An Lingrong is reborn to live for herself.

Upon hearing that the emperor had learned of the palace maid's fall into the well, he was furious.

Most of the palace maids serving in the inner palace were selected by the Imperial Household Department and were mostly from the Eight Banners.

The emperor only gave the empress two words: investigate thoroughly.

Although a thorough investigation was to be conducted, the Empress acted with utmost care, and the inner palace remained peaceful and stable.

During this period, the emperor also did a lot of things.

Besides handling the daily affairs of the court, in the inner palace, the Emperor chose Shen Meizhuang as his concubine. He greatly admired her quiet and courteous manners, and after several days of interaction, he discovered that she was also well-read and played the zither beautifully, which pleased him even more. He not only bestowed upon her a plaque inscribed with "Cunju Hall," but also ordered the flower workshop to send a large quantity of newly cultivated green chrysanthemums to her palace.

In addition, after hearing that Consort Hua had thrown out all the chrysanthemums in his palace, he went to Consort Hua's palace to appease her for a long time and had dinner there for several days in a row before he was able to calm her down.

Even the diligent emperor, when selecting the green-headed plaques, did not forget to recall Consort Wan, whom he cared deeply about. However, he discovered that Consort Wan had fallen ill from fright because of the incident of a palace maid falling into a well. Therefore, he reiterated his stance that a thorough investigation was necessary.

However, with more than half a month passed and still no progress, the emperor was very displeased and immediately dismissed Consort Xin from Jingren Palace.

Calculating the time, among the newly promoted concubines, apart from Zhen Huan who was unable to serve the emperor due to illness, all the other newcomers had already been chosen, and it was almost her turn. An Lingrong began preparations early in the morning.

This is truly not a pleasant memory; it could even be described as a humiliation from a past life.

An Lingrong resented this whole affair. She resented that the emperor had never treated her like a human being. From the very first meeting, she felt like an object. He would take her out and play with her when he liked her, and when he didn't, he would send her back without a second thought.

He allowed himself to be ridiculed in the harem for more than half a year.

This time, however, she had absolutely no desire to serve the emperor.

However, no matter how clear-headed she is in this life, being penniless, powerless, and without resources remains her current situation, and the only one who can save her is herself.

The next day, when paying her respects to the Empress, An Lingrong prepared a small sachet for herself and hid it under her handkerchief. The sachet had a faint scent, but it was very pungent when inhaled. While the other concubines were still in the courtyard, An Lingrong covered her mouth and coughed incessantly.

Seeing An Lingrong coughing so hard that tears were about to come out, Shen Meizhuang wanted to go forward to take a look, but was stopped by Consort Jing beside her.

Xia stood far away and said, "An Yingying is coughing so badly, I'm afraid she has contracted tuberculosis."

Supported by Baojuan, An Lingrong coughed until her face turned pale and said in a low voice, "I'm afraid I caught a chill this morning. I was thinking that I couldn't break the custom of paying my respects to the Empress, so I haven't had time to ask the imperial physician to come and see me." After saying that, she coughed again and again until she could hardly breathe.

Xia frowned even more. "I must report to the Empress. If you, this sickly woman, really have tuberculosis, you'd better move out of my palace. The Emperor will come sooner or later. If you pass on your illness to the Emperor, you'll be in for a world of hurt."

"Consort Xia has quite the air of arrogance. It seems Consort Xia is already in charge of the affairs of the inner palace? How come such a major matter as moving the palace is decided solely by Consort Xia?"

"Your Majesty, I dare not. But since Consort An is coughing so badly, I am afraid that Consort Xia's cough will be contagious and may also spread to Consort Hua." Consort Xia hurriedly replied upon hearing this, unaware that her words had given Consort Hua a perfect opportunity to retaliate.

"Are you cursing me?" Consort Hua said sternly.

"Your Majesty, I dare not. Your Majesty... Your Majesty is just worried, just worried."

Upon hearing this, Consort Hua rolled her eyes to the heavens.

He thought to himself, "Where did this idiot who only knows how to cause trouble come from? But luckily, I can't get rid of him no matter what I do."

Just as he was about to lash out, Jianqiu, who was by the Empress's side, happened to lift the curtain and come out.

"Greetings to all the ladies-in-waiting. Her Majesty the Empress's headache flared up again this morning, so the greetings from all the palaces will be waived today." After saying this, he turned to An Lingrong and said, "Her Majesty the Empress heard that Consort An is coughing badly, so she specially ordered this servant to come out and inform Consort An that autumn is the season when it is easiest for wind-cold to enter the bones. Please take care of your health, Consort An. If you are lacking anything, just let me know."

An Lingrong hurriedly coughed as she thanked the emperor. Her delicate appearance was quite pitiful.

After hearing Jianqiu's words, Consort Hua was even more displeased. She thought to herself that today was the worst day ever. She had gotten into a fight with a brainless person first thing in the morning, and now she had run into a sickly person.

Losing interest for a moment, Consort Hua turned around and returned to the palace with her maids.

Seeing Shen Meizhuang's worried expression, An Lingrong simply waved goodbye from afar and left.

That evening, the Empress sent someone to deliver a message, saying that the Empress, mindful of An Lingrong's homesickness and discomfort due to the change in environment, had specially bestowed upon her fragrant pears and some tonics from Jiangnan. However, she also instructed the Imperial Household Department to remove An Lingrong's green plaque.

She also specifically asked the imperial physician, who said that the physician also felt there was nothing seriously wrong and only told An Lingrong to rest and recuperate without any worries.

An Lingrong found it amusing. In her past life, Consort Hua was the most favored concubine, and Shen Meizhuang had become a new favorite. Seeing that both of them were about to become powerful, the Empress thought of winning An Lingrong over. Now, it was Xia Dongchun who had become the new candidate in the Empress's eyes.

Well, whatever, I didn't want to get involved in this mess anyway.

Furthermore, An Lingrong in this life had already made up her mind that as long as Zhen Huan did not receive favor, she, An Lingrong, would not serve the emperor.