A middle-aged emperor, childless, was blessed with a beautiful and pregnant concubine who entered th

Zhu Lan nodded.

"After the deposed crown prince fell from power, the old files of the Eastern Palace were sealed. I had someone investigate and found that these correspondences and account books were hidden in a secret compartment in the Eastern Palace study. Xie Jing has kept them, presumably to use as leverage in case Consort Chen turns against him."

The Empress Dowager closed her eyes.

Consort Chen has enjoyed the emperor's exclusive favor in the harem for many years, and has had everything she wanted.

She thought that Consort Chen was just a bit flamboyant and ruthless.

Since Ah Chang entered the palace, she has become more restrained.

But she didn't know that Consort Chen's influence had once extended to the imperial court.

She was even more unaware that Consort Chen's ally was the deposed crown prince.

If the deposed crown princess hadn't had an affair, and the crown prince's plot to rebel hadn't been exposed earlier, what would Consort Chen have wanted to do?

Was she trying to curry favor with the future emperor for her daughter in advance?

The Empress Dowager was so angry that she trembled all over.

"Anything else?"

Zhu Lan hesitated for a moment.

"Your Majesty, this servant has also discovered that Consort Chen's father, Chen Yuandao, embezzled military funds during his tenure."

Her expression was complicated. She paused for a moment, then continued, "This matter was impeached back then, but not long after the memorial was submitted, the person who impeached him was transferred out of the capital."

Looking at the Empress Dowager's expression, she said, word by word, "The person who cut off the folded paper was from the Eastern Palace."

The Empress Dowager's hand clenched tightly.

Embezzling military funds, colluding with the Crown Prince, framing concubines, and disregarding human life.

Each and every one of these incidents is shocking.

She opened her eyes, her gaze icy cold.

"Prepare the sedan chair. We're going to the Qianqing Palace."

Qianqing Palace.

Emperor Qianwu was leaning against his desk reviewing memorials when he heard that the Empress Dowager had arrived, so he quickly got up to greet her.

The Empress Dowager walked in, her face looking very unpleasant.

She sat down at the imperial desk and placed the account book in her hand on the table.

"Your Majesty, take a look at this."

Emperor Qianwu picked up the account book and opened it.

The more he looked, the sullen his face became.

"Mother, this is..."

The Empress Dowager looked at him and said, word by word, "Consort Chen has been secretly colluding with the deposed Crown Prince Xie Jing for many years. She sent messages to the Eastern Palace, and Xie Jing handled matters for her in the court. Suppressing dissidents, promoting cronies, embezzling military funds—she was involved in every single one of these things."

Emperor Qianwu's hand trembled slightly.

"Mother, this..."

The Empress Dowager didn't even glance at him.

"And also. How did Consort Min die? How did Consort Rou go mad? Your Majesty, do you remember?"

Emperor Qianwu's pupils contracted slightly.

The Empress Dowager spoke slowly and deliberately: "It was Consort Chen who delivered the message that Consort Min's father was impeached. The witchcraft in Consort Rou's palace was planted by Xie Jing. One of them is dead, the other insane, yet Consort Chen remains a peaceful and secure Noble Consort in the harem. Emperor, are you aware of these things?"

Emperor Qianwu sat there, remaining silent for a long time.

He knew that Consort Chen had been very flamboyant in the palace since giving birth to Chaoyang, but for Chaoyang's sake, he never cared about it.

She gave birth to his only child, but he couldn't give her love and didn't care about anything else.

Consort Min, Consort Rou—all those years he thought they deserved their fates were actually orchestrated by her. She even colluded with the deposed crown prince.

The Empress Dowager looked at him and sighed.

"Your Majesty, I know she is Chaoyang's birth mother. But some things cannot be forgiven simply because she gave birth to Chaoyang. Colluding with the Crown Prince, embezzling military funds, framing concubines... which one of these isn't a capital offense?"

Emperor Qianwu closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

When he opened his eyes again, there was no emotion left in them.

"Someone come here."

Fuquan quickly stepped forward.

"By imperial decree, the case of Chen Yuandao's embezzlement of military funds shall be retried by the three judicial departments. Consort Chen..."

He paused, his voice lowering.

"Consort Chen is confined to Chang Le Palace and is not allowed to enter or leave without an imperial edict. She will be dealt with after all her crimes have been investigated."

Fu Quan agreed and left.

The hall fell silent.

The Empress Dowager looked at Emperor Qianwu and saw his tired face, and she felt a pang of sadness in her heart.

"Your Majesty, I know you are not happy. But some things must be settled."

Emperor Qianwu nodded.

"Your subject understands."

The Empress Dowager stood up and patted his hand.

"You should rest well. I'll head back now."

