Such gossip soon reached Suman's ears.
When Tao Yuan said this, her nostrils swelled with anger. "These dog slaves actually dared to slander the Empress. How despicable!"
Su Man thought about it for a moment and understood the key point. She sneered, "Haha, I'm afraid it's not me who's being nagging, but someone is doing it on purpose."
"Intentional?"
The person who spreads the rumor must be the one who actually set the fire.
This person first used the fire to suppress Concubine Li, and then spread rumors to make her deeply involved in public opinion, giving her the bad reputation of being a scheming person who secretly harmed concubines. It was considered a clever move.
There are only two people who would do this.
One was the Empress Dowager, who was a member of the Beiping Prince's faction. The Gu family was the Emperor's confidant, and the Li Guifei family was one of the Emperor's confidants. If they started a fight, it would only benefit them.
There is another one, Concubine Shu.
If Shu Guiren wanted to become the queen, she and Li Guifei would both be stumbling blocks to her. This way, not only did it remove the obstacle of Li Guifei, but it also ruined her reputation, killing two birds with one stone.
Just when Su Man was thinking about it, someone from the Queen Mother's side came to tell her that the Queen Mother wanted to see her.
It just so happened that Su Man also wanted to test the empress dowager, so she changed her clothes and went to the Cining Palace.
The nanny did not take her to the main hall, but to the empress dowager's bedroom.
When Su Man entered, the Queen Mother was copying scriptures. Smoke was curling from the incense burner in the room, and the smell of sandalwood filled her nostrils.
"Greetings to the Queen Mother."
The Queen Mother put down her pen as if she had just discovered Su Man, wiped her hands with the handkerchief held by the palace maid, and said, "Get up."
"Thank you, Queen Mother."
The Queen Mother and Su Man sat on both sides of the coffee table by the window. She didn't say why she asked Su Man to come, but just asked her to taste the tea.
"This is the tea that the Prince of Beiping sent me today. Please enjoy it, Your Majesty."
Su Man took a sip and found that it was a glass of water. She put it down calmly and wiped her mouth with a silk handkerchief.
"How about this tea?" The Queen Mother looked at her intently.
"The fragrance is so subtle that it makes people yearn for it."
The Queen Mother smiled and said meaningfully, "The Queen is indeed a tea connoisseur. I also think this tea is very good."
Hearing this, Su Man breathed a sigh of relief.
The alliance between the Prince of Beiping and the Gu family was finally accomplished.
There are many people in the palace, and the Queen Mother used this cup of water to hint at her.
The tea, which contained water but no tea, represented the estrangement between the Gu family and the emperor. The water had already turned into plain water, but the empress dowager still said it was tea, implying that the Gu family should continue to negotiate with the emperor and not be exposed.
When she said that the tea was sent by the King of Peking, she was telling her that it was the King of Peking's intention.
Tsk tsk, if I hadn’t acted in a palace fighting drama, I really couldn’t keep up with the Empress Dowager’s pace.
Having said what needed to be said, the two chatted for a while longer. The Queen Mother said, "Yesterday I saw the Queen's birthday gift, and I liked it very much."
Su Man smiled and said, "The princess is marrying far away. I hope this painting can comfort the Queen Mother's longing for her."
The Queen Mother had no sons, only one daughter, Princess Zhaoyang, who married far away in a foreign country.
The painting Su Man sent was none other than Princess Zhaoyang. It was a strikingly lifelike portrait, delivered at top speed, and it finally won the Empress Dowager's heart, having not seen her daughter for decades.
Even though the Queen Mother was cunning and shrewd, she couldn't help but feel sad when she mentioned her daughter.
Su Man comforted her, "If the Queen Mother misses the princess, why not ask the painter to draw a portrait and I will ask someone to send it to the princess."
"real?"
Su Man nodded with a smile, "My uncle's family is on the business route, so it's very convenient to travel back and forth."
The Queen Mother nodded repeatedly, "Okay, okay, I will ask the painter to come to the palace later."
Seeing the Queen Mother smiling, Su Man felt that she had finally found a firm hold on her thigh.
When Su Man came out of the Cining Palace, she knew that it was not the Empress Dowager who did what happened to Concubine Li.
Then, there is only one person left.
-
"My dear, the Emperor has dealt with Concubine Li. She is now Concubine Li."
In the Fragrance Palace, Concubine Shu was drawing her eyebrows in front of the dressing mirror. Upon hearing this, she pinched her orchid fingers and drew the ends of her eyebrows more delicately.
"No one noticed anything?"
"No, Concubine Li offended the Emperor, making him furious. He didn't even give her a chance to defend herself before demoting her."
"Haha, that reckless Concubine Li really thought the Emperor doted on her. If her father hadn't still had some power, with her temper, she would have died hundreds of times in the palace."
The palace maid flattered him, "Yes, your Excellency is clever and is deeply favored by the Emperor."
She looked around and lowered her voice, "That young eunuch has committed suicide out of fear of punishment, as we instructed, and he even left a confession."
Concubine Shu said lightly, "We have done such a great favor to the Queen. Let's just consider those rumors as interest."
The palace maid smiled flatteringly, "Your Majesty is right."
-
After Concubine Li was demoted to Concubine Li, Murong Hong released her from house arrest, fined her one year's salary, and gave her a minor punishment and a major warning.
Because of their different status, when Concubine Li paid her respects to Su Man in the evening, she sat next to Concubine Song.
Su Man hadn't arrived yet, and Concubine An, who was sitting in front of Concubine Li, gloated, "Hey, Sister Li, why are you sitting behind my sister today?"
Before Concubine Li could speak, she covered her mouth with her fan and laughed, "Oh, it's all my fault for having a bad memory. I forgot that I'm no longer a concubine, but a noble lady."
Li Guiren was so angry that her teeth itched. She said rudely, "You are just a concubine. You act so pretentiously. No wonder the emperor hasn't summoned you for half a year."
"you!"
Just as Concubine An was about to say something, Tao Yuan's voice rang out.
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