Chapter 41: A Self-Invited Calamity

  The old emperor hastened to arrive, followed by a group of eunuchs and palace maids led by Wen Lei. Behind the procession were two people, one was Ye Tianyu and the other was Nan Lingrui, who was fanning himself with a folding fan in an elegant manner.

  Yun Shangyue watched as the old emperor hastily walked away, wondering if he was truly anxious about Cold Imperial Concubine or just putting on a show for everyone. In reality, he had a sinister plan brewing in his mind to take advantage of the situation and interrogate her.

  "Yue'er, come here!" The empress looked at the old emperor, her hand clutching the handkerchief tightly, and called out to her softly.

  Yun Shallow Moon withdrew her gaze and looked at the Empress, seeing that she was pursing her lips, seemingly determined to protect her. She felt a surge of emotion in her heart and smiled slightly at the Empress, shaking her head, "Auntie, I'm fine standing here!"

  The queen frowned.

  Yun Shangyue whispered into her ear through a secret transmission: "Don't worry, I won't be in trouble, you don't have to take the blame on yourself!"

  The queen clearly heard Yun Shuoyue's words and was surprised that she actually knew the art of sound transmission. Seeing her expressionless face, not tense or afraid at all, she thought of how many times she had been in danger but came out unscathed, looking reckless but actually standing on reason every time, her heart calmed down a bit, and she nodded slightly.

  Before long, the old emperor arrived and saw the scene at the gate of Ronghua Palace. His eyes were fixed on the body of Leng Guifei lying on the ground, and his face looked at Leng Guife's face that could no longer be seen with some disbelief. After a moment, he raised his head to look at the empress and asked in a deep voice: "Empress, what is going on? How did Leng Guifei become like this?"

  Yun Shangyue looked at Wen Lei, who glanced at her and lowered his head. She thought that the old emperor, being so ruthless and calm, couldn't have just rushed over after hearing that Leng Guifei was injured. He must have asked about the cause and effect of the situation beforehand. But now he had come directly to question the empress, which meant he had already made up his mind to punish her using this opportunity! As soon as she thought of this, without waiting for the empress to speak, Yun Shangyue immediately said: "Your Majesty, uncle, it was I who hit Leng Guifei!"

  The queen swallowed back the words she was about to say!

  "What? You were beaten by her? Moon Concubine, you just entered the palace, right? You dare to beat my Cold Noble Consort as soon as you enter the palace? You have a big nerve!" The old emperor was furious and scolded the empress: "Empress, such a thing happened at your palace gate while you were present, I think you are becoming more and more useless!"

  "Your Majesty, it's not that I'm useless, why don't you ask Moon about why she hit Consort Leng?" The Empress looked at the Emperor.

  She didn't understand why the Emperor suddenly ordered her to marry Jing Shizi yesterday, but after returning to the palace, she learned that the Emperor wanted to use Su Su's lewd words and erotic songs as an excuse to punish her and demote her. Now, seeing the Emperor directly blaming her, she realized that he had made up his mind to demote her. She was furious in her heart, having endured humiliation in the palace for years. If she were to be demoted again, not only would it affect Cloud King's household, but also how could she face herself after a lifetime of happiness? Yesterday, she sat up all night, feeling hopeless, and didn't want to hear the Emperor's decree that Cloud Shallow Moon was to be by his side to supervise her, and move into Ronghua Palace. Her dead heart reignited. Even if she were demoted, she couldn't let him do it in such a humiliating way! Moreover, she couldn't let her niece follow in her footsteps.

  "No matter what the reason, with you present, how could Moyu allow herself to be beaten by Qinggui Fei? You're actually shirking responsibility, I'm extremely disappointed in you. Guards, take the Empress..." The old Emperor glared at the Empress, his eyes filled with anger.

  The queen's face also showed anger, cutting off the old emperor's words, and said coldly: "Moon daughter is not obedient, you were there yesterday! She still beat the sixth princess, today I didn't stop her, but it can't be blamed on me!"

  The old emperor was left speechless, he never thought that the woman who had been obedient to him for a lifetime would suddenly dare to resist him openly and with sharp words from yesterday. His pretended anger was ignited, and he shouted: "How can it be the same? Cold Gui Fei is my Gui Fei!"

