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

Consort Lan went to Cining Palace, but on the way she overheard palace maids whispering about His Majesty and the Buddhist hall.

Consort Lan didn't hear it very clearly.

She frowned subconsciously and gave her personal maid a wink.

Prajna and Ruoci exchanged a glance. Prajna immediately stepped forward, and the two gossiping palace maids turned pale with fright and immediately bowed.

"This servant greets Consort Lan and wishes Her Majesty a long and peaceful life!"

Consort Lan remained silent for a moment, then said, "No need for formalities."

"What were you talking about just now? Your Majesty, what Buddhist hall?"

Is His Majesty in the Buddhist hall?

Consort Lan's eyes suddenly lit up.

A Buddhist hall? Isn't that in the Empress Dowager's Cining Palace?

She is about to go to Cining Palace, which means she will soon be able to see His Majesty.

Consort Lan doesn't want to die!

In addition to her childhood affection for Emperor Qianwu, even after being reborn, Consort Lan could not remain completely indifferent to Emperor Qianwu...

Upon hearing that the Empress Dowager had set up a Buddhist shrine in the palace, Consort Lan immediately thought that she should at least come and pay her respects.

The Empress Dowager set an example, hoping that the palace servants would follow suit and worship Buddha.

She can go and pray; there's no harm in it.

The two palace maids exchanged a glance, their fear not diminishing but growing even more intense and unspoken.

"This...this servant does not know."

"Yes, this servant did not know!"

Consort Lan was rebuffed, and her expression turned cold.

"His Majesty forbids palace servants from gossiping, yet I clearly heard you discussing him just now. The Buddhist hall... How dare you criticize His Majesty? What is your punishment?"

The two palace maids were already terrified, and when Consort Lan frightened them, they immediately knelt down with a "plop".

"Your Majesty, spare my life!"

"Your Majesty, spare my life!"

Apart from this sentence, there is nothing else.

Consort Lan realized that unless torture was used, she probably wouldn't be able to get any information out of her.

But she had just come out of the Cold Palace when she began to torture the palace maids; anyone who didn't know better would think she was cruel and tyrannical...

This is not what Consort Lan wanted.

She could only wave her hand and went to Cining Palace with doubts in her heart.

On the very day that the Empress Dowager first set up a Buddhist hall in Cining Palace, Consort Chen personally came to offer incense and also presented a Buddhist scripture that she claimed to have copied herself.

The other concubines were not to be outdone.

Consort Rong added incense and candles, and even specially requested a pair of Buddhist prayer beads that were said to have been used by a high-ranking monk.

The string of prayer beads hung on the golden body of the Buddha statue.

Consort Lan had nothing of value and no powerful father, so she could only come to offer incense and worship Buddha in person.

As it turned out, Consort Lan was lucky; as soon as she stepped into Cining Palace, she saw a figure in bright yellow.

Consort Lan's eyes lit up.

"His Majesty!"

She hurried forward and overheard Emperor Qianwu saying, "Consort Zhen heard that Your Majesty had set up a Buddhist shrine, so she went to pay her respects. I haven't seen her for many days, and for a moment... I couldn't contain my emotions..."

Consort Lan was startled, her mind went blank, and she subconsciously stopped in her tracks.

For some reason, she suddenly connected what the palace maid had said earlier about His Majesty and the Buddhist hall.

The more I think about it, the more terrified I become.

What...does that mean?

The Empress Dowager's face turned green with anger. "She's your concubine, and you're all in such a hurry? My Cining Palace isn't just this one side hall!"

"You did this in front of Buddha, aren't you afraid of Buddha's punishment?"

Emperor Qianwu's brows furrowed slightly, and his dark eyes stared intently at the Empress Dowager.

Her tone was remarkably calm, "Mother, have you forgotten how this Zhou family came to be?"

"In the end, it is the Empress Dowager and I who owe her."

"We met at the Buddhist temple, so what difference does it make whether it happened once or many times?"

The Empress Dowager's face turned ashen with anger. "You!"

Aunt Zhulan hurriedly tried to soothe the Empress Dowager, saying, "Your Majesty, please calm down, please calm down, don't get angry."

