Chapter 8 Everyone Wants to Conquer Me
When Lin Yi came out, he didn't expect the emperor to still be standing outside the door: "Your Majesty."
Ji Huaizhi flicked his sleeves behind his back and said, "Um... tell Lu Haitang that once this 'disaster relief' is over, I will send her home, back to the home she most wants to return to."
Lin Yi was stunned: "Yes."
Seeing that the Emperor was about to leave, he asked again, "Your Majesty, do you know where Miss Lu lives?"
The Emperor glanced at Lin Yi and said, "Lin Yi, have you lost your soul from working so hard outside?"
"This servant wouldn't dare," Lin Yi said, bowing his head. "Miss Lu is very upset right now."
He had never seen a girl cry like that, rolling on the ground: "She would be so happy if she knew the Emperor was going to send her home."
When I accompanied her to deliver food to the people, she often talked about her "home".
He and Lin Er were always surprised when they heard it.
At first, Lin Yi thought she was bragging, but as time went on, listening to her stories felt like he was actually there, and he even wanted to go and see for himself with Miss Lu.
How could Ji Huaizhi not see through his thoughts? A young man in love.
I wonder if that careless guy inside knows.
"Lin Yi, would you like to go to her hometown with her?"
Lin Yi knelt down respectfully and said, "Lin Yi will forever follow Your Majesty!"
Ji Huaizhi looked at him with his hands behind his back, wondering if Lu Haitang knew what he was thinking.
If the two are mutually in love, Lin Yi will consider it payment for Lu Haitang's work here.
"Get up. Go back to the palace and rest for a while before setting off. Take good care of her on the way, and you and Lin Er should also be careful."
"yes!"
After Ji Huaizhi returned to the palace, the Imperial Household Department brought him a silver platter.
Chen Duojin frowned and said, "His Majesty must be tired from his trip today. Why bring this here?"
He understood.
The emperor had no interest in the women in the harem.
For the emperor, there are only the dead and the useful.
"Bring it up for me to see." Ji Huaizhi gently lifted the black phoenix on his index finger, and the black phoenix flew back to its nest on its own.
The head servant raised the plate above his head.
After looking around, Ji Huaizhi chose Hu Yao's name.
The main reason is that he knew her.
While Hu Yao was still grieving in the palace, she heard a commotion and asked in confusion, "What's going on outside?"
"My lady, people from the Emperor's palace have arrived!" A maidservant ran over excitedly.
Hu Yao stood up, suddenly feeling a little nervous: "Ah? But I'm not ready yet."
Although she wanted to be empress, she wasn't ready yet.
Most importantly, the emperor shouldn't have chosen her as the first person to serve him in bed. Wasn't it said that the prime minister's daughter had also entered the palace? She didn't think her looks would attract a tyrant.
Having been hurt by a man, Hu Yao felt that he must have a conspiracy.
"Young Master Hu~" Chen Duojin's face was all wrinkled with laughter: "The Emperor has chosen you today."
"Then... I'll go and get ready."
Unexpectedly, Eunuch Chen told her not to prepare, saying that if the sedan chair was ready, she could just go directly there.
Hu Yao was very nervous on the way.
Upon seeing the emperor again, dressed in a black and gold dragon robe, the tension intensified.
"This humble servant greets Your Majesty."
Ji Huaizhi looked up: "Consort Hu has arrived? I heard that Consort Hu's family is in business, so she should be very familiar with account books."
Hu Yao looked up in surprise: "I know a little bit."
Ji Huaizhi put down the account book in his hand: "Then help me deal with these. Stay here tonight. If you get tired, rest in the side hall next door."
Hu Yao was momentarily at a loss for words: "Did Your Majesty summon me here to do the accounting?"
"Otherwise?" Ji Huaizhi stood up: "My harem does not support idle people. I believe that Consort Hu can handle this small matter well."
"If you don't do well, then expel her from the palace." He originally wanted to say she should be executed, but then he thought about how she had finally been reborn and changed her fate, so he decided against it.
The emperor summoned Consort Hu to his bedchamber on the very first day, and by the second day, everyone in the harem knew about it.
They also learned that Consort Hu spent the entire night in the Emperor's palace.
Those who hadn't started planning yet gritted their teeth in dismay, wondering when someone else had beaten them to it.
Someone inquired about the identity of this Lady Hu.
She not only managed to get the Emperor to summon her on the very first day, but also to keep him in the Qianqing Palace.
I heard that someone saw Consort Hu returning to her palace with dark circles under her eyes, and there are rumors that the Emperor has tormented Consort Hu.
Not long after, Chen Duojin went to Hu Daying's palace with a reward and promoted her to Hu Changzai.
No one expected that she would be promoted in rank on the second day after serving the emperor, and even Hu Yao herself was surprised.
