The Empress looked at Lingxiu and said, "What use is my noble status if I'm still alone in this empty room every day, with no hope left..."

Lingxiu gently wiped the Empress's eyes and whispered, "No, Your Majesty, have you forgotten? Your Majesty still has Prince Beile to rely on. As long as Prince Beile becomes the Crown Prince one day, Your Majesty will no longer have to live in such fear..."

"Easier said than done, with so many eyes on the position of Crown Prince..." The Empress knew that this path was a dead end and futile to consider.

Lingxiu smiled slyly and said, "As long as Consort Nian doesn't have a son, no matter how much the Emperor favors her, it won't make a difference. As for who will ultimately become the Crown Prince, that's hard to say..."

The Empress was startled, her eyes widening as she muttered to herself, "Hongfu, the son of Consort Nian?"

Lingxiu nodded: "It's not a big deal if a filial son is weak, sickly, and dies young, Your Majesty, you don't need to worry..."

The next day, the Fourth Prince left Yikun Palace early.

Consort Nian, having slept late, stretched lazily. The palace maids, having prepared her clothes and toiletries, waited outside in turn. Cuiling peeked in, offering a fawning congratulation to Consort Nian: "When His Majesty left this morning, he instructed us not to disturb Your Highness's rest, saying that Your Highness had worked hard last night..."

Consort Nian threw a pillow at her, scolding lightly, "You little brat, how dare you make fun of me here..."

Cui Ling smiled, picked up the pillow, and went to help Consort Nian: "Your Highness doesn't know, everyone in Yikun Palace has been rewarded, all thanks to Your Highness. I heard that when they went to invite the Emperor the other day, the Empress's eyes practically popped out of her head, but the Emperor still came to visit Your Highness immediately. Now, everyone in this palace with eyes knows which way the wind is blowing..."

Consort Nian sat down at her dressing table, gently stroking her rosy cheeks, and said smugly, "Hmph... I am devoted to the Emperor. In the past, Lanqin vied for his favor, and the Emperor was blinded by her. Now that she is gone, the Emperor will naturally see my worth. This is nothing surprising; what will be truly enviable in the future is... She only has the title of Empress; she is nothing in reality. If she can't stand it now, her future days will be difficult..."

Cuiling beckoned the palace maids in to help Consort Nian with her hair and makeup. A eunuch entered hesitantly, and Consort Nian glanced at him sideways and asked, "What is it?"

The eunuch hesitated, but finally said, "Your Highness, it was Lady Fucha from the Cold Palace who cursed you yesterday. Eunuch Zhou is unsure how to handle this and thought I'd come to ask Your Highness's opinion first..."

Consort Nian stopped what she was doing and said coldly, "You lowly wretch, you dare to curse me? It seems she's had it too easy in the Cold Palace."

Cui Ling chimed in, "I heard that the Imperial Household Department has so much work to do every day that His Majesty is too busy to manage it. How could he possibly have the time or inclination to deal with such matters?"

Consort Nian toyed with the hairpin in her hand, pondered for a moment, and then smiled, "Since she's so energetic and can even swear, let her do more work. When she's tired, she'll shut up... Have Eunuch Zhou arrange for Lady Fucha to go to the Imperial Laundry..."

The eunuch nodded and withdrew.

When Lady Wuya learned that Lady Fucha had been sent to the Xin Zhe Ku (a place for palace servants), she begged Eunuch Zhou to transfer her there as well. However, Eunuch Zhou did not dare to make a decision easily and, after thinking it over, reported back.

Consort Nian recalled the scenes of how Uya was favored by the Fourth Prince in the Prince's mansion, and she was filled with hatred. If she hadn't been punished for her own misdeeds, Consort Nian would not have let it go. Now that she had fallen into his hands, how could Consort Nian let go of such a good opportunity?

"Anyway, it was her own choice to go. Why don't you, Eunuch Zhou, go all the way and grant her wish..." Consort Nian said casually. Eunuch Zhou understood and replied, "This servant understands. This servant will certainly grant their wish and will never disappoint Your Majesty..."