Chapter 150 Your Lover
As the emperor's consort, Song Lincheng has been quite busy and has many worries lately.
Even when the Emperor was away from the palace, he was constantly thinking of him. Fast horses traveled from the capital to Xinping Prefecture one after another, and thankfully, each time they brought back good news.
Ji Yunyuan and Chi Li entered the capital one after another, and there were two more men in the palace.
To Song Lincheng, it wasn't a big deal that Lu Jinlan had picked up a man or two on a whim. The problem was that these two men had rather unusual backgrounds.
According to Xu Lin, Lu Jinlan and Ji Yunyuan had indeed gone through the wedding ceremony and held a wedding banquet.
According to folk customs, the husband that a wife formally marries is usually her principal husband or a secondary husband. In special cases, he may be a concubine who is extremely favored by the wife.
Xiao Heng married Lu Jinlan as a concubine, but there was no such thing as a concubine in the palace. So after Lu Jinlan ascended the throne, he was made the only imperial concubine, second only to the imperial consort Song Lincheng.
If Ji Yunyuan, the emperor's concubine, were treated according to folk customs, Xiao Heng would certainly be unhappy. This young master is usually prone to jealousy and vying for favor. He doesn't care much for the old servants who accompanied the emperor when he was a prince, but he always treats the new concubines coldly.
Even if Song Lincheng didn't want Ji Yunyuan to become the emperor's concubine, he would still find it difficult to live a comfortable life because Xiao Heng would constantly belittle him, which would ultimately harm him.
However, if Ji Yunyuan is treated too poorly, it would seem that he, as the imperial consort, is mistreating the newcomer.
It's unclear what Ji Yunshi means to Lu Jinlan. A few whispers from others are a minor matter, but if Lu Jinlan returns and is displeased, wouldn't that damage their marital relationship?
Song Lincheng wanted to send someone to ask Lu Jinlan, at least to get her to assign Ji Yunyuan a title, then things would be easier for him.
But after the incident with You Shun, Lu Jinlan was immediately busy fighting against Wu Cang Kingdom. Song Lincheng thought it over and over, but in the end, he couldn't bear to bother her with these trivial matters.
Fortunately, Ji Yunyuan was a sensible person. When he entered the palace, Xu Runnian accompanied him to meet the emperor and his attendants.
Although Ji Yunyuanzhen and Xu Runnian looked down on each other before, Chi Cheng set off two days later than them, and Ji Yunyuanzhen and Xu Runnian shared a carriage along the way.
When they were worried about Lu Jinlan, they comforted each other and talked to each other to relieve their boredom, so their relationship was naturally closer than that of others.
Xu Runnian had already taught him the etiquette of the audience on the way. Ji Yunyuan knelt down respectfully and said, "Your subject greets Your Majesty and wishes Your Majesty a long and healthy life."
Song Lincheng smiled and said, "You must be tired from the journey. Get up and talk to me."
After Ji Yunyuanzhen stood up, he looked at the husbands and servants present, and then bowed and said, "Yuanzhen also greets the husbands and servants."
Xiao Heng took a sip of tea and said indifferently, "Oh, it's rare to find someone who knows manners. I knew it; if he were a crude and rude man from the mountains, how could His Majesty possibly take notice of him?"
Ji Yunyuan was taken aback by these words, feeling a little uncomfortable. Yu Mian smiled and said, "Your Majesty is praising you, don't take it to heart."
Lu Qilang stood up and helped Ji Yunyuanzhen up, comforting her in a low voice, "Where there are many men, there are bound to be many troubles. Men in the palace are even more prone to causing trouble. You'll get used to it."
Ji Yunyuan nodded with a smile, "Thank you for your guidance, Your Highness. I will remember it."
Xiao Heng rolled his eyes at them. "Qilang, do you know him? If I didn't know, I would have thought he was your younger brother."
Qi Lang laughed and said, "Although we don't know each other, since Yuan Zhen is someone the Emperor has chosen, he will serve the Emperor with us from now on. We are not brothers, but we are better than brothers. We will take care of each other and save the Emperor from worrying."
Song Lincheng nodded repeatedly, “Noble Consort Lu is right. Don’t act like fighting cocks the moment you meet. His Majesty is busy fighting wars outside, enduring wind and rain, and working hard for the country every day. He is already exhausted enough. The harem needs to be harmonious so as not to distract His Majesty from his worries. Everyone should restrain their tempers and take extra care of the younger brother who has just entered the palace.”
Upon hearing this, all the servants rose to their feet, saying, "We will obey the Emperor's decree."
Song Lincheng curled the corners of his lips. "Yuanzhen, come here and sit next to me."
Ji Yunyuan finally arrived in front of Song Lincheng and said, "When I entered the palace last time, I was fortunate enough to receive a jade bracelet from Your Majesty. I have been grateful ever since. I never thought I would have the opportunity to see you again. Let me kowtow to you again."