I feel like my efforts weren't in vain, and I also have a sense of wanting to get promoted.
Does that mean she did a good job with the accounts last night?
Upon hearing this news, the other people in the palace regretted not having taken the initiative earlier. They had all come for the sake of gaining Ji Huaizhi's favor.
I didn't expect someone else to get there first.
I don't know how this Consort Hu managed to get the Emperor's attention.
After that, Ji Huaizhi frequently encountered other women.
Sometimes it's the Imperial Garden, sometimes it's the Plum Garden.
After a meal, if you take a walk along the corridor to digest your food, you'll often encounter people singing and dancing.
He sized up these people, but couldn't find anyone he could use for the time being, so he decided to give them the cold shoulder for now.
The Prime Minister's daughter, Consort Lin, often came to the Qianqing Palace to deliver soup to Ji Huaizhi. As a noblewoman, she was not supposed to do anything to curry favor, but seeing that the Emperor never stepped into the inner palace, she became somewhat restless.
Fortunately, she brought soup over several times, and the emperor did not show any displeasure.
She would see Consort Hu with the Emperor every time she brought soup over.
After this happened several times, Consort Lin realized that the Emperor truly doted on Consort Hu.
The imperial concubines have been in the palace for so long, but the emperor has only ever chosen Consort Hu.
She even suspected that the Emperor held this selection of concubines so that this Consort Hu could enter the palace.
She had already asked her father to investigate, and it turned out that this Hu Changzai was originally the daughter of a merchant.
She had been engaged before, and it's unclear how she ended up being selected as a concubine.
Consort Lin lowered her eyes, concealing her emotions: "Your Majesty, I had the kitchen prepare some heat-clearing and detoxifying soup. Even when busy with state affairs, you must take care of your health."
Ji Huaizhi dismissed Hu Changzai.
After paying her respects to the Emperor and the nobles, Consort Hu left.
She is quite grateful to Consort Lin now, because she can rest for a while every time Consort Lin comes.
The Emperor truly didn't treat her like a woman at all; he treated her like Eunuch Chen, keeping her around as long as she was useful.
She dared to say that if she were useless, the emperor would immediately banish her from the palace.
"Put it down." Ji Huaizhi put down the account book.
Hu Changzai's accounting is quite good.
Looking up at Consort Lin before him, he saw that her skin was like jade, and her cheeks were like peach blossoms; she was very beautiful.
But she's practically a female version of the prime minister in his youth.
She was somewhat repulsive, but he had tested this Consort Lin.
He was a local, and his entry into the palace was at the Prime Minister's behest.
If he wasn't mistaken, the Prime Minister probably wanted her to conceive the Emperor's child, so that he, the Emperor, could die.
"You don't need to come anymore. Just stay in your own palace."
Consort Lin was stunned: "What does Your Majesty mean by this?"
Ji Huaizhi: "It's nothing. Are you aware of the discord between your father and me in court?"
Consort Lin seemed surprised that the Emperor would speak so bluntly.
Father is right, the Emperor is indeed capricious: "Is the Emperor disliking me because of Father?"
Consort Lin's face flashed with shame and anger: "No matter what, my father is the Prime Minister. Even if he did something wrong, it was for the Emperor's sake."
"So what?" Ji Huaizhi's expression turned serious.
The chill around her made Lin Guiren realize that she wasn't at home.
Startled and covered in a cold sweat, he immediately knelt down: "Your Majesty, please forgive me."
"I misspoke and said the wrong thing; I meant no other."
Ji Huaizhi didn't say anything, just let him kneel there quietly.
After a long pause, he finally spoke: "Your father is the Prime Minister, so are you implying that I must act according to your father's wishes?"
Upon hearing this, Consort Lin immediately kowtowed: "Your Majesty, that's not what I meant. I misspoke. Please forgive me."
"I...I was just being a girl and couldn't help but get jealous. It was my fault."
"I hope Your Majesty will not blame your concubine and father."
Her forehead was red from the bump.
My palms were already sweating a lot.
Her words could have serious consequences, potentially implicating the entire family.
She almost forgot that the man in front of her was a tyrant who held the power of life and death over others.
The emperor detested being controlled by others.
But she said those things.
Ji Huaizhi raised an eyebrow at her frightened expression: "Lin has spoken rudely; she shall be confined to her quarters for three months."
Consort Lin closed her eyes and said, "Thank you for your great kindness, Your Majesty."
Upon returning to her palace, Consort Lin nearly collapsed to the ground: "Peony..."
The maid supported her: "My lady... what should we do now?"
"I'm probably disliked by the Emperor. I wonder who my father will choose to enter the palace next." Consort Lin said sarcastically, her eyes filled with sorrow.
What good can happen to a woman who is rejected by the emperor in the palace?
