I swept the harem by pretending to be weak

Liu Zhirou had countless doubts in her heart, but in the end no one could answer them for her. She was anxious and her steps quickened.

It wasn't long before we arrived at the lake.

Although Concubine De had made careful arrangements, they were obviously useless. The emperor had been rescued, but he seemed to be injured. He was lying on the ground, holding his waist and groaning in pain.

The imperial physician has already arrived and is providing basic treatment to the emperor.

Ai Ziyi was slumped on the other side. She didn't seem to have suffered any serious injuries, but her body was wet. The maid behind her had put a coat on her, but she was still shivering from the cold.

The virtuous concubine knelt on the other side, crying bitterly.

"What's going on?" The Queen Mother asked someone to capture a eunuch and ask.

"Reporting to the Empress Dowager, it was the servants responsible for maintaining the bridge who did not do their best and almost harmed the Emperor and Concubine Lan." The eunuch was caught, and although he was a little surprised, he was not particularly panicked. He saluted respectfully and then explained the matter in the shortest words.

"The Queen has been too lazy recently. I haven't bothered with her for the sake of the eldest princess, but she has been getting worse and worse. Now she can't even handle such a small matter!" The Queen Mother looked very dissatisfied, but in this situation, no one dared to talk to her. No matter whether they offended the Queen Mother or the Queen, they would not have a good ending.

"How is the Emperor now?" After the Empress Dowager briefly vented her anger, she immediately shifted her attention to the Emperor.

"Your Majesty, the Emperor hit his waist on a rock at the bottom of the river when he fell. He may have been injured, but his bones were not broken." The imperial physician had finished emergency treatment of the Emperor's injuries and had time to turn around and answer the Empress Dowager's questions.

"Where is Concubine Lan? How is the royal heir in Concubine Lan's belly?" Upon hearing the news that the Emperor was fine, the Queen Mother was relieved and concerned about her possible grandson.

Lan Meiren and her unborn child were of course very important, but their importance was far less than that of the emperor. The queen mother was very clear about this.

As long as the emperor was still alive, even if Lady Lan lost her child, there would be another concubine who could get pregnant. But if the emperor died, then everything would be over.

Prince Huai and Prince Rui would never forget what she had done to Concubine Lu. When this wolf cub ascends the throne, she will definitely be one of the people to be liquidated, even if she is the queen mother.

"Lady Lan is usually in good health, and she reacted promptly, so she didn't suffer any injuries. She was just frightened. I will prescribe two doses of pregnancy-protecting medicine for her later." The imperial physician's reply was quite in line with the empress dowager's wishes.

Although there were some minor problems, overall it was a safe bet.

At this time, the emperor's mood seemed to have stabilized a little, and the imperial doctors were ready to move him indoors for treatment, but he stopped the doctors and asked his personal eunuch Lu Jin to invite the empress dowager over.

"Mother, do you think that Nannan hates me so much that she won't even give me a thought?" At this moment, the emperor looked lonely and melancholy, as if he was not the supreme ruler of the world with three thousand beauties, but a simple man who had lost his wife.

"Your Majesty, that was a necessary sacrifice." The Queen Mother deliberately emphasized the word 'necessary', creating a sense of helplessness and desolation.

There was a moment of silence between the two, and finally the Queen Mother could no longer bear the pressure and spoke again.

"Let's fill up the lake and demolish the bridge tomorrow. What's the point of keeping these things that hurt His Majesty?"

At this moment, the emperor woke up as if from a dream and immediately spoke out to stop it.

"No, no, don't demolish the bridge, just fill up the lake."

This is really an absurd order. Isn't the purpose of a bridge to allow people to cross the water smoothly? If there is no water underneath, what is the point of building a bridge?

What's even more ridiculous is that the emperor did not allow any skilled craftsman to repair the dilapidated and unrecognizable bridge, leaving it to remain as it was.

Liu Zhirou and other concubines were not qualified to listen to the conversation between the emperor and the empress dowager. They didn't even know what the emperor's current condition was or how seriously injured he was. The only news they knew was that the emperor was not dead.

They could only stand not far away, waiting anxiously.

At this time, the queen also hurried over.

"I am late. Please forgive me, Your Majesty." The queen apologized immediately after she arrived.

Such an incident breaking out in the harem would definitely have a certain impact on her reputation, but what was more important was the emperor's impression of her.

If the emperor felt that she was not capable of ruling the harem, he would order the concubines in the harem to assist her. By that time, without her husband's favor and having lost the power in her hands, she would really become a decoration.

But the queen actually felt very aggrieved. Who knew what had happened to the emperor today that he had to personally build the wooden bridge that he had built with his own hands.

Moreover, it was the emperor himself who ordered that no one was allowed to touch the wooden bridge. It was exposed to wind and rain for so many years, so it was surprising that it did not collapse.

But how could the emperor be wrong? If this happened, the responsibility must be on her head.

However, the emperor was very open-minded. He did not blame the queen for this matter. He just said that he was fine and asked her to go back and take care of the eldest princess.

But things have come to this point, how could the queen withdraw halfway? She must stay here and continue to take care of the injured emperor.

"Concubine Lan has been frightened. From now on, you should stay in Weiyang Palace to wait for the birth of your child. Don't go out casually. Concubine Xian, please take good care of Concubine Lan." It seemed that the emperor only remembered at this moment that there was a concubine who was pregnant with his child and fell off the bridge with him.

The emperor issued this order very coldly, without any reward or consolation. On the surface, it seemed to be for Ai Ziyi's good, but in fact it was almost no different from house arrest.

Upon hearing the news, Ai Ziyi immediately looked up at the emperor in disbelief.

Ai Ziyi thought about how hard she had worked to give birth to a child for the emperor, and how frightened she was by this incident. However, in the emperor's mind, it seemed that she was not as good as a shabby wooden bridge. She couldn't help feeling completely hopeless.

The emperor always gave her a little hope when she was extremely disappointed, and then ruthlessly extinguished her hope when she felt there was still hope. What had she done wrong?