Song Lincheng quickly grabbed him, "So it was you! No wonder you looked familiar. I remember... your mother is the head of the pharmacy association."
Ji Yunyuan said awkwardly, "That was true at first, but later... I almost went astray and wasted some time. But this time my mother has returned to her old profession and is coming to the capital with me to buy and sell some medicinal herbs."
Song Lincheng said, "That's great. Our Lu family also deals in medicinal herbs. I'll go and inquire about it later. Your mother won't have to worry about her business anymore."
Ji Yunyuan was overjoyed, "Thank you, Your Majesty."
Song Lincheng said, "Although I am the Emperor's consort, we serve the Emperor together and should be as close as brothers. We are also old acquaintances, so I will speak frankly. The Emperor is a man who does great things, and he inevitably overlooks some trivial matters of a man. She let you enter the palace, but she did not set a title or rank for you."
"If I were to make a decision on my own, and it's either too high or too low, I'm afraid the Emperor would be dissatisfied, and I'm also afraid it would be unfair to you. My suggestion is that you stay in my side hall for now, and I'll show you around to palace life. Once the Emperor returns to the palace, I'll arrange a palace for you according to your rank, is that alright?"
Ji Yunyuan hurriedly said, "Thank you for your thoughtful arrangements, Your Majesty. This is wonderful. When I was on the mountain, I never lived in such a big and empty house. I wouldn't be used to living alone."
Xiao Heng secretly pursed his lips and muttered under his breath, "Once you're in the palace and living alone, you'd better get used to it quickly."
*
Just as Ji Yunyuanzhen was dealt with, an even more troublesome problem arose. Not long after Chi Cheng returned to the palace, he announced that his brother was coming from the Jiang Kingdom to visit relatives.
Song Lincheng knew about Lu Jinlan and Chi Li's affair. Actually, if he didn't know, he could have just treated them like ordinary relatives; knowing would have made things more complicated. Besides, Chi Li had brought a child with her, and that child was Lu Jinlan's.
Having not seen each other for several years, Lu Jinlan always thought about Chi Li and the child, and would occasionally mention them, but due to their respective statuses, it was inconvenient for them to go to Jiang Kingdom.
Now that they've come all this way with their child, Song Lincheng thought he absolutely couldn't treat them poorly.
Song Lincheng ordered a palace not far from Chi Cheng's residence to be cleaned, renovated, and decorated. He also selected some reliable and discreet palace men to serve him.
He also instructed the princesses in the palace, "You must treat the little princess from Jiang Kingdom as kindly as you would your own sister."
Just a few days after Chi Li and his daughter were brought to the palace, news of Lu Jinlan's impending triumphant return arrived, and he was busy arranging the reception.
On the day the Emperor returned to the capital, Lu Jinlan met with the ministers at the city gate and with the ladies-in-waiting at the palace gate.
"Congratulations on Your Majesty's triumphant return to the capital! Long live the Emperor!"
A huge group of heads suddenly knelt down in front of me, a dark mass of heads.
Lu Jinlan raised her hand. "Everyone, please rise."
She smiled and helped Song Lincheng, who was kneeling in the center, to his feet, and held his hand, saying, "Your Majesty, you have worked hard managing the harem for me. Please get up."
Song Lincheng's eyes suddenly reddened. "I do not feel tired. It is my blessing to be able to share the Emperor's burdens."
Lu Jinlan patted the back of his hand and glanced at everyone. Ji Yunyuan was kneeling at the very back, looking at her pitifully with tears streaming down his face.
Song Lincheng explained in a low voice, "Yuanzhen has no official rank and has been staying in my palace these past few days, waiting for your return to bestow a title upon him. He has a good temperament and is honest and dutiful, so please don't wrong him."
Lu Jinlan nodded and beckoned, "Yuanzhen, come here."
Yuan Zhen quickly wiped away her tears and hurried over. Lu Jinlan said loudly, "From today onwards, Ji Yunshi will be my Consort Yuan. She is young and innocent, so please do not bully her."
Ji Yunyuan quickly expressed his gratitude, and Song Lincheng smiled and said, "I have also given instructions on this matter. Who would dare to bully the person you cherish so much?"
Lu Jinlan smiled, took Song Lincheng's hand with one hand and Ji Yunyuan's hand with the other, and strode into the palace.
She had just changed her clothes and taken a sip of tea in the Emperor's palace when Song Lincheng whispered, "Your lover..."
"Um"
Song Lincheng smiled and said, "Chi Li and the child have already entered the palace. He misses you very much, but given his status, it is really inconvenient for him to appear today, so I asked them to wait for you in the palace."
Lu Jinlan sighed softly, put down her teacup, and recalled the last time she saw Chi Li, before her child was born. In the blink of an eye, the child was almost five years old.
Several years have passed since we parted, and although we have corresponded, we can only meet again in our dreams.
When the time finally came to meet them, I felt a mix of trepidation and longing. Recalling the past, my heart was filled with emotion.
She put down her teacup and said in a deep voice, "I will go now."
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