Chapter 195 The Fake Daughter of the Imperial Palace 1
In the fifteenth year of Dayin, more than ten years have passed since the turmoil of the previous dynasty and the chaos and disputes in the world. After a long period of recuperation, the dynasty has gradually become prosperous again, and there is vitality everywhere.
Although the founding emperor of the Xin Dynasty was born a peasant, he was well-versed in military strategy and strategy.
In addition, he worked hard to govern the country, accepted advice with an open mind, appointed people based on their merits, and worked hard to make the people live and work in peace and prosperity. He was a rare wise ruler and was praised by people all over the world.
However, no one is perfect. Even if the emperor is wise, he still has some minor flaws. For example, he loves beauties. There are at least 200 beauties in the harem, if not 3,000.
The beauty pageant is held every three years. In addition to arranging marriages for the princes, clan relatives and important ministers, dozens of people are always kept in the palace each time.
However, almost half of these people have never seen His Majesty.
There are too many choices. Even if you are not outstanding, you can't be selected into the palace. But when there is only one man, there will be those who stand out, and there will be those who will be suppressed and will never be able to turn over.
They were looking forward to it day and night and full of confidence at the beginning, but gradually became disappointed and finally despaired.
Once you enter the palace, it's like entering a deep sea. Even a delicate girl like a flower bud will eventually be tortured by the loneliness day after day, and become emaciated and no longer energetic.
Even so, every time there is a talent show, there are still many people flocking to it. They come here either for their family or for themselves, all of them are ambitious and want to have a good future.
As another talent show begins, the palace is bustling with activity.
Small sedan chairs with green curtains stopped at the palace gate. The beauties with different looks and expressions lowered their eyebrows and lined up in four rows in order. They went to the inner palace under the guidance of palace servants.
They will be arranged in Chuxiu Palace, which has always been a temporary residence for concubines. There will be several rounds of screening to decide whether they will leave or stay.
“It’s really impressive.”
Pan Yuyao looked around and couldn't help but sigh.
She was in the outermost row, a little further back, away from the maids in the front who looked very serious and difficult to deal with. Only then did she dare to look around.
Pan Yuyao came from an ordinary family of minor officials. Her father was only a seventh-rank county magistrate, and her county was not a prosperous place. Wasn't she shocked when she first saw the majestic imperial palace?
There was an impolite sneer coming from the side. It wasn't loud, but everyone around could hear it clearly.
Pan Yuyao's face turned red involuntarily. She looked sideways and saw a haughty girl in front of her looking at her with disdain.
There was clear contempt and disdain in his eyes.
"you……"
Pan Yuyao moved her lips a few times, as if she wanted to say something, but after hesitating for a moment, she said nothing.
Before leaving, my parents repeatedly told me not to get into conflicts with others, and that it didn't matter if I didn't get elected, as long as I returned safely.
The nanny hired by her mother also told her many secrets of the palace, and that the period of the selection was a period when accidents were most frequent.
There were countless examples of concubines secretly doing bad things to each other and concubines using concubines to take the blame. Pan Yuyao was terrified, fearing that she would be implicated and lose her life.
Forget it, it’s no big deal to argue about who’s better. Nanny is right, the first bird to stick its head out gets shot. If you want to be safe, it’s better to keep a low profile.
Be cowardly if you want to be cowardly, nothing is more important than life.
Pan Yuyao thought about it and lowered her head a little more. Xiao Shuhui looked down on her even more and made another click of the tongue, wanting to continue provoking her.
Xiao Shuzhen, who was wearing a blue dress next to her, pulled her sleeve and gave her a warning look, indicating that she should stop.
Not only were there palace maids in front, there were also many people following around and behind them, watching in silence, but their every move was definitely under their surveillance.
It could be said that the assessment had already begun from the moment they stepped into the palace.
If you keep making trouble, you will leave a bad impression on those in power, and you will be punished!
Xiao Shuzhen looked at Xiao Shuhui, whose face was full of arrogance, and couldn't help but sigh inwardly.
Her cousin is domineering and impulsive. She is usually spoiled by her parents at home, and her brothers and sisters are used to giving in to her more. As a result, she becomes more and more ignorant of her own limitations and has no idea of her own worth.
She did not agree to let her cousin take part in the palace selection this time, in order to avoid the family being implicated instead of benefiting.