  "Are you saying that Sixth Princess is no longer your biological daughter?" The empress raised an eyebrow.

  "You... you dare to speak to me like this?" The old emperor's breath was stuck in his chest, and a blue vein bulged on his forehead.

  "The emperor speaks to me like this, I have no way of speaking nicely to the emperor! Who is born to be wronged?! Even if you are the emperor!" The empress stood straight, ignoring the old emperor's anger.

  "Good! You say I wronged you! Then tell me, why did Yueli hit the Cold Noble Consort?" The old emperor glared at the empress with a stern gaze and said angrily: "Yesterday it was Liu'er who provoked Yueli first, and they are of the same age. It's normal for young girls to fight. I couldn't favor her just because she is my princess, and considering yesterday was the Qixi Festival, I didn't blame Yueli. But today she hit a noble consort with a higher rank, which is a case of a lower-ranking person offending a higher-ranking one. If you can't come up with a reason, I won't forgive you!"

  "All right, I'll make it clear to Your Majesty. You'd better listen carefully!" The queen's hand in her sleeve clenched into a fist, and she spoke angrily too.

  "Hear me out, speak!" The old emperor clasped his hands behind his back.

  "Your Majesty, Imperial Uncle and Aunt, this matter originated from me, and the person was also beaten by me. How can you ignore me, the main culprit, and start talking about it yourselves? This makes the one who beat someone feel not even a little bit accomplished!" The Empress was just about to speak when Yun Shangyue interrupted, looking at the two of them with a cold smile in her heart. The old Emperor's trick might not work this time. She thought she could use Cold Imperial Concubine to frame the Empress and depose her, but that won't happen!

  The queen remembered what Yun Qianyue had said earlier and stopped talking.

  "Yue Yaotou, you hit the imperial concubine. I naturally won't let you off. You stand aside first, I want to hear what the empress has to say!" The old emperor glanced at Yun Shangyue with a cold and solemn tone.

  "Let me say it! This matter is not suitable for Auntie to say!" Yun Shangyue looked at the old emperor, then glanced at Leng Guifei lying on the ground. Without waiting for the old emperor's objection, she spoke directly, "Leng Guifei said that since ancient times, those brought up by the Emperor himself have all become his women, just like Li Feiyan. She said that the Emperor's uncle is a foolish ruler who wants to make me one of your women too, saying that in the future, aunt and nephew will share a husband and be ridiculed by the world. She said I'm a toad who also wants to enter the Ronghua Palace, saying that from now on, this Ronghua Palace should change its name! Most importantly... she said that the Emperor's uncle has long wanted to depose Auntie! And she also said..."

  "Nonsense!" The old emperor cut off Yun Shangyue's words, his face iron-green.

  "Your Majesty, you also know that this is a pack of nonsense, right? So, I thought Cold Imperial Concubine was really too arrogant! I'll just help you teach her a lesson!" Yun Shangyue stopped talking and looked at the old emperor. "Your Majesty has always treated me better than my own father, loving me purely like a daughter. But Cold Imperial Concubine's words not only insult your reputation but also question your character. If such words were to spread, how would the world view Your Majesty? Your lifelong honor would be ruined!"

  "What I said is just a nonsense you've been spouting! How dare the Cold Imperial Concubine utter such words?" The old emperor glared at Yun Shangyue.

  "You don't believe me? Don't believe me, ask the people present! The concubines, palace maids, eunuchs, and imperial guards in your harem! Except for one person who went to invite a doctor for Concubine Leng, no one has left!" Yun Shangyue's eyes swept around the room, her gaze lightly passing over the people who had been trembling with fear since the old emperor arrived.

  The old emperor looked at those people, his eyes fixed on Ming Fei's face. "Ming Fei, tell me, is what Yuelao said true? Don't bear a grudge against Yuelao because of yesterday's matter with the Sixth Princess. I want to hear the truth!"

  Yun Shang smiled coldly in her heart, this was intentionally bringing up the Sixth Princess, telling Ming Fei that she held a grudge against her! But even if Ming Fei did hold a grudge against her, it didn't mean she would refute her at this time and openly offend her. In Yun Shang's eyes, Ming Fei being able to receive the old emperor's favor for so many years was truly impressive, having given birth to three princesses who were all favored, this woman wasn't as simple as she seemed on the surface! Simple people couldn't survive in the imperial palace.

