Quick Transmigration: Survive to the End

The head eunuch beside her glanced at the emperor's expression and explained to Yin Yin.

“Princess, please forgive me. It shouldn’t be this easy, but… the Left Prime Minister, fearing that Consort Zhou is young and may not be used to the palace, specifically sought His Majesty’s favor for his niece, Consort Zhou.”

"I see," Yin Yin said, then asked, "How long has Consort Zhou been in the palace?"

Upon hearing this question, the Emperor's expression brightened: "If Yinyin hadn't asked, I would have almost forgotten. Consort Zhou has been in the palace for two or three years; she should have adapted by now."

The emperor instructed the chief eunuch: "Since the people around Consort Zhou are no longer useful, send them back. They don't need to come to the palace again. Go and choose someone for her later."

"From now on, unless specially permitted, no one around Consort Zhou shall be allowed to freely enter or leave the palace. The palace should have its own rules."

"Yes," the head eunuch bowed and withdrew.

"Come on, Uncle will take you back," the emperor said, leading Yin Yin by the hand. He even strolled around in high spirits, encountering one, two, three, or four beauties along the way.

The emperor was indifferent to the advances of these beauties, dismissing them with a few casual words and ordering the road to be cleared ahead of time.

When he arrived at Fengyi Palace, he briefly explained the situation to the Empress, but didn't pay much attention to it.

Not long after, a commotion arose outside the Phoenix Palace.

"Your Majesty! Your concubine requests an audience with Your Majesty!"

Consort Zhou entered, sobbing, and without even glancing at the Empress, went straight to the Emperor.

Yinyin had just frowned when the Empress covered her ears.

"Were you frightened?" The Empress waited until Consort Zhou calmed down before changing her position and pulling Yin Yin into her arms. "Don't be afraid, your aunt is here."

Yinyin hid in the Empress's arms and secretly glanced at Consort Zhou and the Emperor.

The emperor's stiffness was almost impossible to conceal.

When Yinyin saw the head eunuch who came in after her almost lost his composure, she immediately lowered her head and replied.

"Your Majesty, Consort Zhou knows that you have appointed a new person for her, and she feels uncomfortable with it, saying that she wants the old one back."

"Your Majesty," Consort Zhou then added coquettishly, "Your Majesty, I'm not used to the new concubine. Please call Xiao Hong back."

The emperor smiled, patted her hand gently, and instructed the chief eunuch: "Since Consort Zhou is not used to it, then take her back. There is no need to send her over."

Seeing that the chief eunuch had agreed, Consort Zhou smiled smugly and took the emperor's hand, saying, "Thank you, Your Majesty. Your Majesty, I have prepared some fresh dishes in the palace, and I await your tasting."

Yinyin gently tugged at the Empress, and when she lowered her head, she whispered in her ear, "Aunt, didn't Uncle not ask Xiao Hong to go back?"

"If we take this assigned person away as well, won't Consort Zhou be short one person by her side?"

The Empress smiled slightly, considered for a moment, and replied softly, "That's how Consort Zhou is."

Thus, Yin Yin understood that although this Consort Zhou was beautiful, she was probably not very bright.

The fact that Consort Zhou was able to react so quickly and seek out the Emperor this time suggests that someone might have been giving her advice behind the scenes.

Just as Yin Yin was talking to the Empress, the Emperor also managed to coax Consort Zhou away. When he came to his senses and saw the two of them being so intimate, leaving him all alone on the side, he pursed his lips.

"What are you two talking about, so happily? Let me hear it too?"

Yin Yin hesitated to speak, but the Empress had no such reservations, saying bluntly, "Your Majesty, aren't you afraid that if you just send Consort Zhou back like this, she'll listen to the advice of her maid and come back again?"

The emperor pondered for a moment, then rose and said, "There are many matters to attend to in the court today, so I will head to the Zichen Palace first."

"With nothing happening in the inner palace, the Empress should order the palace gates to be locked as soon as possible."

After the emperor left, a female official from the empress's side stepped forward and asked, "Your Majesty, shall we give the order now?"

"What are you giving orders for?" the Empress said nonchalantly. "It'll take about the same amount of time, just follow the normal schedule."

"Their current flustered state is a clear indication that they have something to hide. Just instruct the guards at the palace gates to be more responsible."

Yinyin listened attentively and nodded repeatedly.

The Empress chuckled at the sight: "Did Yinyin understand?"

"Hmm..." Yin Yin put her little hand on her chin and thought for a while, "Anyway, Auntie is definitely right."

The Empress laughed even harder after hearing this, and patted her head: "There will probably be a commotion tonight. If you hear any noise, just stay in your room and don't come out."

Because the Empress added that sentence, Yin Yin returned to her room and did not wash up and lie down to practice her internal energy as usual.

However, Yin Yin only asked Granny Zhang to read one page of the book for her, and then a commotion broke out outside.

Guizhi heard the commotion and went to the front. Not long after, she ran back, beaming with joy.

"Princess, we have found out everything."

Granny Zhang cleared her throat.

Guizhi quickly composed herself, but she couldn't suppress the slightly trembling tone in her voice.

"It's Consort Zhou. I heard that she first went to the inner palace gate and made a scene, wanting to see the Emperor, but she couldn't. So she went to Fengyi Palace and asked the Empress to order her to go to Zichen Palace."

Yin Yin didn't care what Consort Zhou was planning to do: "What's your aunt's reaction?"

“Your Majesty the Empress,” Guizhi replied, “naturally she disagrees.”

"Moreover, the Empress did not appear in person, but only sent her maids and female officials to deal with Consort Zhou."

Yin Yin nodded. Since the Empress hadn't shown up, it meant she didn't think Consort Zhou was someone worth paying attention to.

Remembering the Empress's instructions for today, Yinyin only asked Guizhi to keep an eye on the situation ahead before yawning and pretending to be sleepy as she went to wash up.

The next morning, when Yin Yin got up and washed, Gui Zhi brought her the rest of the story.

"After all that trouble from Consort Zhou, Her Majesty the Empress silenced her with a single glance."

"However, one of the old nannies by Consort Zhou's side had a rather firm attitude, but when Her Majesty the Empress said that she was too old and would be allowed to leave the palace another day, the nanny stopped."

"And upon hearing this, Consort Zhou was so frightened that she grabbed the old nanny and ran out without daring to linger for even half a step."

Yinyin didn't even raise an eyebrow after hearing this.

Previously, the Empress was so immersed in the grief of losing her son that she didn't care much about affairs of state. Even a lowly nanny dared to raise her voice in front of her, relying on the power of the Left Prime Minister.

Now that the Empress is about to establish herself, if she wants to act recklessly, everyone in the harem will suffer greatly.

After all, in this harem, the Empress has natural authority. With a legitimate reason, even if those concubines have powerful backgrounds, they can still cause trouble in the imperial court, and the Empress will always be in the right.

Thinking of the previous dynasty, Yin Yin's heart stirred.

Consort Zhou openly sent a letter to the Left Prime Minister, and since the palace maid was unable to return to the palace smoothly, she must have gone back to the Left Prime Minister's residence.

I wonder if, upon hearing this news, the Left Chancellor will act as if nothing happened, or will he use it as an excuse to approach the Emperor?