Chapter 47:

“Oh? What’s going on here?” The Empress Dowager saw her expression of grievance, no longer maintaining the assertiveness she had upon entering. It was as if, upon seeing her, she had become filial like meeting a family elder, and the Empress Dowager couldn’t help but feel some compassion.

After all, she was still quite young. However, considering she thought to come here, she had already done remarkably well.

Although Layue’s eyes were red, she did not cry, only lifting her chin defiantly: “Your Majesty, I come to seek Your Majesty’s justice.”

“What’s the matter now?” the Empress Dowager asked, her expression unchanging.

She took the spices from Jinxin’s hand and presented them to the Empress Dowager.

Then she recounted the events in detail. At the end, Layue bit her lip: “If my cousin hadn’t harmed me last time, I wouldn’t have been so fearful and cautious. I wouldn’t have sent Xiaodengzi to investigate. I never expected that the investigation would yield such a result. As for the mice chewing on the spices, I find it hard to believe it’s a coincidence. Fu Guipin is now with child, and no matter who is involved, everyone should be cautious.”

Seeing her like this, the Empress Dowager carefully examined her expression and found no signs of pretense.

“My dear child, quickly rise. Nothing has even happened yet, so why are you so upset?”

“I was flustered upon learning of this matter, deeply aware that it was someone else’s scheme to kill two birds with one stone, though I couldn’t quite figure it out. The more I thought about it, the more frightened I became, so I had no choice but to come to you, Your Majesty.” Layue was helped up by Madam Gui and sat on the edge of the couch.

“Madam Gui, summon the imperial physician. Chunpin, take off your outer garment; it’s quite warm in here.”

Layue followed the instructions properly. Soon after, a hurried imperial physician arrived. Fortunately, it wasn’t the Imperial Physician Wan she knew. If every time she had an issue, it was always Imperial Physician Wan who showed up, people might start to suspect something.

“Imperial Physician Zhang, please examine these spices. Why were they bitten by mice when everything was fine before?”

Imperial Physician Zhang quickly took the spices and, after just one sniff, knew: “Your Majesty, this spice is an exotic fragrance from the Western Regions. It being bitten by mice is quite normal. The scent of this spice easily attracts mice.”

The Empress Dowager showed no emotion: “I didn’t know this spice had such a characteristic. Is this trait well known to the general public?”

Imperial Physician Zhang shook his head: “Even among the imperial physicians at the Imperial Academy, not everyone knows about this characteristic. The most well-known property of this spice is that it can easily cause miscarriage. Speaking of which, people worry too much. As long as one isn’t pregnant, it’s definitely harmless and won’t affect conception. It only affects a person when they are already pregnant.”

“Then would simply placing this spice somewhere cause any problems?”

“Your Majesty, no. If this spice isn’t lit or mixed with other spices, simply placing it won’t cause any harm. However, if it has been roasted beforehand, that’s a different matter. It will gradually volatilize.”

Madam Gui handed another piece to Imperial Physician Zhang, who examined it and nodded: “This spice has indeed been roasted.”

Layue sat aside, her head slightly lowered. If she had summoned a physician herself, she would naturally be able to ask these things, but she deliberately refrained. She would not let such a matter pass silently.

“What a thoughtful person. However, such thoughtfulness is used for harming others,” the Empress Dowager said coldly.

She had seen this spice yesterday, so how could she not know that this matter must be targeting Fu Jinyao? She didn’t investigate deeply, intending to observe how Chunpin would perform today. Unexpectedly, she had come herself.

In that case, it was indeed a scheme to kill two birds with one stone. However, how could she not know that regarding this spice matter, Chunpin only had suspicions without solid evidence, and it hadn’t harmed anyone. Even if it had been discarded casually, it would have been acceptable.

Without solid evidence, no one could be brought down in the palace.

Everyone knew that, and Chunpin naturally knew as well, yet she still insisted on speaking out. She was truly someone who couldn’t bear to be wronged.

The Empress Dowager glanced at her and saw that she was still lowering her little head. The Empress Dowager withdrew her gaze.

The despicable means used by that Chen girl displeased her.

In seeking favor, she didn’t think of winning the emperor’s affection or focusing on the man himself. Instead, she was always scheming against the other concubines. Unable to scheme against others, she resorted to harming her own most trusted cousin. Such a woman was truly…deserving of death.

How could she be just like that vile woman, deserving of death?

The Empress Dowager’s expression deepened, then she relaxed her tightly closed lips and even curved into a slight smile.

“Madam Gui, go and bring Debi and Fu Guipin here.”

When the two arrived at Huici Palace and saw Chunpin standing aside, they both speculated inwardly.

Layue’s rank was low, so she quickly stood up and slightly bowed.

In front of the Empress Dowager, there was no such thing as bullying others.

They called each other sister and sat down affectionately.

Fu Jinyao shivered. On such a cold day, the Empress Dowager had the windows wide open.

“I called you here on such a cold day because there is a matter to discuss,” the Empress Dowager said directly.

Debi glanced at Shen Layue and gently smiled as she spoke: “Your Majesty, please give your instructions.”

“Yesterday, when she came to pay her respects, Chunpin noticed something unusual about Chen An. So she sent someone to investigate. She found out something, and I’m sure Debi still remembers that exotic fragrance from the Western Regions, right?”

