The harem is too complicated; the empress, a lazy bum, wins by doing nothing.

Chapter 184: Delicate
The next morning, the concubines from various palaces came to Kunning Palace to pay their respects as usual. Having not slept well all night, Shen Qingwan originally wanted to skip the morning greetings, but then she thought of Consort Xia.

She paused for a moment, then got out of bed. Consort Xian had asked for leave, saying she wasn't feeling well and couldn't come over.

She was probably more upset than physically, and she likely didn't want anyone to see her disgraceful state after being slapped.

Shen Qingwan didn't take it to heart.

Even though Consort Xian was demoted, her pride remained. After all, it was the Empress who demoted her, not the Emperor. In her heart, she still refused to acknowledge Emperor Wu's change in her.

Consort Ruan was of low rank to begin with, and had only been in the palace for a short time. She had also made a mistake. Since Consort Xian was not coming, she dared not not come. The light gauze covered her swollen mouth, but it could not hide the dark circles under her eyes. Her eyes were swollen like walnuts, indicating that she had cried all night without sleeping.

"Greetings, Your Majesty the Empress. May Your Majesty be well."

Shen Qingwan glanced at everyone, her gaze settling on Xia Changzai.

However... no matter how you look at it, it's really hard to associate such an innocent and harmless face with the word "secret guard".

"The weather is gradually getting warmer. After the heating is turned off, everyone in the palace should remember to keep warm and not catch a cold because the heating has been turned off," Shen Qingwan said softly.

"Yes, Your Majesty, we will remember Your Majesty's teachings." Everyone rose and bowed.

Shen Qingwan waved her hand, gesturing for them to sit down: "I think everyone has heard about what happened at Jingyang Palace yesterday. As the head of the palace, Consort Xian failed to set a good example for the people in the palace, nor could she restrain them. Instead, she got into a quarrel and even fought in the harem. This is against the rules and has no decorum. Now that she has been demoted to the rank of Consort, I hope that all the sisters in the palace will take this as a warning. As concubines in the harem, you must abide by the rules of the harem and keep to your duties. If you cannot, punishment will naturally follow. This incident has served as a good warning to everyone, so that you sisters will always remember the palace rules when you live in the harem. In addition, I hope that this matter can end here. If you gossip in the harem, your fate will naturally be the same as Consort Xian's."

"Yes, Your Majesty, we have remembered."

Shen Qingwan asked a few more questions of the princes and princesses, gave them a few instructions, and then dismissed them. After all, they had to come to pay their respects every few days, and there weren't that many things to explain in the harem. Repeating the same things over and over would only make people tired of hearing them and feel annoyed.

After seeing off the concubines, Zhen'er brewed a cup of tea for Shen Qingwan.

"Your Majesty, I heard that after you left Jingyang Palace yesterday, Consort Xian caused quite a scene in the palace. Even her personal maid, Xia Mei, was punished with a beating, and I heard she couldn't get out of bed this morning," Zhen'er said with a sigh.

Shen Qingwan wasn't surprised at all. After all, someone who can control their emotions when they're angry must be a very shrewd person, and she didn't think Consort Xian was that kind of person at all.

I used to think that she had an aura and dignity in the harem, but all of this was just because she was favored by Emperor Yuanwu. Now that the favor is gone, it seems that she has lost everything.

Shen Qingwan even felt that she wasn't as smart as she seemed. As the legitimate daughter of a general's mansion, she was ultimately raised in the mansion, and her mind was still bound by the mansion. She thought that with Emperor Yuanwu's favor, she had everything, and with a prince, she had someone to rely on. Little did she know that in this harem, the only person she could rely on was herself.

“That’s not surprising. I reckon Consort Xian was really angry about this. She didn’t gain any advantage from Consort Ruan, and instead, her own rank was demoted. How could she not take it out on a few people?” Shen Qingwan said sullenly.

"Your Majesty's thinking seems reasonable, but there's a lot of gossip circulating in the palace that Xia Mei has been by Consort Xian's side since childhood. Even though she's always at the forefront, Consort Xian still punishes her without mercy when she's angry. If Consort Xian hadn't been the first to rush out and report to the Empress and the Emperor, she might have suffered even more at Consort Ruan's hands. It's truly unexpected that Consort Ruan, who seems so delicate, is so capable in combat," Zhen'er said earnestly. Consort Ruan delicate?
Ever since Prince Rui told her last night that Consort Xia was a secret guard in his palace, she felt that the harem was full of hidden talents, and that she herself might be the most delicate one.

However, if Xia Mei was the first to run out and report this to her...

Shen Qingwan felt that Xia Mei's report at the time didn't seem to be entirely for Xian Pin's sake; on the contrary, it seemed like she was kicking her while she was down.

Her original report was that "Consort Xian and Consort Ruan...fought" instead of "Consort Ruan offended Consort Xian and even laid a hand on her."

However, Shen Qingwan could only guess at Xia Mei's thoughts; without evidence, she couldn't say anything.

Even if the palace maids who entered the palace knew a few words, they had not read many books and were clumsy with words. It was already quite difficult for them to explain things in general terms. How could we expect them to use appropriate words?

"Your Highness, if I do something wrong in the future, will you punish me with a rod?" Zhen'er asked cautiously, her tone somewhat tentative.

Shen Qingwan looked up at her, especially at that aggrieved little expression, which made Shen Qingwan unable to resist pinching her cheek. "So you mean that if someone else demotes my rank, I will demote you like Consort Xian did?"

Zhen'er was stunned for a moment, then quickly came to her senses. "Your Majesty, what are you saying? Your Majesty is the Empress. Under heaven, who would demote the Empress's rank? Ugh, please don't say such unlucky things again. Your Majesty is so good to me. If Your Majesty were to be truly angry, I wouldn't even blink an eye if you wanted me dead."

"You!" Shen Qingwan pointed at her forehead, unable to resist, "Go and pour me another cup of tea. This earthenware pot is so dry."

Watching Zhen'er turn away, Shen Qingwan silently sighed in her heart.

Yes!

She is now the Empress, and even the Emperor cannot easily depose her.

Before this, she really thought she could live a comfortable life in the harem, enjoying good food and drink, and lying around doing nothing for the rest of her life.

But now, the appearance of Prince Rui seems to be pulling everything towards a place she can't grasp or touch. She resists in her heart, but her body is inexplicably being pulled by something, uncontrollably moving closer and closer to him step by step.

These days, she has been bound by a strong sense of unease.

but……

(End of this chapter)