Selling wife for fame? Kick out the scumbag and marry the new emperor to enjoy the harem of favors

Chapter 276

"My lady, what does the Empress mean by this?" Coral asked, frowning as she stood to the side.

"She wants me to help her get out of this predicament." Consort Chen lowered her eyes, ambition surging in them. "She promised that if I can rescue her this time, she will support my sixth prince to become the crown prince."

Coral opened her mouth in surprise, then immediately lowered her voice, "Then what does the beauty intend to do? You haven't shown your face to the Emperor for a long time now, so you won't have the chance to plead for him."

"What's the use of pleading? If even the two princesses can't soften the Emperor's heart, then there's even less chance I can."

Chen Meiren raised her eyes, fully aware of her current capabilities and what she could do.

"The Empress's current predicament is all caused by Consort Jin. The best way to get the Empress out of this predicament is to bring down Consort Jin."

Moreover, the Empress had already told her this method in the note she sent out, so as long as she followed it, there shouldn't be any major problems.

Now that Xie Jiu is pregnant, her mind is definitely focused on ensuring a healthy pregnancy. She's also been enjoying the Emperor's favor lately, so she might be a bit too relaxed about external matters.

With these thoughts in mind, Chen Meiren began to make plans in her mind.

A few days later, inside the Summer Palace, Consort Liang looked at the clothes for the Fifth Prince that had been delivered to her by her servants and threw a huge tantrum.

"What kind of rubbish is this? How dare they give it to the Fifth Prince to wear? Does the Imperial Sewing Bureau think I'm a fool?!"

Looking at that pile of gaudy, colorful clothes that didn't even fit the Fifth Prince well, Consort Liang was annoyed.

She had taken the finest fabric to the needlework shop, but she never expected to be treated like this.

"Please calm down, my lady." The little palace maid who had returned with the items knelt on the ground, trembling. "I heard that it's because the embroiderers in the needlework department, who are in charge of making clothes for the young master, are trying to curry favor with Consort Jin. They're all busy making clothes for the baby in Consort Jin's belly. So I think our Fifth Prince might not be as attentive."

Upon hearing the name Consort Jin, Consort Liang was stunned at first, then her back hunched slightly, clearly feeling somewhat dejected.

"Consort Jin is favored. The gender of her unborn child is still unknown, yet people in the palace are fawning over her like this. It is ultimately because the Emperor values ​​her."

"My lady, don't say that. We're both princes, and our Fifth Prince isn't any worse off. If we're talking about family background, Your Highness's is much more upright than Consort Jin's. Consort Jin's father was a treacherous minister. Although she put justice before her own family, she still has Xie family blood in her veins. Besides, she was married into the palace twice. How good can someone like that be?" the maid said indignantly.

The head palace maid, Wanqiu, looked at her and said, “Watch your words! You mustn’t talk about your mistress. Have you forgotten the rules of the palace?”

"This servant knows her mistake." The little palace maid's face changed, and she lowered her head. "Please forgive me, Your Highness. This servant spoke without thinking. Please punish me."

Liang Meiren looked at her, frowned, and seemed to be deep in thought.

After a long pause, he waved his hand.

"Alright, you can leave now. Don't talk about this outside. I'll just pretend I didn't hear it this time."

"Yes."

The young palace maid bowed and quickly retreated.

Wanqiu stepped forward and said, "The beauty should be punished. This girl can't keep her mouth shut. If we let her off this time, what if she doesn't learn her lesson and causes trouble for the beauty in the future?"

“She was just telling the truth.” Consort Liang lowered her eyes. “However, Consort Jin did help me back then, so I won’t hold it against her. Let’s make the Fifth Prince’s clothes ourselves.”

"Yes," Wanqiu replied, without saying anything more.

What the mistress and servant didn't know was that before long, news of Consort Liang's anger at the needlework department for neglecting to make clothes for the Fifth Prince and only caring about currying favor with Consort Jin had quietly spread in private.

