Youthful Glory

Consort Lan's actions were clearly unexpected by everyone, even Consort Shu was momentarily stunned.

Consort Lan... how could she? She was inherently aloof, disdaining to curry favor or act against her conscience. Yet now she actually...

In the room, only the naive Concubine Rou failed to grasp the situation. She knelt forward and said, "Your Majesty, these items were found in Lanwu Palace. You mustn't just believe Consort Lan's one-sided account—"

"Silence!" Emperor Chengkang ground out through clenched teeth.

Concubine Rou trembled in fright, hastily swallowing her words and instinctively glancing at Consort Shu.

But Consort Shu didn't look back.

Idiot.

If even she had naturally assumed Consort Lan was too proud to stoop to flattery or deceit, what must the Emperor think?

In this palace, favor had always been a matter of the Emperor's heart—and so was trust.

Having gone to such lengths today, even if evidence of moonpowder was found in her palace, even if Consort Lan admitted to harming the imperial heir herself, the Emperor would only believe she was madly in love with him, unable to bear other women bearing his children. A light punishment would suffice to settle the matter.

Today's scheme had underestimated the opponent.

At this moment, Emperor Chengkang ordered, "Escort Consort Shu back to her palace. Having suffered a miscarriage, she is overwhelmed with grief and should not remain here. With Us present, We shall get to the bottom of this!"

Consort Lan's heartfelt confession had already won the Emperor's complete trust. Trying to pin this on her now would only backfire. The two most crucial objectives had been achieved anyway—let that fool shoulder the remaining blame.

Thinking this, Consort Shu cooperatively assumed an expression of devastating grief, allowing her maids to help her up.

But as she reached the doorway, Jiang Xu suddenly spoke: "Your Highness, please stay."

Consort Shu paused. Emperor Chengkang also frowned at him.

"Imperial Physician Feng will arrive shortly."

"Why did you summon him?" the Emperor asked.

Before Jiang Xu could respond, Imperial Physician Feng hurried in with his medical case: "This humble official greets Your Majesty."

"Rise."

The physician stood respectfully, then nodded at Jiang Xu in greeting.

Jiang Xu glanced at him. "Examine Consort Shu. Determine if she indeed miscarried."

At these words, Consort Shu's face changed. "Lord Dingbei, what is the meaning of this!"

Her mind reeled—how could Prince Dingbei know? Impossible. Absolutely impossible.

Jiang Xu couldn't be bothered to look at her, merely instructing coolly, "Proceed with the examination."

Panicked, Consort Shu fell to her knees with a thud, her eyes instantly reddening. The next moment, she was sobbing uncontrollably: "Your Majesty, this concubine spoke rashly earlier, but it was only due to the shock of losing our child! Though Lord Dingbei holds high rank and Your Majesty's favor, how can he be so overbearing as to humiliate me before you like this! Having lost the child in my womb today, I no longer wish to live. If I must endure such disgrace, I'd rather dash my brains out here!"

"..."

What disgraceful scenes during the Lantern Festival! This Jiang Qizhi—always stirring up trouble!

But Consort Shu was no Consort Lan. Though the Emperor inwardly complained, his trust in her fell far short of that in Jiang Xu.

He knew Jiang Qizhi wouldn't act without reason. No matter how Consort Shu wept and played the victim, he merely said sternly, "Since the physician is here, it won't hurt to be examined before you leave."Shufei's eyes widened as she kept retreating. However, since Emperor Chengkang had already spoken, palace maids promptly pressed her back onto the bed, allowing Imperial Physician Feng to take her pulse.

After a long while, Imperial Physician Feng stood up and cautiously said, "Shufei does indeed show signs of miscarriage."

Ming Tan was momentarily stunned.

But then Imperial Physician Feng continued, "However, these signs of miscarriage in Shufei are false symptoms induced by medication, not an actual miscarriage." He paused. "After carefully examining Shufei's pulse, I can confirm that... she was never pregnant to begin with."

Everyone in the room except Ming Tan and Jiang Xu was shocked.

"What did you say? Shufei was never pregnant?" Emperor Chengkang asked in disbelief.

Imperial Physician Feng nodded. "Shufei's pulse shows no indication of pregnancy whatsoever. Moreover, today's pulse readings could easily be misdiagnosed as a miscarriage. After thorough examination, I am certain this was caused by medication. If Your Majesty doubts this, you may summon the Chief Physician for another diagnosis."

