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

Chapter 265 Disagreement
Shen Qingwan's brows furrowed deeply, and at this moment, she didn't even think that this person was boasting.

If what he said wasn't true, the palace would probably be in chaos by now.

Losing protons is no small matter.

Mo Ganjun straightened up and took a step towards Shen Qingwan, instantly closing the distance between them.

“I thought Your Majesty the Empress was wise and insightful, but now it seems she’s nothing special.” Mo Gan Junyi looked down at her. “You always think of Emperor Yuanwu, but what have you ended up with? There are so many favored concubines in the harem, and they all have their own children. Before, they were respectful to you because they knew they had no leverage and couldn’t compete with you. But now that they have leverage, do you think they will still be genuinely respectful to you? They would rather use their precious children to climb the ladder and eventually sit in your position.”

"Your Highness, please show some self-respect." Shen Qingwan took a step back. "The harem is like this. Everyone in the world is driven by self-interest." Shen Qingwan raised her eyebrows. "There are no permanent friends between people, but there will always be permanent interests. If it weren't for that, there wouldn't be this conversation between me and Your Highness today."

"Then can I understand that the Empress and Emperor Yuanwu only share common interests?" Mo Ganjunyi twitched the corner of his mouth, but upon closer inspection, it revealed a sharp glint in his eyes.

All the panic in Shen Qingwan's heart vanished in an instant. She slowly straightened her back. "Then I am also very curious, what are the common interests between you and Mo Ganxie? Otherwise, why did you come here under an assumed name?"

"You..." Mo Ganjunyi became anxious, his expression immediately darkening. "How did you know about this? Could it be that Consort Wen from the palace told you?"

Seeing his flustered state, Shen Qingwan's panicked heart slowly calmed down. Especially seeing his anxious expression, she was almost certain of what was going on.

Mo Ganjunyi must have some kind of leverage over Mo Ganxie. The fact that he can come and go freely under the noses of the guards means he must have some martial arts skills.

If he hadn't come here willingly, perhaps no one could have trapped him on the journey from the northern desert to the Yuan Kingdom.

However, when he heard that she knew about this, his first reaction was that Consort Wen had betrayed her.

It seems that his nephew and aunt don't get along!

Shen Qingwan then remembered something else. When Consort Wen entered the palace, she brought a lot of food from the northern deserts, and some of that food was naturally sent to Chang Le Palace.

She was initially worried that the food might not be fresh enough if left out for too long, and that the delicate hostage might get a stomachache.

He specifically had the imperial physician examine the item before sending it over.

Looking at it this way, it seems like I was just being presumptuous; apparently, they didn't eat a single bite!
Mo Ganjunyi waited for a while, but seeing that Shen Qingwan didn't seem inclined to answer him, he grew anxious.

He grabbed Shen Qingwan's arms with both hands. "Your Majesty, please tell me quickly, when exactly did you find out about this? Did you tell Emperor Yuanwu about it?"

Mo Ganjunyi became increasingly agitated as he spoke, and his voice grew louder and louder.

Shen Qingwan looked around warily, afraid that someone might overhear her, which would be really troublesome.

An empress dressed as a palace maid, and a hostage who secretly ran away.

If word gets out that the two of them are hiding here late at night, they'll probably be unable to explain themselves no matter how much they try.

Although Mo Ganjunyi was only a fourteen-year-old child in her eyes, in ordinary families, it was not uncommon for people to marry and have children at the age of fourteen.

"What are you doing? Get up quickly..."

As Shen Qingwan bent down, she was about to pull him up from the ground when a rustling sound came from not far behind her.

The dark Imperial Garden was suddenly illuminated by a sliver of light. Mo Ganjunyi's voice abruptly stopped, and Shen Qingwan's expression turned indifferent, a departure from her usual gentle demeanor. The two locked eyes.

Shen Qingwan quickly got up and took a step back towards the dense area of ​​dead branches, letting the branches cover her body.

Mo Ganjunyi suddenly came to his senses. He glanced at the direction from which the sound had just come out, then leaped into the air and disappeared into the Imperial Garden before Shen Qingwan could even see which direction he had left.

Shen Qingwan's eyes widened in surprise as she heard voices behind her.

"Your Highness, let's not go over there. It looks like a palace maid and a guard meeting in the Imperial Garden," Gu Nian joked.

Palace maid?

Prince Rui stared at the direction from which the commotion had just occurred, his eyes gradually narrowing into a straight line.

He might mistake someone else, but Shen Qingwan, even if she were ashes, he would recognize her, let alone her dressed as a palace maid.

What is she doing here in the middle of the night, dressed as a palace maid?
And who is the man she was just with?
emperor?

impossible!
He had just come out of the Hall of Mental Cultivation. Even if the Emperor walked very fast, he couldn't have come this fast.

Besides, if it really was the emperor, why would he turn around and leave immediately upon hearing the voice?

The Empress and the Emperor, living in the inner palace, could not hide from anyone, let alone have a secret rendezvous in the Imperial Garden at midnight.

This person's speed and agility were no less than his own. Although there were guards in the harem who were quite skilled, without the guidance of a master and more than ten years of cultivation, they could not possibly achieve such lightness.

The only possibility is that he has been imprisoned in the Chang Le Hall all along!
Shen Qingwan clutched her clothes tightly to her chest, not daring to look back, because she realized that the light seemed to be getting closer and closer to her...

Just as that ray of light was about to shine behind her, Zhen'er hurriedly ran over from the direction of the Imperial Garden entrance.

"Your Majesty, I've been looking for you everywhere. What are you doing hiding here all by yourself?" Zhen'er asked anxiously, her forehead covered in sweat.

Shen Qingwan's heart was pounding in her throat. She put her right index finger to her lips and made a "shh" gesture to Zhen'er.

Zhen'er's eyes widened in surprise, and the words that were on the tip of her tongue got stuck in her throat. She moved her lips, just about to say something, when she saw Shen Qingwan cautiously turn her head to look behind her.

Gone?

Shen Qingwan turned around and looked back over and over again!
Strange!

How could it suddenly disappear?
Just now clearly...

Shen Qingwan felt that the light she had just seen must not have been an illusion. Someone must have come. Could it be that the person had discovered that she knew him and deliberately hid?

But who would come over in the middle of the night?

Whoever it is, if they saw her talking to Mo Gan Junyi here just now, they absolutely cannot be allowed to live!
Shen Qingwan held her breath, picked up a stone from beside her, and walked step by step towards the back of a tree...