Harem Daily Life

Chapter 236 Don't Deceive Me

The Queen Mother is now furious and is ready to scold anyone who comes.

"Emperor, you came just in time. This is a letter of denunciation written by Zhao from the cold palace. She once inadvertently heard Concubine Xian talking to her maid about Concubine Xian's miscarriage. It turns out that Concubine Xian's pregnancy was not safe in the first place. She deliberately came to me and made a scene, causing me to reprimand her. Then she took the opportunity to hit her head against the wall and miscarried, so that she could put the blame on me. She really went to great lengths to frame me!"

After the Queen Mother finished speaking, she looked at Tao Yanyan and said, "Zhao also revealed in the letter that she overheard the conversation between Concubine Xian and her maid in the Imperial Garden, in which she mentioned that Concubine Xian was threatened by Tao Zhaoyi with abortion. It can be seen that Tao Zhaoyi knew the truth a long time ago, but she kept it secret!"

The Queen Mother handed the letter to the Emperor.

He Linzhang frowned and took the letter. He read it carefully before handing it to Tao Yanyan: "Is what the letter says true? Do you really know it?"

Tao Yanyan took the letter and read it quickly. Just as he was about to explain, he heard a palace servant come to report that Concubine Xian had arrived.

The empress dowager was so angry that she turned her head away and didn't bother to look. He Linzhang called people in, and there was no happy expression on his face.

"Your servant greets the Queen Mother and Your Majesty." Although the Imperial Concubine's rank was higher than that of the Virtuous Concubine, the Virtuous Concubine did not greet her.

"Stand up. The reason I called you here today is mainly to ask you about your miscarriage." He Linzhang asked straight to the point.

Xianfei was startled and looked at Tao Yanyan standing aside, tears welling up in her eyes: "I don't know what your majesty wants to ask specifically. When you mention that I didn't keep the child, I feel...very sad."

Tao Yanyan was really impressed by Concubine Xian's ability to control her tears so freely. She could actually sob and cry before she could speak in just a few seconds. She knew how to control her tears so well. If she traveled to the modern era, she would definitely become a powerful star with her acting skills.

"Let me ask you, was it impossible to keep that baby from the beginning? Tell me the truth and don't lie to me." He Linzhang looked directly into Concubine Xian's eyes and asked.

The virtuous concubine glanced at Tao Yanyan again, with anger in her eyes: "Your Majesty, your majesty, your majesty, your majesty, I was not in good health to begin with, and the fetus... the fetus was healthy at first. Then, I don't know what happened, but... Your Majesty, your majesty, your majesty is guilty, and your majesty failed to protect our child."

The virtuous concubine was already crying, looking as sad as if she had lost her child.

He Linzhang couldn't bear to continue asking, but the Queen Mother rolled her eyes at him and said, "Xian Fei, you couldn't keep the baby, but you plotted against me. You even deliberately made trouble in front of me, framing me for the miscarriage and causing a rift between me and Your Majesty. You are so bold!"

The virtuous concubine knelt down and said: "Your Majesty, I didn't mean it. I didn't know that the fetus would not be saved..."

"Hmph, you are still quibbling at this time! Someone, go and call Doctor Li." The Queen Mother was really angry. Her relationship with her son had hit rock bottom in recent years, all thanks to this white lotus. This time, she was determined to make her son see the true face of this white lotus.

When Concubine Xian saw that the situation was hopeless, she had no choice but to beg for mercy: "Please forgive me, Queen Mother. I know I was wrong! Your Majesty, please help me beg for mercy. I am too weak to keep the child, and I am afraid that Your Majesty will dislike me, so I... I came up with this last resort. I was confused for a moment."

When the Queen Mother heard this, she rolled her eyes at her and said, "A moment of confusion? I think you are deliberately plotting this! How can you be worthy of the position of a First-Rank Consort if you have such a bad mind? Your Majesty, she is deceiving you and disrespecting me. What do you think should be done with her?"

He Linzhang looked at Concubine Xian who was kneeling and crying. This time, there was really no reason to stand on her side and help her, so he said, "Concubine Xian has done something wrong and should be punished. Then she should be demoted to Concubine Li and fined for half a year."

"Heh. Emperor, isn't this punishment too light? She was a second-rank concubine before, so your punishment is equivalent to no punishment?" The empress dowager was not someone to be fooled, and she immediately questioned the emperor.

He Linzhang said helplessly: "What about what the Queen Mother wants?"

The Queen Mother glanced at Consort Xian and said, "Demote her to Zhaoyi and deduct one year's salary."

Xianfei looked at the Queen Mother in disbelief, then looked at Tao Yanyan and said, "I thank the Queen Mother and Your Majesty for your forgiveness. However, Tao Zhaoyi has been threatening me with abortion before, and now she has informed on me. I beg the Queen Mother to punish her."

Tao Yanyan: “…”

She looked at the Queen Mother and said, "I did know the truth about Concubine Xian's miscarriage based on my guesswork. Concubine Xian has made things difficult for me many times, and I always used this as an excuse to make her back off. Concubine Xian's claim that I threatened her is pure nonsense. As for informing on her, if I wanted to, I would have said it long ago, and I wouldn't have waited until now."

Concubine Xian looked at her in disbelief: "Didn't you tell anyone?"

Tao Yanyan had no choice but to hand Zhao's letter to Concubine Xian: "You are careless yourself, so you can't blame others."

When Concubine Xian took the letter and read the contents, she was shocked. She had never expected that in the end, it would be such an insignificant person who was banished to the cold palace who would reveal her secrets.

"The Zhao family is doomed to fail, all thanks to you." Tao Yanyan said coldly, "If you hadn't sent someone to poison her and make her mute, she wouldn't have reported you."

"I didn't! I have nothing to do with poisoning!" Concubine Xian refused to admit it and looked at the emperor in panic.

He Linzhang looked away, his trust in Concubine Xian dropped to the lowest point.

He now really couldn't tell which words of this incredibly beautiful woman were true and which were false, and his friendship for her was gradually fading away.

"You know whether it is true or not. Well, I heard that His Majesty has punished you with house arrest before, so go back to your Changsheng Palace first. I don't want to see you again." The Queen Mother drove her away in a cold voice. The virtuous concubine knew that she was not favored by the Queen Mother, so she had to leave.

After the annoying people left, the Queen Mother glared at Tao Yanyan and said, "It's your turn now. What were you thinking? Why didn't you report it?"

The Queen Mother actually knew that she had nothing to do with Concubine Xian's fetus, so she had always been tough. But when she knew that Tao Yanyan knew the truth but did not report it and did not clear her name, she was really heartbroken. She felt that she had taken care of her and loved her in vain, and she was really hurt.

Tao Yanyan glanced at the emperor and said aggrievedly, "When I first found out, I wanted to tell your majesty. But during that time, your majesty was depressed because Concubine Li had lost her child. Your majesty loved Concubine Li and naturally loved Concubine Li's child. I couldn't bear to let your majesty know the truth. I was worried that your majesty couldn't bear the deception of the person you loved, and couldn't bear the person you loved playing tricks on you and making things difficult for your mother."

Tao Yanyan glanced at the Queen Mother again and said with more grievance: "I am most sorry to the Queen Mother. The Queen Mother really treats me like her own mother. She always remembers to take me with her when she goes to the temporary palace for the winter. She always thinks of me for all the good things. The closer I am to the Queen Mother, the more tormented I feel. Queen Mother, if you don't forgive me, then...what should I do? I can't even face the Queen Mother."