Transmigration: Reverse Exploitation, the System Works for Me

The Empress felt uneasy under the Emperor's gaze, utterly bewildered by her own words. What was wrong with her, as Empress, showing kindness and compassion to the entire harem?

The emperor's eyes darkened as he looked at the empress's helpless expression.

The Empress racked her brains, but still couldn't figure out what was wrong with the Emperor, and she couldn't help but feel uneasy.

The emperor looked away before the empress could speak.

His eyelids drooped slightly, and suddenly he tugged at the corner of his mouth, revealing a cold smile.

Fine, living isn't necessarily more painful than dying. Since the seventeenth prince and that lowly maid have feelings for each other, then he'll see if their feelings are stronger than gold!

Just as the emperor was about to speak, Consort Hua interrupted him.

Consort Hua rose, her gaze fixed intently on the Emperor. "Your Majesty," she said, "I believe the Empress's words are inappropriate. The Baiyi tribe was only punished after Consort Shu entered the palace, and the prohibition against privately taking Baiyi women was also an order from the late Emperor. Does Your Majesty intend to smear Your Majesty with the name of unfilial piety?"

"Furthermore, everyone knows what happened at the Imperial Physician's Office this morning. Wen Shichu's poisoning of Consort Zhuang must have been instigated by either Consort Zhen or the woman from the Bi Palace. Since the Emperor has determined that Consort Zhen is innocent, then it must have been the woman from the Bi Palace who did it. To bribe an Imperial Physician to poison someone in order to gain favor—if this is not severely punished as a warning to others, won't everyone in the harem live in fear? Won't everyone follow suit in the future?"

Consort Hua's face was filled with righteous indignation, yet she appeared to be thinking of everyone's best interests.

In reality, if the news of Wen Shichu's accident hadn't spread, why would Prince Guo have been so anxious? And if he wasn't anxious, why would he have bothered with the spies in the Yuanmingyuan? If she didn't let these spies show themselves, how could she later shift the blame onto Prince Guo?

The Emperor looked at Consort Hua with displeasure. The things Wen Shichu did in secret, and the things that happened in public today, could not be made public. Otherwise, wouldn't the royal family lose face? His original intention was to secretly execute Wen Shichu.

But since Consort Hua had already brought this up, the Emperor could not ignore the fact that all the concubines in the palace were also involved.

"By imperial decree, Bi Guan is hereby ordered to be banished to the Cold Palace and Wen Shichu, the imperial physician, to be executed by slow slicing. This order shall be carried out immediately."

He then looked at Yu Ying'er and comforted her, saying, "Consort Zhuang was innocently in danger this time because she didn't have enough people serving her. So, I grant you the rank and allowance of a consort, so that you can have more people with you when you travel in the future."

Yu Ying'er was stunned, not expecting such a benefit. She immediately stood up to express her gratitude, "Yes, Your Majesty, I thank you for your grace."

The Empress's expression changed immediately. If the Emperor had granted her the rank and allowances of a Consort, wouldn't that mean that next time she was promoted, Lady Yu would be able to become a Consort?

The Emperor didn't care what the Empress thought. He gave a soft "hmm" and then glanced at the quiet Consort Jing beside him. "Consort Jing has served me for many years. Even if she hasn't made any great contributions, she has certainly worked hard. So let her enjoy the same rank and benefits as Consort Zhuang."

Consort Jing was struck by the unexpected gift and hurriedly rose to express her gratitude, saying, "Your Majesty, I thank you for your grace."

The emperor stood up, glanced at everyone in the hall, and said, "Let's leave it at that. From now on, I don't want to hear any more rumors! Well, I still have some official business to attend to, so I'll be leaving now."

As soon as he finished speaking, the emperor lifted his foot and started to walk out.

With two more potential consorts added to the list, the Empress almost gritted her teeth, but still forced a smile and rose to see him off: "Your Majesty, I respectfully see you off."

As soon as the emperor left, the concubines immediately took their leave.

After everyone had left, the Empress sat in the main seat, glaring hatefully in the direction of Qingliang Palace, and said, "That bitch Nian Shilan, if it weren't for her gossiping, Zhen Huan's pregnancy would already be in my hands."

The Empress was furious, and even her loyal servant Jianqiu was enraged. "We schemed so hard, and even lost Consort Xia, and we gained nothing! Your Majesty, what do we do now?"

The Empress snorted coldly: "It's not that we gained nothing. Quietly send someone to tell Consort Li not to come to my palace recently, and to visit Consort Hua's palace more often. Also, you go to Bitong Academy in person and take good care of Consort Zhen's pregnancy for me."

Jianqiu's eyes lit up. "Consort Zhen doesn't know the whole story that Consort Xia told her yet. This servant will give her some pointers on behalf of Your Highness."

As she spoke, Jianqiu suddenly had an idea and tentatively asked, "Your Highness, should we take this opportunity to do something with Consort Zhuang? She has requested additional servants, which is a rare and good opportunity."

The Empress was somewhat tempted, but hesitated and said, "I would also like to take this opportunity to make a move against the Sixth Prince, but with Chunrong around, our people can't get close at all."

Jianqiu immediately smiled, "Your Majesty, since it's difficult to take action while Chunrong is here, why not just send Chunrong away?"

The Empress frowned. "Consort Zhuang relies on Chunrong the most and would never easily send Chunrong out of the palace."

Jianqiu continued, "Your Majesty, this servant has discovered that Consort Zhuang's father is currently serving as a sub-prefect in Pianguan, Shanxi. Pianguan is a poor and harsh place, and Consort Zhuang's father is, after all, from the capital. It's not impossible that he's suffering from a serious illness due to the change in environment and is bedridden. At that time..."

Jianqiu smiled and said, "When the news comes, will Consort Zhuang still ignore her father? Consort Zhuang will definitely beg the Emperor for a favor, either to grant her a royal physician to treat him or to grant him the favor of returning to the capital."

"As the Empress, you are considerate and caring towards your concubines. You could easily issue an imperial decree allowing Consort Zhuang to send someone to accompany her or visit her outside the palace. Isn't Consort Zhuang most dependent on Chunrong? Since it concerns her father's life, Consort Zhuang will definitely send the person she trusts most."

In this way, wouldn't that get rid of Chunrong?

The Empress smiled and said, "Take care of this matter as soon as possible. Make sure to send word of Yu Tongzhi's critical illness before returning to the palace."

"Yes, the slaves retire."

As soon as Yu Ying'er returned to Anlan Garden, she dragged Xi Qiao into the inner room to satisfy her curiosity.

"Sister, what's going on? Wasn't it you who tricked An Lingrong into believing that Wen Shichu and Zhen Huan had a problem? Why was it Xia Dongchun who reported it?"

An Lingrong and Xia Dongchun don't get along, so An Lingrong wouldn't tell Xia Dongchun about this, and Xia Dongchun wouldn't believe An Lingrong either.

"And the Empress, I feel like she's acting strangely today. I remember you told me that Xia Dongchun had sided with the Empress, so why isn't the Empress protecting her today?"

Her eyes widened, filled with curiosity, but her face showed obvious lingering fear.

Xia Dongchun reported the wrong person, and even with the Empress's protection, she was demoted to a commoner and banished to the Cold Palace by the Emperor. If she had ignored everything and exposed the affair between Prince Guo and Zhen Huan yesterday, wouldn't she have been immediately sentenced to death?

The emperor is truly ruthless and heartless, even more so than a womanizer in a play.