ebookland Chapter 252 Reporting
Chapter 252 Reporting
The premature death of the deposed queen's fetus did not cause any waves in the harem, and even the empress dowager did not send anyone to inquire about it.
However, the wailing coming from Jingren Palace constantly reminded An Lingrong of the cruelty of the harem.
She continued to stay in Yonghe Palace and concentrate on teaching Hongzhan. Apart from borrowing books from Jingyang Palace, she rarely went out.
But thanks to the information passed on by Concubine Hua, Concubine Jing and Concubine Chun, she still knew everything about the harem.
Concubine Hua, Concubine Lan and Concubine Hui were in a three-way competition, and disputes often occurred.
"Lingrong, Anle misses her brothers and sisters. I will bring her here to see them."
Concubine Hua hugged Anle tightly and greeted her with a smile.
"Hongzhan and the others are playing in the west side hall. Let Songzhi watch over them."
Princess Anle was shy and even refused to let the emperor hold her, so An Lingrong didn't dare to reach out.
This baby is weak but cries easily.
When she cried, she often gasped for breath. The emperor had no choice but to assign a female doctor to the Yiku Palace to take care of Princess Anle.
But she likes to follow Hongzhan and his two siblings around, and often has fun for most of the day.
This is also the reason why no one gossips about Concubine Hua going to Yonghe Palace.
"Okay, Songzhi, take good care of the princess."
After Concubine Hua handed the child out, she consciously grabbed the osmanthus cake on the small table.
"Lingrong, the Queen Mother said that the Emperor has no children and wants to take Concubine Lan and Concubine Ying to the temple to pray for blessings."
"Think about it for me, what is her plan?"
"The previous dynasty has been clamoring for an empress, and Concubine Lan and Concubine Ying are both childless. The Queen Mother must be anxious."
The Queen Mother's behavior was indeed very strange, and An Lingrong prepared to have someone keep an eye on her.
Concubine Hua came over and said mysteriously.
"Lingrong, the Emperor has been visiting the harem frequently over the past year, but no one has received any pregnancy news. Don't you think...?"
She didn't finish the rest of the words, but An Lingrong understood that she suspected that there was something wrong with the emperor's health.
"It's hard to say. The Concubine Li of Jingren Palace is pregnant with a dragon fetus."
"Sister Nian, from now on, you must not discuss the emperor's health. This is a serious crime."
An Lingrong reminded those who became complacent once they arrived at Yonghe Palace.
"The Queen Mother is a cautious person. My sister will send someone to secretly monitor your departure from the palace for this Buddhist ceremony."
"Sister Nian, do you know which temple the Queen Mother is going to?"
"I have already inquired about it. They are going to the Erlang Temple to pray for a child."
Concubine Hua said this proudly.
An Lingrong's eyelids twitched when she heard this. Erlang Temple was not far from the late emperor's tomb.
The Fourteenth Prince is guarding the mausoleum there on the emperor's orders.
The Queen Mother rashly went there to pray for a child. Isn't she afraid of what the Emperor might think?
A few days later, Xiao Xia Zi brought news that there were some extremely outrageous questions in the imperial examination, and the emperor was furious.
Only then did An Lingrong realize that the emperor was so busy that he had no time to pay attention to the empress dowager's worship of Buddha.
"The Queen Mother chose a very good time to leave the palace to pay respects to the Buddha."
While she was sighing in her heart, she asked someone to call Baoli over.
"The Queen Mother is leaving the palace to pay respects to the Buddha. Is your brother among them?"
Although she had people of hers in Chunxi Palace and Taiji Palace, An Lingrong still felt that only by following the empress dowager closely could she find out the secret.
"Master, the secret contact between this servant and my brother was only half a month ago. How about this servant go and find out?"
Baoli asked respectfully.
This is the first time the master has asked about what's going on there since my brother started working at Shoukang Palace.
She was eager to try and share her master's worries.
An Lingrong shook his head.
