Traveling through an ancient military camp: Bao'er's survival song

Next, Consort Chen told Wu Peng'en about the predicament she was currently facing.

Although she is now a Noble Consort and seems to be the most powerful woman in the harem, the three consorts below her are all from prominent families.

Consort Shu is the late Empress's cousin. Relying on her lineage with the late Empress, she has always looked down on Consort Chen. However, she was sent to the palace by the Duke of Cheng'en under the pretext of taking care of the young Crown Prince after the late Empress's death. Perhaps because the Emperor was already old at that time, she has not had any children to this day.

Consort De was an old servant of the Emperor from his time as a prince, and she was quite old. Both of her daughters, the princesses, had already married. The current Consort De had no interest in the power struggles within the harem. Her position was secure, and her deceased father had served as the prime minister of the previous dynasty. Her family background made her a formidable figure in the harem, someone no one dared to offend.

Consort Xian is quite interesting. Although she holds the title of Consort Xian, she doesn't live up to the word "virtuous" in her name; she's strong-willed and even somewhat willful. She comes from a military family; her uncle is the Grand General of the Cavalry, one of the Three Dukes. However, Consort Xian and Consort Shu are close friends, a natural alliance. When they encounter Consort Chen together, they act as if they're all superior. She entered the palace earlier than Consort Shu and did give birth to a princess.

Consort Chen rose from humble beginnings and gained the Emperor's favor. Furthermore, she was acutely aware of her place and treated the Crown Prince with great affection, even showing him more attention than her own son, Liu Shu. This displeased Consort Shu, who was the Crown Prince's aunt.

Consort Shu and Consort Xian frequently mocked Consort Chen, openly and subtly, for using her beauty to curry favor, accusing her of being obsequious and harboring ill intentions. These two consorts practically kept a close eye on her, hoping to find a fault with the Consort to exploit. This feeling of being watched was extremely unpleasant, and Consort Chen lacked the wit to counter their attacks. After being kindly helped by Wu Peng once, she set her sights on the great talent the Emperor spoke of.

After listening to this, Wu Peng'en pondered for a moment and then said, "It's the most difficult thing to explain when things are going wrong. To be frank, I spent a long time with Your Majesty. Even if we didn't say a word the whole time, other people would still think that I was on Your Majesty's side. Sometimes, when a person has something to doubt, they don't have the energy to do anything else."

Consort Chen looked somewhat confused.

Wu Peng'en added, "As the head of the four consorts, it is reasonable for Her Majesty to invite Consort Xian to go boating on the lake or enjoy the spring scenery in the courtyard alone. I'm sure Consort Xian can't refuse every time."

Luo Binghe, perched in the tree, understood first and couldn't help but mutter to himself, "How insidious!" This Grand Tutor Wu, who appeared so pure and immaculate, like the bright moon, how could his schemes be so underhanded? Luo Binghe, who considered himself a true gentleman, immediately felt a dislike for this Mr. Wu.

If Consort Chen were to meet with Consort Xian privately a few times, even if their meetings were filled with harsh words, Consort Shu, unaware of the true situation, would certainly suspect that Consort Xian had betrayed her and was instead befriending the Emperor's favorite, Consort Chen. Once the seed of suspicion is planted, it will inevitably take root and grow stronger. At that point, the alliance between the two favored ladies would break down, and they might even become enemies. Naturally, they would have less energy left to monitor Consort Chen and sabotage her.

However, Consort Chen under the tree still seemed confused, so Wu Peng'en couldn't explain further and left it to Consort Chen to figure it out herself. She then said that there were princes waiting for her to teach them and that she should leave.

Luo Binghe watched as Wu Peng'en walked leisurely to the courtyard gate. He noticed that when Wu Peng'en opened the door, he slightly turned his head, seemingly glancing at his own position, but quickly disappeared behind the wooden door.

As soon as Wu Peng'en disappeared, Yu Liu, the head palace maid under the tree, suddenly uttered two strange, incomprehensible words, seemingly in some local dialect. However, these two words were spoken quickly and briefly, and were immediately silenced by Consort Chen's stern rebuke, "Shut up!"

Consort Chen and Yu Liu stood under the tree for another quarter of an hour before leaving.

Luo Binghe, who was in the tree, breathed a sigh of relief.

But Wu Peng'en's faint glance made him hesitate. After remaining perched in the tree for almost half an hour, he finally jumped down. Instead of going through the main gate, he opened a dog hole under the courtyard wall and prepared to crawl out.

However, at that moment, he was struck hard in the buttocks by a hidden weapon. Before he could even check, Luo Binghe slipped out and, relying on his familiarity with the palace environment, began to run for his life.