With Imperial Physician Feng's words reaching this point, Shufei's face drained of color, and all traces of her earlier grief and indignation vanished. Emperor Chengkang now understood everything.

Jiang Xu then smoothly took over from Imperial Physician Feng, speaking dispassionately, "On the day Shen Yu submitted the Lingzhou account books and bribery records to the palace, the cleaning eunuch Shuanglu from the Hall of Diligent Governance switched shifts with another eunuch and secretly went to Qiyun Palace."

The mistress of Qiyun Palace was none other than Shufei.

Hearing this, Emperor Chengkang slowly pieced it all together.

So all of this had been orchestrated by Shufei?

She had preemptively struck before he could act, using their years of companionship and the supposed imperial heir in her womb as bargaining chips to protect her father and brother.

But a fake pregnancy could only be concealed temporarily, not indefinitely. As time passed, her belly would fail to show, and the deception would inevitably unravel.

Thus, she had sought to use Princess Consort Dingbei's hand to "miscarry" naturally, while also harming Jia Guiren's unborn child, then pinning everything on Lanfei. Additionally, by implicating Princess Consort Dingbei and exploiting Lanfei's affections, she aimed to sow discord between him and Jiang Qizhi.

She had likely also calculated that, given Jiang Qizhi's immense power, even if the Emperor grew suspicious of him, he wouldn't immediately turn against him—thus ensuring Princess Consort Dingbei would go unpunished.

If Princess Consort Dingbei couldn't be punished, then compensation would have to be given to Shufei as the "victim." Her father and brother would remain protected, and she might even be promoted as a result—

Emperor Chengkang's face darkened with fury as he gritted out through clenched teeth, "You venomous woman!"

Shufei sat on the bed, her strength drained, tears streaming down her face. She wiped them away forcefully, her expression eerily calm.

She was an intelligent woman who never engaged in futile struggles. With matters having reached this point, further excuses were useless. Prince Dingbei had clearly come prepared—the imperial physician, the eunuchs... every shred of evidence she had thought concealed was now undoubtedly in his grasp.

As if struck by a sudden thought, she let out a soft laugh. "Yes, I am a venomous woman."

She turned her head, her gaze lingering on Roupin, Ming Tan, and Lanfei one by one before lifting slightly to meet the Emperor's furious glare.

"But in this palace, who was ever a venomous woman from the start? Everything that has come to pass—was it not all bestowed upon us by Your Majesty?"

Tilting her head back, tears streamed down her nose. Even as she wept, the corners of her lips curled upward.

"Lanfei knew you since childhood, but I too entered the Eastern Palace at sixteen. My family background was humble—when I first arrived, I was merely a lowly Liangyuan, naive and ignorant of everything.""After making a fool of myself while paying respects to the Empress at the palace, I was too ashamed to leave my quarters upon returning to the Eastern Palace. Yet you personally came to comfort me, saying you chose me for my innocence and kindness. Do you still remember that, Your Majesty?

"At the time, I believed your words were genuine. But later I realized—you could favor my innocence and kindness just as easily as you could admire other women for their grace, their talent in song and dance, their gentle charm, their radiant beauty... Your favors are far too numerous! So numerous that neither the Eastern Palace nor this imperial harem can contain them all!

"Time and again, I hoped and yearned, only to be disappointed in the end. Eventually, I understood that of all the qualities you claim to admire, innocence and kindness are the most worthless.

"Had I remained innocent and kind for ten years unchanged, my bones would have long turned to dust. How could I still stand before you now to tell you how cheap your affections truly are?"

As she spoke, she raised her eyes to meet his, her lips curling into a cold, mocking smile.

Emperor Chengkang trembled with rage, his face contorted beyond speech.

But Shufei, now fearless, continued as if to herself: "Sometimes I envy Princess Consort Dingbei and Princess Consort Yu—blessed with noble families and spared a lifetime wasted within these palace walls.

"The flowers of the palace, no matter how rare or exquisite, are either pruned into submission, left unseen, or trampled into mud. In the end, none meet a good fate."

Her words fell like stones, plunging the chamber into deathly silence.

"Your Majesty! Jia Guiren is in difficult labor—she's hemorrhaging!"

At that moment, a frantic voice broke in from outside.

Upon hearing this, Emperor Chengkang turned immediately toward Jia Guiren's chambers. Pausing at the doorway, he commanded: "Keep this venomous woman under close guard!"

Behind him, Shufei smiled with bitter understanding, her gaze drifting slowly until it settled on Lanfei. "I underestimated you," she said abruptly. "All my efforts have only sewn a bridal gown for you to wear."

