An Lingrong is reborn to live for herself.

An Lingrong watched Zhen Huan gracefully rise, and vaguely felt that something was wrong, but unfortunately, she was too far away to stop her in time.

When Zhen Huan spoke up at this moment, she must have felt that the Emperor was too busy dealing with Consort Hua to notice many details in time, and it was difficult for him to think things through. She realized that this matter might also be related to the city defense camp.

But the emperor is the emperor after all. Just look at how many times the emperor was enraged and how many times he calmed down today. It is clear that the emperor thinks more deeply than others on many matters.

It is said that concern leads to confusion. In Zhen Huan's eyes, these things always seemed to indicate that Consort Hua was arrogant and domineering, and even the emperor had to bow down and tolerate her.

However, if one can discern the truth, one will understand that whether or not to bow one's head is ultimately the emperor's decision. Zhen Huan, deeply entangled in this situation, inevitably felt a desire to share the burden. However, this made Zhen Huan the most prominent figure in everyone's eyes, and she was bound to become the subject of gossip and slander one day.

Thinking of this, An Lingrong couldn't help but sigh again, thinking that Zhen Huan's sincerity now should be worthwhile.

At this moment, Consort Hua was furious. Her eyebrows were raised, her phoenix eyes widened, and her gaze seemed to spit fire. She pointed her fair finger at Zhen Huan's brow and said angrily, "Noble Lady Wan, are you deliberately provoking me? Since I was ordered to assist in managing the harem, all matters in the harem have always been well-organized. If there is any doubt, you can ask His Majesty to issue an order to check the records! Do you think that just because I am good-natured, you can bully me? Seeing that you can't find any mistakes in the eunuchs in charge of the palace, you want to push the blame onto the guards of the city defense camp? I didn't know that you, Noble Lady Wan, are now in charge of the harem. How can a mere noble lady like you point fingers at me and my brother?"

Upon hearing this, Zhen Huan's delicate brows furrowed slightly, but her expression remained calm. She gave a slight curtsy and replied, "Your Highness, please calm your anger. In this harem, Her Majesty the Empress is naturally the most respected, and I dare not speak presumptuously. However, what Your Highness said just now was indeed very polite, so I followed Your Highness's train of thought. Moreover, I know that Your Highness is usually very strict in managing the harem, and I thought there would be no mistakes in the expenditures. But thinking about it this way, the only way to investigate is to follow the clues from outside, which is why I thought of the matter of sprinkling lime and sulfur to prevent snakes in July. I spoke the truth and had no intention of provoking Your Highness."

Everyone knew that Consort Hua was domineering and favored by the emperor, so she acted without restraint in the palace. The other concubines in the palace could only be angry but dared not speak out.

Today, seeing Consort Hua make trouble for Zhen Huan, the Emperor, though present, did not speak up to stop her. Although everyone was dissatisfied with Consort Hua's arrogance, they dared not easily show it.

Consort Xin, always straightforward, couldn't help but whisper when she saw Consort Hua's arrogant demeanor. "Noble Lady Wan only said that she sent people to investigate, but she didn't say that the sulfur was brought in by the city defense camp. Why did Consort Hua get angry so quickly? Is she going to have someone gossip about it?"

Upon hearing this, everyone couldn't help but look at Xin Changzai, many of them showing admiration.

Consort Hua was furious, but she disdained to stoop to the level of a concubine like Consort Xin. She only glanced at Consort Xin before turning to Zhen Huan, saying with a slight upturn of her lips, "Noble Lady Wan has quite the methods. I underestimated Noble Lady Wan. Not only is she usually quick-witted and eloquent, but it seems that her methods of winning people's hearts are also quite remarkable."

Zhen Huan knew that Consort Hua always acted directly and bluntly in the palace, lacking tact and resorting to force when pressed. This was naturally due to her comfortable life in the palace, but if it came down to scheming, Consort Hua would surely suffer a loss within a few rounds.

Zhen Huan had only used a little skill to make Consort Hua furious and flustered. At this moment, Consort Xin spoke out quickly and directly hit Consort Hua's sore spot, and Consort Hua was already at a disadvantage in this verbal battle.

