The protagonist chased the villain, and Tiandao screamed in anger

At sunrise, the third prince You Heng, filled with joy, walked out of the Zichen Palace and went to the Xiafang Palace to thank Concubine Xiao.

Today was a pleasant surprise for You Heng. He thought that Concubine Xiao had helped him plead his case in front of the Emperor, and that the Emperor saw his filial piety, and that was why he was given the title.

Greeting the first golden rays of winter's morning sun, You Heng rushed all the way to the harem, hoping to tell Concubine Xiao the good news.

On the way, they came to the plum garden not far from Xiafang Palace. Among the pink plum flowers in the garden, You Heng saw a beautiful figure in a red cloak.

You Heng recognized this palace concubine. She was Concubine Yu from the Zhichun Palace, the Empress Yu with the smiling face like a lotus.

Although he was puzzled as to why the other party appeared at this time, You Heng did not want to have too much contact with other concubines.

When he turned around to leave, unexpectedly the beauty in the flowers turned around suddenly. When she saw him standing in the hanging flower gate, she seemed startled. After a moment, she lifted her skirt and walked out of the snow, bowing to greet him.

"His Royal Highness Prince Rui."

Her voice was gentle and her face was rosy and pink. Perhaps it was the winter wind and snow that stained the tip of Yu Concubine's nose, which was even more beautiful than the pink plum on the side.

In the past, You Heng had only seen Concubine Yu from a distance and knew how beautiful she was. But now, as he watched her up close, he was fascinated by her.

But there has never been a shortage of beauties in the palace. What You Heng cares more about is the title spoken by Yupin. He had just left the Purple Palace, and the speed at which the other party knew about it was a bit too fast...

Although his mind was torn between thoughts, You Heng did not question immediately and answered politely.

"…Hello, Madam Yu. There is heavy frost in the morning and the wind in the plum garden is cold. It is better not to stay too long."

"Thank you very much for your kindness, Your Highness. I was originally going to pay my respects to the Imperial Concubine, but when I passed by this garden, I saw the plum blossoms in full bloom, and I couldn't help but pick some more. I picked out the good-looking ones to give to Your Highness, and also to make some sachets to soothe her mind." Concubine Yu gently shook the plum branch in her hand to shake off some frost and snow, and stroked the sachet around her waist.

As they were talking, the maid beside them hurried over with a hand warmer. Seeing the third prince, she bowed hastily.

"Since you want to pay your respects, then go quickly." You Heng stepped aside to make way. He and Yupin had the same purpose, but their statuses were different, so it was inconvenient for them to go together. It would be better for him to wait until Yupin left Xiafang Palace before moving over to avoid giving people a chance to talk.

"I will take my leave first."

Concubine Yu bent her knees slightly, lowered her head and was about to leave, but she raised her eyes to glance at You Heng, then curled her lips into a faint smile, and took away the cold fragrance of a garden of cold plums.

You Heng turned sideways and watched Concubine Yu enter the Xiafang Palace. He lost his purpose for a moment and could not help but follow Concubine Yu's words and stepped into the plum garden.

The scenery is pleasant everywhere, and the fragrance of plum blossoms in winter is really beautiful.

However, the commotion coming from across the palace wall broke You Heng's rare good mood.

Following the sound, he found that it was Xiafang Palace that was causing the noise. Worried that something was wrong with Concubine Xiao, You Heng hesitated for a moment and walked over.

In Xiafang Palace, the snow had long been cleared from the road often walked by nobles, but in the small flower bed on the side, there was still some half-melted ice and snow water.

Concubine Yu was punished to kneel on the cold snowy ground, and with a pale face, she was punished by the queen.

"You are a foxy woman who has the guts to use the ylang-ylang lily to seduce His Majesty to stay overnight. Concubine Yu, you are so bold!" Imperial Concubine Xiao glanced at Concubine Yu, who was so frightened that she looked detached and otherworldly after her blood color had faded away. A trace of jealousy flashed across her phoenix eyes.

The Emperor had not been to the harem for a long time. Xiao Fuzi, who served in the imperial court, said that the Emperor had intended to come to Xiafang Palace last night, but somehow he changed his route and went to Zhichun Palace.

