This palace comes back in this life, only to be Nian Shilan

Chapter 119: Taking off the hairpin to wait for punishment to show filial piety

"I am dull and not very pretty, so I cannot compare to the beauty of Lady Li."

"Although Lipin is beautiful, she is really stupid and old. She is not as young and smart as her younger sister."

The Queen smiled at An Lingrong, as if she had finally caught a fish after laying bait for a long time. "I heard that on the day when my sister slept with the Emperor, she was able to sing a nursery rhyme that touched his heart. This is not a skill that everyone can have."

"I wonder what song my sister sang at that time?" This was something the queen had tried to find out for a long time but failed. She actually didn't even know the emperor's preferences thoroughly.

"I was just lucky and got a little favor from the emperor. What I sang that day was just an ordinary children's song from Jiangnan. Maybe the emperor had never heard it before and thought it was new." An Lingrong really spoke the truth. "Now, hasn't the emperor forgotten about me?"

An Lingrong's words dispelled some of the Queen's doubts.

Perhaps it was the graceful temperament of An Lingrong, who came from the south of the Yangtze River, that touched the emperor. Anyway, the emperor's favor was like flowing water, and his favor for An Lingrong did not stay for too long.

"It's okay. As long as you listen to me, I will make sure you return to your favor." The Queen's purpose was made clear. "But if you become my person, you must be loyal to me forever. Do you understand, An Chang?"

An Lingrong wiped away her tears, lowered her eyes and knelt down: "Your Majesty has been very kind to my father. I will remember your kindness and repay you with all my strength."

Seeing An Lingrong's obedient and submissive appearance, the Queen breathed a sigh of relief.

"You can go down now. Starting tomorrow, the palace musicians will teach you to sing. You were born with a good voice, so don't waste it."

"Yes, I obey your order."

"Master An, don't worry too much about him being in prison. I will arrange for someone to make his life easier."

An Lingrong: That’s not necessary.

"Thank you, Your Majesty.

Baojuan helped An Lingrong up, left Taohuawu, and returned to Fanying Pavilion.

On the way, Baojuan was still saying, "My lady, the Empress really cares about us. If I were to ask you, you might as well go to the Bitong Academy of the Wan Guiren more often in the future. Then you can see the Emperor more often, and maybe Lord An can be released from prison earlier."

"Yes, you are right. The Queen treats me very well."

An Lingrong was too impatient to deal with Baojuan any longer, so she sent her to the Ministry of Internal Affairs to get some licorice to drink. She was going to start learning to sing tomorrow, so she had to protect her voice in advance.

An Lingrong returned to Fanying Pavilion by herself, and saw Zhen Huan and Shen Meizhuang already waiting for her there.

"Bao Que said you went to see the Queen. How is Uncle An doing?"

After An Lingrong left, Zhen Huan and Shen Meiyu also heard the details of the situation. The emperor hated corruption the most, and he couldn't think of any solution for the time being. He only planned to come to Fanying Pavilion to appease An Lingrong first, and then the three of them would slowly think of a solution later. Unexpectedly, when they arrived at Fanying Pavilion, Lingrong had already gone to see the queen.

"Thank you for your concern, my two sisters. The Empress has already interceded for me, saying that the verdict on my father's case can be delayed. I just need to wait until I regain the Emperor's favor, and then slowly intercede with him."

"The Queen is so scheming! How can competing for favor be a simple matter? She is just using you." Shen Meizhuang sat down, angrily slamming the table.

"It seems that the Queen is trying to win over the concubines to compete with Concubine Hua. Now Concubine Hua looks arrogant, but anyone with a discerning eye can see that she is kind to others. The Queen has a sense of crisis." Zhen Huan's eyes fell on the two wind wheels in An Lingrong's palace. They were given by Concubine Hua and each palace had one.

"I have also inquired about it. The incident of transporting grain and grass happened during your tenure in Jeju. If you don't want to be hindered by the queen, I can write a letter to my father and ask him to be lenient with Lord An."

Shen Meizhuang hesitated again and again before saying these words, but she was really angry at the Queen's scheming. In addition, Lingrong made a lot of small clothes and shoes for her children. Such sisterhood is rare.

"Sister, please don't do this. The emperor is angry now. If Lord Shen reports it to the emperor and the emperor implicates Lord Shen, I will be so ashamed."

An Lingrong just felt that this was a chain of schemes, one link after another, and she had to do her best to prevent others from falling into it.

"Lingrong is right. The harem is not allowed to interfere in government affairs. If the emperor knows about the letter you wrote, it may cause his disgust and may even arouse suspicion of the previous dynasty's party politics." Zhen Huan also felt that it was better to stay still than to move.

"Yes, and my father really did accept bribes and did something wrong, so he deserves to be punished. As his child, I am able to be implicated, which can be regarded as repaying his kindness in giving birth to me." An Lingrong spoke quietly, without any emotion in her eyes.

They both knew that An Lingrong made embroidery and developed spice recipes to earn money to treat Madam An's eye disease. Just now, they heard that Lord An actually embezzled 100,000 taels of silver. Anyone who heard this would be chilled to the heart.

"No matter what the situation is in the palace, Sister Mei and I will be with you." Zhen Huan stepped forward and held An Lingrong's hand.

Zhen Huan is really kind, and this kindness is about equality for all beings. This time, An Lingrong's family background has really fallen into the dust, and she can no longer reach Zhen Huan in the slightest. But An Lingrong only felt bitter for a moment, and the petty comparison disappeared.

If she wanted her mother and Aunt Xiao to live a good life, her father really couldn't stay any longer. She had made this choice long ago, but she didn't expect it to happen in this way.

"The Queen thinks she has me in her control, but little does she know who is actually controlling whom." The light in An Lingrong's eyes became fierce. She really hated the feeling of being used as a toy.

The emperor doesn't do this, so why should you, Queen?

"My lady, Miss Songzhi is here." Baoque had been standing at the door guarding the three of them. When she saw Songzhi coming, she came in to pass on the message.

"Please ask her to come in." An Lingrong said.

"I didn't know that Concubine Wan and Concubine Shen were here. I pay my respects to Concubine Wan, Concubine Shen, and Concubine An." Songzhi bowed politely.

"Get up. Does Empress Hua have anything to tell Miss Songzhi?"

"My lady, the queen has already made inquiries. General Nian only requested severe punishment for Jiang Wenqing, and did not mention Lord An at all. Moreover, the memorial was delivered to the emperor's desk three days ago."

"Today, Lord Emin submitted a memorial to expose An Bihuai's corruption and also said that An Bihuai was involved in the transportation of grain and grass in the northwest. The emperor then sentenced Lord An to prison for multiple crimes."

"I understand. Please tell me, young lady, I will always trust you, and everything will be fine as usual."

An Lingrong didn't want to tell Shen and Zhen that she had previously agreed to Concubine Hua's plan to arrange for someone to cause An Bihuai to have a stroke and cause hemiplegia. Even if he was imprisoned, An Lingrong didn't want her father to have an easy life.

"My lady, the queen asked me to bring you a message."

"What?"

"Take off your hairpin and wait for punishment to show your filial piety."