Unfortunately, she had little influence, and the old lady at home actually let her in after being pestered and coaxed for a few days.
Xiao Shuzhen lowered her eyelids. If she was not her biological cousin, but had an inseparable relationship with her, she would be happy to use such a person as a gun. Maybe she could kill two birds with one stone and get rid of several hidden opponents at once.
But that's not possible. Her father's career still depends on her uncle's promotion, unless...
Xiao Shuzhen looked at the most magnificent palace in front of her. Unless she could climb to a high position as soon as possible and then give birth to a royal heir, her uncle and the family would attach great importance to her.
Thinking of this, Xiao Shuzhen shook her head again in her heart.
Now the eldest son of the eldest prince is already two years old. Even if she enters the palace and gains the emperor's favor and gives birth to a child next year, the child will be much younger than the emperor's grandson.
It would never be his turn to take the supreme position.
What's more, there are so many people in the palace, how can she guarantee that she will receive the emperor's favor?
Rather than working hard and ending up being a concubine, it is better to marry the prince and become his consort.
You never know when an opportunity will come to you, but even if it doesn't, it would be nice to have the honor of being a prince's consort for a lifetime.
Xiao Shuzhen silently calculated that the current emperor already had five sons and two daughters, and the eldest prince Su Jingtai and the second prince Su Jingmin were both married.
The eldest prince's wife is the daughter of an important official, while the second prince's wife is just a lady from a Hanlin family. She is noble, but has no real power and can be of little help to the second prince.
But the second prince's mother's family is extraordinary. They were great contributors who helped His Majesty conquer the world back then, and now they still hold some military power.
The mother of the second prince was canonized as a noble concubine at the beginning of the new dynasty. It is said that even the empress had to give her some distance to her at one point.
After all, the imperial concubine was born into a noble family, originally from an official family. Not only was she proficient in poetry and songs, but she was also said to have a beautiful appearance.
In comparison, the queen's background was very humble, and it could even be said that she was the lowest in the palace.
Just an ordinary farm family.
After all, the current emperor was just a peasant, so of course he could only marry a peasant girl.
Who could have imagined at that time that the person who had no food to eat and who spent all day worrying about where to live after his children would one day become the ruler of the world.
If the Queen had not given birth to the Emperor's eldest son, and later gave birth to twins, a boy and a phoenix, on the day Your Majesty invaded the capital, which was considered a great omen, it would be hard to say who would be sitting in the Queen's position now.
However, it is not known whether it is due to aging or some other reason, but it is said that the imperial concubine has not been favored in recent years.
His Majesty only gave her some respect for the sake of the Second Prince, but he never entered her palace again.
The one who is favored now is Concubine Jing, the daughter of the Minister of Personnel, and she has given birth to the fifth prince, Su Jinghe, who should be twelve years old this year.
After her, there was Concubine Li, who had a daughter, His Majesty’s youngest child, who was only five years old.
As for the remaining children, they were the third prince Su Jing'an, whose mother died young and who had been raised by the queen since childhood, and the twin boy and girl that everyone was paying attention to, the fourth prince Su Jingxi and...
The eldest princess Su Youran.
The princess grew up in the deep palace. Although her personality is unknown, it is said that she has an extremely outstanding appearance, with a beauty that can captivate the whole city and the whole country.
Once there was a young man who had just entered the officialdom and met the princess by chance. He fell in love with her after returning and wrote a poem about her beauty that shocked the world. After that, the princess's beauty became more and more famous.
However, the emperor demoted that young man to the lowest position and sent him to a remote area to hold the lowest official position. He has not married yet.
Because he once declared that only the princess was the real gem, and no matter how beautiful other women were, they were all deceitful in his eyes.
Xiao Shuzhen didn't know whether it was true or not, but it was obvious to all that the emperor loved this daughter so much that he would rather give her the stars than the moon. He loved her as if she were his own eyeballs.
The Changle Palace where she lived was the prince's palace in the previous dynasty. Although the palace residence was redivided for various reasons when the new dynasty was first established, the East Palace, which was closer to the front palace, was designated as the palace of the future crown prince.
But the meaning represented by Changle Palace is different, and the area of the East Palace is a whole circle smaller than that of Changle Palace.
If the prince has too many concubines and children in the future, it might be a bit crowded.
From this perspective, the princess appears to be more noble than the prince.
