Chapter 117

Chapter 117

"Yes, Grand Empress Dowager," Consort Tongjia nervously gulped and then sat back down, her hands unconsciously clenching together.

Suma Lagu had already dismissed the palace servants.

"You are aware of what happened last night," the Grand Empress Dowager's tone was unreadable, but the prayer beads in her hand had ceased their movement.

Consort Tongjia's heart clenched. The Grand Empress Dowager had indeed brought up the matter. "Yes," she responded simply, fearing that saying more might invite trouble.

"As a Consort, with Consort Liang residing in your Jingren Palace, right under your nose, such a grave offense was committed, and you were completely unaware?"

The Grand Empress Dowager looked at Consort Tongjia, who was sitting beside her. Her tone was controlled, but her gaze was piercing.

Hearing this, Consort Tongjia felt a slight relief. It seemed the Grand Empress Dowager did not know about that matter but was instead blaming her for not being aware of Consort Liang's schemes and failing to manage Jingren Palace properly. Was she being unfairly blamed?

"Your Majesty, I truly did not know that Consort Liang would dare to act so recklessly. She always acted meek and subservient in my presence. Who could have fathomed her deceitfulness? Even I was ensnared by her schemes..."

Consort Tongjia put on a look of being frightened, her somewhat haggard appearance making her seem like an innocent victim.

By alluding to the unpredictability of human nature, she suggested that she could not read minds and could not possibly know what Consort Liang was thinking, especially given Consort Liang's skill in deception. She, too, had been ensnared by Consort Liang's schemes.

The Grand Empress Dowager observed Consort Tongjia's defense coldly and merely said,

"I see you are quite attentive to Uya. Uya is the mother of the Fourth Prince and has always kept a low profile in the palace. You have monitored Uya closely. How could a mere Consort Liang cause you to falter?"

The Grand Empress Dowager had noted Consort Tongjia's suppression of Uya. Otherwise, even if the Fourth Prince was not raised by Uya, she should not have been so inconspicuous in the palace.

After a pause, the Grand Empress Dowager's previously calm tone turned colder, "You cannot even manage a minor Consort in your own palace. Should anything befall the Emperor, do you believe you and your Tong family could shoulder the responsibility?!"

The Grand Empress Dowager struck her prayer beads against the table, creating a loud noise.

Consort Tongjia rose from her seat and immediately knelt down, "Your Majesty, please calm your anger. It is my incompetence. I will ensure it does not happen again."

Her face betrayed her anxiety, but her mind was racing to decipher the Grand Empress Dowager's implications.

The incident had occurred while the Emperor was in Jingren Palace. It was only natural for the Grand Empress Dowager to fault her for mismanaging Jingren Palace, but why mention her family?

"Next time? There will be a next time?" The Grand Empress Dowager remarked with a sardonic smile,

"Currently, you are the only Consort in the palace. The Emperor has shown favor to the Tong family, allowing you to stand above the other consorts. You must set an example to regulate the palace, so that the likes of Consort Liang do not emerge.

Nothing remains unchanged forever, not even favor. It can be worn away. Do you understand what I mean?"

The Grand Empress Dowager's words carried a deeper meaning. While she was discussing Consort Liang, every sentence was a warning to Consort Tongjia.

"Yes, I understand. I will be more cautious in my words and actions, and I will strictly follow Your Majesty's teachings," Consort Tongjia replied solemnly, her heart sinking further.

The Grand Empress Dowager looked at Consort Tongjia, feeling irritated. She closed her eyes, supporting her forehead with her hand, showing signs of fatigue. "You must truly take it to heart," she said with a heavy tone of weariness and impatience. "I am tired. You may leave."

As Consort Tongjia left, supported by a palace maid, her inner garments were soaked with cold sweat. The maid, startled by the cold and dampness of Consort Tongjia's hands, did not dare to speak, merely lowering her head and supporting her. Consort Tongjia paid no attention to the maid's expression.

Suma Lagu quietly returned to the Grand Empress Dowager's side. Although she had not stayed earlier, she had a rough idea of what had transpired.

