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nMo Xuetong was only in Cining Palace briefly. Consort Ning had plotted to and killed Consort Chu. This was a grave matter and changed King Ning, Feng Yuzhen’s plans completely. Everyone knew that the court was no longer in two factions. It seemed on the surface that this matter was caused by King Ning’s foiled plots.

nHowever, in actuality, King Chu had not suffered any losses in this matter. It was said that the Ding General Manor was prepared to marry their Third Miss, a legitimate daughter of the family, to King Chu. She would become his second wife. The Ding General Manor had lost a daughter just like that and the royal family owed the Ding General Manor one. It was necessary for them to allow the Ding General Manor to have another Consort Chu in their family.

nIt was different for King Ning. Wang Yueyue’s death was not something that could be explained. She had miscarried early on in the pregnancy and it would not have put her life in danger. Everyone knew someone who had a miscarriage. At most, it would just affect their ability to have children in the future. However, one would not die just like that. It was also a coincidence that she had not left any message and took the blame for the whole matter.

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nIt was a very curious incident and those who had been in politics for a long while all felt that something was off.

nA chasm had grown between the Wang Manor and King Ning. There were even rumors that said that the First Miss of the Wang Manor had died an inexplicable death because she had something going on with King Ning. Some even described vividly what happened on the day of King Ning’s wedding. Wang Xiuxiu had lost her child and died. These matters could really be related!

nWhile Grand Secretariat Wang had retired, he had been an official for many years and was well-known to all. Both his daughters had died in King Ning’s hands. He could not be unmoved about it. As such, more and more people watched King Ning in the shadows. Some officials who had long agreed to side with King Ning slowly broke ties off with him.

nThe internal branch of the Ding General Manor also had a slight disagreement with the Empress Dowager after this. They even treated the men the Empress Dowager sent to them lightly. Even though they did not refuse to do anything they were supposed to, they were not eager about doing it either.

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nAll her plans that she had come up with over the years were now completely useless. The Empress Dowager was furious and laid in Cining Palace, ill. She was not in the mood to deal with those younger than her and only picked a few older nobilities to chat with. She did not want to deal with people like Mo Xuetong, the consort of a prince, even more so. She told the eunuch at the door to say that the Empress Dowager was tired and to have her guests return. As such, Mo Xuetong only curtsied in the direction of the Empress Dowager outside the inner hall and was then brought out.

nMeanwhile, it was bustling in the Empress’s Tianfeng Palace. The Empress’s ladies were all waiting outside for her to call them in.

nA servant had already entered to report Mo Xuetong’s arrival when they saw her. A smiling eunuch appeared with a smile and brought Mo Xuetong in.

nThe Empress was seated at the highest seat in front. She exuded a sense of wealth and nobility in her luxurious and beautiful phoenix robes. Even though she seemed a little pale, her expression was one of peacefulness and calmness. It was evident that she was in a good mood. A few consorts sat beside her. Consort Su, who had never gotten along with the Empress was there as well. It was a rare sight to see the two get along peacefully and laughing as they spoke.

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nMo Xuetong was granted a seat by the side after she greeted the Empress.

n“Is King Xuan’s leg better?” The Empress asked kindly as a palace maid served up tea.

n“Thank you for your concern, Your Majesty. His Highness’ leg injury is mostly healed. However, he is still lacking in strength. The imperial physician said that even when he is completely healed in the future he has to use less of his legs. If he injures his bones again, it would be difficult to make a full recovery.” Mo Xuetong bowed respectfully and answered with a smile.

n“King Ning is playful or he would not have injured himself. I heard that you have managed the back courtyard pretty well. You have to get rid of some of those things that cannot be seen in public. Don’t cause any trouble in the future.” Consort Su said with a close-lipped smile.

nFeng Yuran’s back courtyard was like a large provision shop. Everyone knew about that. The other women looked at Mo Xuetong when they heard that and their smiles were tinged with ridicule. So what if Mo Xuetong was strict in her management of the household? How much could she reign King Xuan in? He was known to be unwieldy.

nThere were so many beautiful women in his back courtyard. How would he bear to let them leave? Who knew when he would return to his licentious behavior and bring the women into his manor one by one?