  "Replying to Your Majesty, everything Miss Shallow Moon said is true! Not a single word of falsehood!" As expected, Consort Ming stepped forward and replied respectfully.

  The old emperor narrowed his eyes, "Really?"

  "I dare not deceive Your Majesty with false words!" Mingfei nodded.

  The old emperor stared intently for a moment, Mingfei hung her head motionless. He shifted his gaze to others, and before he could speak, they all knelt down with a rustling sound, saying in unison: "Your Majesty, Miss Shallow Moon is telling the truth! We all heard it with our own ears! Not a single word is false!"

  Yun Shallow Moon's mouth corners slightly hooked, really is the woman in the imperial palace, without a bit of falsehood? Then where did she intentionally add the emperor's vocabulary?

  "Oh? So Concubine Leng had it coming to her?" The old emperor narrowed his eyes as he gazed at the group of consorts. He naturally didn't believe that Concubine Leng had scolded him for being a foolish ruler. But roughly speaking, one could only say that Yun Shangyue had spoken half the truth, and he wondered when the harem had become so united?

  Everyone was silent.

  "Even if the Cold Imperial Concubine brought it upon herself, it's not up to Ruyi to lecture her! I will be the one to teach her a lesson! Such things have happened in the harem, and as the Empress and mistress of the harem, you are entirely to blame!" The old Emperor withdrew his gaze and looked at the Empress, "From today on, the Empress..."

  "Your Majesty, you wouldn't really believe what Concubine Leng said and want to depose me, would you?" The Empress interrupted the old Emperor's words. "I have done nothing wrong! Concubine Leng has always been reckless with her words, but I have tolerated it because she is Your Majesty's concubine. Today, she was too presumptuous, not only insulting me but also Your Majesty. And when I tried to silence her, she refused to listen and even dared to say that she had Your Majesty's backing. The palace maids under my orders were going to take her to you for punishment, but she actually ordered her own maids to fight back. Is there any precedent in history where a concubine has dared to offend the Empress like this? If it weren't for Your Majesty spoiling her so much that she has become uncontrollable, how could she be so bold and reckless with her words and actions? If Your Majesty were to punish me just because of this incident, wouldn't that be too foolish? The common people would all say that you are favoring your concubine over your wife."

  "You..." The old emperor was furious.

  "If that's the case, I request Your Majesty to depose me as Empress! Let all the people in the world see how I have been oppressed by Your Majesty to such a state!" The Empress suddenly knelt down and calmly said: "Your Majesty can issue an imperial edict! This Empress will not be Empress anymore!"

  "You..." The old emperor did not expect the empress to make this move. He glared at him angrily.

  This is called retreat in order to advance! What a pampered concubine, destroying the wife! Yun Shang Yue was overjoyed in her heart, feeling that this aunt of hers was indeed worthy of being an empress. She had grasped the old emperor's weak point. In ancient times, marriage was considered sacred, with the husband as heaven and the wife as earth, while concubines were considered inferior. Even if Cold Imperial Concubine was noble, compared to the empress, she was still just a concubine. The old emperor had been so thoroughly tricked, how could he possibly depose the empress now?

  "The old emperor was furious, looking at the empress who was kneeling but with a straight back. He was so angry that he was about to explode, but suddenly turned his head and shouted at Yun Shangyue: "Guards, Yun Shangyue has committed treason, take her..."

  Finally turned to her! It seems that the old emperor is playing a double-win game, first using this to deal with the empress, and then after the empress falls, he takes advantage of the momentum to take her down. Now that it's impossible to punish the empress, he turns around to punish her instead. Yun Shangyue coldly smiles in her heart, not speaking a word, quietly listening to what punishment the old emperor has for her before making her move!

  "Hmph, this is really something new." Nan Lingrui suddenly spoke up, interrupting the old emperor's words, and smiled: "The great country of Tian Sheng, all countries bow their heads in submission. The Emperor is wise and intelligent, renowned throughout the land. Before I came to Tian Sheng, I had admired your Majesty's wisdom and bravery, thinking it was similar to my father, the king of Nan Liang. I thought the harem would be a place of elegance and refinement, but it seems that hearing about it is not as good as seeing it for oneself! A woman like Cold Gui Fei, just listening to her words makes one know that she lacks virtue, yet she was actually made a Gui Fei? Tsk tsk, if this were in Nan Liang, a woman like this wouldn't even be able to enter the palace!"

