With the application of steam engines and the improvement of ships, the Qing Dynasty has formed its own trade radiation system and become the undisputed first power in the East.

At the same time, due to the surge in trade volume between Myanmar and Vietnam, Myanmar was met with resistance from the chieftains in the southwest when it tried to collect taxes from them.

Beneath the calm surface of the sea during the prosperous Qing Dynasty, the seeds of war were quietly sprouting.

Yikun Palace

Amber was counting the money in Concubine Dun's private treasury. Although the Concubine had no children, the rewards from the concubines in other palaces and the Emperor added up to a considerable income.

Amber was always curious. Every time she left the palace, Concubine Dun would ask her to deliver some silver to a family outside the palace.

She had inquired about it and found out that it was the mother's home of Concubine Xian in the side hall. Now, only an old lady, Lady Nara, lived in the whole house, and it was in a dilapidated state.

She couldn't help but ask the queen why she sent money to her mother's family since she had always been at odds with Concubine Xian.

Concubine Dun said, let's put things one way or the other. Lady Nara had once done her a favor, so giving her some silver to buy medicine would be her way of repaying her kindness.

Amber thought that her master gave money to Aunt Rong Pei and to Concubine Xian's mother's family, and was generous to them.

He is truly the best man in the world.

During these days, Ruyi set up a small Buddhist shrine in a side hall of the Yiku Palace. She knelt before the Buddha every day, fiddling with the Buddhist beads with her hands and chanting something.

The enamel armor on her hands collided with the Buddhist beads, making a clanging sound that made it difficult for people to calm down.

Dongmei watched Concubine Xian from the side, silently taking note of what she had said and preparing to tell Concubine Dun.

Recently, Ruyi was not very happy with Han Xiangjian. Wei Yanwan was about to give birth, but Han Xiangjian seemed to be deserting and stopped attacking Wei Yanwan.

Not only that, she also found that Han Xiangjian came to her less often, and even when she came, she always stared at the red plum tree behind her.

Ruyi heard from Dongmei that Han Xiangjian's face suddenly turned green and yellow when he slept with her for twenty days this month.

The emperor seems to be obsessed with Han Xiangjian. Ruyi feels that if Han Xiangjian gives birth to a child, it will lead the emperor to do other excessive things. She must do something to stop it.

Since the restoration of the allowance for noble ladies, Ruyi has had some extra money.

She used the money to let Dongmei buy white silk that was not included in her share, so that she could continue to use it to wipe her body.

She thought that she had to keep her skin as smooth as a girl's to have a chance to take everything back.

At this time, Ruyi in front of the Buddha statue was a little dazed. What on earth was she trying to take back? She seemed to have forgotten something.

Ruyi clasped her hands together and recited the scriptures, her heart gradually calmed down.

She had originally hoped that the Queen Mother would come forward to suppress Han Xiangjian, or even if the Queen Mother could instruct her to do this.

But the Queen Mother was slow to act and even stayed at the Cining Palace to enjoy her retirement, so Ruyi became anxious.

She thought she should go to the Queen Mother and ask her to uphold justice.

Ruyi didn't dare to go to the Cining Palace. She was afraid that Rong Pei, the evil slave, would go crazy and bite people again, so she wandered around the Cining Palace garden, hoping to wait for an opportunity.

God helps those who work hard. One day, she was standing in the pavilion of the Cining Palace garden wrapped in a cloak and finally saw the empress dowager.

Ruyi was brewing a dazed smile and moving forward from a distance.

The Empress Dowager was wearing a cloak and admiring the newly sprouted forsythia in the garden. This was a gift that Longyue brought back for her during his diplomatic mission to Tsarist Russia.

Now Longyue has a career, Lingxi has a family, and she has more than a dozen grandchildren. It is time for them to enjoy their retirement.

Just when he was in a good mood, Fujia was the first to discover that Concubine Xian was ahead.

What was even more frustrating was that Xiao Rongpei was taking a rest today and did not come with us.

The Queen Mother and Fujia looked at each other, revealing a look of disdain. The Queen Mother spoke first:

"Someone, send this annoying thing back to me."

Ruyi opened her eyes wide, bowed with an aggrieved look, and looked at the eunuchs who gathered around her. She said hurriedly:

"Queen Mother, please listen to me. I want you to come forward and stabilize the situation in the harem. In the Eastern Zhou Dynasty, King You played tricks on the princes with beacons, and now the emperor has built Baoyue Tower for Concubine Rong. Concubine Rong is a beauty who brings disaster."

The Empress Dowager had heard what the Emperor had done for Concubine Rong.

In her eyes, this is a common problem for all emperors in the later years of their reign. Because they feel that they are running out of time, but are unwilling to admit their own aging, they urgently need a way to restore their energy.

The former emperor placed his emotional hopes on refining elixirs in pursuit of immortality, while the emperor, intoxicated himself with beauty, finding the stimulation of youth from fresh flesh.

Although the Queen Mother despised this practice and knew it was self-deception, she also understood that this was the nature of her adopted son. It is difficult to change one's nature.

The Queen Mother looked at Ruyi who was pinned down, and asked with a hint of ridicule:

"Why? The Emperor is going to depose the Empress for Noble Rong? Is he going to disband the harem? Or is he going to neglect state affairs? The Emperor only gave her the title of a noble lady. For half a year, he hasn't even given her a position as the head of the royal family. How can he be considered a beauty who brings disaster?"

Ruyi rolled her eyes and said, as she was about to be dragged away:

"Empress Dowager, although it has not yet come to this, it will become a serious problem in the future. Now is the time to nip it in the bud. The emperor is becoming more and more unreasonable. If Concubine Rong is gone, he will definitely regain his sanity."

The Empress Dowager was secretly shocked that Ruyi was so vicious that she actually wanted to kill Han Xiangjian.

Back then, when Yixiu wanted to cut off the favor of the concubines, she only used contraceptive soup and red musk beads.

Ruyi is really crazy.

The Queen Mother narrowed her eyes, turned around and told Fujia, "Have someone send Concubine Xian back to Yikun Palace, and tell the Imperial Hospital not to give Concubine Xian any medicine from now on."

Ruyi was dragged back to Yikun Palace. She felt cold in her heart. The Queen Mother was unwilling to listen to her.

She thought that Xiang Jian, with the young man Hanqi and her hometown Hanbu, must be thinking of leaving the cage of the palace and returning to her hometown forever.

At the very least, Xiangjian would definitely not want to give birth to the emperor's child. She said this herself.

Dongmei watched as her master's eyes gradually turned from gray to red, like a ghost that was sucking people's souls.

She took two steps back in fear and touched the few silver ingots in the left pocket of her waist, which were given to her by Concubine Dun.

She touched the several gold ingots in the right pocket of her waist. These were given to her by Concubine Jia. If she saved them a few more times, they would be enough for her to use when she left the palace.

Ruyi thought for a while and decided to help Han Xiangjian get rid of the trouble forever and fulfill Han Xiangjian's wishes.

She remembered that when she was a princess, she lived in Jingren Palace with her aunt and had found several of her aunt's medical books, which contained prescriptions that could help Han Xiangjian.

But now, the Queen Mother doesn't allow the Imperial Medical Bureau to get medicine for her. Where can she get these medicines?

Ruyi thought of someone...

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