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

Zhen Huan and An Lingrong were admiring flowers in the palace garden. Zhen Huan sniffed a peony with a faint smile on her face. "This peony is in full bloom, and it has a certain elegance and grace, just like some of the people in the harem: glamorous on the surface, but who knows how many thoughts are hidden inside."

An Lingrong nodded slightly, her eyes falling on Zhen Huan: "Sister, you are absolutely right. The new lady Ye who came to the palace recently always seems a little strange. Although she is respectful to us, I always feel that her eyes are flickering, as if she has other thoughts." As she spoke, she gently fiddled with the handkerchief in her hand, her brows slightly furrowed.

Zhen Huan raised an eyebrow slightly. "Oh? You noticed it too? I originally thought I was being overly suspicious. Every time she greeted me, she was extremely humble, and her words and actions seemed to regard us as role models. But her overly flattering demeanor actually made me suspicious."

At this time, Chun'er came over skipping and jumping, holding a few freshly picked peach blossoms in her hand: "Sisters, look at the peach blossoms I found, they are so beautiful!" She handed the peach blossoms to Zhen Huan and An Lingrong, her eyes shining.

Zhen Huan took it with a smile and stroked Chun'er's head gently: "Chun'er, this girl always finds these beautiful things."

An Lingrong also smiled and said, "Sister Chun'er is so innocent and naive. With you here, this palace has become a little more lively."

Chun Er pouted, "I don't want this palace to be filled with so much chaos! But I just don't like that Miss Ye. Every time I see her, I get a chill down my spine."

Zhen Huan and An Lingrong looked at each other and saw a hint of worry in each other's eyes.

A few days later, a tea party was held in the palace, and all the ladies came to attend. Lady Ye sat in a corner, her eyes constantly wandering between Zhen Huan and An Lingrong.

Zhen Huan picked up the teacup, took a sip, and looked at Lady Ye: "Lady Ye, is this tea to your liking today?"

Lady Ye quickly stood up and saluted: "Replying to Her Majesty Wanfei, this tea is fragrant and mellow, of course it is excellent. The teas in Her Majesty's palace are all top-notch. I am so blessed to have the honor of tasting it today." Her face was full of smiles, but her eyes were a little evasive.

An Lingrong whispered softly, "Miss Ye, you're too kind. It's just some ordinary tea. If you like it, you can take some back with you when you leave."

A hint of surprise flashed in Lady Ye's eyes. "Really? Then I would like to thank Her Majesty An. Her Majesty is so generous, truly a model for the harem."

After the tea party, Mei Zhuang came to Zhen Huan's palace, her expression solemn: "Huan'er, I heard that Miss Ye often summoned some palace maids and eunuchs in her palace. I don't know what they are discussing. I always feel that she has bad intentions."

Zhen Huan sat on the couch, tapping her fingers lightly on the armrest. "Sister Mei Zhuang, I'm also worried. It seems we need to send someone to keep an eye on her."

An Lingrong nodded: "Sister, you are absolutely right. We can't just sit there and wait for her to plot against us."

So, Zhen Huan ordered her trusted palace maids to secretly monitor Lady Ye.

A few days later, the palace maid came back to report, "Your Majesty, Miss Ye has been in frequent contact with people from the Imperial Household Department recently, and has also given them a lot of money and gifts. It seems that she is trying to build relationships."

Zhen Huan frowned. "What is she planning to do? Is she trying to gain more advantages in the palace, or is she plotting something bigger?"

An Lingrong pondered for a moment. "Sister, I think she might be trying to manipulate the distribution of supplies, like the winter charcoal fires and the summer ice jars. If she can control them, she can use them to win people over."

Zhen Huan's eyes glared. "If that's the case, we can't let her succeed. We need to go to the Imperial Household Department first to get some information."

Zhen Huan and An Lingrong arrived at the Imperial Household Department. The head steward of the Imperial Household Department saw them and hurriedly bowed, "Empress Wan and Empress An, I was not aware of your presence and am sorry for not welcoming you."

Zhen Huan said calmly, "Let me ask you, has Miss Ye been interacting with you all much lately?"

The steward wiped the sweat from his forehead and said, "Your Majesty, Miss Ye did send some gifts and wanted me to take care of the distribution of the supplies, but I did not agree. I am only loyal to the Emperor and the other ladies. How dare I act in a corrupt manner for personal gain?"