  The old emperor suddenly remembered Nan Lingrui and immediately stopped talking, looking at Nan Lingrui with a bad expression. "Rui Taizi, how did you come here?" As soon as the words fell, he found that Ye Tianyu was also there, frowning and coldly shouting: "Yu'er, why are you also here?"

  "The Crown Prince just told the Emperor that he wanted to stay in Ronghua Palace, and you agreed. I naturally followed him!" Nan Lingrui smiled.

  "When did I agree?" The old emperor looked at Nan Lingrui.

  "I said I was tired of living in the Yunwang Fu and wanted to come to the imperial palace for a few days. You agreed. I said I wanted to choose a place that suits my heart, and you said all the palaces in the imperial palace were mine to choose from. You promised me everything. And I chose Ronghua Palace." Nan Lingrui's words fell, and he asked, "Tian Sheng Wu Huang, you won't forget so quickly, will you?"

  The old emperor's face turned gloomy upon hearing this, and he didn't speak a word as he looked at Ye Tianyu.

  Yun Qianyue thought this was too easy! She glanced at Nan Lingrui, and Nan Lingrui winked at her. She was speechless.

  Yè Tiān Wèi received the old emperor's gaze and immediately respectfully said: "Reporting to Father Emperor, I have an urgent matter to report to you. Seeing that you came to Róng Huá Palace, I thought it was too pressing, and if delayed, a big deal might happen, so I followed you here!"

  "What is it?" The old emperor's voice was cold and stern, clearly enraged.

  "The Crown Prince, my brother, has just beaten the young Master Rong and sent him to the Imperial Hospital. He is now unconscious. This is a serious matter, I have come specifically to report it!" said Ye Tianyu.

  "Huh? The heavens have collapsed and the young king has been struck by a cold? Why?" The old emperor looked at Ye Tianyu, not quite believing.

  "I don't know why, but I saw the Crown Prince riding a fast horse into the palace, and he didn't even dismount at the gate. He rushed straight to the Imperial Hospital. After inquiring, it seems that the young prince was beaten very badly and his life is in danger. That's why I hurriedly came to report to Your Majesty!" Night Tianyu immediately replied.

  "Why didn't you say so earlier?" The old emperor glared at Ye Tianyu.

  "The son only heard about it and didn't dare to be quite certain. Also thinking that the matter here is also a big deal, so wait for the emperor to handle it before reporting, lest he offend the emperor!" Ye Tianyu hung his head and replied without leaking a single word.

  "Go to the hospital right now and take a look! Is this thing true?" The old emperor commanded. He still couldn't believe that Ye Tianqing would hit Leng Shaozhuo. This crown prince, although not satisfactory to him, had always been cautious in his actions. Moreover, since he asked for permission to marry Qin Yuying, he had become even more careful, not giving him any chance to find fault. How could he dare to offend the filial king by hitting Leng Shaozhuo? He wasn't unaware that the filial king was extremely protective of his son.

  "Yes!" Night Sky accepted the order and turned away.

  "No need to ask! I know this matter, and not only do I know it, but I also personally experienced it!" Nan Lingrui spoke again, looking at the old emperor: "Earlier when I entered the palace, I met Leng Xiao Wangye and the Crown Prince outside the palace gate. I admired Ye Taizi very much, so I leaned in to get close to him and talk to him. Moreover, I was really sleepy, so I leaned my body against his, but who knew that Ye Taizi either had a bad temper or disliked me, and he pushed me away with his hand, even using internal force! I was caught off guard and was blown away, colliding with Leng Xiao Wangye. Although I have internal force to protect myself, I still suffered some minor injuries. Leng Xiao Wangye fainted on the spot! Ye Taizi took him to the Imperial Hospital! I originally wanted to follow them to take a look, but I was afraid that the Crown Prince would dislike me again and attack me, and if I got injured, I wouldn't be his match. So I came to see Your Majesty instead! Later, I followed you to this Ronghua Palace. Ronghua Palace is indeed worthy of being the residence of the empresses of the Tian Sheng dynasty - it's really a great place, and I liked it as soon as I saw it, so..."