Even so, the emperor was still worried that his beloved daughter was not living comfortably, so he specially asked the officials from the Ministry of Works to renovate the Changle Palace again.
I heard that the interior is decorated like a fairy palace, with dragon feet covering every corner of the palace. Even in the coldest months of winter, it feels as warm as spring.
A lake was dug behind the palace, and various flowers were planted around it, blooming in all seasons.
There are peaches in spring, lotus in summer, chrysanthemums in autumn and plums in winter. The purpose is just to let the princess enjoy the scenery nearby without going to the imperial garden.
You should know that the current emperor is not a wasteful, arrogant and licentious person. Even if he loves beauties, he only enters the harem about ten times a month.
If there is an important event in the court that month, the number of times will be reduced.
Not to mention building large-scale projects for his own enjoyment. This was only done once in the first decade or so of the reign, and that was in the Changle Palace.
The place to live is the best and the one to use is the first one.
No matter where the tribute came from, it would be sent to the princess first for selection. Only after she had selected would it be the turn of others, including the emperor and empress.
Before Xiao Shuzhen entered the palace, her mother specifically warned her not to offend the eldest princess, otherwise she would die without knowing why.
There is news that the imperial concubine's fall from favor was related to her, but it is not known whether it is true or not.
Xiao Shuzhen was lost in thought when the people in front of her suddenly stopped. She was not paying attention and almost bumped into them, causing people around her to look at her.
Xiao Shuzhen blushed slightly, and smiled shyly to those around her politely and modestly.
The others weren't paying attention here. They smiled at each other and then cautiously looked forward. What was going on?
The maids and palace maids at the front quickly ran towards the wall, and the maids and eunuchs surrounding the concubines also shouted in a low voice:
"Stand aside, lean against the wall, keep your head down, don't look around!"
Xiao Shuzhen's heart instantly lifted. Was this a distinguished person passing by? And since the maids in charge of the selection were so cautious, this must not be an ordinary distinguished person.
Even the little concubines are not qualified. This is not the time to pay respects. Adult princes usually don't enter the harem at this time, so only the highest-ranking ones can...
As she thought about it, she followed the crowd and quickly moved to the corner, almost standing against the wall.
After a while, footsteps were heard in the front. It sounded like there were quite a few people, and there seemed to be the sound of bells ringing.
Xiao Shuzhen couldn't help being curious, so she secretly raised her eyes and looked at him secretly.
Dozens of palace maids and eunuchs walked towards this side at a leisurely pace, and in the middle was an extremely luxurious sedan chair carried by eight people.
There were two strings of bells hanging on the head of the sedan chair. As it moved, the bells swayed gently, making pleasant and crisp sounds.
The sedan was covered with a veil, so one couldn't see clearly inside. One could only see a shadowy figure, slender and graceful.
woman?
Xiao Shuzhen looked thoughtful. Which concubine was it?
As the sedan chair moved along, many people knelt down, and all the palace maids and eunuchs pressed their foreheads to the ground, not daring to move, let alone raise their heads.
Then the people serving in front and around also knelt down, leaving the concubines standing there in a daze, not knowing what to do.
Until a light rebuke came from the side:
"It's your highness, Princess. Kneel down!"
Princess?
All the concubines then knelt down, but several of them whose fathers held high official positions and were lively in nature, were still kneeling, but they were still peeking around in surprise.
There are only two princesses in the palace, and the younger one is only five years old. It must not be her. Then it must be the eldest princess who is famous for being the most beautiful.
I don't know if she is really that pretty...
The author has something to say:
Two, four, and six pairs will be updated soon. See you tomorrow.
There are quite a lot of people in this chapter, so let's briefly sort out Ranran's brothers and sisters:
1. Su Jingtai, 25, married, with a two-year-old child
2. Su Jingmin 20, married, born to a concubine (out of favor)
3. Su Jingan 17, adopted son of the Queen, unmarried
4. Su Jingxi 15, twin brother, unmarried
5. Su Youran 15, twin sister (fake haha)
6. Su Jinghe 12 Born to Concubine Jing (favored concubine)
7. Su Mingrui (female), 5 years old, born to Concubine Li (favored concubine)
Three more girls:
Pan Yuyao (daughter of the county magistrate)
Xiao Shuhui (the spoiled one)
Xiao Shuzhen (the elder sister who does the most calculations, and naturally the sister-in-law)
mwah
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