An Lingrong is reborn to live for herself.

As spring deepens, the flowers in the greenhouse are thriving. They should be budding, but they are already in full bloom.

With a series of joyous events in the harem, the Empress was naturally overjoyed and extended a warm invitation to all the concubines to gather at Jingren Palace.

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The excuse of flower viewing is just perfect.

Normally, the concubines in the harem were bored, spending their time either admiring flowers or doing needlework—merely trivial things to pass the time. It was rare for the Empress to be in such high spirits, so she invited all the concubines to gather together for a chat and flower viewing, and everyone naturally went happily.

It seems that only Consort Hua and Consort An were not particularly concerned about this matter.

Consort Hua had been childless for many years, and with two other concubines becoming pregnant in succession, she was already extremely resentful. To have to pretend to be virtuous in front of the other concubines out of respect for the Empress was simply too deliberate and made everyone uncomfortable. Therefore, Consort Hua's attire today was rather plain, and her clothing much simpler, showing that although she didn't directly contradict the Empress, she didn't like the occasion.

Consort Hua seems to have become much more obedient lately, no longer deliberately competing with the Empress. It's unclear whether the Emperor gave her a hint or her strategist Cao Qinmo offered some advice.

An Lingrong wasn't interested because she was currently out of favor and didn't catch the Empress's eye. There was no need for her to stand out on such an occasion. Therefore, she remained dressed very simply.

Having been effectively confined to her quarters for angering the emperor, Xia finally had a chance to go out for a stroll. Judging from her appearance, she was in a great mood today, and her light green jacket with cloud patterns made her look quite playful.

However, Xia's behavior remained unchanged. As she swayed her hips toward Jingren Palace, she happened to run into An Lingrong, who had come with Zhen Huan and Shen Meizhuang. She immediately straightened her face, glared at her round eyes, and said loudly, "The Empress is too kind. Regardless of her birth, she invites all the sisters in the harem to the palace to admire the flowers."

"Let's ignore her." Shen Meizhuang, being composed, gestured to An Lingrong not to get angry.

An Lingrong simply smiled and said, "I'll just ignore her. Today I'll just talk to my two older sisters."

Zhen Huan laughed, "This Xia family probably doesn't realize that her flattery is backfiring."

Shen Meizhuang gestured to Zhen Huan not to laugh and talk at the entrance of Jingren Palace. The three of them ignored Xia Shi, straightened their posture, and entered Jingren Palace together.

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As expected of the flowers and plants sent to the Empress's palace, the palace servants took extra care of them.

Several plum trees were transplanted into Jingren Palace last year, and unexpectedly, some fragrance still lingers after winter and spring.

The peonies sent from the flower shop, though not yet in season, were in full bloom, including a rare twin peony that drew exclamations of wonder from the palace ladies.

The Empress was also in high spirits. Supported by Jianqiu, she walked into the sea of ​​flowers and explained the meanings and wonders of different flowers and trees to the concubines one by one. Among the concubines, Consort Xin, who loved plants the most, nodded repeatedly and sincerely praised the Empress as she listened to her explanation. Consort Qi, the birth mother of the Third Prince, although she did not know much about flowers and trees, spoke in a very charming way, making the Empress smile from ear to ear.

What a harmonious and joyful scene!

However, An Lingrong's mind was not on these flowers and plants today. She was even less inclined to watch the Empress's pretentious act.

I just said that my cough had just started to get better, and I was worried about passing on the illness to my pregnant sisters, so I just watched from a distance.

The Empress didn't pay much attention. After all, if there were any arrangements today, An Lingrong herself wouldn't be the main character.

Because these three times in her previous life were precisely the days when Consort Fucha conceived. And what An Lingrong was most concerned about at this moment was how these two pregnant concubines would fare.

However, even though An Lingrong was on high alert today, she did not notice anything unusual.

As the sun gradually rose at midday, the Empress said she was tired. After instructing Jianqiu to take care of the concubines in the palace, she returned to the palace to rest with two personal maids.

After being detained for a while, the concubines saw that the Empress had all gone back, so they all left Jingren Palace one after another.

Because it was her first pregnancy, Fucha was experiencing severe morning sickness. She kept covering her mouth as she walked, appearing to be in great discomfort.

When they reached the Thousand Mile Pond outside Yikun Palace, the journey became too difficult, so they went in to rest with their maids. But during this rest, something unexpected happened.

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When the emperor arrived at the inner palace, the first news he heard was that Lady Yuan's child had died.

Since Zhongcui Palace had no principal seat and the matter concerned the imperial heir, the only option was to invite the Empress to the palace to oversee the situation.

The imperial physicians were covered in sweat, but it was too late to save the child; Yuan's child was gone.

But the child's disappearance was quite strange.

