Concubine De hadn't expected Concubine Rou to give her the real prayer beads.
Yesterday, Zhilan had dropped the prayer beads, and Concubine Rou had picked them up.
Could Concubine Rou have switched the beads at that moment?
If she had, Concubine Rou could have easily hidden or destroyed the real prayer beads. Why would she bother returning them today?
Wouldn't that expose her deception?
[No wonder I saw the glow of Buddha light around Concubine Rou today; the real prayer beads were with her.]
[Mother, are you also suspecting that Concubine Rou switched the real prayer beads?]
Concubine De handed the small wooden box to Zhilan and sighed, "This Concubine Rou..."
She didn't know what to think anymore.
In the harem, no woman is simple.
A naive woman wouldn't last three days in the palace.
Yet, she always thought that Concubine Rou had relatively little scheming.
Could she have been wrong?
The matter of the real and fake prayer beads needed to be thoroughly investigated in private. It was fine if someone targeted her, but she would never allow anyone to harm her child.
Concubine De, holding Ah Bao, returned to Yihe Palace and happened to run into the Tyrant Emperor, who had just finished court.
"Is Concubine De taking Ah Bao out for a walk?"
Concubine De responded, "The weather is nice today, so I took Ah Bao out for some sun."
"Hmm, Ah Bao, Father missed you so much. Come, let Father hold you." The Tyrant Emperor took Ah Bao into his arms.
No matter how late court ended, the Tyrant Emperor would come to Yihe Palace every day to see Ah Bao.
Yesterday, he hadn't seen her.
Because that rascal Di Zian had secretly taken Ah Bao out of the palace.
The Tyrant Emperor was already planning to give Di Zian a good scolding next time he saw him.
[Scumbag dad, what's that thing Eunuch Xi is holding?]
Ah Bao's round eyes spotted a small object in Eunuch Xi's hands and grew curious.
"Ah Bao, Father brought you a little rocking horse. Do you like it?" The Tyrant Emperor had Eunuch Xi bring the rocking horse forward and place it on the ground.
Ah Bao's eyes lit up, and she giggled.
[A rocking horse? The kind you can ride? I like it, I really like it!]
[This is my first time playing with a toy from this dynasty!]
Ah Bao waved her tiny hands, wanting to go touch it.
The Tyrant Emperor chuckled happily, "In a few months, when Ah Bao is a little bigger, you'll be able to ride the rocking horse."
[Just touching it makes me happy! Thank you, Daddy~]
The Tyrant Emperor's eyes crinkled with laughter.
Ah Bao had just called him "Daddy."
This little girl had a bit of heart after all.
"If Ah Bao wants to thank someone, thank your Grand Queen Mother She ordered me to make this rocking horse overnight."
Concubine De was surprised. "Your Majesty, you... you didn't sleep all night and spent it making a rocking horse? You are busy with state affairs and must take care of your health. These small toys can be made by the servants.
There's no need to trouble you, Your Majesty."
"Making toys for my precious daughter with my own hands is meaningful, isn't it, my dear?"
Ah Bao hadn't expected both the Tyrant Emperor and the Grand Queen Mother to treat her so kindly.
She cradled the Tyrant Emperor's face with her chubby hands and gave him a kiss on the cheek.
"Gurgle..."
Ah Bao grinned widely, her toothless mouth dripping saliva all over the Tyrant Emperor's face.
The Tyrant Emperor burst into laughter, "Hahaha! This is Ah Bao's first kiss for me! I don't think I'll ever wash this face again."
If he had known that making a small rocking horse would earn him a kiss from his daughter, he'd want to make a rocking horse for her every day.
Concubine De heard this and laughed as well.
The Tyrant Emperor said, "It's almost lunchtime, isn't it? I'll stay and dine at Yihe Palace today."
Concubine De: "Very well, I'll prepare an extra set of bowls and chopsticks."
...
At Qingyun Palace.
Luoluo came running into Qingyun Palace. "Your Highness, this servant has found out. They say that Concubine Rou has returned the string of prayer beads to Concubine De."
Concubine Hui, lying on her chaise longue, slowly opened her eyes. "Is that information accurate?"
"Mmm, someone saw it with their own eyes in the imperial garden."
"Idiot!" Concubine Hui's beautiful face twisted with rage, her whole body seething with anger.
"Is Concubine Rou brainless? Why on earth would she return the prayer beads to Concubine De? Is something wrong with her head?" Concubine Hui was fuming.
"Concubine De really has such good fortune," she muttered, twisting her handkerchief in frustration, wishing she could tear it to pieces.
Originally, she had used the Queen Mother's birthday banquet to switch the prayer beads, hoping to anger the Queen Mother and have Concubine De punished.
But not only did the Queen Mother not penalize Concubine De, she even adored Di Jiaoyang (the little princess).
Concubine De wasn't stupid either—she would surely think that it was Concubine Rou who swapped her real prayer beads.
That would make Concubine De and Concubine Rou fight each other, both suffering in the process, allowing her to reap the benefits.
If Concubine De fell out of favor, would the Tyrant Emperor still care about Di Jiaoyang?
She had finally seized the perfect opportunity, crafting a plan to kill three birds with one stone.
And then, it was all ruined by that fool, Concubine Rou.
She never imagined Concubine Rou would be dumb enough to return the real prayer beads to Concubine De, which would only raise Concubine De's suspicions!
It was infuriating.
It's not the powerful opponents you fear, but the idiotic allies.
"What are you trembling for? What else is going on at Yihe Palace?"
Luoluo, shaking with fear, quickly responded, "The Tyrant Emperor has gone to Yihe Palace again today. Right now, he's playing with the little princess. He even personally made her a small wooden horse toy overnight. And... he said he would be staying at Yihe Palace for lunch."
Concubine Hui rolled her eyes in exasperation.
Personally made a wooden horse?
The Tyrant Emperor has so many children, but he's never made anything like that for any of them.
Has the Tyrant Emperor lost his mind recently, constantly running off to Yihe Palace?
He hadn't visited her Qingyun Palace in months.
Dismissing her maidservants, Concubine Hui, feeling stifled indoors, stepped outside and saw the Third Prince playing chess by himself in the courtyard.
"Mother," the Third Prince smiled as he saw Concubine Hui come out.
Concubine Hui, looking irritated, snapped, "At a time like this, why are you just playing chess?"
"Mother, you don't understand," the Third Prince replied. "There's a lot more to chess than you think—strategy, tactics, the art of leadership..."
"All talk, no action! By the time you've figured all that out, your father might have forgotten about you entirely," snapped Concubine Hui.
"That won't happen. Father still likes me a lot," the Third Prince said confidently.
"Like you, my foot! Look at the First Prince—he's been sent to Lingnan to manage the plague, the Second Prince is on inspection tours, and even the Seventh Prince, who's always running around outside the palace, has been assigned to suppress bandits. You're the only one with nothing to do."
The Third Prince blinked. "The more peaceful things are for me, the more it shows that the Tiansheng Empire is stable and prosperous."
Concubine Hui was nearly driven mad with frustration. This foolish son of hers was beyond saving.
Why, oh why, had she ended up with such a dim-witted child!
She deeply regretted it.
"No, I have to come up with a way to give you a younger sister."
The Third Prince, still focused on his chess game, was puzzled. "A younger sister? But I already have a sister."
"I'm talking about giving birth to a sister for you, a real one, your blood sister. Understand?"
The Third Prince was a bit dazed. "Mother, didn't you always say you refused to have a daughter?"
"That was in the past! Things have changed now. Look at Concubine De—ever since she gave birth to a princess, her favor has skyrocketed. No, I must have a little princess too."