Her scheme had never been to harm Jia Guiren's pregnancy—at seven months, the child was already formed. If Jia Guiren were to die in childbirth now, the newborn prince or princess would need a foster mother. And who in the harem would be more suitable than a high-ranking consort like herself, who had lost her own royal child and could no longer conceive?

Another royal child in her care would bring the title of Noble Consort within reach. A prince would be even better—with Jia Guiren hailing from the Du family of Longxi, securing their support to elevate the prince would be effortless, thereby strengthening her own father and brothers' position.

Such a brilliant stratagem, yet it had unwittingly fallen into Lanfei's lap. The irony was almost laughable.

Lanfei rose, meeting her gaze calmly without a word.

By the hour of Hai (9-11 PM), Jia Guiren had given birth to a prince but remained unconscious from severe blood loss. The imperial physicians declared the hemorrhage had damaged her beyond recovery—even if she awoke, she wouldn't last long.

After a long silence, Emperor Chengkang issued an edict promoting Jia Guiren two ranks to Jia Pin.

Shufei was confined under heavy guard in Qiyun Palace awaiting punishment, while Rong Pin was sent to the Cold Palace without a chance to defend herself.

Above them, the full moon of the fifteenth day hung bright and cold over the palace. Fireworks were likely illuminating both banks of the Xianjiang River in a night-long spectacle of "fish and dragon dances," but within these deep palace walls, only desolate silence reigned.Stepping out of Ruyan Pavilion, Ming Tan stood on the steps and softly said, "Thank you."

Lanfei stood beside her, her voice faint and distant. "No need. I was merely... speaking the truth."

She could never admit her affection for Jiang Qizhi—not in the past, not now, not ever, to anyone.

She couldn’t afford the arrogance of a momentary lapse in judgment. That single misstep could ruin her, her family, and perhaps even Jiang Qizhi. The price was too heavy; she couldn’t bear it.

In the end, she was just an ordinary person after all.

Shufei thought she had won, but only Lanfei knew how agonizing it was to feign devotion to another man in front of the one she truly loved. Even more tragic was the fact that she would endure this torment for the rest of her life.

Perhaps, with time, she would grow accustomed to the pain. After all, they were never meant for each other—

The palace gates had already been locked for the night, ensuring they would stay within the palace.

Ming Tan and Jiang Xu walked slowly toward the temporary resting place, Huayin Tower. Along the way, she asked about many things she hadn’t known before—such as the connection between the bribery ledger and Shufei, or when he had discovered the irregularities in Shufei’s pregnancy.

When she learned that the eunuch from the Hall of Diligent Governance had been exposed by Empress Zhang, Ming Tan was stunned once more.

The Empress? The Empress had a hand in this too?

If that was the case, then the Empress must have known about Shufei’s fake pregnancy all along. Yet, she had remained completely uninvolved from start to finish. Even when the truth came to light tonight, she had stayed in Jia Guiren’s chambers...

At this realization, Ming Tan suddenly understood—

This was the Empress’s brilliance. As the Empress, the model of virtue for the realm, she often needed to do nothing at all. Merely distancing herself from conflicts and avoiding moments that might embarrass the Emperor ensured she remained the universally praised, benevolent Empress—flawless, beyond reproach.

Yet, after hearing Shufei’s words tonight, Ming Tan felt an inexplicable pang of emotion and curiosity. Had the ever-impeccable Empress ever experienced the stirrings of youthful love?

Unfortunately, she would never know. And even if the Empress had once felt such emotions, they were surely long gone by now.

Gazing at the cold moonlight, Ming Tan couldn’t help but murmur, "When you think about it, the Emperor has let down so many women."

"Mutual consent is not betrayal," Jiang Xu replied, unmoved and even attempting to correct her. "The imperial harem is a balance of power and exchange among noble families. If they were unwilling, the Emperor wouldn’t force them to enter. In this world, gains come with losses. To demand both family glory and the Emperor’s undivided affection—even storybooks wouldn’t dare write such a tale. The day they entered the palace, they should have known that the ruler of a nation cannot afford to indulge in romance all day."

Ming Tan fell silent. She understood the logic, but she still couldn’t resist muttering, "Storybooks do dare. I’ve read several like that."

"..."

"The ones you read must be quite unique—bold enough to write anything. Weren’t there even some that dared to mention seven rounds of water in one night?"

"...?"

Ming Tan’s eyes widened in shock, suddenly flustered!