Chapter 1: Concubine Enters the Palace
In the spring of the first year of Jiaqi, the wind brought news of flowers, and the willows were in bloom.
It was spring and the scenery was beautiful, but Jiang Yingli had no intention of enjoying it.
At this moment, she was sitting in a carriage worthy of a concubine, being moved to the palace.
In her melancholy heart, eight big words rolled back and forth:
Accidentally entered the heavenly home.
God wants to kill me!
The fact that she jumped from a concubine in the Su Palace to become Jia Jieyu was an accident. And this accident came from a bigger accident -
That is, her unknown and non-competitive husband, Prince Su Xiao Chenglan, ascended the throne.
Prince Su is also known as Prince Ninth. From the fact that he is the last one in the ranking, you can tell that he was not even in a position to take advantage of others.
He was born into a humble family and his mother died early. Without the support of a strong maternal family, it would be harder for him to ascend to the throne than to ascend to heaven.
In the end, he was actually allowed to board.
And she, Jiang Yingli, was originally just the daughter of an ordinary merchant. Her family was in the flower business, and she often followed her father to the Ninth Prince's Mansion to plant peonies.
Perhaps Xiao Chenglan saw that she was honest and decent, and also had a bit of beauty, so he decided to take her as his concubine.
On the day Jiang Yingli received Xiao Chenglan's invitation, she went back and thought about it for herself and analyzed the pros and cons of becoming a concubine in the mansion.
The Ninth Prince rarely appeared before His Majesty and was not particularly favored. When she visited his mansion to plant flowers, she often saw the peeling paint on the pillars. However, it was precisely because of this dire situation that Jiang Yingli agreed to become a concubine in the Su Prince's mansion.
——Because he was not taken seriously, Prince Su had no power to compete for the throne and could not be involved in the chaos in the court. However, his identity was indeed that of a prince, so he still had some respectability in the outside world.
Her father and mother also said to her: "Although you enter the palace as a concubine and don't have the glory of a wife, you can benefit from the influence of the prince's palace. Our family will have someone to rely on. With the influence of Prince Su, it will be easier for your brother to find a job when he grows up."
So on the day of her coming of age, Jiang Yingli rode in a sedan chair into Prince Su's mansion.
Xiao Chenglan is a calm person, not romantic but also not very interesting.
During Jiang Yingli's first year in the mansion, he just chatted with her under the quilt.
In the second year after entering the mansion, Xiao Chenglan no longer acted like a saint with a pure heart and few desires.
By the third year of entering the mansion, Xiao Chenglan had not yet married a princess or taken a concubine, and the two of them lived a dull life.
But Jiang Yingli is very content. Such days are stable and comfortable, much happier than before, and she wants to live like this for the rest of her life.
However, fate played a trick on her, and this year was her fourth year in Prince Su's Mansion.
Xiao Chenglan ascended the throne.
She became the imperial concubine.
Yesterday, the coronation ceremony of the new emperor Xiao Chenglan was completely completed. Today, she will move from the Prince Su's Mansion to the Zhaohua Hall of the Imperial Palace.
Despite his busy schedule, Xiao Chenglan sent someone with a letter to Jiang Yingli, saying that he wanted to confer the title of Jia Zhaoyi on her.
Jiang Yingli was so frightened that she quickly wrote back, asking Xiao Chenglan to confer the title of Concubine on her.
Zhaoyi is the head of the nine concubines, and her position is too high. When newcomers enter the palace, she, who has only the position but no family support and no favor from the emperor, will be a sitting duck. Everyone wants to fight her. How can she resist?
It’s better to be an unknown and transparent person.
Jiang Yingli felt uneasy when she thought of the secret stories of the previous emperor's harem struggles and life-and-death struggles.
Xiao Chenglan had occasionally indulged her in the past, but that was only because she was the only concubine in his house.
Things will be different from now on. There are three thousand beauties in the harem, and she won't be able to get a rank.
Of course, she certainly wouldn't be so foolish as to think that she could survive in the harem by just a little indulgence. The emperor's heart could change in an instant, and being blinded by temporary favor would eventually send her into an irretrievable cage.
As long as she knew when to advance and retreat, and relied on her status as an old member of the Qiandi Palace, she could find a place to stay.
No honor or favor is more important than life.
Jiang Yingli was still worried before the imperial edict conferring her title and admitting her to the palace was delivered to Prince Su's Mansion this morning.
Because she didn't know whether her reply letter could be delivered to the emperor, and even if it was, she didn't know whether Xiao Chenglan would take the time to read it.
Moreover, her request to lower her status was really ignorant. She didn't know whether Xiao Chenglan would agree or get angry.
Fortunately, when the imperial edict came, she was indeed conferred the title of Jieyu.
"My lady, the Zhaohua Palace is just ahead. Please move forward."
A eunuch with a shrill voice and a slightly larger stature was leading her out of the car. Jiang Yingli collected her thoughts, took a deep breath, and lifted the curtain.
At this moment, she saw two maids immediately open the footstools and reach out to help her.