She turned to look at His Majesty and couldn't help but say:

"Your Majesty, don't you understand the Empress's good intentions?"

How could you bear to disobey Your Majesty like this?

Emperor Qianwu pursed his thin lips and after a long while said, "Mother, please calm down."

Upon hearing the word "Mother Consort," the Empress Dowager's expression softened considerably, and she couldn't help but recall the days when she and her son depended on each other for survival in the inner palace.

Do you know you're wrong?

The Empress Dowager finally caught her breath, her face still somewhat pale.

"That Zhou woman is shameless; she dared to seduce the Emperor in the sacred Buddhist temple. The Emperor should deal with her as soon as possible."

Emperor Qianwu shook his head.

"The matter of the Buddhist hall was my fault alone. I beg Your Majesty not to hold a grudge against Consort Zhen."

Empress Dowager: "You, you!"

"Your Majesty, the reason I arranged for you to meet Zhou Shi at Hanshan Temple was because the abbot said that the chosen one was at Hanshan Temple, and I didn't want to miss that opportunity."

"It was out of necessity!"

The Empress Dowager clutched her chest, tears streaming down her face.

"Since returning from Hanshan Temple, I have been unable to sleep at night, fearing that I may offend the Buddha."

"I think that if Buddha punishes me, he will only punish me. As long as the emperor can have an heir, I can bear any karmic consequences, no matter how great."

"But now, Zhou has been in the palace for several months, and she still hasn't been able to conceive your child."

The Empress Dowager was heartbroken, "How can we know it wasn't because we were punished by Buddha?"

"If that were all, I wouldn't be able to tolerate her. But she dared to seduce you in the Buddhist hall, not only desecrating the Buddha once again, but if word gets out, people will only say that Your Majesty is licentious and unfit to be a ruler!"

"You don't want the empire that my daughter and I worked so hard to build?"

Emperor Qianwu suddenly raised his head.

"Mother, I have no children. After I pass away, won't the throne just benefit outsiders?"

"Then why can't I be more at ease? Why can't I pamper the woman I want to pamper?"

"So what if it was before the Buddha? I carried her to the back hall; we were not before the Buddha!"

When the Empress Dowager heard Emperor Qianwu's words and saw his self-destructive behavior, she was overcome with grief.

"Enough, enough. I'm getting old. I'll leave the affairs of the inner palace to Consort Rong and Consort Zhen."

"Consort Rong is so considerate, and Consort Zhen is the apple of your eye. What else could I possibly worry about?"

Emperor Qianwu remained silent for a moment, then said, "Your subject thanks Your Majesty for your kindness!"

……

Outside the palace, Consort Lan covered her lips tightly.

Terrified, she fled Cining Palace in a panic.

However, she brought Prajna and Ruoci with her, and the two of them lagged behind, which alarmed Emperor Qianwu and the Empress Dowager.

When the Empress Dowager saw that Consort Lan had overheard these things, she closed her eyes wearily, her voice hoarse.

"I am tired. The Emperor may handle the rest of the matters himself."

Emperor Qianwu simply bowed and turned to leave Cining Palace.

After Emperor Qianwu left, the Empress Dowager said to Zhu Lan, "Tell me, did I do something wrong?"

Aunt Zhulan was silent for a moment, then said, "Your Majesty, you are also deeply concerned for your son..."

Aunt Zhulan dared not speak, Your Majesty, you have allowed His Majesty to spoil the princess.

Princess Chaoyang was merely a princess, yet she was able to maintain a private army, enjoy a fiefdom, and possess a vast territory, far exceeding the stipends of princesses throughout the history of the Great Zhou Dynasty.

Furthermore, although the Empress Dowager has lived in the palace for a long time, does she really know nothing about what Princess Chaoyang did outside the palace?

No one in the palace, especially the mother and son who were the previous champions of palace intrigue, is a fool.

Pretending not to know is tantamount to showing favoritism.

Princesses can raise private armies, enjoy fiefdoms and estates, forcibly abduct handsome men as lovers, and even set their sights on the emperor's protégés, imprisoning them in the palace and coercing them...

