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As soon as the spring snow of the third year of Yongping melted, Concubine Wan mentioned to the emperor that the eleventh prince's first birthday banquet was approaching.
After all, Concubine Wan was not officially granted the title of a concubine. She only had the status of a concubine but not the title of a concubine, so she could only live in the east side hall of Zhongcui Palace.
But how could the prince's first birthday be held in a small side hall? It didn't make sense. Those born in the Imperial Residence before were held in the main courtyard, and those born later in the palace were held in the main hall of the First Palace. If her eleventh birthday was held in a side hall as an exception, wouldn't it be a joke?
Emperor Yongping looked at her and understood that Concubine Wan was hinting at him.
Concubine Wan was very nervous.
To be honest, Emperor Yongping did have the idea of promoting Concubine Wan to a concubine, otherwise he would not have increased her allowance and broken the rules to let her, a Concubine, raise the prince.
However, when Emperor Yongping mentioned this to Empress Li, Empress Li said: "I understand that Concubine Wan is favored by the Emperor, and now she has given birth to a prince. Whether it is serving the Emperor or having children, Concubine Wan has made great contributions. It is not impossible to be granted the title of concubine.
But Your Majesty, besides Concubine Rong, who among those currently seated in the main seat isn't a sister who has served since the Qiandi Residence and borne Your Majesty's children? Let's not even talk about Concubine Ke and Concubine Yi for now. Among the concubines, Concubine Ding is special, so let's not mention that either. The remaining three sisters, Concubine Jia, Concubine An, and Concubine Jing, are all well-behaved elders. They've refrained from vying for power over the years, remaining devoted to Your Majesty, and only achieved their current positions after a struggle for the throne.
Rongpin's family was powerful and influential, so to win people's hearts, she was given the title of concubine. However, Wan Guiren was still too young, and her family background was not as good as Rongpin's. If she was given the title of concubine less than a year after entering the palace, even if she had a prince, it would be too early, which would easily make people eager for quick success and would also make Jiapin and others sad.
"The Emperor has already made two grand appointments to the harem in the three years since he ascended the throne. If he were to appoint a concubine this time, there wouldn't be room for another. Didn't I hear that a girl from the Cui family of Fanyang is also planning to enter the palace? If you don't reserve a concubine position, does the Emperor intend to make the Cui family's girl a consort directly, or relegate her to the rank of noble lady?"
After hearing Empress Li's seemingly gentle but actually warning words, Emperor Yongping felt his mind become clear.
After becoming emperor, Emperor Yongping was indeed a little arrogant, so he subconsciously ignored many things.
The presence of Jiapin and the others was indeed not high, but they could not be ignored. Moreover, Jiapin's Princess Changle and Anpin's Prince Yong had already come of age and were married, and Jingpin's princess was about to come of age and be engaged. These were all things that Emperor Yongping had to take into consideration but were ignored at the time.
And the Queen was right, Concubine Wan was still too young. Besides, there was a girl from the Cui family behind her.
Yes, yes.
The Cui daughter and Rongpin's situation are similar: both were sent to the palace by prominent families to curry favor with the emperor. However, they were still learning the rules and weren't in a rush to enter the palace. But what if there wasn't a place for a concubine by the time Cui daughter entered the palace? A title of imperial concubine was out of the question. There would be a fight between the two concubines, and Rongpin and the Qinghe Wang clan would also argue. A noble lady wasn't worthy of Cui daughter's background, and the Fanyang Cui clan would certainly not agree. This final concubine position could only be reserved for Cui daughter.
As for Concubine Wan... let's put her in a difficult position for now, and promote her to the rank of imperial consort when one of the concubines is promoted to imperial consort in the future.
But Emperor Yongping couldn't possibly say this to Concubine Wan. He pretended not to understand and said naturally, "Then have someone clean up the main hall and hold the eleventh birthday ceremony."
This wasn't what Concubine Wan wanted, but she couldn't say anything at the moment. She could only sit there in a daze.
