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

Chapter 226 She was abandoned

When Lou Suyue saw the scene of Yin Shi and Lou Suya being punished from afar, she cursed her bad luck inwardly.

She really couldn't understand why her mother and elder sister would provoke Lou Suyi, causing her to lose face as well, when they knew that Lou Suyi was no longer the pushover she used to be in the Earl's Mansion.

Especially after her mother and elder sister were driven out of the palace, the concubines in the harem looked at her with pity, which made her feel even more ashamed.

Although her mother and sister could hide in their mansion and avoid being seen after being driven out of the palace, she still had to make a living in the inner palace, and she had to see Lou Suyi's face every time she went to pay her respects. Just thinking about it made her feel suffocated.

Well, she should try to avoid showing her face in front of Lou Suyi in the future, lest the Empress Lou Suyi remind her of unpleasant things from the past and punish her like she punished her mother and elder sister, which would be terrible for her.

She was all alone in the palace, with no one to protect her.

Seeing Lou Suyi's glamorous life, many concubines finally realized the truth: Lou Suyi was already the Empress.

Although Empress Dowager Chen is currently in charge of the harem, given how much she favors Lou Suyi, Lou Suyi may soon take control of the harem, at which point their food, clothing, and daily necessities will depend on Lou Suyi's whims.

Some of the concubines who had been observing the situation resigned themselves to their fate at this moment and rushed to Lou Suyi to curry favor with her.

Seeing that those who had previously been on her side had turned against her, Consort De said to Consort Li, who was standing to the side looking dejected, "It's been quite a while since I've seen you, sister. Your illness has been lingering for more than half a year. Are you feeling any better recently?"

Consort Li was indeed ill, as it was a relapse of an old ailment. Knowing that the illness was difficult to cure, she did not appear in public, not even on the grand day when Lou Suyi was crowned Empress.

Now that she is feeling better, she rarely makes an appearance during the Mid-Autumn Festival, but she has lost a lot of weight and looks rather unattractive compared to the other beautiful concubines.

With the appearance of Chen Xing, she suddenly realized that the Duke of Fuguo's mansion intended to discard her as a pawn and instead promote Chen Xing to the position.

During the time she was ill, Murong never visited her once, so she knew that she meant nothing to Murong.

"I'm much better," Consort Li said listlessly.

She looked in the direction of Empress Dowager Chen and saw Chen Xing accompanying her, occasionally chatting with Lou Suyi.

She remembered that Empress Dowager Chen hadn't been that close to Lou Suyi before. How come everything changed after she fell ill?

"My sister hasn't shown her face for a long time, so she probably doesn't know that Her Majesty the Empress is currently enjoying great favor, right? Ever since giving birth to the prince, Her Majesty the Empress has risen to prominence, and even the Empress Dowager dotes on her like the apple of her eye. I remember that my sister used to be the Empress Dowager's favorite person, and Her Majesty the Empress really knows how to take advantage of a situation!" Consort De looked in Lou Suyi's direction and sneered, "Is it possible that my sister's illness was actually a setup by Her Majesty the Empress?"

Consort Li's eyes flickered slightly, but she remained silent.

She knows her own body.

She had a serious illness when she was a child, which left her with a chronic condition. In autumn and winter, she would catch up with the old illness if she wasn't careful, and it would take her more than half a year to recover.

Because she had not relapsed for several years, she was too careless last autumn and winter, and then suddenly became bedridden and did not recover for a long time.

Her illness had nothing to do with Lou Suyi, but since Consort De was willing to think that way, she was too lazy to clarify.

She gave a perfunctory response, hesitating whether or not to go and pay her respects to Empress Dowager Chen.

But her throat was dry and itchy, and she was afraid that she would cough and be disliked by Empress Dowager Chen.

Just as she was hesitating, Consort De pulled her and squeezed her in front of Empress Dowager Chen.

