Chapter 51 A widow! That's great...
Liu Ruolan's gaze lingered on Shen Qingci's dazzling imperial robes for a moment, and a fierce resentment and jealousy flashed in her eyes!
Shen Qingci saw everything clearly and couldn't help but smile, "Is Sister-in-law also going out?"
Liu Ruolan glanced at Shen Qingci, but didn't dare to say anything. She just snorted heavily, brushed past Shen Qingci, and walked straight toward the carriage parked not far away.
Shen Qingci could still faintly hear Liu Ruolan's furious voice coming from inside the carriage: "Bitch! What's she so smug about? She's infuriating me!"
Shen Qingci's lips curved into a smile as she recalled the task Chu Jichen had given her, and an idea suddenly came to her mind.
Liu Ruolan is a jealous and easily angered person with a quick temper and no guile. She is practically a pawn delivered to her door, which she can take advantage of.
Shen Qingci waited for Liu Ruolan's carriage to leave before getting into his own.
Wanqing leaned out of the carriage window and looked out for a while before finally turning back: "Miss, I saw Liu Ruolan's carriage parked outside the Prime Minister's residence. She's gone back to the Prime Minister's residence!"
Shen Qingci raised his eyebrows and pondered for a moment: "Liu Ruolan's return to the Prime Minister's residence at this time may not necessarily be because she is angry with Huo Yunzhan. It is also possible that it is because of those rumors we have been spreading recently about the incompetence of the Marquis of Yongning."
"Those rumors are rampant, and the Prime Minister's residence must have heard about them by now."
"Liu Ruolan is the daughter of the Prime Minister. Although she is only the second daughter of the legitimate wife, the Prime Minister married her to the Marquis of Yongning. Naturally, he also had the intention of winning over the Marquis of Yongning's family and consolidating his own power."
"Offspring are very important to both the Huo family and the Prime Minister's residence."
"With such a major incident, the Prime Minister's residence naturally has to take a look."
"And it's probably not just a matter of meddling. If Huo Yunzhan can cure his 'unspeakable problem,' that's fine. But if Huo Yunzhan really can't get better, then the Prime Minister's Mansion will probably have to make other plans for Liu Ruolan's future."
Wanqing's eyes lit up immediately: "Miss, do you mean... that the Prime Minister's residence might arrange for Liu Ruolan to divorce the Marquis?"
Shen Qingci slowly picked up the teacup, took a small sip, and a meaningful smile appeared on her lips: "Most likely."
"After all, no respectable aristocratic family would be willing to watch their carefully raised daughter waste her best years on a... impotent man, would they?"
After Shen Qingci finished speaking, she noticed that Wan Qing's gaze was fixed on her in a strange way.
She immediately realized that the matchmaker who had previously introduced Chu Jichen to her had subtly mentioned that Regent Chu Jichen had unfortunately injured his legs in battle in his early years, leaving him unable to walk and, moreover, unable to have sexual relations.
Shen Qingci coughed lightly, her expression somewhat unnatural: "My situation is different from Liu Ruolan's."
"My purpose in agreeing to marry Chu Jichen was not pure. I wanted to use my status as the Regent's Consort to deal with Huo Yunzhan and Liu Ruolan."
"Besides, I've already lost all interest in so-called love between men and women after being deceived and hurt by Huo Yunzhan. Whether Chu Jichen can be a man or not is not important to me."
Shen Qingci bit her lip. "The point isn't me."
"The key point is that if Huo Yunzhan really can't be cured, the Prime Minister's Mansion won't let Liu Ruolan waste her precious youth on Huo Yunzhan."
“So…” A sly glint flashed in her eyes as she made up her mind: “We can take this opportunity to start with the Prime Minister’s residence and use it to sow discord between Huo Yunzhan and Liu Ruolan, whose relationship was already on the verge of collapse.”
The carriage soon stopped at the palace gate. Shen Qingci got off the carriage and was led by palace servants to the outside of the Taiji Hall.
The other noblewomen had also arrived one after another. Once everyone had arrived, they all entered the hall together.
Because Shen Qingci was a third-rank imperial consort, her rank was not very high among the crowd, so she was arranged in a position at the back.
They waited in the hall, holding their breath, for about the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, but the emperor did not appear.
Just as everyone was feeling uneasy, they suddenly heard a irritable and impatient voice coming from the back of the hall: "What are you thanking me for? A bunch of married old women, what's there to see?"
"Instead of wasting time on this, I'd rather go back to the harem and play hide-and-seek with my beautiful concubines!"
Shen Qingci's eyelids twitched suddenly. This person called himself "I"?
So, this... this is the legendary young emperor who was indulging in wine, women, and debauchery, neglecting state affairs?
It is indeed... utterly absurd!
Then, faint, low voices of comfort could be heard from behind, as if they were trying to soothe something, but they were not very clear.
But a moment later, the eunuch's distinctive high-pitched voice rang out, echoing throughout the entire hall: "His Majesty has arrived—"
Shen Qingci quickly composed herself and knelt down with the others, shouting, "Long live the Emperor!"
Slightly disordered footsteps sounded from the direction of the throne, and then the same voice came down from the high throne: "Rise, all of you, no need for formalities."
While everyone was getting up to pay their respects, Shen Qingci quietly lifted her eyelids and quickly glanced at the throne. She saw a young man in a bright yellow dragon robe sitting crookedly on the throne.
That is the current emperor of the Great Zhou Dynasty—Emperor Yongming.
Emperor Yongming looked to be no more than twenty years old. He was thin and had a pale, almost sickly complexion, typical of someone who had been indulging in wine and women for a long time. His eyes, however, were covered in dark bluish-black circles.
A chilling glint of hatred flashed in Shen Qingci's eyes! This man, muddle-headed and incompetent, listened to slander and couldn't distinguish right from wrong. With a single imperial edict, he had her entire Shen family executed! He had caused her family to be destroyed and her people to die!
Emperor Yongming's face was full of impatience as he swept his gaze over the ladies below: "Alright, you've all seen me, and you've all thanked me. Now, leave..."
He stopped abruptly halfway through his sentence! His gaze sharpened, fixing on Shen Qingci's exquisitely beautiful face, his eyes flashing with undisguised amazement and greed!
"Wait." He narrowed his long, narrow eyes, raised his hand, and pointed at Shen Qingci, his voice tinged with impatience: "You... which family are you from? Raise your head!"
Everyone in the hall turned their eyes slightly to look at Shen Qingci, who was standing at the back of the crowd.
Feeling extremely uncomfortable under Emperor Yongming's undisguised and aggressive gaze, she felt a strong sense of disgust and unease: "Your Majesty, my wife, Huo Shenshi, is... the wife of General Huo Yunzhan, who is in charge of the Western Expedition."
"Huo Yunzhan?" Emperor Yongming seemed to recall for a moment before remembering this person.
A strange light flickered in his eyes, and he leaned forward involuntarily: "How come I remember that Huo Yunzhan... hasn't he been dead for some time now?"
Shen Qingci lowered her eyes, her gaze growing increasingly cold: "Yes, my husband died on the battlefield more than two months ago!"
"Widow, that's wonderful. You..."
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