But since we are in front of the emperor today, we should not speak too definitively, nor should we act too recklessly.

Having made up her mind, Zhen Huan quickly bowed to Consort Hua and said softly, "Your Highness, please calm down. I have not been in the palace for long, and I ask for your forgiveness if I have said anything inappropriate."

Before Consort Hua could speak, the Emperor said in a deep voice, "Consort Hua, sit back down. Noble Lady Wan is new here, please be understanding."

The emperor spoke only a few words, yet they were calm and powerful, and also exuded an indescribable aloofness.

Consort Hua was startled, realizing that the emperor was already impatient and she could not continue to pester him. She could only suppress her anger and sit back down.

Songzhi, who was beside her, hurriedly and attentively offered tea, but Consort Hua rudely blocked her, nearly knocking it over onto the tea table. Although the teacup didn't actually spill, most of the tea had already overflowed. Songzhi and the maid behind her hurriedly wiped the small table dry, daring not to make any loud noise. Before long, the maid brought over a fresh cup of tea, but this time Songzhi had learned her lesson and dared not offer it to Consort Hua, but carefully placed it on the small table.

Consort Hua had a bad temper, which the Emperor had always known and even indulged to some extent. But recently, the Emperor felt a throbbing pain in his forehead and no longer wanted to listen to Consort Hua's noise in the palace.

Seeing that the emperor's expression was not right, Su Peisheng quickly stepped forward and asked, "Your Majesty, are you feeling unwell? This servant will have a servant bring you a cup of calming tea."

The Emperor waved his hand, supporting his forehead with one hand as he said, "The investigation is almost complete. Consort Li has brought this upon herself, but considering her family's merit in quelling the rebellion in the Northwest, she is demoted to Noble Lady and confined to Qixiang Palace. No one else is allowed to visit her. All the palace servants who originally served in Qixiang Palace are to be sent to the Censorate for questioning."

Those who speak in connection with this case will have their crimes mitigated; those who provide important clues or make significant contributions may be exempted from punishment.

Having said that, she slightly opened her eyes, looked around, saw the people standing below, and said indifferently, "The Empress is in charge of the inner palace after all, so leave the rest to the Empress."

As he spoke, his gaze suddenly turned cold as he looked at Consort Qi and said in a deep voice, "Consort Qi, as the birth mother of a prince, has shown no restraint and behaved improperly. She is hereby confined to her quarters for half a month. If there is a next time, she will be severely punished." Consort Qi inwardly groaned and sighed, but dared not show the slightest displeasure on her face. She could only obediently kowtow and thank the emperor for his grace.

After the emperor finished speaking, he left Jingren Palace with his entourage.

After the emperor left, the empress looked exhausted. She gave a few words of advice and then sent everyone back to the palace.

Consort Hua and Consort Cao were the first to leave, and as they left, Consort Hua didn't forget to glare fiercely at Zhen Huan.

Zhen Huan didn't take it to heart, but Consort Xin, as she was leaving, deliberately went to Zhen Huan's side and whispered a reminder, "Since Your Highness has offended Consort Hua today, you must be more careful in your future affairs." Considering there were too many people around to say anything more, Zhen Huan simply nodded her thanks, and the two parted ways.

After being detained in the palace for half a day, they were finally able to leave.

As An Lingrong stood up, she realized that in the chaos of the palace just now, the white jade pendant she had picked up was still in her hand. Thinking that she didn't know when she would have the chance to return it to its rightful owner, she instructed Shuangxue beside her to put it away carefully.

After a day of chaos, the originally lively Flower Goddess Festival had turned into a terrifying dream, which was quite regrettable. An Lingrong stood at the palace gate, looking up into the distance. The golden glazed tiles, unique to the Forbidden City, kept the azure sky outside. As evening approached, the sun was setting, and the afterglow spread obliquely on the glazed tiles, as if draping the Forbidden City with a thin veil. But the sky was still the same sky, and the city was still the same city; they remained completely unrelated.

Today's events seem to have settled, but An Lingrong has a vague feeling that a storm is about to begin.