"That's all for now. Your Majesty spoke very well, and I'd like to hear more."
Jun Zhe smiled and continued talking about matters in the court.
Linghu Lan listened quietly as Jun Zhe spoke fluently.
One didn't find it boring, and the other spoke with great enthusiasm.
Not far away, Yun Nian helped the Empress Dowager stand among the flowers, looking at the two childhood sweethearts in front of her, and remained silent for a long time.
Yun Nian whispered, "Empress Dowager, are you still going to see His Majesty?"
"No need! Let the Empress fawn over His Majesty. It's rare to see her so attentive to him."
"According to the palace maids in the Empress's palace, the Empress cares about His Majesty's diet every day and inquires about each item in detail."
"Hmm!" The Empress Dowager hummed, neither confirming nor denying. Concern about food could be genuine care, or it could be malicious. Who could know?
She suddenly remembered the unborn children who died in the womb before the late emperor was born, and the children who were fortunate enough to be born but did not live to grow up. She couldn't help but touch her own lower abdomen, and for a moment, she felt no interest at all.
"Let's go!" the Empress Dowager ordered.
"Yes!" Yun Nian gently helped the Empress Dowager and slowly walked away.
...
The Prince of Qinyang's Mansion.
Everyone happily congratulated Yue Qingyin.
"Congratulations, Second Miss. You have now been selected for the imperial concubine selection. With Her Majesty the Empress planning for you, your future is sure to be limitless."
"That's right. With Second Sister's beauty, why wouldn't she be a Noble Consort?"
"Excellent, excellent. With the eldest young lady becoming the empress and the second young lady becoming the imperial concubine, the Qinyang Prince's Mansion will surely become a celebrated story."
Yue Qingyin forced a smile, her face flushed as she cautioned, "Why say these things now? If people hear this, they'll think the Empress is all-powerful in the palace. It's too early to say anything before things are settled. If I'm selected, it's my good fortune; if I'm not selected, it means I'm not good enough to be a concubine. In any case, these are things that neither you nor I can decide. We shouldn't let people laugh at us."
"Haha, Second Sister is shy. Do you dare say you don't want to enter the palace?"
Yue Qingyin was stunned. Did she want to enter the palace?
She didn't want to, she didn't want to at all. The emperor wasn't in her heart at all; it belonged to someone else.
Thinking of this, his expression changed. "I'm tired, you should all go back and get some rest!"
The crowd dispersed.
Yue Qingyin sighed deeply and lay on the bed in a daze.
She never imagined that she would one day enter the palace.
She and Yue Huangyin were, respectively, a concubine's daughter and a legitimate daughter, and their relationship had always been lukewarm.
With Yue Huangyin now in charge of the inner palace, it's impossible for her to return to the palace, both morally and logically. Firstly, the palace has always relied on the harem to balance the power of the court, and it's extremely rare for two sisters from the same family to serve in the palace together. Secondly, the Qinyang Prince's Mansion has always had ways to protect itself and wouldn't allow itself to become too prominent like oil on a hot fire.
However, the situation has changed now. She is on the list of candidates for the imperial concubine examination. Although she may not be selected, the chances of her being selected are quite high.
Thinking about this, I couldn't help but feel heavy-hearted.
The maid, Yunya, observing her expression, said, "Miss, why do you look unhappy? Is it not good to enter the palace?"
Yue Qingyin felt a bit stifled and needed to vent. "What do you know? What's so good about entering the palace? You're nothing more than a canary trapped inside for life."
Yunya gritted her teeth and said, "Miss, since you are unwilling to enter the palace, I happened to hear some gossip today, and I don't know if it's true."
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