The wicked imperial concubine is courting death again; the comments section teaches her how to win w

Xie Ling waved his hand, and Li Degui led the palace servants to retreat outside the door.

Xie Ling strode into the hall and said, "Your son greets Your Majesty. May Your Majesty be blessed."

The Empress Dowager sneered, "Thanks to you, I can't even have peace if I wanted to."

Xie Ling sat down. "Why do you say that, Mother?"

The Empress Dowager slammed her teacup down. "Look at the mess Qi has made! It's all your fault for spoiling her too much; now she's become increasingly lawless!"

Xie Ling's expression changed when he heard that it concerned Qi Yitang.

"What's wrong with Tangtang?"

"Tangtang, Tangtang, besides Lady Qi, do you have anyone else in your eyes?!" the Empress Dowager emphasized. "Yue'er is also your woman!"

Xie Ling didn't reply, but calmly asked, "Mother, is she?"

The Empress Dowager choked.

Having never served him in bed, Qin Lianyue was still a virgin and could not be considered his "woman".

But it's all Xie Ling's fault for being so clueless. She had given him wine, hoping they would get together, but he poured it out right in front of her, saying he was "only able to get aroused by Tangtang Shi."

The Empress Dowager's face turned bright red with embarrassment.

Even after becoming emperor, he still speaks so recklessly. What kind of things are he saying?!

"Cousin..." Qin Lianyue walked up to Xie Ling with tears in her eyes, releasing her hand from her left cheek. "Yue'er's face hurts so much. The Imperial Concubine was so cruel..."

Xie Ling glanced at it and it did indeed look like it was fanned by Qi Yitang.

Why did Tangtang hit you?

Qin Lianyue was secretly pleased, but her expression became even more aggrieved. "Your Majesty, I don't know either. Today, I was admiring the flowers in the Imperial Garden with Consort Shu when we ran into the Noble Consort. We exchanged a few words, and Your Majesty then struck me..."

Xie Ling chuckled. "You only exchanged two words, and Tangtang already took action?"

Before Qin Lianyue could answer, Xie Ling continued, "Then why did she only hit you and not Consort Shu?"

The Empress Dowager angrily shouted, "Emperor!"

Xie Ling knew that with Qi Yitang's personality, there were few people in the world who could bully her; when she got angry, even the emperor would beat her without hesitation.

As long as I didn't suffer a loss, that's fine.

Therefore, Xie Ling remained calm, turning the ring on her finger, and said, "Mother, it's not unusual for daughters to have some quarrels and disputes. Why make a big deal out of it?"

"I will bestow some ointment and send it to Consort Li's palace later."

"Making a mountain out of a molehill?" The Empress Dowager sneered. "Then why did you issue an imperial edict the day before yesterday to have Xuan'er flogged twenty times? Wasn't that making a mountain out of a molehill? He's only a few years old, how could you be so heartless!"

Xie Ling said calmly, "He's already ten years old, is he that young?"

"I left the cold palace at the age of eight, entered the study at the age of nine, and by the age of ten I was already able to win the top three in hunting competitions."

The Empress Dowager choked up.

Xie Ling was born in a cold palace and was ignored by everyone, but she was exceptionally intelligent.

Knowing the Empress Dowager's predicament, he devised a scheme to let the late emperor know of his existence as a prince, while simultaneously finding old acquaintances to clear his name of the witchcraft case from years ago.

He was only eight years old at the time.

The Empress Dowager's tone remained firm: "Regardless of anything else, Consort Qi, as the head of all the consorts, should set an example for the harem. How can she be so arrogant and domineering? If she dares to hit Yue'er today, won't she dare to hit me next?"

Xie Ling said, "Your Majesty, you flatter me. Tangtang respects you as an elder, just like I do."

Ha ha.

Do you even believe that yourself? It's a miracle that Qi Yitang doesn't make her so angry she rolls her eyes back.

