The protagonist of this crossover film and television series is disrupting the plot again.

Chapter 85 Ruyi's Royal Love in the Palace 12

Fucha Langhua was furious that Sulian had implicated her with such a thing, and wished she could beat her to death on the spot. But the most important thing now was to sever ties with Sulian and not let the Emperor think that she had instructed Sulian to do this.

As Hongli listened to the Empress's tearful complaints, he felt a mixture of sympathy for her for having such a 'loyal servant,' and also thought she was foolish and incompetent.

At the same time, I have to admit that I misjudged him.

His previous impression of Empress Fucha was that she was generous and kind, dignified and polite, never gossiped about others, and had a fair character.

As the saying goes, one should judge by actions, not intentions, because no one is perfect when it comes to intentions.

Although Empress Fucha Langhua had some flaws in her character, her behavior was that of a qualified empress. Therefore, he had carefully explained things to her beforehand, giving her confidence and dignity, so that she could better manage the harem.

But now Su Lian's situation tells him that he misjudged her.

The empress was not only narrow-minded, but also incompetent.

Although Su Lian did these things behind the Empress's back without the Empress's knowledge, this also indirectly shows that the Empress was lax in managing her subordinates, mismanaged, and was mediocre and incompetent.

She can't even manage her own dowry maids, how can she possibly manage the harem?

If such a thing had happened in the previous dynasty, I would certainly have punished it severely according to the law.

But kneeling before him was the Empress! The mother of the nation!

If the empress gets into trouble, the emperor will also be held accountable.

Therefore, the Empress could not be punished openly; instead, she could only be made an example of to deter others and serve as a warning to the Empress.

Hongli sighed deeply, and the two people crying on the ground immediately fell silent, knowing that the emperor had made a decision on the matter.

"The Empress was lax in managing her subordinates, causing Yonghuang to suffer unjustly. She was punished by copying the palace rules a hundred times. Her maid, Sulian, instructed palace servants to abuse the prince, which was extremely rebellious. She was sent directly to the Shenxing Division to be executed!"

They actually ordered his execution!

Fucha Langhua and Sulian were both shocked, not expecting the Emperor to punish them so severely.

Both men focused on the issue of being ordered to commit suicide, but Wang Qin, who was obeying orders, sensed something intriguing: there was a section called the Cautious Conduct Division before the order to commit suicide.

Su Lian collapsed to the ground, wanting the Empress to plead for her. But as soon as she opened her mouth, a waiting eunuch bent her arm behind her back, gagged her with a handkerchief, and carried her out of the Hall of Mental Cultivation under Wang Qin's leadership.

Although Fucha Langhua was terrified of Su Lian's fate, she also breathed a sigh of relief.

The Emperor did not depose the Empress, nor did he punish her by confining her to the palace. He did not even take away her palace duties. He only punished her by making her copy palace rules. As long as she did not tell anyone, no one would know that she was being punished.

With lingering fear, the Empress returned to Changchun Palace with Lianxin's help, temporarily forgetting that she still had to keep an eye on Yonglian's studies.

Meanwhile, Hongli in the Hall of Mental Cultivation was busy again, and his previous leisurely mood was long gone.

Meanwhile, they secretly sent people to re-investigate the Empress, Yonghuang, Ruyi, and the servants of Xiefang Palace, focusing on Yonghuang and Ruyi. However, there was no rush; they could investigate slowly.

On the other hand, with lightning speed, taking advantage of Yonghuang's mistreatment by servants, they directly launched an attack on the Imperial Household Department, turning their swords against the bondservants.

The Eight Banners bondservants were divided into three groups: the Upper Three Banners served the imperial family directly, while the Lower Five Banners served princes and nobles.

Although they were servants of the royal family, through long-term manipulation, they had become a powerful force. Deceiving superiors and subordinates, feigning compliance while secretly opposing them, and engaging in corruption and bribery were commonplace. Their ambitions had grown increasingly large, and they had begun to show signs of turning against their master.