Debi was slightly startled but quickly returned to normal: “Of course, but isn’t that substance extremely likely to cause miscarriage?”

At this point, both Debi and Fu Jinyao suddenly realized the reason for opening the windows.

Fu Jinyao was secretly alarmed.

“The servant Xiaodengzi from Chunpin’s palace found this on the path that Chen An invited Chunpin to walk yesterday. It was fortunate that Chunpin was alert. However, the piece from her palace was still there, but it had been bitten by mice. This girl is also quite indecisive, and she immediately thought of me. I had already summoned the imperial physician just now. It turns out this item has a characteristic; its fragrance is unique and extremely attractive to mice. I never thought there would be someone so scheming in the palace. They were planning to kill two birds with one stone. If this matter hadn’t been discovered in time, your child might have been lost, and Chunpin would have been falsely accused.”

Fu Jinyao was filled with hatred but did not show it on her face.

“That item was on the path leading to Huici Palace, that winding path. I suppose if you were to take a shortcut, you would also pass through that way?” The Empress Dowager was very kind, showing concern.

Originally, Fu Jinyao’s palace was not on this side, but she had moved to Zhuxuan, and Zhuxuan was not far from Tingyu Pavilion. If she were to go to the Empress Dowager’s palace, she would indeed walk the same small path after a certain distance.

Fu Jinyao hesitated for a moment, her voice strained: “Your Majesty, I came from there yesterday morning.”

If she had walked it a few more times, the consequences would have been unimaginable.

The Empress Dowager gestured to Imperial Physician Zhang, who explained the various characteristics of the exotic fragrance again. Upon hearing that the spice had indeed been roasted, even a woman like Fu Jinyao still revealed a trace of hatred.

She knelt down abruptly.

Fu Jinyao wept: “Please, Your Majesty, help me seek justice.”

“Quickly rise. Now that you are with child, you must not do this.”

Madam Gui hurriedly helped Fu Jinyao up.

“Debi, your nature is too gentle. Ever since you took charge of the palace, there have been constant disturbances. They take advantage of your kindness and willingness to be accommodating. Now, not only are they plotting to harm the imperial heir, but they are also framing the concubines. If this continues, the inner palace will descend into chaos. With such domestic troubles, how can the emperor have peace of mind to govern the country?”

Debi quickly knelt down: “Your Majesty, I acknowledge my mistake.”

The Empress Dowager did not tell her to rise: “Every time something happens, you only try to make amends afterward. If you cannot manage the inner palace properly, I and the emperor will find someone else to help you.”

Debi was startled and quickly spoke: “Your Majesty, I acknowledge my mistake. I will certainly handle this matter properly.”

After a while, the Empress Dowager finally softened her tone: “Let Fu Guipin assist you in managing the inner palace affairs.”

At this statement, everyone in the room was stunned.

“Your Majesty, I obey.”

In the palace, there were more than a few concubines with higher ranks than Fu Jinyao, yet the Empress Dowager specifically chose Fu Jinyao to assist with palace affairs. Debi clenched her fists under her sleeves.

“All the spices in the palace are accounted for. If it was indeed Chen An’s doing, how did she obtain the spices and come up with this idea? Are there others involved? You must find out for me.”

After Fu Jinyao responded, she began to ponder inwardly.

Chen Yulan, a low-ranking concubine, was almost the lowest in the palace. How could she possibly obtain the spices of the Virtuous Consort? Or perhaps, this spice was not from the Virtuous Consort at all. Didn’t Qi Zhao have some as well?

Although she didn’t look at the side, Fu Jinyao also suspected Debi, who was beside her. After all, when the Virtuous Consort’s quarters were searched, who could say that this piece of spice didn’t fall into Debi’s hands?

In fact, Debi was probably the person in the entire palace who least wanted her to give birth to a prince.

The emperor only had two young princes. The eldest prince was raised by the Empress Dowager, lived in seclusion, and even she, as his aunt, rarely saw him. The mother of the second prince was none other than Debi herself.

However, gaining the right to manage the palace affairs brought Fu Jinyao a sense of satisfaction.

No harm was done, her enemies were exposed before her, and she received this favor. This time, she had indeed gained quite a lot.

Looking at the Chunpin sitting in the corner, she wasn’t so annoying anymore, was she?

If Layue knew Fu Jinyao’s thoughts, she would probably scoff out loud.

Her actions today were not only out of indignation at being framed but also had another layer of consideration. She wanted to make the matter public. And since she had narrowly escaped being wrongly accused this time, even if someone tried to harm Fu Jinyao in the future, the scapegoat would definitely not choose her. There was some caution involved, but even if someone did it, people would associate it with this incident. Since she was already busy harming others, they would naturally want to strike with one blow.

She had already become the worst possible scapegoat in the palace, and she slowly curled her lips into a smile.

She imagined that the person behind the scenes must be furious enough to spit blood. What was meant to be a two-pronged attack had instead ended up benefiting two people.

She got what she wanted, and Fu Jinyao gained even more.

There must be someone behind Chen Yulan.

But thinking about that person, they were somewhat tragic.

Sometimes, it’s not the fierce opponents you have to fear, but the foolish allies.

Chen Yulan was truly not a good ally.