Cui'er, a palace maid serving Consort Fucha, knelt in the hall, her voice trembling slightly, but she could still speak clearly: "On the way back to Yanxi Palace, Consort Fucha was suffering from severe morning sickness and couldn't walk any further, so she asked me to sit with her in the pavilion by the Queqianli Pond." But then, out of nowhere, a madwoman came running over, grabbed Consort Fucha's hand, and said that the child in Consort Fucha's womb was a demon. Consort Fucha is carrying the imperial heir; how could she hear such mad words? I went forward to stop the old woman from approaching Consort Fucha while calling for help, but this old woman was so insane that she bit my arm hard." With that, Cui'er rolled up her sleeve and indeed saw a grayish-purple mark, with blood seeping from one spot—a truly fatal bite.

"Yes, continue," the Empress nodded to indicate that she had read it and let Cui'er continue.

“Normally there are guards patrolling around the Thousand Mile Pond, but today, for some reason, I called for a long time and no one came. This old woman is too strong; I really couldn't stop her. Seeing that she was still determined to pull towards the young mistress, I could only hold onto her legs, but I was dragged along. But just then, I unexpectedly saw Lady Miaoyin... she…”

"What happened to Lady Miaoyin?" the Empress asked anxiously, seeing Cui'er hesitate.

"This servant saw that Lady Miaoyin was lying behind the artificial rock not far away, and there was blood all over her body..."

"How come you didn't notice when Lady Miaoyin collapsed behind the artificial rockery, even though you were so close?" The Emperor's face remained ashen. The Empress glanced at the Emperor and continued to ask seriously.

Indeed, although Qianli Pond is the largest scenic pond in the palace, it is ultimately a place for the concubines to enjoy their daily leisure activities, and it is not actually a thousand miles long. The pavilion and the artificial hill are only a few steps apart, and Consort Fucha had been resting nearby for quite some time, yet she hadn't noticed them at all, which is quite puzzling.

Cui'er quickly explained, "The location of Lady Miaoyin was blocked by a willow tree that was leaning out at an angle, and my mistress was sitting with her back to the side of the rockery, so it was really not easy to find Lady Miaoyin. I was dragged along and had to lie on the ground to find Lady Miaoyin by chance."

"Hmm, seeing that you're covered in dust, you don't seem to be lying." The Queen nodded.

"Your Majesty, what do you think?" The Empress hesitated, as if she wanted to say something but then stopped herself.

This happened suddenly, but it's really strange.

If we were to name anyone in the harem who was wary of the concubines having children, then among those who already had offspring, Consort Qi would be the prime suspect. However, her son, the Third Prince, is currently the Emperor's eldest son, and if he becomes successful, he will be the most likely candidate to succeed to the throne. Meanwhile, it's unknown whether the children in the wombs of Consort Yuan and Consort Fucha are boys or girls, so taking action at this time would be far too hasty.

Then there are these two pregnant concubines.

Yuan was born into a bondservant family with an ordinary background. Fortunately, besides having a beautiful voice, she also had a good temper, was gentle and polite, and didn't cause trouble. Although she was favored during this period, she didn't incur any resentment.

As for Lady Fucha, born into the Fucha family, she had put in a lot of effort to protect this pregnancy at the behest of her family. She rarely went out, and if it weren't for the Empress's gathering today, she certainly wouldn't have gone out for a stroll.

Yet these two people both ended up in trouble.

"Su Peisheng, have someone check all the guards on duty today. If you miss one, you'll be held responsible."

"Yes, sir." Su Peisheng dared not delay and immediately led the young eunuch out.

Consort Hua, who had come with the Emperor, was standing to the side, but looking at the Emperor's ashen face, she couldn't utter a single word.

She disliked the Empress's flower-viewing banquet, thinking it was just a pretentious act of feigning virtue. So when the Empress said she was tired, she took Songzhi to the Hall of Mental Cultivation, hoping to quickly get close to the Emperor, act coquettishly, and give him a piece of her mind. As a result, she happened to be in the Hall of Mental Cultivation with the Emperor at the time of the incident.

However, the palace closest to Qianli Pond is her Yikun Palace, and this matter concerns the Dragon Descendants. Although the matter was not her doing, she still can't explain it clearly.

Moreover, one of the guards working in three shifts each day was responsible for secretly smuggling money, food, and valuables out of the palace for her. Now that the Emperor intends to investigate the guards, wouldn't she be implicated as well?

After pondering this, Consort Hua finally spoke, "Your Majesty is preoccupied with the imperial heir, but I feel that after Consort Miaoyin left the Empress's Jingren Palace, she did not return to her own Zhongcui Palace, but instead went to Qianli Pond, which is in the opposite direction. What is the reason for this?"

Upon hearing this question, both the emperor and empress frowned.