  Nan Lingrui spoke as she looked around Ronghua Palace, her satisfaction evident on her face.

  "Is what you're saying true?" The old emperor interrupted Nan Lingrui's words, his face somewhat solemn.

  "It's only natural!" Nan Lingrui nodded, "The Crown Prince never speaks falsely! Originally, I wanted to ask the Emperor for an explanation, but later I was afraid of hurting the harmony, so I didn't mention such a thing. Besides, the Crown Prince was also unintentional. I won't hold it against him! It's just pitiful that Cold Little Wangye was unlucky and happened to be eavesdropping behind me and the Crown Prince. The Crown Prince had used 80% of his internal energy at the time, he didn't have any martial arts to resist, if we hadn't rescued him in time, I'm afraid his life would have been over..."

  "Your Majesty, Your Majesty..." Before Nan Lingrui's words had fallen, a loud cry came from afar, and it was the voice of the Filial King.

  The old emperor immediately looked in the direction of the sound, and Yun Shangyue also looked over. They saw that the filial king was hastily walking towards them. The filial king looked very disheveled at this time, his official outer garment not even properly tied, running all the way here, his face as pale as if he had seen a ghost. Her mind stirred slightly, and she looked at Nan Lingrui again. Nan Lingrui winked at her once more. She thought that Ye Tianqing wouldn't attack him without reason, so this servant must have done something.

  "Your Majesty, please save my son...!" The Filial King had just arrived and didn't even have time to take in the scene before him, but immediately knelt down with a "thud" and wept bitterly.

  "Leng Wang brother, you get up first, there's no hurry to talk. What's wrong with Leng Xiao Wangye?" The old emperor asked, pretending not to know.

  "My son... my son was beaten by the Crown Prince and is now in the imperial hospital, all the imperial physicians are helpless... I fear... I fear... this old minister only has this one son..." The filial king kowtowed non-stop.

  The old emperor's face changed greatly and he hastily asked: "Is it really this severe?"

  "The imperial physician said that both internal and external injuries are severe... Now he's just barely hanging on... " The filial king wept, begging ceaselessly, "Your Majesty, I implore you to save my son... I cannot lose this child..."

  "Quickly get up, Emperor Wang! I'll go to the Taiyi Hospital with you right away!" The old emperor couldn't be bothered to punish Yun Shangyue anymore and hastily rushed towards the Taiyi Hospital.

  Filial King Wang immediately got up and followed behind the old emperor, from start to finish he didn't have the heart to look at the cold Imperial Concubine lying on the ground. As they walked quickly, he cried: "Your Majesty, please give the 500-year-old Lingzhi from the imperial pharmacy to save my child's life! The imperial physicians said that if there is a 500-year-old Lingzhi, perhaps the young master can be saved..."

  "Brother Leng Wang, have you forgotten? Those 500-year-old lingzhi were long ago requested by the Crown Prince for Miss Qin of the Chancellor's Manor and Princess Ye of Nanjiang. Where are they now?" The old emperor turned his head to glance at Emperor Xiaozong.

  Filial King's face turned pale with fright, almost falling over, "Is there no way to save my son?"

  "Who else is in the Imperial Hospital besides the Imperial Physician?" the Old Emperor asked.

  "All the imperial physicians are here, but they're all at a loss for what to do..." The filial king wiped away a tear.

  "Brunei, hurry to the palace of King De and invite the young king to enter the palace for treatment by King Leng!" The old emperor gave an order to Wenlai after glancing back.

  "Yes!" Brunei hastily responded.

  "Your Majesty, I have already sent someone to invite the young master of the Yan family. According to De Wang, the young master left yesterday and has not returned to the mansion." Xiangqin Wang immediately said.

  "Where is Jing Shizi?" The old emperor stopped in his tracks.

  "This old minister was flustered for a moment and didn't go to ask Jing Shizi, besides even if this old minister went to ask, Jing Shizi might not necessarily save Quan Zi..." Xiaojin Wang's eyes lit up when he heard Rong Jing's name, then his face turned gloomy again, shaking his head.

  "Wenlai, go to the Rong Wang Fu immediately and invite Jing Shizi into the palace! Jing Shizi understands the great righteousness of benevolence and will certainly not see death without rescuing." The old emperor hesitated for a moment before instructing Wenlai.

