Ignoring the surprise in He Jieyu's eyes, Chen Zhi walked casually to the bedside. Looking at her furrowed brows due to abdominal pain, Chen Zhi knew that for the sake of making the act look real, He Jieyu had deliberately crashed into the raised and sharp stone. Half of her screams were real. Chen Zhi had only seen such things on TV before, but now it happened right in front of her.

　　To create the false appearance of a miscarriage, He Jieyu certainly wouldn't let Imperial Doctor Chen get too close. The bleeding area was too private, and a male imperial doctor had no right to examine it. She could only rely on the maids in her palace to convey the situation.

　　“Let me guess. Where did Jieyu put the blood - stained undergarments she changed? In the maid's hands or still on the bed?” Chen Zhi had a smile on her face, gradually voicing her speculations. “She wanted to use the imperial doctor's words to claim a miscarriage, and then be heart - broken in front of the emperor, while the maids would indignantly defend their mistress. But unfortunately, the most important imperial doctor has changed his story and left. I'm afraid He Jieyu's wonderful show won't even have a chance to be staged.”

　　He Jieyu clenched the corner of the brocade quilt with the hands propping on the bed, feeling extremely resentful. But her eyes looking at Yue Chen were tinged with disdain. “Your Majesty, don't be too proud. Everything you have now is due to the Prince Regent. Imperial Doctor Chen was afraid of the Prince Regent. Without him, Your Majesty would be nothing.”

　　“At least I can rely on him for now. But what about you, Jieyu? Your maternal family is all outside the palace and can't provide much support. They can only send in a servant at most.” Chen Zhi didn't know exactly what the relationship was between Yue Chen and the Prince Regent, but she owed a debt of gratitude, and she would surely repay it.

　　“After Your Majesty hit your head and woke up, you are really nothing like before. Is this the true face of the legitimate daughter of the Yue family?” He Jieyu said. The former Yue Chen was gentle, kind, respectful, frugal, and yielding. She had the kindness of an empress but lacked the means of a queen of a country. “How can Your Majesty be so sure that I'm not pregnant? Even if one Imperial Doctor Chen has left, there are other imperial doctors. Even if His Majesty can't come now, it doesn't mean that he will never set foot in Zhilan Palace.”

　　“If that's really the case, He Jieyu is really a cruel mother. To bring me down, she doesn't hesitate to gamble with the first child born after the new emperor ascended the throne. The price she paid is really high.” Chen Zhi didn't have much feeling for the words “mother” and “child” because she had never experienced them.

　　But she knew that He Jieyu wouldn't really joke about the imperial heir. Being pregnant with the imperial heir was a major event. If a concubine in the harem found out she was pregnant, the first thing she should do was to inform the Sigunguan, who would then report to the emperor and the empress, and then notify the entire harem. But she hadn't seen any eunuchs from the Sigunguan appear. Moreover, when He Jieyu fell, she saw it clearly. If she was really pregnant and deliberately hit her abdomen against the sharp stone, the child in her womb would have no chance of survival.

　　“Furthermore, Imperial Doctor Chen just took Jieyu's pulse. How could he not know whether she is pregnant or not?”

　　Chen Zhi looked at He Jieyu in front of her. She could still hold herself up and had the strength to argue with her. It was obvious that she hadn't been seriously injured inside, and there was no sign of a miscarriage at all. Since it was a bet, there was a 50% chance of failure. It wasn't worth it to exchange her only child for a possible successful frame - up, and He Jieyu wasn't that stupid.

　　“Such a heinous crime surely wasn't thought up by you alone, Jieyu. The crime of murdering the imperial heir can implicate the nine - generation family. My maternal family no longer exists. The emperor really wants to deal with the Prince Regent, right? The Prince Regent protected my position as empress. If the crime of me murdering the imperial heir is proven, the Prince Regent will also be more or less implicated.” Chen Zhi leaned closer to He Jieyu. She had always repaid kindness and avenged grudges. When dealing with enemies, one shouldn't be soft - hearted.

　　The Prince Regent returned to the capital privately, but because of his power, all the court officials could only grumble in their hearts. When the former emperor passed away, he bestowed a gold medal of exemption from death and a golden mace for punishing traitors on the Prince Regent. With these, he could strike down a 昏君 and a wicked empress above and kill treacherous officials and villains below. At that time, Yu Su's power reached its peak. If he hadn't left the capital suddenly, perhaps the prince sitting on the dragon throne in the Qinzheng Hall today wouldn't be Yu Qian. The Prince Regent was completely capable of supporting a puppet prince to ascend the throne.

　　When Chen Zhi heard these past events from Rong Quan, she was also very puzzled. Since he left during the power struggle, he should have no longing for imperial power. At that time, he was so close to the throne. As long as he showed the slightest intention, his subordinates would clear the obstacles for him, and he could ascend the throne legitimately and cleanly.

　　The timing of his return this time wasn't good either. Yu Qian had already fostered his own forces in the court, and it wasn't so easy to completely eliminate them. Moreover, the first thing the Prince Regent did after returning was to enter the palace to save the empress. Whether there was a relationship between the former Yue Chen and the Prince Regent or not, it was now impossible to clarify their relationship.

　　“So, the empress is admitting that there is an ambiguous relationship with the Prince Regent?” He Jieyu sneered with a distorted face. Her guess was indeed correct. No emperor in this world would tolerate any relationship between his concubine and another man, even if it was just a rumor. “But even if the empress denies it, it won't help because in His Majesty's heart, this is the truth! Do you think you can still sit on this throne for long, Yue Chen?” As long as the emperor believed it, whether there was evidence or not wasn't that important.

　　“I don't need to know whether I can sit on this throne for long. But what I do know is that even if I'm not the empress, the empress will never be you, He Jieyu!” Chen Zhi struck at the heart. He Jieyu had worked so hard for Yu Qian, not hesitating to take the risk of her family being exterminated. But how much true affection did Yu Qian have for her? These private and shady matters were better known only to oneself. “Let me think. Since Jieyu's plan has failed, I wonder if she can still speak up in front of the emperor in the future?”

　　“I'm different from you. The Yue family was a noble family for a hundred years, a distinguished and noble clan, and also a part of the imperial consort's relatives. If the empress of the Yue family gave birth to a prince, it would indeed be a hidden threat to Yu Qian's throne. No wonder the emperor wanted to nip the risk in the bud.”

　　“Yes, my maternal family, which was so powerful, could be eliminated by the emperor whenever he wanted. Not to mention the insignificant residence of the vice - minister behind He Jieyu.” They wanted to unite against her in the harem, but unfortunately, she had never been one to wait for disaster. If they wanted to harm her, she would fight back immediately. She wanted to use this incident to plant a seed of doubt in the hearts of He Jieyu and Yu Qian respectively, and slowly wait for it to take root, sprout, and grow into a towering tree.

　　After all, the person in front of them now was Chen Zhi, not the former Yue Chen. If they were so determined to harm her, they had to bear the brunt of her retaliatory anger. Submission had never been her attitude.