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

Chapter 27: A Fistful of Red

Concubine Hua looked at Cao Qinmo kneeling on the ground, pondered for a moment, and smiled smugly:

"In that case, you should go to Cining Palace to see the Queen Mother for me." Concubine Hua asked Songzhi to rub her temples.

"Tell her about what happened in the harem recently. Everyone in the palace knows that I promoted you. If you go, it will be me who goes. The Queen Mother will also remember me well."

"Empress." Cao Qin wanted to stop him but when she thought of the three slaps she received in Yikun Palace last time, she didn't dare to say anything.

Cao Qinmo was shocked. She never knew that Concubine Hua would have such a plan.

A few days ago, the Queen summoned Cao Qinmo to Jingren Palace and promised that if Cao Qinmo helped the Queen deal with Xia through Concubine Hua, the Queen would ask the Emperor to promote Cao Qinmo to the position of concubine and let Wen Yi return to Cao Qinmo to be raised.

Cao Qinmo pondered for many days in the palace before coming up with this idea.

For a long time, Hua Fei was willing to be her knife, and she benefited a lot from the sinister ideas she came up with.

But now, Concubine Hua hardly listens to her anymore.

"What are you still standing there for? Go quickly. I am waiting for your good news. If the Queen Mother does not severely punish Xia and reward me, I will only ask you. You will never see Wen Yi again."

Cao Qinmo's breathing became rapid. Concubine Hua threatened her with Wen Yi again. Cao Qinmo could only nod in agreement, walk out of the hall and head towards Shoukang Palace.

"Wait, Zhou Ninghai, the roads are slippery in the snow. It's inconvenient for Concubine Cao to go to Shoukang Palace alone. You should go with her. Make sure you take good care of Concubine Cao."

Concubine Hua cut off Cao Qinmo's last escape route. She originally wanted to go to Jingren Palace to ask the Queen for help.

Zhou Ninghai limped to Cao Qinmo's side and made a gesture of invitation: "Lady Cao, please come in."

The strength in Zhou Ninghai's tone was unquestionable.

Cao Qinmo felt that the road from Yiku Palace to Shoukang Palace was very short and they arrived there in a short while.

"Please come in, Lady Cao. I will be waiting for you at the door."

Zhou Ninghai did not want to enter Shoukang Palace, as his master obviously did not want to be involved in this matter.

"Empress Dowager, Concubine Cao is outside the door asking to see you."

Aunt Zhuxi walked into the hall to report to the empress dowager who was worshiping Buddha.

"Noble Lady Cao?" The Queen Mother was suspicious. Noble Lady Cao never came to Shoukang Palace alone. When she came, she came with Concubine Hua. What happened today? "Let her in."

"Your concubine pays homage to the Empress Dowager. May the Empress Dowager be blessed with good health." Concubine Cao walked into the hall and paid her respects to the Empress Dowager.

This matter is indeed difficult to handle. I, a noble lady, came to the Empress Dowager to report a dispute about a favored concubine. If the Empress Dowager severely punished Xia, I would be the one who offended the Emperor.

The Queen originally wanted to use Cao Qinmo to instigate Concubine Hua to severely punish Xia, but Cao Qinmo could not reveal that she was following the Queen's orders, so she came up with this idea.

If this could be accomplished, the Queen would kill three birds with one stone. On the one hand, she would severely punish Xia and rectify the palace rules, and on the other hand, it would not hurt the relationship between the Queen and the Emperor. At the same time, the Emperor would feel that Concubine Hua was too indulgent, and would be a little wary of the Nian family.

How could Cao Qinmo not know what the Queen was thinking? But when she thought of Wen Yi, she chose to betray Concubine Hua without hesitation.

Cao Qinmo was not worried at all that if Concubine Hua complained to the Queen Mother, the Queen Mother would reprimand the Queen.

The Queen is the niece of the current Queen Mother, and she will protect her no matter what. Cao Qinmo persuaded Concubine Hua to do something that would make the Queen Mother uncomfortable, and it was also a way for Cao Qinmo to surrender to the Queen.

