The Flourishing Era of Female Merchants

The servants obeyed and moved Consort Rong to her palace. Many palace maids followed closely behind, but Emperor Mingde stood still. Empress Feng, who had taken a few steps, noticed that Emperor Mingde had not followed and turned back, frowning as she asked, "Isn't Your Majesty going to see Consort Rong?"

Emperor Mingde shook his head. "I won't go. The banquet isn't over yet, and I can't leave."

Upon hearing this, Empress Feng felt a surge of sarcasm. Could they really do without him? Ha! What a joke. In her opinion, the Emperor couldn't bear to look at Consort Rong in her current state. Ha! Wasn't it supposed to be favor? The love of an emperor is nothing more than that face, that young body?

Thinking of Yunxiu, Empress Feng frowned imperceptibly. She was still scheming in her mind how to ruin the marriage between Yunxiu and the Prince of Bohai. Yunxiu was a gift from her to the Emperor, so she had to serve by his side. In addition, with Consort Rong in this state, the Emperor would eventually have a new concubine by his side, and that person had to be Yunxiu.

"That's right. Then I'll go and check on Consort Rong on behalf of Your Majesty." Empress Feng sighed. "Consort Rong has just lost her child. If she wakes up and there's no one by her side, she'll probably be heartbroken."

Emperor Mingde paused for a moment, walked up to Empress Feng, and took her hand. “You are the most understanding one. She tried to frame you just now, but you didn’t hold a grudge. You are the most sensible one.”

Empress Feng was delighted to receive Emperor Mingde's praise, but she didn't show it much. She shook her head, her smile tinged with bitterness, and said, "Taking good care of the sisters in the harem for Your Majesty is the only thing I can do for you."

Emperor Mingde looked at Empress Feng before him. Over the years, he had always neglected to care for her. Thinking of the ever-increasing number of concubines in the harem, a strange feeling arose in Emperor Mingde's heart. He tightened his grip on her hand and said, "Tonight, I will rest in your palace."

Empress Feng had never expected Emperor Mingde to make such a decision for her; it was an unexpected gain. Although she was happy, she remained calm and said, "Your Majesty, I have ordered people to make preparations. Now, I must first go and see Consort Rong for Your Majesty."

"Go ahead." Emperor Mingde patted the back of her hand before letting go.

As Empress Feng turned around, a triumphant smile bloomed on her lips. "Consort Rong, have you ever imagined that the man who dotes on you would not even want to look at you again? But I cannot miss this opportunity. I want to see how Consort Rong suffers!"

At this moment, Consort Rong's palace was bustling with activity, but the atmosphere was also unusually heavy. The imperial physician was treating the wounds on Consort Rong's body and face from the wasp stings, and he couldn't help but sigh. Hearing this, the faces of those around him also became solemn.

Empress Feng's lips curled into a faint smile, but the concubines waiting "concernedly" at the door all had a hint of schadenfreude in their eyes.

"Oh dear, I don't know where these wasps came from. We're alright, just our clothes are messed up and we look a bit disheveled. But who would have thought that those wretched things would like Consort Rong so much?"

They were all watching, and they couldn't get rid of them no matter what they tried. If Consort Rong hadn't been submerged in the water at the end, she would probably still be surrounded by those ghostly things. Just thinking about it is terrifying.

"What do you mean by this? How come there are wasps in the palace?" another concubine asked in confusion.

"Hehe, Consort Rong is such a magical person. She was able to attract butterflies this morning, so why can't she attract wasps?"

"That's right. Doesn't she realize what day it is? She actually dared to openly pin the blame on the Empress in the main hall. In my opinion, even our ancestors couldn't stand her behavior. Those wasps might have been sent by our ancestors to teach Consort Rong a lesson."

Upon hearing this, the other concubines couldn't help but shudder. Putting aside the fact that Consort Rong had miscarried, just thinking about her horribly disfigured face was enough to send chills down their spines, not just chills, but even nausea.

"I wonder if the imperial physician can heal Consort Rong's injuries." Someone sighed, and all the concubines frowned. They all felt it was unlikely. So many wounds, even if they were healed, it would take some time. This was the thing that women in the harem feared most.

Who can say for sure that before Consort Rong's injuries heal, someone else might seize this opportunity to become the Emperor's new favorite?

Once her injuries have healed, who can say for sure whether the Emperor will even remember Consort Rong? And whether Consort Rong will have the ability to regain the Emperor's favor?

A faint smile appeared on everyone's lips. They were all experienced and knew that Consort Rong probably had no chance of turning things around this time.

Thinking of how arrogant and unrestrained Consort Rong was when she was favored, humph, now look what happened, she has ended up like this, she can only bear it herself, and she can't even blame them for watching the show and gloating.

Meanwhile, in the room, Consort Rong was still unconscious. The imperial physician had finally finished treating all her wounds, and it wasn't until two hours later that he wiped his sweat and stopped.

"Your Majesty, Consort Rong's injuries are too serious to be agitated. I think it's best not to tell her about the miscarriage yet, lest she be overwhelmed by the shock and it affect her recovery. Also, I've finished bandaging Consort Rong. It's best not to leave any mirrors or similar items in this room, lest Consort Rong see her current state and be too heartbroken." The imperial physician bowed, offering professional advice. He knew what appearance meant to a woman, and for the women of the harem, appearance was of paramount importance.

Empress Feng lowered her gaze slightly, thinking to herself, "What a meddlesome imperial physician."

However, Empress Feng appeared genuinely concerned, saying, "I had already thought of that. Don't worry, I will give the order. The imperial physician must be tired, so you can go now. I and the maids will take care of things here."

The imperial physician bowed respectfully, said nothing more, and immediately withdrew.

Empress Feng turned to look at Consort Rong lying on the bed, her face and body wrapped in bandages. Her smile deepened, and she loudly ordered the palace maids present, "You may all leave. Do not disturb Consort Rong's rest."

The palace maids dared not disobey, and Xinrou gave the other maids a wink, and they all left the room one after another.

The concubines waiting outside had already approached the imperial physician to inquire about the situation when he came out, but the physician avoided them, citing exhaustion. Now that the palace maids had come out, they naturally wouldn't let them off the hook.

"How is Consort Rong's injury?"

"Really? Is your face disfigured? Can it be cured?"