Chapter 83:

Indeed, upon hearing the news, the Empress Dowager did not say much but immediately scolded Bai Xiaodie. Virtuous Consort De and Consort Qi stood silently aside. No one was foolish anymore. The situation had clearly become complicated.

Consort Hui always acted in accordance with the Emperor’s directives. As for Noble Consort An’s involvement in the matter concerning the late Virtuous Consort, no one could provide a clear explanation. Although she appeared to target Noble Consort Chun at every opportunity, no one could precisely identify what actions she had actually taken.

Noble Consort An had not done anything! When it came to self-preservation, aside from Consort Qi, she was the most thorough.

Just like this time, Noble Consort An started the trouble but suffered no punishment, while Bai Xiaodie was demoted to the rank of Cuiyi. Aside from the newly selected palace maidens, Cuiyi was already the lowest rank.

Looking at it this way, the incident this time was indeed quite suspicious.

Especially a few days ago, when Chen Yulan drove Bai Xiaodie out, how many twists and turns were involved in today’s events remained unknown to everyone.

Layue stood aside with a faint smile, watching the situation unfold exactly as she had wished.

Regardless of Bai Xiaodie’s fate, it was not important. What Layue saw was the Emperor’s and the Empress Dowager’s disfavor. If this incident did not have the Emperor’s involvement, she would not believe it at all.

Layue knew that if her guess was correct, Noble Consort An and Consort Hui must have received the Emperor’s hints. Her involvement was unexpected. But whether it was unexpected or not no longer mattered; the situation had already developed this far.

With Bai Xiaodie being so scheming and tending toward malicious behavior, how could the Emperor possibly like her?

He simply found an excuse to demote her. Layue never believed this was the end. Bai Xiaodie did not seem like the type to give up easily or accept her fate. Even at the lowest rank, she would still try to harm others without hesitation.

A few days ago, her status was also low, but had she ever been idle?

However, Layue smiled, confident that her dear cousin Chen Yulan would handle the subsequent issues even better.

She knew how much her cousin valued this pregnancy and how vengeful she could be. Even though they had not grown up together, she had come to understand this in recent days. Moreover, she was well aware of her cousin’s personality.

Now that everything had settled down, Layue did not delve deeply into the details of certain matters, or perhaps even if she pursued the truth diligently, it might ultimately prove useless. Seizing the moment was the best approach now.

As for whether someone stood behind Bai Xiaodie, it was unlikely she could find out with her current capabilities.

Although this incident had unfolded differently than she had anticipated, the end result was what she desired.

All these events of today would inevitably come to light in the future.

Time passed quickly; two months flew by in an instant.

Before long, summer arrived. Recently, Layue seemed to have something on her mind, spending each day in quiet contemplation. Even Jinxin, who had served her since childhood, could not understand why. Layue smiled; of course they didn’t understand, but she herself knew.

Perhaps many things would change if given another chance, but judging from the current situation, this matter seemed unlikely to change.

If she had not guessed wrong, Bai Youran was already pregnant.

To ensure the safety of this pregnancy, Bai Youran would surely try to keep it secret for now.

Thinking about the palace’s previously calm days being disturbed again, Layue felt not anger, but rather that it was only natural. These past days of mutual respect among everyone had only occurred because there had been too many incidents recently. The Emperor and the Empress Dowager still harbored suspicions.

Provoking trouble under such circumstances would only lead to a fate similar to Bai Xiaodie’s. It was better to keep a low profile.

Naturally, this period had also been unusually harmonious.

However, if Bai Youran was indeed pregnant, this balance would be broken. Would Bai Youran’s child be safely born? Although Layue knew the past and realized that reality might not exactly repeat itself, she had a strong feeling that Bai Youran would successfully give birth to this child.

Bai Youran was clever. From the day she entered the palace until now, although her promotions had not been fast, she had steadily advanced.

She clearly knew what Bai Xiaodie had done but chose not to expose her. Layue could understand this behavior, for regardless of their poor relationship, they were still connected to the Bai family.

Was she silently using others to gradually eliminate Bai Xiaodie?

As for whether Bai Youran had been involved in Bai Xiaodie’s recent actions, Layue did not know. At this point, she could only wait and see.

Now, Bai Xiaodie was not doing well. After recovery, Chen Yulan had regained her strength and now hated Bai Xiaodie to the bone. She targeted and harassed her constantly. Although Chen Yulan’s rank was low, it was still higher than Bai Xiaodie’s. Seeing her behavior, everyone in the palace understood that the miscarriage of Chen Yulan’s pregnancy might well have been Bai Xiaodie’s scheme.