But what I didn’t expect was that this time, Concubine Hua didn’t play according to common sense.

"Get up. What's the matter that brings you to my place in this snowy day?" The Queen Mother took a sip of tea and asked Cao Qinmo to get up.

Cao Qinmo weighed the matter in her heart for a while, and finally gritted her teeth and said, "I wonder if the Queen Mother knows that Concubine Xia has been favored by the Emperor recently. Since Concubine Xia went to bed with him, the sisters in the palace have never slept with him."

"Is this true?" The Queen Mother was puzzled.

"Yes. Moreover, Xia is extremely arrogant. Every time she sleeps with the emperor, she says dirty words to the sisters in the palace. It is really... not very pleasant to hear."

"I know, but why are you the one reporting this? Where is the Queen? Where is Concubine Hua?"

"The Queen's headache has not yet healed. She is still ill. I don't know much about this matter."

Cao Qinmo's thoughts gradually became clearer.

"When Concubine Hua found out about this, she was so angry that she wanted to beat Xia to death. I thought it would be better for the Queen Mother to make the decision, so I persuaded Concubine Hua to stop. Concubine Hua then asked me to come to Shoukang Palace to convey this matter on her behalf."

"I know about this. You are a loyal person. You usually follow Concubine Hua. Concubine Hua has a bad temper. Sometimes she acts impulsively. You should be there to persuade her."

The Queen Mother spoke in a gentle and kind voice, "Zhuxi, go and get the jade bracelet and pearl earrings from my makeup box."

Aunt Zhuxi brought it over quickly, and the Queen Mother took out the pearl earrings and put them on Cao Qinmo, "You are a good person. You can give this jade bracelet to Concubine Hua. It is a reward from my family for her hard work in assisting the six palaces."

"I thank the Queen Mother for the reward." Cao Qinmo was thankful for her own intelligence and left happily with the reward.

Arriving at the Yikun Palace, Cao Qinmo took out the jade bracelet given by the Queen Mother and gave it to Concubine Hua. Concubine Hua put it on, raised her fair wrist, and admired the water head of the jade bracelet in the light of the snow coming in through the window:

"If you are really my good dog, I know you will be able to please the Queen Mother. Go down and spend more time planning for me in the future. I will allow you to continue to see Wen Yi."

Seeing that Concubine Hua was deceived by her, Cao Qinmo sneered in her heart. She would endure the humiliation of Concubine Hua for the time being. When she was promoted to the position of concubine and Wen Yi returned to her side, she would make Concubine Hua pay!

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As soon as Cao Qinmo left the main hall of Shoukang Palace, the Queen Mother's face turned cold: "Zhuxi, go and find out about the recent changes in the palace, what the Queen is doing, what Concubine Hua is doing. And that Xia family, what kind of witch is she, find out everything for me."

The Empress Dowager always felt that there was something odd about this matter. Why could Concubine Hua, who had such a fiery temper, resist the urge to take credit for it?

There must be a demon in the abnormal situation.

Aunt Zhuxi is very capable. She hasn’t taken action for many years, but once she does, you can tell whether she’s capable or not.

After chatting with her old sister Fangruo for a while, she understood clearly what the Queen Mother had instructed.

In just a few words, he explained the recent situation in the palace.

The Queen Mother laughed sarcastically after hearing this.

"Your Majesty is also confused. How can someone like Xia be worthy of your favor? Give the order that Xia, who has spoken outrageously and defiled the palace, should be punished with a hundred lashes and moved to the cold palace."

"Empress Dowager, you have been worshipping Buddha for many years. Isn't a hundred feet of red blood too bloody?" Zhu Xi couldn't help but persuade her. The Empress Dowager hadn't imposed such a cruel punishment for many years.

"How can we alert those seductresses in the harem without blood? Xia has been so arrogant for so long, I wonder how many people have become so active. If we don't scare them with some blood, will the emperor still be healthy?"

"The Queen Mother is right. She is far-sighted." A dormant Queen Mother is always a sharp blade.

"In the evening, please invite the emperor over and have him have dinner with me."