"Your Majesty, please understand. I did not wish to concern myself with so much. However, His Majesty has decreed that the marriages of the three princes and the eldest princess shall all be handled by me. Consort Duanyi is different from Consort. Since His Majesty has bestowed upon me this title, it is to ensure that I am responsible. How could I dare to neglect my duties simply because I do not wish to?" Yan Nangui said calmly.
"You certainly know how to talk," the Empress Dowager sneered. "Even if the Emperor has given you instructions, why can't the princes' birth mothers get involved? You dare to spread rumors that if a prince's birth mother gets involved, she will be demoted one rank. What kind of talk is that? Who are you threatening?"
Yan Nangui narrowed her beautiful eyes and looked at Consort Ke.
"Consort Ke, it seems that even if I give you a way out, you won't budge. You still have the nerve to come to the Empress Dowager? Do you think the Empress Dowager doesn't know what you've done?"
"Sister Chen, you misunderstand. It's just that as the birth mother of a prince, it would be truly unfortunate if I couldn't devote myself to such an important matter as marriage..."
"Shut up," Yan Nangui said coldly.
"Yan Shi, how dare you shout and yell in front of me? Do you even respect me?" The Empress Dowager slammed her hand on the table.
"Your Majesty, have you heard of the witchcraft accusations in the palace? His Majesty, mindful of your advanced age, has tried to avoid making a big fuss. Even though His Majesty was so angry about such a serious matter, he suppressed it. Who was involved, and how many were implicated? Does Your Majesty not know?"
"The witchcraft accusation is against you; is it because you harbor hatred in your heart?" the Empress Dowager retorted.
"Today I am the one being cursed, but who will be the one tomorrow? The princes are growing up, who knows which prince will be impatient? Doesn't the Empress Dowager worry about His Majesty? Or does the Empress Dowager not care about her grandchildren? We concubines are all outsiders, so it's normal that the Empress Dowager doesn't favor us. But the princes and princesses all have the surname Shu, doesn't the Empress Dowager care?" Yan Nangui's expression was unpleasant.
“What I said is true. Do you expect His Majesty to say it? I said I was just being petty and ignorant. If people outside ask, it's just a power struggle among concubines. If His Majesty has to say it, then what is it? It's an imperial edict.”
"It's truly unfair to Sister Chen. You've been given a bad reputation. But it was all for the sake of the royal family," Consort Jia sighed.
"Yes, His Majesty will surely make his own decision on this matter. The Empress Dowager's intentions are good, but she really shouldn't have interfered so much," Consort He said calmly.
"Consort He, you are truly lawless these days," the Empress Dowager said angrily.
"Your Majesty, please calm your anger. You are advanced in years, and His Majesty's intention is also to avoid disturbing you. You should simply enjoy your retirement; we will take care of these matters," Yan Nangui said.
"With all of you around, do you think you're the Empress? Or do you think you're more capable than the Empress?" the Empress Dowager said angrily.
"Your Majesty, I am Consort Duanyi, not the Empress. I am not confused. As for whether I am more capable than the Empress, that is for everyone to judge. But regardless of whether I am more capable than the Empress, I must still do my job." Yan Nangui smiled and said, "As for Consort Ke, I cannot say more. I hope Your Majesty can understand. If you really cannot, then please ask His Majesty."
"Consort Ke, think this through carefully. If you continue to cause trouble today, I wouldn't mind suggesting His Majesty promote you. After all, there's still Consort Hui as a First-Rank Consort, and the vacancy for Noble Consort is now open." Yan Nangui sneered.
These words chilled Consort Ke to the bone.
What does this mean? Is he being promoted at this time?
What happens after the promotion?
After saying this, Yan Nangui curtsied before the Empress Dowager could recover from her shock: "Your Majesty is still in Zhaochun Palace, so I will go back to serve you first."
He left as soon as he finished speaking, without lingering any longer.
"This is outrageous! This Lady Yan is incredibly audacious!" the Empress Dowager roared.
"Your Majesty, please calm down. We can't just leave His Majesty hanging, can we?" Consort Mei said.
“Yes, Your Majesty, please calm down. There are some things about this matter that I am not clear about either. His Majesty has been here all day, so I suppose what Consort Duanyi said was also His Majesty’s intention,” said Consort Xiangxian.
The Empress Dowager took a deep breath: "Enough, it was my fault for meddling. You may all leave. Consort He, please stay."
Everyone stood up, said their goodbyes, and left.
Consort Xiangxian boarded the carriage and said calmly, "Her return to the south means she has taken control of the harem?"
"Your Majesty...you..."
"Let's go back," Consort Xiangxian said before Lingjiao could finish speaking.
I dare not mention water chestnuts.
Consort He sat there, and neither did the Empress Dowager or Consort He.
After a long while, the Empress Dowager finally said, "You resent me."
"Your Majesty, what makes you say that? I don't understand." Consort He smiled, but it was very fake.
"These past few years, your temperament has become increasingly left-leaning. When I try to say something warm to you, you just pretend to listen," the Empress Dowager frowned.
"Your Majesty spoke warmly with me, and I returned the warm words to Your Majesty. How could that be fake?" Consort He retorted.
"You! You are truly... stubborn and incorrigible. You are not even a fraction as good as Yue'er," the Empress Dowager said angrily.
"Back then, when you summoned me to the palace, you must have said the same thing, except that you said Yue'er was no match for me in the slightest." Consort He smiled faintly. "I entered the palace seeking wealth and status, wanting to bear a prince. I thought too much, and that's why I've ended up like this. I can't have my own child. I deserve it. But I will wake up. Compared to the prematurely deceased Consort Jing, I am still fortunate, aren't I?"
"But what about you, Empress Dowager? You are so stubborn. You are His Majesty's birth mother, the esteemed Empress Dowager. What more do you want? You want the Ye family bloodline to inherit the throne. You want a girl from the Ye family to be the Crown Princess. You've done too much, you're so obsessed with your own ideas. You've gone mad. As for me, haven't you ruined me? Did you ever care what kind of life I lived as a concubine all those years?"
“When I was suffering from abdominal pain every month and was only able to get by thanks to my family’s support, did you care about me? I was able to get up because Consort Jing died. It was because I still have the blood of the Ye family.”
"But why did Consort Jing die? Don't you know? Doesn't His Majesty know? She was a fool. Yet she never really harmed anyone in her life. Instead, she was killed young by her own aunt. She was awake even in death, knowing you couldn't be relied on. She would rather pull me up and entrust the children to me than look for you. Because she knew that the Fifth Prince was disfigured and could no longer be the Crown Prince, and you wouldn't care. The Fourth Princess is a girl, and you wouldn't care either."
“Now, I am unable to have children. I only need to take care of my two eldest children. I don’t care who the next emperor is. I am willing to follow Consort Duanyi; at least those who have been with her have lived well all these years. But what about those who have been with you?”
"You...you...you're really stupid. Which one of them is favored, hers or yours?" The Empress Dowager was speechless.
"Hehe, what about yours? Consort Jincong, have you gained favor?" Consort He smiled faintly: "We are both members of the Ye family. All I can do is keep that in mind. As for anything else, I'm afraid I can't do anything about it."
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