Chapter 131 Enraged

As she walked out of Yikun Palace, Lü Jiaying noticed that the person beside her had suddenly changed their expression.

Yinzhen took a deep breath, trying to calm his surging anger, but instead his chest heaved more and more. He was no longer the composed man he had been in front of Nian Shilan, and now he looked rather exasperated.

He didn't even wait until they returned to the Hall of Mental Cultivation. On the way, he couldn't help but shout angrily at Su Peisheng, "Send the order! Consort Wan has been spreading rumors, her words and actions have been inappropriate, she has misappropriated the late Empress's belongings without permission, and she has shown great disrespect to the late Empress. Consort Wan is hereby demoted to a lower-ranking concubine, and she no longer needs so many people to serve her!"

Seeing that the Emperor was very angry, Su Peisheng quickly lowered his head and said, "Yes."

But such a light demotion was still not enough to satisfy Yinzhen. He took two steps forward angrily, waved his hand and said, "How can she be worthy of the title 'Wan' in her current state? Order that the title be stripped. This title is no longer needed."

Yinzhen gritted his teeth, his anger raging with nowhere to go. His face was as dark as the bottom of a pot, yet he still pointed at Su Peisheng and shouted angrily, "Outrageous! You are all outrageous! You are only allowed to give her the allowance for a palace maid! Nothing else is permitted!"

Lu Jiaying knew that speaking up at this point would only invite her anger, so she kept her mouth tightly shut, lowered her eyes, and followed behind like a beautiful statue.

Yinzhen was so angry that he felt dizzy. He had been working non-stop since morning, and because of the investiture ceremony, he hadn't even had a proper meal. One thing after another had left him physically and mentally exhausted. He walked quickly forward without looking back, and only when he heard the sound of hairpins and jewelry around him did he suddenly remember that the Imperial Noble Consort had come with him.

"Go back to the palace. I don't want to hear any inappropriate rumors about what happened today in the harem."

His tone was certainly unpleasant when he spoke, but Lü Jiaying didn't take it to heart. She curtsied and replied, "Your Majesty, rest assured, I will keep an eye on them and make sure that no inappropriate news gets out."

Yinzhen said nothing, nodded, and turned to leave decisively.

Lu Jiaying watched his still angry back and turned to instruct Hong Xihai behind her, "Hurry up and take a shortcut to inform Hongzhao to keep a close watch on the Emperor."

Hong Xihai, with his round and chubby figure, nimbly darted away. Lü Jiaying and Feng, along with Xuexin, quickly returned to Yongshou Palace, only truly letting out a sigh of relief after closing the gate.

"Tell me, what have you found out?"

Xuexin returned to her area of ​​expertise. After carefully checking that the doors and windows were closed, she cleared her throat and began her performance: "This servant heard that Consort Wan...Consort Zhen left our Yongshou Palace wearing only her undergarments. It's not a short distance, so many people must have seen her. She's really lost all face this time."

"Your Majesty, why is the Emperor so angry just because he wore the wrong clothes?" Xuexin asked, puzzled, but Lü Jiayingfeng had a vague idea.

Even if there were beaded curtains in her own palace, they would not be enough to obscure the view. There are many similar garments in the palace, so it is impossible to say that this one is so unique and unprecedented. There must be another reason why the emperor was so distraught as to think that the late empress had returned.

“Consort Zhen has received exceptionally different treatment since she entered the palace. I previously thought it was because the Emperor had chosen someone he liked during the selection process, but now it seems there might be other reasons.” Her tone was profound and thoughtful. Xue Xin was not the type to pry, so she turned to Consort Nian.

"Your Majesty, you said that it is a serious crime for a concubine in the palace to commit suicide. Is Consort Nian really so heartbroken that she doesn't care about anything anymore?"

Lü Jiaying shook her head – “I think this is one of the rare times that Nian Shilan has been smart.”

“Zhou Qi said she didn’t drink much poison. If she really wanted to die, she would have stabbed herself to death by stabbing herself against the wall. It’s not like she didn’t drink enough poison.”

At this point, Lü Jiayingfeng seemed somewhat melancholy—"She has always valued the Emperor more than herself, so she must have been unable to accept this sudden news. If it weren't for Zhen Huan wearing the wrong clothes and delaying the investiture ceremony, she would definitely not have been able to be made a concubine because of her poisoning incident. I suppose she also harbors the intention of revenge."

Lu Jiaying counted on her fingers, and the more she thought about it, the smarter Nian Shilan became after being stimulated like this. "The Emperor's attitude towards Nian Gengyao was unclear to begin with. I wonder if there is some punishment to come. Consort Nian has successfully saved the lives of her brother and nephew."