Emperor Qianwu escorted her to the door, and the Empress Dowager waved him away, telling him to go back.

Stepping out of the Qianqing Palace, a cool night breeze blew in my face.

The Empress Dowager stood under the corridor, gazing in the direction of Chang Le Palace in the distance, her expression incredibly complex.

In her youth, she was also very clear about her grudges and affections.

But what exactly changed her?

In fact, she knew everything Consort Chen had done over the years, even instructing people to make things difficult for Consort Lan in the Cold Palace.

But she always thought that since Consort Lan had done something wrong, Consort Chen needed to vent her anger...

Furthermore, out of respect for Chaoyang, she was unwilling to make things difficult for Consort Chen.

Unexpectedly, this emboldened Consort Chen to act with extraordinary audacity!

Not only did they suppress dissidents within the palace, but they also extended their reach to the imperial court!

The empress and concubines were forbidden from interfering in politics, which was a taboo subject for the emperor.

……

Weiyang Palace.

When the news arrived, Zhou Mingyi was having a meal.

After hearing the report from the wax apple, she put down her chopsticks.

"His Majesty has ordered that Lady Chen be confined to Chang Le Palace?"

"Is that all?"

Wax apples nodded.

"Yes. The Empress Dowager went to Qianqing Palace in person and brought up everything Consort Chen had done over the years. She colluded with the deposed Crown Prince, her father embezzled military funds, and there were also the affairs of Consort Min and Consort Rou... His Majesty was furious and issued an edict to confine her to her quarters."

Zhou Mingyi picked up her chopsticks again.

As expected.

She knew that if she wanted to bring down Consort Chen and her daughter, she had to start with these things.

In her past life, Princess Chaoyang forcibly abducted the top scholar in public, disregarded human life, kept male concubines, and committed countless evil deeds.

The story of this mother and daughter is certainly more complex than what is presented on the surface.

Therefore, Zhou Mingyi had already sent people to investigate these matters early on.

Once the evidence is found, preserve it and then hand it over to the right pawns so that everything is exposed little by little.

In retrospect, the results have been quite good.

Consort Chen was much bolder than she had imagined.

"understood."

The wax apple looked at her and asked cautiously, "Your Highness, are you unhappy?"

Zhou Mingyi smiled. "Happy. Why wouldn't I be happy?"

"After a while, when His Majesty discovers Princess Chaoyang's numerous crimes, and with her mother doing good deeds for her in the palace, things will definitely get even more interesting, won't they?"

She touched her belly. "Don't you think so, son?"

The little one inside her belly arched slightly.

Shi Liu, with her sharp eyes, immediately exclaimed softly.

"Your Majesty, the young prince is responding to you!"

As soon as she finished speaking, her belly twitched slightly again.

Zhou Mingyi was seized by a playful impulse.

"Your sister got into trouble. They deserved it, mother and daughter. Sweetie, you won't blame your mother, will you?"

"If you don't blame your mother, then make the offering."

The little one in my belly really did push again.

Even the wax apple couldn't help but glance at it.

Zhou Mingyi curled her lips into a smile. Taking the Qizhi Pill really makes a difference; even the fetus can become this smart.

"Your mother is increasingly looking forward to your arrival..."

As if in response, the little one in her belly nuzzled again.

……

A few days later,

Qianqing Palace.

Fu Quan knelt on the ground, holding a thick stack of files in his hands, which were trembling.

He had been kneeling here for half an hour, and His Majesty had been watching for half an hour as well.

As the files were turned page by page, the air pressure in the hall gradually decreased, becoming so low that it was hard to breathe.

Emperor Qianwu sat behind his desk, flipping through the evidence one by one.

The things Chaoyang has done over the years, one by one, are more numerous and ruthless than he ever imagined.

The more he looked, the more his hands trembled and the paler his face became.

Fuquan knelt on the ground, not daring to breathe.

The hall was eerily quiet, save for the sound of paper being turned over, one turn after another.

Three years ago, Lin Huaiyuan, a lecturer in the Hanlin Academy, submitted a memorial to the emperor advising Princess Chaoyang that she should not interfere in politics. The next day, Lin Huaiyuan was impeached for "colluding with foreign enemies" and his entire family was executed.

When he turned to this page, Emperor Qianwu's hand suddenly stopped.

Lin Huaiyuan, he remembered this person. He was learned, straightforward, and had spent more than ten years in the Hanlin Academy, remaining clean and honest.

When he died, Emperor Qianwu felt sorry for him, thinking that he had misjudged people.

It turned out that his daughter had killed him.

Emperor Qianwu closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and continued flipping through the pages.

