Transmigration: Reverse Exploitation, the System Works for Me

Enraged, the Empress Dowager slammed her hand on the table. "Those children and the Third Prince are all the Emperor's offspring! How dare you harm them like this! Yixiu, don't forget your place. What the Empress should and shouldn't do is not up to your personal desires!"

The emperor was forty-three years old, yet he had only three sons and two daughters! How desolate this was.

The Empress seemed to have given up entirely. "I've done everything I should and shouldn't have done. Do you really think my aunt would depose me for the sake of those little bastards? No, you won't, Aunt. You're determined to protect the positions of the Ulanara and Uya clans. You won't allow me to be deposed."

Seeing the Empress showing signs of madness, the Empress Dowager felt a tightness in her chest from anger. She raised her hand tremblingly and pointed at the Empress, wanting to reprimand her, but found herself speechless.

That's right, she wouldn't allow Ulanara and Uya to be deposed empresses; the empress had figured out her intentions.

Unfazed by the Empress Dowager's darkening expression, the Empress smiled smugly and said, "Your Majesty, I must take my leave now as I have to attend the little princess's full moon celebration."

After the Empress left, the Empress Dowager looked at Sun Zhuxi with sadness, "Zhuxi, I am really old and useless. I can no longer control the Empress. I don't know how many of the Emperor's children will be lost in her hands. I, I... I have failed our ancestors."

Zhu Xi gently patted the Empress Dowager's back to soothe her, "Your Majesty's actions are indeed extreme. But ultimately it's about the issue of offspring. I was thinking that if the Third Prince were registered under Your Majesty's name, would Your Majesty be able to resolve your inner conflict?"

To her surprise, the Empress Dowager shook her head, "You don't understand the Empress. Her methods are becoming increasingly ruthless. She even managed to..."

"She only acts more recklessly because she is certain that I will protect her. Once the Third Prince is registered under her name, she will become even more ruthless in order to ensure that he can ascend the throne in the future. I'm afraid that by then the emperor will have no male heirs other than the Third Prince."

"This..." Sun Zhuxi was speechless for a moment. The Empress was truly fearless. While sighing, Sun Zhuxi somehow remembered the little palace maids talking about the Empress being the successor.

Her eyes suddenly lit up. "Your Majesty, the Ulanara and Uya clans also have an empress!"

"Chun Yuan!" A smile immediately appeared on the Empress Dowager's lips.

"Back then, when Arou entered the palace and took away Yixiu's position as the primary consort, Yixiu hated Arou to the core. Yixiu has been placing high hopes on the Third Prince for a long time. If the Third Prince were to be registered under Chun Yuan's name, given Yixiu's hatred for Chun Yuan, she would certainly not bother to assist the Third Prince. In that case, we can only choose one of the Emperor's other princes."

Zhu Xi laughed, "Yes, Empress Dowager. The Fourth Prince's birth mother was of lowly birth and was disliked by the Emperor. The Fifth Prince was implicated by his mother and lost the Emperor's favor. Since the Empress had no other choice, she could only let the concubines receive the Emperor's favor, become pregnant, and safely give birth to the imperial heir."

The master and servant laughed simultaneously.

"Quickly have someone prepare some refreshing side dishes and mung bean and lily porridge. I am going to the Hall of Mental Cultivation."

With ideas and goals in mind, the Empress Dowager was in high spirits. "It's a good opportunity to talk to the Emperor about the selection of concubines."

Xi Qiao, who overheard the conversation using his mental powers, was overjoyed. The flower bed next to the Empress Dowager's bedroom, separated by only one wall, was filled with joy.

Aunt Sun did not disappoint her!

Hmm, Your Majesty, I hope you like this gift.

Whether the Empress liked Xi Qiao or not, she didn't know. She only heard that Jingren Palace had requested a lot of porcelain and jade items from the Imperial Household Department. Jiang Fuhai, the head eunuch of Jingren Palace, had been busy for several days but hadn't seen Xi Qiao.

The Emperor announced that he had registered the Third Prince under the name of Empress Chun Yuan along with the news of the imperial concubine selection.

However, it wasn't enough for the Empress to simply add a line to the imperial register to designate her legitimate son. She also had to invite members of the royal family and the Ulanara clan to witness the ceremony, and then the Third Prince had to perform a series of rituals and ceremonies, which was quite a hassle.

