It was uncertain whether it was due to witnessing the charred corpses last night, but Song Zhao couldn't calm her mind and didn't sleep well.
Early the next morning, Consort Yao woke her up and said, "Empress has moved to Kun Ning Palace. Let's go and see her early?"
Kun Ning Palace was the place where the emperor and empress had their grand wedding, and after the wedding, it was no longer inhabited. Feng Luan Palace was destroyed by fire, and it would take time to rebuild. Among the vacant palaces, Kun Ning Palace was the only one suitable for the empress. It was only natural for her to move in there.
When they saw the empress again today, she didn't look well, as if she hadn't fully recovered from yesterday's shock. The consorts tried to comfort her, but Consort Yin was the first to question, "How could such a calamity happen for no reason? The palace hasn't had a fire incident for a long time."
Consort Shu quickly added, "Yes, it's really mysterious. It's inauspicious to have such an event. Empress, you should have the people from the Imperial Astronomical Bureau come and make calculations."
Sure enough, when the empress's stage was set up, it was time for the real performance. She pondered and said, "Tomorrow is New Year's Eve, and we should have the people from the Imperial Astronomical Bureau come and make calculations. Yan Jiude, go and invite the Supervisor from the Imperial Astronomical Bureau."
"Your servant obeys."
In about the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, Yan Jiude arrived at Kun Ning Palace with the Supervisor.
"Reporting to Empress, the Supervisor was about to go to Chaoyang Palace to discuss matters with the Emperor. Upon hearing that the Empress summoned, he came to Kun Ning Palace first."
The Supervisor respectfully saluted the empress, saying, "I am Wei Zhengde, the Supervisor of the Imperial Astronomical Bureau. Greetings to Empress."
"No need for formalities. Wei Supervisor, were you going to see the Emperor early this morning? What's the matter?" asked the empress.
"It's related to the fire incident at Feng Luan Palace last night."
"Oh? Please explain in detail."
Wei Supervisor took out a personal horoscope and explained, "I recently calculated that Tianyang Star faintly has the potential to collide with Tianfu Star. Tianfu Star assists the Purple Micro Emperor Star and is a significant star in the central palace constellation. Tianyang Star used to be a stable star, but now it has formed a collision with Tianfu Star, resulting in a disaster. When two stars are close and in conflict, and Tianyang Star is associated with fire, that's why the fire incident happened yesterday."
The empress's expression grew serious. "According to your observation, who does this Tianyang Star refer to?"
After some calculations, Wei Supervisor replied, "The two stars were supposed to interact the night before, but they crossed paths separately and collided instead. Tianfu Star represents the empress, and Tianyang Star naturally refers to the lord of the palace. Based on the astrological signs, it should be a minor lord with a birth sign belonging to the fire element, and they didn't meet with the empress yesterday."
"They didn't meet with the empress yesterday?" Consort Yin pondered for a moment and said, "Yesterday, the Emperor led us to pray for the empress, and all the consorts were present except Consort Ning and Consort Song due to some circumstances."
She looked at Song Zhao and raised an eyebrow, asking, "Consort Song, when is your birthday?"
Song Zhao replied calmly, "Replying to Consort Yin, the consort's birthday is on the fourth day of the first month, at three-quarters past the hour of the tiger."
Wei Supervisor calculated based on Song Zhao's birthday and shook his head. "Consort Song's birth sign doesn't belong to the fire element."
With that, there was only one suspicious person left.
The empress sighed helplessly and said, "Since it has nothing to do with Consort Song, then..."
—"Then it must be me, right?"
Consort Ning's disdainful voice echoed from outside the door.
Everyone turned to look and saw her walking gracefully, with a proud smile on her rosy lips, completely disregarding anyone around her.
After standing in the hall, she didn't pay respects to the empress. Instead, she smiled and said, "I heard that the empress's palace had a water leak yesterday? I came today to console you, Your Majesty. How are you? I hope you weren't frightened enough to fall ill."
"Consort Ning! Are you here with such a sarcastic tone to inquire about the empress?" Consort Yin scolded Consort Ning loudly, but then seemed to remember something and exclaimed, "I remember now! Your birthday falls on the eighteenth day of the third month, at the hour of Mao. Wei Supervisor, calculate and see if she is the person you mentioned, the one conflicting with the empress."
Consort Ning sneered, "Consort Yin, you really have an exceptional memory for my birthday. It seems you care about me more than anyone else. Tell me, do you remember my birth details as clearly as you remember your mother's death anniversary?"
"You..."
Before the two could argue further, Wei Supervisor had already made the divination.
"Reporting to the empress, Consort Ning...," he hesitantly looked at Consort Ning, his voice weak, "Consort Ning was indeed born under the fire zodiac sign, which clashes with the empress's zodiac sign when she conceived with the trailing star."
As soon as these words were spoken, the entire hall erupted in an uproar.
Only Consort Ning remained indifferent, her mocking smile not diminishing in the slightest.
The empress anxiously asked, "How can we avoid this clash?"
Wei Supervisor replied, "Actually, it's not difficult to avoid it. It just requires Consort Ning to be confined until the empress safely gives birth."
After a moment of consideration, the empress said, "Consort Ning, later I will take Wei Supervisor to meet the emperor and explain the situation. To ensure the safety of the imperial successor, I hope you can prioritize the overall situation. You will be confined to Yonghe Palace for six months until I give birth..."
"Smack!"
Before the empress could finish speaking, a crisp slap resounded in the hall.
Surprisingly, Consort Ning unexpectedly slapped Wei Supervisor across the face without any warning!
The concubines were dumbfounded, and the empress was furious, saying, "Consort Ning! You are being too audacious! Wei Supervisor is an official appointed by the court. How can you, a mere consort, dare to hit him? Apologize to Wei Supervisor immediately!"
Consort Ning sneered, glanced at the empress, and arrogantly said, "I'll hit him if I want to. What can you do about it?"
Then, she delivered another fierce slap to Wei Supervisor's face, pointing at him and cursing, "You foolish imbecile! Your turtle mouth can't hold a pearl. You're only good at speaking nonsense! As someone who freeloads without contributing anything, do you really think I can't hit you?"
Wei Supervisor, a dignified man of seven feet tall, could be Consort Ning's father in terms of age.
Suddenly being publicly slapped twice by Consort Ning, how could he maintain his dignity?
Consort Ning's voice turned harsh as she said, "I base all my calculations on celestial observations. Whatever the stars indicate, I will speak accordingly. Consort Ning, you are the calamitous star Tianyang, and there is no mistake about it!"
"Hahaha!"
Consort Ning seemed to have heard the most hilarious joke from his words and burst into laughter, shaking with amusement.
"My grandmother was once targeted by the sorcery of witchcraft and died as a result. That's why since I entered the palace, the birthdate provided to the Imperial Household Department has been false. The Emperor is well aware of this, and the true birthdate of mine is known only to him within the entire palace."
She paused her laughter, her gaze turning fierce and sharp as she stared at Wei Supervisor, her words resounding with determination.
"You fool, tell me, how did you use a false birthdate to calculate that I am the calamitous star?"
