It was the Zhaoyang Palace.
Madam Hua's grin practically reached the back of her head. The Emperor's first child—how could it be anything but monumental? Naturally, the Emperor would want his firstborn to be a legitimate heir. Soon enough, she'd be calling her young mistress "Her Majesty the Empress."
Ruxin, hearing the news, laughed. "So now you're not shushing me anymore, Madam Hua? Looks like our lady's about to don imperial yellow."
Madam Hua beamed. "If I'd known you were this good at predicting the future, I would've listened to you more. What do you think—boy or girl?"
"A prince."
"Really?"
Madam Hua nearly jumped with excitement, then laughed at herself. "Good heavens, am I really treating you like a fortune teller now?"
Meanwhile, inside the bedchamber, Meng Wenyao was asking, "What does Your Majesty think—will it be a prince or a princess?"
Of course, the Emperor wanted a prince. But he didn't want to put too much pressure on her. After all, since she could conceive, he figured it was just a matter of time before he had a son.
"It's our child. No matter what, I'll love them."
Meng Wenyao smiled at his answer but then suddenly thought of Prince An. The words "Then do you still love Prince An?" nearly slipped out before she slapped a hand over her mouth in panic.
The Emperor leaned in, concerned. "What's wrong? Do you feel sick?"
"Nothing," she quickly said. "I just feel sleepy."
Just as the lamps dimmed, a young eunuch rushed over. Spotting Xiao Dezi, he whispered anxiously, "Tell Consort Chen—something serious has happened!"
Xiao Dezi barely opened one eye to glance at him. What could possibly be that serious when the two most important people in the palace are asleep?
Nine times out of ten, it was another mess with Prince An or the Empress Dowager. But His Majesty was finally in a good mood, and nothing was more important than Consort Chen's pregnancy. Even if the Empress Dowager herself died, she could wait until morning.
"His Majesty and Her Ladyship are resting. Whatever it is, it can wait." His voice left no room for argument.
The young eunuch hesitated, clearly torn, but eventually bit his tongue, stomped his foot, and left.
That night, Meng Wenyao slept more soundly than she had in months. The Emperor, worried he might accidentally touch her, clung to the very edge of the bed.
It had been ages since she'd slept in such luxury. She didn't wake until morning, and even then, she lay in bed giggling to herself over the antics of the previous night before finally calling for her maids.
But as she rose and dressed, she began to notice the strange atmosphere.
"Did something happen?" she asked quietly.
Madam Hua hesitated before speaking. "Your Ladyship, you should prepare yourself first. Don't get too upset."
Those words immediately triggered a sense of dread. She instinctively looked down at her belly—Was something wrong with the baby?
Madam Hua hurried to reassure her. "No, no—Your Ladyship and the baby are both fine. It's about the Second Miss."
That wasn't nearly as terrifying. Meng Wenyao relaxed. "Speak."
"Second Miss fell into the water last night. This morning... they found her body."
"What?!"
Meng Wenyao nearly choked on her porridge. Though she hadn't been frightened, she was definitely shocked. She had often thought Meng Wenxian deserved death, but the woman had always managed to slither out of it. Just when things were turning around for her, she suddenly dropped dead?
"What happened?"
"I'm not exactly sure, Your Ladyship. The servants brought word first thing this morning. I've already sent for Lady Liu."
Meng Wenyao nodded, spooning porridge into her mouth as she considered the situation. Meng Wenxian had just been betrothed to Prince An, and no one would've been more furious about that than the Empress Dowager. It was a slap to the Prince's face. She could have orchestrated something.
But Consort Gui was another likely suspect. With Wei Quan barely cold in the grave, Meng Wenxian was immediately being handed over to Prince An? There's no way the Consort could swallow that humiliation.
The real issue now was how to handle the fallout.
Lady Liu would arrive soon. If they told her the Empress Dowager was behind it, she might go straight to the Empress Dowager in a fit of rage. That could end badly—and take the whole Meng family down with it.
But if they pinned it on Consort Gui, well... the Emperor was already leaning toward dismantling the Wei clan. That story might stick.
Meng Wenyao whispered a few instructions to Madam Hua, then calmly resumed her breakfast.
Before long, Lady Liu arrived at the Hanxiang Hall. Madam Hua went to meet her and quietly led her to the side chamber.
"Madam Hua, I want to see Her Ladyship. I want to see my daughter." Lady Liu's voice was trembling, barely audible.
Madam Hua gently consoled her. "You may not have heard yet. Last night, Her Ladyship found out she was pregnant. His Majesty was so thrilled he personally decreed the Second Miss's marriage to Prince An. You know Consort Gui never liked the Second Miss—imagine her rage when she learned she was to marry the Prince. Last night, she must've made her move.
"Even though Her Ladyship now technically outranks her, Consort Gui has held the reins of the harem for over a decade. Her people are everywhere. We didn't realize in time, and that woman took advantage.
"Her Ladyship fainted from grief multiple times after hearing the news. The Emperor is terrified she'll harm the baby, so he's forbidden anyone from disturbing her."
Lady Liu collapsed to her knees, stunned. She hadn't known any of this.
Madam Hua continued, voice low and mournful. "When the Second Miss went missing before, Her Ladyship turned the entire palace upside down to find her. But the Second Miss didn't want to come back—she was set on seducing Prince An. Now the imperial edict finally came down... and she's dead."
Lady Liu muttered in a daze, "Consort Gui... It was Consort Gui..."
"Madam, you must be careful what you say," Madam Hua warned in a hushed voice. "Consort Gui holds immense power. Who dares offend her? Wasn't it fear of the Wei clan that made you send Her Ladyship to them in the first place? Who could've guessed the Second Miss would walk into this death trap?"
Lady Liu was beyond devastated. She no longer registered the veiled jabs—only the crushing guilt and fury. "I want revenge. I want blood."
Madam Hua nodded solemnly. "Her Ladyship said the same. The Meng family mustn't be trampled like this. Take the Second Miss's body home. Then go straight to the Court of Judicial Review. Let the officials know—it was the Wei clan and Consort Gui who murdered your daughter."
She even squeezed out a few tears and supported Lady Liu to collect the body.
An hour later, Madam Hua returned to the hall.
"How did it go?"
Meng Wenyao, setting aside her embroidery, looked up eagerly.
"She's completely distraught. I could've told her the sun rose in the west and she'd have believed it. I'm certain she'll go to the Court."
Meng Wenyao gave a small nod and fell silent. Her thoughts drifted back to her past life. When she had died in despair within the Wei household, her father and brother had grieved so deeply they rushed to the capital that very night.
Now Lady Liu could finally feel that pain herself.
What goes around comes around.
Perhaps one day, Lady Liu would realize that the person who killed her daughter... was actually herself.
That morning, the Emperor headed straight to Hanxiang Hall after court. He had already heard about Meng Wenxian's death. He knew the Meng mother and daughter pair had been cruel to Meng Wenyao. Frankly, he was relieved—their deaths saved him the trouble of dealing with them.
But then he remembered how Meng Wenyao had begged for mercy on her sister's behalf the night before.
She was too kind.
When she found out this morning... she was surely heartbroken.