Xuexin nodded as if she understood, then pouted and sighed softly, "It's just that Your Majesty has suffered. The Imperial Observatory insisted on setting the date for the investiture ceremony, and today's incident is truly unlucky."

The coronation ceremony... Her gaze sharpened. Following Xue Xin's words, she recalled that day in the Hall of Mental Cultivation, when Consort Cao earnestly requested the Emperor to have the Imperial Observatory calculate a date for the coronation of a concubine.

Today's events are certainly related to her. She was planning to kill two birds with one stone, first knocking down Consort Wan, and then affecting her own chances of becoming empress. What a clever scheme!

"Has Hong Xihai returned from finding the Crown Prince?"

——

"Su Peisheng, you will handle the matter of Consort Duan personally. I will hear about it tomorrow..." Yinzhen stood behind his desk with his hands behind his back, his voice cold and indifferent as if what he had just said was not a matter of life and death.

Su Peisheng raised his eyes, trying to find the right words to speak, when a series of rhythmic footsteps approached from afar. He understood and remained silent for the time being.

"Greetings, Your Majesty." Hongzhao entered the hall carrying a long-haired puppy, which the Emperor named "Baifu," and which was the father and son's new favorite.

Hongzhao held the puppy and leaned forward, looking at his father with the same big, wet eyes, as if he hadn't noticed the tense atmosphere in the hall. "Father, look how well your son has dressed Baifu. Tomorrow is Mother's coronation ceremony, a rare and joyous occasion. Let's have Baifu join in the fun and share in the happiness."

Su Peisheng's eyes darted around as he chimed in, "Oh, yes, this servant should also change into these clothes upon returning, so as to wish Your Majesty good fortune."

Hearing them say this, Yinzhen suddenly realized that he was really furious. Tomorrow was the ceremony for the Imperial Noble Consort to be crowned Empress, and such an important day was almost delayed because of this series of events that had just begun.

Although he had absolutely no desire to continue the tedious rituals of the past few days, he was even more unwilling to disappoint Hongzhao, who was so hopeful. The Imperial Noble Consort had always been meticulous and had not done anything wrong. If this was delayed any longer, she might find it difficult to gain the respect of the people in the future.

Yinzhen waved to Hongzhao, beckoning him to come to him. He reached out and stroked Baifu's smooth fur, then placed his palm on his son's head and shook it twice—"I only changed Baifu's clothes. You can choose your own now?"

Hongzhao shook his head naturally, and calmly said while holding his palm, "It's easy to choose clothes for Baifu, but it's a bit more difficult for my son. I'll have to ask Father for some advice."

Yinzhen forced a smile, patted the back of his head, and said, "Take Baifu and find the clothes first. I'll go and take a look later."

Watching Hongzhao's departing figure, Yinzhen's forced smile gradually disappeared from his face, replaced by a deep sense of exhaustion. After pondering for a while, he spoke up, "The matter of Consort Duan... let's postpone it. Don't ruin the auspicious day of the empress's coronation ceremony. Tomorrow, you will personally go to the Imperial Household Department to oversee the empress's coronation attire. Every detail must be carefully checked, and there must be no mistakes whatsoever."

——

The next morning, the sun rose.

The golden light shone on the glazed tiles of the Forbidden City, making it appear even more noble.

Outside, the sounds of ceremonial music filled the air, but inside Jingren Palace, it remained as deathly silent as ever, even more so.

"Smallpox failed to bring down Consort Hua, and exposing her various crimes failed to bring down Consort Hua but instead protected her family. Even the incidents involving my sister's clothes and the Huan Yi Fragrance failed to affect Lü Jiaying's coronation as Empress today!"

"I went to such great lengths, exposing so many people right under everyone's noses, and all I managed to do was bring down a mere Zhen Huan? What's the use of bringing her down!" As she spoke, she swept everything off the table where the Buddhist altar was placed.

But she smashed almost everything that could be broken. Now, all that's left on it are stacks of Buddhist scriptures; there's nothing else.

"Master, Master, you have to think of something! If Consort Cao confesses, will the Emperor punish us?" Hui Chun said tremblingly, crawling forward two steps on her knees in fear.

Yixiu was so thin that her cheeks were sunken, and she truly looked old. The worries and anxieties of the past few days had drained her energy. Seeing Huichun's pathetic state, she flung her sleeves and shouted, "What are you crying for! I've already been deposed. How much worse can things get? Would the Emperor kill his wife?"

"Even if he wanted to, the Empress Dowager wouldn't agree!"