"Baoli, the more critical the time is when the Queen Mother is traveling, the more we should not contact them."
"Let's wait until the Queen Mother and her entourage return before we discuss everything."
This nail that was accidentally inserted into Shoukang Palace cannot be activated at the moment.
The Queen Mother decided to leave the palace to worship Buddha by chance. On the day they left, everyone in the harem saw them off at the palace gate.
An Lingrong glanced at the palace maids coming and going one by one, and concluded that the Queen Mother's purpose of this trip was not simple.
The people brought to Shoukang Palace, Taiji Hall and Chunxi Hall are all the confidants of the three masters.
The deputy commander of the accompanying guards was a descendant of the Uya family.
The Queen Mother took away Concubine Lan, who was in charge of the palace power, and the palace affairs in her hands were temporarily transferred to Shen Meizhuang.
I heard that it was Concubine Lan who personally proposed this to the Emperor in the Yangxin Palace.
Shen Meizhuang often went to Shoukang Palace to visit Princess Longyue. Through these visits, she became familiar with Concubine Lan, who also had a bookish air.
The palace people privately spread the rumor that the two had similar interests, but An Lingrong didn't think so.
According to the information she received, Shen Meizhuang seemed to want to seek the protection of the Queen Mother, so she deliberately made friends with Concubine Lan.
Shen Meizhuang became anxious because her stomach hadn't moved. She wanted to hold the power of the palace firmly in her hands.
It’s a pity that this person can’t see the situation clearly. It’s hard to say whether she can keep the power in the palace when the emperor has time.
Less than ten days after the Empress Dowager and her entourage left the palace, the tragic news arrived that villains had attacked Erlang Temple at night and Concubine Ying had unfortunately died.
When this news reached the harem, it was like a bolt from the blue.
An Lingrong quickly ordered Baoli to take advantage of the chaos to deliver the message to Shoukang Palace.
She smelled a conspiracy through Yingpin's death.
The emperor was worried about the safety of the empress dowager, so he immediately ordered an old prince and Su Peisheng to go to Erlang Temple to bring the empress dowager back to the palace.
On the day the convoy returned to the palace, the Queen Mother sent a message back, telling everyone not to go to the palace gate to greet them.
To show his filial piety, the emperor still waited at the palace gate after breakfast. How could the other people in the harem dare not go?
Concubine Hua, who was standing next to An Lingrong, poked her and looked straight at the emperor.
An Lingrong waved her hand gently. She had no news from Erlang Temple for the time being.
However, seeing the emperor walking around anxiously, I guess the Empress Dowager and her entourage at Erlang Temple are not at peace.
At the end of the Si hour, An Lingrong was eating some snacks to fill her stomach when Baoque came hurriedly to report.
"Your Majesty, the news from the front is that the Queen Mother and her entourage have entered the city gate."
"Let's go and wait."
Everyone was waiting in an orderly manner, but after receiving the emperor's greetings, the empress dowager ordered the carriage to drive directly into the palace gate without saying a word to the concubines who came to pay their respects.
News from the harem always spreads quickly. The Empress Dowager and Concubine Lan were devastated by the incident involving Concubine Ying and needed to rest.
Ulanara Sulan rested in the Taiji Hall for three days before she came to her senses. She struggled to open her eyes, which were swollen like peaches, and spoke in a hoarse voice.
"Madam Lu, please tell the Empress Dowager that I have come to my senses and would like to see her."
Concubine Lan went to Shoukang Palace and took back the palace power from Shen Meizhuang.
However, the death of Concubine Ying had a huge impact on her. She was originally a thin and healthy person, but now she looked frail and a hint of gloom appeared between her brows.
The people stationed in Taiji Hall failed to bring back any valuable information, but Shen Meizhuang's message made An Lingrong so frightened that she broke out in cold sweats.
Concubine Lan wants to adopt her own prince, and the Empress Dowager seems to be willing to agree.