These are all things that no decent person would do.

In this vast capital city, who doesn't know it?

On the contrary, the matter of Consort Zhen, although somewhat absurd.

Wasn't Consort Zhen the one the Empress Dowager herself used even more despicable methods to get into His Majesty's bed?

Because of a rumor about a so-called "daughter of destiny," the reputation and body of a pure young lady were ruined, forcing her to break off her engagement and enter the palace.

This blame cannot be placed on Consort Zhen.

It is said that Consort Zhen originally had a fiancé outside the palace, the second son of the Vice Minister of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices...

However, due to the Empress Dowager's methods, she had no choice but to give up her position as the principal wife and enter the palace to become the Emperor's concubine.

What did Consort Zhen do wrong?

She's just prettier and more cunning...

Besides, how could such a thing be accomplished by Consort Zhen alone?

His Majesty himself was willing...

Aunt Zhulan felt that since the reputation was already ruined anyway, and His Majesty had no children, it would ultimately be a waste of time and effort for someone else.

As long as Consort Zhen can make His Majesty happy, why should she care about other people's criticisms?

Besides, would those people dare to say it?

Although the imperial court and the harem checked and balanced each other, in theory, the harem and the imperial court were not allowed to exchange information.

If the palace had issued a gag order, how could this matter have reached the previous dynasty?

It all depends on whether the Empress Dowager can change her mind.

But Zhu Lan dared not say these words.

The Empress Dowager had already turned her back, her hands moving rapidly through her prayer beads, chanting "Namo Amitabha Buddha" repeatedly!

……

Inside Consort Lan's palace.

Consort Lan was so shocked that she didn't know what to say.

In my previous life, there was no such thing as Consort Zhen in the palace.

In this life, when this Consort Zhen suddenly appeared, she knew she was no ordinary person.

But she never expected that Consort Zhen would come to be like this...

No wonder the palace is so tight-lipped about her background.

It turns out that the Empress Dowager believed the rumors and thought she was some kind of "daughter of destiny," so she forcibly gave her to His Majesty.

So, Consort Zhen was actually a victim?

Consort Lan became increasingly shocked and convinced that Consort Zhen was worth winning over.

She immediately turned and went to Weiyang Palace.

Midway through, I heard that His Majesty had issued an imperial edict forbidding palace servants from gossiping, and anyone who disobeyed would be beaten to death with sticks.

This imperial edict was of great importance.

Jin Meiren was beaten to death in front of everyone.

With the example of Consort Jin before them, no one in the palace dared to speak recklessly anymore.

Only Consort Rong felt a vague unease in her heart.

She secretly sent the message out, but halfway there, a tall figure intercepted it.

"Sneaking around like that, could they have stolen something from the palace?"

The little eunuch almost peed his pants in fright.

"General Shen... what brings you to the palace today?"

Shen Kuo pondered for a moment, but did not answer. "But what duties does Consort Rong have?"

The young eunuch was taken aback, but then he realized that this General Shen was General Xue's adopted son, and thus their empress's adopted brother.

We're practically family.

He immediately and secretly slipped Consort Rong's letter into Shen Kuo's sleeve.

Then, smiling, she said, "The Imperial Kitchen has made a new kind of pastry. Consort Rong thought it was delicious and, knowing that you, Madam, enjoy pastries, she specially ordered me to send it to the Xue residence."

Shen Kuo frowned.

"In that case, there's no need to trouble you, sir. Just leave it to me."

The young eunuch felt a sense of relief. "Then I'll have to trouble General Shen."

Shen Kuo nodded silently.

The young eunuch turned and left, while Shen Kuo, expressionless, turned and left the palace as if nothing had happened.

Under normal circumstances, Shen Kuo would never secretly read Xue Rong's letters to the Xue family.

But lately, he has been waking up every night from a dream, and when he thinks of that beautiful figure in his dream, he can't help but lose his composure.

Who would have thought that the indomitable General Shen Kuo would come to this?

He couldn't help but give a wry smile.

Just then, the letter fell out, bearing Xue Rong's handwriting.

Written for Xue Zhan, father...