Since such a thing happened in the palace, 30 to 40 people were beaten to death overnight. The Empress knelt outside the Qianqing Palace to ask for forgiveness. Anyway, she was the master of the imperial harem. After such a thing happened, she could not absolve herself from the blame. Later, even the Empress Dowager, who had been sick, was alarmed and came to the Qianqing Palace with some servants.
Then, some people were beaten to death. It was said that some of them were from the Empress’ palace.
It was not until about four o’clock in the morning that the Empress returned to the Tianfeng Palace with the help of her maids. She had knelt for so long that her legs had become numb. She was almost carried back by the two palace maids. Imperial Noble Consort Wen also came back with her. She asked maids in the palace to take hot water to warm the Empress’ feet while asking people to put the Empress on the couch.
Some of the people in the Tianfeng Palace were taken out, and the rest of them were so scared that they didn’t even dare to move their hands and feet. There were three or four candles in the hall, making the hall appear empty. Tianfeng Palace was too big. The people in the palace didn’t feel anything uncomfortable before, but now since there were only a few people, they felt that there were many shadows in it.
The Empress took a cup of hot tea from Imperial Noble Consort Wen’s hand and took a sip, trembling. Then, she exhaled deeply and waved her hand, signaling the people around her to leave.
The Empress’ teacup shook when she saw the palace maids and eunuchs retreating fearfully like startled birds. A few drops of hot tea fell on the back of her hands and immediately a patch of her skin was burned red.
Imperial Noble Consort Wen hurriedly took the teacup from the Empress’ hand and said with concern, “Your Majesty, be careful. I will put the cup aside and you can drink it when it cools a little. Don’t burn yourself.”
Was it hot? The Empress looked at the red scald on her wrist dully and sour tears welled up in her eyes. She had once scalded herself on her wrist by hot water, and that man was so worried about her and said that she was not allowed to take the hot water again. From then on, the water served to her was cooled a little.
However, he seemed to be getting further and further away from her!
When did it start? Was it when that woman came into the palace? Everything seemed to have changed because of that woman. The Empress thought with a trace of coldness and hatred in her eyes.
“A scald? Even if I die now, he won’t look at me.” The Empress’ voice was low and hoarse. She reached out to touch the injury on her arm. Although there was no blood, it was very painful. It was the part that the Emperor smashed with a cup.
His eyes were so gloomy at that time. He threw the cup at her without mercy and did not care about her dignity as the Empress at all. Although she had long known that he was ruthless to her, she thought that he still cared about the face of Ding General Manor. But today, he reproached her as if she were an ordinary imperial consort.
Even when the Empress Dowager came to his palace, he still did not let her go.
“Your Majesty, don’t say that. After all, you are His Majesty’s wife. You’re different from us. Besides, you can’t be blamed for what happened today. It’s just about a servant. With so many people in the imperial harem, if everything is blamed on you, what can you do, Your Majesty? His Majesty knows that even if so many things have happened, he had to do something on the surface to save the dignity of the royal family.”
Imperial Noble Consort Wen persuaded her gently. Her words sounded like an explanation for the Emperor, but in fact, they meant something else when one thought about it carefully. It sounded as if the Empress were a person who was meant to be abandoned. This made the Empress’ tensed heart break down and she immediately lost control.
There was a flash of sharpness in the Empress’ gloomy eyes. She suddenly sat up straight and held Imperial Noble Consort Wen’s hand tightly as if she were getting hands cramp. She yelled, “The dignity of the royal family? Am I not of the royal family? Would the dignity of the royal family be saved if I lose face? Everything that happens in the palace has something to do with me. Is that a crime? Who would have thought that something like this would happen? I, the Empress, knelt before so many people’s eyes for so long. Whose dignity would be hurt?”
She held Imperial Noble Consort Wen’s hand like mad and gritted her teeth. Her eyes were filled with pain and despair.
Even in the past, the Emperor also suspected that the Empress had killed that woman. In the end, he did not do anything to her but reproached her for her poor supervision. What about now? It was just a maid’s death. Why did he act as if it were all her fault? The dead girl was only a servant in the palace. Who knew who had ordered her to do that? Why didn’t the Emperor care for her dignity? Instead, he let her, the Empress, be humiliated in public and even ordered people to beat her servants to death.
“Your Majesty, don’t worry. Take it easy.” A meaningful look flashed through Imperial Noble Consort Wen’s eyes as she lowered her head. However, she comforted the Empress gently and patted her on the hand. Then, she pulled her hand away softly. The Empress pinched her pale wrist so hard that it was red and swollen.
“Your Majesty, it’s not only you but also Consort Zhao who get into trouble today. But Consort Zhao is fine while you are punished. It’s hard for both of you to explain it clearly. It seemed to hurt Consort Zhao’s reputation too. She has an ambiguous relationship with Minister Lian. Why is she fine? You should learn more from Consort Zhao.”
“Learn more from that bitch? What do you want me to learn from her? Seductive means? That bitch has been dead for so many years, but she is still restless. Even now, she is still in His Majesty’s heart. If I had known earlier, I would have cut her into pieces and ruined her face. I’d like to see if she would still stay in his heart.”
