Chapter 165 Sending Consort Shu on Her Way!
Zhao Jing knelt on the ground, crying his heart out, almost out of breath.
Everyone else was dumbfounded; this reversal came too quickly!
Just when it seemed Emperor Ren was about to forgive Consort Shu, such a huge bombshell suddenly dropped.
Consort Shu's audacity was too great; how could she do such a thing?
Consort Qing glanced at Shen Yulou again, a storm raging in her heart.
How did he do it?
Zhao Jing bore a five-tenths resemblance to Emperor Ren, so she thought it unlikely he was a bastard.
But the blood-drop test was irrefutable evidence, which only meant this man's methods were too ruthless.
He would not act unless necessary, but once he did, he could strike a fatal blow.
It was just like how Shen Yulou had dealt with her before; once he made a move, he left no room for opportunity.
Consort Qing felt somewhat fortunate at this moment, fortunate that Shen Yulou lusted after her body and had turned her enemy into an ally.
Otherwise, she would still be stuck in the Cold Palace now.
Consort Qing had naturally never seen 'Empresses in the Palace'.
If alum is placed in water, even if they are not biological father and son, they can still blend.
If clear oil is placed in water, even if they are biological father and son, they will not blend.
'Empresses in the Palace' truly did not deceive me!
After an internal struggle, Emperor Ren clenched his fists and said in a deep voice.
"Consort Shu, banished to the Cold Palace, awaiting further disposition!"
"Zhao Jing, demoted to commoner, exiled to Ninguta, never to return to the capital!"
Consort Shu's face was ashen, and she was dragged away like a dead dog.
Shen Yulou stood to the side, looking at Zhao Jing, who had cried himself into unconsciousness, and silently shook his head.
Isn't it just a trip to Heilongjiang to experience the Ice and Snow World? Is there any need to cry like this?
Although this world doesn't have Heilongjiang, since it's called Ninguta, it should be this world's Northeast region.
It's just a bit cold in winter, nothing major, so why all the wailing and crying?
Alas, young people, their psychological resilience is still too poor.
After Consort Shu and Zhao Jing were dragged away, the atmosphere in the Hall of Mental Cultivation became somewhat awkward for a while.
Emperor Ren was panting heavily with anger, while Consort Qing had a complex expression.
This gossip is huge; I'll digest it slowly.
Just then, a Palace Maid, holding a brocade box, carefully walked in; it was the one Consort Shu had sent earlier to fetch the glazed lamp.
Seeing the situation before her, the Palace Maid was also a bit flustered.
She held the glazed lamp, somewhat at a loss.
Emperor Ren, full of anger, waved his hand impatiently.
"Give it to Minister Shen! My word is law; if I said it's a reward, then it's a reward!"
Shen Yulou was overjoyed.
This was spoils of war; it couldn't be unrewarded just because Consort Shu was banished to the Cold Palace, right?
Emperor Ren was quite generous this time.
He took the brocade box, quickly expressed his gratitude, and dared not say another word.
He was about to embark on a great undertaking, and money was essential, so this item naturally couldn't be wasted... After leaving the palace, Shen Yulou returned to the Imperial Heirs Residence to continue his great work of teaching and educating.
Over at the Imperial Academy, with the Ninth Prince, Ninth Imperial Prince, as a financial backer, the construction progress was rapid, and it was already mostly repaired.
Shen Yulou would go to supervise the work whenever he had free time these days, with his hands behind his back, like a retired veteran cadre, complaining one moment that a wall wasn't built straight, and the next that a door was installed a bit crooked.
Ninth Prince Ninth Imperial Prince followed behind him, complaining that the teacher's demands were too high, but feeling secretly pleased.
He personally supervised this construction; he would be the class monitor here in the future, and that status was absolutely top-notch!
That evening, Shen Yulou, as usual, accompanied the Empress Dowager in the Palace of Benevolent Peace to play mahjong.
"I win! Thirteen Orphans!"
The Empress Dowager pushed her tiles, her face full of wrinkles blooming with laughter.
Shen Yulou, while reluctantly taking out money, secretly stepped on Tao Hong's foot, signaling her to make sure the Empress Dowager had good chances to win.
After the game, the Empress Dowager, having won a large pile of silver fragments, was contentedly helped by Tao Hong to rest.
Inside the room, Consort Su was tidying up the mahjong tiles with her head down. Shen Yulou leaned over and whispered in her ear.