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nThey were newlyweds now and Mo Xuetong was beautiful. Feng Yuran would definitely like her very much. It did not mean much for him to abandon his entire back courtyard. But what would happen in the future? Given Feng Yuran’s unruly reputation, no one knew how long his affections for Mo Xuetong would last.

nMo Xuetong did not know why Imperial Noble Consort Su was displeased with her. Fortunately, she did not mind. She figured that Consort Su would not have liked her anyway since she was Consort Xuan. As such, she pretended not to mind and replied graciously, “His Highness has his plans for those in the back courtyard. I do not dare to meddle. His Highness will do what he wants.”

nNo matter what Consort Su meant, Mo Xuetong just had to pretend to be a gracious and open-hearted Consort Xuan.

n“Consort Xuan is really a gracious and intelligent person. Look at how thin you have gotten from taking care of King Xuan.” Consort Su exclaimed and put her hands together. Then, she turned to say to the Empress sweetly, “Your Majesty, you have to reward Consort Xuan well. I heard that she’s been keeping King Xuan company in the manor and he’s been reading. His Majesty has already asked King Xuan to go over. I suppose His Majesty will ask if King Xuan has been reading lately!”

nShe turned to look at the Empress after having said that.

nThe Empress looked at Mo Xuetong and nodded. She said with a smile, “You are a virtuous one. If King Xuan does you wrong in the future, don’t mind it as much. I will help you. You have to deal with the things in your courtyard but don’t deal with all of them. Just get rid of the ones who don’t know their place and the ones who are just inferior. Then, settle on a few concubines so that the royal family will not be embarrassed.”

nMo Xuetong rolled her eyes internally. However, her expression grew more respectful. The royal family had already embarrassed themselves many times. Ever since the Princes married, embarrassing incidents had happened one after another. Why would she cause an embarrassment! Why was the high and mighty Empress focused on King Xuan’s back courtyard? Even Consort Su mentioned it over and over.

n“Yes, I will return and remind His Highness.”

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nShe was just a consort. Furthermore, she was the consort of a prince who was known to be licentious. She could just push all the responsibility to Feng Yuran lest the others kept talking about whether she was virtuous or not. No matter whether it was the Empress or Consort Su, none of them were people she could afford to offend right now. Without the ability to fight them, Mo Xuetong was more willing to keep a low profile.

nSeeing that there was not a hint of unwillingness on Mo Xuetong’s expression and that she was respectful and smiling gently, the Empress was satisfied. She waved her hand and said, “You may leave first. Go and walk around in the gardens. You must not have the time to walk around since you usually spend your time taking care of King Xuan. You are a young girl and don’t have to keep us old women company. You should go out there and take in the scenery.”

nMo Xuetong immediately left. No matter whether it was the Empress or Consort Su, she did not wish to get too close to them. Even though Feng Yuran had no choice but to enter the game, she would still rather have people think that she was someone who was not in the game. An arrogant and licentious prince, together with a gentle consort who had no opinions would calm those with any thoughts for some time.

n“I do not agree with Your Majesty. Anyone can see that I look like your elder sister when we stand side by side.” Consort Su’s sweet voice could be heard from behind her. The two women now had a common goal and their relationship immediately improved. They forgot about what happened in the past. Those who were not in the know would really think that they were fast friends. There were too many women in the palace and they all wore masks before others.

n“Your Majesty and Consort Su are both so young. I am an old woman here. If we go out, people would think that we are now one generation older.”

n“That’s right, you two ladies are beautiful. If you go out just like that, you would both be even more striking than those young girls. Don’t say that you’re old.”

