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

Chapter 59 Consideration
"You..." Shen Qingwan paused here, "You're not an ordinary palace maid. You've been to school. The General's Mansion must have had other intentions in sending you to the palace, right?"

A fleeting hint of panic crossed Lan Changzai's eyes, but she only managed a brief smile: "Your Majesty, I don't understand what you're saying. I'm just the most insignificant maid in the General's Mansion."

Shen Qingwan sneered inwardly: "Since Consort Lan is not sincere, then I have nothing more to say."

As she called out "Zhen'er," the tightly closed palace gates were instantly opened.

Warm light shone on Lan Changzai's back: "I was originally the daughter of a wealthy merchant in the capital. My father offended the government officials, and my family fell into poverty and owed a lot of money. That's why I was sold to the General's Mansion as a maid. Later, I heard that Consort Xian was short of a personal maid, so the steward of the General's Mansion sent me to the palace. Before entering the palace, I had never met Consort Xian. Please believe me, Your Majesty."

"You should go back first. It's best for the child to grow up with its birth mother. All the children in the harem are the Emperor's children, and I will do my best to protect them. Consort Lan is pregnant now, so there's no need to worry too much." Shen Qingwan smiled calmly, her expression showing no fluctuation.

Lan Changzai knew that saying anything more at this point would be futile: "Your Majesty, although what I said today was not well thought out, it was all from the bottom of my heart. I hope Your Majesty will think it over for a while, and I will come to pay my respects to Your Majesty another day."

After Consort Lan left, Zhen'er couldn't help but walk up to Shen Qingwan and say, "Your Majesty, since Consort Lan is sincere, why don't you go along with her wishes? Having an adopted son by your side will ensure you have someone to rely on in the future, won't it?"

"Now that I am the Empress, whichever prince in the harem ascends the throne in the future will be my support. Why should I raise him by my side personally?"

Shen Qingwan knew that Zhen'er didn't understand what she was saying, but she didn't ask any further questions.

"Su Tianhe, find a reliable person and have someone investigate Lan Cui's background before she entered the palace."

After a period of recuperation, Consort Xian felt much better.

When Consort Lan returned to Jingyang Palace, Consort Xian was being helped by her maid and was sitting on a stool basking in the sun.

Hearing footsteps, Consort Xian slowly opened her eyes and glanced in the direction of the palace gate.

Lan Changzai paused, her brow furrowing slightly. She knelt beside Consort Xian and said, "This servant greets Consort Xian. May Consort Xian be blessed."

"Heh." Consort Xian scoffed coldly: "I can't accept being called 'Your Highness' by Consort Lan. Now that you're pregnant, Consort Lan, please get up. If anything happens to you while you're kneeling on the ground, I can't bear the responsibility."

"Your Majesty, this servant dares not. This servant was sent here by the General's Mansion. This servant will always be Your Majesty's and the General's Mansion's servant. No matter what happens to this servant in the future, this servant will always be of one mind with Your Majesty." Consort Lan knelt on the ground, not daring to raise her head.

"Since the Emperor has already bestowed upon you the title of Consort, why do you still refer to yourself as a servant?" Consort Xian sat up straight, reached out and pinched Lan Cui's chin, lifting her head little by little, until their eyes met.

What a beautiful face! On the first day Lan Cui entered the palace, Consort Xian was amazed by her beauty.

The imperial harem is never short of beautiful women, but Lan Cui's beauty will never be overlooked in the crowd.

She truly didn't understand why her father would send such a beautiful woman into the palace and to her side.

She had only been ill for a few days when Lan Cui became a Changzai, without even having risen from the ranks of Guan Nizi or Yingying. She had leaped up to a higher rank than the newly entered Xiu Nu.

She served Emperor Yuanwu for so many years, but only became pregnant twice. Her first child was miscarried in less than three months.

Lan Cui is truly blessed; she's only been in the palace for a few days, and she's already pregnant with the emperor's child.

Consort Xian's gaze gradually turned cold. Lan Cui turned pale with fright: "Your Majesty."

Xia Fuchuan kindly reminded her, "Your Majesty, the imperial physician said that your health has only just begun to improve and you should not get angry. Perhaps this servant can help Your Majesty back to the palace to rest."

"Heh, heh heh." Consort Xian's lips drooped, tears glistening in her eyes. She abruptly released her grip and turned her head to the side.

Xia Fuchuan gave Lan Cui a wink.

"This servant thanks Consort Xian for sparing my life." Lan Cui kowtowed several times on the ground.

"The Emperor has already bestowed upon you the title of Consort Chang, so stop calling yourself a servant. What kind of servant are you?" Consort Xian said through gritted teeth, enunciating each word clearly.

Lan Cui knelt on the ground, not daring to get up, until Xia Fuchuan helped Consort Xian into the palace, before slowly raising her head.

"Your Majesty, the ground is cold. You are pregnant now and cannot kneel on the ground for a long time. Consort Xian has already left. Let me help you up."

Lan Changzai let Xi'er help her up, and as soon as she turned around, she met Bai Guiren walking in from the palace gate.

"Oh, who do we have here? Isn't this Consort Lan, the Emperor's newest consort?"

"This concubine greets Consort Bai. May Consort Bai be blessed." Consort Lan curtsied.

"Our Consort Lan really knows how to play favorites. How come she calls herself a servant in front of Consort Xian, but when she comes to me... she becomes a concubine?" Consort Bai mocked.

"Didn't Her Majesty the Empress order my sister to stay in the ancestral hall to reflect on her mistakes and copy Buddhist scriptures? I don't know when Her Majesty the Empress allowed my sister to come out. How come I didn't know?" Consort Lan asked, tilting her head with a face full of doubt.

"You..." Consort Bai's fingertips trembled with anger: "A lowly maidservant, who only climbed into the Emperor's bed, does she really think she has become a phoenix on a branch?"

Consort Lan gently stroked her belly with one hand: "Whether I am lowly or not, I really know. But I know that in this entire harem, apart from the Empress, we are all just concubines. But the child in my belly is a descendant of the Emperor. Does that mean that the Emperor's descendant is only fit to stay in a lowly place?"

Consort Bai's lips twitched: "You, Consort Lan, just you wait and see!"

Lan Changzai disagreed and curtsied: "If there is nothing else, sister, I should go back and take my medicine to prevent miscarriage. The imperial physician instructed that this medicine must be taken bowl by bowl on time, and there is no time to delay. If there is nothing else, sister, you should go back to the ancestral hall to copy Buddhist scriptures, lest the Empress remembers one day and you cannot hand them over. If you anger the Empress, it may not just be a matter of being confined to your room to reflect on your mistakes."

After Lan Changzai finished speaking, she turned and walked towards her own palace.

Lady Bai was so angry that her face turned ashen and her whole body trembled.

"Your Highness, please don't be angry. Let's go back to the ancestral hall first. It would be really bad if someone saw us," Ning'er, Consort Bai's personal maid, advised.

"Fine, now you dare to go against me, huh?" Consort Bai was seething with anger and had nowhere to vent it, so she raised her hand and slapped Ning'er across the face: "Get out."

"Instead of copying Buddhist scriptures in the Buddhist hall, you're here beating palace maids..."

(End of this chapter)