Chapter 139 Chapter 139

[Chapter 139]

"Empress Dowager." Aunt Jingqiao brought the medicine cup, "Why do you have to make a scene in front of the Emperor?"

The Queen Mother shook her head and said, "The Queen is ill, and Concubine Ying is powerful in the palace. The Emperor is bent on doting on Concubine Ying. All I can do now is to ask the Emperor to think more about the Ming family."

Aunt Jingqiao didn't know what to say when she heard this, so she could only advise, "The Queen Mother has always been in poor health, so don't overwork yourself or you will hurt yourself."

The Queen Mother drank the medicine in one gulp, and without accepting the cup of tea that Aunt Jing Qiao handed over, she waved her hand and said, "Let's see if Concubine Xian can keep the Emperor's heart."

"I'm tired and want to sleep for a while."

The candlelight in Shoukang Palace soon went out, and the palace avenue outside was covered with snow.

Wei Maoyuan had been standing outside the gate of Shoukang Palace, holding an umbrella for the emperor. When he saw the candlelight inside go out, Yan Shiyu inexplicably raised a smile on his face, but it did not go deep into his heart and only remained on his face.

Wei Maoyuan felt the cold wind blowing, and wanted to advise the emperor to take care of his body and not stand outside. However, before he could finish his words, Yan Shiyu spoke up, "Chaoxi Palace."

Wei Maoyuan came to his senses immediately and withdrew his hand when he saw the emperor getting on the throne. The emperor might be staying in Chaoxi Palace tonight. If the royal concubine knew about this, she would be sad.

Shoukang Palace was not far from Chaoxi Palace. When Concubine Xian knew that the emperor's imperial procession had arrived outside the palace, she stood up suddenly.

"Has His Majesty really come to this palace?"

The eunuch waiting in the outer hall smiled, "Of course, Your Majesty, please get ready to receive the carriage." Concubine Xian was at a loss, the emperor usually came to Chaoxi Palace during the day, and would leave after seeing the second prince. But now it was already this hour, and she didn't know if the emperor had any other instructions.

"Have I put on my makeup?" Concubine Xian was filled with joy that the emperor was coming here. "Go to the small kitchen and bring us the ginseng soup and mutton soup that we cooked today. The emperor is very busy with state affairs, so he must take a good rest."

Yinli supported Concubine Xian, fearing that she would fall, and said with a smile: "Your Highness, please be careful. Now that the Emperor is here, you will have no trouble finding an opportunity to show off these things in front of the Emperor. What you have here, other concubines naturally have there too, and the Emperor has seen a lot of them."

After listening to Yinli's words, Concubine Xian calmed down a lot. Her eyebrows were knitted tightly, thinking about what Yinli said, "But these are all I have. The other one is just - the Second Prince."

Yinli's smile did not fade as she led Concubine Xian to sit in front of the makeup mirror. "Your Majesty has seen many concubines wearing makeup and looking elegant and refined. You may like them even more. Your Majesty is worried about state affairs every day. Your Majesty must remember to be gentle and considerate."

Concubine Xian breathed heavily nervously and looked in the mirror. Yinli took off some of her hairpins and deliberately messed up her hair. She blinked her eyes slightly as if she got up in a hurry.

Bei Chi bit her lip. Concubine Xian knew that her appearance was not as good as the other concubines. She looked at the clepsydra and felt that the emperor might be coming. She asked softly, "You say, should I bring the second prince here?"

Yinli put down the comb and quickly stopped Concubine Xian's thoughts. "The Emperor came here at midnight, how could he be here to see the Second Prince?"

After hearing this, Concubine Xian completely denied her own idea, and hurried to the outer hall wearing only a lilac-colored cloak.

As soon as I stood in the yard, I saw the emperor coming down from the palace.

Concubine Xian couldn't stop smiling, she knelt down and bowed, saying, "May the emperor be well and safe."

She raised her eyes, with admiration and tenderness rising spontaneously in them. With her current attire, Yan Shiyu could hardly help but hand his hand to Concubine Xian, "Get up."

Concubine Xian's heart was pounding. She looked at the hand extended by the Emperor and slowly placed her trembling hand on it.

Yan Shiyu frowned slightly, "It's cold, don't be greedy for the coolness."

Then he saw Concubine Xian's appearance and saw that her black hair was not so smooth, so he asked again, "Have you fallen asleep?"

Concubine Xian pinched her palm and smiled, "I am already very happy that the emperor can come."

Yan Shiyu nodded and said no more. Although he had let go of her hand, it was just a light squeeze, but it made Concubine Xian's heart flutter.

After entering the inner hall, Concubine Xian allowed the palace maid to take off her cloak. Seeing the emperor sitting at the top with his eyes closed, Concubine Xian said softly, "Your Majesty, are you tired? How about you rest earlier?"

Yan Shiyu then opened his eyes and looked at Concubine Xian, and said calmly, "No hurry."

Concubine Xian then asked, "It's cold outside. The small kitchen has stewed mutton soup today. I'll ask them to bring it to the emperor to warm him up."

Yan Shiyu thought for a moment, and finally did not reject Concubine Xian's words.