nThe other consorts buttered up to them and laughter filled up the great hall. Everything they said was directed at the Empress and Consort Su and they even placed the two women on the same pedestal. News in the palace traveled fast as usual. The moment King Chu gained an upper hand, the entire palace seemed to have changed. If Feng Yuxuan were to take the throne in the future, one of the women would be the Empress Dowager while the other would be the Emperor’s biological mother. Even though their status might have a little difference, it was not certain which one of them would be more powerful. Those who could butter up to them would, of course, butter up to them.

nHowever, they did not know if the Empress would be upset upon hearing such things.

n“Consort, Second Miss He has already gone over. His Highness sent word for you to go to Anhe Palace later. He will wait for you there.” Mo Ye helped Mo Xuetong away from Tianfeng Palace. After they walked away to somewhere with fewer people, she took the opportunity to speak softly while Mo Xuetong admired a blooming peony.

nEven though she did not say much, Mo Xuetong understood. She nodded. Feng Yuran must still be with Emperor Zongwen. It was useless for her to go early. She might as well walk around. She always walked through the imperial gardens quickly and rarely had such a chance to admire the flowers quietly. It was spring and the flowers were blooming at their peak.

nMo Xuetong walked through the flowers casually with the help of Mo Ye and admired the beautiful sights of the garden. There were beautiful flowers of all colors on the branches.

n“Is Second Miss He chatting happily with Consort Zhao?” Mo Xuetong picked a hibiscus casually.

n“From afar, it looks like Second Miss He has been given a seat and Consort Zhao likes her very much. I heard that Consort Zhao gave Second Miss He some hair accessories.” Mo Ye replied. Consort Zhao guards had been looking at her and she did not dare to go too close. She only watched from afar. However, it seemed that Consort Zhao liked He Yuxiu a lot. She was given a seat in just moments.

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nMo Xuetong slowly walked forward and twirled the hibiscus in her hands. The faint fragrance tickled her nose. She frowned slightly, bit her lips, and asked, “Mo Ye, why do you think the He Family sent two consorts into the palace? Consort Xian should have been the most favored then, right?”

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nThat was something she could not understand. If a family already has a daughter who was a favored concubine, why would they send another into the palace? If that daughter was not favored, then it would be a waste of a daughter. If the daughter was favored, it would just be taking affection away from the other daughter. The He family seemed smart, so why would they do something so stupid?

nIt was something Mo Xuetong could never understand. She felt as if she had forgotten something important. However, she could not recall it at that moment, which was why she asked Mo Ye that casually.

nMo Ye answered casually as well after hearing the question. “Perhaps the He family thinks that sending one daughter only would not get them any affection!”

nMo Ye admitted that she was not as meticulous as Mo Xuetong and did not consider the whole situation fully. She never thought that Mo Xuetong would ask her a question like that and so gave her a casual reply. After answering the question, she felt that it was not right and hurriedly said, “My Lady, I just said it casually. A family like the Hes is complicated. Who knows what is going on in their minds? Perhaps they think that this would be safer. I am just saying this casually, and don’t think too much into it.”

nSafer? Why would the He family think that Consort Zhao would gain the Emperor’s affections for sure? What kind of great ability did they have to make the Emperor dote on someone!

n“Mo Ye, have you seen Consort Zhao?”

n“I have never seen her. But she is said to be very beautiful. Earlier, there were some old servants in the palace who said… they said…” Mo Ye hesitated.

n“What did they say?” Mo Xuetong asked gently.

n“I heard that Consort Zhao resembles Consort Xian very much. They look very alike. Consort Xian passed away many years ago and many of the old people in the palace can no longer remember how she looks like. They only said that the two of them look very much like each other at one glance.” Mo Ye was versed in martial arts and had very sharp ears. She heard some of the titled women gathering together and discussing Consort Zhao when she was guarding outside Tianfeng Palace. The women all said that Consort Zhao resembled Consort Xian greatly.

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