Palace Fighting: Naive Concubines' Ascent to Power-Chapter 613: Consort, something bad has happened

She carried herself with hands neatly placed on her chest, her gaze fixed straight ahead as she solemnly made her way toward the grand entrance of Huaqing Palace, her presence commanding.

Cai Xia and Cai Qin flanked her, one on each side, following behind her.

Just as they were about to reach the entrance, a Young Eunuch hurried over from outside, looking panicked and breathless, "Consort, something terrible has happened, something terrible..."

The Noble Consort lifted her gaze, her eyes cold and her face showing displeasure.

Seeing this, Cai Xia stepped forward and shouted sternly, "How dare you! Have you forgotten the rules? You’ve collided with the Consort, careful or we’ll flay your skin!"

"Yes, this servant deserves to die." The Young Eunuch was sweating profusely and without further care, he blurted out hastily, "It’s just that, Consort, it’s terrible, our palace has been sealed!"

"What?" The Noble Consort’s face changed drastically, and she exclaimed in shock.

She could no longer maintain her composed demeanor and, lifting her skirt, hurried forward.

At that moment, someone slowly walked toward them from the entrance, wearing a mild smile and greeting, "Noble Consort, my respects to you."

It was Zhang Qing!

The Noble Consort’s pupils shrank, and she stopped in her tracks, a strong sense of unease rising within her as she fixed her gaze on Zhang Qing, waiting for his next move.

Zhang Qing, hands tucked away, had a thoughtful smile on his face and a glint of indiscernible meaning in his eyes, then he spoke, "Consort, His Majesty has decreed..."

After hearing the decree, the Noble Consort’s entire demeanor collapsed; she stared blankly at the ground, silent...

The tumult in the Harem was but a dish, calculated long in advance by the Emperor, upon which he hadn’t even expended two thoughts.

Consort Zhen turning herself in was merely the first step, just the beginning — the main play was yet to come.

Before leaving Star Palace, the Emperor had nonchalantly dispatched Zhang Qing to Huaqing Palace to issue the confinement decree.

Whether or not the Noble Consort would seek him out, what she would say, how she would behave, it wasn’t important — even if it wasn’t the Noble Consort’s doing, it wasn’t important, the Emperor was uninterested.

What mattered were Xue Ping and those pushed by the noble families, those who had stirred the waters in the former court.

As for the Noble Consort, how much she knew about Xue Ping’s plan, how much she had participated in, or even if she was completely unaware, none of it hindered the Emperor’s conclusion that Xue Ping was behind it all.

It was only natural for a daughter to pay for her father’s debts!

In the Emperor’s scheme, the Noble Consort’s fate now rested on whether her esteemed father, Xue Ping, was willing to pay a price for her.

The Emperor had once harbored expectations for Xue Wanjun; after all, his Imperial Grandmother liked her so much that he frequently heard of her merits. For the sake of his Imperial Grandmother, the Emperor would have treated her kindly.

But later, the Emperor found her no different from the Late Emperor’s concubines. He gradually lost interest, especially since her father harbored wild ambitions, hoping to use her to repeat the Late Emperor’s practice of emptying the throne — she dared to be their pawn, so how could the Emperor tolerate such a person being intimately close to him?

The cause of the current situation stemmed from Noble Consort Xue’s father, and if the plan succeeded, Lian Hua and the child within her belly would likely suffer...

Merely contemplating this possibility filled the Emperor’s heart with unquenchable fury, and thus he found it even harder to regard Noble Consort Xue with any sympathy.

He had already planned that if Xue Ping treated Xue Wanjun as a disposable pawn, then the Emperor would show no mercy either.

Therefore, for all these reasons, confining the Noble Consort directly was the most prudent choice, sparing many troubles — it was naturally the wisest decision by the Emperor.

At this time, the Emperor had not focused his attention on this matter but pondered how to ensnare all the private soldiers in one fell swoop.

He had already issued instructions to Shen Shi, as for how to decide afterward, that was a difficult question.

If he could not think of a better way, he could only try to pacify them first, and if there was resistance, whether they were commoners or not, they would all be regarded as rebels and executed accordingly.

This method could not be said to be very good, it was a great test for the people in command of the troops, and more soldiers were needed to coordinate, surrounding the villages suspected of harboring rebels one by one, with significant risk of synchronization, a moment’s delay could allow the private soldiers to scatter and escape.

At the same time, the terrain in that area could easily lead to a stalemate situation.

He also had to guard against the private soldiers feigning surrender, among many other issues.

These problems swirled in the Emperor’s mind, lingering and preventing him from relaxing, such that after finishing his lunch, when Lian Hua pulled him to play chess, he kept pondering.

Lian Hua knew His Majesty was contemplating important matters, and did not disturb his thoughts. To her, it was the same as when His Majesty read books, the only difference being that she didn’t have a book in her hands and was even more engrossed in the game, sparing half a mind for her was plenty.

She took her time with the plan she had strategized that morning with several lieutenants, knowing she couldn’t be impatient, and not letting His Majesty notice was crucial for success.

She followed the plan methodically, noticing everything was going smoothly, and His Majesty had not detected it yet.

She secretly rejoiced, quietly spreading her few pawns, feigning attacks in one direction while employing diversions, hoping to slowly cross the river.

Once the snare was fully laid, and there was just one more move to make, she could get one of her pawns across the river, and none of His Majesty’s pieces would be able to stop it, hee hee.

She tried her best to control her expression, not wanting to be discovered, and reached out to tug at the Emperor’s sleeve. ƒreewebηoveℓ.com

The Emperor tapped his fingers lightly on the table, his gaze empty, still pondering the issue of the private soldiers. Receiving her signal, he glanced at the chessboard out of habit, moved a piece, and then went back to his thoughts.

Lian Hua closely watched his every move, seeing that he indeed did not notice her little pawn, the glee in her heart could no longer be contained, and she cheered, "I’ve crossed the river, haha, my little pawn has crossed the river~"

After saying that, she moved the little pawn across the river with a "plop," her face breaking into a smile, revealing eight neatly aligned little pearly teeth, her round almond eyes creased with laughter.

The Emperor snapped back to reality and, seeing her so happy, couldn’t help but smile as well.

Lian Hua was extremely proud, for it was the first time she had managed to get a pawn across the river. Overcome with joy, she couldn’t help but rise to her feet, lean in, and with a "smack," kiss the Emperor’s cheek, boasting, "Your Majesty, my little pawn has crossed the river. It’s about to get serious now, you’d better be careful."

The Emperor touched the spot where he had been kissed, the warm, soft sensation as if still lingering on his cheek, the smile in his eyes unfurling.

He hadn’t expected his Little Concubine to be so persistent, to go through so much trouble to get a pawn across the river and even reward him with a sweet kiss for it; it was a delightful moment.

He fondly pinched her face and lavished praise, "Nannan is truly exceptional, managing to cross the river right under my nose, well done."

"Of course, with Your Majesty being so formidable, it wasn’t easy for my pawn to cross the river," Lian Hua said, her happiness causing the corners of her mouth to turn high up.

Remembering something, she called out, "Xiao Linzi, remember this, today the little pawn crossed the river, remind me to note it down later."

From outside, Xiao Linzi joyfully responded, "Yes, master." He had his part in the credit too.

After giving her orders, she returned to her seat beaming with joy and urged, "Your Majesty, it’s your turn, please make your move."

She exuded confidence, as if victory was already hers.

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