The Grand Empress Dowager finally let out the anger she had been holding back,

"The Tong family is becoming more and more disgraceful. How could they raise a daughter like Consort Tongjia! And to think that without that old nanny by her side to stir up trouble, Consort Tongjia might have been more restrained and less foolish."

"Who would have thought she would grow even more audacious, daring to plot against the Emperor himself! If the Emperor were to come to any harm, the entire Tong family would face execution!" As she spoke, her anger became evident.

The Grand Empress Dowager cared little for how Consort Tongjia manipulated the other concubines. While some cunning was permissible in the harem, using it against the Emperor was absolutely forbidden!

If the Emperor's well-being were jeopardized, even imprisoning the entire Tong family would not suffice to atone for the crime!

As the Emperor's cousin, even if she remained passive, the Emperor would still favor her because of the Tong family's status, securing her high position in the harem and making her more stable than the other concubines. What more could Consort Tongjia possibly desire!

Suma Lagu, standing by the Grand Empress Dowager, gently calmed her, "Grand Empress Dowager, please compose yourself. Don't let anger affect your health."

"She can't even fulfill her role as a Consort properly, yet she dares to aspire to the position of Empress. She aspires to too much but lacks the ability. Failing to win the Emperor's heart, she turns to underhanded schemes.

Just now, you didn't witness her attempts to deny and justify herself in my presence. I didn't expose her, and she even had the nerve to feel relieved. I doubt she heeded any of my warnings."

Suma Lagu grasped the Grand Empress Dowager's concerns. Although she was there, it wasn't her place to interfere.

The Grand Empress Dowager vented her frustrations, but her anger did not subside. She had never favored Consort Tongjia, but since she was the Emperor's maternal relative, it was natural to show some leniency. However, the Tong family, despite their ties to the Emperor, had grown increasingly reckless and arrogant!

How dare they even contemplate such schemes.

The sudden death of a concubine in the harem could not escape the Grand Empress Dowager's notice. The claim of a sudden illness might deceive others, but it couldn't fool her.

Although she no longer managed the harem's affairs, she was not oblivious to its happenings. She was well-informed and could piece together most of the truth.

The Emperor had just visited the Yonghe Palace when Consort Rong fell ill and summoned the imperial physician.

The Grand Empress Dowager also called for the imperial physician to check her pulse. The physician would not disclose anything to outsiders, but the Emperor had instructed that if the Grand Empress Dowager inquired, he should speak the truth.

After this inquiry, everything became clear.

Consort Liang was merely a scapegoat for Consort Tongjia. A low-ranking consort with little influence would never dare to do such a thing.

The Grand Empress Dowager understood the Emperor's concerns, but if she didn't reprimand Consort Tongjia, her actions would only become more outrageous.

"How useless! The Emperor's harem is too small. If they all rely on me to intervene, they will never truly establish themselves in the harem," the Grand Empress Dowager said, her tone softening slightly.

Currently, there were few in the harem who were truly impressive.

Neither their beauty nor their temperament could compare, so how could they compete with Consort Rong?

Due to the Fourth Prince's relationship, the Grand Empress Dowager couldn't intervene directly.

She had initially thought that as the Emperor's cousin, Consort Tongjia had an advantage over the other concubines. Even if she couldn't win the Emperor's favor, at least there was some affection between them.

If she had shown more vulnerability and behaved better in front of the Emperor, she wouldn't have been neglected. But instead, Consort Tongjia kept making foolish mistakes!

This time, she had crossed a line!

Although Consort Liang took the blame and Consort Tongjia remained unscathed, this incident had likely eroded the last bit of affection the Emperor had for her.

It seemed they would have to wait for the next selection of new consorts to bring in some fresh talent.

On the other side,

After the morning court, Kangxi summoned Tong Guowei for a private audience.

Tong Guowei felt uneasy, but he reassured himself that the Emperor likely wanted to discuss political matters and not to alarm himself unnecessarily.

