Chapter 920 His Majesty's Birthday Gift
Jiang Fenghua, however, was thinking about something else: who was sending money and information to Song Qing?
She then instructed Aoxue to investigate along this lead. They found that the Song family had indeed sent a lot of money to the palace some time ago. Song Qing used this money to bribe officials. Strangely, Song Qing did not place any special people in the palace. Instead, it seemed that she was sending gifts and bribing people everywhere to make things easier for herself, which was not unusual in the palace.
What does she want to achieve by offering these small favors and conveniences?
Jiang Fenghua had met the Song brothers and knew that the Song family was not wealthy. Her father did not hold a high official position and could only get things done by pulling strings in the palace with money.
The Song family rose to prominence entirely thanks to Peng Fei's connections, but now the Song family is making so many underhanded moves behind the scenes. Isn't she afraid of harming her uncle? Without the Peng family, Song Qing would never have been able to rise to such heights.
Peng Fei has now gone to the Northwest. The Song family dares not betray him, but they are prepared to be used by others.
Peng Fei's current position is crucial; his wife, children, and elderly parents are all in Shengjing. She needs to find an opportunity to talk to General Peng's wife to understand the situation and find out if the Peng family knows about the Song family's schemes.
"Please try on the dress that was just delivered by the Imperial Wardrobe!" Hongxiu had someone bring the Empress's dress to her.
Jiang Fenghua was preoccupied with Song Qing's matter and didn't notice Hongxiu coming in.
Hongxiu called out several times before she reacted: "What's wrong?"
"The phoenix robe that Your Highness is to wear for His Majesty's birthday banquet has arrived." Hongxiu then asked, "What is Your Highness thinking about so intently?"
"I'm thinking about what gift to give His Majesty for his birthday," Jiang Fenghua said.
Hongxiu reminded him, "Last year, Her Majesty prepared a gift for His Majesty, a nightgown that Her Majesty embroidered herself. Unfortunately, Her Majesty left the palace last year and couldn't give it away, so I kept it for her."
Jiang Fenghua said, "Go and bring it to me so I can take a look."
Hongxiu quickly fetched the robe and handed it to Jiang Fenghua. Jiang Fenghua took it; the fabric was soft and light. She said, "I'll give it to you!"
Hongxiu wondered why they were sending her a bathrobe again.
"Isn't it a bit too perfunctory for Your Majesty to send me a nightgown every year?" Hongxiu said.
“I sewed it myself, with great care,” Jiang Fenghua said.
Jiang Fenghua didn't intend to give him any special birthday gift. It's an annual event, and it would be too tiring to rack one's brains to give a gift every year. Besides, the Emperor would receive so many gifts on his birthday that his hands would be sore.
After deciding on the gifts, Jiang Fenghua asked about the children before picking up the book and continuing to read.
Hongxiu said, "This servant remembers that His Majesty particularly likes something. Why don't we make a cup for His Majesty?"
Jiang Fenghua had long forgotten, "Does he have a particular favorite gift? What is it?"
Hongxiu reminded her, "It's the lotus lantern made by the Empress."
Upon hearing the words "lotus lantern," Jiang Fenghua's expression instantly changed. "He won't like it."
She made lotus lanterns for him again, which stirred up memories of their past life. The two might have conflicts, and besides, they were an old married couple. These were just things that young girls liked, and she hadn't liked them for a long time.
In her past life, she prepared lotus lanterns for him only to pray for his well-being, without expecting any response from him.
Meanwhile, at Jinghe Palace.
Song Qing was practicing walking with her cane. The Emperor's birthday banquet was approaching, and she didn't want to miss it.
Dong'er advised from the side, "Your Majesty, you should rest. The imperial physician said that it takes a hundred days to recover from a broken bone. If Your Majesty's leg is not properly cared for, it may cause future problems. Your Majesty, please sit down!"
Song Qing said, "It's alright, I just need to practice walking steadily. Is my formal attire ready?"
"It was prepared long ago, but now Her Majesty's leg..." It was prepared before the accident, but it's inconvenient to wear it now!
"My leg will get better," Song Qing said. "If I can't even endure this little bit of suffering, I wouldn't be Song Qing."
She's already quite lucky to have reached her current position; some of the concubines in the palace probably won't even be able to serve the emperor in their entire lives.
Just then, the nanny who served Consort Song approached her mysteriously and said, "Your Highness, news has come from outside the palace again."
Since she started making arrangements everywhere, it has become much easier for messages to be sent from outside the palace into the palace.
She told Dong'er to stand guard outside the door before asking, "What is it?"
The old woman leaned close to her ear and whispered, "On the Emperor's birthday, Your Highness found a way to put this in the Empress's wine cup."
Song Qing was startled, "Who wants to poison the Empress?"
"This is not poison, just a sleeping potion."
Song Qing would do anything, but she wouldn't dare to drug the Empress. Ao Xue, who was by her side, was not only highly skilled in martial arts but also knowledgeable in medicine. It would be absolutely impossible for her to successfully drug the Empress.
She said, "I'm already so badly injured, it's hard to say whether I can even attend the banquet. How could I possibly have the chance to poison the Empress? Let someone else do it!"
In all her years in the palace, she only remembered one principle: you can offend anyone, but never offend Empress Jiang, or there will be only one word: death.
Seeing that she was unwilling, the old woman said, "They said that if we don't do what's on the note, they'll make us pay back the money."
Song Qing was dumbfounded. "I never agreed to murder the Empress. This money was given to me voluntarily. I didn't let them suffer any losses. They didn't skimp on any of the things that needed to be purchased for the palace." In other words, she was just using her position to take a large kickback. She felt that she was spending her own money.
"Your Majesty, please calm down. They don't say it that way. They just say that if you take someone's money, you have to solve their problems." The old woman sighed, "If we don't do as they say, we might end up in deep trouble, and the Emperor might find out that Your Majesty's position is in jeopardy!"
"Are they bandits? How can they be so unreasonable?" Song Qing was speechless. She hadn't expected this to happen. Murdering the Empress would get you beheaded, and she wouldn't dare.
The old woman said, "If Your Highness doesn't do as they say, and they really report it to the Emperor, we're finished! Your Highness, what should we do?"
Song Qing pointed at the old woman's nose, "How dare you threaten me? I'm not easily intimidated."
The old woman didn't know what to do either, and she was reluctant to give back the money she had already obtained. She deliberately said, "Why don't we give the money back to them?"
"Whose money did I receive? Who saw it?" Song Qing tried to act shamelessly. She had used all her money to bribe officials, so where would she get any silver? She originally thought that once she entered the palace, she would have a good life and wouldn't need to spend any silver at all. However, she didn't expect that without silver, it would be difficult to move an inch in the palace.
Her meager monthly allowance was far from enough, and the Song family kept writing to ask for money every few days. She didn't have any money to give them.
The reason why she, a dignified Consort Shu, lived such a miserable life was because she didn't have a powerful family to rely on.
Tang Qianran used to be the most generous, as were Zhu Zhenzhen and Helan Yanran. They all lived a prosperous life in the palace with the help of their maternal families.
Song Qing grew increasingly angry. From the day she was selected to enter the palace, she had decided that she would make a name for herself in the palace. She was just waiting to give birth to a prince, thinking that her good days had finally arrived. Who knew that the emperor would only give her some worthless things. Jewelry and cloth were available in the palace, so that was all.
They couldn't possibly receive as much as the Empress.
"Who gave you the medicine in your hand?" Song Qing seemed to have made up her mind, but she absolutely could not let the people from Jinghe Palace handle this matter. She had accumulated a lot of connections in the palace, and this matter could be handled very easily.
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