The eunuch just now was all smiles and very respectful: "My lady, my servant is Fu Wanquan. You can just call me Eunuch Fu. I'm sure you've been tired from the journey. Please bathe, change clothes, and rest for a while. I will take you to thank the emperor for his grace."
The man who could lead her to the imperial court must be no simple figure. Jiang Yingli took note of his face, nodded, and winked at Qiuxia, her personal maid in Prince Su's mansion.
In the past, the Prince Su's Mansion was in decline and there were few social interactions, but she still understood these rules.
Qiuxia immediately took out a heavy purse from her sleeve and stuffed it into Fu Wanquan's hand.
"Eunuch Fu, thank you for leading the way."
Fu Wanquan wanted to refuse it, but remembering what the emperor had told him, he took it with a smile.
Seeing that he had accepted it, Jiang Yingli raised her eyes and looked towards Zhaohua Palace, looking a little dazed.
Oh my god, this is even more magnificent than the gate of Prince Su’s Mansion!
The green glazed tiles and brick-red palace walls are undulating and staggered, and the outside is planted with crabapples, which are bright pink and very beautiful.
A circle of palace maids stood at the vermilion gate of Zhaohua Palace. The two leading them were older, a nanny and an aunt. Four or five young palace maids stood in the middle, and at the end were four young eunuchs.
Seeing Jiang Yingli approaching, everyone in the circle saluted respectfully.
"Your servant greets the young master."
"Everyone, get up." Jiang Yingli said unhandledly as it was her first time facing so many servants.
The palace maids introduced their names one by one.
Eunuch Fu smiled and said, "My lady, I will stand here outside. You can come out when you have rested well."
Jiang Yingli had just entered the palace and was still nervous. She felt that everyone in the palace should have a hidden meaning in their words, especially those in front of the emperor.
So she couldn't help but start to speculate, Eunuch Fu said this...is he urging her?
Jiang Yingli hurriedly said, "Thank you, eunuch. I will wash and dress and come with you to see the emperor."
Eunuch Fu was about to say there was no rush, as His Majesty had instructed her to rest enough before leaving. Unexpectedly, before he could even finish his words, Concubine Jia rushed into the palace like a gust of wind.
Well, His Majesty has asked him three times in this morning whether the person has come. He must miss her very much.
As soon as Jiang Yingli entered the palace, she didn't even have time to look around before she hurriedly said she wanted to take a bath. Qiuxia, her personal maid she brought from Prince Su's Mansion, and the new people in the palace helped her take care of it.
The bathing pool in Zhaohua Palace is very large. The entire pool is paved with white jade, and to prevent slipping, the jade surface is intricately carved with many patterns.
Jiang Yingli was soaking in the pool, and the tension in her heart finally relaxed a little.
The palace maids used bath beans and scented balls to massage Jiang Yingli's body.
The girl in the bathtub had an oval face that looked like it was carved out of jade, with beautiful eyebrows, distinct almond-shaped eyes, clear and bright pupils, a small nose, and red lips and white teeth.
At this moment, she took off her hair and let her long black hair meander down from her slender neck into the water. She was not wearing any makeup, but she was still breathtakingly beautiful.
The maids assigned to Zhaohua Palace had no idea of Jiang Yingli's appearance. However, after four years of service, she was only given the title of Jieyu (Jieyu), so they assumed that the first lady in the harem wasn't necessarily a beauty, otherwise she would have been one of the Nine Concubines.
But when I saw it just now, I was really shocked.
Not only is she beautiful, but she is also extraordinarily beautiful, especially her eyes, which are so watery, pitiful, and moving.
After bathing, the maid put on a lilac-colored cross-collared, waist-hugging long dress for Jiang Yingli.
As Jiang Yingli walked, her skirt fluttered gracefully, looking very beautiful.
The dress of this palace concubine was very different from what she wore in Prince Su's Mansion. Qiuxia, who had served Jiang Yingli for four years, was stunned.
Jiang Yingli also found it curious and turned around in front of the bronze mirror.
On the way to Changqing Palace to meet the emperor, Jiang Yingli was very nervous. She kept chewing over the words she wanted to say to thank him, fearing that she would say something wrong.
"My lord, we have arrived. Please allow me to report to you."
Inside Changqing Palace, Xiao Chenglan sat on a black lacquered chair with a gold-carved dragon pattern, immersed in government affairs.
Seeing Eunuch Fu coming, he raised his calm brows and the coldness in his eyes softened a little.
"Are people coming?"
Eunuch Fu quickly stepped forward, took out the purse from his sleeve, and presented it to Xiao Chenglan politely.
"Your Majesty, I'm here."
Xiao Chenglan grabbed the beautifully embroidered purse.
He poured the silver out of the purse to Fu Wanquan, put the money in his pocket, and then said calmly:
"pass."
After Eunuch Fu had divided up the spoils, his eyes lit up with joy and he shouted at the top of his lungs:
"Tell her, Concubine Jia to enter the palace—"
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