Two years ago, Wang Chongwen, the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel, refused to send his daughter to the princess's residence as a female official. Three months later, Wang Chongwen was dismissed from his post for "embezzlement" and his whole family was exiled to Lingnan. Many of them "died of illness" on the way.

A year ago, Zhao Yuanliang, a senior official in the Ministry of Revenue, opposed the Princess's residence's encroachment on fertile land at a court assembly. The next day, Zhao Yuanliang fell from his horse and died. The coroner's autopsy stated that it was an accident.

However, a secret letter was attached to the file.

Zhao Yuanliang's horse had been tampered with.

Going further back, even earlier.

People in the outskirts of Beijing filed a lawsuit against the emperor because the princess's residence had encroached on their land. The leader of the lawsuit was beaten and his leg was broken, and his body was thrown into a mass grave outside the city.

The Jiangnan Textile Bureau sent hundreds of thousands of taels of silver to the Princess's residence every year, with the account book marked with the words "filial piety".

There's also the border region; Zhao Yannian's case is involved as well.

Zhao Yannian refused to send his son to the princess's residence and refused to hand over the mine to Chaoyang's people for mining. Chaoyang then fabricated evidence of treason and sent his whole family to the executioner's block.

Fuquan knelt on the ground, his voice trembling: "Your Majesty, these... these are all things that the Three Judicial Offices and the Embroidered Uniform Guard have uncovered over the past few months. Her Highness the Princess..."

Emperor Qianwu remained silent, turning through the files page by page, and then flipping through them again from the beginning.

When he reached the last page, he slammed the file onto his desk with a loud bang, making the teacups on the table jump.

"Good, very good!"

His voice wasn't loud, but the chill in it made Fuquan freeze.

Emperor Qianwu stood up and paced back and forth in the hall.

Chaoyang, his daughter, the daughter he cherished since she was a child.

He thought she was just willful, spoiled, and pampered.

But he didn't know how much she had done.

He murdered high-ranking officials, wiped out entire families, seized fertile land, disregarded human life, colluded with border generals, and secretly communicated with foreign courts.

Every single one of these offenses is a capital offense.

Emperor Qianwu stopped, his chest heaving violently.

"Where did she get such audacity?"

His voice suddenly rose, "I'm not dead yet! And she dares to do these things! If I die, will she turn the world upside down?"

Fuquan kowtowed repeatedly, not daring to reply.

Emperor Qianwu took a few more steps and then suddenly stopped.

He recalled Consort Chen's affair, the evidence the Empress Dowager had presented, and how Consort Chen had colluded with the deposed Crown Prince, framed other concubines, and embezzled military funds.

The mother and daughter, one in the harem, the other in the imperial court, one harming people, the other taking money.

What a lovely mother and daughter!

Emperor Qianwu is now even beginning to doubt whether this rebellious daughter is truly his bloodline.

No, the Chen family didn't have that kind of guts.

Besides, Chaoyang does look like him.

It's not just about appearance, but also personality.

"What a lovely mother and daughter!"

He slammed his fist on the imperial desk, causing the folding tablets and teacups on it to shatter and fall to the ground.

Fu Quan was so frightened that he lay prostrate on the ground, trembling all over.

Emperor Qianwu stood there, his chest heaving violently, and the veins on the back of his hands bulging out one by one.

He remembered how Chaoyang used to ride on his shoulders and giggle when she was little, how she didn't cry when she fell off her horse for the first time, and how she would peek out from behind the curtain when she went to court with him.

At that time, he felt that his daughter was like him, with an indomitable spirit in her bones.

He never expected that his enthusiasm would turn out like this.

Emperor Qianwu closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and when he opened them again, there was no emotion left in them.

"Reveal my imperial edict."

His voice was as cold as ice.

Fuquan quickly knelt down.

"Princess Chaoyang has committed heinous crimes, colluded with the outer court, seized fertile land, and framed loyal officials. Her title as princess is hereby revoked, and she is to be confined to her residence, forbidden from leaving without an imperial edict. Further action will be taken after all her crimes have been investigated."

Fu Quan's heart skipped a beat, and he quickly agreed.

Emperor Qianwu paused again.

"The three judicial departments should conduct the trial as they see fit. No one involved should be let off the hook."

Fuquan agreed again, got up, and left.

The hall returned to silence.

Emperor Qianwu stood by the window, gazing outside, his chest still heaving.

In the distance, the sun was setting, its last rays struggling on the horizon before being swallowed by the night.

He recalled those years when Consort Chen cried to him, saying that Consort Min had harmed her, and that Consort Rou had harmed her, and he believed her.

Chaoyang coaxed him, saying that Zhao Yannian was a traitor and that Lin Huaiyuan was disloyal, and he believed her.

He thought he was a wise ruler and a benevolent father.