"Mother, Tangtang was wrong this time. How about punishing her by confining her to her quarters for two days to copy scriptures for you and pray for your well-being?"

It passed so easily?

Qin Lianyue was filled with resentment and clenched her fists tightly.

The Empress Dowager was naturally dissatisfied. She was about to say something when a eunuch announced from outside the hall, "The Imperial Concubine has arrived."

Qi Yitang didn't look at anyone in the hall. As if she knew she had done wrong, she lowered her head, took small steps to the center, and knelt down softly.

"Your Majesty, I pay my respects. May Your Majesty enjoy boundless blessings and peace."

The Empress Dowager felt extremely disgusted by the address of "Mother," and she sneered, "Qi, how dare you..."

Before she could finish speaking, Qi Yitang raised her head with red eyes, "Mother, you must do me justice!"

The Empress Dowager's pupils constricted sharply. "You—"

Xie Ling's expression changed drastically, and his dark eyes flashed with a chilling aura.

He stood up and strode over, pulling Qi Yitang up and staring at her flushed cheek and bleeding lips.

"Who hit him?"

Seeing that things were not going well, Li Degui quickly signaled to someone to fetch the imperial physician.

[Holy crap, the female supporting character is so ruthless to herself, so she's not completely hopelessly stupid after all.]

[Hahaha, even the Empress Dowager is dumbfounded.]

[What a clever tactic of the villain accusing the victim first! This trick is also recorded in the drama "Beyond the Realm of Conscience".]

[It's a ruse, isn't it? This will surely break the emperor's heart.]

With red eyes and a choked voice, Qi Yitang said, "Your Majesty, I returned to the palace yesterday and came to pay my respects to the Empress Dowager this morning. But I ran into Consort Li in the Imperial Garden... Before I knew it, Consort Li and I had started arguing."

"I was wrong, I shouldn't have slapped Consort Li... But Consort Li also hit me, and she hit me harder than I did."

A black pot was completely covered over her head, leaving Qin Lianyue utterly dumbfounded.

When did she hit her?

"You're lying! I didn't! You were the one who hit me!"

Qi Yitang, her eyes still moist from crying, looked utterly pitiful. "Sister Lipin, how can you shirk your responsibility?"

"We were clearly fighting, I hit you first, but you retaliated..."

She sobbed softly, wiping her eyes with a handkerchief. "I know that you, Consort Li, have long admired His Majesty, but His Majesty is the Son of Heaven, the supreme ruler. How can anyone else sway his heart? Even I cannot force His Majesty to come to your palace."

These words sealed the nature of the dispute.

To outsiders, it seemed that Qin Lianyue was jealous of Qi Yitang's favor, which was why she provoked him, and that she deserved to be beaten.

Qin Lianyue was utterly dumbfounded by Qi Yitang's shamelessness; she was using all of Qi Yitang's words!

"You're talking nonsense! I didn't hit you at all!"

Qin Lianyue felt speechless, but no matter what, she couldn't let Qi Yitang pin the blame on her.

She suddenly remembered, "Your Majesty, Consort Shu was also present at the time. She can testify for me! It was Consort Qi who twisted the truth and unilaterally beat me!"

The Empress Dowager looked at Qin Lianyue, who was defending herself, and then at Qi Yitang, who was lying weakly in Xie Ling's arms. She felt as if her headache was about to flare up again.

"Summon Consort Shu."

Cui Zhiyin and the imperial physician entered the palace almost one after the other. Supported by a palace maid, she groped her way to kneel down and said, "Your Majesty, I pay my respects to the Empress Dowager and Your Majesty."

Empress Dowager: "Consort Shu, I have a question for you. Were you present when the Imperial Concubine and Consort Li had their argument today?"

"...Your Majesty, I am here."

Qin Lianyue's lips curled up; she wanted to see how Qi Yitang would cover it up.

The Empress Dowager asked, "Then tell me the whole story, who hit whom?"