The Legend of Zhen Huan: Rebirth of An Lingrong: Counterattack to Become the Queen Mother

Zhen Huan bowed slightly and said softly, "Your Majesty, please calm down. Lingrong and I will fully assist you and will not let the person who poisoned you go unpunished."

An Lingrong also quickly echoed: "Your Majesty, Huan'er is absolutely right. Such evil deeds must not be tolerated."

The Emperor looked at them, his expression softening slightly. "Hanhuan, Lingrong, I trust you. There are so many people at this palace banquet. Do you have any idea where to begin?"

Zhen Huan thought for a moment and said, "Your Majesty, I think we should start with the food and the people who come into contact with it, to see if anyone looks panicked or behaves suspiciously."

An Lingrong nodded: "Your Majesty, Huan'er's plan is very good. I can also investigate the spices to see if there are any unusual spices mixed in."

The emperor nodded and said, "In that case, you should investigate immediately."

Zhen Huan and An Lingrong took their leave. As soon as they left the Emperor's palace, Concubine Chun came running over, her face full of worry: "Sister Huanhuan, Sister Lingrong, I heard someone poisoned the palace banquet. What should we do?"

Zhen Huan comforted her, "Don't be afraid, Chun'er. The sisters are investigating and will ensure peace in the harem."

An Lingrong also said, "Chun Changzai, please return to your own palace and don't run around, lest you fall into danger."

Chun Changzai nodded obediently: "Then Chun'er will listen to your sisters, and you sisters should also be more careful."

Zhen Huan and An Lingrong arrived at the palace banquet venue. Zhen Huan asked the eunuch in charge of the banquet's food, "From the purchase of ingredients to the preparation and serving of the food at today's palace banquet, have there been any unusual people or events?"

The eunuch knelt down quickly and said, "Your Majesty, we are all acting according to routine and have noticed nothing wrong. It's just...it's just that today a maid brought a plate of special snacks, saying that it was ordered by a certain lady and that she wanted to give it to the emperor to try."

An Lingrong narrowed her eyes. "Who is that little palace maid? Which young lady is behind her?"

The eunuch trembled with fear: "That young maid looks unfamiliar, and I don't know which young lady she is. The snacks look exquisite, and we dare not act on our own, so we presented them."

Zhen Huan and An Lingrong exchanged a glance, and Zhen Huan said, "It seems this little maid is quite suspicious. We must find her."

An Lingrong said, "Huan'er, I think there must be a mastermind behind this. This little maid may just be being used."

Zhen Huan said, "No matter what, let's find this little maid first."

As the two were talking, Bao Que came to report, "Your Majesty, I heard that the last place the little palace maid was seen was in a remote corner of the Imperial Garden."

Zhen Huan took An Lingrong's hand and said, "Let's go to the Imperial Garden."

When they arrived at the Imperial Garden, they found the young maid lying on the ground, dead. Zhen Huan frowned, "It seems someone killed her to silence her."

An Lingrong squatted down to examine it and suddenly smelled a faint fragrance: "Huan'er, this fragrance is somewhat familiar, like a rare spice that only a few people have."

Zhen Huan asked doubtfully, "Lingrong, do you know who this person is?"

An Lingrong pondered for a moment. "I once smelled a similar fragrance in Concubine Xiang's palace, but Concubine Xiang had already been dealt with. Could it be her remnants?"

Zhen Huan said, "No matter who it is, we can't let go of any clues. Let's go to Xiangpin's palace and check again."

Arriving at Concubine Xiang's palace, it was deserted. Zhen Huan looked around while An Lingrong was rummaging through Concubine Xiang's dressing table. Suddenly, An Lingrong found a secret compartment. She opened it and found a letter inside.

An Lingrong unfolded the letter, her expression changing. "Huan'er, look! This letter says that if the poisoning at the palace banquet is exposed, they will blame it all on a little palace maid. And the mastermind behind this is actually... Concubine Li!"

Zhen Huan was shocked and asked, "Noble Lady Li? Why would she do this?"

An Lingrong said, "The letter doesn't say why, but we can take it and question her."

The two arrived at Concubine Li's palace. Concubine Li felt a little uneasy when she saw them coming, but she still pretended to be calm: "Empress Zhen Huan, Empress An Lingrong, how come you have time to come to me today?"

Zhen Huan took out the letter and said coldly, "Lady Li, do you recognize this letter?"

When Concubine Li saw the letter, her face turned pale. "This...someone is framing me! I never did this!"

An Lingrong said, "Lady Li, even now, you're still trying to make excuses. This letter was found in Concubine Xiang's palace."

Concubine Li slumped to her knees, "Your Majesty, I know I was wrong. I was jealous of the Emperor's favor towards you, so I was confused for a moment and wanted to create chaos at the palace banquet to make you fall from favor."

Zhen Huan said angrily, "You are such a vicious person! For your own selfish desires, you actually poisoned the palace banquet and nearly harmed the Emperor."

An Lingrong said, "Huan'er, let's take her to see the Emperor and let him make the decision."

Zhen Huan nodded: "Okay."

Concubine Li was brought before the Emperor. Upon learning the truth, the Emperor was furious: "Concubine Li, you have committed such a heinous crime. I will never forgive you. From this day forward, you will be banished to the cold palace, and your family will also be punished."

Zhen Huan and An Lingrong successfully resolved the crisis again. Zhen Huan looked at An Lingrong gratefully and said, "Lingrong, this time it's all thanks to you. If you hadn't found the spice clue, we might have had a hard time finding the real culprit."

An Lingrong smiled and said, "Huan'er, you and I are sisters, there's no need to be so polite. The harem is constantly in strife, so we need to be more careful."

However, before one crisis was resolved, another one arose. Rumors spread in the palace that Zhen Huan and An Lingrong were arrogant and disrespectful to the late queen.

Zhen Huan was so angry when she heard the rumors that her face turned pale: "Who is slandering me behind my back?"

An Lingrong said, "Huan'er, don't get too angry. Let's find the source of the rumor first, and then we can deal with it."

The two secretly investigated and found that it was an old nanny bribed by Concubine Li who spread rumors in the palace.

Zhen Huan said, "Although Concubine Li has been banished to the cold palace, her remaining evil remains and is still stirring up trouble."

An Lingrong said, "We can't let this rumor continue to spread and ruin our reputation."

Zhen Huan said, "I will report this to the Emperor and have him deal with this old nanny."

An Lingrong said, "That's fine. The Emperor will definitely clear our name."

Zhen Huan reported the situation to the emperor, who ordered the old nanny to be beaten to death as a warning to others.

Zhen Huan and An Lingrong breathed a sigh of relief, but they knew that the struggle in the harem would never stop. They could only continue to hold on, support each other, and move forward towards the unknown future in this harem full of conspiracy, writing their own legendary stories. No matter how many difficulties and obstacles there are, they cannot stop them from pursuing peace and happiness, because they know that only each other is the warmest support in this cold harem, and their friendship will continue to emit the light of hope in the darkness like the candlelight that never goes out in the palace.