Hui had just "recovered from poisoning," looking pale and haggard. Upon learning that the real culprit was Empress Luo, she was utterly shocked.

"Although they didn't get along well, they were still sisters. I never expected her to be so cruel."

Consort Li pretended to tuck the blanket around her and comforted her, "Consort Hui, you've just woken up and are still weak. Don't think about these things."

Consort Hui then fell silent and stopped speaking.

Among the concubines in the six palaces, almost none of them were close to Consort Hui. This visit was merely a formality, a pretense of concern.

One person said a few words, and the visit quickly came to an end.

Once the concubines had left, Consort Hui immediately summoned her trusted maid and inquired in detail about the events of the past two days. She then asked, "Has Qi Rui cried or made a fuss these past two days?"

Although she was not poisoned, in order to create the illusion of being "unconscious," she took a large amount of jasmine root powder before going to Fengyi Palace that day.

Jasmine root powder that has been neutralized is non-toxic and harmless, but after taking it for half a moment, one will feel dizzy and unconscious.

After two days, feed him a sufficient amount of ginseng soup, and he will wake up.

Therefore, she has been asleep for the past two days and is unaware of the situation outside.

Before setting the trap, she already knew what would happen to her good sister, so her biggest worry was her young son.

Consort Hui's trusted maid said, "His Highness has been crying bitterly these past two days. As soon as he finishes school, he lies by Her Highness's bedside, hoping that Her Highness will wake up. Before going to the Imperial Study today, he repeatedly told me that if Her Highness wakes up, I must send someone to the Imperial Study to tell him."

Consort Hui felt a pang of sadness, but she quickly suppressed the emotion and replaced it with a sense of satisfaction. "Suffering for a moment will bring lifelong peace. Using these two days to bring down my good sister is a worthwhile deal. I am also thinking about the future of my son and me."

The palace maid chimed in, "Yes. This time, the Empress has lost power, and I'm afraid she'll never be able to recover."

Consort Hui felt relieved: "It's good that she can't turn the tables. Otherwise, I would always have to be on guard against her. These past years have truly been filled with fear and trembling. From now on, we won't have to live like this anymore."

She rose from her half-satiety and had a palace maid bring a small table to the couch. She ground ink and laid out paper, intending to write a letter home. Just before putting pen to paper, she asked, "His Majesty said that the Six Bureaus will henceforth be managed by the Three Consorts respectively. Who is currently in charge of the Shanggong Bureau?"

The six bureaus also differed in their level of authority. Among the six bureaus, the most important was the Shanggong Bureau, which was responsible for all correspondence.

The palace maid reported, "The inner palace has six bureaus, and the three consorts each manage two. Among them, Consort Li manages the Shanggong Bureau and the Shangyi Bureau, Consort Lan manages the Shangshi Bureau and the Shangqin Bureau, and Your Highness manages the Shangfu Bureau and the Shanggong Bureau. However, the two bureaus that Your Highness was in charge of are now being managed by Consort Li."

Upon hearing this, Consort Hui sneered, "What a Consort Li! Of the six bureaus, the Shanggong and Shangyi bureaus are the most important, yet she has taken them all on without uttering a word. Consort Lan, that useless thing, takes whatever she's given."

The palace servants dared not speak.

Consort Hui knew that if they really wanted to compete, Consort Li would certainly not give in either, so she gave a cold snort and gave up.

She pondered for a moment, then slowly picked up her pen and wrote.

"To my dearest father: Things have been rather unsettled in the palace lately. My elder sister has suddenly fallen ill, and I, being frail, am unable to cope..."

Historically, all letters from imperial concubines had to be checked by the Records Office of the Imperial Palace Bureau before being sent out.

Therefore, she had to use more subtle wording.

However, I imagine that her good sister will also try to ask the mansion for help, and her father will definitely find out the situation.

After all, the Luo family was a prominent clan in the Jing Dynasty for over a hundred years, and they had some connections and influence in the imperial harem.

Consort Hui wrote with effortless grace, completing the letter in one go. After finishing it, she handed it to the palace maid beside her and instructed, "Send it out as soon as possible."

She couldn't wait to see her father's reply.

*

After Empress Luo was confined to her quarters, the once bustling and lively scene of the Phoenix Palace, with its frequent visits by imperial carriages, was no longer there. Now, it could be described as deserted and desolate.

Everyone avoided this at all costs.

Since he was under house arrest, guards naturally guarded the palace gates, with only a side gate open so that palace servants could deliver their daily food rations in.

