Chapter 408 Template
The Queen Mother is here too.
She glanced at the beauties in the audience, and her originally kind face instantly wrinkled into a ball, with dissatisfaction in her eyes.
The Queen Mother has always preferred women with plump figures, believing that such women are more blessed and easier to bear children.
Bai Wutong's winning of the emperor's favor was, after all, just an accident.
But now, the aesthetic taste of the entire capital city has quietly changed because of Bai Wutong. All the beauties in front of her are skinny, which makes the empress dowager's dissatisfaction reach its peak!
If she had not lost as much power as before, she would have long ago given the order to expel all those beauties who did not please her, leaving no one behind!
However, Zhang Chengyan's opinion was completely different from that of the Queen Mother.
He looked around the stage with great interest, his eyes moving over the beauties, a look of satisfaction on his face.
Finally, his eyes fixed on a woman in the front row.
This woman's appearance and temperament vaguely resemble those of Jin Weige back then, but she is also unique in her own way.
She is slimmer and more slender than Jin Weige, and the delicate charm between her eyebrows and eyes adds a different kind of charm to her.
It can be said that she skillfully combines Jin Weige's brightness and Bai Wutong's gentleness.
Bai Wutong followed his gaze and saw the eye-catching woman.
She nodded slightly and whispered to herself, "Well, she is indeed good-looking. Compared with me when I first entered the palace, she is not inferior, and even better."
However, looking closely at her features, it seemed a little unnatural, and I thought she must have done something secretly.
She must have sought help from someone skilled in bone-pushing techniques, as there was a faint blush on both sides of her cheeks.
However, this did not make her look awkward, but instead added a bit of charm to her.
This time, without the interference of the Queen Mother and the obstruction of Bai Wutong, Zhang Chengyan was able to choose the beauties according to his own wishes.
With a flourish of his pen, he personally selected a few names, including the woman whose eyes caught his eye.
The selected beauties were so excited that their eyes were filled with tears and their joy was beyond words, just like when Bai Wutong was selected.
The unsuccessful contestants looked disappointed and gloomy.
Bai Wutong looked calm, "Your Majesty, are you going to choose these few? Or, pick a few more?"
Zhang Chengyan looked at her with a smile on his face. He held her hand in front of everyone without disguising himself, and joked with a smile, "Are you jealous? If you don't want me to choose more, just say it. I mainly feel sorry for you. You have given birth to four princes for me. You have worked so hard, so I want to choose a few people to share the burden. Otherwise, I don't want to choose any one."
Bai Wutong pretended to be extremely touched, with tears in her eyes, "Your Majesty, you love me so much, I will die without regrets!"
But a sneer rose in her heart.
Zhang Chengyan had made many sweet promises to Jin Weige and said all kinds of gentle words of love, but what happened in the end?
You only see the new people laughing, but never hear the old people crying!
Jin Weige, who was once a favored princess, is now imprisoned in the cold palace, lonely and helpless, with no one even caring about her sorrow!
After the talent show, Bai Wutong returned to Fengyi Palace.
Chan Er came forward, looking anxious, and couldn't help but say, "Madam, have you seen those new ladies who have entered the palace? They are all imitating you. What should we do?"
Bai Wutong looked calm, waved his hand, and said in a relaxed tone, "Let them be, learn if they want."
"But, Madam, what if the Emperor is deceived by them..."
Bai Wutong interrupted her, "There is no such thing as a single event."
Now she has long since lost interest in Zhang Chengyan’s favor; power is the most important thing!
Of course, she also knew that if Zhang Chengyan favored other women too much, it would inevitably pose a threat to her position.
That night, Zhang Chengyan summoned the new beauty from the palace to sleep with him.
Bai Wutong didn't care about it at all. He fell asleep peacefully and had a good night's sleep.
It was not until the next day that she learned the details of last night from the palace maids.
Zhang Chengyan actually cried out for water three times in a row. The woman's moans could be clearly heard outside the palace. Such shameless behavior was truly shocking!
But Zhang Chengyan was not annoyed. On the next day, he was still energetic and radiant.
Chan'er was indignant, "Your Majesty, everyone says that women should be dignified, but that woman is so shameless, how is she different from those lowly prostitutes? Why does the emperor still favor her so much?"
Bai Wutong sat in front of the window, fiddling with a few pots of blooming flowers and plants. "You don't understand this. Men often like women who appear dignified and virtuous on the surface, but are actually passionate and unrestrained. In my opinion, the emperor will probably dote on her even more in the days to come."
Sure enough, just as Bai Wutong had expected, for several days thereafter, Zhang Chengyan summoned the beauty to sleep with him every night, and even promoted her to Zhaoyi on the third day.
For a time, the new Zhaoyi was in the limelight and was the most favored by everyone.
Looking back on the past, it took Bai Wutong a long time before he finally got his first promotion.
It was not until the fourth day that the newly promoted Zhaoyi finally arrived to pay her respects.
For the first three days, she asked for leave from the emperor on the grounds that she was too tired.
Bai Wutong didn't take her arrogant behavior to heart at all.
If this Zhaoyi had insisted on coming to pay her respects even though she was dragging her tired body, then she might have looked at her with more respect. But now, relying on the emperor's favor, she dared to openly ignore the empress and refuse to pay her respects. Such shallow knowledge and stupid behavior are really nothing to be feared!
The only person who can really pose a threat to her is definitely not someone like Jin Weige who only has beauty and a spoiled temper!
But he is a person like himself, who is well versed in court intrigue and has a deep mind!
Su Zhaoyi walked into the palace, her skirt swaying as she walked lightly. She came to Bai Wutong and bowed gracefully, saying in a soft voice, "Your Majesty, I am so sorry that I am late. I have been very ill for the past three days, so weak that I could hardly get out of bed. Therefore, I was unable to come and pay my respects to you. I hope that you will forgive me and not blame me for this unintentional mistake."
As soon as these words were spoken, the palace instantly became quiet, and all the concubines' eyes fell on Su Zhaoyi.
This newly favored Concubine Su, who had relied on the Emperor's favor and had not come to pay her respects for three days, is now late. How could the Empress let her go so easily?
Under the expectant gazes of the crowd, Bai Wutong had no intention of making things difficult for her. "Sister Su, please get up quickly. You have served the emperor wholeheartedly and tirelessly, and this is a great achievement. It doesn't matter if you haven't come to pay your respects these few days. The emperor's comfort and happiness are the top priority."
Su Zhaoyi was slightly stunned, as if she had not expected that the new queen would let her go so easily.
She walked to her seat, bowed and thanked him, "Thank you, Queen, for your generosity. I will always remember it."
She looked at Bai Wutong again, and her eyes, which originally contained a hint of complacency, now showed a hint of vigilance.
If Bai Wutong had taken the opportunity to attack her and intimidate her, she would have felt that this queen was just a facade, no different from an ordinary jealous woman!
But she acted so magnanimously, as if the three-day absence had never happened, which was really puzzling.
Su Zhaoyi couldn't help but feel puzzled. Could it be that she was really so open-minded that she was willing to give up the emperor's favor to others?
Isn’t she afraid that she will follow in Jin Weige’s footsteps?
Nowadays, all the women in the capital city know the history of Bai Wutong's rise to the throne. The concubines regard her as a role model to learn from, and repeatedly ponder how she stood out in the deep palace and ascended to the throne!
It can be said that they all intend to replicate Bai Wutong's path to becoming the Queen's concubine in the shortest time!
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