The Legend of Zhen Huan: Rebirth of An Lingrong: Counterattack to Become the Queen Mother

Chapter 267: Searching for the Truth in the Deep Mist

An Lingrong frowned slightly. "Huan'er, this mysterious person is very well hidden. Baoque has searched everywhere, but has only found a few clues. It is said that the mysterious person seems to have had contact with the nanny of the Queen."

Zhen Huan's eyes glared. "The Queen? She's still restless even under house arrest! It seems we need to find a way out through that Nanny. Sister Hua Fei, is there anyone in your palace who can quietly approach that Nanny?"

Concubine Hua thought for a moment and said, "My concubine Cuiyu is clever and intelligent. We can give her a try. However, although the guards in the Queen's palace have been reduced due to the confinement, we must not be careless."

Zhen Huan nodded. "Tell Cuiyu to be careful and not to expose herself. Lingrong, is there anything else unusual about your spice shop?"

An Lingrong sighed and said, "Although the number of customers has not decreased recently, there are always people gossiping outside the shop and slandering the quality of the spices. I'm afraid it's the work of the person behind this."

Zhen Huan held An Lingrong's hand and said, "Don't be afraid. We can resolve this. As long as we find the truth, we can clear your spice shop's name."

A few days later, Cui Yu returned to the palace to report, her expression tense. "My ladies, I've learned that the nanny is secretly passing messages to a young eunuch. The young eunuch seems to be from outside the palace, and he's always being secretive."

Zhen Huan pressed on, "Can you see the young eunuch's appearance clearly? Does he have any distinctive features?"

Cuiyu said, "That young eunuch has a black mole on his face, and his walking posture is a little strange, as if he has an old leg injury."

An Lingrong's eyes lit up. "I think I've seen a little eunuch like this near the spice shop! Could he be the one behind this?"

Hua Fei stood up and said, "Let's go and look for him near the spice shop. We must catch him!"

The three of them, along with their attendants, approached the spice shop, concealed their presence, and observed secretly. After a while, they saw the young eunuch with the mole on his face limping towards them, peering stealthily at the door of the spice shop.

Zhen Huan gave a wink, and the attendants quickly stepped forward and captured the young eunuch. The young eunuch screamed in fear: "Madam, spare me, Madam, spare me!"

Zhen Huan said sternly, "Tell me! Who ordered you to cause trouble in the spice shop and spread rumors in the palace?"

The young eunuch trembled, "It was... it was Eunuch Wang from the Imperial Household Department. He gave me money and asked me to do something. He also said that with the Empress's support, I'm not afraid of anything going wrong."

An Lingrong asked angrily, "Why did Eunuch Wang do this?"

The young eunuch cried, "I don't know. I only heard him say that he wanted to overthrow Imperial Noble Consort An and restore the Empress to power."

Zhen Huan sneered, "The Queen is truly delusional! Sister Hua Fei, let's go confront Eunuch Wang right now."

Everyone came to the Imperial Household Department. Seeing that the situation was not good, Eunuch Wang wanted to escape, but was stopped by the guards.

Concubine Hua scolded: "Eunuch Wang, you are so bold! How dare you play tricks in front of me!"

Eunuch Wang knelt down and said, "Please forgive me, my majesties. I am only following orders. This is all the will of the Empress."

Zhen Huan said, "If you tell me all the Queen's schemes, perhaps I can give you a lighter sentence."

Eunuch Wang hesitated again and again, and revealed that the Queen was colluding with some forces outside the palace, intending to use the incident of the spice shop to cause chaos in the harem, and then restore her position during the chaos. He also implicated some ministers in the court who were secretly communicating with the Queen, in an attempt to harm Zhen Huan and An Lingrong at the right time.

Zhen Huan, An Lingrong, and Concubine Hua exchanged a glance, each with their own plans in mind. Zhen Huan said, "Eunuch Wang, if you lied even a little today, I will not forgive you. You will remain in the Imperial Household Department and await your punishment."

Leaving the Imperial Household Department, Zhen Huan said, "It seems that the connection between the harem and the former dynasty is deeper than we imagined. We must deal with the conspiracy of the harem and be wary of the calculations of the former dynasty."

An Lingrong asked worriedly, "Huan'er, what should we do?"

Hua Fei said: "When the enemy comes, we will fight them; when the water comes, we will block it with earth! I don't believe they can turn the world upside down! Let's first tell the emperor about the queen's conspiracy and see how he will deal with it."

Zhen Huan shook her head: "Although the Emperor is dissatisfied with the Empress now, they have been married for many years. Our evidence is not conclusive yet, so we cannot go rashly. We need to find more strong evidence to prevent the Emperor from taking sides."

So, the three of them began to secretly collect evidence in the palace, not letting go of any suspicious points. They knew very well that in this ever-changing harem, only by mastering enough chips could they win the battle with the queen and the forces behind her, protect each other's status and friendship, and continue to write their own legends in this deep palace. Even if the road ahead is full of thorns, they will never retreat.