Emperor Qianlong quickly received the news and was so angry that he smashed his favorite inkstone, which shows how furious he was.
Following Ji Huan's experience, news soon came from Consort Shu and Consort Xian that many of the items they used had problems.
As for the concubines who came from bondservant families, Emperor Qianlong didn't investigate them. He could tell by the frequency of their pregnancies and births, so there was no need to investigate.
It was only after this that Emperor Qianlong began to formally turn his attention to his harem.
As the investigation deepened, many things were uncovered, such as the truth behind the "deaths of many contestants in talent shows."
Previously, Emperor Qianlong may not have been unaware of the shady dealings, but he thought it was just a power struggle within the harem. Those who didn't have the chance to get close to him were, to some extent, simply less capable than him.
But now he realized that although the struggle was real, it was quite different from what he had imagined. Most of them died because of the schemes of the concubine families.
With such methods, Emperor Qianlong was no fool. He was the emperor who truly held absolute power and ruled the world alone. He would not allow his safety to be controlled by others.
Simply put, what the bondservant men did was to make Qianlong feel that his safety was threatened. He didn't care about the innocent concubines who died, but he cared about his own life.
By June, Emperor Qianlong had temporarily recovered from the loss of Empress Fucha, which was evident in his decision to finally sleep with his concubines.
Among them, Consort Shu was the most favored.
Yes, it's Consort Shu, not Ji Huan.
Ji Huan was not surprised by this; it seemed that Qianlong wanted to promote Consort Shu.
Empress Fucha's death means that he needs an empress, or a healthy imperial concubine who can help him manage the harem. This person will most likely be Consort Xian.
If Consort Xian is to be promoted, then the position of Consort will become vacant. It was originally estimated that it would go to Consort Jia, but now it is impossible for Consort Jia, even though she has two princes under her name.
Consort Shu comes from a very good family. If she were to be favored even more, it would be no doubt that she could be made a Noble Consort even without having a son.
And at this time, summer was approaching, and Qianlong unsurprisingly decided to go to the Yuanmingyuan.
In fact, the time of this year's visit was relatively late, and the list of those accompanying Emperor Qianlong included several consorts who had entered the palace through the imperial selection process, such as Consort Li, who was practically invisible and had been living in the Jihuan Xianfu Palace.
Upon arriving at the Yuanmingyuan, Ji Huan continued to stay at the Natural Picture Garden, where the decorations had been completely renovated. Ji Huan astutely noticed that there were almost no problems, which saved her the trouble of replacing the decorations on a large scale.
Just two days after moving into Natural Picture, Qingyin brought some news.
"Your Majesty, news has come from the Hall of Mental Cultivation that the Emperor seems to intend to bestow titles and honors upon the harem."
Ji Huan frowned: "Are you sure the news came from the Hall of Mental Cultivation?"
"Yes, Your Highness, I think this is a good opportunity."
Ji Huan shook her head: "No, there's nothing we can do. Although we can find out about the news from the Hall of Mental Cultivation, the news came out too suddenly."
Especially since Qianlong was on guard, she was almost certain that this was a message that Qianlong had deliberately released.
The authenticity of the news is beyond doubt, and a large-scale bestowal of titles is certainly in order. However, it is also true that Emperor Qianlong used this to achieve certain objectives.
"In that case, arrange for someone to tell Granny Chen to remind Consort Shu not to do anything she shouldn't, and just to avoid making mistakes at this crucial moment."
"Does Your Majesty suspect that the Emperor is planning something?"
"yes!"
"Yes, this servant will arrange it immediately."
"Remember, you must stay hidden."
"This servant understands."
"Okay, go ahead!"
"This servant takes her leave."
As the news spread, it made the already sweltering summer even more restless. How can one not care about the grand consort appointments and ranks?
No one wants to be denied a promotion; it represents not only social status but also the quality of one's food, clothing, and daily necessities.
Consort Shu had indeed originally planned to engage in some activities, but after being reminded by Granny Chen, she remained calm. She became even more enthusiastic in front of Emperor Qianlong, but she did not do anything inappropriate in private.
As for Consort Xian, she was a clever woman. Although she didn't know the specifics of Empress Fucha's dying scheme, she knew some of it. What she knew was enough for her to know that she didn't need to do anything more to embellish the situation.
Even if she doesn't become empress immediately, she will soon become an imperial concubine.
As for choosing a newcomer to be the empress?
That's impossible. A newcomer can't control his harem. The one chosen will only become a sacrifice.
They remained calm, while some others couldn't.
For example, Consort Jia.
This fertile empress was preparing to vie for the emperor's favor, and she used her unborn child as a bargaining chip, drinking bowl after bowl of fertility-enhancing medicine.
Seeing that Jiafei's face looked bitter from drinking, her nanny couldn't help but comfort her, saying, "Your Highness, with the two princes here, you don't need to work so hard."
Consort Jia shook her head: "After that child died last year, the Emperor's treatment of me is not as good as before. Consort Shu's favor is there, how can I not care? According to the Emperor's personality, Consort Xian will probably be promoted to Imperial Noble Consort, there is no way to change that. Originally, I also felt that I deserved the position of Noble Consort, but Consort Shu just happened to rise."
The old woman then offered another suggestion.
"Your Highness, I think we might start with Consort Su."
Consort Jia understood what the old woman meant, but she hesitated.
"His Majesty has some genuine affection for Consort Su, since the First Prince and the Third Prince have already stripped her of her titles. He can't very well demote her rank as well!"
The reason she wanted a child was because Consort Shu was slippery and she couldn't find any fault with her.
The old nanny disagreed: "Your Highness, the Emperor's sincerity may have been genuine in the past. Now that he has stripped Consort Su of her title, it means that his sincerity is not so genuine anymore, or rather, it is not so genuine now. Consort Shu has no leverage, but Consort Su has much more leverage."
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