I Was Supposed to Be the Villainous Consort

Chapter 373: Chapter 151: Attending a Monarch is Like Accompanying a Tiger

’This is different from the book again. In the book, the Emperor did this too, but the timeline was supposed to be much later. Has it been moved up?’

Song Yunzhao stared at Feng Yi with bright, focused eyes. ’Did my pregnancy trigger some hidden plot for the Emperor?’

Song Yunzhao suddenly realized this was a golden opportunity—an important milestone in her quest to make herself irreplaceable in the Emperor’s heart.

Her mind raced. She quickly averted her gaze from Feng Yi’s face, pretending not to notice his strange expression, and continued, "Although I do not come from a noble background, I do have a bit of a proud spirit. If I were the head of a household, I would absolutely not tolerate deceit or those who leech off the family. I would certainly clean house and reform its culture. My aunt says the culture of a household is crucial. Otherwise, those below will just follow the example of those above. It might look glorious on the outside, but it would be rotten to the core. A family like that cannot withstand the storms of life."

Seeing the Emperor’s pensive look, Song Yunzhao smiled and said, "I’m just rambling. The great affairs of the court cannot be compared to the trivial matters of a single household. Your Majesty should just treat it as a joke."

Feng Yi patted Yun Zhao’s hand and changed the subject. Taking the hint, Song Yunzhao said no more and followed his lead, recounting some amusing anecdotes from the harem.

But in reality, there were few amusing stories in the harem. Without an Empress, there was no arena for the concubines to gather for morning greetings and stab each other in the back. Now there was an Empress Dowager, but she had only just returned and hadn’t yet begun to flex her authority. And An Shutong, the infamous character from the book who nearly took out the female lead, was still holed up in Shouci Palace, having not yet found an opportunity to shine.

So she could only speak of some amusing moments with Feng Yunjin and a few others. There was truly nothing else worth mentioning.

Feng Yi clearly wasn’t truly interested in hearing about these things. After their walk to aid digestion, they went into the tent. As Song Yunzhao was drifting off to sleep, she could hear the Emperor gently turning over.

’Since the Emperor was moving carefully so as not to disturb me, I certainly couldn’t spurn his good intentions. I’ll just pretend I don’t know.’

’It seems the Emperor’s plan for a military review wasn’t just a whim. He must be planning a major move.’

When she woke the next day, Feng Yi had already left for court. She had just finished a simple breakfast when Anshun rushed in. "Your Highness, there’s major trouble in the Southwest."

Song Yunzhao froze. The Southwest?

"Which Southwest?"

Hearing his master’s question, Anshun immediately replied, "It’s the Southwest Native Officials. They are granted titles by the court but are not under its direct governance."

It dawned on Song Yunzhao. It was like the autonomous regions for ethnic minorities in history. The Southwest was home to numerous ethnic groups who were in constant conflict with one another. These disputes would sometimes spill over and affect the imperial court, which was why troops were permanently stationed there.

"What major incident happened?" Song Yunzhao asked, now understanding.

"They killed the officials dispatched by the court, hung their bodies in the mountain forests, and posed as bandits to steal livestock and grain from the border folk. The entire Southwest region is in an uproar now."

Song Yunzhao was speechless.

’I think this was in the book, too. But it didn’t have much to do with the harem’s power struggles, so it was only mentioned briefly.’

’In the book, I believe it was Prince Zhenbei who was sent to suppress the Southwest Native Officials.’

It was precisely because Prince Zhenbei achieved great merit on this campaign. He even brought his Princely Heir with him, and Helan Yue distinguished himself by slaying the rebel leader. He instantly stood out among the younger generation of nobles. In the book, he was also an admirer of the female lead. With military honors to his name and his fame soaring, he was naturally of great help to her.

Song Yunzhao was speechless again.

’There’s a curse on the tip of my tongue. It seems every sudden event in the book either hands the female lead an opportunity or is on its way to doing so.’

’This is so exhausting.’

’No wonder Feng Yi mentioned the military review...’

Thinking of this, Song Yunzhao looked at Anshun and asked, "When did this happen?"

"I heard the official report arrived in the Capital City yesterday, and the Left Minister submitted a memorial to discuss it in court today."

Song Yunzhao’s heart sank slightly. ’The official report arrived in the Capital City yesterday, but the Left Minister only presented his memorial today. So where did the Emperor get his information?’

’It seems the Emperor’s eyes and ears in the court are growing more numerous. This is a good thing, but for Yun Zhao, it means she must be even more cautious with her words and actions from now on.’

She wracked her brain. She truly hadn’t known about this matter, so she shouldn’t have done or said anything inappropriate in front of the Emperor last night.

She breathed a small sigh of relief. She was very self-aware. Right now, the Emperor favored her, so everything she did was perfect in his eyes. But if one day his heart changed, the things she had done and said could very well become crimes used against her.

’Accompanying a ruler is like accompanying a tiger.’ She never for a moment forgot that.

’Call her heartless, call her conscienceless, it didn’t matter. Her conscience was something she could only afford to keep for herself. She couldn’t place her trust in a high and mighty Emperor.’

Her only worry was whether Helan Yue would accompany Prince Zhenbei on this expedition, just like in the book. If the plot didn’t change and he went with his father, and then returned with new honors, would he continue to be a pillar of support for Qin Xiyue?

Tsk.

’She had worked so hard to nudge the plot off its course, and now the main storyline was popping up again to give the female lead a boost. How annoying.’

’She could still exert some influence on He Lan Yun, but she had no connection to Helan Yue. This was definitely not good news for her.’

’Why isn’t a shit-stirrer who can fight, endure, and cause chaos on my side?’

’I’m so jealous of the female lead.’

Seeing the dark expression on his master’s face, Anshun didn’t dare say more on the matter. He only said, "Your Highness, this servant has heard that the courtiers are petitioning the Emperor to send troops to the Southwest. And someone submitted a memorial recommending Mr. Song for the post of Military Supply Officer."

Song Yunzhao: !

’Recommend her father to be the Military Supply Officer?’

’In charge of provisions?’

Song Yunzhao’s expression didn’t just change—it turned as black as the bottom of a pot. She could already smell the danger. Military supplies are the most vulnerable part of any campaign. Her father had no deep foundation in the court, and with a favored daughter like her blocking the paths of other men’s daughters, countless people hated her enough to grind their teeth. Recommending her father for Military Supply Officer was a clear attempt to send both father and daughter to the execution block!

’No wonder there was so little fuss at court when I was promoted to Zhaoyi. So, those old foxes were waiting for me here.’

She took a deep breath to calm herself and began to pace slowly around the room. She had to think of a solution.

’Last time, her father knowingly went into danger to manage disaster relief for her sake. But this was different. Her father had experience with disaster relief, so others couldn’t easily fool him. Military supply was another matter entirely. The waters there ran treacherously deep.’

’On top of that, Helan Yue was deeply in love with Qin Xiyue. She was afraid his hatred for her would extend to her family, and he would be ruthless with her father.’

Song Yunzhao went to her study and immediately began a letter to her aunt, but after writing a few lines, she picked it up and tore it to pieces.

’The Empress Dowager was in the palace. It would be disastrous if the letter fell into her hands.’

’Others wouldn’t dare to intercept her letters, but the Empress Dowager would.’

’Having her aunt enter the palace wasn’t out of the question, but it would be too conspicuous at this critical juncture and would surely arouse suspicion.’

After thinking it over and over, she called Anshun in. "Go to the Song Mansion secretly. Pass a message to my aunt: regarding the Military Supply Officer position, my father must refuse it at all costs."