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

Xie Ling came from the Imperial Study, looking very tired, and pressed his temples.

"The court officials are arguing all the time about the Northwest, and there's also a commotion here with the Empress Dowager. What's going on?"

"Emperor..." The Empress Dowager suddenly dared not continue asking.

She used to think that the emperor loved Qi Yitang to the point of madness, but when it came to herself, wasn't she just as mad about having children?

This child was the one she had been eagerly anticipating; he was the emperor's first child, and also the bloodline of the Xie family and their Qin family.

The Empress Dowager knew that the older Xie Ling got, the more dissatisfied he became with Qin Zhenxiong. He had always disliked his brother's arrogance and overbearing manner. He had originally thought that with this child, even if his brother made mistakes in the future, he would be more lenient for the sake of the child.

After all, the elder brother is the prince's maternal grandfather. If he is punished too severely, it will make the court officials think that the prince is being looked down upon, which is not conducive to the stability of the country.

If, as the palace maid said, he is a bastard...

"Your Majesty, regarding today's events..." Before the Empress Dowager could finish speaking, Qi Yitang stood up.

She tugged at Xie Ling's sleeve, as if sharing gossip, and said with a beaming smile, "Your Majesty, you've come at the perfect time. I haven't seen you in so long. I've just been released from confinement in the palace and there's already a good show to watch."

Qin Lianyue's face was as white as paper, but she still glared at her fiercely.

The emperor took his seat at the head of the table. "Speak," he said, "what exactly happened?"

The palace maid was about to speak when Qin Lianyue interrupted her with a shrill voice. She threw herself at Xie Ling's feet, sobbing uncontrollably, "Cousin, don't believe this lowly maid's nonsense! I'm innocent! I really didn't do it!"

Xie Ling frowned. "The ground is cold. You're pregnant; what if you hurt yourself? Li Degui."

Li Degui hurriedly stepped forward, "Oh dear, Your Majesty, you are now carrying the imperial heir, a very precious position. How can you kneel down so casually? Isn't this rubbing salt into His Majesty's wounds?"

"If you catch a cold, His Majesty will be heartbroken. Come, let me help you up."

Originally, Qin Lianyue still held a sliver of hope.

My cousin was hoping for this child because he liked her.

But now, she suddenly realized that her cousin had never paid any attention to her before, but after she had this child, he started to visit her often and gave her all the good things.

All the good and preferential treatment is built on this child.

If this child isn't my cousin's, then...

"Your Majesty, please make sure you sit still." Qin Lianyue trembled uncontrollably as Li Degui helped her sit down in the chair.

Xie Ling said calmly, "Go on."

The palace maid then repeated what had just happened, "Your Majesty, I saw it clearly, the adulterer was indeed—"

Everyone held their breath.

Amidst Qin Lianyue's terrified expression, the palace maid revealed the man's identity: "Prince Gong, Xie Jingyu!"

What?!

Everyone gasped in shock; Qin Lianyue's face was even paler than her fourth great-uncle, who had been dead for three days.

How could it be? It really is him...

Xie Changqing's face turned ashen. It was that bastard Prince Gong who had seduced Qi Yitang before, causing his elder brother, the Emperor, to be heartbroken. Now he was harming Consort Li.

With so many women in the world, why does he look down on the others and only stay in his brother's harem?

You bitch!

Qin Lianyue nearly fainted. "You—who sent you to frame me?"

Countless eyes in the hall fell on her, on her stomach.

He was once highly regarded as a son of the dragon, the hope for the future of the Great Qian Dynasty, but now he has been completely reduced to a bastard, receiving contemptuous glances from all sides.

Qin Lianyue could no longer bear it. She rushed down and grabbed the palace maid by the neck. "Tell me, was it Qi Yitang who ordered you to do this? Or some lowly woman in the harem?"

The palace maid's face turned red from being pinched, but she still managed to utter a few words with difficulty.

"If Your Majesty does not believe me, you may summon Prince Gong for a confrontation... There were so many people that night, I do not believe that no one else saw it."

"You lowly servant, I'll kill you!" Qin Lianyue's eyes were bloodshot, as if she had gone mad.

