Entering the palace means entering a high position; I'm His Majesty's cousin, who am I afr

The proposal was accepted.

The hall was completely silent.

Consort Hui sat in her seat, lost in thought, and remained silent for a long time.

She lowered her eyes and lowered her brows, making her expression unreadable.

Consort Lan did not urge her, but simply sipped the green tea and waited quietly.

After a long while, Consort Hui raised her head again.

Her clear, bright eyes were fixed on Consort Lan, her tone carrying a hint of warning, "I hope you keep your word and stop plotting behind my back. Otherwise, I won't hesitate to fight you to the death."

This was to prevent Consort Lan from harboring disloyal intentions, so that while overthrowing the Imperial Noble Consort, they could also eliminate her at the same time.

Consort Lan put down her teacup and smiled slightly: "Don't worry, sister. Since I've joined forces with you, I won't do anything to betray my promise. After we've accomplished our mission, this matter will remain a secret. We'll go our separate ways and each rely on our own abilities from now on."

Consort Hui stared at her for a long time, but found no trace of pretense on her face. Her tone softened slightly: "Although I have agreed to join forces with you, this matter is not so easy. She is now the apple of His Majesty's eye. Putting aside his favor, her status as a close relative makes her not so easy to deal with."

This was a reminder to Consort Lan that she should not act rashly or use ordinary methods.

Framing and framing won't work; only a fatal blow will be effective.

Consort Lan naturally understood and nodded, saying, "That's natural. We still need to plan carefully and take our time."

Yihua Palace is now like an iron barrel, completely sealed off, making it difficult to attack.

Moreover, figuring out how to kill someone with a single blow is also a challenge.

We need to plan this carefully. It's already late tonight, and the place for our meeting isn't suitable either.

Therefore, the two only sat in the side hall for a while, probed each other's backgrounds, and then parted ways.

Consort Hui left first.

After watching her leave, Consort Lan's maid, Jinshu, stepped forward with a worried expression: "Your Highness, do you think Consort Hui is truly joining forces with us?"

Consort Lan looked at the deep night outside and said in a cryptic tone, "If she wants to find a way out for her son, she will definitely agree to my proposal."

Seeing that the Imperial Noble Consort was gaining power and had become increasingly unbearable in recent years, she was being relentlessly pressured without any mercy.

Consort Hui was a smart woman, and naturally she could see the situation very clearly.

Seeing the misfortunes of others, one should reflect on the dangers one might face oneself.

Consort Hui couldn't guarantee that the Imperial Noble Consort wouldn't come after her downfall.

Her proposal to join forces is the best option for the two of them at present.

Not only would she not be suppressed by the Imperial Noble Consort, but her own son would also have the opportunity to ascend to that position.

If Consort Hui weren't stupid, she would know what to choose.

Even so, Jinshu's heart was still somewhat uneasy. "What if Consort Hui can't understand and ultimately refuses?"

Consort Lan's tone was tinged with bitterness: "Then I can only say that it is the will of Heaven, and my life ends here."

Now, her every move is under the watchful eye of the Imperial Noble Consort, and she has no power to turn the tide.

The only way out is to join forces with Consort Hui and gamble on this sliver of hope.

If it works out, great days will await her.

Even if it doesn't work out, she'll have done her best.

Consort Lan took a deep breath and calmed herself down: "Alright, let's go. If we stay any longer, the Imperial Noble Consort's people will become suspicious."

All of this was arranged by her with great care, without the Imperial Noble Consort's knowledge or information.

If they were discovered, let alone joining forces, the Imperial Noble Consort would likely be even more unwilling to tolerate it, and they would immediately face certain death.

*

The full moon hangs high in the sky, and countless stars twinkle.

Yihua Palace.

Shen Jiayu was teaching Qi Yuan to write in the small study in the west wing of the hall. She held Qi Yuan's hand and said softly, "This stroke looks better when written like this."

Qi Yuan only started school this year and has just begun learning to write. At this time, he can only write some simple large characters, and his brushstrokes are stiff and clumsy.

Every day after dinner, Shen Jiayu would set aside some time to patiently teach her.

Just like tonight.

In fact, the emperor often taught Qi Yuan, but he was probably busy with state affairs these past two days and was rarely seen.

Qi Yuan listened attentively and learned diligently, copying what Shen Jiayu had taught him. In no time, he had already written down what Shen Jiayu had taught him very well.

Seeing this, Shen Jiayu patted her little head and praised her, "You're really amazing."

Qi Yuan looked up and pursed her lips.

Although her young face didn't show much expression, you could tell she was very happy.

Shen Jiayu smiled and continued to instruct her.

The atmosphere inside the hall was warm and peaceful.

Just then, Hongling came in without announcing herself, and simply curtsied to Shen Jiayu.

Having served as master and servant for many years, Shen Jiayu could naturally see that Hongling was hesitant to speak.

She lowered her head, told Qi Yuan to write for a while, and then got up and left the side hall.

Once they reached a quiet spot under the corridor, Hongling whispered, "The Empress instructed our men to let Consort Lan go, and sure enough, Consort Lan couldn't hold back and made a move."

Shen Jiayu raised an eyebrow: "What did she do?"

Her informants had already noticed the unusual activity today and reported it to her in time.

Consort Lan was determined to die, so Shen Jiayu naturally wanted to grant her wish and deliberately gave her an opportunity, allowing the spies in Xianchun Palace to relax their vigilance.

I wonder what method Consort Lan secretly devised to deal with her?

Hongling's expression was grave as she slowly recounted the events: "Consort Lan put morning glory seeds in the jujube paste cakes that the First and Second Princes ate. This herb, when ground into powder, can cause incessant diarrhea and even death from dehydration."

Shen Jiayu hadn't expected it to be like this.

She became somewhat interested.

She turned back into the dim night, looking at Hongling: "And then?"

Hongling said, "Consort Lan took away the jujube paste cakes because they didn't look good, including the ones on the Second Prince's table. Afterwards, she and Consort Hui sat in the side hall for a while. However, the entrance to the hall was full of their people, and our people couldn't get close, so we didn't hear what they were discussing."

Shen Jiayu didn't care.

After a moment's thought, she understood Consort Lan's intention in doing all this.

She curled her lips into a smile, a meaningful glint in her eyes: "Speaking of which, Consort Lan did me a great favor."

Today's matter is simple: Consort Lan knows that she cannot escape her control on her own, so she can only seek other helpers.

After searching the entire harem, only Consort Hui possessed some skill that was worth a try.

So he orchestrated a whole scheme, sowing discord and luring Consort Hui into the trap, intending to join forces with her to deal with her.

Shen Jiayu sneered inwardly.

In truth, she had always wanted to test Consort Hui's stance, and Consort Lan's actions suited her perfectly, saving her the trouble of testing again.

However, Consort Lan oversimplified the matter.

No matter how much Consort Lan thought about it, she would never have imagined that Consort Hui was a pawn planted by the Emperor in the harem.

Shen Jiayu felt a surge of interest.

I wonder what choice Consort Hui will make?

Should one choose Consort Lan and gamble on a better future? Or, knowing the emperor's temperament, dare not disobey him?

It's truly something to look forward to.