farming girl revenge to become noble consort

Although a portion of the palace maids in Xihuo Palace were dismissed, a portion remained, all of whom had served Consort Zhen Jiang Xinyue

Consort Zhen treated people with kindness and never imposed overly strict rules on the maids and servants, able to jest with them as well she was an excellent mistress

But this Consort Jiang was overbearing and treated servants like dirt, especially the old servants of Xihuo Palace, tormenting them terribly

A few maids and eunuchs with connections to the Internal Affairs Department exchanged glances, none of them telling Consort Jiang about Consort Zhen going to the Internal Affairs Department to request items, and getting them

They wanted to see how ridiculous Consort Jiang would look when she got slapped in the face the next day

After feeding Concubine Li congee, the Xuanwu Emperor instructed her to rest well

There was already a pile of memorials awaiting in Chengqian Palace that he had to process swiftly

After all, she had just woken from a coma, and the Emperor did not wish to stay and make the exhausted Concubine Li expend energy conversing with him

"Your Ladyship

After seeing off the Xuanwu Emperor, Xia He quickly returned to Concubine Li's bedside, reporting their victory: "His Majesty has demoted Consort Zhen Fangyi to Consort Zhen and exiled her to the Palace of Exile

Concubine Li rose and walked to the bronze mirror, finding the cotton cloth wrapped around her forehead unsightly, and untied it

The wound on her forehead was not severe at all, merely a small cut that had nearly healed after applying medicine for two days

The surrounding redness looked frightening, but it was only a superficial injury

"Your Ladyship

Xia He was terrified and quickly re-wrapped Concubine Li's forehead, looking around to ensure no maids were nearby before saying: "Your Ladyship, Imperial physician Xu said that the false wound he made for you would heal at the normal rate, so you cannot remove this bandage for a month, or else His Majesty will find out, and that would be disastrous

It turned out the horrific wound on her forehead was fake

Concubine Li gripped her forehead in vexation: "To get rid of that vile woman, I had to mar my face I will never forgive her so easily

Her indignant words made Xia He imagine the miserable days awaiting Consort Zhen in the Palace of Exile

The Jiang Xinyue who would lead a "miserable" life lay on a chaise longue in the sunny grape trellis of the Palace of Exile.0

According to the little eunuch Xiao Xuanzi, this grape trellis had been there for a long time and would bear grapes in summer that the surrounding maids and eunuchs knew were sweet, often coming to pick them

Jiang Xinyue lamented that she had not been exiled earlier, or she could have eaten freshly picked grapes too

However, back then she had not yet left a deep impression on the Emperor and earned his favor, so if she had been exiled, she might never have been able to leave

Thinking of this, not eating grapes no longer seemed so regrettable

The warm autumn sun felt wonderful, and her maid Xi Que was massaging her shoulders - she was so relaxed she could fall asleep

"Consort Jiang, without an edict from the Empress, you cannot enter

Consort Jiang had come? She was truly eager to see the joke played on Jiang Xinyue

Xiao Xuanzi could not stop Consort Jiang, and Jiang Xinyue felt a shadow fall on her, causing her to open her eyes to that hateful face

She stretched lazily, slowly rising from the chaise longue, limp as a ragdoll, and gave a perfunctory curtsy: "Greetings to Consort Jiang

Then she sat back down

Consort Jiang's personal maid Mu Tan glared: "Insolent! You're just a lowly consort, yet you dare rise without our mistress's permission

Jiang Xinyue lazily looked up with disdain: "But I am still a consort! When you, a lowly maid, saw me, did you pay your respects

Mu Tan fell silent, ashamed, and Jiang Xinyue chuckled: "When you point one finger at me, remember three point back at you. If Consort Jiang wants to flaunt her superiority over a concubine, just say so

no need for excuses

The spacious Palace of Exile, and Jiang Xinyue occupied the best sunny chambers, the doors open so Consort Jiang could see the furnishings inside - no less lavish than her own quarters

Consort Jiang stood haughtily: "It seems Consort Zhen is living quite well in the Palace of Exile; I, as the elder sister, worried too much

She gestured to the maids behind her

I feared my little sister might not get her favorite horse-hoof cakes here, so I specially instructed the Imperial Kitchen to make some - sister, try them and see if the taste is the same as before

What did she mean, "the same as before

Cakes only had one true flavor. Consort Jiang was just using the cakes to mock her reduced status and imply that in her fallen state, even the Imperial Kitchen no longer put in effort for her, so naturally the taste was inferior to when she was Consort Zhen Fangyi

Randomly showing up at the Palace of Exile to deliver cakes - the wicked fox was currying favor with the hen. Her intentions were clearly malicious

"How about it? Sister won't accept my goodwill and won't even try a bite

Behind her were two eunuchs rolling up their sleeves in eagerness, as if they would grab Jiang Xinyue's head and force the cakes down her throat if she refused to eat

That would not be pretty

Only after watching Jiang Xinyue eat the cakes did Consort Jiang reveal a wicked smile, her mood apparently good as she flounced out of the Palace of Exile with the cake box

Seeing how appetizing the cakes looked, Xi Que asked her mistress: "Mistress, may this servant have one bite

*SLAP

Xi Que's outstretched hand was struck as her eyes went wide in shock: "Mistress

Jiang Xinyue upended the plate of cakes on the table and closed her eyes

There were truly many people in this palace seeking her life

Blood trickled from the corner of her mouth as cramping pain gripped her belly, and beads of sweat formed on her brow. Xi Que screamed in terror

"Mistress! Mistress! Xuan Eunuch, go fetch the Imperial physician, fetch him quickly

Jiang Xinyue gripped Xi Que's hand tightly, the agony wracking her body: "No...no Imperial physicians, go...go to the Yikun Palace and find the Empress, quickly

She pushed Xi Que away, grimacing as she coughed up another mouthful of blood

Her mistress must have known the cakes were poisoned, that's why she forbade Xi Que from eating them

With tears streaming down her face, Xi Que turned and fled from the Palace of Exile. Xiao Xuanzi did not stop her, but instead used Jiang Xinyue's own handkerchief to catch the blood she coughed up, then stuffed the handkerchief into her hand, hoping that whoever came would take pity on Consort Zhen in her pitiful state

Jiang Xinyue, slumped in the noble chair, had already passed out

Back in Xihuo Palace, Consort Jiang could not help but laugh at the thought of how the laxative in the horse hoof cake had tormented Jiang Xinyue, leaving her sickly and haggard

Mu Tan brought her a bowl of warm sheep's milk. "My lady, I have ordered someone to keep watch at the entrance to the Palace of Exile. Soon, the whole palace will know of Consort Zhen's embarrassing diarrhea

"Hmph

Consort Jiang raised her head arrogantly. "If she had not just entered the Palace of Exile, making it inconvenient to take action, I would have rewarded her with Crimson Crest Poison