When Su Yushan first entered the palace, she only wanted to settle down peacefully and did not think about competing for anything. She even took the initiative to advise Hongli not to care about the matter of rank. However, this was her own idea. Once someone asked her to do something, she would feel very uncomfortable.

After realizing Yu Ying's true intentions, Su Yushan feigned helplessness and sighed, "Sister, you really overestimate me. The Emperor won't listen to me; he's not under anyone's control."

Now that Hongli doesn't even listen to the Empress Dowager, looking across the entire palace, perhaps only Su Yushan can persuade him. Otherwise, Yuying wouldn't have come personally to plead with her.

"The late emperor's death is not yet over. If the emperor were to argue with the empress dowager over this matter, it would inevitably invite criticism from the court officials. He has just ascended the throne, and what he needs most is to secure the loyalty of his ministers. I do not want him to be criticized because of this. He dotes on you so much, you should also think of him."

She didn't like hearing that; it sounded as if she was encouraging Hongli. Explaining was useless; Yuying wouldn't believe her. Su Yushan, quick-witted, decided to play the victim, sobbing softly:

"To be honest, I tried to advise the Emperor a couple of days ago, but he actually scolded me, saying that I was being unreasonable and that this was not a matter of petty love, but a matter of his reputation. If a concubine becomes a concubine, he will be ridiculed."

I don't understand these rules either, and I certainly don't dare to advise the Emperor again. He'll definitely reprimand me. Sister, you have no idea how terrifying he can be when he's angry!

Su Yushan feigned fear and made up stories, making Yu Ying wonder if Hongli was really saying these things. He clearly doted on Su Yushan so much, how could he be so harsh on her?

Yu Ying didn't believe her, and Su Yushan refused decisively, then suggested, "Why don't you go and persuade the Emperor? I really don't have the guts to disobey the Emperor."

Hongli had no patience for her at all, and it was uncertain whether he would even want to see her. If Yuying dared to see him, she wouldn't have come to Xianfu Palace.

Unable to persuade her otherwise, she had no reason to stay any longer and had no choice but to stop and leave.

Yunfang remained silent throughout, but after the future empress left, she curled her lip and scoffed:

"Her Majesty the Empress is quite the schemer. She doesn't dare to approach the Emperor herself, but she wants to use you as a pawn."

Although Yu Ying had never harmed her, she always harbored resentment towards her. Therefore, Su Yushan never believed that Yu Ying would change her opinion of her after entering the palace.

"The Empress herself probably wouldn't come here on her own initiative. I guess the Empress Dowager hinted at something for her to come to me. In the end, she's just a pawn of the Empress Dowager."

"You're a secondary consort! Shouldn't you at least be given the rank of imperial concubine?" Yunfang grew angrier the more she thought about it, feeling indignant on Yushan's behalf.

"The Empress Dowager is so stingy, she only gave him the rank of concubine, and she even wants you to persuade the Emperor to agree? How could she possibly accept that?"

Su Yushan could roughly guess the Empress Dowager's thoughts: "The Empress Dowager is trying to give me a hard time. She wants me to understand that she is in charge of this harem, and I shouldn't think about overstepping my bounds by relying on the Emperor's power."

"So what do you plan to do? Are you going to try and persuade the Emperor?" Yunfang was afraid that Yushan would soften her heart, but Yushan shook her head.

“I advised him, but the Emperor was unwilling to change his mind. So let him discuss it with the Empress Dowager! Any rank is fine, as long as Yonghuang is by my side.”

Chang Yue was adjusting the position of the incense burner when she heard this and reminded her, "Then it must be at least the rank of Consort. I heard that Consorts are not allowed to raise their own children."

Su Yushan hadn't cared at first, but upon hearing this, she immediately became alert. The Empress Dowager insisted on giving her the rank of Consort; could it be that she planned to have Yonghuang raised by someone else?

Thinking of this, Su Yushan immediately became nervous. It seemed that this matter was not so simple. She could no longer abandon it, otherwise she would not even be able to keep her own child!

However, Hongli was busy, and she couldn't go to the Qianqing Palace to disturb him; she had to wait for him to come over.

He used to come every day, and she could say whatever she wanted whenever she wanted. Now that he can't stay in the harem, she has no idea when he will come.

If Hongli can't withstand the pressure and agrees to make her a concubine, then we'll be in trouble!

Fortunately, Hongli still had Li Yu by his side. After a moment's thought, Su Yushan told Yunfang to pass on a message to Hongli when she saw Li Yu again.

Yu Shan instructed Yun Fang to take it to heart and to pass on the message as soon as possible.

Li Yuyi had no choice but to report to his master.

During the past month, Yu Shan had not contacted him on her own initiative. Suddenly, she asked Li Yu to deliver a message. Hongli guessed that she must have something important to do, so he immediately rushed to Xianfu Palace.

Su Yushan knew he would come, but she didn't expect him to arrive so quickly. It was noon, neither early nor late. "You've come at this hour, haven't you eaten yet?"

Li Yu replied, "His Majesty originally planned to have a royal meal, but upon hearing that Your Majesty had something to attend to, he didn't even need to eat and came over immediately."

Hongli scoffed, "Too talkative!" Li Yu quickly shut up, and Su Yushan felt ashamed upon hearing this.

"It was my fault for delaying your meal, but I didn't know you would come. You had already finished eating, and the food had been taken away."

Having just arrived at Xianfu Palace, she wasn't yet entitled to special treatment. Su Yushan planned to order more dishes to be served, but Hongli said it wasn't necessary.

"I'm not very hungry, some pastries will do."

Su Yushan hurriedly ordered someone to bring over the pastries, but Hongli waved his hand, dismissing the servants, before asking her if she had encountered any difficulties.

"Did the Empress Dowager come looking for you? Is she giving you another difficult situation?"

Su Yushan shook her head. "The Empress Dowager didn't come, but the Empress did. She asked me to persuade you to follow the Empress Dowager's arrangements."

Yu Ying actually came? Hongli only cares about the front court and has no time to care about the harem. In the past, there were guards to prevent Yu Ying from entering Huatang Pavilion. Now that she has entered the palace, she actually swaggered into Xianfu Palace.

Hongli sighed inwardly at his miscalculation; he shouldn't have been so careless! "So what? You actually listened to her and came all this way to advise me?"

Su Yushan didn't take the Empress's words to heart at all.

"I'm too lazy to argue, but I've heard that women in the harem below the rank of concubine are not qualified to raise their own children. So I'm worried that the Empress Dowager is giving me the rank of concubine because she wants to hand Yonghuang over to someone else to raise?"

Upon hearing this, Hongli remained silent for a long while before saying, "I'm not sure, but it's possible, which is why I didn't agree."

Judging from his reaction, it seemed he had expected this all along. "So you guessed it all along? Then why didn't you tell me?"

In reality, he was thinking of her. "I didn't want you to worry, so I didn't mention it. I plan to handle it myself. As long as I can give you a high position, you don't need to worry."

“I don’t care about rank, but Yonghuang cannot be raised by others. He is my child, and I don’t want others to raise him for me!”

When the topic turned to the children, Su Yushan became quite emotional, her voice trembling noticeably. Hongli held her hand and gently comforted her:

“I know that what you care about most is your child. He is more important to you than I am, so I will not let Yonghuang be taken away by anyone. I will definitely find a way to keep him by your side!”