News of the Emperor's confinement of Consort Lin spread quickly.
Even the Empress Dowager knew about it.
She frowned and gestured to the nanny beside her to invite the emperor over to sit down. Although he wasn't her biological son, he was, after all, the Empress Dowager in name only.
Even if you disagree with the emperor, you can't let anyone find fault with you.
"Your subject greets Your Majesty."
"What has the Emperor been busy with lately?" The Empress Dowager beckoned him to sit down.
"Of course, he's busy with state affairs."
The Empress Dowager lifted her eyelids and glanced at him; to be honest, she found it somewhat laughable.
He lay low for so long while the late emperor was alive, but as soon as he left, he immediately changed his tune and didn't even respect her, the empress dowager.
Busy with court affairs?
The Empress Dowager thought he was more likely busy killing people.
"Don't neglect your duties regarding state affairs and having children. At your age, your brothers' children are already running around in the palace."
Seeing that he didn't react, she continued, "Now that you've proposed to expand your harem, remember to treat everyone equally."
"Do you still remember your cousin Minghui? She is now a concubine in your palace." The Empress Dowager said softly, "She has long admired you, why not grant her wish?"
"Is the Empress Dowager bored in the palace?"
The Empress Dowager did not understand the Emperor's meaning, and her eyes were filled with doubt.
Then he continued, "Don't focus on the affairs of my harem every day. When you have free time, you can go out for a stroll."
"You can also go to the garden to escape the summer heat these days."
The Empress Dowager's face was grim; the Emperor was still so arrogant and ignorant.
"Your Majesty, even the late Emperor was never like this."
Ji Huaizhi stared ahead, and his expression truly left the Empress Dowager at a loss.
It's just that he pretended too well back then, holding too much real power, and many people were deceived by him at that time.
He's a madman.
A madman who won't listen to anyone.
"In my harem, I can favor whomever I wish." Ji Huaizhi looked outside: "Whoever I allow to have a child can have my child."
Just then, a bright and beautiful young girl walked in.
She seemed unaware that there were other people present with the Empress Dowager; upon seeing the Emperor, her expression changed slightly in surprise, and she immediately curtsied.
"Your Majesty, I was unaware that Your Majesty was in the Empress Dowager's palace. It was my fault for disturbing Your Majesty."
Ji Huaizhi glanced at her, noticing her unusual attire. Did he not know she was in the Empress Dowager's palace?
Whenever the Empress Dowager didn't mention her, Ji Huaizhi assumed it was unintentional.
"Since you know you have disturbed me, I will punish you by confining you to your quarters for three days as a warning to others."
A flicker of panic crossed Hui Chang's eyes, followed by a wronged expression: "Cousin Emperor, why...?"
Ji Huaizhi turned to the Empress Dowager and said, "I still have memorials to review. I shall take my leave now."
The Empress Dowager watched his departing figure, her face turning ashen. She first told Minghui to stand up: "The Emperor is very wary now. Wasn't Consort Lin's confinement yesterday a warning to the Prime Minister?"
"And the embarrassment I'm giving you today is also an opportunity to teach me a lesson."
"He will not allow you to have any offspring with the dragon."
Hui Chang gently bit her lip and looked up: "Aunt..."
"Actually, I don't care who gave birth to the prince." As long as he is of royal blood.
Ji Huaizhi would no longer need to live in this world.
If the late emperor were still alive, he would certainly have agreed to her doing so.
If things continue like this, the country will be ruined in his hands.
When Consort Hui heard the Empress Dowager say that she didn't care whose womb the child came from, her expression turned somber and inscrutable.
She cares.
This child can only come out of her womb.
Ji Huaizhi stood by the pond with his hands behind his back, staring blankly at the red carp in the pond.
Seeing that the Emperor was unhappy, Chen Duojin gestured to Xiao Fuzi to get the fish food.
"emperor."
Ji Huaizhi took the fish food and casually grabbed a handful and threw it into the pond.
The carp in the pond were scrambling to eat.
Chen Duojin's eyelids twitched; he thought, "This fish might have eaten too much and died."
Ji Huaizhi thought to himself that even though his reputation among the people had improved considerably, once he had a child, many people would probably want him dead.
Ji Huaizhi did not participate in palace affairs, letting them do whatever they wanted.
Everyone also noticed that the Emperor had no intention of visiting the inner palace.
Those who were initially eager to try their luck have given up.
After all, many of them are from outside the region, and most of them want to wait and see.
But as time went on, people noticed something was wrong. Occasionally, someone in the palace would shout "Holy crap!" or they would hear that someone in the palace was unruly and mingling with the servants, doing some kind of gymnastics that was strangely uniform.
As soon as Lu Haitang and Lin Yi and Lin Er returned, they talked about the "disaster relief" situation in Ji Huaizhi's palace.
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