Consort Qi had already fainted from crying in Changchun Palace. Her perfectly healthy son had actually become Empress Chun Yuan's son. Unfortunately, neither the Empress Dowager, the Emperor, nor the Empress wanted to pay any attention to her.

Unlike in the original story where the empress feigns illness, this time the empress is genuinely ill, having been angered by the situation.

Palace power, offspring, and favor all vanished like bubbles; anyone in that situation would fall ill.

Consort Hua was overjoyed to be entrusted with such an important task. She led the palace servants in busy preparations and even subsidized the Imperial Household Department with her own money, vowing to make the first imperial concubine selection a grand and successful event.

After the imperial concubine selection, there were many other matters to attend to, such as arranging palace rooms, residences, and dispatching palace servants. In short, Consort Hua was extremely busy from late July to the end of August.

Meanwhile, Yu Ying'er quietly served the emperor and took a fertility pill during this period.

And in early September, before the new bride entered the palace, he successfully diagnosed her slippery pulse, although the pulse condition had only been present for a little over a month.

She immediately sent someone to inform the Empress Dowager, the Emperor, and the Empress. The Empress Dowager was overjoyed and immediately ordered a generous reward to be sent.

The emperor went even further, elevating Yu Ying'er's rank to that of a Noble Lady, granting her the privileges of a Consort and bestowing upon her a palanquin for transportation. It's likely that she was traumatized by the previous pregnant women who had fallen and miscarried.

The Empress, the Empress is still ill!

The rewards for the pregnant woman and the rewards for the promotion arrived much later, with a significant gap between them.

After receiving Consort Hua's reward, Yu Ying'er rode in a palanquin to Shou Kang Palace to express her gratitude.

The Empress Dowager was very satisfied with her and specially ordered Xi Qiao to come to the palace to accompany her.

Seeing that the flattery had been said enough, Yu Ying'er looked at the Empress Dowager hesitantly and said, "Actually, I have another matter to ask Your Majesty."

"I am young and naive. I suffered a miscarriage due to someone's interference last time, and I still don't know what went wrong. Therefore, I would like to ask Your Majesty to assign me a mature and reliable older sister."

As she spoke, she looked at Xi Qiao with a particularly meaningful gaze.

When the Empress Dowager saw her carefree actions, she didn't know what to say for a moment. She didn't blame her; instead, she found it rather amusing.

This Consort Zhuang has served the emperor for a long time, yet she still retains the same innocent and harmless nature as before; her joys, sorrows, and anger are all written on her face, making her very easy to understand.

With such a woman carrying the imperial heir, the Empress Dowager was truly worried that she might be murdered again someday.

"Fine, I know you and Chunrong are very close. I'll give Chunrong to you."

As she spoke, she turned to look at Sun Zhuxi, "After all, she is an old servant of mine. She has served me for more than ten years. Even if she has not made any great contributions, she has certainly worked hard. Go and tell the Imperial Household Department to promote Chunrong to the rank of fifth-grade head maid. Starting today, she will go to Zhongcui Palace to take care of Consort Zhuang's pregnancy."

"This servant thanks Your Highness." Xi Qiao knelt down to express her gratitude, and said many more words to express her reluctance to part, before going down to pack her luggage and leaving with Qingzhu.

Upon returning to Zhongcui Palace, Yu Ying'er couldn't wait to drag Xi Qiao to see the room she had arranged in advance.

This room is a side room of the main hall in the rear palace, and it is larger than Xi Qiao's room in Shou Kang Palace.

The furniture in the room was all made of high-quality materials, and the ornaments were not cheap either. In particular, the jade screen was extremely valuable.

This house is so spacious that even a distinguished guest would not feel uncomfortable staying there.

"Thank you for your trouble, Your Highness. I like it very much."

Yu Ying'er smiled with her eyes crinkling, "I'm glad you like it, sister. It wasn't for nothing that I spent most of the day getting Xiao Lezi to set it up."

"Your Highness, you'll have to change how you address me. Either call me Aunt or Chunrong."

Xi Qiao helped her walk out, "Please rest first, Your Highness. The Empress Dowager has granted you permission to use the small kitchen. I will take some people to the Imperial Household Department, and I will personally stew some white fungus soup for you tonight."