I swept the harem by pretending to be weak

Liu Zhirou has been paying close attention to the situation in the palace. Now that she is in the Empress Dowager's palace, she doesn't have to worry about those mundane affairs, and there are no various weird concubines to cause trouble for her. She just needs to take care of her health, and naturally she can spare plenty of time to observe the situation in the palace.

Liu Zhirou knew very well that although the Cining Palace seemed very safe, it was not a place to stay for long. Eventually her battlefield would have to move to the palace. Knowing more about the situation in the palace at this time might come in handy in the future.

But even so, Liu Zhirou did not set her sights on Du Baolin, who was a low-ranking official in the palace. Although Du Baolin was pretty, she was not very smart. She could neither get the emperor's favor nor the queen mother's attention. In this huge arena, she was always in a very inconspicuous state.

However, being inconspicuous also has its advantages. Although Du Baolin did not get the honor of being a favorite concubine, she at least avoided the result of being inexplicably trapped in a dead end. As an unknown little Baolin in the palace, she had no worries about food and clothing, and no one cared about her. She was not necessarily more pitiful than Chen Fei who died tragically for no reason.

Therefore, Liu Zhirou had no idea that A'man had unknowingly hooked up with such a concubine who was not valued by most people.

Before this, Liu Zhirou had been patiently waiting for Wang Fuhai's accomplices to come and rescue him or come to investigate. For this reason, Liu Zhirou used ghosts to carefully explore the entire Cining Palace almost every night, for fear of accidentally overlooking the enemy's means.

But no one knew whether it was because the other party was too patient, or because the empress dowager's protection really worked. In short, the imagined enemy did not appear, and there was no attack in the Cining Palace.

But the situation in the palace seemed particularly unpredictable.

Liu Zhirou had already sensed the reluctance hidden under Ai Ziyi's gentle and docile appearance, but she didn't think it was such a bad thing. Whether it was hatred or love, it could give people great power, and with power she wouldn't think about it and commit suicide.

In this ancient palace, their enemies are both tangible and intangible. Tangible enemies are easier to deal with. No matter how respected their status is, they have to eat, drink, defecate and urinate. They are just ordinary mortals. As long as you are determined, you can always find flaws in them. Intangible enemies are much more difficult to deal with, including those existences that are everywhere but affect the situation in the palace, as well as those illusory but indeed hurtful mental illnesses.

But soon, Liu Zhirou discovered something very wrong. A little palace maid named Cuizhi beside Ai Ziyi was pregnant.

This was not a big deal. This little palace maid might have been recommended to the emperor by Ai Ziyi, just like Liu Zhirou recommended Biyun to become the emperor's favorite.

It is also possible that the little palace maid was unwilling to be lonely and hoped to climb higher, so she found a way to climb onto the dragon bed, which led to the following events, and she successfully became pregnant after being favored by the emperor.

This was not something to worry about. Ai Ziyi was no longer the young and naive person she was when she first entered the palace. It would be easy for her to restrict a palace maid with no foundation.

It was not until Liu Zhirou, from a ghost's perspective, officially witnessed Cuizhi's belly.

On the surface, there was nothing strange about it, but every time Liu Zhirou controlled the ghost to get close to the other party, she could always feel a chill running through her bones.

Logically speaking, ghosts are dead beings, so naturally there is no such thing as cold or hot. Even if there is such a thing, it is the ghosts that make the living feel cold to the bone, not the ghosts feel cold to the bone because of the living. This feeling does not conform to folk legends, nor does it conform to Liu Zhirou's understanding of the mysterious world.

But it just happened.

There must be a reason for her appearance, Liu Zhirou believed this. He had originally informed Ai Ziyi of this matter so that Ai Ziyi could be prepared so as not to be caught off guard.

But it was hard to tell where the information came from. After all, Ai Ziyi had never told Liu Zhirou about her so-called revenge plan. Logically speaking, Liu Zhirou, who was far away in the Cining Palace, should not even know that Cuizhi was pregnant. Moreover, Ai Ziyi was always very stubborn about such things. Even if she told her, she might not listen to her advice.

However, Liu Zhirou did not intend to sit idly by. On the one hand, she had a close personal relationship with Ai Ziyi, and on the other hand, she did not want to miss this opportunity to find out the truth.

After a little thought, Liu Zhirou came up with an idea. The ready-made topic was there, so why not use it?

Liu Zhirou strolled around her room for a few laps. Just as she showed an anxious look on her face, Tan Xiang followed closely and asked in a low voice, "How is the queen? Are you feeling unwell?"

"I'm fine, but I'm worried about my sister. My sister has been pampered at home. I don't know if she can adapt to the new life now, and whether she is disliked by the emperor." Liu Zhirou said with a melancholy face.

"Don't worry, Your Majesty. The Emperor dotes on you so much, so naturally he will love Miss Liu as well." When Tan Xiang heard Liu Zhirou say this, she hurried to comfort her.

"I want to go back to the palace to see His Majesty and my sister. The Queen Mother treats me very well, but I can't help missing you..." Liu Zhirou took the opportunity to put forward her idea. She was very nervous now. She hoped that the Queen Mother would allow it, but also hoped that she would refuse it outright.

Tan Xiang looked embarrassed. As a slave, she had no way of making a decision on such a matter. So she comforted Liu Zhirou a few words, then hurried out of the door and asked another palace maid who was serving outside to go and report the matter to the Queen Mother immediately.

After hearing about this, the Queen Mother came to see Liu Zhirou immediately, but she did not stop Liu Zhirou. Instead, she told her: "Go, do what you want to do."