The eldest daughter's scheming, the crown prince's exclusive favor to the venomous concubi

Yue Leyun raised her eyes, glared fiercely at Qiu Lingyu, and smiled with narrowed eyes: "What do you mean by that, Consort Ling? Are you implying that I deliberately framed the princess? But if it really was me, why would I be so foolish as to make a move when the Emperor is with you? Would that be openly telling others that I'm going to frame the princess? How could I possibly do something so stupid?"

Murong Chuan's fingers twitched slightly, and a hint of hesitation appeared on his face. Seeing this, Qiu Lingyu smiled and said, "Indeed, the Empress is exceptionally intelligent and always does things thoroughly. How could she possibly make such a mistake? I suppose this was not the Empress's doing. Your Majesty, please don't blame the Empress!"

Murong Chuan glanced at Qiu Lingyu and, seeing that she didn't seem unhappy, felt much relieved. He then looked at Qiu Lingyu and said, "Look at yourself now. You haven't even finished your postpartum period yet, how can you be so careless about yourself? Get up quickly, don't kneel."

With Dingxiang's help, Yue Leyun stood up, her eyes filled with tears, and said, "Thank you for your mercy, Your Majesty. However, the princess fell ill because of my momentary negligence, which has also caused Your Majesty such distress. It is all my fault. How about I take care of the princess for a few days to make me feel better?"

Seeing that Yue Leyun was eyeing Rouge again, Qiu Lingyu's eyes flashed with anger, and she sneered, "Your Majesty should take good care of yourself. Rouge is doing quite well here with me. If it weren't for Your Majesty's various ways of sending things to me, Rouge would definitely be fine."

Yue Leyun looked up at her, puzzled, and asked, "What does Consort Ling mean by this? Is this a roundabout way of saying that I have failed you?"

Qiu Lingyu smiled and said, "I dare not, I am just expressing my feelings. After all, it was the Empress who sent the wrong thing, not me. I am a girl from Mobei, and I do not make excuses. I am straightforward. If I said anything that offended the Empress, please do not blame me. You are the mother of the nation and have a broad mind."

"But Rouge is too young to eat much. My wet nurse here produces excellent breast milk, and Rouge doesn't eat much. I think she can continue to eat this for several more months. Therefore, rice cereal and the like are not needed for now, to avoid upsetting her stomach."

Yue Leyun immediately said with a wronged look in her eyes, "Consort Ling's words are implying that I deliberately harmed the princess, but you don't know my grievances."

Qiu Lingyi raised an eyebrow: "I didn't say any of that. I was just thinking that the child is too young to eat too many miscellaneous things. Apart from what I used, the rest of the things the Empress sent were given to the servants. It's a little hard to give away such good things, but it would be a waste to let them spoil if we couldn't finish them. And I couldn't refuse the things the Empress sent."

After Qiu Lingyu finished speaking, she glanced meaningfully at Murong Chuan. Murong Chuan's rash had receded somewhat. Seeing Qiu Lingyu looking at him, he frowned for a moment and said, "In that case, Empress, you should not send anything over again. I will have the Imperial Household Department send a token to Consort Ling. If Consort Ling needs anything, she can just go and get it herself."

"When has anyone other than the Empress ever had a plaque from the Imperial Household Department?" As soon as Murong Chuan said this, Yue Leyun was furious. She was about to retort when Qiu Lingyu smiled and thanked him, saying, "Thank you for the Emperor's gift. Now it's all right. I no longer have to worry about the Emperor breaking the tea set that the Empress gave me and having no tea set to use."

Yue Leyun was taken aback. She looked up and saw Murong Chuan staring at her. Immediately, she shut her mouth and said calmly, "This is a very appropriate move. It's convenient and quick."

Murong Chuan nodded in agreement: "In that case, let it be so! Your Majesty, you are not yet fully recovered, so please write your reply. I am feeling unwell and will be resting with Consort Ling. You may take your leave now!"

Yue Leyun gritted her teeth and knelt down to accept the offering. Qiu Lingyu smiled and stepped forward to help Yue Leyun up, saying, "In that case, I'll see you off, so you won't always say that I look down on the things you give me."

Yue Leyun sneered, "In that case, thank you, Consort Ling."

The two walked together to the palace gate with forced smiles. Only then did Qiu Lingyu release Yue Leyun's arm and say, "Your Majesty, farewell."

Yue Leyun turned to look at her and said, "Consort Ling is indeed skilled; she actually managed to get the Emperor to discover the secret on the cup."

Qiu Lingyu smiled faintly and said, "What secret? Could it be that Her Majesty the Empress did something to the cup she gave me?"

Yue Leyun couldn't help but sneer: "Wasn't it you who instructed the Emperor to break that set of cups?"

Qiu Lingyu raised an eyebrow and said, "Isn't this because Your Majesty is guilty? I didn't say anything, but you admitted it yourself."

Yue Leyun immediately sneered: "Admit what? What have I done? No matter what I've done, the Emperor will keep me safe, just like today. Do you think you can take the Emperor away from me?"

