An Lingrong's Rebirth: Red

Not long after the rumors about the queen spread, some people began to submit memorials, requesting the dethronement of the queen on the grounds that the empress had misbehaved.

Although the emperor reprimanded several people, he still couldn't stop the memorials from being delivered to the table like snowflakes.

All the nonsense words of greeting in the past have turned into words of concern for the emperor's harem and whether the emperor has children.

For a while, the Ulanara family was pushed to the forefront, but the Ulanara family had little power in the court, and the family relied entirely on the two women, the empress and the queen mother, to support the family.

In the previous dynasty, no one could speak up for the queen. Even if one or two people raised objections, they were drowned out by the wave of calls to depose the queen.

Even more terrifying than what was happening in the court was that rumors of the queen's misconduct began to spread among the people.

The rumor even became more and more outrageous, saying that the queen was a monster who ate children, which was why the emperor had three thousand beauties in his harem but few children.

A stupid Third Prince, an unfavored Fourth Prince, a sickly Fifth Prince, and Princess Shuhe and Princess Wenyi.

No matter which one is chosen, it doesn't look like he can inherit the throne.

The emperor has only recently ascended the throne, and I think he cannot tolerate anyone coveting the throne.

But he is now in his forties. Even if he no longer wants anyone to covet the throne, he cannot tolerate the lack of children and successors.

During this period of time, the Emperor never visited the Empress. Even when the Empress sent Jianqiu to the Yangxin Palace to invite someone, she was unable to see the Emperor.

Therefore, rumors began to spread in the harem that the queen might really be deposed by the emperor, but no one knew who would take that position.

Ling Rong did not participate in these rumors. Now that the Queen and Concubine Hua were busy dealing with this matter, she could rest assured and take care of her pregnancy. No one would interfere in Chengqian Palace anymore.

Even if the queen was deposed, it would not be An Lingrong's turn to take the throne. Standing there stupidly at this moment would only lead to her being thoroughly punished later.

The person who was most happy about this matter was Concubine Hua. She allowed these rumors to spread and had no intention of using the power of the six palaces to conduct a thorough investigation.

As for Concubine Jing, she is now just like Lingrong, peacefully staying in Xianfu Palace, recuperating from her illness.

But Hua Fei's happiness did not last for many days. As the rumor became more and more intense, the Empress Dowager summoned Hua Fei to Shoukang Palace.

The two of them didn't know what they talked about in secret, they only knew that it took two full hours.

I heard that Concubine Hua looked very bad when she left Shoukang Palace. She cried for half a day when she returned to Yikun Palace, and broke many porcelain treasures.

In the end, it was the emperor who went to visit her in person and finally managed to appease Concubine Hua.

In just one night, the number of memorials to depose the empress decreased significantly. The rumors in the harem were also stopped by the empress dowager, and no one dared to spread rumors anymore.

But even though the source has been blocked, the rumors that have already spread among the people cannot be stopped.

After having a secret talk with Concubine Hua, the Queen Mother sent Zhu Xi to invite Ling Rong to Shoukang Palace. In order to show her importance, she specially granted her a sedan chair to avoid accidentally hurting the child.

Lingrong had never been treated like this by the empress dowager before. Countless thoughts arose in her mind, and she even suspected that the empress dowager wanted to kill the mother and keep the son, and help the queen restore her reputation as a son-killer.

There was a thick smell of sandalwood burning in the Empress Dowager's Shoukang Palace. Lingrong's nose was already sensitive, and it became even more unbearable at this moment.

She covered her nose with a handkerchief and took a while to adjust herself before slowly walking into the inner hall.

"Empress Dowager, Lady An is here."

As soon as Ling Rong entered the inner hall, she saw the Queen Mother sitting at the table waiting for her. At this moment, the Queen Mother was in good spirits and did not look depressed at all.

"My concubine An pays her respects to the Empress Dowager. May the Empress Dowager be blessed with good health." Lingrong just glanced at the Empress Dowager and then squatted down obediently to pay her respects.

The Queen Mother drank her tea and waited for Lingrong to squat for a long time before she gently called her to get up.

"You are so filial. You are so polite even when you are pregnant."

Ling Rong smiled slightly. In her previous life, she seldom met the Queen Mother alone. At this moment, she didn't know how to start the conversation.

"I wanted to come to Shoukang Palace to pay my respects to the Empress Dowager a few days ago, but the snake venom made me sick, so I was unable to go."

"I'm glad you have this intention," the Queen Mother seemed unconcerned, as if she had called Lingrong over just to chat. "If you have the free time, the most important thing is to spend more time with the Emperor."

"Your Majesty is busy with matters in the past. I, a concubine, do not understand these matters. I can only accompany you a little, but I cannot relieve the Majesty's boredom."

