The Legend of the Concubine in the Harem

"But then again, I have no position or qualifications to exonerate Concubine Xian. Perhaps when I meet her in the underworld, I can ask her what she really thinks." The Queen Lala pulled up a bitter smile.

Xie Yuzhen listened to her chattering as if she was telling her last words, and she was still unwilling to give up. However, just when she was about to continue thinking of ways to arouse the queen's desire to survive, Yun Rong came to report that the emperor had arrived.

The sky was becoming even darker now, but there was no sign of the comet that had been the focus of all the conspiracies and intrigues.

Yun Rong bowed hastily with a conflicted look on his face, saying, "His Majesty came over here and said he had an important matter to discuss with the Empress."

Xie Yuzhen, who had been quite depressed, suddenly perked up again.

The Queen's exhaustion was beyond words, but what really killed her, apart from the death of the Fifth Prince, was the unknown dispute between the Emperor and the Queen, and the false news of Concubine Ning's death deliberately spread by Concubine Wang!

In other words, the Queen had been mentally prepared for her son's death for more than a year, and the blow of this incident to her was far less than that of the two things that followed!

There is still a chance to avoid it.

There is still a chance to delay and keep her!

"I will go with Your Majesty!" Xie Yuzhen took Yunrong's seat. Yunrong was already used to it, so she automatically retreated behind her without saying much.

The Queen first looked at her helplessly, and was about to say something to this scoundrel, but suddenly her eyes fixed again, as if she remembered something, and slowly shook her head and said, "I know roughly what your Majesty wants to talk about, Concubine Zhao, you should stay away for the time being."

"Empress?!" Xie Yu's heart was really beating fast, but the Queen's sudden formal address made her realize that this matter would not turn around just by her acting coquettishly or making trouble.

So after being surprised, Xie Yuzhen lowered his head and seemed to agree to the queen's order reluctantly, but in fact, as soon as the queen left, he secretly followed her.

The palace maids in the side hall couldn't stop her. She said that the Queen only asked her to take shelter temporarily, but didn't say where she wanted to go. She also said that the smell of medicine here was too strong and made her chest tightness and dizziness, so she had to find another place to cool down.

After leaving the side hall, Xie Yuzhen followed the queen openly. The queen looked back at her and helplessly ordered Yunrong to take Xie Yuzhen with him, but she was not allowed to go to the main hall of the main hall. Instead, she asked Yunrong to take her to a small compartment on the side of the main hall for shelter. She also passed another order through Yunrong, telling Xie Yuzhen not to act impulsively no matter what she heard.

After getting permission, Xie Wei really felt a little better.

She was in no mood to see the emperor, so she obediently followed Yun Rong to the compartment and put her ear against the wall.

This small compartment is specially used to accommodate concubines. During the previous emperor's reign, the number of concubines was several times that of now. There would always be people who fainted or fell ill when paying their respects, so Empress Dowager Hu had this small compartment specially built so that these concubines would have a place to rest temporarily when they fainted.

The partitions are small, but the main hall is very large.

Xie Yuzhen pressed her whole body against the wall, and it was still difficult to hear the voices of the emperor and the empress inside. So, under Yun Rong's worried gaze, she quietly opened the small door between the main hall and the compartment, and looked inside. She was surprised to find a screen standing there.

She patiently pushed the small door open inch by inch silently, then took off her shoes and crawled out from the small gap in the door in a strange posture. If someone happened to see this scene, they would probably faint from fright on the spot.

Barefoot, he walked behind the screen.

The voices of the Emperor and Empress were finally clear.

"...After reading this memorial, Queen, what do you think I should do to give my subjects a reasonable explanation?"

Xie Yuzhen heard the queen say indifferently: "The Meng clan members were detained, beheaded, and the slaves they kept were made official slaves, exiled, or sold. Those who helped their masters to do evil were also beheaded..."

"Why do you mention Meng?"

"Your Majesty, you may not know that before Concubine Meng died, she sought me out to talk. She said that she knew what I had done and threatened me with that incident to protect the incense of the Meng family, but I did not agree."

The emperor's voice sounded after a while: "Why didn't you tell me about this?"

"There are definitely more people than just Meng who have speculated on the inside story of what happened back then, or even know everything," the queen said calmly, "but there is no evidence, it is just another chapter in the unofficial history. Why should I be afraid of this threat?"

"But you are the queen, my wife, and a member of the royal family!" The emperor gradually raised his voice. "If this matter spreads in the world for even one day, it will damage the reputation of the royal family!"

"If the Queen Mother and the ladies in the inner chambers take the lead in violating human ethics and etiquette, how can the royal family continue to be a role model for the people of the world?"

Xie Yuzhen heard the emperor start to walk back and forth with big strides, and the accessories on his body were clattering.

The queen was still calm and said, "If you want to convict me, show me the evidence first."

"How does the Queen know that they can't produce evidence?"

The Queen's voice also became louder: "Could it be that when Your Majesty was handling the final steps, there was a mistake, and an outsider touched the pot of poisoned wine?"

The emperor paused for a moment. He was silent for a long time before he said, "It was Concubine Ning who poisoned the late emperor. You just took pity on her because she had just lost her child and her husband's and father's families were involved in a conspiracy case. That's why you made a mistake and concealed it for her... Queen, you have always been soft-hearted. No one can blame you."

"But Concubine Ning..."

"You shouldn't blame her!" The Queen's voice suddenly became excited, "Your Majesty! You know in your heart who prepared the pot of poisoned wine, and you also know how innocent Concubine Ning is!"

"How can the murder of the late emperor be innocent?!" The emperor was really angry after hearing this, and Xie Yu's heart tightened.

But the Queen's next words completely distracted her: "Your Majesty should have personally served that pot of poisoned wine to your father, how come it ended up being used as evidence of Concubine Ning's guilt?!"

"Yes, you are the emperor, your reputation cannot be tarnished, and you must have obtained the throne legitimately, otherwise you will not be able to suppress the ambitions of the princes of the royal family, let alone convince the officials!" The queen coughed twice, "Then you can just make the whole truth public!"

"The late emperor did not die of poison. Even if we dig out his coffin and call in a coroner to perform an autopsy, what will happen?"

"How outrageous!" the emperor shouted.

The Queen spoke even louder and faster than he did: "After the death of the late Emperor, I haven't been so presumptuous for a long time!"

"Why did the princess die?"

"Why did Concubine Ning lose her child!"

"What on earth caused the late emperor to die so suddenly?"

"Your Majesty, all of these are the evil consequences of the sins committed by the late emperor. You have a clean hand and do not need to bear the infamy of patricide. Why can't you clear Ning Fei's name for once? The late emperor was unkind and unmerciful. His face must be paid with my life! I hope you can clear Ning Fei's name!"