Rong Fei is not honored

Yuan Xu explained, "I was just afraid of missing some important news when I left." Meeting Ji Nai's clear eyes, Yuan Xu's voice grew softer and softer, "We're evenly matched."

【Ah. 】

"Fine, let's call it even then. I won't pursue your self-harm, and you can't curse me." Ji Nai's face was contorted with anger. She had to be ruthless to herself to break the deadlock, but Yuan Xu wasn't. Ironically, Yuan Xu did this because she was worried about her, so Ji Nai couldn't even be angry in a justifiable way.

In the end, all I could manage to say was: "It cancels out."

Yuan Xu hurriedly returned to Cining Palace under Ji Nai's angry glare and administered the antidote to the Empress Dowager.

Seeing that the Empress Dowager was showing signs of waking up, the imperial physician, who was covered in sweat, breathed a sigh of relief.

Heaven knows that even though her pulse was normal, the Empress Dowager remained unconscious, as if she were truly just asleep. He had clearly administered acupuncture, but the Empress Dowager simply wouldn't wake up.

Emperor Kangxi frowned and asked, "Why did Grandmother faint?"

"This..." The imperial physician was at a loss for words, but Su Ma La Gu, who was standing to the side, provided the answer.

"When the Empress Dowager learned of the incident involving Lady Uya, she was worried about the imperial heir, and that's why..."

Before he could finish speaking, Kangxi's face darkened.

As expected, his guess was correct; the Empress Dowager was indeed planning to pin the blame on Ji Nai. In order to thwart the conspiracy in Cining Palace, Kangxi took the lead in explaining the ins and outs of the incident.

Kangxi's tone was harsh, and even without looking at his face, one could tell that he was in a bad mood.

Sumalagu and the newly awakened Empress Dowager both fell silent.

If what the Emperor (Your Majesty) said is true, then the role played by Consort Uya is probably not entirely innocent. On the contrary, Consort Rong is the innocent victim.

Su Ma La Gu was somewhat at a loss. She didn't really want to do anything to Zhong Cui Palace, as Kangxi misunderstood. The reason she answered that way was simply to show the Empress Dowager's kindness in front of His Majesty.

At the same time, she was also afraid that something might happen to the Empress Dowager's health. The relationship between the two was tense, and Su Ma La Gu was afraid that the news of her princess's serious illness would give the Emperor other ideas, so she deliberately kept it a secret.

As a result, it backfired.

Unfortunately, since His Majesty didn't say it explicitly, they couldn't explain it to him. Most importantly, the Empress Dowager was actually capable of doing such a thing, so it's no wonder His Majesty misunderstood.

The Empress Dowager asked, "Is Your Majesty so certain that the details you found are true?"

Emperor Kangxi simply admitted, "I have people around Consort Rong."

The Empress Dowager and Su Ma La Gu suddenly realized why the Emperor trusted Consort Rong so much; it turned out that the Emperor had always had spies around her, meaning that Consort Rong's every move was under their control.

It was precisely because of this that in the Emperor's eyes, Consort Rong was always a good person, no matter how many people slandered her.

The Empress Dowager sighed, having to admit that Consort Rong was indeed a good person. Given the critical situation, Consort Rong's act of saving people was purely instinctive; there was no faking it.

"After Uya became pregnant, Naren had a fight with me first, and now this has happened. It is clear that this child is not destined to have a smooth life. Your Majesty should be prepared."

"Being mentally prepared in advance" means that this child is fraught with trouble, and if it really can't be kept, then so be it. It is also the Empress Dowager's way of implying to Kangxi that she will not interfere in the child's affairs, which is equivalent to showing goodwill.

Emperor Kangxi was surprised by the Empress Dowager's reaction and realized that he might have misunderstood.

"Then Grandmother, please rest well. I still need to go to Chengqian Palace. Neither Wuya nor the servants who carried the sedan chair would fall down for no reason. I need to go and ask them about it."

The Empress Dowager naturally knew this was just an excuse; with servants present, there was no need for the Emperor to inquire personally. She feared the other party would simply make a detour to Chengqian Palace and then head straight for Zhongcui Palace.

But the Empress Dowager couldn't say much at this point, only saying, "I am fine now, Your Majesty, please go."

After everyone left, the Empress Dowager's face immediately darkened, and she asked, "Why did I suddenly faint?"

How could an unborn great-grandson possibly cause the Empress Dowager to faint? Even if it were Naren's child, it wouldn't be enough. Her grandson, Xuan Ye, had no shortage of sons, and the Empress Dowager had no shortage of grandsons.

The imperial physician stammered and dared not speak, a reaction that made the Empress Dowager and Su Ma La Gu's hearts sink.

At first, they thought the Empress Dowager had some health problem, but because Emperor Kangxi was present, the imperial physicians couldn't say it directly.

It now appears that the situation is more serious than they thought.

Finally, under Sumalagu's coercion, the imperial physician still said in a very tactful manner: "Your Majesty's pulse appears normal."

The Empress Dowager closed her eyes, and she immediately understood what the imperial physician meant.

Her time had come.

"What nonsense are you talking about?" Sumalagu exclaimed in shock and anger.

"Su Ma, why scare him? Lifespan is determined by Heaven, how can it be changed by human effort?"

In a time when life expectancy is generally short, the Empress Dowager is considered to have lived a very long life.

The Empress Dowager waved for the imperial physician to leave, then comforted Su Ma La Gu, saying, "Su Ma, this day was bound to come sooner or later. We've all prepared ourselves for it, haven't we? Instead of dwelling on the impossible, why don't you help me think about what lies ahead?"

Of all of Xuan Ye's sons, the Empress Dowager favored and hoped for the most was Sainchahun. However, even after that initial crazy idea faded, the Empress Dowager did not give up contacting Yinti.

It wasn't out of ambition, but simply to have a backup plan.

Consort Rong is too fertile. Now she has five sons and one daughter. No matter how low she tries to keep a low profile, she will always be a thorn in the side of many people. Even the grown-up Yinreng and the Hesheli family will not sit idly by and watch this force grow stronger.

Therefore, Zhongcui Palace is in a very dangerous situation.

When the struggle for the throne intensifies, Crown Prince Yinreng and the princes in Zhongcui Palace will be the primary targets of attacks by Xuan Ye's sons.

Even if the Empress Dowager believed that the clever and resourceful Sainchahun would not do anything foolish, she could not guarantee that his mother and brothers would not implicate him.

However, Consort Hui's attitude at Yanxi Palace disappointed the Empress Dowager. Whether Empress Dowager Nara was truly afraid or did not believe in the goodwill extended by Cining Palace, the other party's reaction indicated that this backup plan had failed.

The Empress Dowager's current situation renders Naren's role meaningless; she doesn't have enough time to wait for Naren to gain favor and become pregnant, even if Naren does conceive a son this year.

However, the Empress Dowager could not gamble with Uyunna and the entire Khorchin region on whether Naren's womb would be viable.