Transmigrating into a book, seducing him to rise to power

Jun Zechen took Su Jingyao's hand and led her slowly into the Hall of Supreme Harmony.

At this time, the hall was already full of people, but His Majesty was unable to attend due to illness.

The Empress sat dignifiedly on one side of the head seat, while the Crown Princess sat quietly on the other side, though her position was slightly lower in comparison.

"Your subject greets Your Majesty," Jun Zechen said respectfully, bowing.

Seeing this, Su Jingyao was about to follow suit and curtsy, but the Empress on the high seat smiled and said kindly, "The Consort is in poor health, there is no need for her to curtsy."

Su Jingyao smiled gently and nodded slightly: "Thank you, Your Majesty the Empress."

Then, Miaoyun carefully helped Su Jingyao to sit down below the Crown Princess.

During this banquet, the concubines of the Crown Prince's Palace sat below the Crown Princess, while the invited concubines of the inner palace sat below the Empress.

Besides the women, all the princes also attended at the invitation.

Jun Zechen sat at the head of the table with an air of grandeur, then raised his wine glass and officially announced the start of the birthday banquet.

Today is my birthday, and I'm having a small family gathering. I hope you can all share in the joy.

As soon as the words were spoken, everyone respectfully raised their wine glasses and said in unison, "Wishing His Highness the Crown Prince abundant blessings and a joyous birthday."

After saying that, everyone took a small sip of wine.

Immediately afterwards, the Crown Princess’s carefully arranged song and dance resounded in the hall. This banquet was organized by Aunt Jinhua, whom the Empress had sent to assist the Crown Princess.

The melody is melodious and graceful, and the dance is exquisite; it is truly a masterpiece.

However, everyone present was used to court dances and did not show any particular interest in these songs and dances.

The Empress would sometimes whisper with the concubines, and sometimes inquire about Su Jingyao's condition with concern, but she never gave the Crown Princess even a glance.

Ling Yue sat quietly beside the Crown Prince, a hint of loneliness in her expression.

She knew in her heart that her mother still disliked her.

The birthday banquet was already halfway through when Qiaoshan, the palace maid beside Tang Suxi, frowned deeply, her face showing worry. She bent down.

He lowered his voice and asked, "Master, what's wrong?"

Shangguan Zhaoxun, who was sitting next to Tang Suxi, turned around and looked at Tang Suxi after hearing Qiaoshan's voice.

At this moment, Tang Suxi's brows were tightly furrowed, her originally rosy complexion turned ashen, and fine beads of sweat kept seeping from her forehead and rolling down one by one.

Before Shangguan Yi could think about what was going on, Tang Suxi suddenly closed her eyes and fainted.

Seeing this, Qiaoshan quickly reached out and firmly supported her body as she was about to fall.

Although Shangguan Yi didn't want to get into any trouble, she saw Tang Suxi's current state.

He could only steel himself and stand up to reply, "Your Highness, Your Majesty the Empress, Consort Tang has fainted."

Upon hearing Shangguan Yi's words, the people in the upper positions immediately turned their gazes to Tang Fengyi.

Tang Suxi's rank was so low that the Empress didn't have any particular impression of her, but Tang Fengyi was indeed chosen by her to enter the Eastern Palace.

She was getting impatient; these women had better not cause any trouble at her son's birthday party!

He randomly gave a wink to the head palace maid beside him, who immediately understood and, together with the other palace maids, carefully helped Tang Fengyi to a side hall of the Hall of Supreme Harmony and settled her in.

The crown prince frowned deeply. "Summon the imperial physician!"

The Crown Princess's eyes were filled with doubt and worry. Why did she faint?

Physician Li rushed over, and as soon as he took Tang Suxi's pulse, he was shocked.

Tang Fengyi is pregnant!

But she's showing signs of miscarriage!

Who dares to be so bold as to cause such a thing at the Crown Prince's birthday banquet?

When the Empress's head maid heard that Consort Tang was pregnant and showing signs of miscarriage, she was greatly surprised. She hurriedly entered the main hall to report to the Empress.

Faced with this unexpected situation, the Empress could only hastily finish presiding over the banquet at the end, announce its conclusion, and then lead everyone into a side hall.

Before leaving, he specifically instructed Su Jingyao to take a sedan chair back to Xiyan Palace, since she was heavily pregnant.