She was a little confused.
What had gone wrong? She'd painstakingly pushed out Concubine Xiu, now Concubine Liu, then had Concubine Le humiliated on the Emperor's birthday, and finally given birth to a healthy eleventh prince. All obstacles were gone, and she had her biggest hope. The position of Concubine was clearly within her grasp, so why was she holding back on taking this final step?
Concubine Wan smiled at Emperor Yongping, but even crazier thoughts were growing in her mind.
What went wrong? What went wrong?
Was it that bitch Rongpin or that little bitch Le Guiren? Or someone else? Or was it…Dingpin and the others?
The eleventh prince's first birthday party was held with great fanfare, as Emperor Yongping intended to compensate him, but Concubine Wan forced herself to smile throughout and failed to muster any greater interest.
Empress Li hadn't attended the prince's first birthday banquet, a mere noblewoman's gift. She sneered at Huixin's words, carefully examining the gleaming jade ring on her finger. Recalling the scene where Jiapin and the others had all stayed after paying their respects, she said indifferently, "She wants to be promoted to a concubine within a year just because of her son or her favor. She's dreaming. She didn't even consider whether Jiapin and the other elders agree."
Jiapin and the others would rather give the position of concubine to Qi Guiren or the girl of the Cui family who has not yet entered the palace than to Wan Guiren.
Hui Xin smiled and said, "Empress Jia and the others usually don't take care of things. I didn't expect that Concubine Wan is so capable that she could get the others to come and talk to you. Empress Jia even specially offered a recipe for Fuling Cake."
The old ladies, Jiapin, Anpin, and Jingpin, who had been following the Empress from the Qiandi Palace, were also very clever. They all kept silent as usual, but they brought the knife to Kunning Palace. This was a warning, and also a way to secretly put pressure on her, the Empress.
Empress Li snorted and laughed, "Let's not talk about other aspects. Jiapin and the others are not stupid in this regard. Wan Guiren is favored and has a son. If she really is promoted to a concubine, Jiapin and the others won't have the same face as Dingpin in front of the emperor. I'm afraid they will be squeezed out by a newcomer. Naturally, they will not be happy."
"But the Emperor is indeed confused about this matter."
Although Emperor Yongping ascended the throne after appointing a crown prince, the enthronement ceremony was ultimately omitted. Furthermore, as the saying goes, "There's no such thing as a wall that's impenetrable," the aristocratic families outside the palace were more or less aware of the Chunxi Garden incident. Inciting fratricide and forcing confessions to gain power was ultimately dishonorable, and those self-proclaimed noble families had always harbored resentment towards Emperor Yongping. The Wan family's appointment as consort and the Rong concubine's entry into the palace were intended to appease and win over the emperor. Even if a family was unhappy with their daughter in the palace, they would still weigh the pros and cons. The same principle would apply to the Cui family's entry into the palace. Therefore, the position of concubine would undoubtedly go to a Cui family member.
Li Qingping did not attend the eleventh prince's first birthday party at Yonghe Palace.
He Chang was prone to illness during the change of seasons, and Li Qingping used the excuse that he was afraid of passing his illness on to the child and therefore did not attend the one-year-old birthday party.
In addition, Emperor Yongping had recently conferred the title of Princess Yong'an on the fourth princess, Yuzan, the title of Princess Huaishuo on the fifth princess, and the title of Princess Long'an on the sixth princess, Yuxi. They were all sixteen or seventeen years old and would be getting married within a year or two. Li Qingping was now fixated on Yuxi's embroidered wedding dress and wedding fan, just as Concubine Ke had been fixated on Princess Shuhui in previous years.
Yuxi sat by the window drawing a pattern, while Li Qingping leaned on the other side reading a book.
Yun Su went to Yonghe Palace to deliver the gifts, but she came back feeling a bit irritated. "Those people in the East Side Hall of Zhongcui Palace are so arrogant, they're practically looking down on us. I stood there for so long and didn't even get a cup of tea to soothe my mouth."