It appeared that the late virtuous consort had been made a scapegoat, perishing unjustly.

Layue felt no sympathy for Consort Xian. In her previous life, her poor unborn child had perished at Consort Xian’s hands.

“Your Highness, the weather is gradually getting hotter. The Imperial Household Department has sent over some fresh edamame and peanuts; Qiaoning is preparing them now,” Jinxin chatted casually.

Edamame and peanuts were not rare, but since it had just become hot, these items were still considered somewhat unusual. Later, when the season progressed, it would be different.

Indeed, Layue’s eyes lit up. She was not someone particular about food, but in her previous life, she had been spoiled by Qiaoning’s cooking. At the beginning of her rebirth, she had too many thoughts on her mind to care, but now that things were going smoothly and Qiaoning was by her side, it naturally awakened her cravings.

Whenever food was mentioned, she became cheerful. The Emperor seemed to have noticed this and made a point of sending her rare delicacies.

Although edamame and peanuts were not high-end, Layue especially liked them, particularly edamame, which seemed especially refreshing in summer.

When Emperor Jing arrived, he saw this scene: her two maids were serving her, and she was happily eating a whole basin of edamame and peanuts by herself.

He couldn’t help but smile: “Again, my little glutton, what are you eating now?”

Seeing Emperor Jing enter the room silently again, Layue was no longer surprised.

Smiling faintly, she stood up and gave a slight curtsy: “Your Majesty, please wait a moment. My hands are dirty.”

Then, being impulsive by nature, without waiting for the Emperor’s permission, she hurriedly went to the inner chamber. Jinxin also quickly cleaned up the scattered peels and cores.

Emperor Jing leaned on a small chair, seeing the medical book Layue had been reading lying there. Looking at the page number, it had only advanced by two pages compared to a few days ago.

He smiled and shook his head.

He wondered whether she truly used this book as a sleep aid.

Layue was meticulous. After tidying herself up, she brought a towel to wipe the Emperor, having followed him for nearly a year and knowing his habits well—he was extremely particular about cleanliness.

Although she did not look sideways, she noticed the Emperor had touched her book. She smiled nonchalantly and put the handkerchief away.

“Even a little edamame can make you so happy. I didn’t know you were so easy to please,” he pulled her into his arms, smiling broadly.

Layue leaned against him naturally. The small chair was only suitable for one person to lie on, so with two people lying together, they were practically on top of each other.

“Easy to please isn’t good? If the ladies in the harem were all as easygoing as me, it would save a lot of money,” she said, pretending to count on her fingers.

The Emperor’s large hand covered her small hand as he whispered, “Seemingly easy to please, but in reality, you are the most delicate.”

Layue disliked hearing that. Delicate? She considered herself the least delicate in the palace. Wasn’t this a misunderstanding?

She glared: “Your Majesty is talking nonsense. I’m not the most delicate. I’m so easygoing. Don’t frame me, Your Majesty.”

Her bright phoenix eyes, in this state of anger, showed no intimidation at all.

“How can Your Majesty say such things? I…” Before she could finish, her voice was swallowed by his kiss.

Emperor Jing was an expert in matters of love and naturally knew how to deal with a disobedient young girl. He pulled down her slipping garment, revealing her snowy white shoulder.

As their lips met, he murmured, “I especially like this fresh scent of yours. It truly delights me…”

Under his kisses, Layue’s mind became hazy, instinctively clinging to him, not caring what he said anymore.

Today, Layue was not wearing a bright red undergarment. Instead, she wore a lovely yellow one with an intricate crabapple pattern.

For some reason, Emperor Jing thought of a line of poetry, smiling even more broadly. He nibbled on her ear gently, playfully teasing: “My dear, tell me, can this be described as ‘a tree of pear blossoms pressing down on a sea of crabapples’?”

At his words, Layue’s face turned red, and in an instant, she was already placed on the red brocade bedding.

“If you keep talking nonsense, I won’t be nice to you,” she said defiantly.

Layue’s nature was like this. Even though she was shy, she still refused to close her eyes, staring straight at him. Emperor Jing naturally knew of her stubbornness.

Seeing her glaring made him want to laugh even more.

Even after being with him for so long, this girl still didn’t understand that he loved her stubbornness even more than her sweet smiles.

Perhaps it was a lingering effect from their first time. Although he was also moved by flattery, nothing pleased him more than seeing her like this.

Just like Layue’s current expression—clearly somewhat shy, yet still stubbornly defiant—it delighted him immensely.