Chapter 73
The harem, the queen's bedroom.
Hearing that the emperor went to the newly appointed Concubine Li again yesterday, the nanny beside the queen frowned and couldn't help but mutter something.
"If you keep rushing there every day, I'm afraid the palace will hear good news again soon. Your Majesty, aren't you anxious?"
As the queen of a foreign race, Gong Heguang sat in front of the mirror, looking at her extraordinary beauty. She had been treated with great respect and honor for so many years, but she had not changed at all from when she was young. When she thought about the new concubine who was given the title of Li, she could not help but laugh sarcastically.
Is there anyone in or outside the palace who dares to call her Li?
She was afraid that the old emperor was deliberately disgusting her and picked someone at random to make her his concubine.
He has replaced many people in the palace but still can't let her go. He keeps a close eye on her because he is afraid that she will do something to embarrass him again.
He didn't even care about her as the successor. In his eyes, neither the previous queen nor she, a queen of a foreign race, could compare to his own face. For this, he could even kill anyone.
Thinking of that old thing, the queen felt more and more disgusted. She waved her hand and told the nanny to go away, then raised her hand and called Baofu, the young eunuch beside her, to come over.
She pretended to be unwell after hearing that the Emperor's favorite Concubine Li was ill, and dismissed everyone, leaving only Baofu to come forward and talk.
Through the gauze curtain, Baofu bowed his head respectfully and knelt on the footstool. The Queen's voice in his ears was like the sound of nature, clear but cold and majestic.
"I've been feeling dizzy and chest tight lately. I think I've accidentally bumped into something. Go call the imperial craftsman Dou Chen. I want him to make me a life-size white porcelain Buddha statue. I'll worship it and get rid of the bad luck."
After hearing the Queen's order, Baofu immediately went to work, but before he left, he passed through Chong'en Gate and reported the matter to the Emperor.
After hearing this, the emperor tightened his big hand that was holding the beauty's soft breast even more, making the beautiful woman in his arms cry out in pain.
"She still has this idea!"
Concubine Li didn't understand what was wrong with the Queen asking the craftsman to come into the palace. After all, the Emperor had been resting here for many days and hadn't even entered the Queen's palace for a single day. It was normal for her to have some way to vent her anger.
So she blinked her eyes, carefully leaned on the chest of the old emperor who was over fifty years old, and used her gentle fingers to soothe his breathing again and again, while asking with some curiosity.
"Your Majesty is only making a white porcelain Buddha statue. Although it costs a lot, it can bring peace of mind to Your Majesty. What harm does it have to Your Majesty?"
The emperor leaned on the small table on the low couch, holding her fingers in his palm, looking at her green fingertips, and something seemed to be surging in his turbid and empty pupils.
"You don't understand. She's a person who... always likes to do things that are puzzling. If she does this so often, it's bound to arouse suspicion."
When he said the word "doubt", his eyes suddenly burst into intense emotions, but the beauty who was still lying on his chest did not raise her eyes, and thus missed the only chance to see the true face of the emperor.
The emperor simply ordered, "The queen can call out if she wants to, and can go out if she wants to. Just send someone to follow her and don't disturb her."
Within two quarters of an hour after the emperor's words were passed on, Dou Chen was already standing in the main courtyard of the empress's bedroom. The extremely beautiful empress looked at him and called Baofu to hand him the thing she wanted to make. Dou Chen took a look at it and suddenly laughed.
"At the end of last winter, a batch of white porcelain Bodhisattva statues were made for the palace. They come in various sizes. We also have one close to the life-size Bodhisattva that Your Majesty requested. I will send someone to deliver it to Your Majesty right now."
The Queen was curious when she heard this and asked, "Since there are statues of both large and small sizes, how many Bodhisattva statues are there in your courtyard?"
Dou Chen replied carefully, "About... a hundred or so, of all shapes, sizes, and materials. Last year, the Marquis heard that the Empress had begun offering Buddha statues, and ordered us to begin crafting them. To date, we have hundreds of statues."
The queen seemed to be moved by what he said. She stood up from the reclining chair and asked with a burning look in her eyes.
"Are there really more than a hundred?"
Dou Chen agreed, and then the Queen clapped her hands on the back of her chair and said with a smile, "Excellent! Since it's such a marvel, I have no choice but to go and see it myself."
A group of people surrounded the queen and asked the emperor for permission. While the sun was still high in the sky, a group of carriages and horses hurried out of the palace.
It was not until they arrived at the Imperial Kiln that Dou Chen personally arranged a room for her. Only then did the Queen put away the forced joy on her face, walked into the room, and threw herself into the arms of the man who was waiting in the room opposite.
The two of them didn't say anything, just hugged each other until they heard the sound of servants driving away the attendants at the door. Then Marquis Qingyuan helped the person up, held her arm and looked at her carefully for a long time before speaking.
"The Queen has lost weight again."
Hearing his words, the queen, who had no intention of playing the victim in front of him, bit her lip and couldn't help but shed a few tears in her eyes.
She was not very old to begin with. When she gave birth to the prince, she had just reached the age of marriage. Now she was only in her early thirties, and her beauty, which had been raised in the palace, became even more beautiful.
