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Concubine Cheng thought too highly of herself, believing she was superior and had earned the Emperor\'s favor, so she looked down on both her and Noble Lady Liu.

She would always look down her nose at others, despising how she and Noble Lady Liu tried various ways to gain favor.

But she failed to realize that if it weren\'t for her father\'s military achievements, would the Emperor have even given her a second glance?

Noble Lady Liu had always been arrogant. Her grandmother had been a calligraphy teacher who served the previous Emperor, and after reaching a certain age, she left the palace to marry a local official. Liu always brought this up, thinking she had a special connection to the Emperor.

Only she herself had nothing to her name.

When she was initially appointed as a palace lady, it was only because of the Noble Consort\'s suggestion, as the Emperor hadn\'t even noticed her.

Now that she had fallen into trouble, Concubine Cheng and Noble Lady Liu, far from helping her based on their former friendship in Chuxiu Palace, couldn\'t wait to distance themselves from her.

She thought she was going to die, but Noble Consort saved her.

"Please rise, Noble Consort Ye. I don\'t deserve such thanks," Jiang Xinyue smiled gently. "Though I have a reputation for jealousy, I can still distinguish right from wrong. If you did something wrong, I wouldn\'t spare you, but if you\'re innocent, I won\'t wrongly accuse you either. As long as you behave properly from now on, I naturally won\'t make things difficult for you."

If all those in power were like this, there wouldn\'t be so many wrongful convictions in the world.

For the first time, Noble Consort Ye felt that if Noble Consort were to become Empress and manage the imperial harem, it might actually be quite good.

As they spoke, a palace maid announced that Noble Lady Jiang had arrived. Noble Consort Ye didn\'t leave but instead sat on a small stool, watching enviously as Noble Lady Jiang unhesitatingly went to hold and play with the Sixth Prince.

"Did you write the letters to Jiang Chuan as I asked?"

Xique immediately nodded: "Yes, yes! Besides telling him to guard the palace well and be wary of Consort... of people with ill intentions trying to cause harm, I also told him to harvest the grapes properly and preserve them in ice boxes. When we return, we can make grape... what was it... the shaved ice that you mentioned, Your Highness."

Though she didn\'t know what shaved ice was, she knew her mistress was a culinary expert - if she said it was delicious, it must be.

...

In Hexi Palace—

Jiang Chuan didn\'t rashly call for the imperial physician. The storehouse in Hexi Palace had various precious medicines and prepared remedies. Though he wasn\'t trained in medicine, he knew enough about basic wound treatment and anti-inflammatory herbs.

With the help of palace maids and Luyin, they "processed" Xiao Ronghua until she looked renewed, and then the three sat down together.

"Tell me! How did you get in?"

Luyin took several deep breaths, mentally preparing herself before speaking: "The wall by your vegetable garden didn\'t collapse on its own. Consort De had it knocked down to cover up the noise from digging a tunnel on the other side."

"What?"

Jiang Chuan stood up: "Why would she randomly come knock down our wall? And... you\'re Consort De\'s most trusted person, why should I believe you?"

He worried they might be setting him up to frame his mistress.

Xiao Ronghua had been severely tortured - her face was disfigured, all her fingernails had been pulled out, and her body was covered in wounds, some scabbed over and others still bleeding. The young palace maids who bandaged her earlier had been scared to tears.

Could they be planning to hide Xiao Ronghua in Hexi Palace and wait for the Emperor\'s return to catch his mistress red-handed?

Such a vicious scheme.

Seeing Jiang Chuan\'s disbelief, Luyin slid from her chair in desperation, violently knocking her forehead on the ground: "Master Jiang, I... I don\'t want to betray Consort De, but... I... I don\'t want to die, I want to live. I\'m already twenty-three, and in two years I\'ll be allowed to leave the palace. I really don\'t want to die. Consort De... she\'s addicted to torture and murder. Before she only targeted concubines and servants in the Cold Palace, but now she\'s started killing people in her own palace. I\'m going mad, I really am going mad."

If she weren\'t mad, how could she dare to free Xiao Ronghua and crawl through a tunnel into Hexi Palace seeking protection?

In this palace, besides the Noble Consort, no one would dare handle this matter.

"I don\'t know why Consort De wanted to dig a tunnel, and she hasn\'t told me her next move, but because of this tunnel, I got the idea to rescue Xiao Ronghua. She\'s the only survivor of the Consort\'s torture victims. If Noble Consort wants to bring her down, Xiao Ronghua would be the best evidence."

Jiang Chuan remained silent, still harboring doubts, afraid of harming his mistress if he trusted too easily.

"Consort De... she killed the previous Empress\'s two princes, and when the Sixth Prince\'s wet nurse was burned to death by white phosphorus powder, it was Consort De\'s father, the Duke of Cheng, who bribed Lady Zhu\'s maid to manipulate Lady Zhu into doing it."

Which meant Consort De wanted to kill the Sixth Prince!

Aliali: 674876fac4f3f33ac4792c05

After revealing two such explosive secrets, Jiang Chuan finally believed her: "Tell me, what do you want me to do?"

Luyin looked up, hope rekindling in her eyes: "Master Jiang, you only need to hide Xiao Ronghua and keep her alive. When Noble Consort returns, Xiao Ronghua and I will expose Consort De\'s true nature before the Emperor. I... I ask for nothing else, I only beg that Noble Consort will show mercy and allow me to leave the palace early. I can\'t bear to stay in this palace for another moment."

It\'s too terrifying!

Jiang Chuan\'s eyes flickered: "If what you say is true, I will naturally inform my mistress, but if you dare deceive me, our mistress has plenty of ways to end your life."

"Rest assured, Master Jiang. I came tonight having made up my mind - I absolutely won\'t deceive you."

She glanced at the dawning sky outside: "It\'s getting late, I should return, or Consort De will grow suspicious."

Watching Luyin crawl back through the tunnel, Jiang Chuan remained puzzled: "Why would Consort De go to such lengths to dig a tunnel here? What is she planning?"

"Master Jiang, another bunch of grapes has ripened. Would you like to pick them?"

Several gardeners and fruit-tenders had arrived early in the morning, paying close attention to the purple jade grapes. This concerned their chances of advancement, so they couldn\'t be careless.

"Pick them!" Jiang Chuan hurried over. "The mistress asked about them in her letter. She\'ll want to eat them when she returns."