The following morning, an imperial edict shook the entire Forbidden City like a thunderclap.
When the imperial edict arrived at Yunxiang Villa, Lin Yun was checking accounts in her study, completely undisturbed by the emperor's arrival the previous day.
With her business gradually stabilizing over the past few months, Lin Yun now receives tens of thousands of taels of silver in dividends each month. Combined with her business back home, she is now a well-off young woman.
Xiao Tao rushed in, nearly tripping over the threshold: "Miss! Someone from the palace has arrived, saying an imperial edict has come!"
Lin Yun paused, took a deep breath, straightened her clothes, and quickly walked towards the front yard.
The courtyard was already filled with kneeling people. Su Peisheng, holding a bright yellow scroll, saw her arrive and unfurled the imperial edict with a beaming smile: "Lin Yun, receive the edict."
"I, Lin Yun, respectfully await Your Majesty's decree." She slowly knelt down, her heart pounding like a drum.
"By the grace of Heaven, the Emperor decrees: Lady Yun of the Lin family is intelligent, virtuous, and prudent. She has presented a spinning machine that benefits the country and its people, a contribution to the nation. Now, she is hereby granted the privilege of being incorporated into the Plain Yellow Banner of the Han Army, her surname changed to Linjia, and she is conferred the title of Consort Yun, and granted residence in Yanxi Palace. Her father, Lin Yuanshan, is granted the title of Third-Class Light Cavalry Captain, and her mother, Lin Lu, is granted the title of Fifth-Rank Yiren, as a sign of imperial favor. This is the imperial decree."
After the imperial edict was read, the courtyard fell silent.
Lin Yun stood there stunned until Xiao Tao quietly tugged at her sleeve, bringing her back to her senses.
She accepted the imperial edict with both hands, her voice trembling slightly: "Your Majesty, I thank you for your great kindness."
Su Peisheng stood in the main hall of Yunxiang Villa, holding the imperial edict, and looked at Lin Yun, who was kneeling to receive the edict, with a smile: "Your Majesty, His Majesty has specially instructed that Yanxi Palace has been renovated and you can move in at any time. All your expenses will be covered by His Majesty's private treasury and will not need to go through the Imperial Household Department."
These words were like a thunderbolt, leaving everyone looking at each other in disbelief. The Emperor had actually made an exception for Consort Yun!
Lin Yun accepted the imperial edict with both hands, her fingertips trembling slightly.
"Your Majesty, I thank you for your grace." She bowed solemnly, but her heart was filled with turbulent emotions.
Raising her status to the Manchu banner meant that her entire family was no longer Han Chinese and became Manchus; and the rank of Consort was a principal position in the palace, meaning she didn't have to be subservient to lower-ranking concubines, truly giving her both prestige and power.
The Emperor is truly thoughtful.
After the eunuch left, the courtyard erupted in chaos.
Xiao Tao laughed and cried at the same time: "Miss has become an empress! And it's all thanks to the Emperor's word!"
Manager Chen and the others were so excited that they kowtowed to offer their congratulations.
Only Lin Yun gripped the imperial edict tightly, gazing towards the Forbidden City, her eyes filled with complex and unreadable emotions.
----
The imperial edict swept through the palace like a hurricane.
Consort Nian was having breakfast when she heard the news, and the porcelain bowl in her hand shattered with a "crack".
"Consort Yun?! She's even been elevated to a higher banner?!" She stood up abruptly, her face deathly pale. "That vile woman really did seduce the Emperor long ago!"
Jade was so frightened that she knelt on the ground, trembling: "Your Majesty, please calm down! The imperial physician said that your health is weak and you must not get angry..."
"Calm down? How can I calm down!" Consort Nian overturned the table, shattering dishes all over the floor.
Her chest heaved violently, and the cold, stern face of Emperor Yongzheng appeared before her eyes.
For the past few months, he had been avoiding me, but it turned out it was all because of that businesswoman!
What textile machines, what imperial merchants—it's all a facade!
She staggered and grabbed a pillar, her nails digging deep into the wood grain: "Go...go and deliver a message to my brother! Tell him that I want Lin Yun dead!" Before she could finish speaking, a sudden sharp pain shot through her chest, and she fainted.
Yikun Palace was thrown into chaos. The imperial physician rushed over, and after examining her, shook his head and sighed, "The Imperial Concubine is troubled by inner turmoil and needs to rest and recuperate..."
Rumors spread like wildfire.
A palace maid whispered among herself, "I heard that the spinning machine was Consort Yun's idea, which is why the Emperor treats her differently..."
The eunuchs added fuel to the fire: "More than that! The Emperor has visited Yunxiang's villa many times at night; they've probably already had intimate relations!"
When these words reached Yongzheng's ears, he was reviewing memorials. Upon hearing this, he sneered and said, "Drag him out and beat him to death."
After five or six people were killed in battle, the rumors gradually subsided. As a result, everyone felt deep awe for Consort Yun and dared not spread rumors about her anymore.
Changchun Palace
The string of the Buddhist prayer beads in the empress's hand snapped with a "crack," and the beads rolled to the ground.
The old woman whispered, "Your Majesty, the Emperor has actually broken ancestral rules for her... It's already rare for a Han woman to be raised to the Manchu banner system, but to directly allocate silver from his private treasury, this..."
The Empress bent down and picked up a Buddhist rosary, her fingertips feeling cold: "I should have thought of that sooner."
She recalled Yongzheng's coldness over the years and suddenly found it laughable. It turned out that the emperor's love was not absent, but simply not given to them.
Three days later, the Empress came to the Qianqing Palace under the pretext of paying her respects.
Yongzheng didn't even look up: "What is it?"
The Empress carefully considered her words before speaking: "Your Majesty, Consort Yun is about to enter the palace. I was wondering if we should, as is customary, provide her with some new items..."
“No need,” Yongzheng interrupted her. “I have said that everything will come from the private treasury.”
The Empress gripped her handkerchief tightly, forcing a smile, "But this is against etiquette. The Imperial Household Department..."
“Ritual?” Yongzheng finally raised his eyes, his gaze icy. “I am ritual.”
One sentence left the Empress speechless, her face turning pale.
She forced herself to remain composed and said softly, "Your Majesty, I understand. But what about Consort Nian..."
"If Lady Nian doesn't behave, I wouldn't mind sending her to the Cold Palace." Yongzheng put down his vermilion brush, his tone chilling.
The Empress's heart skipped a beat, and she silently withdrew.
As she walked out of the palace gate, she heard Yongzheng instruct Su Peisheng: "Go to the storeroom and fetch that set of red coral headdresses; Consort Yun likes red."
The setting sun cast a long shadow of her.
The Empress suddenly remembered that on their wedding day, the young Yinzhen had also chosen a hairpin for her in the same way. A tear fell onto the steps and was quickly dried by the wind.
--
The reason why Emperor Yongzheng was indifferent to the harem was not because he was cold-hearted, but because he saw through their true colors in his previous life.
This chapter is not finished, please click the next page to continue reading!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com