Although the emperor's appointment of a concubine was not a big deal, the ministers still congratulated him. After all, having many children and good fortune would bring prosperity to the country.
If one wanted to have many children and good fortune, then one should take in many concubines. However, Zhao Huan only had one queen and four concubines. So someone put the matter of taking in concubines on the agenda again.
But Zhao Huan still refused. "I'm a master at picking up girls now. If I find a girl I like, I'll naturally go and pick her up myself. Why would I need you to recommend her?"
Besides, what kind of people are those concubines you recommended to enter the palace? Although they are not ugly, there are not many beautiful ones.
Even if there was a stunning one, Zhao Huan would have to think about it. He was worried about the conflict of interest between the two. It wasn't uncommon for officials to recommend beautiful women to the palace to disrupt government, and Zhao Huan was now becoming suspicious.
In Wende Hall, Zhao Huan was carefully reviewing memorials, while three maids hung their heads at his side, ready to answer his orders. Then, a maid trembled as she entered, carrying a bowl of tea. She was so careful not to disturb Zhao Huan.
Zhao Huan was so focused that she didn't notice anyone approaching. He was looking at the land reports submitted from various places to keep abreast of the latest developments in the land system.
The tea leaves had already gone cold, and the maid had come to replace them with hot tea. Perhaps the tea was too hot, or perhaps she was too nervous, so she accidentally knocked over the teacup.
The tea splashed all over Zhao Huan.
"I deserve to die! I deserve to die!" She was so frightened that she knelt on the ground and trembled.
One of the three palace maids below was a court lady. Fearing that they would be implicated, the three of them knelt down in fear.
Scalding the emperor with hot water was a serious crime. The precious body of a dragon cannot be touched, let alone scalding the emperor. If you encountered a tyrant, you could be dragged out and beaten to death.
Zhao Huan simply let out a "wow" like a pig being slaughtered, then jumped up. This was probably a normal human physiological reaction, the same as what you would do if a cup of hot tea was poured on you.
When he found out what the reason was, Zhao Huan did not blame him. It was nothing to him: "Get up, you go down."
A palace maid is not worth nagging at, and the palace lady in charge of the fruit department will probably transfer such a clumsy maid away.
Everyone around the emperor was carefully selected and very smart. I don't know why this palace maid would make such a mistake. Perhaps it was unintentional, Zhao Huan thought.
But the maid seemed to be frightened and fell to the ground, still trembling. Zhao Huan frowned: She didn't do this on purpose, hoping to attract my attention and then fly up to the tree and turn into a phoenix.
Some palace maids would indeed do so, especially those who were young and somewhat pretty. Some would try every possible means to attract the emperor's attention just to be favored by him.
But seeing how frightened she was, it didn't seem like that. Besides, she wouldn't burn herself with tea to attract attention. It might even cost her her head.
Zhao Huan was getting impatient. He leaned over and helped her up. "It's okay, you can get up now." He didn't look at the palace maid, but turned to the palace lady below and said, "There's no need to pursue this matter any further. She will continue to serve as an attendant in Wende Hall."
The palace lady below bowed and nodded in agreement: "As you wish."
Zhao Huan then turned around and finally saw that the palace maid was An Xiaozhu: "It's you?" Zhao Huan was surprised. He had even forgotten about her.
When Zhao Huan returned to the palace, he brought her in and instructed the official in charge of clothing to send her to the Wende Hall. Without any other instructions, the official in charge of clothing did not dare to neglect the matter and informed the official in charge of fruit production.
The Shangyi official had always been at odds with the Shang Gong of the Fruit Bureau, who would often beat and scold her maids. So, he deliberately kept An Xiaozhu's background a secret, saying she was a maid sent to the palace, and that there was an imperial decree to send her to serve in the Wende Hall, where she would be slowly educated according to palace rules.
The palace maid in charge of the Fruit Bureau had no idea of An Xiaozhu's origins, only that she was a newly arrived maid. She knew the emperor was easy to serve, and he didn't seem to care much about the quality of their service. Furthermore, over time, they realized that palace rules were as irrelevant to this emperor. Consequently, these maids gradually became more unruly, sometimes serving Zhao Huan in a perfunctory manner.
She thought An Xiaozhu was recommended by the Shangyi official, so she was usually more harsh on An Xiaozhu and often beat and scolded her.
An Xiaozhu had tears in her eyes: "Your Majesty, Your Majesty, this servant, this servant deserves to die."
Tears welled up in her eyes, and her voice was a little hoarse. Zhao Huan hated to see girls cry, but he didn't care about that at all. He gently wiped her tears away and said, "It's okay, it's just a cup of tea. You'll get used to it with practice."
Suddenly, Zhao Huan's face changed color, and his eyes were cold and angry. Because he clearly saw the bruises on An Xiaozhu's arm.
Obviously, it wasn't her fault that the tea was spilled, but her scarred arms couldn't hold the cup.
But this look was gone in an instant, and Zhao Huan became increasingly expressionless. "You go down first." He turned and said to the three palace maids below, "All of you go down!"
An Xiaozhu retreated tremblingly, and Zhao Huan clearly saw her slightly trembling arms. The palace lady looked at An Xiaozhu with a hint of vicious anger, but they did not see the deep bite on Zhao Huan's face, which seemed calm.
When An Xiaozhu walked out of the Wende Hall, the palace lady from the Fruit Bureau pushed her hard and she almost fell to the ground again: "Useless thing! You can't even do this little thing. I'll show you how I'll deal with you when we get back!"
The palace maid Rong Anqin was a middle-aged woman. According to the imperial decree issued by Zhao Huan, she could have left the palace and gained her freedom. However, she was reluctant to give up her monthly salary of twenty taels of silver, and she was afraid that no one would want her with such a twisted mind. She was unwilling to settle for an honest and cowardly man, so she remained in the Fruit Bureau as her palace maid.
This kind of person has no family warmth, no love from relatives and friends, and torturing others seems to be her greatest pleasure in life.
The most poisonous thing is a woman's heart. When a woman becomes cruel, it can make people's hair stand on end. The two flatterers beside her also follow suit and fan the flames.
"That's right. If it weren't for your majesty's grace, we would have suffered the same misfortune as you, the jinx."
"Look at her, she walks so unsteadily, how can she behave properly? Have you forgotten everything I taught you? This little brat deserves to be punished."
As soon as he arrived at the Fruit Prison, Rong Anqin ordered his two men: "Tie her up for me!"
The lonely life in the palace had driven the two maids to a kind of morbid madness. They violently grabbed An Xiaozhu and tied her between two locust trees in the yard. They took ropes and tied An Xiaozhu's wrists respectively, and the other ends of the ropes were wrapped around the trunks of the two trees.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com