Chapter 138 The Orange's Countermeasure

Yinzhen severely reprimanded the two men under him, and, still not satisfied, used the excuse to demote the latter.

Even so, he understood that as Hongzhao grew older, such voices would only increase. Having witnessed the ups and downs between the late emperor and the deposed crown prince, he did not want his love and care for Hongzhao to become a pretext for others to attack him in the future.

"Su Peisheng, how is the construction of the Zhaigong Palace next to Yuqing Palace progressing?" He sat in the Imperial Study, deep in thought for a long time, not paying any attention to the memorial in his hand, but his mind was full of the floor plan of the palace.

Su Peisheng thought for a moment and replied, "Your Majesty, you ordered the renovations before the New Year. If things proceed at the current pace, it will probably take some more time."

Yinzhen rubbed his fingers together as if calculating, and then made a decision in his heart: "There's no need to repair it anymore. Connect the Zhaigong Palace and Yuqing Palace and let the Crown Prince live in them. Have people renovate them according to the regulations. Make sure everything is done carefully and meticulously. Do you understand?"

Seeing the Emperor's expression and considering what happened at the morning court session, Su Peisheng immediately understood—"This servant understands. This servant will definitely instruct the craftsmen carefully. However, if we are going to be meticulous, the construction period will probably be long. Naturally, we cannot let the Crown Prince live in the unfinished palace."

Yinzhen smiled and pointed at him from afar, "Yes, before the renovation was completed, Hongzhao lived in the Hall of Mental Cultivation. He will move there whenever the renovation is completed."

His Hongzhao was not overstepping his bounds; it was just that his own courtyard was under renovation and he had nowhere to live, so what was wrong with squeezing in with his own father?

"Your Majesty, please choose a nameplate." The head steward of the Imperial Household Department appeared before the Emperor on time, carrying a tray of green nameplates.

Regardless of how others in the palace viewed Consort Ye, he temporarily treated her as his great-grandmother. Since her arrival, the Emperor had been summoning her almost daily, making his job infinitely easier.

Sure enough, the Emperor's hand pointed directly at Ye Lanyi's green nameplate with obvious intent—"Let's go back to Chunxi Palace."

After choosing a consort, he instructed Su Peisheng without delay, "Go and deliver something to Consort Zhen in Zhongcui Palace, and tell her that I will have breakfast in her palace tomorrow."

This Borjigit woman had been quiet in the palace for several years. He had assumed that she was as taciturn and composed as Consort Jing. Before meeting her, he thought she was boring. But when he finally saw her after listening to the Empress's advice, he was pleasantly surprised.

She was quite young when she was sent to the palace, and even after so many years of waiting, she still had the temperament of a child under twenty. Because she came from the Mongol Banner, the palace concubines took good care of her, and the Imperial Household Department did not mistreat her. Her arrogant and willful nature really made Yinzhen pay some attention to her.

But once the new bride enters the palace tomorrow, it remains to be seen how much of that enthusiasm will remain.

——

"Come forward, both of you, and let me see you." Lü Jiaying looked at the two people standing below and beckoned to them with an appreciative expression.

Consort Qi smiled and stepped forward as instructed, while Consort Li nodded and followed behind her.

"Indeed, you are beautiful. The title the Emperor bestowed upon you is also auspicious. It's truly wonderful." Lü Jiayingfeng pulled her left and right, admiring her beauty. She couldn't help but marvel at how beautiful the person before her was, as delicate as a peeled lychee.

"Thank you, Your Majesty." Her round little face smiled radiantly as she curtsied to the Empress, her rosy cheeks radiating joy.

After praising her, Lü Jiaying looked up at the people behind her. Li Changzai was indeed quite decent-looking on her own, but when placed next to Qi Guiren, she was completely overshadowed... Well, not completely overshadowed, she was still taller than the other concubines.

However, as Empress, Lü Jiaying could not show favoritism to one new concubine on the first day of her arrival in the palace, so she naturally continued to praise her: "Consort Li is indeed worthy of being the daughter of a military general. Her complexion is truly excellent. One look at her reveals that she is a healthy and whole young lady. She will surely bear many children for the Emperor in the future."

Li Changzai blushed slightly and replied with a soft laugh.

"Xuexin, introduce the two new brides. Almost everyone is here today except for Consort Ye and Consort Zhen. Consort Fucha is injured and not very present. You two should get to know each other first, since you will be sisters who get along together in the future."

Mentioning Ye Yingying left not only the two newcomers completely bewildered, but the people below also looked indignant. Because the newcomers were present, they didn't say anything for the time being, but the disdain on their faces was obvious.

Even Consort Jing, who was usually not prone to getting angry, waited until everyone had left before pulling Lü Jiaying aside and talking for a long time—"I have never seen anyone in the palace act like this before. Even if she is somewhat similar to Consort Hua, she is still far inferior to this Lady Ye."

Consort Jing frowned, somewhat worried for Lü Jiaying: "You were just crowned Empress not long ago. How can we not even see what a concubine looks like after a month of being favored? The Emperor can't tolerate someone humiliating you like this."

Lu Jiaying chuckled lightly. Unlike the others who were indignant, she thought Ye Lanyi was just a horse trainer from Baijun Garden, and not even a Manchu. In her opinion, she was not worth worrying about. Moreover, Hong Jin had told her about this Ye Lanyi in detail, and she had some interesting guesses.

She now understood that nothing else could be relied upon. Only her son was her trump card. As long as Hongzhao's position in the Emperor's heart was secure, no matter how much favor others gained, it wouldn't affect her status in the slightest.

She pushed the tea and snacks towards Consort Jing, then snorted and said with a smile, "Your Majesty? If it weren't for Hongzhao's example, it would be uncertain whether this Empress would even be appointed. Look at that Ulanara clan, she married into the Prince's mansion at the age of ten, became pregnant at sixteen, lost her child at twenty-four, and accompanied our Emperor from the Prince's mansion to the palace. Has she ever received any respect from our Emperor?"

“When Consort Nian wanted to seize power, she would claim to be ill. Even the Empress’s rightful power over the six palaces had to be fought for by herself. She could skip the days set by the Ancestor on the first and fifteenth of each month whenever she wanted. Not to mention the sins she committed, just considering that she treated everyone she had been with for decades, what are we compared to her?”

Consort Jing pursed her lips, pondered for a moment, and nodded with relief, saying, "It's alright, it's alright that we all have something to rely on and something to look forward to."

Speaking of something to look forward to, Lü Jiaying's eyes lit up again. She pulled Consort Jing aside and said excitedly, "Speaking of which, I forgot something. I knew you had taken a fancy to the daughter of the Dong E family at the flower viewing banquet that day. I mentioned it to the Emperor, and he also had the same idea. He's just letting you know that the wedding date is probably set for the beginning of the year."

"That's wonderful!" Consort Jing clapped her hands, unusually unsteady, and happily got up to take her leave, immediately heading to find Hongshi to give him some good advice.

"Your Majesty, do you think His Majesty will summon Consort Qi to his bedchamber tonight?"

Lu Jiaying casually picked up a piece of pastry and said leisurely, "Whether I will be summoned tonight is uncertain, but I certainly won't be tomorrow."

"Tomorrow is Hongzhao and Hongjin's birthday."