  "Yes!" Brunei responded again and hurriedly ran out of the palace.

  Filial King Yi Xi hastily said: "Jing Shizis wonderful hands can bring back the spring, if he is able to lend a hand, my son will definitely be saved..."

  The old emperor stopped in his tracks, turned around and took a look at Yun Shangyue, softened his expression, "Yue'er, the imperial edict says that from today on, you will be by my side to receive guidance, what are you still standing there for? Hurry up and follow me!"

  Yun Pian Yue thought to herself, "This face has changed so quickly!" She reckoned that she had used up all her luck, which was why she was also being treated with such favor. But she wasn't one to be easily swayed by sweet talk. Immediately shaking her head and looking bitter, she said: "Your Majesty, Uncle, I don't dare follow you anymore. This is still nothing compared to following you around and listening to your teachings, but Cold Imperial Consort scolded me harshly. How could I still dare follow you? And this Ronghua Palace, I won't be staying here either. What virtue or ability do I have that would allow me to sully the place of Ronghua Palace?"

  "A bunch of nonsense! I'm only teaching you because of the Cloud King's family's loyalty and the fact that the Empress Dowager was born in the Cloud King's mansion. Where did you come up with these absurd and treasonous words? Hurry up and follow me!" The old emperor was slightly angry.

  Yun Qian Yue stood still, naturally unable to follow him just like that. Let him finish his business and then turn back to find her and settle the score. Ignoring the old emperor's angry gaze, she looked at the unconscious Cold Gui Fei on the ground: "But what about Cold Gui Fei? You're not going to punish me? I did hit your most noble Gui Fei!"

  Filial King Wen heard the words and suddenly turned his head, only to find that the person lying on the ground was Cold Imperial Concubine. He was shocked, "Sister?", as soon as he finished speaking, he rushed to Cold Imperial Concubine's side in a hurry. Upon closer inspection, his face turned even paler, and he looked up at the old emperor, asking, "Your Majesty... what... what is going on?"

  "Cold King, Cold Imperial Concubine said rebellious words to me and also offended the Empress. Moon had to replace me in teaching her a lesson! She has brought this upon herself! You don't need to worry about it, she needs to suffer some hardships to temper her temperament." The old Emperor comforted Filial King.

  As he finished speaking, he looked at the Empress who was still kneeling on the ground and softened his tone: "Empress, get up! I was wrong to suspect you. Since Cold Imperial Concubine has already been taught a lesson, quickly order someone to go to the Imperial Hospital to find a doctor to treat her. As the Empress of this palace, you should take charge with dignity! If anyone else dares to be like Cold Imperial Concubine, don't bother bringing them to me, just deal with it directly!"

  "Yes! I obey your edict!" The empress also knew that the emperor had taken a step back, giving her and Yun Shangyue an opportunity to retreat, considering the matter closed. She took advantage of the situation and stood up.

  Yun Shangyue wanted nothing more than this outcome! Beating the Cold Imperial Concubine was also in vain! But she really didn't want to stay in the Ronghua Palace, standing still. She also wanted to take advantage of this opportunity to haggle over the price.

  "Your Majesty, how did the Cold Imperial Consort commit such a heinous crime? She was beaten to this state..." The Filial King looked at the Cold Imperial Consort and trembled all over. It's known that a woman's face is most important, especially for women in the imperial palace, isn't this similar to destroying her appearance? If it can't be treated properly, it will leave scars, how can she live among the three thousand beauties in the imperial palace in the future?

  "Cold King, Cold Imperial Concubine's injury is only skin-deep, it's not a big deal to slowly treat her. What's important is that the life of Young Master Cold is at stake!" The old emperor saw Filial Piety King looking at Cold Imperial Concubine's face with a pained expression and reminded him, "Let's go to the Imperial Hospital first and wait for Jing Shizong to enter the palace, see if he has any way to save Young Master Cold, that's what's important!"

