Empress Xiaode died a few years after moving into the palace, and the emperor remained vacant for more than 20 years after his ascension to the throne.
She's already a Noble Consort, so how far is she from the Empress's throne?
She hurriedly stepped forward, eager to open the imperial edict and see it for herself.
The Empress Dowager frowned in displeasure.
Even Granny Liu and Granny Zhang were stunned into silence.
Before Consort Duan could reach out her hand, Zhang Zhongwei unfolded the imperial edict, took a step back without making a sound, and said to Consort Duan, "Your Majesty, please accept the edict."
Consort Duan then realized that her behavior was indeed inappropriate. She quickly withdrew her hand, knelt down properly to receive the imperial decree, and her face was filled with undisguised joy. Even her body trembled slightly with excitement.
She is now the only Imperial Concubine in the harem!
She didn't waste those 23 years.
Zhang Zhongwei's high-pitched voice rang out: "By the grace of Heaven, the Emperor decrees: Consort Bi, of the Duan family, is dignified and virtuous. She gave birth to Prince An, Zhu Yu, whose military achievements are outstanding and who greatly pleases the Emperor. Consort Bi has made meritorious contributions in raising her son, and is hereby promoted to Imperial Noble Consort, with the title of Duan. She shall continue to reside in Prince An's residence, and shall be exempted from entering the palace to pay respects to the An Ding Provincial Palace on the first and fifteenth of each month. This is the imperial decree!"
Consort Duan's initial joy turned ashen when she heard the words "still residing in Prince An's residence," as if a bucket of cold water had been poured over her head.
She looked up at Zhang Zhongwei in disbelief, her voice trembling uncontrollably: "Eunuch Zhang, you didn't misread it. The Emperor still allows me to live in the Prince An's Mansion, instead of moving back to Yuqing Palace? And, he even exempted me from going to the palace to pay my respects to the Empress Dowager on the first and fifteenth of each month?"
Just how much did the Emperor despise her that he would even deprive her of the opportunity to enter the palace twice a month?
Is he planning to never see her again?
What use is this title of Imperial Concubine then? Is it just to make a fool of herself in front of the Virtuous and Wise Concubines?
Zhang Zhongwei immediately stepped forward to help Consort Duan to her feet, but at this moment Consort Duan seemed to have lost all her strength and could not stand up.
The Empress Dowager said coldly, "Zhang Mama, why aren't you helping Consort Duan up?"
Granny Zhang's face was also deathly pale, but she was much better off than Consort Duan. She and Zhang Zhongwei quickly dragged the person up from the ground.
Zhang Zhongwei smiled awkwardly and said, "Your Highness, this is indeed an imperial edict written by His Majesty himself. Even if you gave this old servant a hundred lives, he would not dare to misread the edict."
He rolled up the imperial edict and handed it to Consort Duan with both hands.
Consort Duan slowly unfurled the imperial edict. The words "Still reside in Prince An's residence" were written with vigor and strength; if it weren't for the emperor's own handwriting, what else could it be?
She gave a bitter, almost manic laugh. How ironic that title of Imperial Concubine was bestowed upon her!
The Empress Dowager glanced at Consort Duan without showing any emotion, then closed her eyes again, pretending to rest.
His son's mind is becoming increasingly cunning; what is the meaning of such behavior?
As Zhang Mama helped Consort Duan walk towards the palace gate, she swallowed back the words of congratulations she had prepared.
On the palace path, the eunuchs and maids whispered among themselves. As soon as they saw Consort Duan, they all covered their mouths and hurried away, but the faint whispers still reached her ears at just the right moment.
"Look, Consort Duan has come out of the Empress Dowager's Cisui Palace. How dare she still come into the palace?"
"Shh, what kind of imperial concubine is this? Have you ever heard of an imperial concubine who was disliked by the emperor and hated by the empress dowager, and was sent to her own son's residence? She didn't do anything wrong. This is someone from above slapping her in the face."
"Ha, her son is the Prince of An, a renowned war god of our Great Zhou, but what happened? They say a mother's status rises with her son's, and she, this imperial concubine, tsk tsk, she has really disgraced herself by living like this."
"Who can she blame? It's all her own fault."
These words, neither too loud nor too soft, seeped into Consort Duan's ears, causing her face to turn pale and then red, and her whole body to tremble uncontrollably.
The old nanny Liu, who accompanied Consort Duan out, scolded: "Don't you all want your tongues anymore? How dare you gossip about your master behind his back! I think it would be better to have Eunuch Zhang pull out all your tongues."
Upon seeing that it was the head maidservant serving the Empress Dowager, the palace servants were so frightened that they fell silent.
Consort Duan felt embarrassed. Zhang Zhongwei had just announced the imperial edict, and soon all the palace maids and eunuchs knew about it. If it wasn't at the emperor's behest, she couldn't think of anyone else who could have done it!
After seeing Consort Duan off from the palace, Granny Liu hurriedly went to Cisui Palace and told the Empress Dowager what she had just heard.
After hearing this, the Empress Dowager sighed deeply. Why did her son do such a thing? He was, after all, the ruler of a country. Such behavior only made people resent him.
The Empress Dowager asked Granny Liu, "How is the investigation going with the people we sent out? Who exactly did it on Yu'er's wedding day?"
Granny Liu hurriedly said, "The news that came back said it was a Jianghu gang called Fengyue Gang, but we couldn't find any more information. The secret guards around Prince An are also investigating, but apart from the rumor that the person behind it used a kite to send the item into the Fengyue Gang's backyard, they haven't found anything else. Our people haven't found any more information either."
The Empress Dowager's slightly aged face revealed utter exhaustion: "Do you think it could be that the Emperor ordered this?"
Granny Liu was startled, her face drained of color: "This, this, this is probably impossible. Even tigers don't eat their cubs, and Prince An is such a capable man. The Emperor, he wouldn't, he wouldn't do such a thing. Your Majesty, please don't frighten me."
The Empress Dowager felt her head throbbing again, and she frowned deeply. "I hope so too, I really hope so. But Yu'er, just as you said, Yu'er is very talented. If only he were an unambitious prince who was content to be a dissolute playboy, how wonderful that would be."
"But unfortunately, he has made unparalleled contributions in the past few years and also holds a large army. Granny Liu, how could I want to think of my own son like this?"
Tears welled up in the Empress Dowager's eyes.
Granny Liu was heartbroken and quickly went behind the Empress Dowager, gently pressing her hands on the Empress Dowager's temples: "Empress Dowager, is your headache coming on again?"
"I am worried about that father and son. If one day the knot between them is untied, my headache will be cured even without treatment. How did things develop to this point? If I had known about Consort Duan's background from the beginning, I would never have allowed her to enter the palace."
Granny Liu's eyes also reddened: "Your Majesty, children and grandchildren have their own blessings. Please don't worry about these things. You must take care of your health. If you are healthy, you can still keep an eye on the Emperor and Prince An."
Granny Liu couldn't even imagine what would happen if the Empress Dowager passed away one day, and the father and son ended up on a path of no return.
Meanwhile, in the Feixue Garden of the Prince An's Mansion, Zhu Yu, being served by Li Feng, had just drunk a bowl of brown sugar ginger tea and was about to fall asleep when the door was suddenly smashed open from the outside.
Zhu Yu was startled awake and he and Li Feng looked toward the door. They saw two or three old women carrying small tables, writing brushes, ink, paper and inkstones, and other items, entering in single file.
Li Feng's face paled. She recognized these old women; they were from Consort Duan's side.
What are they going to do?!
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