When Yinli retreated, she winked at Concubine Xian, and then led all the palace maids to retreat.

Concubine Xian sat obediently beside Yan Shiyu. She hadn't seen the emperor for a long time, and she and the emperor had less and less to say.

Her pajamas were thin at the moment, and when she thought about what she would do with the emperor later, Concubine Xian's face couldn't help but get hot.

Putting her hand on the emperor's arm, Concubine Xian leaned her face forward and said, "I am very happy today."

Yan Shiyu glanced at her coldly, without retracting his arm, and tapped her lightly with his fingers, saying, "Has the Second Prince been causing trouble recently?"

Concubine Xian was distracted by the emperor, and her smile froze for a moment, then she hurriedly said, "The second prince is very well behaved, does the emperor want to meet him?"

She selfishly did not want the Emperor to meet the Second Prince. Why let the Second Prince come at such an auspicious time?

Yan Shiyu patted the back of her hand and said, "No need."

Before Concubine Xian smiled, Yan Shiyu spoke up, "I just went to see my mother."

Concubine Xian knew about the Empress Dowager's birthday, and she specifically asked her today if she could bring the Second Prince with her. The Empress Dowager actually said that she had looked for the Emperor earlier, which made Concubine Xian quite surprised at the Emperor's sudden arrival tonight.

She handed the teacup in her hand to Yan Shiyu, and inadvertently, her beautiful figure was exposed.

Yan Shiyu's eyes were filled with white. Concubine Xian immediately lowered her head to tie the laces and knelt on the couch. "Your Majesty, please forgive me."

Yan Shiyu quickly retracted his gaze, without even glancing at her. He took the teacup and took a sip, saying, "The Queen Mother loves you very much."

Concubine Xian's heart moved, and she climbed onto the emperor's strong arms with her fingertips painted with bright red nail polish, and called tenderly, "Cousin."

Her voice was trembling, soft yet charming, and under the candlelight, Concubine Xian didn't believe that any man could resist.

The strong smell of powder wafted into Yan Shiyu's nose. He frowned and said, "It was not my wish to let you enter the palace."

When Concubine Xian heard this, her face turned pale instantly. The words she wanted to say just now were now stuck in her throat, tasting sour and bitter.

"You are my cousin, and I should have found a good marriage for you, but the Queen Mother's obsession has ruined your life."

Concubine Xian collapsed on the couch. What did the emperor mean by this? He regretted letting her enter the palace and said that she should not have become a concubine.

But she had seen the emperor's talent, so how could she be attracted to another man?

In an instant, Concubine Xian's face, which had hardly been made up, turned pale. She shook her head repeatedly and said, "No... I don't want to. Ever since I first entered the palace to accompany the Queen Mother and saw the Emperor in the palace, I have been determined to be with the Emperor. I will never regret entering the palace, and I will never regret becoming the Emperor's concubine."

Yan Shiyu looked at Concubine Xian with deep black eyes, "Even if the Queen Mother did it for the sake of the Ming family, would you be willing?"

The tears in Concubine Xian's eyes fell instantly, "I am happy with this. The Ming family is my mother's family and your maternal grandfather's family. Don't you think more about the Ming family? I know that the emperor dislikes my appearance, but I really can't live without the emperor."

After saying this, Concubine Xian looked at the emperor who still did not move, knelt in front of Yan Shiyu, stood up, and slowly took off her clothes.

Although her face was not good, her figure was excellent. She ignored her shyness and reached out to the laces of her undergarment, untied them with her jade fingers, and exposed herself completely to the emperor.

However, Yan Shiyu simply closed his eyes, then opened them again and looked to the side, then raised his feet to walk out.

However, Concubine Xian hugged Yan Shiyu from behind, clasped her hands in front of the emperor, and cried, "Your Majesty never touches me, is it just because I am your cousin? Or is it because I have a close relationship with my aunt? But I only think of your majesty and want to be by your side, I don't want anything else."

Yan Shiyu put her hand on the back of Concubine Xian's hand, and thought that the emperor was moved by her. However, the next moment, her clasped hands were taken away by the emperor, and Concubine Xian fell to the ground powerlessly, with her clothes scattered around her body.

"Didn't you just say that you also have selfish motives for the Ming family?"

The emperor's words left Concubine Xian speechless.

Yan Shiyu rubbed his brows, thinking about the arrogance of the Ming family. He knew that as long as the Queen Mother and Concubine Xian were still in the palace, the Ming family would never restrain themselves.

In the past, he had longed for the Queen Mother's love and care, but the Queen Mother put the late emperor and the Ming family before him. Her persuasion in Shoukang Palace at that time was nothing more than talking about Concubine Xian and the Ming family in both open and covert ways.

If you want to cut the weeds, you must remove the roots.

Now that he is the emperor, the mother-son love he desired has finally faded.

Besides, has the Queen Mother ever really cared about him?

Yan Shiyu laughed at himself, ignoring the woman's crying and asking, "I will only ask you once. I can give you another identity and send you out of the palace. From now on, you will no longer be the virtuous concubine, but just an ordinary person. I will not stop you from leaving the palace to marry or do business. Do you want to?"