An Lingrong looked at the steward and said, "You'd better tell the truth. If I discover you doing anything improper in the future, I will not forgive you."

After coming out of the Imperial Household Department, Zhen Huan said, "Even though he said so, we can't let our guard down."

Meanwhile, Lady Ye was in her palace, dressing in front of a mirror, a sneer curling her lips. "Zhen Huan, An Lingrong, do you think you can ruin my plan so easily? I will definitely show you how powerful I am."

Her personal maid said worriedly, "My lady, Concubine Wan and Concubine An seem to have noticed something. Should we be more careful?"

Lady Ye glared at the palace maid: "What are you afraid of! They can be glorious for a while, but can they be glorious forever? I have my own way."

After some time, rumors spread in the palace that Zhen Huan and An Lingrong were harshly treating the palace maids and eunuchs, and for a time, the palace was full of discussions.

Upon hearing this, Zhen Huan's face turned pale with rage: "This must be that Miss Ye's doing! She is so despicable for slandering us like this!"

An Lingrong also said angrily: "Sister, we can't let her smear us like this. We have to find a way to clear it up."

Chun Er was filled with righteous indignation: "Sisters, let's go find her and ask her to explain it to everyone!"

Mei Zhuang stopped Chun'er and said, "Chun'er, don't be reckless. If we go to her now, it will seem like we are guilty. We must remain calm."

Zhen Huan took a deep breath and said, "Sister Meizhuang is right. Let's start with the palace maids and eunuchs, let them know what kind of people we are, and these rumors will naturally dispel themselves."

So, Zhen Huan and An Lingrong personally visited the palace maids and eunuchs, concerned about their daily lives, and gave them many gifts. The palace maids and eunuchs felt their kindness and spoke up for them, and the rumors gradually died down.

Seeing that her plan failed, Lady Ye came up with another one. She pretended to fall in front of the Emperor and falsely accused Zhen Huan of being pushed by a palace maid.

After hearing this, the Emperor summoned Zhen Huan to question her. Zhen Huan came with her maid, who knelt and cried, "Your Majesty, I am innocent! I never pushed Lady Ye. Lady Ye fell on purpose."

Zhen Huan looked at the emperor with a firm gaze: "Your Majesty, I trust my maid. She has always been well-behaved and sensible, and would never do such a thing. Someone must have deliberately framed her."

An Lingrong also said, "Your Majesty, this matter is very strange. Please investigate carefully."

The emperor looked at everyone and frowned slightly: "I will investigate this matter thoroughly. You can all withdraw first."

Zhen Huan and An Lingrong returned to the palace, knowing that their fight with Lady Ye had just begun.

"Sister, this Miss Ye is so unscrupulous, we must teach her a lesson, otherwise she will only become more aggressive." There was a hint of ruthlessness in An Lingrong's eyes.

Zhen Huan nodded. "That's right. We must let her know that this harem is not a place where she can act recklessly. Let's first find evidence that she framed us, and then expose her once and for all."

In the following days, Zhen Huan and An Lingrong paid more attention to Ye Xiaozhu's every move. Finally, they discovered that Ye Xiaozhu had been exchanging letters with a mysterious person outside the palace.

"It seems there is a bigger conspiracy behind this. We must intercept the letter and see what she is planning." Zhen Huan clenched her fists.

They arranged for the guards to ambush at the place where Ye Xiaozhu and the mysterious person agreed to deliver the letter, and successfully intercepted the letter. The content of the letter revealed that Ye Xiaozhu had colluded with people outside the palace to create chaos in the palace and then take advantage of the chaos to seize the position of the mistress of the harem.

Zhen Huan took the letter and sneered, "She is quite ambitious, but she chose the wrong opponent."

They presented the letter to the emperor, who was furious after reading it: "I have treated her well, yet she dares to act so recklessly!"

The emperor immediately ordered that Princess Ye be banished to the cold palace, and her accomplices were arrested one by one.

After this turmoil, the harem temporarily returned to peace. Zhen Huan and An Lingrong knew that within the harem, there would always be conspiracies and schemes. Only by upholding kindness and relying on each other could they survive in this perilous harem and continue to write their own legendary story. Meanwhile, the enemy lurking in the shadows might be plotting their next attack, forcing them to remain vigilant and face the unknown challenges.