Qiu Lingyu shrugged and said nonchalantly, "Who wants to steal your emperor? Your emperor is the one who shamelessly clung to me. What does it have to do with me? If you're so capable, then drag him back yourself!"

Yue Leyun said fiercely, "Don't be so smug. This day will come eventually. Don't forget, I am the mistress of this harem after all."

"Of course I remember your position as the head of the harem. After all, it is stained with the blood of others. In that case, I look forward to the day when I become the Empress. But before that, I hope that when the Empress wakes up in the middle of the night, she will not dream. Otherwise, her dream will be crushed by reality before it is realized."

As she spoke, she leaned forward and whispered in Yue Leyun's ear, "Yue Leyun, do you really think Murong Chuan loves you? Don't be naive. The eldest grandson of your Yue family was taken away by the Emperor himself. Don't tell me you don't know why he did it. After all, he saw his own son when the former Empress gave birth."

Yue Leyun's eyes widened immediately, while Qiu Lingyu stepped back, bowed to Yue Leyun, and walked back to the palace.

Yue Leyun stood there for a long time, then suddenly felt weightless and almost fell.

"Empress, what's wrong with you?"

Dingxiang quickly helped Yue Leyun up and asked her with concern. Yue Leyun came back to her senses, shook her head, and turned to walk towards her palace, feeling upset all the way.

Yue Leyun was feeling uneasy, and Murong Chuan was also having a hard time. Qiu Lingyu kept coaxing Rouge, who had finally calmed down, but wouldn't even look at him. He had originally planned to use his status as the emperor to make Qiu Lingyu compromise, but seeing the way she looked at him, he felt a little guilty.

After putting the child to sleep, Qiu Lingyu walked to Murong Chuan's side and said, "His Majesty ordered me to let her go, so I let her go. Is His Majesty satisfied now?"

Murong Chuan nodded and said, "I'm sorry you've been wronged. I will make it up to you in the future."

Qiu Lingyu sneered, "Compensation? I never imagined that you actually liked this vicious woman. If that's the case, then what is my sister to you?"

Qiu Lingyu smiled and said, "No need. I never thought of wanting anything in the first place. The Northern Desert has everything, except you. That's why I traveled all this way here, but I never expected that you don't even have my heart. Since that's the case, there's no point in me staying in this palace. Is there any need for me to compete with others?"

Murong Chuan was taken aback, then smiled and said, "Is my beloved concubine jealous?"

Qiu Lingyu turned her head and said, "No, it's just that I feel that the Emperor's doting on the Empress is partly a good thing, but also partly a bad thing."

Murong Chuan frowned: "It's not about favoring her, it's just that there are still times when she can be used. After all, the Prime Minister still has a lot of power that I can't take back."

Qiu Lingyu sneered, "Your Majesty is probably deceiving yourself! If it's just because of the Prime Minister, then today, it is necessary to punish the Empress. After all, whether it's a princess or a prince, the Empress has also committed the great taboo of plotting to harm the imperial heir."

But the Emperor didn't. Not only did he not, he even used his body to secure the Empress's forgiveness. Tell me, if you don't love her, what else could it be?

Murong Chuan felt his heart pounding and wanted to retort, but Qiu Lingyu continued, "Whatever decision or choice Your Majesty makes, I will support Your Majesty. However, let me make this clear from the start: once the Empress has done it once, she will do it again. These days, Your Majesty has been wandering around the harem, and I'm afraid that one or two of these dozen or so concubines will become pregnant with the Emperor's child. If it is a boy, Your Majesty must be careful, lest you lose your child and not even know why."

As she spoke, Qiu Lingyu sighed, "What a pity about that set of bowls. The pattern was so lovely. I hope His Majesty will have the Imperial Household Department send over the waist tokens soon so I can go and choose some of the missing items myself."

After saying that, Qiu Lingyu left the house, and Murong Chuan turned and left.

Qiu Lingyu didn't care about what happened to Murong Chuan, but another unexpected event surprised her.

"You hit it on the first try?"

Bai Jianan laughed and said, "Yes, it worked on the first try. I really didn't expect that Murong Chuan, who may not be good at other things, is so good at making babies."

Qiu Lingyu shook her head, her eyes filled with worry, and said, "What will happen if a woman gets pregnant? Have we done something wrong?"

Upon hearing this, Bai Jianan sneered, "How can a woman who sells her body for money be pitied, especially since she's pregnant and told me so? Isn't she just trying to get some money from me? It's nothing more than a mutually beneficial arrangement. However, this matter is somewhat unexpected. I wonder what your plans are, Princess? Will you keep her or get rid of her?"

Qiu Lingyu was somewhat confused. She had never been a mother, and she couldn't understand why anyone would buy and sell their own child for money. Such a thing would never happen in the Northern Desert.

While she was pondering, Bing'er walked in and said, "Princess, Xing'er sent word that the three concubines who were the first to be favored in the harem are all pregnant. Yue Leyun is currently in a fit of rage in her palace and almost fainted."

Upon hearing this, Qiu Lingyu smiled and said, "Has Murong Chuan been worshipping the Guanyin Bodhisattva who grants children?"