This provocative remark was tantamount to forcing a palace coup, and anyone bold enough to say such a thing naturally had an extraordinarily powerful background.
Di Yifei did indeed stop in her tracks when she heard that. Her eyes turned cold, and then she sneered. "You want to force a palace coup and depose the Empress? You're not worthy! Even if I am to be deposed, it must be done by the Emperor himself!"
"Heh heh, if you're useless, what's the point of clinging to this position? Di Yifei, in our hearts, you stopped being the Empress long ago. Naturally, you have no place in the Emperor's heart either. All these years, the Emperor has never once summoned you to his bed, and you haven't borne even a single heir! Consort Chen, on the other hand, gave birth to a prince just last year, while the Chen family, her maternal relatives, have always worked diligently to assist our Emperor! The Emperor is benevolent and kindhearted. He truly hasn't treated you, his nominal Empress, unfairly. He didn't depose you or strip you of your position as Empress, despite the fact that you two have never been husband and wife in truth. But how can you shamelessly continue clinging to this position?" Another consort threw caution to the wind, as though everyone was piling onto a fallen wall. At this point, none of them could stop.
I secretly marveled at how perfectly timed my arrival was. I had walked straight into Di Yifei's most difficult battle, one that concerned her position as Empress. Of course, to me, that position wasn't worth a penny. In fact, I hoped she would give up the position and come to her senses for a while. It would be easier for me to persuade her then.
Di