Concubine Zhen had indeed given her mistress a grand gift.
"Don't go around spreading baseless rumors," Consort De glanced at her. "If someone catches you in a mistake, I won't be able to save you."
Especially when it came to Consort Liang's quarters - she was the type to explode at the slightest provocation.
Knowing the gravity of the situation, Cui Yin quickly closed her mouth and sat down to trim lamp wicks for Consort De.
The next day, after the consorts finished paying their respects at Yikun Palace, Consort De had just stepped out when Consort Liang called out to her: "Sister De, do you have time to visit my Shunan Palace?"
Xi Que was in a good mood today, humming a little tune as she entered Hexi Palace.
Jiang Xinyue had just finished breakfast and was using scissors to trim green beans in the vegetable garden. Seeing Xi Que's demeanor, she couldn't help but ask, "What happy news has got you so excited?"
Xi Que had been waiting for this question. Her eyes narrowed mischievously, looking utterly ridiculous though she didn't realize it herself, which made it all the more amusing. "My lady, didn't I say that bad people would surely get their comeuppance? Guess what incredible event happened in the palace today?"
Jiang Xinyue handed the scissors to Xiao Xuanzi and pretended to stroke her chin pensively. "Given your gossip-loving nature, I'm sure there must be some excitement brewing somewhere."
"My lady, my lady..."
If we're talking about excitement, no one in the entire Hexi Palace was more thrilled than Jiang Chuan.
He ran from the front hall to the back garden, ignoring Nanny Li who was carrying a vegetable basket nearby. He gesticulated wildly as he exclaimed, "My lady! Consort Liang beat Consort De! Consort De was injured and bleeding! The Emperor was furious and slapped Consort Liang, calling her a vicious snake. He ordered the Empress to punish her by confining her to Shunan Palace to reflect on her misdeeds. She..."
Jiang Xinyue and Shuang Jiang wore strange expressions and kept signaling to Jiang Chuan with their eyes, as if telling him to stop talking.
Jiang Xinyue thought to herself: Be more confident, just remove the "as if" part.
Xi Que puffed up like an angry pufferfish. Jiang Chuan only glanced at her once before she raised the wooden ladle she was using to water the fruits and vegetables, yelling as she charged towards him, "Ah! Jiang Chuan, you stole my lines! I won't let you get away with this!"
Xi Que, that little gossip trumpet, must have been trying to show off in front of the mistress but ended up having her news stolen and revealed first.
Jiang Chuan took off running, not daring to get too close to Jiang Xinyue, so he led Xi Que on a chase around the entire vegetable garden. "My lady, I really didn't mean to! Next time... next time I'll definitely let you speak first."
Nanny Li and Nanny Xiang exchanged another glance. They had never seen servants in any palace as carefree, relaxed, and happy as those in Hexi Palace.
After a while, Jiang Xinyue's forehead began to sweat. Nanny Li reminded her, "My lady, you should go back and rest! Although it's morning, August's heat is at its peak. Don't let yourself get overheated."
She nodded, using the damp cloth Shuang Jiang handed her to wipe her face and hands. Surrounded and supported by her attendants, she returned to the main hall.
"My lady, how did Consort Liang end up fighting with Consort De? Weren't they always on good terms?"
Jiang Xinyue took a sip of warm water. Through the wide-open doors, she could see a palace maid in blue-green clothes sweeping fallen flowers from the ground.
She set down her teacup and smiled at the little palace maid. "Of course, someone must have relayed my words from yesterday to the ears of Consort De and Consort Liang. People die for wealth, birds die for food. Once there's a conflict of interest, even the best relationships can break down."
If it really came to blows, how could Consort Liang be a match for Consort De?
By now, Jiang Chuan and Xi Que had come inside. The red bump on Jiang Chuan's head indicated that Xi Que must have won their chase.
Jiang Xinyue's smile deepened. Taking advantage of Nanny Li and Nanny Xiang being outside, she said, "I've said before that I don't believe in the saying 'a gentleman's revenge can wait ten years.' For those who have wronged me, I'll have my revenge either today or tomorrow."
Deliberately leaking information to Consort De was Jiang Xinyue's strategy. She knew that given Consort De's personality, she wasn't truly playing the role of a detached consort. How could a truly detached consort manage to protect the Third Prince so perfectly in a palace full of dangers?
Even the Empress couldn't achieve what she had done. How could she be a simple character?
Empress Zhu and the others only thought it was because Consort De had such a good nature and high birth that no one dared to harm the Third Prince.
But Jiang Xinyue felt it was because Consort De was too clever.
She was clever enough to know that with her looks, she could neither attract the Emperor's attention nor win his love through her personality charm.
She knew exactly what she wanted and had made plans for it, consistently following through with her plans for decades.
The palace had Concubine Li for beauty, Empress Zhu for dignity, Consort Liang for straightforwardness, Consort Jin for coquettishness, Consort Zhang for cuteness...
Each beauty had her own unique charm and personality, but there was no one quite like Consort De with her detached, transcendent air.
So Consort De chose this persona and maintained it for over a decade.
Nowadays, when people think of the nicest person in the palace, who doesn't think of Consort De first?
However, from the day Jiang Xinyue arrived, she had been wary of Consort De.
Why did Noble Consort Su, living in Yanqing Palace, harbor such inexplicable hostility towards her?
Wasn't it because someone had been constantly exaggerating her favor with the Emperor in front of Noble Consort Su, subtly influencing her to believe that Jiang Xinyue was the cause of her own lack of favor?
Jiang Xinyue was certain that in the entire palace, only Consort De could accomplish something so flawlessly without leaving a trace.
Unfortunately, even until Noble Consort Su had her tendons cut and was sent out of the palace, she never realized she had been used as someone else's executioner.
"Boom—"
"Is it going to rain?"
Xi Que and Shuang Jiang closed the doors and windows. Jiang Chuan's expression calmed as he rubbed the red bump on his forehead and said, "There's one more thing I think I should inform you about, my lady. The Dowager Empress forced the Emperor to issue a decree demoting Concubine Li to Consort Li. And before dawn today, a matron from Kunning Palace forced Consort Li to kneel at the gates of Kunning Palace and kowtow, apologizing to Consort Shu!"
Of course, the Dowager Empress was furious!
She had been hoping for a grandson with Wu family blood to replace the Emperor, removing the father but keeping the son to restore the glory of the Wu family.
She had waited patiently for six months, but Consort Li's... no, Consort Li's actions had completely shattered the Dowager Empress's beautiful dream.
She must be so angry now that she could eat Consort Li alive to quell her rage.
But all of this had absolutely nothing to do with Jiang Xinyue.
Although everyone believed that the Jiang family was the main culprit behind Concubine Li's downfall, the decision was made by the Xuanwu Emperor himself. As long as the emperor understood that she had nothing to do with it, that was all that mattered.
The misunderstanding of others would only make the emperor feel more guilty towards her. Jiang Xinyue's task was to transform this guilt into tangible benefits, all directed towards herself.
Who wouldn't want to rise to the position of the top four consorts?
What did it matter if she lacked seniority?
Wasn't the imperial harem a place where whoever the emperor favored could do as they pleased?
If she could just give the Xuanwu Emperor a little push, it wasn't impossible for her to become the Worthy Consort.
As long as the emperor bestowed the title upon her, whether she could secure her position would no longer be the emperor's concern.
