Chapter 56 Pledge of Loyalty
Meeting An Lingrong's alarmed gaze, Lü Yingfeng turned around swiftly and closed the door tightly. Without speaking to her, she went straight to the dressing table and took out a bottle of osmanthus hair oil.
With only a sliver of hair oil left, Lü Yingfeng yanked open the lid and poured the last bit of osmanthus oil into the brazier. Flames instantly leaped high into the air. (Please do not imitate.)
She took two steps back, pulled An Lingrong to the window, and opened a crack so they could catch their breath.
An Lingrong was trembling all over, her eyes pleading. Her knees buckled and she almost knelt down in front of Lü Yingfeng, but she was pulled up by Lü Yingfeng's strong hands.
Seeing that the doll had been completely engulfed by flames and there was no trace left, Lü Yingfeng finally spoke with a blank face: "I won't ask you who the doll is named on, and you can just pretend I've never seen this before. I'll only ask you, do you know why the Empress has come today?"
Seeing that Consort Xin had no intention of exposing her, An Lingrong breathed a sigh of relief and tried her best to calm herself down. Her usually pleasant voice was now incoherent as she spoke, "Her Majesty the Empress's visit today was strange, and she came straight to my bedside. It was as if... as if she knew something."
Seeing that her mind was still relatively clear, Lü Yingfeng gave her a look of exasperation—"You're not stupid. The Empress is coming with great force. You must know perfectly well who could betray you. If the sorcery is discovered, you'll only lose your head!"
“Is it… Baojuan? No, it can’t be her!” An Lingrong hesitated before uttering a name, but quickly shook her head in rejection.
Seeing her like this, Lü Yingfeng didn't expose her—"You know who it is. If the Empress sees this today, do you know what will happen to you?"
An Lingrong's face was extremely pale as she stared intently at the blinding flames before her—"Will the Emperor banish me to the Cold Palace? Or order my execution?"
Lu Yingfeng shook her head – “No, neither. The Empress will most likely not tell anyone about this. She will even try to comfort you gently. So what will you do? Will you willingly become her pawn, the knife in her hand?”
Her voice was normal, but when it reached An Lingrong's ears, it sent chills down her spine. Even being so close to the brazier couldn't warm her up a bit—"In the palace, alliances can be formed and betrayals can occur, but one must never allow someone to hold a fatal handle and use one against them. That would be a certain death."
"Your Majesty!" An Lingrong cried out in despair, "Your Majesty's kindness to Lingrong is as heavy as a mountain! Lingrong could never repay it even if she died ten thousand times."
Hearing her words, Lü Yingfeng released her hand that had been holding her arm and took two steps away—"What do you mean by 'yes'? I've always known that you may seem gentle, but you're actually quite decisive. If the day I just mentioned really comes, just don't involve me."
Hearing this, An Lingrong burst into tears. Without Lü Yingfeng's support, her body went limp, and she knelt down, her voice strained and anxious as she said, "Your Majesty, Lingrong swears that if that day ever comes, even if I were to kill myself, I would never dare to implicate Your Majesty. If I break this vow..."
She looked around without making a mistake, and Lü Yingfeng did not stop her.
She gritted her teeth and said solemnly, "If I break this promise, may my mother... suffer a terrible death!"
Naturally, Xu Shi would wager his most cherished possession. Lü Yingfeng knew how much she loved her mother, so she felt somewhat relieved.
"Get up quickly, I believe what you said today." As she spoke, she took out the silver tongs used to stir the charcoal fire and reached into the brazier to check it. Seeing that it was indeed burned to ashes, she breathed a sigh of relief.
"In this harem, you can fight and struggle, but the premise is always for your own benefit. You can't let others lead you by the nose. Think about it carefully."
After saying that, she didn't linger any longer and turned to leave.
——
This incident may have been too much of a shock to her, because in just half a day she became even more ill and was almost unable to get out of bed. Even after Chun Changzai served her in bed and moved back to Suiyuxuan, she didn't have much of a reaction.
For half a month, she was unable to pay her respects to the Empress morning and evening, and in doing so, she missed a major event: Consort Fucha was pregnant.
"Are you really pregnant? Have you had the imperial physician examine you?" Nian Shilan stared intently at her, as if trying to see through two holes in her stomach to see if there was a child inside.
"Both imperial physicians have examined me. I am not the kind of person who would do anything to win favor." She spoke with a smug tone, her gaze sweeping from Consort Hua to Consort Hui and Noble Lady Wan behind her.
"If it exists, it exists; if it doesn't, it doesn't. How can the matter of imperial heirs be faked? Aren't the previous two examples enough?" she said arrogantly with a hint of disdain.
Nian Shilan's face was full of disbelief and dejection. Consort Hui was mocked, but she didn't even look up at her. She just turned her head to the side, finding it noisy.
These two were of higher rank than Consort Fucha, so she couldn't afford to offend them too much. She looked directly at Consort Wan, who was sitting at the back, and said, "Don't you think so, Consort Wan?"
Zhen Huan lowered her eyes and pondered for a moment before smiling and replying, "Sister Fucha is so lucky; she'll be pregnant in just a few days."
It's true that you have to talk to smart people. Zhen Huan's words were a veiled compliment, and perhaps because Consort Fucha usually spent more time with Consort Qi, she didn't seem to notice at all.
To be honest, Consort Fucha is really a bit brainless. Who wouldn't be careful every day when they're pregnant? But she's acting like she's afraid someone won't harm her. Lü Yingfeng couldn't help but smile and say, "The Emperor hasn't had time to see you these days. You only get a chance every few months. You're really lucky."
Lu Yingfeng thought that after she had said all that, her daughter would have realized something, but to her surprise, her daughter replied cheerfully, "That's right, who knows, she might even be a prince."
Upon hearing this, Consort Qi was about to lose her composure. Now that Hongzhao was born, Hongshi was already far from the Emperor's favorite. If Consort Fucha were to give birth to another son, then Hongshi...
She is a straightforward person; everything is written on her face, making it easy for people to see what's on her mind.
Consort Fucha felt it wasn't enough, and then pulled Lü Yingfeng aside from Consort Jing to speak—"I want to learn from Consort Xin, preferably with twins, that would be truly blessed."
Consort Xin smiled faintly – “Then I wish my sister all her wishes come true.”
Even if one is fortunate enough to conceive twins, one still needs to be alive to give birth to the children. Judging from the scene today, the already lively harem is likely to become even more bustling.
——
Joyous news spread through the palace once again, and the emperor was naturally delighted, sending a stream of rewards to the Chuxiu Palace.
But his joy didn't last two days before an even bigger incident occurred in the palace.
An epidemic has broken out in the palace.
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