Lingrong was helped by Zhaoshui to sit on the embroidered cushion. She kept covering her nose with a handkerchief. The smell of sandalwood made her feel a little nauseous, but she had to suppress it and not be disrespectful in front of the empress dowager.

"Some people can relieve these troubles, but they go a little too far." The Queen Mother hinted at something, but Ling Rong just played dumb and looked back at the Queen Mother with a puzzled look.

As the daughter of a county magistrate, the empress dowager did not expect her to understand these political affairs.

But before Concubine Hua went to spread the rumors about the Queen's infertility, she went to Chengqian Palace to see Noble Lady An.

Not understanding political affairs does not mean that one does not have scheming intentions. The Queen was bitten by a poisonous snake and Concubine Hua spread rumors, which are all related to the noble lady An in front of them.

The Queen Mother does not hate people with scheming intentions, but if such intentions are used on the wrong people, they must be punished.

"I'm sure Lady An is well aware of what's going on in the palace recently."

"In reply to the Empress Dowager, I have indeed heard something." The Empress Dowager did not ask any more questions, and Ling Rong did not say much either.

These things were actually done by Concubine Hua. If the Queen Mother only targeted a minor noblewoman like herself, she might lose sight of the big picture and end up harming the Queen.

The Empress Dowager did not expect that An Lingrong would not say a single word, and her answers were very irritating to the point of being asked.

"So what do you think?"

"These are just some groundless rumors. The Queen is extremely kind and the six palaces all admire her very much."

Lingrong put on an expression of respect for the Queen. She was determined to fool the Queen Mother, so no matter how the Queen Mother guided her, she would say good things about the Queen.

"If the Queen had truly submitted, how could she have been bitten by a poisonous snake and nearly lost her life?"

When mentioning that the Queen almost lost her life, the Queen Mother's tone was filled with anger, and her eyes were not as gentle as before, but rather quite sharp.

But Lingrong was not afraid at all, she looked up at the Queen Mother and said, "I don't know who used the poisonous snake to harm me and the Queen.

Although it was finally found out that it was Ding Dong, I still don’t believe it.”

"Could it be that you have found out something?" The Queen Mother seemed interested. She wanted to see how this man would explain himself and put the blame on others.

"I have been resting on the couch all day, so I don't have the energy to investigate this matter.

It was just that Ding Dong had only been in Chengqian Palace for less than half a month, and usually did easy tasks like tending to flowers and plants.

How could he harbor so much hatred and harm the concubines and the queen?"

Lingrong didn't want to discuss this matter too much with the Queen Mother. After all, the more she talked, the more mistakes she made, so it was better to change the subject as soon as possible.

"Because of these things, I have also considered the Empress Dowager's suggestion, and wondered whether I should move to Chunxi Palace." Lingrong stroked her belly, with a rare look of joy as a mother on her face.

"But the emperor is worried about the health of the empress dowager, so I don't want to bother her."

"That's a bother. The heir to the throne needs to be well taken care of. Your Chengqian Palace is like a sieve. I will naturally find a way to help you."

No one knew what the Queen Mother was planning, but Lingrong just had a hunch that something was wrong, so she brought up the fact that the Emperor had rejected the Queen Mother's "good intentions."

"The Emperor is also worried about this matter. He sent Aunt Fang Jing before, and now he has sent Fang Hua and Fang Lin. The Empress Dowager doesn't have to worry anymore."

Most of the palace maids with the surname Fang were already employed by the emperor. Now, he gave three of them to Lingrong in a row, which showed that he really wanted to save her and the baby in her belly.

If the Empress Dowager really forcibly detained her in Chunxi Palace, or even did something to kill the mother and keep the child, I'm afraid the Emperor would find out immediately.

Not only would she not be able to accomplish her goal, but she would also cause the Emperor to become estranged from her, and the little love between mother and son would become even weaker.

"It's rare for the emperor to be so concerned. I can rest assured now."

Taking advantage of this detailed discussion, Lingrong successfully rejected the Empress Dowager's "good intentions". She even left behind a scripture she had embroidered by herself to express her gratitude.

Although the Queen Mother did not like Lingrong very much, she was very fond of this exquisite embroidery. She specifically ordered Zhuxi to offer it in front of the Buddha to accumulate blessings for the royal heir in Lingrong's belly.

Half a month later, the queen's health had recovered greatly, but she still did not resume receiving respects from the public. Instead, she spent the whole day worshiping Buddha and chanting scriptures in the small Buddhist temple.

For a while, the most proud person in the palace was Concubine Hua. Apart from Zhen Huan who could compete with her for favor, it was difficult for others to see the emperor, let alone keep his heart.

One day, Lingrong finally received a reply from Shen Meiyu. The letter contained very little content, only saying that she had checked the Imperial Observatory and told Lingrong not to worry about the matter anymore.