The Crown Prince sat quietly on the side of the bed, his gaze falling on Tang Fengyi's pale face. A complex emotion flashed in his eyes, making it difficult to understand.

"Imperial Physician Li, why is Consort Tang in this state?"

Jun Zechen's voice was calm, yet it conveyed an undeniable authority.

"Your Highness, Consort Tang is two months pregnant. In theory, the pregnancy is stable, but today she may have accidentally eaten something cold," Physician Li replied respectfully.

"Imperial Physician Li, His Majesty didn't eat anything special tonight, just some pastries."

Qiaoshan stepped forward and answered anxiously, her face full of worry and urgency.

"What kind of pastry is this? May I take a look?"

Qiaoshan brought a plate of pastries to Physician Li. Physician Li picked up a pastry and took a small bite.

As soon as he took his first bite, his brows furrowed tightly, and his expression turned serious.

"Your Majesty, Your Highness, this pastry is made of Job's tears, and it even contains crab meat and turtle meat. These are foods that pregnant women should not eat."

"Crabs and turtles are cold in nature and can easily cause miscarriage. Job's tears are slippery and can cause uterine contractions in women. Although Tang Fengyi eats little, she is still in great danger." Doctor Li said with concern.

"Your Majesty, I will immediately have someone prepare medicine to prevent miscarriage," said Physician Li, before turning to make the arrangements.

Upon hearing this, the Empress's face darkened, and she turned her anger towards the Crown Princess.

She said sternly, "Your Highness, you have reviewed all the food served at the Crown Prince's birthday banquet. Why are there such cold and unappetizing pastries? Even if you don't know whether Consort Tang is pregnant or not, how can such food be served when the concubine is six months pregnant?"

Upon hearing the Empress's question, the Crown Princess's face turned pale instantly, and she immediately knelt down to admit her mistake.

"Your Majesty, this was my oversight, but this pastry was suggested to me by Consort An."

Upon hearing the Crown Princess's words, An Jinyan's face immediately showed panic.

"Your Majesty, Your Highness, I am truly wronged. For the past two weeks, I have been eating these kinds of pastries every day. When the Crown Princess was preparing the banquet menu for Your Highness, I only mentioned it briefly."

"This pastry is precious and complicated to make. When Your Highness visited my palace before, he said it was delicious. Moreover, I really didn't know that pregnant women couldn't eat this kind of pastry."

An Jinyan's eyes were filled with tears as she looked at the Crown Prince and the Empress with a wronged expression.

An Jinyan naturally knew that these kinds of pastries were extremely bad for pregnant women, so she deliberately brought them up during a greeting after the Crown Princess had prepared the banquet menu.

They even specifically mentioned how precious the pastry was and how much the prince liked it.

Sure enough, since the Crown Princess had been trying so hard to please the Crown Prince lately, she naturally included this pastry in the banquet menu.

Because it was added later, it was not reviewed by the Imperial Medical Academy.

After all, turtles and similar foods are considered precious and nourishing ingredients among the nobility. The Crown Princess has never been pregnant and is not particularly sensitive, so she naturally doesn't consider these factors much.

Just as the Empress and the Crown Prince frowned slightly and fell into deep thought.

An Jinyan feigned weakness and continued, "Your Majesty, Your Highness, since I entered the Eastern Palace, I have not been close to Consort Tang and had no idea that she was pregnant."

"But in the past two months, the Crown Princess has been getting very close to Consort Tang..."

An Jinyan stopped there, but the meaning behind her words was crystal clear.

She didn't know that Consort Tang was pregnant, but the Crown Princess might know that Consort Tang was pregnant.

The Empress clearly understood the deeper meaning in her words, and her gaze remained fixed on the Crown Princess.

The Crown Princess is in charge of the household affairs of the Eastern Palace. Could she really not know that Consort Tang is pregnant?

"Crown Princess, do you really not know whether Consort Tang is pregnant?" The Empress's voice carried a hint of sternness.

Ling Yue suddenly realized that this was all An Jinyan's scheme!

Ling Yue knew that Tang Fengyi was six months pregnant. Tang Fengyi had a grudge against An Liangdi. When Tang Fengyi came to her for protection, she asked Ling Yue to help her hide her pregnancy, and Ling Yue naturally agreed.