Empress Dowager Chen then noticed Consort Li. Seeing that Consort Li's face was sallow and she was so thin she was almost unrecognizable, she frowned and asked, "Are you cured of your illness?"

"I'm almost fully recovered," Consort Li replied, forcing back the itch in her throat.

Empress Dowager Chen knew about Consort Li's illness: "It's autumn and winter again, you should be careful and take good care of your health first, and avoid showing your face in public."

When she saw Chen Xing accompanying Lady Chu to admire the flowers, she knew that Consort Li had almost been abandoned by the Duke of Fuguo's mansion. The imperial harem has always been such a realistic and cruel place.

Consort Li felt heartbroken, as she felt that Empress Dowager Chen disliked her.

Lou Suyi had a deep impression of Consort Li. She knew that Consort Li was unrestrained and flamboyant, but the Consort Li in front of her was like an eggplant crushed by frost and snow, and she had lost all her energy.

If she hadn't seen Consort Li today, she would have almost forgotten that Consort Li even existed.

Consort Li wanted to ask herself if she could attend the banquet, but she couldn't suppress the itch in her throat and coughed.

Her cough caused everyone to quickly move away from her.

Lou Suyi was also worried that the child's ability to prevent disease was weak, so she held Xiao Muchen at a distance.

Empress Dowager Chen frowned slightly when she saw that Consort Li's coughing was unstoppable: "Consort Li, go back and rest well, don't disturb everyone's enjoyment."

Especially since Chen'er is still young, we absolutely cannot let him contract any unknown illness.

Consort Li was on the verge of tears.

She recalled how Empress Dowager Chen treated Murong kindly when she first ascended the throne, but now she was also looking down on her.

Chen Xing felt sorry for Consort Li, and said to Empress Dowager Chen, "Shall I go and see my sister off?"

Seeing this, Fangruo said, "Fifth Miss, you mustn't! You are going to live in Shou'an Palace. If you catch the illness of Consort Li and then pass it on to the Empress Dowager, that won't do."

Chen Xing was speechless for a moment, but seeing Consort Li's pitiful appearance, she felt that she shouldn't let Consort Li leave alone like this, otherwise it would seem a bit sad.

After hesitating for only a moment, Chen Xing made a decision: "I'll go see my sister off. If I really catch the illness, I'll return to the Duke's mansion as soon as possible."

Lou Suyi watched Chen Xing hurriedly chase after her and felt that this Miss Chen was indeed kind-hearted, unlike the hypocrites she was used to seeing.

Chen Xing was the only one who stood by Consort Li's side when she was in trouble.

Consort Li didn't like Chen Xing very much before because she knew that Chen Xing was also a young lady that the Chen family planned to send into the harem, and that she was in competition with her.

Seeing Chen Xing chasing after her, her eyes stung with tears: "Sister, go back. I'm fine."

Ultimately, she's just a useless piece. If Chen Xing enters the palace to serve the emperor and gains his favor, she might benefit from it as well.

She should hate Chen Xing, yet she shouldn't hate Chen Xing, after all, it was never Chen Xing who abandoned her, but the Duke of Fuguo's mansion.

Seeing that Consort Li had boarded the palanquin, Chen Xing still advised, "Sister, relax and rest well so you can recover quickly."

Consort Li smiled for the first time today: "I know, my sister is very kind."

Chen Xing watched Consort Li leave and sighed softly.

She knew that her trip to the palace was at the behest of everyone in the Duke's mansion; the entire Chen family hoped that she could replace Consort Li and become Murong's favored concubine.

She did not resist entering the palace, because her mother had told her when Murong ascended the throne that if Consort Li was incompetent, she would be another candidate to enter the palace.

Knowing my fate all along, I still feel an eternal sense of loss upon seeing Murong today.

In reality, there were many concubines in the harem, but very few could catch Murong's eye.

If she had actually entered the palace, her fate might not have been any better than that of Consort Li.