"Cough cough cough... Your Highness, what did you give me?" The little palace maid tried to cough up the pill, even scratching her throat with her fingers, as if she were afraid it was some kind of poison that could kill instantly.

"Don't worry, this isn't poison. You'll find out soon enough!" Taking advantage of the maid's panic and Furong's reaction, Wanyi pushed her inside and closed the door.

"Open the door, Your Highness, please let me out quickly, Your Highness..." Before long, the little palace maid's medicine took effect, and she quickly sat down weakly, her hands still tugging at her clothes, and she kept complaining that she was hot.

"Master, are you alright? You..." Furong asked with some concern when she saw that Wanyi's face was slightly flushed.

"I'm fine, let's leave here first!" Wanyi hurriedly prepared to leave, but suddenly heard a noise coming from ahead. She quickly took Furong to the side and took the opportunity to drink some spring water to relieve the strange feeling in her body.

"Wait a minute, this brat got off easy!" Two eunuchs, holding a man dressed as a guard, opened the door and threw him inside. Soon after, indescribable sounds came from inside.

"A concubine, indeed! Her moans are more lewd than those of a brothel owner!" one of the eunuchs spat towards the doorway and said disdainfully.

"You talk like you've been to a brothel!" another eunuch said disdainfully. After all, they were just hearing it from others; what use would it be for someone without any connections to go to a brothel?

"Speaking of which, I clearly saw Lord Bayar drink that stuff, so why didn't he react?"

Their original plan was to bring Nabayar Hegemon here, but something went wrong, so they just found a guard to fill in, hoping that the Imperial Noble Consort wouldn't scold them!

"That's about enough, let's go! We still have a lot to do!" another eunuch urged, since the situation inside was already quite clear and it wouldn't be finished anytime soon.

Baohe Hall

"Consort Sun's dance is graceful; she must have put in a lot of effort. Your Majesty, considering how hard she's worked, why not grant her some favor?" The Imperial Noble Consort casually remarked, seeing that Emperor Kangxi was in a good mood.

“Indeed excellent. How about this: Madam Sun is gentle, virtuous, graceful, elegant, dignified, wise, and capable. Let her be promoted to the rank of Changzai! Bestow upon her a title and ceremony.”

Emperor Kangxi was always stingy with promotions, but this Consort Sun was promoted and given a title not long after entering the palace, which shows how much she was favored.

"Thank you for your great favor, Your Majesty! Thank you, Imperial Noble Consort!" Consort Yi bowed deeply to Emperor Kangxi with great emotion.

"Congratulations on becoming Consort Yi! This is double happiness!" Consort An said sarcastically. But it's true, who would respect a concubine who acts like a dancer, trying to please others?

"Thank you, Consort An!" Consort Yi naturally understood the meaning behind Consort An's words. However, Consort An came from a humble background and was willing to sacrifice anything to climb the social ladder. Once she reached a high position, no one would dare to say a word against her.

"Oh! Where is Sister Chen? Where did she go?" The Imperial Noble Consort suddenly asked, looking towards where Consort Wan was sitting.

"Your Majesty, Your Highness the Imperial Noble Consort, the maidservant who was pouring wine accidentally spilled some wine on Your Highness's clothes. Seeing that Your Majesty and the other consorts were watching the song and dance, she didn't want to disturb them, so she went to change her clothes and asked me to inform you." Ye Ming bowed before explaining.

"So that's how it is!" The Imperial Noble Consort was also keeping track of the time, thinking it was about time, before turning the topic to Wanyi.

"Something terrible has happened..." Suddenly, a eunuch scrambled away, shouting in alarm.

"How dare you! How can you speak such nonsense on such a joyous occasion? What kind of behavior is this, all flustered and disrespectful!" The Imperial Noble Consort immediately rebuked.

"Your Highness, please calm your anger. Why not let this eunuch explain what he did before sentencing him?"

Consort Jing and the Imperial Noble Consort responded in unison, and only then did the others realize what was happening, staring blankly at the eunuch below with a grim expression.

"Hurry up and tell me!" Consort Bu glared at the eunuch unhappily, after all, he had just frightened her dignified demeanor.

"Your Majesty, Imperial Noble Consort, the pavilion is on fire..." After the eunuch finished speaking, he buried his head in the ground, too frightened to look up.

"The attic? Didn't Sister Chen go to change her clothes? Then wouldn't that mean..." The Imperial Noble Consort suddenly stood up and exclaimed.

"What? Wan'er..." Kangxi was already frowning. Such a thing happening on such a joyous occasion would make anyone unhappy. Upon hearing that Wanyi was in the pavilion, Kangxi immediately got up and walked outside.

"Your Majesty, what are you still kneeling there for? Hurry up and put out the fire!" The Imperial Noble Consort shouted angrily at the eunuchs below, then stepped forward to follow Kangxi. The concubines and ministers behind her naturally followed to see what was happening.

When the Imperial Noble Consort and the others caught up with Kangxi, they saw him standing outside a door, his face ashen. It was clear that a storm was brewing. Hearing the sounds coming from inside, they wished they hadn't broken their legs and followed. This was a royal secret! Would the Emperor unleash a massacre?

"Your Majesty, this must be some palace maid who dared to meet with a guard here in secret. She must be severely punished for corrupting the atmosphere of the harem. Even beating her to death would be the least she could do!" The Imperial Noble Consort directly said that it was a palace maid and a guard, but she did not mention at all that the one inside might be the Noble Consort Chen.

"Isn't Consort Chen changing clothes? This can't be..." Consort An only got the first words out before Kangxi turned and glared at her, almost scaring her into kneeling down.

"If such behavior is not severely punished, how will the Imperial Noble Consort manage the harem in the future! Guards, drag those two adulterers out! I want to see just who is so audacious!"

The Empress Dowager also hoped that Consort Chen was among them, after all, she had just investigated the Kangxi Emperor's harem and found some clues, but the information was limited. However, she couldn't help but suspect Consort Wan! The Empress Dowager was very similar to her aunt, preferring to kill the innocent rather than let the guilty go free.

"If it's a palace maid and a guard having an affair, then send them to the Censorate! Bringing them out will only offend the Empress Dowager's eyes." Kangxi said, coming back to his senses. What if it was Wan'er inside? He dared not look, nor could he believe it.

"Your Majesty, it would be better to have him beaten to death immediately. Sending him to the Imperial Prison is just another place to defile him!" How could the Empress Dowager let this opportunity pass? What if Kangxi gritted his teeth and protected Consort Chen?

"Today is a festival for family reunion, so it's best to avoid bloodshed. We can deal with it afterward!"

Kangxi refused to give up, saying he could give Wan'er a different identity to enter the palace. She was only forced into it, not on purpose! It must have been that scoundrel who seduced her. Kangxi was already trying to make amends for Wan'er in his heart. After all, Kangxi loved Wan'er very much now, like his first love, and he was unwilling to give her up.

"Your Majesty, the Empress Dowager is right. If we let them go now, won't everyone in the harem follow suit?"

The Imperial Noble Consort also offered advice, while the others watched the show in silence, including Consort Wen.

"Your Majesty..." The Imperial Noble Consort saw that Kangxi was still hesitating and was about to say something more, but was interrupted by a clear voice.