Seizing the throne, abolishing the adopted son, the imperial concubine rose to prominence

Changchun Palace.

The winter night came particularly quickly. At the end of the Shen hour, the lights were already lit in the hall.

"Master, Xiao Anzi sent a message that Yulian was sent to the General's Mansion an hour ago along with three other palace maids."

"I took it upon myself to ask Xiao Anzi to give her a thousand taels of silver and some small change for emergencies."

Tan Yin hurried in from outside the hall.

"That's as it should be. She's in the general's mansion, and with money on her side, it's always easier for her."

Gu Youning nodded. Yu Lian was doing things for him, and she was always generous to her own people.

"And He'er heard that Madam Gu has received permission from the Queen to visit the Fourth Young Lady in the palace tomorrow."

Tan Yin continued.

"My legitimate mother is coming to the palace?"

Gu Youning curled his lips and muttered to himself.

"The Empress allowed Madam Gu to enter the palace. I'm afraid she might be plotting something again. Master, please be careful. I have He'er and I keeping a close eye on the side hall. Report any movement."

Tan Yin's face was full of vigilance.

"Don't be too nervous. Gu Youxin's issue will be resolved sooner or later. It's good that the Queen wants to use this chess piece sooner."

She asked her mother to pretend to be sick in the yard as her stepmother wished, and now the queen probably felt that the time had come.

……

Early the next morning, Gu Wen entered the palace as expected.

"Your Highness pays respects to Her Majesty the Consort Zhaoyi."

"Without courtesy, I will give you a seat."

"Thank you, empress!"

Gu Wen lowered her head and sat respectfully on half of the stool.

"Mother, are you here to visit my sister today? I've already sent someone to invite her."

"This purple bamboo shoot tea was recently gifted by the Emperor. It's still drinkable. Mother, please have a cup to warm yourself up."

Gu Youning was leaning leisurely on the warm couch, with a cloisonné lotus-petal heater at his side, a sable blanket covering his knees, and some fresh fruits on the rosewood table next to him, looking rich and elegant.

"Your Majesty is now enjoying every luxury in the palace, and I am happy for you. However, your biological mother seems to have contracted a strange illness and is bedridden. If she saw your current prosperity, I'm afraid she would be even happier than I am."

"What? My mother is sick? When did this happen?"

Gu Youning was so startled that he dropped the teacup in his hand, and his graceful demeanor suddenly shattered.

"Some time."

When Gu Wen saw the concubine's panicked face, she calmly picked up the high-quality purple bamboo tea in her hand and started drinking it.

"My mother has always been in good health. Why did she suddenly become so seriously ill this time? Have you and father called a doctor for her?"

Gu Youning clenched the handkerchief in her hand and looked at her stepmother with eyes full of cold suspicion.

"Doctor, of course I'll ask."

"But the doctors your father and I hired couldn't explain the cause. They just said it was a common ailment, so we can only wait it out like this."

The respectful look on Gu Wen's face had faded.

"Is this the method of the stepmother?"

"How dare you take my mother's life?"

Gu Youning gritted his teeth.

"Your Majesty, you are wrongly accusing me. I allowed your father to raise her as his concubine, so how could I have thought of harming her?"

Gu Wen was crying out for justice, but there was no trace of panic on her face.

"you……"

Gu Youning pointed at Gu Wenshi and was so angry that he couldn't speak.

"Even if Second Sister is now a Second-Rank Zhaoyi, she shouldn't be so rude to my mother."

"In this palace, the Emperor still has to be filial to the Empress Dowager. Could it be that Second Sister is older than the Emperor?"

At this time, Gu Youxin came in from outside the hall alone, and smiled happily when she saw the anger on Gu Youning's face.

"You knew that too? No, it was you who came up with the idea of ​​poisoning my mother?"

"So what?"

Before Gu Wen could stop her, her daughter nodded proudly.

However, when she saw that there was only one palace maid beside Gu Youning, she felt relieved. After all, once they left here, no one could prove that they said these words.

"What do you want to do?"

Gu Youning glared coldly at the mother and daughter.

"Xin'er lives in the palace. I originally thought that with the Majesty's care, she would be well taken care of. I didn't expect that because of the Majesty, she would suffer so much misfortune. As a mother, I can't help but feel distressed and worried."

"The Queen Mother had intended to let Xin'er live in the palace permanently. If it weren't for Your Majesty's intentional obstruction..."

"Mother wants my fourth sister to serve the Emperor?"

Gu Youning seemed impatient to listen to Gu Wenshi's rambling, and asked with a sneer.

"Why? You, a concubine with no talent or virtue, can serve the emperor. As a legitimate daughter and a descendant of the Wen family, how can I not enter the palace?"

Gu Youxin pointed at Gu Youning angrily, causing the scar on his right cheek to become even more hideous.

"Willfully insulting the Second Rank Imperial Concubine, is this the upbringing of Fourth Miss Gu?"

Tan Yin stepped forward and said coldly.

"Shut up, a lowly slave like you has no right to speak here."

Tan Yin wanted to say more, but Gu Youning shouted, "Back off."

Seeing Gu Youning's tolerance and concessions, the mother and daughter were naturally more proud and more confident.

"Mother and sister are so deliberate, I think they have already made up their minds. What else do you need me to do?"

Gu Youning suppressed his anger and asked word by word.

"Your Majesty, don't need to do anything special. Just don't try to trip me up in secret."

"If Xin'er can successfully gain the favor of His Majesty, then our Gu family will have two concubines. It will be such a great blessing, and your biological mother will definitely feel it. Then, perhaps her joy will make this illness heal immediately.

Gu Wen continued to put verbal pressure on Gu Youning.

"Of course, Xin'er is simple-minded and has been spoiled by me, so she doesn't understand the twists and turns in the palace. If there is an accident, Your Majesty, for the sake of our sisterly love, please help cover it up."

Gu Wenshi pulled her daughter behind her and stopped her from speaking. The look she gave Gu Youning was filled with determination to win.

"Mother means that if my sister makes any mistakes, I will have to take the blame."

Gu Youning sneered.

"It's not that your Majesty is clear-sighted and wise, and that I have to rely on you for Xin'er's affairs."

Gu Wen chuckled.

"Okay, I promise you, but you have to promise that after this is over, Mother will be safe and sound. If anything happens to Mother, I will definitely not let you go."

Gu Youning's eyes were filled with anger, but he couldn't vent his anger on the two of them at this moment, so he had to swallow his anger and respond.

"Then I, your Highness, would like to thank you for your care on behalf of my heart."

"Your Majesty must be busy with something, so please let Xin'er take me to the side hall to talk."

Gu Wenshi walked out perfunctorily, then pulled her daughter, who was still talking, out.

"Why is your face so hurt?"

"This palace is a place where beauty is the most important factor in attracting people. If you don't have a good face, how can you win the emperor's favor?"

When they arrived at the side hall, Gu Wen frowned as she looked at her daughter's face.