Tong Guowei performed the ceremonial bow as per protocol, but after a while, he still hadn’t heard the Emperor’s command to rise, making him uneasy. He could only perform the bow again.

"Rise."

This time, the Emperor finally allowed him to rise, but Tong Guowei’s heart was already racing.

"May I know the reason for Your Majesty’s summons?" Tong Guowei said with his head bowed respectfully.

"I do have a matter to discuss with you," Kangxi, seated at the head, said with a tone that hinted at something deeper. He signaled to Liang Jiugong beside him, who, understanding the signal, brought something over to Tong Guowei.

The familiar bottles on the tray made Tong Guowei’s heart skip a beat.

"Your Majesty, what is this?" Tong Guowei asked with a puzzled expression, more composed than Consort Tongjia would have been, even though he was inwardly panicking, he still appeared calm on the surface.

"You don't know what this is?" Kangxi's tone was calm, with a slight smile on his face, as if he were merely engaging in small talk with Tong Guowei.

"I truly do not understand Your Majesty's meaning."

"Oh?"

Liang Jiugong clapped his hands nearby and said, "Bring them up."

Then, a few prisoners were brought forward, among whom Tong Guowei recognized one, making his heart race. This was one of his subordinates, whom he had sent to find the secret medicine.

Just before the morning court session, this person had been at his side, and now, after just one session, he was here.

"These people are..." Tong Guowei’s face finally betrayed his panic.

Kangxi didn’t allow these people to stay long and quickly had them taken away.

Liang Jiugong followed them out.

"Surely you’re not going to claim you don’t recognize those people?" Kangxi's tone remained calm. Tong Guowei was a smart man; if he still didn’t grasp the situation, Kangxi would have to consider replacing the head of the Tong family.

Tong Guowei grew increasingly anxious. The bottle and those people, even though the Emperor hadn’t spelled it out, Tong Guowei was no fool. The Emperor already knew.

Before sending it into the palace, the secret medicine had been sent in through other means, but the bottles that originally contained the secret medicine had appeared here, and his subordinates had been captured. Tong Guowei couldn’t help but panic.

The Emperor hadn't exposed it yet, but if he still didn't admit it, the Emperor’s anger would only grow.

Now that the Emperor knew but hadn't made a scene in front of everyone, instead summoning him alone, there must still be a way out.

After understanding this, Tong Guowei dropped to his knees with a thud, "Please forgive me, Your Majesty."

"Forgive you?" Kangxi laughed out loud, leaving Tong Guowei even more unsettled. Kangxi's laughter gradually ceased, and his face turned serious.

Yonghe Palace

Su Yi picked up the wood again and started carving. She had learned her lesson; she wouldn't challenge herself with difficult three-dimensional carvings, a flat one would do.

But as she carved, the pot-headed cat suddenly leaped into her arms, panicked. Su Yi put down the carving knife and was about to hug it to comfort it, wanting to know what was wrong with the pot-headed cat. But as she touched it, her expression changed, her smile disappearing, and her face turning serious.

"Your Highness, what's wrong?" Yun Hua, seeing Consort Rong's expression change, thought something had happened to the pot-headed cat and went forward to check. But the pot-headed cat seemed fine, not injured.

"Ah, it's nothing," Su Yi quickly smiled, masking the emotion in her eyes, then looked down at the pot-headed cat, pointing at the small footprints on its body, and said,

"This little dirty cat must have gone somewhere and came back all dirty, staining my clothes. Take the pot-headed cat to wash it, I want to change my clothes."

Consort Rong was known for her cleanliness, and this wasn’t the first time. Yun Hua didn't suspect anything and said, "Yes," then reached out to take the pot-headed cat.

Usually, the pot-headed cat would only behave when held by Consort Rong, and would try to run away when held by others. But this time, when Yun Hua held it, the pot-headed cat buried itself in her arms, which surprised Yun Hua.

"Your Highness, then I..." Yun Hua, holding the pot-headed cat, was about to tell Consort Rong she was leaving, but saw that Consort Rong had already turned and entered the inner chamber.