Chapter 58 Mouth Substitute - Consort De!
Hearing the sound outside the door, Xie Yuanhe suddenly stood up, thinking he had misheard!
Wang Luhai's expression suddenly became extremely strange.
"Your Majesty, perhaps this servant should go..."
Did they send Consort De away?
"no!"
Xie Yuanhe waved his hand, "You know Consort De's temperament! She's already outside the door. If we don't let her in, she'll only become more suspicious and relentless."
He rubbed his temples, feeling a bit of a headache. "Why did she come here all of a sudden?"
"Your Majesty, this servant is also wondering about this."
Wang Luhai was at a loss for words, both amused and exasperated.
No sooner had the master and servant finished speaking than Xiao Yuzi appeared at the door with a worried look on his face, "Your Majesty..."
He didn't need to finish speaking; Xie Yuanhe already knew what he wanted to say.
So he could only sigh and say, "Let Consort De in."
Having said that, he had just seen Song Xuerou still kneeling on the ground, and before he could tell her to get up or hide, the palace door was pushed open.
Consort De walked in with a displeased expression.
Not only that, she moved with lightning speed, looking around as soon as she entered the hall.
"Your Majesty has not done anything shameful, has he? Why is Xiao Yuzi stopping me at the door and refusing to let me in?"
Consort De had a loud voice.
She helped Xie Yuanhe to his feet and then poured out her heart to him, "I have heard that the Crown Prince has been handling state affairs these past few days, as His Majesty is unwell and resting."
"Your Majesty, I have neither interfered with your affairs of state nor disturbed your rest. Why will you not allow me to enter?"
Xie Yuanhe: "...You still know I'm recuperating?"
After her outburst, Xie Yuanhe felt his head buzzing!
“If His Majesty wants to rest, he should rest in the warm pavilion or the imperial bedchamber. Why is he in the imperial study? He clearly doesn’t want to see me.”
Consort De gave a soft snort, her eyes darting around as she spotted Song Xuerou kneeling to the side.
She immediately laughed, "Oh! Isn't this the Princess Consort of Chu? What are you kneeling here for? Oh dear, why are you crying? Look at your eyes, they're so red and swollen! Did the Emperor scold you?"
Song Xuerou: "..."
Today's embarrassment is irreversible!
Xie Yuanhe was even more troubled.
Song Xuerou is truly a blockhead!
Upon seeing Consort De enter, she didn't even rise to pay her respects!
At least pretend nothing's wrong!
She actually knelt obediently on the floor like a mountain eagle, looking at Consort De with teary eyes.
"Empress Dowager De".
Song Xuerou finally came to her senses and was about to greet him when Xie Yuanhe interrupted her, "Princess Consort of Chu, now that the matter has been discussed, you may return!"
"Don't worry, the Empress's birthday is approaching, and it's only right that the Prince of Chu should return to kowtow and wish the Empress a happy birthday. I know what's going on, so you don't need to worry about the Prince of Chu anymore."
He said this to mislead Consort De into believing that Song Xuerou was kneeling and crying, begging Xie Xuansong to return to the capital.
Before Song Xuerou could react, Consort De immediately began to complain.
"Your Majesty, what do you mean by this? You say you are unwell and need to rest, but I think you are clearly looking for trouble and trying to cause unrest in the court and the harem! What are you up to, Your Majesty?"
Xie Yuanhe's face stiffened, and once again he felt his dignity and face as an emperor being trampled on by Consort De.
Wang Luhai, standing to the side, was also covered in sweat and coughed incessantly, signaling to Consort De not to speak rudely.
Only Song Xuerou was stunned, staring blankly at Consort De.
Consort De is probably the first person to dare to speak to the emperor like this.
Even Empress Sun was respectful and gentle in front of Xie Yuanhe.
Consort De glanced at Wang Luhai with disdain, "What's wrong with Eunuch Wang's throat? If you've caught a cold, then go away, lest you pass on your illness to me and the Emperor!"
Wang Luhai was on the verge of tears, "Yes, Your Highness, Consort De."
Over the years, thanks to Consort De, the once lifeless Prince's mansion and the now scheming harem have been filled with more laughter and a touch of brightness.
Therefore, Wang Luhai couldn't bring himself to hate Consort De.
"Your Majesty, the Prince of Chu has made a mistake and has been punished by being sent to Fuzhou. Fuzhou is not yet at peace, so the Prince of Chu cannot return to the capital."
Consort De said in a serious tone, "If His Majesty orders Prince Chu to return to the capital, wouldn't that cause controversy?"
Xie Yuanhe sighed helplessly, "You still know you're going to cause trouble?"
"How could I not know? His Majesty is summoning Prince Chu back to the capital right on the eve of the Empress's birthday. Does he want the Empress to have a happy birthday, or is he trying to upset her and make her upset?"
Consort De continued her tirade.
Before Xie Yuanhe could speak, she frowned and looked at Song Xuerou.
"Although Princess Chu's birth is not noble enough, logically speaking, everyone thinks the same way! How come your thought process is so unique?"
Song Xuerou's face paled as she was scolded. "Mother Consort, what do you mean by that?"
"Look! You can't even tell I'm cursing you!"
Consort De pouted, "Your Majesty, the Prince of Chu's taste in choosing a consort is not very good! In my opinion, this Princess Consort of Chu is not even as good as the Crown Princess!"
Song Xuerou's face instantly drained of all color!
She knew that she was no match for Shen Ruoli, whether in terms of status or intelligence.
But this was the first time someone had ever verbally abused her to her face, belittling her to the point of being worthless!
Her hands were trembling, and hatred was growing wildly in her heart!
“Your Majesty, it’s not that I look down on Princess Chu, but she is Consort Shu’s daughter-in-law, not mine.”
Consort De sat down casually. "However, this does remind me. When Yu'er marries, he can't marry someone so stupid! Yu'er's mind is already not working properly. If he marries a stupid princess, the two of them will be stupid to the same degree!"
"If I have a child in the future, the child will be even dumber! Oh dear, that won't do!"
Consort De seemed frightened and waved her hands repeatedly.
She looked no different from the middle-aged women chatting and gossiping on the street.
Seeing Song Xuerou swaying with anger, yet unable to utter a word of it, Xie Yuanhe was speechless: "...Why have you come to see me today?"
Oh! That's right!
Consort De then came to her senses, "Your Majesty, that fool Yu'er has been doing quite well in the Ministry of Revenue lately!"
"Um."
When it came to serious matters, Xie Yuanhe nodded in agreement.
He originally thought his second son was a "contestant" who only knew how to eat, drink, and have fun, and was not very bright like Consort De. However, this incident at the Ministry of Revenue made Xie Yuanhe look at Xie Xuanyu in a different light!
"So Your Majesty, the reason I've come here today is firstly to thank you for giving Yu'er this opportunity."
Consort De smiled brightly, "Although it was originally the Crown Prince who gave Yu'er this opportunity."
Xie Yuanhe swallowed back the smile that had just appeared on his face.
Consort De seemed oblivious to his sudden change in expression and continued excitedly, "Besides, didn't His Majesty say he would treat all his sons equally?"
“We dare not contend for the Crown Prince position. But Your Majesty, if the Prince of Chu can serve you faithfully, so can Yu’er!”
Upon hearing this, Xie Yuanhe's brows furrowed.
Song Xuerou couldn't care less about feeling wronged and shedding tears. She immediately held her breath and looked at Consort De warily!
She finally understood.
Today, Consort De is here to "fight for power" on behalf of Xie Xuanyu, and she is going to take it from Xie Xuansong!
However, Song Xuerou only guessed one aspect of Consort De's purpose in coming...
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