"Consort Mu...Chuxiu Palace..." Rong'er rushed over to report as soon as she received the news.
"What's wrong with Chuxiu Palace?" Ruan Yumu sipped her tea casually, as if it had nothing to do with her.
Ever since she saw the hesitation in Qi Jingxuan's eyes when she gave birth to the eldest son, she knew that everything that followed was just an act.
He probably gave her the title of concubine because he felt guilty. After all, at the crucial moment, he would rather the child live than care about Ruan Yu Mu.
"Your Majesty, the new candidates for the Chuxiu Palace are quite strange. They've been in the palace for over two months, but today His Majesty personally went to select them."
Seeing that Ruan Yu Mu remained silent, Rong'er knew that this matter was not simple. It seemed that Consort Mu was about to lose her temper.
"Consort Mu, in the end, your position in the Emperor's heart is different. After you have two more children, let alone Consort Mu, it's possible that you will become Imperial Noble Consort Mu or even Imperial Noble Consort Mu. Our Emperor will certainly not be stingy with that."
Rong'er quickly changed the subject, saying something nice, for fear that the smiling Consort Mu might suddenly lose her temper.
But the imagined storm did not come.
Ruan Yumu felt annoyed when she heard this.
However, she wasn't too sad. She just felt that their relationship had ended. Now that she had her eldest son by her side, she didn't ask for anything else. She only hoped that her child would grow up safely and that he could achieve fame and success in the future, so that she could have a firm foothold in the world.
Apart from my younger sister, all my family members had long since passed away.
Thinking about all this, Ruan Yumu felt a chill in her heart.
"You may leave now, I'm going to sleep." Ruan Yumu waved his hand, dismissing Rong'er.
"Your father has worked hard guarding the frontier. Wouldn't it be a waste to send such a beautiful woman there?" Qi Jingxuan looked at Jiang Shuyuan kneeling below. "Since your name is Jiang Shuyuan, then I will bestow upon you the title of a fourth-rank Shuyuan!"
Jiang Shuyuan was visibly taken aback when she heard this, and Geng Yulin, who was next to her, quickly nudged her with his elbow.
Jiang Shuyuan knelt and took a few steps forward. “Your Majesty, my father has doted on me since I was a child. I haven’t seen him for seven or eight years now. My younger sister is all I have at home. I beg Your Majesty to let me leave the palace.”
Upon hearing this, everyone present was astonished. Being favored by the Emperor was an immense honor. What was the story behind this daughter of the Prince of Dingyuan?
"She's so ungrateful, how many heads does she have?"
"That's right, I'm afraid the entire Prince Dingyuan's family will be implicated."
······
A murmur of discussion arose from below.
"Ahem," Eunuch Wu coughed intentionally, signaling everyone to stop talking.
"Your Majesty, in my opinion, Consort Jiang is eager to return home..."
Qi Jingxuan raised his hand, signaling the Empress to stop talking, and Cai Shuqi naturally stopped speaking as well.
"Shuyuan, you said you only have one younger sister at home, right? Since you miss your family so much, why not invite your sister to the palace to keep you company?"
Upon hearing this, Jiang Shuyuan wanted to collapse to the ground, but royal etiquette forbade it.
"Your Majesty, I am deeply grateful for your grace!"
Qi Jingxuan laughed. Wasn't this directly locking the life of the Prince of Dingyuan to his side?
"That's right! Xiao Shunzi, immediately arrange for the daughter of the Prince of Dingyuan to enter the palace to accompany Consort Jiang."
"Yes, Your Majesty!"
Then, several more young women were introduced one after another.
"Your Majesty, I am Jiang Jinhua, the daughter of the former Governor of Jingzhou... Your Majesty, I pay my respects to Your Majesty and Your Majesty the Empress. May Your Majesty and Your Majesty the Empress enjoy boundless blessings and peace."
When Qi Jingxuan saw Jiang Jinhua, he was reminded of the time in the previous dynasty when the governor of Jingzhou was wrongly accused. All his children were forced to serve as slaves in the palace.
"Who brought you before me?"
Qi Jingxuan looked at Jiang Jinhua in front of him. The two had quite a history; they used to play together at the horse farm when they were young.
Jiang Jinhua's mother is the younger sister of Ruan Yumu's mother.
When the governor of Jingzhou went to the capital to pay homage to the emperor, he saw Ruan Yu Mu's aunt by the roadside and was captivated by her stunning beauty. He then invited her to take him home as his concubine.
Qi Jingxuan thought that Ruan Yumu must have brought them in, but then he thought that shouldn't be the case, since they didn't know each other at all, so he dismissed his doubts.
“It is General Xu! I used to be a prostitute, and it was General Xu who bought me and sent me to the palace. It has been more than three years now.”
"I see."
The ministers of the previous dynasty all wanted to have a confidant placed by the emperor's side so they could gauge his intentions.
General Xu's family consisted entirely of men, so naturally this task fell to Jiang Jinhua.
"Then let's just be beauties for now."
"Let's stay at Yunxiu Palace."
Qi Jingxuan thought for a moment, since there were empty seats everywhere in the palace anyway, he might as well fill them up as soon as possible.
"Alright, leave the rest to the Empress. I still have memorials to read."
Qi Jingxuan left after saying that.
"Your Majesty, I respectfully see you off."
"Your Majesty, this humble woman respectfully sees you off."
"This servant respectfully sees Your Majesty off."
"This servant respectfully sees Your Majesty off."
Seeing that Qi Jingxuan was about to leave, he suddenly turned to Geng Yulin and said, "You are the daughter of the Minister of Rites, right? Grant her the title of Zhaoyi and let her reside in Chengfu Palace."
"Thank you, Your Majesty!" Geng Yulin was overjoyed to finally be selected.
Go!
The Minister of Rites and the Minister of Revenue were sworn enemies, and the Empress felt very uncomfortable seeing this.
Isn't the emperor deliberately trying to embarrass himself?
The thought that the Ministry of Rites would regain its glory because of his position made Geng Yulin very happy, and he asked his maid Xijia to pass on a message to his father.
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