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

Chapter 65 Intentions
Consort Yao had never seen such a scene before; it was as if a knife was held to her neck.

Upon seeing this, Zhu'er hurriedly stepped in front of Consort Yao.

"Please, Your Excellency, have mercy and consider that my lady is new to the palace and doesn't know the rules. Please put in a good word for her with the Empress Dowager. It's not that my lady didn't pay her respects to the Empress Dowager immediately after entering the palace; it's just that she hasn't had a chance to pay her respects yet. My lady will change her clothes now and go to apologize to the Empress Dowager."

Granny Zhang had Zhu'er pulled away, and showed no mercy to Consort Yao, forcing her to drink the bowl of medicine.

"Your Highness has taken the medicine, so this servant will take her leave now." Zhang Mama curtsied and left Qixiang Palace with her entourage.

Consort Yao was clearly terrified; her face turned deathly pale as she slumped to the ground.

"Your Highness, are you alright? Please don't sit on the ground. Let me help you up," Zhen'er said, supporting Yao Guiren's arm. She pulled several times, but not only did she fail to lift Yao Guiren off the ground, she almost fell to the ground herself as well.

"Someone come quick... quickly, go and fetch the imperial physician..."

Pearl cried as she shouted to the people outside.

Despite her shouting for a long time, not a single servant in the palace dared to move, not even one came to help Consort Yao.

"Heavens! How can everyone in this palace be like this? Are they all so cold-blooded?" Zhu'er sat on the ground, supporting Consort Yao, and cried bitterly, "Your Highness, are you alright? Are you feeling unwell anywhere...?"

Perhaps the commotion was too loud, for Consort Liang heard the noise and came in.

Seeing the two, master and servant, sitting on the ground with their faces streaked with tears, she hurriedly had someone help Consort Yao up from the ground: "I know you are worried about your master. No matter how worried you are, you cannot lose your manners."

Zhu'er hurriedly wiped away her tears and, together with Zhenpin's maid Xiu'er, helped Yao Guiren up from the ground.

“My sister has just entered the palace and may not understand some things. Even if Her Majesty the Empress Dowager is very angry, she would not easily kill a concubine in the palace.” Consort Zhen took a silk handkerchief and wiped away the tears on Consort Yao’s face.

"Why is that?" Consort Yao asked, puzzled. "The tone of the old nanny who just came over made it seem like that bowl of medicine wasn't anything good."

Consort Zhen frowned: "My sister just served the emperor last night. If I'm not mistaken, that bowl of medicine should have been a contraceptive soup."

"A contraceptive soup?" Consort Yao gasped.

Consort Zhen patted Consort Yao's hand and said to Zhu'er, "Your consort may have been frightened. Help her to rest first."

"Your Majesty, could you please send for the imperial physician to examine my noble lady?" Zhu'er saw that Consort Zhen was about to leave, so she quickly took two steps forward and knelt down in front of her.

Consort Zhen sighed helplessly: "Silly child, I know you are loyal and care about your master, but which imperial physician would dare to come when the Empress Dowager bestows medicine?"

Pearl's body swayed violently out of control.

at dusk.

Consort Yao was suffering from unbearable abdominal pain, and Zhu'er had no choice but to run to the entrance of the Imperial Hospital and kowtow.

In the end, it was Physician Zhang, the chief physician of the Imperial Medical Academy, who went to Qixiang Palace with his medicine chest.

Physician Zhang prescribed medicine for Consort Yao, but did not dare to go into details, only saying that Consort Yao had accidentally ingested something she should not have.

When Emperor Yuanwu learned of this, he was so angry that he stormed into the Cining Palace.

"Your Majesty, something terrible has happened! You must go to Cining Palace immediately! The Emperor is arguing with the Empress Dowager there and is furious. All the servants in the palace are kneeling on the ground, not knowing what to do." Su Tianhe rushed in from outside. Shen Qingwan put down the book she was holding: "What happened?"

"It seems that after Consort Yao served the Emperor last night, the Empress Dowager gave her a bowl of contraceptive soup this morning. After taking it, Consort Yao began to experience unbearable abdominal pain and continuous bleeding from her lower body within a few hours. After being examined by Imperial Physician Zhang, it was said that she had accidentally ingested something that damaged her body, and it is feared that she will be unable to conceive in the future. The Emperor was furious when he heard this and is currently throwing a tantrum in Cining Palace. Your Majesty, would you like to go and see her..."

Shen Qingwan: ...

Shen Qingwan's vision went black. With the Lunar New Year approaching, how could she have encountered such a good thing?

Fortunately, the Empress Dowager was Emperor Yuanwu's birth mother; otherwise, this matter would have been far more serious than a mere argument.

However, since the mother and son had argued over a concubine, she couldn't say anything in the past. But even though she couldn't say anything in the past, she still had to go and say something.

Because she is the Empress, receiving the royal family's monthly allowance, she has to serve the royal family.

Shen Qingwan steeled her heart and went to Cining Palace.

From the palace gate to the courtyard, and then to inside the palace, eunuchs and palace maids knelt on the ground.

The Empress Dowager sat on the chair in the main hall with a grim expression.

Emperor Yuanwu stood with his back to her, his face dark.

They truly are mother and daughter, with the same personality, even their expressions when angry are identical.

Whether Emperor Yuanwu is angry or not can wait; the key is to appease his mother first.

Otherwise, if Emperor Yuanwu is appeased but the Empress Dowager is not, the harem will never be truly peaceful.

"Empress Dowager." Shen Qingwan walked to the Empress Dowager's side and took her arm. "What's wrong, Empress Dowager? Why are you so angry?"

The Empress Dowager remained silent, only glancing at Emperor Yuanwu.

Shen Qingwan gave Zhen'er a wink, and Zhen'er led all the palace servants and eunuchs out. The palace gates of the Cining Palace were also closed from the outside.

The servants who served in the Cining Palace had enough sense to notice this, and they consciously took a dozen steps back.

Having served in the harem for a long time, one naturally learns the best way to survive: the less you know, the longer you live.

With only the three of them remaining in the palace, Shen Qingwan slowly spoke: "No matter what, Your Majesty should not have been so angry with the Empress Dowager. The Empress Dowager is old and her health has always been poor. How could you be so disrespectful to her for the sake of a concubine who has just entered the palace?"

"What does the Empress mean? Does she mean that in this harem, every woman I like is disliked by the Empress and the Empress, and they all want to make things difficult for her?"

Emperor Yuanwu's expression darkened further upon hearing Shen Qingwan's words.

"For the sake of having offspring, the Empress Dowager brought so many women from the imperial clan into the palace. I only favored Consort Yao a few times, and the Empress Dowager is already taking such drastic measures, making it impossible for her to have her own children for the rest of her life. Isn't it because of my favor that she has been harmed!"

Shen Qingwan watched Emperor Yuanwu teeter on the edge of rage and secretly took a deep breath.

The Empress Dowager's face darkened further because of his words: "How dare you! How many times do I have to say it, Your Majesty? I only sent her a contraceptive potion. How could I possibly harm her! Your Majesty, don't forget that she was sent to you by Prince Yao's residence. She looks so much like Consort Li from back then. Who knows what Prince Yao's intentions were in sending such a woman into the palace to stay by Your Majesty's side all the time?"

(End of this chapter)