Transmigration: Reverse Exploitation, the System Works for Me

The Empress and Consort Qi have always been close. Previously, it was only because Xia Dongchun shamelessly flattered her all day long that she received some favor from the Empress.

Needless to say, Consort Hua, Consort Jin, and Consort Li all disliked her from the moment she entered the palace and wished they could kill her immediately.

The remaining Consorts, such as Consort Jing, Consort Xin, and Noble Lady Fucha, had little to do with her, but she had more contact with Consort Zhuang.

Looking back, apart from An Lingrong and Shen Meizhuang, whom she knew from the selection process, she had no close relationships with any of the concubines in the palace.

Zhen Huan's heart tightened; this was not a good thing.

"My lady, Aunt Jianqiu has arrived."

The announcement from a palace maid outside the door interrupted Zhen Huan's train of thought.

She quickly stood up and said, "Please come in."

Jianqiu brought in many tonics and fabrics. After exchanging greetings, she looked at Zhen Huan with a smile and said, "Her Majesty the Empress was afraid that Your Highness's things were not complete, so she specially asked me to bring some useful items. In particular, this hundred-year-old wild ginseng is for Your Highness to nourish your body."

Zhen Huan immediately curtsied towards the direction of the Empress's Peach Blossom Village, saying, "Your Majesty the Empress is kind and benevolent. These are exactly what I need. Unfortunately, I am currently unable to express my gratitude to Your Majesty in person. Please convey my thanks to you, Aunt."

Jianqiu nodded in satisfaction, "Your Highness is very thoughtful. I will definitely relay Your Highness's words to Her Majesty the Empress without missing a single detail when I return."

Zhen Huan wanted to build a good relationship with the Empress, and Jian Qiu wanted to gain Zhen Huan's trust, so they naturally became more and more compatible as they talked.

As they talked, Jianqiu turned the topic to what had happened in Peach Blossom Village that day. "Her Majesty the Empress has always loved calligraphy. When she first saw Your Highness's calligraphy, she praised it highly. She even praised your calligraphy in front of me, saying that it had a proud and elegant style and that it already had the demeanor of a master."

"Therefore, when Her Majesty the Empress saw the letter presented by Consort Li, she immediately recognized that it was not written by the young lady. However, Consort Li and Consort Xia repeatedly pleaded for her, so Her Majesty the Empress had no choice but to send someone to invite the Emperor and all the concubines in the palace."

Zhen Huan's eyes flickered. "Was that forged letter presented by Consort Li?"

Jianqiu looked at Zhen Huan with a smile, "When Consort Li came to request an audience, Her Majesty the Empress was pruning flowers in the corridor. Consort Li is impatient, so she took out the letter from outside and presented it to Her Majesty the Empress. At that time, many palace maids and eunuchs saw it."

As for the fact that the letter was originally given to Consort Li by Xia Dongchun, there's no need to elaborate.

Zhen Huan had a sudden thought: was that letter written by Consort Li?

No, not possible!

The idea had barely formed in her mind when Zhen Huan dismissed it. Although Consort Li knew a few characters, she was illiterate, and her dowry was even worse—they couldn't recognize many characters. Furthermore, the palace maids in her palace were mostly selected through a process of selection, and few of them were literate; they couldn't possibly possess such skills.

On the contrary, Consort Hua and Consort Jin—

Seeing the thoughtful look in her eyes, Jianqiu was extremely satisfied and added fuel to the fire, "To be honest, after Consort Xia exposed this matter, Her Majesty the Empress also asked me to investigate it carefully."

"This servant has discovered something quite suspicious. This morning, Zhou Ninghai saw a palace maid near the Shangxia Tianguang Temple, but no one saw what she looked like. Unfortunately, Xia Shuren only went to see Her Majesty the Empress after meeting with an unfamiliar palace maid."

"It's hard to say whether these two palace maids are the same person, but it is absolutely true that I couldn't find the palace maid who went to see Xia Shuren in the garden. I don't know if that little palace maid was murdered or what happened to her."

Jianqiu sighed, "It's not that I'm trying to sow discord between you and Consort Hua. You can easily find out by sending someone to inquire about Zhou Ninghai's whereabouts this morning."

Jianqiu snorted inwardly. Early morning was the busiest time for the palace servants to sweep and clean. If Zhou Ninghai met with someone at this time, he would naturally be seen by many people when he came and went.

Zhen Huan smiled apologetically, "Auntie, you're too kind. It's my blessing that you're willing to give me this guidance. With the information you've painstakingly gathered, I feel much more at ease now. Thank you for informing me, Auntie."

Jianqiu immediately curtsied, "I don't deserve your thanks, Your Highness. It is what I should do. Her Majesty the Empress originally wanted to ask the Emperor to investigate this matter, but Consort Hua changed the subject by mentioning the ownership of the imperial heir in your womb."

Zhen Huan's heart tightened, and she subconsciously covered her lower abdomen. "What do you mean by the ownership of the imperial heir in my womb?"

Jianqiu looked at her with pity, “Your Highness should know that only those of the rank of Consort or above are qualified to raise imperial heirs. Your Highness is currently only of the rank of Consort, and given the matter of your family, the Zhen family, I’m afraid you will not be able to be promoted to the rank of Consort after you give birth to the prince.”

Zhen Huan looked bewildered. "May I ask, Aunt, what did the Emperor say?"

"The Emperor did not issue any instructions, only saying that it would be discussed later."

After saying this, Jianqiu took her leave, leaving Zhen Huan alone to ponder.

Leisure Moon Pavilion.

After returning from the Empress's Peach Blossom Village, Shen Meizhuang and An Lingrong sat facing each other in silence.

Although Consort Jin's plan was not clever, it was practical. However, she did not expect that Zhen Huan would become pregnant, and she even found a loophole and publicly shifted the blame onto Huan Bi.

After a long silence, An Lingrong broke the silence of the room, "Sister Mei, what are your thoughts on Sister Zhen?"

She looked at Shen Meizhuang with unease on her face: "Sister, I'm sorry. If I hadn't come to find you, you wouldn't have gotten involved. And you wouldn't be in this predicament now."

Shen Meizhuang shook her head, "It has nothing to do with you. Lingrong, don't blame yourself. We and Consort Jin had planned everything today, except for the possibility that Zhen Huan might be pregnant. We were just unlucky."

She sighed as she spoke, "Consort Zhuang and Aunt Chunrong must not be lying to you. It must be Zhen Huan who had an affair with Wen Shichu. With Huanbi's character and looks, there is no way she could have made Wen Shichu devoted to her."

"Just you wait and see. If Wen Shichu is truly acting under Huanbi's orders, he will definitely not implicate Huanbi. On the contrary, if he does implicate her, it must be to protect Zhen Huan, the real mastermind."

She had witnessed how much Wen Shichu cared for Zhen Huan, but he didn't even give Huan Bi a second glance!

An Lingrong nodded, and then asked, "Then... shall we still keep in touch with Sister Zhen in the future?"

Shen Meizhuang frowned and snorted coldly, "She's so audacious. If we don't cut ties completely, she'll drag us down sooner or later."

"But we can't cut ties immediately. I still maintain that we can't let people think we're heartless. We can only proceed gradually and wait for the right opportunity to break things off with her later."

"However, it's best if we avoid contact with her recently. Just now in Peach Blossom Village, both the Empress and Consort Qi expressed their desire to raise the child in Zhen Huan's womb. Before the child's custody is decided, things will likely get complicated on Zhen Huan's side, so it's best if we stay away."

An Lingrong nodded obediently, "Sister is right."