Ever since this vixen entered the palace, she has been taking away a lot of her favor, both openly and covertly.

It was a rare opportunity, but it was intercepted by someone in the middle. How could Concubine Xiao swallow this breath? After defeating the queen, Concubine Yu came. Concubine Xiao was very angry.

But today, this bitch dared to dress up and show off in front of her. She really doesn't know her own limits!

"Your Highness, how dare our Queen do this? Is there any misunderstanding here? Please see clearly!" The palace maid beside Concubine Yu was pleading loudly and kowtowing to ask the Royal Concubine to show mercy.

"Misunderstanding? Your Majesty stayed overnight in Zhichun Palace, and you lit this incense, right?" Concubine Xiao was wearing a sable coat to keep warm. She glanced at the senior palace maid beside her. The maid understood and took out two small grains of spices from her sleeve and threw them in front of Concubine Yu.

"Yes, but this..." The maid wanted to refute, but was stopped by Concubine Yu.

"I don't understand these things. If I have displeased the Majesty, I will accept the punishment. However, I have been a weak maid since I was a child and cannot stand the cold. I hope the Majesty will show mercy and let only I bear the punishment."

"Empress..." The little palace maid was in tears as she knelt together with Concubine Yu. The master and servant looked extremely pitiful.

"You care about the people around you. Come here, the palace maid Zhuying offended me. She will be punished with twenty strokes of the cane." Concubine Xiao hated to see these people playing tricks of deep master-servant affection in front of her. She sneered and wanted to punish the palace maid as well.

"Your Highness, you can't..." Seeing the eunuch bringing the torture instruments to punish Zhuying, Concubine Yu rushed over and helped the palace maid to take the beating.

"Mother, this..."

When the eunuch who was carrying out the execution saw that the stick was falling on Concubine Yu, his hands trembled. As he was hesitating, he heard the angry rebuke from Concubine Xiao who had retreated behind the curtain to avoid the wind.

"Beat her. If she dares to stop me, beat her too."

"How dare you! I don't know when Concubine Xiao became so intimidating!" Kicking away the eunuch who was carrying out the execution, the belated Emperor Chen picked up the fallen Concubine Yu and held her in his arms.

"Your Majesty, the Queen came to pay her respects to the Imperial Concubine today, and she broke off a plum branch and embroidered a sachet. It was all out of good intentions, but who knew that the Imperial Concubine would punish the Queen? In this cold winter, if you kneel in the ice and snow for a few hours, your legs will be crippled."

Seeing the Emperor coming, Zhuying, who was pressed on the bench, broke free and quickly knelt down, speaking very quickly, pouring out all her pain.

The emperor arrived suddenly, and Concubine Xiao didn't dare to hide in the house to avoid the wind. She lifted the curtain and leaned forward, showing great courtesy.

Although she was somewhat surprised, Concubine Xiao thought she had the upper hand over Concubine Yu, so she was not panicked. Instead, she said calmly, "Your Majesty has come at the right time. I am in charge of the harem. It is my fault if it is not well managed. But if the evil wind in the palace is allowed to prevail, it will be my fault."

"Tell me, why do you blame Concubine Yu and her servant so much?" The Emperor did not want to pay attention to the jealous tactics of the women in the palace, but he happened to come to Xiafang Palace and saw that Concubine Yu, who was so lovely last night, was frightened and turned pale, so he could not help but come and ask about it.

Seeing Concubine Xiao's confident look, Emperor Chen couldn't help but wonder what Concubine Yu could do.

"I found a forbidden aphrodisiac incense from Concubine Yu's palace. Your Majesty is very knowledgeable, I think you must recognize Yilan."

Concubine Xiao was confident of victory. She knew the Emperor and would not tolerate such a thing. However, after she finished speaking, she did not get the expected Emperor's wrath.

The Emperor had an unpredictable look on his face. He stared at Concubine Xiao for a long while and only said this one sentence.

“…Just like that?”

"Your Majesty..." Concubine Xiao looked up in confusion, only to see Emperor Chen looking at her with deep eyes, her heart suddenly trembled.