As such, Concubine Qin stood by the sidelines and watched as Mo Xuetong spoke earlier. She watched with a mocking smile on her lips as Mo Xuetong bickered with the other concubines. When she saw that the other concubines had failed, she could not hold it back any longer and interrupted. She did not address herself as a concubine. Instead, she placed herself on the same rank as Mo Xuetong. To her, Mo Xuetong was just an immature lass she did not really care much about.

So this was the person Mo Xuetong had to fight!

“Eldest legal sister?” Mo Xuetong smiled. However, there was a hint of ridicule in her eyes. “Who is this person Concubine Qin is speaking of? Are you on good terms with her?”

“I used to be very good friends with your eldest legal sister. We were like sisters. However, I have not seen her since I entered the King’s Manor. I don’t know which family she married into. Given First Miss Mo’s character, the back courtyard of the family she married into will be very harmonious.”

She was implying that Mo Xuetong had caused trouble in the back courtyard once she entered King Xuan’s Manor. She had first imprisoned everyone and then tried to impress everyone with her importance. She was extremely ungracious. How would she be able to manage the back courtyard of a King’s Manor and how would she be able to control them?

“I do not have a legal eldest sister.” Mo Xuetong was not angry. Her eyes curved and she smiled sweetly.

“My Lady, have you lost your memory? Is First Miss Mo, Mo Xuemin, not your elder sister? It is indeed stressful to have such an outstanding elder sister. My Lady, you lived in Cloud City and must not have felt that.” Concubine Qin grew even prouder of herself. She looked at Mo Xuetong from the corners of her eyes disdainfully.

Mo Xuetong thought. “Concubine Qin thinks too highly of herself.” A hint of ridicule flashed in her eyes.

“Oh, I understand now. The person Concubine Qin and you all interacted with is my elder concubine-born sister. I wonder what’s there to be proud of, hanging out with a concubine-born girl? All of you think so highly of my concubine-born elder sister. I didn’t know she’s so capable.” Mo Xuetong smiled, pretending to have understood the situation. However, everyone could see the mocking smile on the corners of her lips.

They all praised the concubine-born girl as if she were a legitimate daughter and had said how intelligent, gentle, and gracious she was again and again. They were even proud to be her friends and thought they were better than Mo Xuetong because of that. They all brought out Mo Xuemin’s name as if it was worth something. To think of, a concubine-born girl pretending to be a legitimate daughter was not a good person. Furthermore, Mo Xuemin did not explain even when others misunderstood.

And they all did not know that Mo Xuemin was a concubine-born daughter of the Mo family after interacting with her for so long. They even dared to become close friends with her. They also claimed to other people that Mo Xuemin was the legitimate eldest daughter. What were they if not stupid!

Given how proud and haughty Concubine Qin was, she immediately flushed bright red. Her lips trembled but she was too embarrassed to say anything.

The other women who mentioned Mo Xuemin earlier all lowered their heads. They had wanted to use Mo Xuemin to oppress Mo Xuetong. However, they did not expect that Mo Xuemin was a liar and had pretended to be someone she wasn’t. They did not dare to bring up the matter anymore. The women glanced at each other and did not know what to say.

Mo Xuetong spoke lazily when she saw the women looking at their feet and not saying anything. “Since you have all agreed, then it shall be done like this. Don’t blame me for being ruthless if anything happens in the future. Nanny Chen will tell you all the rules of the King’s Manor. I am a little tired.”

Then, Mo Xuetong stood up with the help of Mo Lan and walked away slowly. The concubines watched her leave with complicated looks in their eyes. Mo Xuetong had exemplified the dignity of a legal consort.

The women behind Mo Xuetong gritted their teeth hatefully but could do nothing about her. Only Concubine Qin, who appeared at the end, looked at Mo Xuetong’s back thoughtfully. A vicious glint flashed in her eyes!

It was in the Empress’s Tianfeng Palace.

The people entering and leaving the palace grew more careful. Nobody dared to say anything or make any noise.

The palace maids and eunuchs stood by the sides, shaking and trembling fearfully.

All was silent in the palace. Even the Empress’s personal lead palace maid, Yan Miao, was waiting outside. The blazing hot sun shone on the girl’s body and head. Sweat dripped from her face but she did not dare to lift her head and wipe off her sweat.

After a while, they seemed to be able to hear the Emperor saying something. Then, there was a shockingly loud cry. It was a cry that tore at one’s heart and was so loud it could shatter eardrums.

Then, the doors of the palace opened. A crowd of servants followed the furious Emperor out of Tianfeng Palace.

The palace maids and eunuchs waiting outside the palace cowered on the ground. Sweat beaded and rolled down their faces. The Emperor was angry and if they were not careful, their heads would roll. No one dared to draw attention to themselves.

When the Emperor was further away, Yan Miao stood up, leading everyone else to do the same. She secretly wiped the sweat off her face, picked up her skirts, and entered the palace.

Ling Rui’er was lying on the floor of the palace, crying. The sunburn on her face was not serious and had already abated a little. However, the scratch marks on her face were slightly more obvious. However, they were passable under a thick layer of makeup. But right now, Ling Rui’er’s tears and snot covered her face, and not even the most beautiful woman would look good like that.

