Chapter 1991
Not a Noble Consort 12
When Duanmu Zhuo collapsed, Duanmu Ying was pregnant.
Dongfang Zeng did not tell Duanmu Ying about Duanmu Zhuo's illness.
Coincidentally, Duanmu Zhuo passed away on the same day that Duanmu Ying gave birth.
Duanmu Ying later learned about Duanmu Zhuo's situation and had a fight with Dongfang Zeng, but she quickly forgave him.
After all, she wasn't the original owner of this body, and her relationship with Duanmu Zhuo wasn't very deep.
To the other members of the Duanmu family, this made Duanmu Ying seem cold-hearted.
It should be noted that Duanmu Zhuo worked himself to death in order to secure Duanmu Ying's position as empress.
Duanmu's eldest brother, who doted on Duanmu Ying the most, couldn't help but complain to Duanmu's wife.
Madam Duanmu said calmly, "She was never my or your father's daughter to begin with, so it's normal that you're not sad."
"What?" Brother Duanmu exclaimed, "Aying isn't my biological sister?"
Madam Duanmu: "Hmm."
Brother Duanmu: "But even if she's not our biological daughter, we've raised her for so many years, shouldn't we have some feelings for her?"
Lady Duanmu: "Fool!"
Brother Duanmu: "Huh?"
Madam Duanmu: "Her body is my daughter's body, but the soul inside is not."
Brother Duanmu's eyes widened.
The mother's implication was that Duanmu Ying in the palace was an evil spirit who had taken over her younger sister's body.
"No way?" he said in disbelief.
Madam Duanmu: "How could I not recognize my own daughter?"
Although her daughter was also skilled in music, chess, calligraphy, and painting, she could only write poetry in a very ordinary way; she could not produce poems that would be passed down through the ages.
Brother Duanmu was deeply saddened. His sweet and adorable younger sister had been murdered, and he was even showing unusual affection for the evil spirit who had harmed her…
Brother Duanmu: "Mother, I want to go to the palace and tell the Emperor about this."
Madam Duanmu: "It's no use. The Emperor knows and loves this Duanmu Ying now, not your sister. The Emperor won't believe you. And even if he did, what then? I'm afraid he'll come after our Duanmu family for that daughter."
"Then, what should we do?"
Lady Duanmu sighed: "You should resign from your post. Just say you're escorting your father back to his hometown, and then we'll leave the capital."
Brother Duanmu, reluctant to relinquish his current power, said, "It can't be that bad, can it?"
Madam Duanmu: "Judging from that woman's previous antics, I know she's not one to stay quiet. Who knows what trouble she'll cause in the future? She's using our Duanmu family's name, and I'm afraid she'll bring trouble to our family. It's best to leave her as soon as possible and stay as far away from her as possible."
Brother Duanmu thought about Duanmu Ying's previous seat and thought that what Madam Duanmu said made a lot of sense, so he did as Madam Duanmu said.
Dongfang Zeng did not want to let Brother Duanmu leave.
After Duanmu Zhuo's death, Liu Huai's family became the dominant force, which made Dongfang Zeng very uneasy.
He wanted to cultivate Duanmu's elder brother to take over Duanmu Zhuo's power and continue the struggle against Liu Huai.
But Brother Duanmu gave a very good reason: he had to help carry his father's coffin and observe mourning. As the emperor, he had no reason to stop him.
Dongfang Zeng could only let Brother Duanmu leave, instructing him to return in three years and promising him a high-ranking official position.
Dongfang Zeng: "You are the Empress's brother and the Emperor's uncle. They still need your help to take care of them."
Brother Duanmu smiled but did not agree to the emperor's request.
The Duanmu family has left the capital. Duanmu Ying felt relieved but also very troubled.
Without her own power in the court, can she secure her position as empress?
Duanmu Ying could only secretly contact other court officials.
When she first transmigrated, she met several outstanding individuals, all of whom had already entered officialdom.
Some of them discovered her true gender and fell in love with her.
She could use this to make those people work for her. Duanmu Ying's behavior was secretive, perhaps because she had the protagonist's halo; Dongfang Zeng was completely unaware that Duanmu Ying was having an affair with another man.
Dongfang Zeng is now focusing all his energy on dealing with the kings who are not of the same surname.
The King of the Southwest died not long ago, and his sons fought fiercely for the throne, even more so than the Nangong family.
The military forces in the southwest region have been greatly depleted in the infighting.
This was undoubtedly due in part to the instigation of imperial spies.
There was no longer any threat in the southwest, but in the southeast, for some reason, Nangong Fan did not raise an army, but instead brought a few people to the capital.
Dongfang Zeng judged that he was most likely there to see Duanmu Ying.
Although she loathed Nangong Fan for coveting her woman, Dongfang Zeng still gave Nangong Fan a thumbs up for his love-struck behavior and deliberately made things convenient for the two of them, hoping that Duanmu Ying would hold Nangong Fan back.
Dongfang Zeng, on the other hand, focused all his efforts on dealing with the Northeast Region.
The King of the Northeast only had one son and one daughter, unlike the other two regions where people fought tooth and nail for the throne.
Logically, the power of the Beitang family should have been smoothly transferred to the next generation.
The reason is simple: the daughter of the King of Northeast China is a hopeless romantic.
The daughter of the King of the Northeast fell in love with a scholar, drove his childhood sweetheart to his death, and forced the scholar to marry into the royal family.
Little did she know that this was a trap set for her by the imperial court.
Whether they are scholars or childhood sweethearts, they are all people of the imperial court.
The Crown Prince of the Northeast discovered the scholar's identity as a spy for the imperial court—in reality, the scholar had deliberately allowed himself to be discovered—and killed the scholar.
The princess was pregnant when she heard the news of her husband's death. Overwhelmed with emotion, she miscarried.
The princess lost her beloved husband and child, and turned to the dark side.
She didn't believe the prince's words at all. Her husband was just a weak scholar; how could he possibly be a spy?
It must be that the crown prince didn't want to admit his own mistakes, so he framed her husband.
The princess deeply resented the prince, and when officials from the court approached her, they gave her a colorless and odorless poison.
The princess put poison in the food of the prince's family.
The entire Crown Prince's family was poisoned to death, leaving only an infant in swaddling clothes.
The King of the Northeast was so enraged that he vomited blood and died not long after.
The people of Dongfang Zeng found the military seal of the Northeast King and quickly took control of the army in the Northeast region.
And so, the Northeast region fell into the hands of the imperial court.
The corrupted princess committed suicide after the death of the Northeast King.
The baby has disappeared.
Dongfang Zeng sent people to search for and eradicate the threat, but they found nothing.
He was unaware that the baby had been saved by Liu Dong.
Liu Dong didn't look down on Dongfang Zeng's ruthless and low-class methods; he was simply showing respect for the elderly and love for the infant.
What threat could a small baby pose?
Liu Tong sent the baby to a wealthy family in the countryside.
The head of this family suffered an injury when he was young, which made it difficult for him to have children.
He married seven wives, but none of them became pregnant or gave birth to children.
When the family was in despair and gave up, they decided to adopt a child to carry on the family line.
Liu Tong then had his men take the baby there.
The family was overjoyed and raised the baby as their own son.
The infant will no longer have a noble status, but will live a life free from want, will not be involved in rebellions, will have his life guaranteed, will marry, have children, and live a long and healthy life. (End of Chapter)