binnovel Chapter 88 *The Legend of Zhen Huan* Borjigit Clan 4
Chapter 88 *The Legend of Zhen Huan* Borjigit Clan 4
The silence in the room was broken only when the Emperor arrived. After everyone paid their respects, the others sat down in turn after the Emperor took his seat. The Empress told the Emperor about what had happened that day without embellishing anything. With so many people watching, they knew the whole story. "Big Fat Orange" seemed to glance at Yu Xi.
What does this mean? Does it mean I'm meddling? Yu Xi used her spiritual power to observe everyone's reactions while thinking to herself. After the imperial physicians finished their reports, the Emperor asked Zhen Huan, "Consort Wan, what do you have to say?"
At this moment, Zhen Huan was kneeling on the ground, her usual composure gone. Her voice was filled with panic: "This concubine doesn't know, this concubine only felt unwell and summoned the imperial physician." Clearly, she had chosen to protect herself, because her head was bowed, and no one could see her expression. Yu Xi, however, saw the conflict, struggle, and a hint of expectation on her face. She hoped Wen Shichu would take all the blame!
Did she know what the consequences would be if Wen Shichu took the blame? She knew, but she still did it. Why? Because she was selfish! Because she was ambitious!
If she claimed it was her own decision, regardless of the reason, while her life wouldn't be in danger, she would definitely be disliked and would almost certainly never have another chance to be favored by the emperor. So she pushed the problem onto Wen Shichu. If Wen Shichu confessed, the best outcome would be his own death; if things went wrong, and the emperor was angry, his entire family could be executed.
Upon hearing her words, the Emperor remained silent for a moment, then asked Wen Shichu, "Then, Imperial Physician Wen, why did you prescribe this medicine for Consort Wan?"
Although it was already autumn, Wen Shichu was already covered in sweat. Excessive psychological pressure caused various physical reactions. Perhaps he had already made a decision while waiting for the emperor to arrive.
Wen Shichu glanced at Zhen Huan, then kowtowed to the ground and did not raise his head again, saying, "This servant is guilty. This servant was only greedy for the tips that Consort Wan gave me each time I made a diagnosis, so I hoped that Consort Wan's illness would last longer. But this servant absolutely did not intend to harm Consort Wan. The medicines this servant prescribed were all harmless to the body!"
At this moment, Yu Xi's spiritual power saw the Emperor's lips twitch. Indeed, anyone would be speechless upon hearing this reason. Was it because there wasn't enough time and he couldn't think of a more suitable excuse? Indeed, what normal imperial physician would prescribe such medicine for the young lady?
"Since that's the case, Wen Shichu plotted to murder the imperial concubines, so he shall be executed! Considering that he had no other malicious intent, his family will not be implicated." After saying this, he dismissed the imperial physicians.
The servants were brought in, along with Cui Jinxi, Kang Luhai, and a group of palace maids and eunuchs, to question Consort Wan about her transgressions. Once again, the servants took the blame. All the servants of Suiyu Pavilion, except for Zhen Huan's two personal maids, were transferred to the Shenxing Division and reassigned by the Imperial Household Department. Consort Wan was stripped of her title and demoted to a lower-ranking concubine, moved to the west wing of Suiyu Pavilion, and the Empress was instructed to assign her a new instructor. She was then confined to the palace to learn palace rules, and would be released only when she was familiar with them.
Alright, this time there's no need to avoid the Emperor's favor. He probably won't want to see her for a while. After all, anyone with eyes can see who's right and who's wrong in today's incident. Regardless of the reason, your avoidance of the Emperor's favor means you look down on him! You're really out of your league!
After finishing his business, "Big Fat Orange" left, and the Empress also left with the others, leaving only Zhen Huan being helped to bed by Huan Bi. At this moment, Zhen Huan was in tears, whether for her uncertain future or for Wen Shichu, it was unclear. Huan Bi and Liu Zhu helped Zhen Huan move her things to the West Side Hall, after all, it was the Emperor's decree, and the sooner the better, to avoid further trouble later.
After the ladies returned to the palace, they all discussed this matter with those around them. Those whose eyes and hearts were with the Emperor naturally did not understand Zhen Huan's actions, and even those who did understand could not claim to understand! They could only say that Zhen Huan was probably out of her mind. However, in this harem, if someone is disliked by the Emperor, as long as that person is not oneself, it is a happy thing.
Everyone else thought Zhen Huan was finished and no longer a threat. Only the Empress and Yu Xi knew that as long as her face wasn't ruined, Zhen Huan would still be favored in the future; it was just a matter of time! But at least in the short term, Zhen Huan couldn't expect to regain the Emperor's favor.
The Empress had no choice but to continue promoting Shen Meizhuang to share the Emperor's favor with Consort Hua. Of course, this was something the Emperor was happy to see, so in the following period, Shen Meizhuang became the target of all the concubines in the harem.
An Lingrong only became close to Zhen Huan and the others out of gratitude for Zhen Huan's help. However, she didn't have much of a relationship with Shen Meizhuang yet. Now that Zhen Huan was confined to her quarters and Shen Meizhuang was favored by the emperor, An Lingrong, being rather sensitive and insecure, was unwilling to curry favor with Shen Meizhuang when she was in the emperor's favor. Therefore, she could only stay in Yanxi Palace, embroidering handkerchiefs and making incense.
Meanwhile, Yu Xi continued to roam freely throughout the palace. Recently, she found a new pet: a little Pekingese she found in the cat and dog room. Yu Xi asked Xiao Li to bring it back to Zhongcui Palace, named it Babudou, and had Anzhuo make a long leash to use as a dog leash. Of course, a dog needs to be leashed when walking it! Civilized dog walking is everyone's responsibility!
Now, besides one person, there's another dog wandering around the palace! Whenever the other concubines hear a dog barking outside their palaces, they know that Yuxi has wandered into the vicinity! Sometimes, when some concubines are too bored, they will invite Yuxi in to sit and chat, or go for a walk with her outside the palace.
You know what, because Yu Xi wasn't favored, didn't compete for favor, didn't cause trouble, and didn't talk much (after all, she didn't speak Mandarin very well!), she was actually quite popular in the palace.
The Emperor's attitude towards Yuxi was truly absurd. He was lucky if she even gave him a smile when they met. Sometimes he'd encounter her walking her dog in the Imperial Garden; she'd simply bow and greet him before walking away with the Pekingese. He never saw her trying to curry favor. And the "fat orange dog" didn't seem to have any masochistic tendencies. Weren't the other beauties in the harem appealing? It's not like he had no other choices. You see, without the female lead's halo, everyone's just a normal person!
The Emperor was quite pleased with Yu Xi's tact and everyone reached a tacit understanding. In any case, the harem later knew that Yu Xi was out of favor, but she still received the rewards she deserved. Yu Xi was also the only concubine whom the Emperor instructed the Imperial Household Department not to neglect, probably out of respect for the late Empress Dowager Xiaozhuang.
As for Empress Dowager Uya, she didn't even have time to pay attention to Yuxi. Anyway, as long as Yuxi didn't cause trouble, she wouldn't bother her. You see, this is the benefit of political marriages: everyone gets what they need. As long as everyone stays within their bottom line and doesn't expect things they shouldn't, then getting along is that easy.