"boom--"

A teacup was smashed from the emperor's hand, shattering into pieces.

The hall was deathly silent; the eunuchs and palace maids dared not even breathe, for fear of being implicated.

If what the palace maid said is true, such a huge scandal in the palace... the world of Shengjing is probably going to be in chaos.

"Pull her away."

The guards stepped forward and pulled Qin Lianyue away from the palace maid. Qin Lianyue collapsed to the ground, trembling all over.

The emperor, looking down from his high position, said, "Summon Prince Gong for questioning. Also, bring the imperial physician to Cining Palace. Furthermore, interrogate the palace servants who were on duty near Changchun Pavilion that night. Li Degui, you will go personally."

"Yes," Li Degui replied and left.

The Empress Dowager turned to Xie Ling, "Emperor, on the night of the Thousand Autumns Banquet, did you...?"

Whether or not he had ever been favored, he himself should know best.

The Empress Dowager couldn't understand why, if it didn't happen, they would admit it, leaving her with nothing but empty joy.

Xie Ling said, "Empress Dowager, I drank too much that night and was so drunk that I was out of my mind. In my hazy state, I vaguely remember a woman... My cousin said she was pregnant that day, and I was overjoyed. I never expected..." At this point, the emperor paused, his expression indescribable.

It makes you feel like it's already so green it's unbearable, there's no way to stop it.

Suddenly, a soft sobbing sound was heard inside the hall.

The Empress Dowager looked over and felt a headache coming on. "Consort Qi, why are you crying?"

Qi Yitang sobbed, "Your Majesty, I feel wronged. On the night of Your Majesty's birthday banquet, His Majesty was clearly with me. His Majesty was so drunk that I served him for most of the night and didn't even get a good night's sleep."

"I never expected that His Majesty would completely forget about it the next day and even punish me by confining me to my quarters... I feel so wronged."

Her aggrieved and wronged appearance would break any man's heart.

Xie Ling felt guilty and got up to hug her. "Tangtang, it's my fault... I shouldn't have trusted others so easily. I'm punishing you by confining you to your quarters. You can hit me or scold me as much as you want."

Qi Yitang: "No way! Your Majesty has been misled by others. How can I blame you?"

"..." The Empress Dowager and Xie Changqing just watched the two of them flirting in such a serious and tense situation, which was disgusting.

They say it's a lockdown, but whether it's actually a lockdown or not, you know the truth.

[You two are really going too far! Were you even acting properly?!]

The Empress Dowager felt utterly exasperated. "Why didn't you say so that day?"

Qi Yitang cried even harder, "That day, the Empress Dowager and His Majesty were both happy that Sister Li was pregnant, and they said I was vicious, bullying a pregnant woman, and even imprisoned me... I had no way to defend myself."

"Mother, if I had told you back then, would you have believed me?" Qi Yitang asked, her eyes brimming with tears.

Empress Dowager: "..." What's the use of believing or not now?

"Don't worry, Tangtang. If this child isn't mine, I will definitely seek justice for you," Xie Ling coaxed gently.

Xie Changqing felt a pang of sadness. His elder brother treated Qi Yitang so well, why couldn't he share some of that kindness with him?

He's his own younger brother.

Prince Gong was still some time away from entering the palace when the imperial physician arrived first.

Xie Ling was still trying to appease the pretentious woman when the Empress Dowager asked in a deep voice, "I ask you, is there any way to determine whether the child in Consort Li's womb is the imperial heir?"

Although she already had some doubts, the Empress Dowager still intended to make a last-ditch effort.

The question made the imperial physician's heart tighten.

Although I knew something might have happened in the palace, I didn't expect it to be this serious. If we're not careful, we could lose our heads.

"Your Majesty, the fetus is still in the womb, and even with my medical skills, I cannot... We can only confirm the paternity by blood test after delivery."

"Do we have to wait this long?" The emperor frowned.

"Your Majesty, this is the only way for now."

Xie Ling twirled the ring on his finger and said casually, "If someone were to perform a cesarean section now and remove the fetus, could that prove it?"