"Your Ladyship, your monthly period has arrived today, hasn't it? Go to bed early, don't stay up late. I'll send someone with brown sugar water later; drink plenty of it."
Consort Su's face immediately flushed. It must have been when Shen Yulou touched her hand while shuffling the tiles, and incidentally took her pulse.
This man is truly remarkable, and so considerate.
Consort Su felt her heart rate quicken, and her cheeks involuntarily grew warm.
Consort Su's hand, tidying the tiles, paused slightly. She didn't dare to look up, only softly hummed in acknowledgment.
Only then did Shen Yulou leave, satisfied.
After Tao Hong left, Consort Su remained in the bedchamber, guarding the Empress Dowager's bedside, softly humming a soothing tune.
Soon, the Empress Dowager fell into a deep sleep.
After confirming that the Empress Dowager was sound asleep, the gentle smile on Consort Su's face gradually faded.
She stood up, straightened her clothes, and without alarming anyone, quietly left the Empress Dowager's bedchamber, walking in a certain direction.
Jingyang Palace.
The Cold Palace.
The place where Consort Qing once lived.
Also the place where Shen Yulou and the Empress once shared a bed.
Consort Su pushed open the spiderweb-covered palace gate, and a musty, damp smell assailed her.
This Cold Palace was truly dilapidated; even the terrible conditions Consort Su used to live in were a thousand times better than this.
In the dim room, Consort Shu was curled up in a cold corner.
Her meticulously styled hair from before was now a tangled mess of dry grass.
Her once arrogant face was covered in dried tear streaks.
Her eye sockets were deeply sunken and bloodshot.
Her luxurious palace gown was torn open, revealing the dirty undergarments beneath; there was no trace of nobility left.
On the low table in front of her sat a bowl of cold coarse rice, with several flies buzzing around it.
Beside it lay a few dark, salted vegetables, without even a pair of chopsticks.
Compared to the bird's nest and shark fin she usually ate, it was like heaven and earth.
Hearing the sound of the door opening, Consort Shu raised her eyes blankly.
Seeing that the visitor was Consort Su, she frowned slightly.
Her chapped lips parted, and her voice was hoarse.
"You? Did the Emperor send you? Or have you come to mock me?"
Consort Su had no previous connection with her, and they had barely exchanged a few words.
After the incident, she hadn't expected the first person to visit her to be Consort Su.
Consort Su merely smiled faintly, her peerless beauty appearing somewhat eerie in the dim candlelight.
"Sister, I merely came to visit you."
"Heh."
Consort Shu sneered and struggled to sit up, her body feeling as if it were falling apart.
"We are both in similar situations now. You are an unfavored concubine; I hear the Emperor hasn't even touched you. I am a consort banished to the Cold Palace. Have you come here to find a sense of superiority?"
Consort Su still wore a gentle smile on her face.
She took out two still-warm white steamed buns from her sleeve and gently placed them in front of Consort Shu.
"We are both fallen women in this world; I just pity you."
Consort Shu stared at the two plump white buns, her throat moved, and a cold sneer appeared at the corner of her mouth.
"Pity?"
"I heard before that you were weak, and now I see it's true."
"Someone like you, without schemes, without means, and soft-hearted, will never amount to anything in the palace."
She grabbed a bun, took a fierce bite, and said indistinctly.
"Don't think I've lost today; as long as I'm not dead, there's always a chance for a comeback! The Emperor... the Emperor still cherishes old affections!"
As she ate the bun, a glimmer of light remained in her eyes.
Once she got out, she would make sure the Empress, Consort Qing, and that Shen Yulou all died a terrible death!
Just as she was fiercely plotting her revenge.
A shadow enveloped her from behind.
Consort Su had, at some point, moved behind her.
Consort Shu hadn't even reacted when a cold white silk cord, swift as lightning, was looped around her neck and tightened abruptly!
Ugh—!
Consort Shu's eyes instantly widened, the bun in her hand dropped to the ground, and her hands desperately clawed at the white cord around her neck, her legs flailing wildly.
But alas, such resistance was meaningless.
Consort Su's knee pressed firmly against the back of her head, the veins on her arms bulging as she used all her strength to pull the ends of the white cord backward.
Her gentle and beautiful face now showed no expression, only cold indifference.
"Consort Shu, my sister, I send you on your way today