An Liangdi has a grudge against her. If she can resolve the issue without having to take action herself, why not?

Ling Yue originally knew that Tang Fengyi planned to stage an accident with An Liangdi tonight, but tonight is the Crown Prince's birthday, and Ling Yue did not want to ruin the Crown Prince's birthday banquet, so she asked Tang Fengyi to carry out the plan after the banquet.

Unexpectedly, An Jinyan seemed to have known all along that Tang Fengyi was pregnant, and had even set up this trap in advance, just waiting for the two of them to fall into it.

Now that things have come to this, all we can do is deny it to the death.

Ling Yue knelt there, her eyes as firm as a rock, and gritted her teeth as she said, "Mother, I truly did not know that Consort Tang was pregnant."

Having managed the inner palace for many years, the Empress would naturally be able to investigate these matters thoroughly if she truly wanted to.

At this moment, the head maidservant beside the Empress walked in, her head slightly bowed.

She respectfully said, "Your Majesty, this servant found these dregs of medicine in Consort Tang's Shuyu Pavilion."

An Jinyan felt a surge of joy upon seeing the dregs of the medicine; she knew her plan had succeeded.

With her head down, a hint of smugness flashed in her eyes, and a barely perceptible smile appeared on her face.

Ever since she suspected Tang Fengyi was pregnant, she had people secretly monitor Tang Fengyi every day. Sure enough, Tang Fengyi would drink a pregnancy-preserving medicine every few days.

They even buried the dregs of the medicine in the soil, thinking they could get away with it without anyone noticing. But how could An Jinyan let this opportunity pass by? She naturally had to make good use of it.

Consort Tang, you knew you were pregnant, yet you concealed it. Now you can only suffer this torment and be rejected by His Highness. Don't blame me for this.

"Physician Li, please take a look. What is this dregs of medicine?"

The Empress's voice was cold and authoritative. She slightly raised her head, her eyes sharply fixed on Physician Li, and with a gentle wave of her right hand, she gestured for him to come forward and examine her.

Physician Li hurriedly stepped forward, bent down, and carefully examined the dregs of the medicine. He then leaned closer to smell them, his brows furrowing slightly.

After a while, he straightened up and respectfully replied, "Your Majesty, this is the dregs of the medicine for preventing miscarriage."

The Empress's eyes grew even sharper and colder, her gaze piercing the Crown Princess like a sharp sword.

"Crown Princess, do you have anything else to say?"

Ling Yue knelt there, her eyes filled with panic. She gritted her teeth and tried to argue, "Mother, I did not know that Consort Tang was taking medicine to prevent miscarriage."

"Does the Crown Princess think I'm as foolish as you? Consort Tang's status is low; if someone hadn't fetched this pregnancy-preserving medicine for her, how could she have kept it a secret from everyone? Do you expect me to immediately check the Imperial Hospital's pharmacy records?"

The empress's voice grew increasingly cold, each word seemingly carrying a chill.

"You helped Consort Tang conceal her pregnancy, thus harming the imperial heir. You are truly unworthy to be the Crown Princess!"

The Empress's voice echoed throughout the hall, filled with authority and anger. This was the Crown Prince's second child, and now there were signs of miscarriage.

Everyone fell silent, holding their breath and not daring to make a sound, for fear that the Empress's anger would affect them.

Ling Yue had no way to defend herself. Her eyes gradually reddened, and tears welled up in them, as if they were about to roll down at any moment.

She raised her head, her eyes filled with pleading and helplessness, and looked at Jun Zechen.

The incident happened so suddenly that Jun Zechen didn't have time to find out the details.

However, he had known Ling Yue for three years and believed in her. He believed that Ling Yue would never harm his child, even though all the evidence now pointed to her.

Jun Zechen looked at Ling Yue kneeling there, her helpless eyes making him feel sorry for her.

He knew that Ling Yue was always simple and kind-hearted, and could never outwit the cunning woman in the Eastern Palace.

Regardless, his heart always leaned towards Ling Yue.

Jun Zechen frowned slightly, just about to say something for Ling Yue, when he was interrupted by a little eunuch from Xiyan Palace.

The little eunuch rushed in, his face full of anxiety.

"Your Highness, Consort Su is in pain. Please send Imperial Physician Li to take a look!"

After the young eunuch finished his greetings, his voice was urgent, filled with tension and worry.