Consort Xian could tolerate it, after all, she had seen all kinds of big scenes, and she could understand the cause and effect of Wei Hanyu's little tricks after a little thought.
It's highly likely that he either intercepted the Emperor or secretly came to Changchun Palace to see him; otherwise, the Emperor's edict wouldn't have been issued.
With a somewhat indifferent gaze, Consort Xian raised her mental alert regarding the danger level posed by Wei Hanyu, as she watched Wei Hanyu kneeling.
He's shrewd, resourceful, and incredibly audacious—a man who can make a living this way.
Unlike Consort Xian, Consort Hui was not as restrained. She had a fiery temper and powerful backing, so she never hesitated to act recklessly in the harem.
He immediately asked Wei Hanyu how she got the password to see the Emperor, "So that we sisters can all learn a lesson, otherwise we won't even know how to do our best for the Empress."
Despite being subjected to such intimate and suggestive treatment, Wei Hanyu remained completely unfazed.
Speaking of her good fortune in accidentally meeting the Emperor with neither arrogance nor servility, Wei Hanyu became even more respectful towards the Empress's memorial tablet.
In any case, she would never tell anyone that she had secretly come to Changchun Palace dressed as a palace maid.
That would be a serious violation of palace rules. If only the emperor saw it, it could be considered a romantic gesture, but if many people knew about it at the same time, it would be a serious offense.
Before the Empress's coffin was moved to the imperial mausoleum, power struggles and intrigues frequently took place in Changchun Palace.
Chen Yuwei couldn't participate most of the time, but fortunately, Yonghu and the other children often helped to relay messages, so she didn't miss anything.
Naturally, Chen Yuwei witnessed Wei Hanyu's abilities.
Similarly, she also discovered the unusual thoughts of the Empress Dowager and Consort Xian.
At the end of March, an imperial edict ordered the Empress's coffin to be moved to the palace.
On this day, all the ladies and mistresses of the harem attended, and Chen Yuwei, nearly eight months pregnant, stood laboriously at the very front.
Because of her physical condition, Chen Yuwei did not need to kneel; she could simply stand aside and observe the ceremony.
It was during this supposedly simple palace relocation that the emperor deposed his eldest son.
It was Chen Yuwei's description of the literal meaning: the emperor kicked and crippled Yonghuang, whose expression wasn't sad enough.
Before anyone could react, Hongli launched into a tirade against Yonghuang for being unfilial and disrespectful to his brothers, startling the other princesses and princes who had been crying more subtly into bursting into tears, including the Empress's two daughters.
No one knew what the Emperor was thinking. In fact, Chen Yuwei could clearly see that Yonghuang had cried quite earnestly, and at least the tears he shed were genuine.
Unfortunately, the Emperor did not believe him and did not listen to him, so Yonghuang was considered unfilial.
The palace relocation ended in a half-hearted manner. Chen Yuwei watched the Emperor stagger back to the Hall of Mental Cultivation and wondered if Yonghuang would be able to hold on for another two years before passing away.
As it turned out, Chen Yuwei had overestimated Yonghuang's physical abilities.
Hongli's kick landed squarely on Yonghuang's chest, and Yonghuang felt a sudden pain in his heart when he was carried back to the mansion.
Because he dared not risk asking the imperial physician for a consultation, Yonghuang endured the pain for several days until his body could no longer bear it, at which point he finally called the imperial physician.
But can an illness be left untreated for so long? Not only was Yonghuang's health completely ruined, but his life was also in grave danger.
Lady Niohuru, who was the wife of the Empress Dowager, was terrified and rushed to the palace to seek advice from the Empress Dowager.
Empress Dowager: ...
What ideas could the Empress Dowager possibly have? Her biggest regret right now is adopting Yonghuang.
As a result, she didn't gain any advantage at all, and instead got dragged into Yonghuang's messes, having to deal with unnecessary troubles for him every now and then.
Just like the incident a few days ago when the Empress's coffin was moved to the palace, Yonghuang is such a simple-minded child. Can't he cry? Why pretend to be strong? He should have just cried out loud and covered it up with snot and tears. Otherwise, there wouldn't have been so many things that happened later.
"What exactly is going on? What did the imperial physician say? The emperor is angry. Right now, we can't bring this up in front of the emperor and cause trouble, otherwise Yonghuang's fate will be even worse."
The Empress Dowager wasn't intentionally trying to frighten Niohuru; she just liked to exaggerate the severity of things.
In reality, the emperor regretted it as soon as he left Changchun Palace after kicking Yonghuang.
He realized he had acted too impulsively. Besides, Yonghuang's fall to the ground clutching his chest seemed genuine, and Hongli himself was afraid of being accused of killing his son. For the past two days, he had lost his appetite for food and drink in the Hall of Mental Cultivation, waiting for Yonghuang to come and apologize.
Little did anyone know that Yonghuang was truly kicked so badly that he couldn't get up. Forget about going to apologize, he could barely even sit up in bed.
Niohuru, while fiddling with her handkerchief, made no attempt to conceal Yonghuang's miserable state.
After all, it was his own father who kicked him, so even if the imperial physician knew the truth, he wouldn't say anything.
"They said it was unlikely to work, and because it had been delayed for too long, the imperial physicians could only advise us to try our best to treat it."
Niohuru curled her lip, thinking to herself what kind of fate she had, not even having given birth to a child, and now she was about to be a widow, there was really no reason to complain.
The Empress Dowager looked surprised. "So serious?" She thought it was just a minor injury. After all, the Emperor had kicked her, but how heavy could her own son's kick be?
Niohuru nodded, still shaken, and said, "He was kicked in the chest. The prince couldn't breathe and couldn't sleep all night. What good person could endure that? Even a normal person couldn't bear it."
As she spoke, Niohuru looked up at the thoughtful Empress Dowager and couldn't help but ask, "Grandmother, what should I do if something happens to the Prince?"
The Empress Dowager turned her head and glared at Niohuru, "What do you mean, 'what should you do'? Just be a good princess consort. With me here, what are you afraid of?"
Niohuru: ...What I fear is that this is just the wife of a bald prince, without any official title.
"I have no children and am not favored by the emperor. When I live outside the palace, there is still Mian De, born to a concubine, in the mansion. Ancestor, you must help me."
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