Chapter 369 Follow Your Own Heart
On the second day, the emperor and Jiang Xinyue both woke up early.
The harem was without a master, and even Empress Dowager Wu had passed away. Jiang Xinyue was the biggest master besides the emperor.
The selection of beauties in the palace had to be hosted by her. If not for this, the emperor would not have been willing to let her get up so early while pregnant.
Jiang Xinyue was particularly sleepy this time.
When she was awakened by the magpie and frost in the morning, she couldn't even open her eyes, and was held by the emperor to do her makeup in front of the bronze mirror. The concubines
got up even earlier, getting up before dawn to match their clothes and jewelry, trying several kinds of makeup, trying to bring out their beauty to the fullest.
Mu Qianqian looked at the concubines who were almost dressed up, then looked down at her old clothes that had been washed to a pale color, and hid back in shame.
Wei Shu noticed her movements, leaned over and said a few words to the maid beside her. After a while, the maid walked towards Mu Qianqian holding a set of bright clothes.
Through the heads of many people, Mu Qianqian looked at Wei Shu in surprise. Wei Shu smiled and nodded at her, but did not go over to talk to her.
When Mu Qianqian changed her clothes and came out, all the concubines who were waiting in line to go to the palace selection were amazed.
Scanning her eyes, there was jealousy, envy, disgust, and hostility...
She returned to the waiting line anxiously, pinching the sides of her clothes tightly with both hands, and kept encouraging herself: Mu Qianqian, don't be afraid, you can do it!
She can't fail, can't be a palace maid, and can't be driven out of the palace.
Her father and brother are gamblers, just waiting for her to grow up and sell her for a good price.
If the father-in-law who was buying the concubines hadn't gone to Tongzhou to look for beauties that day, and accidentally saw her who was forced by her father and brother to be sold to a brothel, her life would be over.
If she were a palace maid, with her beauty, no master in the harem would tolerate her.
Wait!
No!
There is a place that can accommodate her. As soon
as the thought came to her mind, she was already thinking about it.
Nanny Duan hadn't come yet, so she quickly rushed into the room, changed out of the bright dress, and put on the old dress that had been washed until it turned white.
Even her carefully combed hair was messed up, and she just casually tied it into a loose bun with a wooden hairpin inserted.
The beautiful face was blocked by her heavy bangs, and the face that was 70% like Jiang Xinyue was only 30% similar in an instant.
Although the ladies didn't understand what she meant by this set of frivolous operations, they were happy to see that a strong competitor was gone.
Huang Yanyu curled her lips in disdain: "What else could it be? She imitated my cousin the Imperial Concubine, and was afraid of being noticed by my cousin, so she wanted to cover up her brilliance first, and didn't want to be noticed by my cousin the Imperial Concubine!"
What she said made some sense.
The first day of the palace selection was held in the Yaotai Palace in Yu Garden.
Yupin and Wenfei also came along.
After all, the emperor said that if the Imperial Concubine was tired, let them take charge of the situation.
Yupin had a hunch that she would soon be promoted in rank, otherwise why would the emperor let her participate in such an important job?
Led by the eunuchs, the concubines lined up in rows of four in the courtyard of the Yaotai Palace. Only the concubines whose names were called could enter the palace for the selection.
"Your Majesty, are there really no concubines that you must keep?"
Jiang Xinyue leaned sideways, leaned against the emperor's ear and whispered, "If Your Majesty doesn't tell me, I can do as I please. Don't blame me then..."
"My heart is all with you, why are you still doubting my sincerity?"
The emperor said with a stern face, "If you keep doing this, I'll be really angry."
The guilty beauty pouted and laughed twice, "I just want Your Majesty to be mentally prepared!"
Prepare for what?
Emperor Xuanwu asked reflexively, but didn't care. Instead, he smiled and touched her head with his forehead, "Yuer, just pick the concubines that suit your taste, who are pleasing to your eyes, and who have good personalities. If you want to keep them, then keep them. Anyway, these people will accompany you to relieve your boredom in the future."
As for him, he has Yueer.
He also has the Sixth Prince and a little princess who is about to be born, plus busy political affairs. Twelve hours a day is not enough. How can he have time to cultivate feelings with new concubines and play little games between men and women?
Yue'er is not enough for him to coax. If he coaxes more, he might as well take his life.
"Announce - Meng Wanqing, the daughter of the Hanlin Academy, Han Ruier, the daughter of the Secretary of the Zhanshi Mansion, and Shi Ruojun, the daughter of the Governor of Yanzhou."
With the eunuchs of the Ministry of Internal Affairs singing the end, the three-day palace selection of concubines began.
There are also several wives of royal relatives in the hall. Among these concubines, not all want to be the emperor's concubines.
There are also some wives who have been decided by each family, but in order to show his respect for those ministers, the emperor will go through the motions and give marriages to the ministers' sons.
This was also a matter of great honor for these noble ladies.
Who could say that their daughter-in-law was well-behaved and had bad morals when she was taught and recognized by Nanny Duan in the palace?
Waves of concubines came in and out, with different expressions on their faces, but they all had one thing in common, that is, they all seemed to be in a trance.
"Did they fail or get selected? Why don't any of them look happy or sad?"
"What's going on?"
"Wei Shu, daughter of Prince Xuan Ruyang, Huang Yanyu, daughter of a wealthy businessman in Yizhou, Mu Qianqian, a commoner selected by the eunuchs, and Su Hongliu, daughter of the Hangzhou salt transport envoy."
Among all the concubines, the most beautiful ones are in this list, and the ones with the most impressive family backgrounds are also in this list.
When hearing "Yizhou", Xi Que looked at Huang Yanyu carefully, and then whispered something in Jiang Xinyue's ear.
Wei Shu was very confident and generous. The noble ladies present nodded frequently, and the emperor also smiled at her lovingly: "Your father often said that you are naughty and have a boyish personality, but when I saw you today, I knew that your father was short-sighted. You are clearly a little lady."
"Thank you, Your Majesty, for the compliment."
Huang Yanyu lowered her head, her expression was full of resentment. This Wei Shu was used to flirting, and she was the one who got the limelight. What did the people behind her have to do with it?
Fortunately, Mu Qianqian had gone crazy and covered up her face that looked 70% like the Imperial Concubine. Otherwise, she would be inferior to them in both appearance and family background, and there would be no hope.
Could it be that Wei Shu had already been selected?
Huang Yanyu was just itching with hatred when she heard a clear female voice saying, "I've heard your sister-in-law mention you several times, but I never had the chance to meet you. It's true that she said you have a straightforward personality." The Prince
of Ruyang was the child of a cousin of the late emperor. Because this cousin protected the late emperor when he was in danger, after the court of Great Yan was stabilized, the cousin was named a princess and was deeply loved by the late emperor.
Later, the princess got married, and the late emperor named the princess's husband the Prince of Ruyang, and the throne was passed down from generation to generation.