  Filial King immediately woke up, no longer caring about Cold Imperial Concubine, and hurriedly followed the old emperor. Although he was angry with Yun Shangyue for hitting Cold Imperial Concubine, he didn't pursue it, but now he was waiting for Jing Shizi to enter the palace to save his son's life. Not only did he know that Jing Shizi had a crush on Yun Shangyue, but he also said "This life, I will only take this one wife, unique and unmatched." This clearly meant that he would not marry anyone else. Now, this was spread throughout the world! Originally, he thought that Rong Jing would be ridiculed by the people for proposing to Yun Shangyue yesterday, but unexpectedly, the common people not only didn't ridicule him, but instead praised Jing Shizi's devotion and Yun Shangyue's true nature. They were indeed a match made in heaven. His reputation was not only unaffected, but also improved along with Yun Shangyue's. Now that he had to ask for Rong Jing's help, he naturally became humble and didn't dare say anything bad about Yun Shangyue. His son's life was more important than anything else.

  The old emperor saw De Qin Wang on the road and felt relieved in his heart. His son was useless, but he... He naturally couldn't let Leng Shao Zhuo die and ruin Xiao Qin Wang's reputation. He walked forward, took two steps, and saw Yun Qian Yue standing still, shouting in a low voice: "Yuezi! Hurry up!"

  "Your Majesty, I don't want to live in Ronghua Palace!" Yun Shangyue took the opportunity to request.

  "You don't want to live in Ronghua Palace, where do you think you should live? I didn't mean to let you live in Ronghua Palace, it's because your aunt lives in Ronghua Palace, and at night she will teach you, so I let you move in too! Are you going to make your aunt follow you to Yunwang Fu as well? You fool! Hurry up and follow me, if you say one more word, I'll have someone shut your mouth for good!" The old emperor shouted.

  Yun Shang Yue furrowed her brow, thinking that it seemed the old emperor had made up his mind!

  "Little girl, I, the Crown Prince, came to Ronghua Palace because of you. Now that you're not living here, are you going to make me go back on my word after I just spoke to the Emperor? I am a man of integrity and will not stoop to such petty behavior. You must agree quickly!" Nan Lingrui fanned himself as he followed the old Emperor, sighing affectedly: "I'll also follow Your Majesty to see Cold Little Wangye, since this matter was caused by me after all... Ah, poor Cold Little Wangye."

  The old emperor no longer paid attention to Nan Lingrui and hastily walked towards the Imperial Hospital.

  Filial King Wang glanced at Nan Lingrui with some annoyance, but also didn't dare to make a scene, and followed the old emperor's back, walking quickly away.

  "Look, the moonlight is still shining brightly. Why don't you move to Ronghua Palace? I can see you every day when I come to pay respects to Mother Empress. If you stay at Rongwang Fu, it will be hard for me to see you even once in ten days or half a month."

  "Come on, Moon, hurry up! Tonight I'll send someone to the Emperor's place to fetch you." The Empress also spoke.

  Yun Qian Yue nodded slightly and finally followed the old emperor. Anyway, today's harvest was not small, she went to see what kind of half-dead state Leng Shao Zhuo was in!

  The retinue of attendants for the old emperor immediately followed, and the group proceeded in grand style to the Taiyi Hospital.

  The pressure at the entrance of Ronghua Palace suddenly decreased. The empress withdrew her gaze, looked at the cold imperial concubine on the ground, and the two palace maids kneeling beside her, her face turned cold, and she said in a low voice: "Come! Take He Yuye and Zheng Yuye, the two slaves who dared to offend me, and drag them away to be beaten to death with sticks!"

  "What's wrong, Zheng? She was the one who just stood in front of Cold Gui Fei when the Empress wanted to punish her and attacked Sun Gui Fei and others. She has always relied on Cold Gui Fei's favor and treated Sun Gui Fei and others as equals, not putting the Empress in her eyes. Now, hearing this, both old faces turned pale at once, shouting, "Your Majesty, spare my life, I dare not again!"

  "Take them away!" The queen coldly looked at the two who were begging for mercy.

  The old lady waved her hand, and two other old ladies and two small eunuchs immediately stepped forward. With swift movements, they took out their handkerchiefs and stuffed them into the mouths of the two people, then dragged them away. The two people only shouted twice before falling silent.

  All the concubines present thought that the empress would be punished today, even if not severely. They thought Yun Shangyue would also be punished, but they didn't expect this outcome. Not only did the emperor not punish the empress, he actually promoted her position and power. And Yun Shangyue was taken away by the emperor unscathed! Everyone saw that the empress had killed two of Consort Leng's attendants before she woke up, thinking that Consort Leng's fate was already sealed!