Something big is going to happen soon in the previous dynasty, and the most urgent thing now is to take care of yourself and your children.

Lingrong didn't quite understand what this so-called big event was.

But Shen Meizhuang's family is much more powerful than his own. He might have heard the news in advance, so he only dared to give such a vague reminder.

However, Shen Meizhuang obviously overestimated herself. Not only she, but even her father could not get involved in the affairs of the previous dynasty.

Unless all this was directed at her father, there was nothing she could do except stay in Chengqian Palace obediently.

Soon, the big event that Shen Meizhuang mentioned happened - the emperor ordered Nian Xi to be adopted by Longkodo.

At this time, Nian Gengyao was still guarding the northwestern frontier. He was very busy with military affairs and had no time to return to the palace.

They could only send back one memorial after another in an urgent manner, hoping to ask the emperor to change his mind.

When Concubine Hua rushed to the Yangxin Palace to plead for mercy, she was stopped by the Emperor with a sentence: "Your beloved minister has brought disaster to his eldest son."

"Nian Xi has been in poor health since the dragon boat race. I am worried about him day and night, and I personally read the fortune for him and his son.

General Nian punished his eldest son, which led to Nian Xi's illness being incurable. I thought about it and came up with this method to break the situation."

The emperor counted the beads in his hand. He looked at Concubine Hua who was kneeling at his feet and said something particularly caring, "I am considering General Nian and Nian Xi. My beloved concubine, you will understand my painstaking efforts."

Hua Fei's tears were stopped by the word "painstakingly". She looked up with tearful eyes and said, "Your Majesty, Nian Xi was injured by Tong Jia's jade pillar, which caused his long-term illness.

Now that he is to be adopted by Longkodo, how can I rest assured?"

"I have ordered that Nian Xi be adopted by my uncle Longkodo as his son. This boy has been renamed Dezhu and has no connection with the Nian family anymore.

I cannot change my orders every day, so my beloved concubine and General Nian should keep looking forward to seeing Zhu recover his former health."

"Your Majesty! If I were to adopt him to someone else, I would have no objection, but Nian Xi was injured by Tong Jia, how can I be at ease?"

Faced with Hua Fei's crying and begging, the Emperor's expression was already somewhat uneasy. He restrained his smile and looked at Hua Fei coldly.

"You think that my will is wrong."

"No, Your Majesty." Concubine Hua hastily denied it. She hurriedly took two steps on her knees, "I am just worried... Nian Xi is not adapting well."

"Longkodo is my uncle, and Dezhu is now his son, so I will naturally take good care of him.

Longkodo was destined to have three sons, and now that Nianxi has passed away, this destiny has been fulfilled."

The emperor patiently comforted Concubine Hua with two more words, "This child has nothing to do with the Nian family. Wipe your tears and don't say anything more."

Hua Fei couldn't stop crying. She knew clearly that the Emperor was already angry at this moment. No matter how much she had in her heart, she dared not say it. She could only wipe away her tears impatiently.

What with divination and fate, Concubine Hua never believed in these things. If there really was a God, he would not have let her lose her child. Until today, she still cannot get what she wished for.

Someone must have said something to the emperor, which caused him to issue this unreasonable order.

Who would casually adopt the eldest son without even consulting his elder brother?

Is it the Queen? Or Zhen Huan? No matter who it is, this matter cannot be resolved peacefully.

The more Concubine Hua thought about it, the angrier she became. She clutched her handkerchief tightly and wiped away her tears.

"I have one more thing to ask of Your Majesty," Hua Fei cried until her voice was hoarse, and the moment she spoke, the Emperor was a little worried, "Nian Xi is my brother's son after all, I hope Your Majesty will allow my brother to visit him often."

"Of course, I did all this to help him recover, not to separate him from General Nian.

Look at the tears you shed, it makes me very worried."

The emperor sighed, stood up, handed his hand to Concubine Hua, and pulled her up from the ground.

After being comforted by the Emperor, Concubine Hua finally smiled. She held the Emperor's hands tightly and was about to say some heartfelt words when Su Peisheng came to report outside the door that Concubine Zhen wanted to see her.

Hua Fei's face turned cold almost immediately. She hated Zhen Huan the most, but the Emperor still doted on this shameless bitch, making it difficult for her to deal with her directly.

But Zhen Huan just doesn't know how to restrain herself. It's not enough for her to flirt with the emperor all day long, she also brings that little bitch Chun Changzai along with her.

"Your Majesty..." Seeing that the Emperor was about to call Zhen Huan in again, Concubine Hua couldn't help but pull the Emperor's arm and said coquettishly, "Your Majesty, you haven't had a meal with me for a long time. Can you..."