Chapter 454 The Empress Dowager's Thoughts

This year's Lunar New Year's Eve was just as lively, with the Imperial Household Department and the Ministry of Rites in charge, and the Empress Dowager presiding over the palace. Only the Emperor and Empress needed to attend on New Year's Eve, and the evening was filled with singing, dancing, and joy.

The ladies of the palace had finally waited for the Emperor to return to the capital, but the Emperor and Empress left the banquet and returned to Chenxi Palace.

New Year's Eve without an emperor is not very interesting; everyone loses interest.

In fact, Xie Shang has not been able to rest well since the late emperor passed away. After finishing the late emperor's funeral, he has been busy with state affairs all day long. He wanted to take a good rest on New Year's Eve, but after tonight, he will be busy again.

After Jiang Fenghua returned to the palace, she also asked Imperial Physician Mei to examine her pulse carefully. The baby's position was indeed unstable, and she should not overexert herself. It was best to rest quietly, as it would become more and more torturous as time went on. She didn't want to think about anything else now; she just wanted to give birth to the baby first.

Xie Shang didn't go to any of the other concubine palaces. He was busy with state affairs every day and couldn't rest for a moment. Even when he occasionally took some time, he would go back to Chenxi Palace to accompany Jiang Fenghua and the two children. He had become a completely different person.

Time flew by and it was already the eighth day of the first lunar month. This was the day of the Emperor's coronation ceremony. Jiang Fenghua only made a symbolic appearance before Xie Shang ordered her to be sent back to Chenxi Palace to rest and prepare for childbirth.

The concubines in the harem had no reason to attend the ceremony in the imperial court, as none of them had been granted official titles yet and they were all still residing in their respective palaces in the Eastern Palace.

The emperor was undoubtedly the most exhausted that day, as he also had to entertain envoys from various countries.

The Empress Dowager arrived at Chenxi Palace in full regalia. Jiang Fenghua was reading on a soft couch, while two children played nearby, and servants were busy with their own tasks.

Upon seeing this, Granny Wang immediately knelt on the ground and bowed, "This servant greets the Empress Dowager, may Your Majesty be well."

"Granny Wang, you may dispense with the formalities!" the Empress Dowager said in a deep voice. "Where is the Empress?"

"He's in the bedchamber. I'll go and inform him right away."

"No need, I'll go in directly. The Empress is not feeling well," the Empress Dowager said.

As soon as the Empress Dowager entered, Jiang Fenghua heard the commotion outside. She quickly stood up and bowed, saying, "Your Majesty, I pay my respects."

"You're feeling unwell, so please excuse the formalities! Sit down." The Empress Dowager still held power in the inner palace, so she was naturally happier than anyone else.

She sat down on the soft chair and said to the two children, "Hongyou, come to Grandmother's place."

Xie Hongyou, however, showed little respect and had not yet learned to greet the Empress Dowager. The wet nurse quickly brought the young prince to the Empress Dowager, saying, "Your Majesty, the eldest prince has only recently learned to walk, so..."

Before the wet nurse could finish explaining, the Empress Dowager was already getting impatient. "Take them away. I need to speak with the Empress for a while." Jiang Fenghua's two children were not close to her.

The wet nurse quickly bowed and took her leave, taking the eldest prince and princess with her.

The Empress Dowager said, "Now that the Emperor has held his coronation ceremony and officially become Emperor, and the Empress is heavily pregnant, the Emperor has asked me to continue managing the harem, which is also a sign of his trust in me."

Jiang Fenghua sat calmly in the soft chair, thinking that the Empress Dowager was not here for idle chatter. She said, "Yes, Mother has always managed the harem very well." In fact, when Consort Su was alive, Consort Su had always been in charge, and no one dared to mention these things.

The Empress Dowager continued, "Now that the Emperor has ascended the throne, there are only a dozen or so concubines in the harem. Besides selecting concubines for the Emperor, I am thinking about how to arrange the ranks of these concubines. I would like to hear the Empress's opinion first, and then discuss it with the Emperor."

Jiang Fenghua said, "I am currently too ill to take care of the ladies. His Majesty has also told me to focus on my pregnancy and leave everything to His Majesty and the Empress Dowager."

The Empress Dowager was quite pleased with her obedient demeanor. Since the Emperor and Empress returned to the palace, the Emperor had not spent the night in any of the other concubines' palaces, which angered the Empress Dowager. The Empress was pregnant, yet the Emperor still went to Chenxi Palace every day. What magic did this place possess? She decided to come in and see for herself.

Even though Jiang Fenghua didn't go to live in Kunning Palace, she still lived in Chenxi Palace. She had built this palace herself for Shang'er, and she never expected that he would still be so reluctant to leave after living there since he was a child.

The Empress Dowager continued, "I have compiled a list of the ranks and palaces of the concubines in the harem for the Empress to see." She couldn't fathom her son anymore; besides Jiang Fenghua, what other women did he like?

Jiang Fenghua took the list handed over by Granny Xi. It turned out that the Empress Dowager wanted to make Tang Qianran a Noble Consort. It seems that the Empress Dowager really values ​​the Tang family!

Originally, the Empress was to reside in the Kunning Palace, the Emperor in the Qianqing Palace, and the Empress Dowager in the Cining Palace.

Tang Qianran, Imperial Concubine, Changchun Palace, seated in the main seat.

Song Qing, Consort Shu, Jinghe Palace, seated in the main seat.

Gao Qingtong, a concubine, gave birth to a princess and lived in Yongle Palace.

Zhu Zhenzhen, a Noble Consort, has no children, comes from a good family, resides in Qinghua Palace, and holds a principal position.

Helan Yanran, a third-rank Noble Consort, resides in Chaoyang Palace.

Pan Nianru, a third-rank concubine.

Shu Yan, a fourth-rank Ronghua

Wen Lu was granted the title of Noble Lady of the Sixth Rank, and Zhang Jingjing was granted the title of Consort Jing of the Fifth Rank.

Chen Jiawei, Wen Yu, Fang Yao, and several others were promoted from Fengyi to the rank of Changzai, a seventh-rank official.

The Empress Dowager continued, "This list was finalized before the Emperor returned to the palace. I did not have it copied because the ranks on it have changed. For now, the Empress will continue to live in Chenxi Palace until the child is born, after which she will move to Kunning Palace. I have already instructed the Imperial Household Department to handle this."

Jiang Fenghua smiled and said, "Is it unfair to bestow the title of Noble Consort upon Consort Tang? My idea is that Consort Song and Consort Tang should both be consorts, but the Empress Dowager only gave Consort Song the title of Noble Consort, while giving Consort Tang the title of Noble Consort." She wasn't trying to promote the Tang family, was she? Because Tang Qianran had given birth to a son, and the Empress Dowager was very fond of him; she had heard that the Empress Dowager often had people bring Tang Qianran's child to her palace to play.

The Empress Dowager's expression was not good. She continued, "Tang Qianran's father is a second-rank minister, while Song Qing's father is merely a fourth-rank official. She was only able to become a concubine because she was able to give birth to a prince." If the Emperor hadn't said to send the list to the Empress for review before making a decision, the Empress Dowager would have already made the final decision according to her wishes.

Jiang Fenghua knew what the Empress Dowager was thinking. Now that she had power, she wanted to assert her authority in front of her. Xie Shang had been visiting her palace too frequently while she was heavily pregnant. The fact that a pregnant woman could still attract the emperor made the Empress Dowager very disgusted.