What the little palace maid said was also fabricated and attributed to Consort Liang, and it spread around.

Consort Guo, who lived in the Summer Palace with Consort Liang, was probably the first to hear about it. She frowned and immediately sent someone to inform Xie Jiu. Xie Jiu heard about it but didn't take it too seriously.

Her family background and life experiences can be summed up in just a couple of sentences; she's long been used to it and won't get angry about it.

As for Liang Meiren's dissatisfaction with her, she can now understand it, after all, it's for the sake of the child.

"Keep a close eye on them, don't let those gossips get too carried away," Xie Jiu casually instructed.

Although she could understand that Liang Meiren was unhappy because of the child, she also didn't like being scolded for no reason.

She didn't do anything, especially not at the needlework station.

Chunrong replied, "Your Majesty, rest assured, I will not let them break the rules."

"Hmm." Xie Jiu nodded, got up and moved around the room slowly for a while, then felt a little sleepy. "Being pregnant makes me a bit lazy, and springtime is the perfect time to sleep. Help me to take a nap."

Qingfang stepped forward with a smile, "Your Majesty takes two naps every day and has a much better appetite. It seems that our little prince is growing healthily in Your Majesty's belly!"

Xie Jiu was pleased to hear this, so she raised her hand to touch her stomach and lay down to rest.

But this peaceful period lasted only five or six days before something happened in the palace.

The fifth prince fell ill suddenly. He developed a high fever in the middle of the night, and the child even had convulsions due to the fever. This frightened the wet nurse who was keeping watch at night. She hurriedly woke up Consort Liang and went to fetch the imperial physician.

The commotion broke out in the middle of the night, and the news spread throughout the palace. Zhao Xingjin, who was staying in Chengming Hall that night, also got up in the middle of the night and rushed over.

"What exactly happened? He was perfectly fine, and suddenly he fell ill," Zhao Xingjin asked the servants with a frown.

The two wet nurses and four maids were kneeling on the ground, terrified. They all said they didn't know anything, perhaps they had caught a chill from the wind.

After all, it's February or March now, and the weather isn't warm enough yet.

Unexpectedly, the imperial physician gave a different answer.

"Your Majesty, the Fifth Prince's condition is probably dire. He has contracted typhoid fever, likely from being exposed to pathogens. He is now experiencing convulsions following a high fever, and his breathing is also labored. He is in grave danger. If his fever cannot be brought down soon, his life may be in peril!"

Upon hearing this, Liang Meiren's body went limp, and she almost fell over.

Thankfully, Wanqiu caught her, her eyes filled with anxiety, "My beauty, you must hold on! The Fifth Prince still needs you!"

"My child, Your Majesty, you must save the Fifth Prince! He's so young, he'll be a year old in just a few days! You must save him!" Consort Liang knelt down at Zhao Xingjin's feet, sobbing uncontrollably.

Zhao Xingjin frowned and reached out to pull her up. "Get up first. The imperial physician is here, so everything will be alright. I will stay here with you and the child. But right now, the more important thing is to find out who among the people serving the Fifth Prince is sick and hasn't reported it, which led to the Fifth Prince also getting sick."

Liang Meiren was completely panicked and had no idea what to do. She could only nod and cry.

Seeing that she was useless, Zhao Xingjin stopped talking to her and directly ordered Yang Zhian to investigate.

They searched the place thoroughly, inside and out, but couldn't find anyone who was sick.

Could it really be the Fifth Prince's own problem?
Just as he was about to stop, he noticed a palace maid acting suspiciously, preparing to burn a handkerchief. Yang Zhian immediately had her arrested.

The man was brought before Zhao Xingjin.

At first, the palace maid refused to confess, but after being tortured, she became afraid and revealed that it was Consort Jin who had instructed her to do so, because Consort Liang had recently spoken rudely to Consort Jin, and everyone in the palace had heard about it in private.