Chapter 162 Imperial Concubine
When the palace servants entered the hall, they saw that both masters had gotten up. They were surprised, but then they heard the Empress say that she was to help His Majesty put on his court robes. They were speechless for a moment. Did the Empress know how to put them on?
Although Lan Wu's memory wasn't very good, dressing herself wasn't difficult for her.
The palace servants stood to one side, holding a tray, watching Lan Wu carefully as she made her move, afraid that she might make a mistake.
The person in question, however, calmly and readily agreed to extend their hand or squat down, making it seem as if Lan Wu were the emperor.
After tying the belt, Lan Wu looked at Chu Mingheng's figure, smiled, and then picked up the jade pendant next to her and tied it to his belt.
"Alright, Your Majesty, please go and have your breakfast."
"You will come with me," Chu Mingheng said.
"I don't want to, I want to sleep a little longer, Your Majesty, please go ahead."
Lan Wu meant it when she said she wouldn't go, but she didn't have breakfast with Chu Mingheng. Instead, she leaned against the screen so that Chu Mingheng could see her until the appointed time came and Chu Mingheng finally decided to leave.
It's the first time attending court since the New Year's Eve banquet, and I wonder how lively the court will be today.
Chu Mingheng was an emperor for so many years, he should be able to handle it on his own.
Thinking this, Lan Wu turned back and lay down on the bed, where she slept soundly again.
The most pressing matter has been resolved, and the investiture ceremony two days later is no longer a big deal for her.
Two days later, the sky cleared and the snow melted, and as expected, all the concubines in the harem arrived at Yilan Palace.
Although the investiture ceremony came in haste, it was by no means simple. This was understandable, as this was His Majesty's favorite concubine, and he would not easily mistreat her.
Many people were visiting Yilan Palace for the first time, but today, without exception, they all came to pay their respects to this Imperial Concubine.
As the appointed time approached, the master of ceremonies stopped in front of the palace gate. The remaining officials, carrying imperial edicts and scrolls, entered the palace, read out the decree, and handed the golden scroll and seal to the Imperial Concubine.
Lan Wu stood at the bottom of the steps, and when the female official called for her to kneel, she slowly knelt on the cushion.
After kneeling and bowing three times, Lan Wu presented the golden book and seal to the female official with both hands, and then slowly stood up.
"The ceremony is complete—" the female official announced loudly, "All concubines, please pay your respects."
As soon as these words were spoken, the concubines who had been waiting outside the hall could only kneel down and obediently perform the grand salute.
Lan Wu called for everyone to rise, and after saying a few words as usual, she dismissed them.
After leaving Yilan Palace, Consort Li walked ahead, wishing she could get as far away from Lanwu as possible, out of sight, out of mind.
Consort Liang was accompanied by Consort Mu, and the two watched as Consort Li's entourage walked away into the distance.
Even Consort Mu couldn't help but say, "Life is truly unpredictable."
Who could have imagined this day would come? At first, Consort Li wanted to use Lan Wu to seize favor and power, but now the favor and power she wanted belong to Lan Wu. Just thinking about it makes her furious.
"Sister, shall we go into the palace to see the Imperial Concubine?" Consort Mu thought for a moment, then turned to ask Consort Liang.
They had wanted to come a few days ago, but Lanwu was busy learning etiquette, and His Majesty often stayed in Yilan Palace, so they didn't disturb him. Today, they finally saw that the investiture ceremony was over and thought that Lanwu should have some free time, so they waited here.
Before Consort Liang could speak, a voice came from behind her.
"Are Consort Liang and Consort Mu going to see the Imperial Concubine? It just so happens that I also have some things to tell the Imperial Concubine first."
The person who came was Consort Zhuang, formerly known as Consort Wu.
Consort Wu, having been in the palace for a long time, knew more about palace affairs than Consort Liang, who had risen from the rank of Zhaorong. In the past few days, Lanwu had not yet undergone her investiture ceremony, so Consort Wu and Consort Liang were the ones presiding over the palace affairs.
Consort Liang and Consort Mu turned around and saw Consort Zhuang. Upon hearing these words, Consort Mu spoke up: "In that case, why don't you two go and see the Noble Consort to discuss important matters? I will take my leave now."
Consort Liang and Consort Zhuang looked at her and nodded slightly.
Lan Wu had just sat down to rest for a while when she asked someone to remove the expensive jewelry from her hair. Then she heard someone outside the hall say that Consort Zhuang and Consort Liang were requesting an audience.
Faced with this new title, Lan Wu took a moment to react before ordering her men to escort them to the main hall.
"Hurry up... don't finish taking them all down, we still have to meet people." Lan Wu raised her hand slightly to stop them, protecting a few gold hairpins and hair ornaments. Looking at herself in the bronze mirror, she got up with some satisfaction.
It's understandable that Consort Liang would come to see her, but what did Consort Zhuang want?
When Lan Wu arrived at the main hall, she saw two people sitting on either side of her, looking very friendly.
Upon seeing her arrive, the two women rose and bowed to her, saying, "Your humble servants greet Your Highness, may Your Highness enjoy boundless blessings and peace."
"You may all get up." Although Lan Wu was young, she had never made a mistake on important occasions. She sat down and looked at them.
To be precise, she first glanced at Consort Zhuang, since Consort Zhuang was not familiar with her at all, and they had barely met before. Now that they had met, she really didn't know what to say.
Before she could speak, Consort Zhuang smiled and said, "I came here today to hand over the palace affairs that were previously entrusted to me to Your Highness. Now that Your Highness has been formally conferred the title, these palace affairs should rightfully be handled by Your Highness."
Palace power is like a sweet cake that everyone wants a bite of, but if not handled properly, it can turn into poison. Just look at the fate of Consort Rou and Consort Shu, who were banished to the Cold Palace.
“That is the way it should be. That is also the purpose of my visit today.” On the other side, Consort Liang nodded and said softly.
They were all perceptive; even if they didn't know why His Majesty had promoted them to the rank of Consort, it was always important to go along with Lan Wu's wishes.
Palace affairs...
Lan Wu was somewhat troubled. It wasn't that she was afraid to take on these palace affairs, but she would be leaving the palace for Changyong Mountain soon. The imperial decree hadn't been issued yet, but she estimated it would be in the next few days. At that time, the palace affairs would still have to be handled by the two of them. Wouldn't it be more troublesome to hand them over to her today?
"Let's leave the palace affairs to you for now," Lan Wu said, unexpectedly pushing away the palace authority she had just acquired, catching both of them off guard.
Consort Liang glanced at Consort Zhuang and couldn't help but ask softly, "Does Your Highness have any concerns? Now that the Inner Palace has taken care of the affairs of each palace as needed, it won't be difficult for Your Highness to handle them."
Lan Wu truly had no such concerns, but she couldn't say it directly. She simply pressed her head and took a breath, saying, "It's not about concerns or not. It's just that I haven't been feeling well these past few days. The day before yesterday, I summoned the imperial physician, who said that I'm worried and need to rest. That's why I thought of letting you continue to manage the palace affairs."
After saying that, she changed the subject and said, "Of course, if the palace affairs are too complicated and you can't handle them well, then I shouldn't force you, but..."
Before she could finish speaking, the two women understood her unspoken meaning and naturally dared not let her worry about such things: "Your Majesty, please rest assured. If Your Majesty is unwell, we should naturally consider your well-being. It is not too late to attend to palace affairs after Your Majesty has recovered."
"That's wonderful." Lan Wu smiled.
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