Under the light, the Empress’ eyes widened. She looked at the empty hall with wildness in her eyes. She gritted her teeth and said ferociously. She seemed to be cursing Consort Zhao or someone else.
She looked as if she had been possessed by a ghost. Imperial Noble Consort Wen was startled. She did not expect the Empress to react so strongly. She hurriedly waved her hand in front of the Empress’ eyes. When she saw that the Empress was still staring at a spot in the air viciously, as if there were an enemy there, she sighed softly.
She patted the Empress’ hand again and comforted her, “Your Majesty, don’t be mad. You should consider what to do next. Even though Consort Chu’s reputation has been tarnished, King Chu has gained the most. Consort Su will be in charge of the imperial harem. If King Chu ascends the throne in the future, your position as the Empress will exist in name only.”
The Empress’ expression froze when Consort Su was mentioned. Her dazed eyes came back from the spot in the air in a malicious manner. She looked at Imperial Noble Consort Wen as if she were Consort Su. Consort Su had the right to manage the imperial harem that she won before, so who else in the harem would be able to suppress her in the future?
A wave of despair and sadness appeared in the Empress’ vicious eyes. She had fought with the Empress Dowager for half of her life and was even willing to turn against her. She did not expect Consort Su to benefit in the end. How could she not feel bad and desperate? Lei’er seemed to have no hope of ascending the throne. If King Chu ascended the throne in the future, she would, as Lei’er’s legitimate mother, have no place at all.
So what if she would be the Empress Dowager? Consort Su would never spare her. After fighting for so long, the two of them would not be able to get along any longer. There would not be two masters in the country, and similarly, there would not be two Empress Dowagers in the imperial harem either. They would be a winner and a loser. Consort Su was King Chu’s biological mother, so he would definitely stand by her by then. What would the Empress do then?
Thinking of this, she shed tears that she had fought back for most of the night. She was the Empress of the country, but now she couldn’t even defeat an imperial consort. How could she not be sad? She was the Emperor’s legal wife who entered the palace from the Qianqing Gate and had a wedding known by the whole world.
“Your Majesty, don’t worry. Maybe there will be a turnaround.”
“A turnaround? What do you mean? His Majesty has locked me in the Tianfeng Palace. He intends to lock me up for the rest of my life. When King Chu ascends to the throne, he might not even respect me as the Empress Dowager. As long as he says that the former Emperor had locked me up, no one would care even if I die here,” the Empress cried in despair.
The cruel struggle in the imperial harem had always been a life-or-death fight. She was clear that Consort Su would not let her off then. According to Consort Su’s character, she would definitely not be able to bear the fact that she was the Emperor’s wife. It was not easy to save a person in the palace, but it was easy to kill a person in the palace.
“Your Majesty, you are wrong. You still have a chance. It depends on if you will fight for King Yan. As long as King Yan ascends the throne, you will be in charge of the entire harem. Then…” Imperial Noble Consort Wen did not finish her words, but the Empress understood what she meant. However, what shocked her the most was the first half of this consort’s words.
She suddenly reached out to grab Imperial Noble Consort Wen’s arm and asked urgently, “I still have a chance? What chance do I have?”
Even if there was the slightest chance, she would not let it go. As long as Feng Yulei won, she would have the real chance, and Ding General Manor behind her would not fall.
“There is a way. It just depends on whether you are willing to do this or not, Your Majesty.” Imperial Noble Consort Wen hesitated, as if it was hard for her to speak.
“Tell me. I will listen carefully and will not do anything rash. As long as I’m still alive, I will definitely help King Yan. I will not allow him to die with me for nothing.” Just like Consort Su would not let her go, Feng Yuxuan would not let Feng Yulei off the hook either. The two of them had done too many things in private. They were already in a life-or-death situation.
Furthermore, there was Ding General Manor. Ding General Manor behind her would not be able to gain any advantage. She had seen clearly from above today. After what happened to Ling Rui’er, Feng Yuxuan’s expression was dark and he did not even look at her. The disgust in his eyes could not be hidden. At that moment, the Empress had even thought that Feng Yuxuan would kill Ling Rui’er.
However, in the end, Feng Yuxuan acted as usual, and while leaving, he gently held Ling Rui’er’s hand, as if he did not care about the fact that Ling Rui’er’s body had been seen by another man, and his eyes were full of affection. There was only one possible case that a man could bear being cuckolded—Ling Rui’er was still useful!
What if she was useless? The Empress could not help shuddering. She seemed to have seen blood flowing like a river in Ding General Manor, and the collapse of the family that had lasted for hundreds of years, and as a result, no one would ever know that Ding General Manor used to be the glorious Empress’ family.
No, she would never allow such a situation to happen. Never.
Almost in a frenzy, she grabbed Imperial Noble Consort Wen’s hand, ignoring the cold sweat on her face. She gritted her teeth and asked sharply, “What, what… what should I do?”
At this time, she represented herself instead of the Empress!
No matter what, she did not want herself, King Yan, and Ding General Manor to have such an end. As such, she would try her best to stop King Chu from taking the throne. This was the cardinal matter she had to deal with right now. She could put aside her personal grudges for a while. There were no permanent enemies, only interest. Now her interests impelled her to do so…