She was the head maid of Yonghe Palace and was respected wherever she went. However, when she went to Zhongcui Palace, she was treated coldly.
Li Qingping called out to Yun Zao, "Why don't you serve your sister Yun Su a cup of tea? Don't be angry."
Yun Zao smiled and agreed. Yun Su apologized to Li Qingping, "My servant lost her composure, please don't blame me, Master. It's just that Concubine Wan was really arrogant. Master, you didn't see it. The main ladies were fine, but the talented ladies and beauties didn't act too well either. The ones who had the worst relations with Concubine Wan also got a lot of cold treatment."
Li Qingping sighed, "I think the last person who was so arrogant was Concubine Jin when she first entered the Qiandi Palace."
But Concubine Jin is now sleeping in the grave.
I wonder what the final fate of Concubine Wan was?
Yuxi was embroidering and losing some patience. She rolled her eyes and asked, "Mother, why hasn't the Queen Aunt taken any action to suppress Concubine Wan's arrogance?"
Yuxi had grown up, and the daily struggles in the harem could no longer be hidden from her. Of course, Li Qingping didn't want to hide it. A princess is a princess, but she can't be completely ignorant of everything.
Ever since she realized she had no hope of becoming a concubine anytime soon, Concubine Wan had resorted to every trick in her power to win Emperor Yongping's favor, hoping to conceive another prince to increase her chances of success. She also used deliberate gentleness to try to entice Emperor Yongping into making her a concubine. But Emperor Yongping fell for her tactics, and seven or eight out of ten times he visited the harem, it was Concubine Wan. As for the concubine position... he simply wouldn't give her up.
Concubine Wan was so favored, who dared to confront the favorite concubine head-on? Wouldn't that be a violation of the emperor's will? The more others avoided her, the more proud Concubine Wan became. She often tortured the lower-ranking concubines and the palace servants.
The smashing of cups and bowls in the east side hall of Zhongcui Palace is becoming more and more frequent.
But at the same time, the more Concubine Wan does not restrain herself, the more she will arouse public anger and become isolated and helpless. What will happen if this is exposed to Emperor Yongping? Wasn't Concubine Jin the same in the past?
Li Qingping laughed and said, "As for this person, the higher she rises, the harder she falls. She's still holding back on all the things she did before. We're not in a hurry. It all depends on how long Concubine Wan can remain so proud."
"Master, the Zhongcui Palace has been asking the Imperial Household Department for more than its quota these days. What do you think...?"
A few months later, Huixin from Kunning Palace brought the account books to ask for instructions from Empress Li. Although Concubine Wan's share was already based on the rank of a concubine, she still couldn't stand Concubine Wan's constant throwing and smashing.
Queen Li also thought of Concubine Jin of that year.
"But she is smarter and luckier than Concubine Jin after all." Concubine Jin dreamed of having a son, but she never got her wish until her death.
However, since the accounts have been presented to Queen Li, we can't just ignore it.
The next day, Huixin, the head maid of Kunning Palace, went to the eastern side hall of Zhongcui Palace to fetch Concubine Wan. Empress Li first admonished Concubine Wan, but she also sympathized with her fatigue from serving the Emperor and caring for the princes. She gifted Concubine Wan two boxes of calming incense. The next day, she also gifted her two experienced and prudent maids, with the euphemism of helping Concubine Wan care for the Eleventh Prince.
This wasn't a reward; it was a blatant attempt to place someone close to Concubine Wan. And yet, Concubine Wan couldn't refuse. Empress Li had clearly sent someone here, under the guise of a mother caring for the prince. How could Concubine Wan say no?
Concubine Wan forced a smile and accepted the two maids. When the two maids went to the next room to take care of the Eleventh Prince and Xu, she turned around and broke a porcelain vase.
"Bitch! They're all bitches!"
"roll!"
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