Chapter 593 Shield 3
The First Madam really wanted to poke this silly girl awake with her finger. Life in the palace wasn't so easy.
The youngest daughter is so innocent; one wrong move and her life could be in danger!
Ning.Simple.Yan: ...
Ning Yan pleaded coquettishly, "Oh, sister, please promise me! I just want you to be well, my little nephew to be well, my parents to be well, and my older brother to be well."
If you feel you've wronged me, you can just reward me with a pile of gold and jewels when my nephew is born.
Ning Xuexian looked at her younger sister with a touched expression. The two sisters had grown up together since they were little. Didn't she know her sister's personality?
She didn't care about gold and silver jewelry at all, because her aunt taught her that her mother and she were more important than anyone else in her heart, even her father had to take a backseat.
"Yan'er, do you know that if you really enter the palace, your marriage will be..."
"So what if I don't get married? Does my mother not want to support her daughter?"
First Madam: "Your mother is willing to raise you for the rest of your life. But..."
Ning Yan immediately interrupted the First Madam, and bowed gracefully to the Emperor, "Your Majesty, please allow me a moment to speak with you."
emperor:"……"
The Emperor glanced at Ning Xuexian. Ultimately, the safety of his beloved and the imperial heir prevailed. He led Ning Yan out of Zhu Yan Palace and, after making sure no one could hear their conversation, said, "Speak."
Ning Yan stated her plan directly, and then bowed to the Emperor, saying, "Your Majesty, I did all this just in case. It would be best if nothing happened."
If anything happens, at most I'll be physically unable to conceive again, but compared to my sister's child, that's nothing at all!
The emperor was born and raised in the palace, and all he saw was the infighting in the harem, the fratricide, and the jealousy between fathers and sons. He never knew that two children who were not born of the same mother could have such a sincere affection for each other.
But he could tell that Xian'er genuinely liked this younger sister, and his mother-in-law truly loved this daughter; the deep sisterly affection was not fake.
The Emperor sighed and finally agreed to let Ning Yan enter the palace. For this, he even had a fight with Consort Xue, and several palace servants in Zhu Yan Palace were punished.
According to palace servants, Lady Ning left the palace that day with a gloomy expression.
The next day, the Emperor issued an edict confining Consort Xue to the Zhuyan Palace, forbidding anyone from visiting her.
Xuefei's younger sister was granted the title of Cairen and moved into a side hall of Zhuyan Palace. That very night, she was favored by the emperor.
The palace was in an uproar. Everyone knew that Consort Xue had been the emperor's favorite since she entered the palace, and that she lived in the Zhu Yan Palace except for the first and fifteenth of each month.
How could Xue Fei have fallen out of favor after her half-sister entered the palace?
At this moment, none of the women in the harem expected that something even more astonishing was yet to come!
The Emperor favored Consort Ning for nine consecutive days.
Moreover, during these nine days, the Emperor did not allow Consort Ning to pay her respects to the Empress even once.
Even though the Empress was in poor health, the concubines still had to go and pay their respects to her every day.
Although the Empress never tormented the concubines during her daily greetings, and although the Empress was known for her gentleness, dignity, and easy-going nature.
It's a bit unreasonable that Consort Ning has been in the palace for nine days and hasn't paid her respects to the Empress yet.
Moreover, the Emperor did not go to Zhuyan Palace that night not because he did not want to go, but because it was the fifteenth of the month.
Those were the days of the Queen.
On the morning of the sixteenth, Ning Yan dressed up and went to the Empress's Kunning Palace.
She was already quite pretty, and she had dressed up specially, so she attracted countless envious glances as soon as she appeared.
Soon, the Empress summoned all the palace concubines to an audience. Consort Liang and the others were eager to teach Ning Yan a lesson, but upon entering the main hall, they discovered that the Emperor was also there.
All the concubines bowed in unison.
"Long live the Emperor! Long live the Empress!"
"Rise, please take a seat."
The Empress coughed lightly, then glanced around. "Where is Consort Ning?"
Ning Yan stepped forward and knelt down again, "This humble servant greets Your Majesty the Empress, may Your Majesty be well."
The Empress chuckled: "Ever since you entered the palace, my sisters have been looking forward to seeing you. They never expected to wait so long. They're practically dying of longing."
No wonder the Emperor keeps her hidden away so tightly. It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that Consort Ning's beauty surpasses all others. Even I, the Empress, would hide her away if I were in her shoes.”
Ning Yan: "..." As expected, she was not disappointed. The Empress's words were barbed, praising one and belittling all the concubines, while also sowing discord and placing herself, a newly favored concubine, in opposition to all the other concubines. Her dignified, generous, and easy-going demeanor was all an act.
She said, "What woman who enters the palace doesn't fight and compete?"
Ning Yan smiled beautifully, "Your Majesty flatters me. I am not as pretty as Consort Xian, nor as dashing as Consort Liang. It is only because His Majesty favors my type that I have the honor of serving him and sharing Your Majesty's burdens."
The Empress was furious. She couldn't compare to Consort Xian's beauty or Consort Liang's dashing charm, yet no one mentioned her. Wasn't that implying that she, a mere concubine, was more beautiful than the Empress, the head of the harem?
Should I share her burdens? I am merely frail, not dead!
Not only did the Empress understand the meaning behind Ning Yan's words, but everyone present was also quite clever, and they all suppressed their laughter upon hearing it.
Consort Xian and Consort Liang, who were originally going to find fault with Ning Yan, temporarily gave up their intentions and started watching the Empress's performance.
The Empress is the eldest daughter of the Wei family. The patriarch of the Wei family is the Grand Tutor of the court, and the Empress's father is the current Prime Minister, the head of all officials. This is why the eldest daughter of the Wei family was able to become the Crown Princess.
Empress Wei never expected that a mere concubine would dare to show her no respect whatsoever upon entering the palace.
But with the Emperor present today, and having maintained her gentle, dignified, and easy-going persona for so long, she couldn't act out at will. So she pretended not to understand the meaning behind Ning Yan's words, "Hmm, you are a sensible person. Speaking of sharing the burden, since the Emperor likes you, you should also try to have children for him as soon as possible. All the sisters should also work harder."
The concubines said, "We will obey Your Majesty's decree."
Inwardly, however, they cursed, "Even the Emperor doesn't enter their palace, how are they supposed to conceive? If they actually get pregnant, would they even care about their lives?"
The Emperor frowned. He had waited here specifically for this, not to listen to the Empress's idle chatter.
The Empress noticed the Emperor's impatience and immediately said, "Consort Ning has served Your Majesty well... She shall be promoted to the rank of Beauty."
The middle section was filled with effusive praise; it's truly remarkable how she managed to say it through gritted teeth.
Ning Yan bowed gracefully again, "This humble servant thanks Your Majesty and Empress for their grace."
The Emperor quickly told his sister-in-law to get up; she had already bowed so many times all morning, he was tired just watching her.
Yes, it's my sister-in-law.
These days, he has come to accept his beloved's half-sister.
Every day when he went to Zhu Yan Palace, she would come out to greet him in front of the palace servants and then bow. After dismissing the servants, she would immediately hide in the side hall where she lived and never approach him.
Moreover, he had privately asked Xian'er, and she said that the two sisters grew up together and had always had a very good relationship. She said that her younger sister came to the palace to protect her.
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