Five years after her death, she awoke on the dragon bed.

Chapter 216 I got beaten up!

Lou Suying nodded vigorously, and inadvertently blurted out the truth: "It would be great if the Empress Dowager could continue to manage the harem, so I could slack off."

She felt that managing the household affairs in an ordinary family was already exhausting, let alone managing such a large harem.

Moreover, so many concubines were not convinced of her status as Empress, so she could imagine that her future prospects of taking control of the harem one day were bleak.

Empress Dowager Chen knew that Lou Suying was a lazy person: "You are the Empress, and the power of the harem will eventually return to your hands. I am old, and who knows when I will—"

"Your Majesty is in the prime of her life, how could she be old? She looks only a few years older than me." Lou Suying quickly stopped Empress Dowager Chen from saying something ominous.

Empress Dowager Chen couldn't help but laugh: "Now I know why the Emperor made you Empress. Being with you makes this old woman feel like she's ten years younger."

This girl really knows how to please people. She always laughs at Su Yi's antics, and the emperor is no different.

She had seen the emperor amused by Su Yi a few times. No wonder she said that the appointment of Su Yi as empress went so smoothly; it seemed that the emperor also favored Su Yi for the position.

"Then I often go to chat and laugh with Mother, and with Chen'er being such a joy, Mother will only get younger and younger in the future." Lou Suyi was not modest at all.

Empress Dowager Chen smiled again; she liked Su Yi's lively, cheerful, and optimistic personality.

Before Su Yi entered the palace, she didn't know how long it had been since she had been able to confide in someone like this. The harem was full of intrigue and backstabbing; one wrong move and she could be plotted against. She lived a life of constant anxiety and caution.

Before Su Yi, she never imagined that one day she could live a life in the harem where she was completely unguarded.

Empress Dowager Chen left Xianfu Palace after having lunch.

Seeing the lingering smile on Empress Dowager Chen's face, Fang Ruo sighed, "Ever since Her Majesty the Empress entered the palace, Your Majesty has become more cheerful."

During the reign of the late emperor, the Empress Dowager was always listless and gloomy. Although she was not very old at the time, she already looked old. She had advised the Empress Dowager to be happier and live a more cheerful life more often, but to little avail.

Unexpectedly, after the Empress entered the palace, the Empress Dowager became more and more cheerful. No wonder the Empress Dowager did not care about the Empress's background and suggested to the Emperor that the Empress ascend to the position.

"Su Yi is eloquent and kind-hearted. I am truly happy to be with her." Empress Dowager Chen glanced back at Xianfu Palace. "She has no ambition, yet she has gained more than others. This is called unintentional success. If someone else had ascended to the position of Empress, wouldn't they have been eager to seize the power to manage the harem?"

She'd seen plenty of people like that, but someone like Su Yi was truly rare and precious.

"Isn't Your Highness afraid that Her Majesty the Empress is just being polite?" Fangruo teased.

Empress Dowager Chen glared at her: "Do you think I can't tell the difference between sincerity and pretense? She's used to sleeping in late every day. Even as Empress, she'll have to get up early to receive the concubines' greetings. In my opinion, she might not even really want to be Empress, let alone manage the entire harem."

Su Yi's lazy demeanor suggested that she wished she could monopolize the power to control the harem forever.

Fang Ruo laughed upon hearing this: "That's true. The Empress is the least ambitious woman I've ever met. I've even heard Yan Hui say that the Empress wishes she could just lie down and relax every day."

Empress Dowager Chen sighed softly, "That sounds like something Su Yi would say. And you know what? Only Su Yi's lively personality matches the Emperor's dull nature."

“This servant knows, it’s called complementary personalities,” Fangruo agreed.

The two, mistress and servant, talked as they walked, and soon they were far away from Xianfu Palace. Liang Wanying, who was under house arrest, went into a frenzy when she received the news that Lou Suying had become empress, smashing everything she could in the room.

She wouldn't be this angry with anyone else, so why is it Lou Suyi?
Half an hour later, there was not a single place to put one's feet in the room.

Seeing that Liang Wanying's emotions had finally calmed down, Mo Lan ordered people to clean up the mess in the room.

Once the room returned to normal, Mo Lan stood by and saw the tear stains still on Liang Wanying's face. She felt extremely distressed: "Your Majesty, don't be sad. This palace... even the Empress's position is not necessarily secure. Others are fine, but why did she become Empress? I'm sure none of the concubines in the harem submit to her."

Besides giving birth to a prince, what else does Lou Suyi have to offer?

She has also severed ties with the Lou family. How can an empress without the support of her maternal family maintain her position? Will the families backing the concubines in the harem agree to this?
These families might join forces to force Lou Suyi off the throne as empress.

However, one thing is certain: Lou Suying was personally appointed Empress by His Majesty. And since His Majesty ascended the throne, everyone knows that he is by no means a pushover and is very opinionated.

The new emperor is far superior to the philandering former emperor.

The new emperor has only been on the throne for a little over a year, yet he has already won over most of his ministers. Moreover, he is willing to appoint new people, and recently there have been many rising stars in the officialdom, all of whom were personally promoted by the new emperor.

Liang Wanying wiped away the tears from the corners of her eyes and said in a hoarse voice, "I will not let Lou Suying be so smug for long!"

She was a favored concubine during the late emperor's reign, unmatched by anyone. She clearly made a good start when she entered the Murong harem this time, becoming Consort Hui, so how did Lou Suying manage to overtake her through a roundabout route?
How can she, the so-called number one woman in the harem, be convinced?

She was under house arrest, yet Lou Suyi ascended to the position of empress during this time—it's utterly absurd!
Lou Suyi's sudden appointment as empress was a shock not only to the concubines in the harem, but also to Xie Zhijie, who felt as if the sky was about to fall.

Just last night, he was still fantasizing about Su Yi having a chance to leave the palace, but who knew that Murong would issue an imperial edict to confer a title upon Su Yi, which directly poured cold water on him and brought him back to reality.

He went to a tavern in a daze, where he drank quite a lot of alcohol. Strangely, his mind was very clear, and he couldn't get drunk no matter what.

It was already dark when he left the tavern. He stumbled and was about to get into the carriage when he saw Lou Suying standing not far away, smiling and talking to someone.

He fixed his gaze, and in a daze, walked up to the girl.

As he drew closer, he could see the girl's fair face clearly. This was not Su Yi, but a girl who resembled Su Yi.

He touched the girl's face, and the next moment he was punched.

As his intoxication subsided, he realized he had been presumptuous.

The man wanted to hit him again, but the girl stopped him: "Brother, don't hit him, someone will die."

The man then took the girl and left, cursing and swearing.

The girl kept turning back to look at Xie Zhijie, and she could hear Xie Zhijie muttering Su Yi's name.

Zhang Mao hadn't expected that Xie Zhijie would be knocked to the ground when he wasn't watching closely enough. He quickly helped Xie Zhijie up and put him in the carriage.