Furthermore, Ling Rui’er looked like that now. To others, she was ugly and ungracious, completely unlike how Consort Chu should look like. Of course, Ling Rui’er was no longer Consort Chu. Earlier, the Emperor had demoted her to the lowest ranking concubine. She was just a regular concubine of King Chu’s Manor and was not even a noble consort.

Yan Miao did not find Ling Rui’er pitiful. She deserved it. In the palace, even favored concubines were careful in everything she did. Ling Rui’er had no right to put on airs in the Empress’s palace. Furthermore, she had treated the imperial physicians rudely. Once, she even trashed an imperial physician’s medicinal box. The box contained medicine tailored for the Emperor and the medicine was ruined by Ling Rui’er.

She was stupid. She was truly stupid!

The Empress consoled Ling Rui’er and wiped Ling Rui’er’s face with a handkerchief. She comforted Ling Rui’er warmly. “Rui’er, what did I tell you? You must not act rashly. Why didn’t you listen to me? This is the palace, not the Ding General Manor. If anything happens, I can’t protect you. In the past, the Emperor would listen to me just a little, but now…”

The Empress did not finish her sentence. However, in a rare show of intelligence, Ling Rui’er understood what the Empress was saying. She took the handkerchief and wiped her tears while saying, “Aunt, Your Majesty, I was ignorant and stupid and I have gotten you into trouble. When I return to the manor, I will definitely let my uncles know so that they will help you.”

The Empress was gradually losing power. This was mostly because of the internal struggles between the Empress and the Empress Dowager. They were both daughters of the Ding General Manor and both held the two highest positions granted to women in the Qin Kingdom. None of them would give in to the other. As such, the Ding General Manor spread out their support between the two most noble women. Their power was thus weakened. After that, they had pinned all their hopes on Ling Rui’er and their support for the Empress began to wane.

When she had lost the support of her maternal family and again lost in the many struggles with the Empress Dowager, coupled with the fall of King Yan, Feng Yulei, the Empress’s influence weakened.

“There’s no point in saying this now. Rui’er, don’t worry. King Chu likes you very much. He will definitely plead with His Majesty on your behalf when he returns. He is favored by His Majesty recently and is the only prince His Majesty supports; he will be more convincing than me. As long as he protects you, you will return to being Consort Chu.”

There was a gentle smile on the Empress’s face as she comforted Ling Rui’er wholeheartedly. She looked as if she had completely given up on Feng Yulei and was no longer concerned with that matter. Yan Miao, who was standing by the side, immediately went up to help Ling Rui’er from the floor and into a chair.

“Aunt, really? Will His Highness’ words be of help?” The Empress’s words had made Ling Rui’er stop crying. Her eyes brightened as she held the Empress’s hand.

“Of course what King Chu says will be useful. Think about it, Rui’er, the prince His Majesty thinks most highly off now is King Chu. King Yan and King Xuan made His Majesty angry earlier and are both locked up in their manors. They’re not allowed to leave. Only King Chu is patrolling for His Majesty. This means that His Majesty thinks highly of King Chu. Rui’er, King Chu adores you, so the difficulty you face right now is just temporary.”

Ling Rui’er nodded forcefully when she heard that. She wiped her tears with a handkerchief and felt that what the Empress said made sense. She was the woman Feng Yuxuan loved. Even though she had treated his Second Consort viciously, he had not said anything. Instead, he had been good and kind to her wholeheartedly.

And last time, even though the rumors about her were really bad, saying that she had an affair, His Highness had consoled her. He had also gone to her chambers in the days that followed. He spoke to her gently, saying that he believed in her and that everything would be alright. He told her that there must be someone who had framed her and that she was innocent. He said he would find out who framed her and seek justice for her.

This time, he definitely would also…

As if she were grasping at the last straw in the water, Ling Rui’er came back to her senses. She no longer behaved listlessly. She told herself, again and again, how much Feng Yuxuan liked her and that he would definitely save her.

“Aunt, Your Majesty, when will His Highness return?” There was another problem that Ling Rui’er was facing. She remembered that Feng Yuxuan did not mention how many days he would be gone for. He only said that it depended on the situation. There was no fixed date for his return. What should she do!

“It’s alright. I will send someone to inform King Chu. It will not take long.” There was a hint of ridicule in the Empress’s eyes when she saw the happy smile on Ling Rui’er’s face. She gestured to Yan Miao and Yan Miao left. She returned soon after with some ink, a brush, and paper.

Ling Rui’er looked at the items in confusion. Then, she looked at the Empress.

“Ling’er, you and King Chu are deeply in love. There are some things you’d better write yourself. I will just help you to send the letter. I can’t disturb the two of you talking about things, can I?” The Empress smiled and teased Ling Rui’er.

Ling Rui’er flushed when she heard that. However, she felt sickly sweet inside. She immediately sat up obediently and took the brush from Yan Miao. She said gratefully to the Empress, “Many thanks, Aunt, Your Majesty. If not for you, I wouldn’t know what to do. I will never forget how good you are to me. Rui’er and His Highness will definitely repay Aunt for this.”

This was not just a simple thanks but also included a promise. However, there was also a sense of smugness in her words. Ling Rui’er sounded as if she would be able to help the Empress in the future. There was a dark, unhappy glint that flashed in the Empress’s eyes. However, she hid it behind her smile.