That evening, a guest arrived at the side gate, but was stopped by the guards as usual. "Your Highness, His Majesty has decreed that no one may enter without permission."

Consort Hui said calmly, "When His Majesty visited me today, he granted me permission to visit. If this gentleman does not believe me, he may go to the Emperor to verify."

Upon hearing this, the guard pondered for a moment. Falsely conveying the emperor's will was a serious crime, and even the imperial concubines wouldn't dare to speak recklessly. It must be true.

He respectfully stepped aside, saying, "Please, Consort Hui."

Consort Hui, accompanied by two palace maids, slowly entered the room.

Even though the Empress was now only a figurehead, His Majesty had not deposed her, so the Six Bureaus did not dare to neglect their duties and still sent the Empress the allowance she was entitled to.

Therefore, at night, Fengyi Palace is still brightly lit, as bright as day, just like before.

But in the end, something was different.

Consort Hui stood at the foot of the steps for a while, then lifted her skirt and went inside.

Upon entering, Empress Luo was seated on the phoenix throne in the main room. It must have been a palace maid who informed her of her arrival.

Empress Luo sat on a high seat, dressed in a bright red palace gown and wearing a phoenix crown, looking dignified and noble.

Consort Hui knew that the Empress was merely putting on a brave face. She raised an eyebrow and said, "Does Sister still think she's that high and mighty Empress?"

Empress Luo stared intently at her, gritting her teeth, and said, "Luo Zhiyi, what are you so smug about? His Majesty has only confined me to my quarters; he hasn't deposed me. I am still Empress!"

"Oh?" Consort Hui scoffed, her mockery undisguised. "An empress who has had her golden book and seal confiscated, stripped of all real power in the six palaces, and completely sidelined?"

"You!" Empress Luo trembled with rage. She pointed at Consort Hui, then angrily lowered her finger. "If you want to laugh at me, you needn't bother. Not only am I still the Empress, but even if the Empress's position were vacant, it would never be your turn, a lowly concubine's daughter!"

Consort Hui laughed instead of getting angry: "A concubine's daughter? It seems that my elder sister really doesn't understand our father. It's true that I was born a concubine's daughter, but who says that I can only be a concubine's daughter for the rest of my life?"

Empress Luo had a bad feeling upon hearing this, and she asked, "What do you mean?"

Consort Hui covered her lips and chuckled, "A couple of days ago, I wrote a letter home and sent it back. My father replied that he has elevated my aunt to the status of a secondary wife. From now on, I am the legitimate daughter of the Luo family."

"Father replied to your letter?!" Empress Luo asked urgently after hearing the reply, but upon hearing the rest, her expression changed drastically, and she exclaimed, "What did you say?!"

The ancestors of the Luo family were meritorious officials who followed the founding emperor of the Jing Dynasty in conquering the country. After establishing their great cause, they were enfeoffed as the Duke of Luo.

There's a saying that goes, "Families of dukes and marquises are renowned."

The blessings bestowed by a virtuous person will last for five generations.

This generation of the Luo family's direct descendants only inherited the honorary title of Light Cavalry Captain, and they were on the verge of decline.

Fortunately, thanks to their past reputation, the Luo family produced a princess. Perhaps it was a stroke of luck, but this princess of the Luo family later became the empress of the new dynasty.

Since Luo Zhiyan took the throne, she has received all the support and resources from the Luo family.

Along with her mother, Madam Luo's status in the mansion also rose accordingly.

Previously, Luo's father had a large number of concubines in his harem, but in order to please Madam Luo, he sent away all the concubines who had not borne him children. Furthermore, Old Madam Luo no longer scolded or made things difficult for Madam Luo at will, and her attitude became very kind.

Later, when Empress Luo returned to her residence to select her sisters to enter the palace, the entire Luo family did their utmost to cooperate with her.

After being imprisoned, Empress Luo did not want to sit idly by and wait for her death. That very night, she wrote a secret letter and entrusted it to a spy to send out.

She asked the Luo family to find a way to rescue her as soon as possible.

It is believed that the letter was sent, but there has been no reply for several days.

Empress Luo was extremely anxious, thinking something had happened, but she didn't expect to hear Consort Hui say such a thing.

Her father didn't reply to her letter, but he did reply to Consort Hui, and even elevated Consort Hui, that lowly concubine, to the status of a secondary wife?!

Is he planning to give up on her?

Have they switched their support to Consort Hui, their daughter?!