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

Chapter 202 A Premonition

emperor?

Why did he come at this hour?
Just as Shen Qingwan was filled with doubt, Emperor Yuanwu had already walked up to her, followed by Consort Xian, who looked haggard with red and swollen eyes.

Shen Qingwan found it amusing.

They seem genuinely terrified.

Shen Qingwan rose and bowed, "Greetings, Your Majesty."

Emperor Yuanwu, unusually, walked to her side and helped her up from the ground. The moment Shen Qingwan stood up, she clearly felt a fleeting hint of unease in Emperor Yuanwu's eyes.

Shen Qingwan took a small step back without making a sound, and asked with a smile, "Your Majesty, has brought Consort Xian here for some business?"

Consort Xian suddenly came to her senses and knelt down on the ground with a thud. Crystal tears slid down her cheeks, and she cried so pitifully.

Let alone Emperor Yuanwu, even she, a woman, looks pitiful. It's truly unexpected that Consort Xian is so good at...pretending.

Pretend?
Shen Qingwan's eyes widened in surprise. She quickly walked up to Consort Xian and, without thinking twice, grabbed her arm. "Why is my sister performing such a grand gesture?"

Although it was called pulling, and the action was there, no strength was used at all. In the process of pulling, the cloak that Consort Xian was wearing was accidentally torn off.

Shen Qingwan straightened up with an embarrassed expression. "I suppose my sister is truly repentant. Your Majesty, I really have no way to pull my sister up from the ground. You should try to persuade her yourself."

Consort Xian had no idea what Shen Qingwan was investigating with such a grand display, but Emperor Yuanwu knew perfectly well what it was all about, since he was the one who had ordered Shen Qingwan to investigate.

“Since Consort Xian has sincerely admitted her mistake, and she has something to say, it’s not too late to get up after she finishes speaking.”

After Emperor Yuanwu finished speaking, he walked to the chair in the center of the main hall and sat down. Shen Qingwan sat down next to Emperor Yuanwu without hesitation.

Consort Xian: ? ? ?
The Emperor and Empress sat on the throne, while she knelt on the ground.

Emperor Yuanwu had just promised her that he would accompany her to Kunning Palace to demand her release, so why was it now acting as if she were about to be interrogated?

Just then, Shen Qingwan, who was sitting above, spoke up, "Consort Xian, just say what you have to say."

Consort Xian: ...

For a moment, Consort Xian was stunned and forgot that she had been crying just a second ago. She looked at Emperor Yuanwu for help, but Emperor Yuanwu was thinking about something and was fiddling with the ring on his hand.

Seeing that there was no hope of asking for help, Consort Xian had no choice but to bite the bullet and say, "Your Majesty, I would like to beg you to allow me to take Xia Fuchuan back."

Shen Qingwan still had a faint smile on her face, and even when she finished making her request, there was no emotional fluctuation on her face.

But the words she uttered sent a chill down her spine.

"I'm afraid that won't work. Xia Fuchuan has already confessed."

Hired!

Consort Xian's face visibly paled.

They confessed? What did they confess to?

Consort Xian was completely taken aback. How could she have confessed so quickly?
What did he confess to?

What exactly did this empress interrogate?
Could it be that they're bringing up the matter of Consort Li from back then...?

Consort Xian's hands and feet were ice-cold, and she dared not think any further.

When Shen Qingwan said "confessed," Emperor Yuanwu paused in his fiddling with the ring, and looked up at Shen Qingwan.

Shen Qingwan sensed the gaze and turned to look at Emperor Yuanwu. "However, since Consort Xian has spoken, and Your Majesty accompanied her, I must give her face. I will have Xia Fuchuan brought over immediately, but..."

Shen Qingwan looked troubled and hesitated to speak.

"But what is it?" Emperor Yuanwu asked with great interest.

"But... Xia Fuchuan confessed that... you told her to spread this... this..." Shen Qingwan looked troubled as she turned her gaze from Consort Xian to the Emperor. "Your Majesty, what a mess this is! My sister is so kind-hearted, so good to her servants. She even alerted Your Majesty when I brought them here for questioning, yet they still slander her. What do you suggest we do, Your Majesty?" Shen Qingwan looked at Emperor Yuanwu again. "Your Majesty, should we bring Xia Fuchuan here so she can confront my sister directly? That way, she can see this servant clearly, lest she be sold out and still be counting money for the other party."

As soon as Shen Qingwan finished speaking, Emperor Yuanwu frowned deeply. He snorted in annoyance, changed his posture, and continued to fiddle with the ring in his hand.

Consort Xian was so angry that she almost ground her teeth to powder. She begged Emperor Yuanwu with tears streaming down her face, trying to figure out how to rescue him, but he turned around and sold her out.

She felt like a complete idiot, having shot herself in the foot. Originally, only the Empress was handling the case, but she had somehow managed to bring the Emperor over for the sake of a eunuch. She was now filled with deep regret.

Consort Xian naturally didn't know what Shen Qingwan had interrogated Xia Fuchuan about, but Emperor Yuanwu knew that Consort Xian was jealous. He knew that Consort Xian was jealous, but he was very uncomfortable that she had spread rumors in the palace that he hadn't called for water all night and had implicated him.

In the past, watching the concubines fight to the death for the emperor's favor always gave him a sense of exhilaration. In fact, deep down, he enjoyed watching the concubines compete for his affections and try to please him all day long.

But that doesn't mean he allows them to fight over him and hurt him.

Emperor Yuanwu's gaze darkened. "Consort Xian, do you have anything else to say?"

Consort Xian was so frightened that she couldn't even shed a tear. After all, she didn't know what Xia Fuchuan had said or how much he had revealed. Apart from admitting her mistake, she really didn't know what else she could do.

"Your Majesty, Your Majesty the Empress, I truly know I was wrong. I will never dare to do it again. Please forgive me, Your Majesty and Your Majesty the Empress." Consort Xian cried uncontrollably.

Emperor Yuanwu never liked to meddle in matters of the harem, let alone such trivial matters.

Disgraceful to gentlemen.

Emperor Yuanwu scoffed coldly, leaving behind the words, "The Empress can handle this matter. I still have memorials to review, so I'll head back to the Hall of Mental Cultivation first." He then walked towards the gate of Kunning Palace without looking back.

Only after Emperor Yuanwu's figure had completely disappeared from Shen Qingwan's sight did she lean back lazily in her chair.

She threw the confessions from the servants of Jingyang Palace in front of Consort Xian, "Consort Xian, do you have anything else to say?"

Consort Xian picked up the papers with her confessions and signatures scattered on the ground, looking flustered. She couldn't help but shudder. When she saw the words on the papers clearly, a sharp glint flashed in her eyes.

Is this empress sick?
They brought everyone from Jingyang Palace to Kunning Palace for questioning, all because Consort Ruan hadn't called for water when she served the emperor. She had thought...

(End of this chapter)