Ostensibly, the royal family was in charge of the bondservant officials, but in reality, the bondservant officials had taken control of the royal family, controlling their food, clothing, housing, and even their lives and safety.

Hongli had long been dissatisfied with this and had been thinking of dealing with them, but he had no excuse.

Now that Yonghuang has presented him with such a powerful handle, he seized the opportunity to investigate thoroughly in the direction he wanted, uncovering many hidden secrets.

After that, Gaga went on a killing spree, swiftly purging the bondservants' forces. A series of bondservant families were raided and punished. The confiscated assets were equivalent to several years' worth of the country's revenue. Hongli was so angry that he pointed at them and cursed for a long time. Afterwards, he put the money into his private treasury for later use.

The remaining bondservants were all honest and law-abiding citizens. Although they had engaged in some corrupt practices, they ultimately did not cross the line of breaking the law, so they could be let off the hook.

Water that is too clear has no fish; he always had to keep some people under his command to do things for him.

After finishing his work with the bondservantes, Hongli looked back at the records of the investigation into the Empress and others, as well as Su Lian's dying confession. After reading them, he finally understood what roles everyone had played in this matter.

Empress Fucha Langhua was wary of her eldest son, Yonghuang, but she always had certain bottom lines and concerns, so she did not take action against him.

Su Lian, being "observant of the emperor's wishes," wanted to share the emperor's burdens. Behind the scenes, she instructed the servants of Xie Fang Palace to mistreat Yong Huang and also to target Yong Zhang. However, because Yong Zhang's birth mother, Consort Chun, was still alive and she frequently visited her, she feared being discovered by Consort Chun. Therefore, she changed her approach to using flattery to kill Yong Zhang.

Therefore, in this matter, Su Lian is undoubtedly the culprit. Fucha Langhua is indeed innocent, but Su Lian is, after all, her person, so she is not entirely without fault.

Yonghuang, who appears to be the victim, and Ruyi, who wants to stand up for Yonghuang, also have their own ulterior motives.

Royal children mature early. Yonghuang was already ten years old and had an uncontrollable desire for the throne, so he began to secretly plan for himself.

There are currently only three princes in the palace. The third prince, Yongzhang, is foolish, and his birth mother, Consort Chun, is just a Han woman, so he is naturally at a disadvantage in terms of status.

The most competitive heirs to the throne were Yonghuang and Yonglian, and their mothers were both from the Fucha clan.

On one side was the illegitimate son whose birth mother had died young, and on the other side was the still-living Empress and her legitimate son. The Fucha family undoubtedly tilted their resources toward the Empress and her legitimate son, Yonglian.

Faced with this situation, Yonghuang naturally wanted to find a powerful backer, and the Empress Dowager was his first target. Unfortunately, the Empress Dowager had been recuperating for many years and could not be seen even occasionally.

Helpless, he could only turn his attention to the high-ranking concubines in the harem.

The Empress was eliminated immediately. Consort Hui was from a bondservant family and, although she was elevated to a higher banner, her family background was shallow, so she was also eliminated. At the same time, Consort Chun was just a Han woman and had Yongzhang as her son, so she was also eliminated.

After much deliberation, he finally set his sights on Ruyi.

The Ulanara clan is one of the eight major Manchu clans. Although its influence is waning now, it has produced two empresses. Ruyi herself is currently one of the two consorts, and she has no children yet, and it is highly likely that she will not have any in the future.

Not to mention the incident at Jiangxuexuan back then, which destined Ruyi and the Empress to be on opposite sides. She probably didn't want the Empress's son to inherit the throne either!

If such a person—favored, powerful, from a good family, yet childless and at odds with the Empress—became his adoptive mother, she would undoubtedly do everything in her power to support him.

After making up his mind, Yonghuang began to have various chance encounters with Ruyi, inadvertently revealing to her that he had been abused.