Concubine Xian was so grief-stricken that she forgot how to speak. It took her a long while to find her voice again. She said in a trembling voice, "I am already the emperor's woman. There is no room for anyone else in my heart."

When Yan Shiyu heard Concubine Xian say this, he was not surprised, but disappointed:

"In that case, you can stay in the palace or go to Mount Putuo to accompany the Queen Mother. I won't say anything."

After saying this, Yan Shiyu walked away.

Concubine Xian touched her clothes, then put them on her shoulders and couldn't help crying.

Just because she is the daughter of the Ming family, and just because she wanted to enter the palace in the past, the emperor had to treat her like this.

She has already done so much today, but the emperor has never even looked at her. How can she have the face to live like this in the future?

Seeing the emperor leaving with a sullen face, Yinli hurried into the hall. Her eyes saw Concubine Xian lying on the ground crying and her snow-white shoulders outside. She went over to help the empress put on her clothes.

"My queen!"

Yinli was extremely nervous, "Your Majesty, what happened? I just saw the Emperor leave, Your Majesty...how could this happen..."

Concubine Xian fell on Yinli's shoulder, sobbing, "Your Majesty... Your Majesty will never come to Chaoxi Palace again."

Yinli pressed the Empress's dress in place, and Concubine Xian grabbed the skirt in front of her tightly. She had already done so much, but the Emperor still refused to look at her, and was even unwilling to give her the last bit of face.

Concubine Xian closed her eyes to hide the sorrow within. When she was helped up by the palace maids, she was in a daze and didn't know what she was doing.

Yinli saw the queen's distraught look and came closer with a bowl of soothing soup, "Drink some soothing medicine, so you can fall asleep."

Concubine Xian's eyes were swollen and she lay on the bed with a blank look in her eyes:

"Tomorrow, everyone in the palace will know that the emperor left me, and I will be everyone's laughing stock. I have done so much, but the emperor still doesn't want to look at me, let alone touch me. Don't you think it's a bit ironic for me to be a virtuous concubine?"

Yinli knelt in front of Concubine Xian's bed and said, "Your Majesty, please don't say that. The other concubines don't know the reason behind this either."

Concubine Xian's voice suddenly became louder, and tears fell uncontrollably, "I have been deceiving myself and others, and now I can no longer hide it!"

After hearing this, Yinli was silent for a moment. She gently wiped the tears from Concubine Jingxian's face with a handkerchief. She really didn't know how to persuade the queen again.

Among all the concubines in the palace, is there any concubine like Her Majesty, who has been in the palace for such a long time but has never served the emperor in bed? If this gets out, I'm afraid Her Majesty will never be able to see anyone in her life.

…

Linxuan Palace

When Ruan Jun woke up, Dongdong had already been brought in by the wet nurse. It was cold and Ruan Jun didn't like to move, so she sat on the bed holding Dongdong. Seeing him crawling very quickly, a smile appeared in her almond-shaped eyes.

Tingxu came back with breakfast and stood in front of the table, deep in thought.

Ruan Yun called her and found that Tingxu was still thinking about something, so she raised her voice a little, "Tingxu?"

Tingxu came back to his senses, walked to the bedside, and asked in a daze: "Madam, do you want to get up?"

I have never seen Tingxu like this before. She always speaks out whatever she hears or sees.

Ruan Jun looked a little serious, "But what happened?"

Ting Xu glanced at the Third Prince, then looked at Ruan Yun, "Your Majesty, the Emperor went to Chaoxi Palace yesterday, and then left again."

Ruan Yun immediately asked, "Did the emperor turn over Concubine Xian's name card last night?"

Ting Xu shook her head, covered her lips with her hands, and whispered in Ruan Yun's ear: "The emperor came out of Shoukang Palace first, and then went to Chaoxi Palace. He left in less than half an hour. Some palace servants said that the emperor didn't look very good when he left last night."

Ruan Jun frowned, and seeing Dongdong about to put the night-shining pearl into his mouth, he quickly took it away and held Dongdong in his arms with a scolding look:

"Tell all the palaces not to spread such gossip anymore. If anyone dares to gossip behind my back, don't blame me for sending them to the Ministry of Punishment!"

Tingxu took the order and went down. Ruan Yun saw her turn around and called Tingxu back, "The emperor didn't come last night... Let's go to Xuan Palace."

Seeing Tingxu shaking his head, Ruan Jun felt relieved and let Tingxu go with a sigh of relief.

Just as she was planning to hold Dongdong and play with him for a while, Yingning came in from the outer hall with an anxious look on her face. Ruan Jun felt that the past one or two days had been very uneasy, with so many things happening every day.

The movement in her arms seemed to sense Ruan Yun's emotions, and she took a small bite of the snow-white thing in front of her mother, causing Ruan Yun to hurriedly hand him over to the wet nurse.

Ying Ning stepped forward at this moment, without saying anything else, and directly handed the note in her hand to the Empress.

"Your Majesty, Ji Zhaoyi sent someone to deliver it just now, saying that it was brought in by a eunuch who was shopping outside the palace. The person who delivered the note is——"

"Ji Zhebai, Lord Ji."