  At this time, the imperial nurse Zhao was leading a royal physician to hurry over. As soon as she arrived, the empress coldly opened her mouth to ask, "Nurse Zhao, why are you so slow?"

  "Reporting to the Empress Dowager, all the imperial physicians in the Imperial Hospital are treating Young Master Leng. I finally managed to..." Zhao Mama was a personal maid of Concubine Leng and had earned her trust. She was one of Concubine Leng's most trusted attendants lately.

  "You can't even handle a small matter properly! What's the point of keeping you?!" The empress didn't let her finish, coldly shouting: "Guards, take Zhao Ayi away and beat her to death with sticks! A useless slave like this is not needed in the palace!"

  "Your Majesty?" Zhao's nanny looked at the empress in disbelief.

  Sun Auntie and another aunt who had a grudge against Zhao Auntie immediately stepped forward and pressed down on Zhao Auntie. The two of them moved swiftly, just like before, and in the blink of an eye they had covered Zhao Auntie's mouth. Zhao Auntie kicked her legs and struggled, but she couldn't withstand being sandwiched between the two aunts, unable to speak with her mouth muffled, and was carried away in no time.

  The sound of slapping and wailing for mercy came from a short distance away.

  The Empress dismissed the three senior palace maids beside Consort Leng with a wave of her hand. As if she hadn't heard the voice not far away, she remained expressionless and asked the imperial physician who followed her: "Imperial Physician Zhang, take a look at Consort Leng, is there any way to save her?"

  Zhang Taichang was relatively young and entered the imperial hospital later. Generally, it was the senior physicians who came out to make house calls. Today, all the senior physicians stayed at the imperial hospital trying to come up with a way to treat Leng Shaozhuo. As the most junior physician, he heard that Empress Leng had encountered an incident and was therefore dispatched here. He had never seen such a chaotic scene before, and now his legs were trembling with fear. Upon hearing this, he fell to his knees with a thud, "Your Majesty, I am but a humble and inexperienced physician..."

  "It seems that I'm not skilled enough to diagnose and treat the Cold Imperial Concubine!" The Empress Dowager didn't get angry, but instead smiled warmly at him, "Then you can go back now!" As soon as she finished speaking, she turned to a small eunuch behind her, "Xiao Quanzi, follow him and invite a seasoned imperial physician to come. Although the Cold Imperial Concubine has been extremely disloyal to me, she has also received her punishment. Her face is of utmost importance, it absolutely cannot be neglected. We must find a good doctor to diagnose and treat her, otherwise if it's ruined, it would be a pity for that face she's always been proud of!"

  "Yes!" Xiao Quanzi immediately responded.

  Taibei Zhang originally wanted to say that although he was young and inexperienced, he would do his best to diagnose and treat the noble concubine. However, he did not expect this outcome and was left stunned. It wasn't until Xiao Quanzi walked over and said to him: "Taibei Zhang, hurry up and leave! You are too inexperienced for such an important task, but our Empress is kind and won't blame you. Don't you want to thank her and follow me back to the Imperial Hospital to ask for help?"

  Zhang Taichang hastily thanked her and said, "I hope Her Majesty the Empress will not blame me!"

  "Hmm! Go!" The queen waved her hand.

  Dr. Zhang stood up trembling, he was young but also knew the struggles of the harem! Thinking that Empress Dowager obviously didn't want him to treat Concubine Leng, when he entered the Imperial Hospital his master warned him to come to the palace as little as possible and be mindful of the situation. Now Concubine Leng's scar was too deep, even with his medical skills, he couldn't guarantee a full recovery. It was said that Concubine Leng was not someone to be trifled with, if he couldn't cure her, his future would be ruined. With this thought, he followed Xiao Quanzi and quickly left.

  "Bring your master back to the palace! In a moment, Xiao Quan will bring the imperial physician to have someone treat Empress Leng directly." The empress instructed several small palace maids who were frightened and pale at the sight of Empress Leng. After speaking, she waved her hand at Consort Ming and the other consorts, saying somewhat wearily: "Today has been exhausting for this palace, and all of you sisters have worked hard too! Disperse now!"

  "Yes!" A dozen or so concubines all turned pale. Only today did they see how formidable the empress was!

  The empress ignored everyone and turned into Ronghua Palace.