Her face was held in the man's palm, and she was treated like a treasure that the man in the palace could never reach. If you counted it, she should have been Brother Yuan's princess, but...
There was no need to talk about the past anymore. What the Queen least wanted to hear now was the word "Empress", so she held his hand and cried softly to him.
"Don't call me empress, brother...don't call me empress! I don't want to hear you call me that!"
As she wished, the Marquis did not call her Madam, but called her Little Sister instead. No one could find fault with this name. She had always been his little sister, and now she could only be called Little Sister.
"Are you worried because the emperor favors other concubines?"
The Queen looked at him gravely, a hint of reproach in her eyes, and said, "Brother, don't you know me? I don't care where he's gone. It's just that the Crown Prince... I'm really worried that the Crown Prince won't be favored by the Emperor. Lately, that Prince Shou has been getting more and more popular with the Emperor, and I'm a little worried."
Upon hearing this, Marquis Qingyuan held her in his arms and sat on the low couch, holding her hand and coaxing her slowly.
"It's all the fault of the Yao family for stirring up trouble. If they hadn't insisted on fighting for the position of Crown Princess, the first grandson of the Emperor wouldn't have died young."
When the queen heard him mention the little grandson, there was more worry in her eyes, and she was a little afraid that the evil she had done would affect her brother's important plans.
"Brother, do you blame me? If I hadn't poisoned her for months, her child wouldn't have died from miscarriage! I was just too worried. What's her status? She's pregnant with our Prince Shuhu's first child! What if the Emperor suddenly decides to make him the Crown Prince? Wouldn't that put us in even more trouble?"
All she could think about was her motherland, Shu Hu. Thinking that her child would be a pure-blooded prince of a foreign race and would change the dynasty in this land, her heart could not help but leap for joy.
They have been planning this for years and there really shouldn't be any changes at this time.
Therefore, she took this desperate risk. Every month when the Crown Princess came to visit, she ordered people to put a rare poison in her tea little by little.
I originally wanted her to get into trouble on the way to the palace, so that there would be more people to blame, and the dead could be said to be alive.
But it was useless for Yao Chunying. Something happened when she was visiting the prince, and the emperor was furious and implicated the prince. Now it was useless for her to plead for the prince.
She frowned, and Qingyuan Hou became even more unhappy because of this, but he didn't let her see it, and his expression changed in just a moment.
"I understand what you're thinking. If the Crown Prince hadn't insisted on getting involved with the Yao family, we wouldn't be facing the situation we're in today. It's only right to teach him a lesson. Then he'll know who to turn to for mercy!"
The rebellious nature in his son made him start to disobey advice and go against his father, which led to the current situation.
The queen was also caught in a dilemma. The time had not come yet, and she could not tell the prince his true identity now. At least this matter could not be revealed until he ascended the throne.
But it is not to be mentioned that the prince has disobeyed his brother's orders many times, and threw aside the beautiful women from his mother's family without even looking at them, and there is no chance for him to conceive an heir to the throne.
The queen was so worried that she couldn't eat. Her beautiful face became increasingly delicate these days.
Marquis Qingyuan saw this and felt uneasy.
He was well-informed and knew the prince's little quirks, but if he told his mother about this, his younger sister would probably be heartbroken for him.
Even he was helpless in the face of such a rebellious and unethical son. At least he had a grandson, but his younger sister, who was unaware of the truth, aborted the child. He didn't know when she would get pregnant again. Once he ascended the throne, he would probably become even more unscrupulous.
It seems that she has been dazzled by the charm of the new top scholar these past few days, and has been looking for boys who look like him day and night to hang out with them. I'm afraid that she was caught by the Crown Princess at this time and this is what happened today.
I’m afraid that the Crown Princess will wake up and say something she shouldn’t.
Marquis Qingyuan was thinking sinisterly in his mind, wondering whether he should let her become ill and never wake up again!
The position of Crown Princess is not easy to hold. You can just find someone you like and send him up to her later. However, the Crown Prince only likes those with beautiful looks.
He had made up his mind and did not let the Queen know. The two of them stayed away from outsiders and lingered for a long time until the palace was about to be locked, and the Queen came out of the small room.
The two of them didn't even have any intention of dodging, and walked out of the room one after the other.
Baofu was somewhat doubtful behind the crowd, but he did not dare to report these words to the emperor.
So when he arrived at the palace, the emperor only heard that the queen had gone out of the palace to see her brother today and had a nice conversation with him, as if she was trying to find an opportunity for the prince to regain his favor.
But the emperor snorted coldly. He did not give any response to the private meeting between the two men. He just called Xiao Baofu over very coldly and quietly and made him bow at his feet.
"Keep an eye on the Queen. Don't worry about who she meets or what she says. Just watch with your eyes and listen with your ears. Report to me every word she says and every person she meets!"
The imposing golden dragon was so close, illuminated by the bright candlelight, it was dazzling. Baofu felt dizzy at the sight, nodded hurriedly, and crawled out of the emperor's presence on his knees.
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