Chapter 17: Take Refuge in Concubine Chen
Upon hearing this, the Concubine Chen's face immediately fell.
She glared at Concubine Yun, and her fierce eyes fell on Concubine Shu's lower abdomen, with a hint of disappointment flashing between her brows.
But he soon straightened up again, regaining his usual arrogant demeanor, and sneered:
"Shu Fei has a round belly. She is a blessed person. How could she have the same bad luck as me?"
Before Song Zhao entered the palace, he knew that the first person in the harem to announce the good news of her pregnancy would be the favored Concubine Chen.
However, she was unlucky. When she was six months pregnant, she fell at the door of her own uterus, and the baby was gone.
I heard that Xiao Jingheng always felt indebted to her because of this matter, and after she recovered, he doted on her even more than before.
And what she just said to Shu Fei was actually not a good thing.
It is said among the people that a round belly means a girl, while a pointed belly means a boy. When Chen Fei said that Shu Fei had a round belly, she was actually hinting that even if she gave birth to this baby, it would most likely be a princess, which was better than nothing.
Shu Fei naturally understood the hidden meaning of her words, and the smile on her face froze.
The Concubine Chen glanced at her with disdain, then bowed lazily to the Queen and said:
"The Emperor invites me to have lunch with him, but I am afraid that I will be late and waste time, so I will take my leave now."
After saying this, she turned around and left without waiting for the queen to allow her to leave.
"How insolent!" Concubine Yun looked at Concubine Chen's back and said indignantly, "Concubine Chen is so unruly, doesn't the Empress care about her?"
The queen always maintained a dignified demeanor, with a faint smile on her lips, neither shy nor annoyed.
She pretended not to hear Concubine Yun's complaints, looked at Concubine Shu and said, "You haven't met the new concubines in the palace yet. Now that they are all here, you can get to know them."
As soon as these words came out, Song Zhao and Li Guiren stood up and bowed to Shu Fei.
"I greet Madam Shufei. May Madam Shu be well and safe."
Shu Fei's gentle eyes swept over the people one by one and asked, "Which one is Li Guiren?"
Concubine Li stepped forward and said, "Madam Shufei, I am Concubine Li."
Shu Fei smiled, "The wild ginseng you gave me is indeed of excellent quality. I like it very much."
Li Guiren bowed deeply again, unable to hide her joy, and said, "As long as the Majesty likes it, that's good. In fact, if I were to ask this concubine, the Majesty's belly is slightly bulging, and the shape is not round but rather blunt, so it's most likely a prince~"
"How can you tell the gender of a baby if there's nothing in the horoscope?"
Although Shu Fei said this, seeing that she was covering her face and laughing, she was also happy because of Li Guiren's words.
Later, she chatted with Xiao Changzai and Liu Changzai in turn. When it was Song Zhao's turn, the smile on her face faded a little. She stared at her face for a long time before saying:
"Song Da Ying is really beautiful."
Song Zhao replied respectfully, "How can a humble concubine like me compare with the ladies? Ahem..."
Today, when she came to pay her respects, she started coughing as soon as she entered.
After Concubine Chen left just now, her coughing became even louder.
The queen asked with concern: "What's wrong with you?"
Song Zhao said timidly, "Ahem... I just caught a cold, and my throat is dry and itchy. I was disrespectful in front of the carriage, and I hope the queen will not blame me."
The Queen said, "That's all right. The weather has been changing a lot lately, so everyone should be more careful."
Everyone said in unison: "Thank you, Queen, for your concern."
Seeing that Song Zhao was coughing badly, the queen said, "There is nothing to do today. If you are not feeling well, go back to the palace and rest."
Song Zhao bowed and said with great fear, "I am the lowest-ranking concubine, and it is inappropriate to ask for my respects and leave early. However, this cold can spread to people, and I am afraid that I will pass the disease on to the queens. I will take my leave today and come back another day to apologize to the queen."
What she said was flawless and no one could find any mistakes.
After Song Zhao bowed and left, only Li Guiren and Xiao Chang whispered a few words to her, but Shu Fei said to the Queen:
"This Miss Song is very polite and has a nice appearance. Why did she only get the position of Miss?"
Unexpectedly, before the Queen could speak, Concubine Li suddenly interrupted.
"Madam Shufei doesn't know yet, right? Song Ying is not like the sisters sitting here who are all born of legitimate parents. She is a concubine's daughter. People born of concubines are not worthy of being on the stage. It is her blessing to be able to enter the palace."
Upon hearing this, Shu Fei tightened her hands slightly around her abdomen.
People born out of wedlock can never be in the limelight?
In doing so, Concubine Li also humiliated the unborn child in Concubine Shu's belly.
The atmosphere in the palace was a little awkward, but Concubine Li was too stupid to realize that she had said the wrong thing.
The Queen saw the displeasure on Concubine Shu's face and had to help Concubine Li out:
"In fact, it doesn't matter what the distinction between legitimate and illegitimate children is. The most important thing is to be liked by the emperor. The late emperor's Empress Zhaoding was also born out of wedlock, but wasn't she also loved by the people of the world? Lady Li, you're going a bit too far."
Concubine Li was embarrassed and looked panicked. She leaned down and said, "I spoke without thinking. I hope the Queen will forgive me."
The queen ordered her to leave, and no one in the imperial concubines bothered with her.
But who knows what they are thinking in their hearts?
Song Zhao, who had gotten away from the storm in advance, stopped coughing after leaving Fengluan Palace, and almost trotted all the way to catch up with the procession of Concubine Chen.
"Empress Chen."
The team stopped for a moment. Concubine Chen stopped and glanced back at Song Zhao, and asked in surprise, "It's you?"
Song Zhao took small steps forward and bowed deeply to Concubine Chen.
"Thank you very much, Madam Chenfei, for your support."
Song Zhaoneng went to the emperor's bedchamber yesterday, and the whole thing from beginning to end was secretly arranged by the Concubine Chen.
She originally just wanted to dampen Li Guiren's arrogance, thinking that Song Zhao's "dignified appearance" would not cause any waves even if he was sent to the emperor.
Unexpectedly, Song Zhao turned a disaster into a blessing and was able to gain the emperor's favor.
"What do you want to thank me for? Didn't the Queen give you the Purple Gold Blood Activating Ointment? You accepted her kindness, and even though you knew that I don't get along with her, you still want to thank me?"
Song Zhao lowered her voice and said, "I can tell who is truly kind to me and who is just pretending. I have been in the palace for a month. If the Queen had wanted to help me, I would have been able to see her face long ago. If it weren't for the Concubine Chen, I'm afraid I would have been in silence for a long time in this deep palace."
The concubine carefully looked at Song Zhao's charming face.
She secretly thought, this woman is so beautiful, so beautiful that it makes her jealous, so beautiful that she wants to tear her face off.
But this woman is really stupid.
It was her first time serving the Queen, and she hadn't even finished paying her respects to the Queen when she saw her leave first, yet she dared to follow her out so openly?
Anyone with a discerning eye could see what she was thinking. Was she in a hurry to cut off her own retreat?
But it’s better this way. There are more and more women in the harem, and I have to keep a few useful people around me.
Thinking of this, Concubine Chen glanced at Song Zhao from the corner of her eye and said lightly:
"Aren't you sick? Stop being so polite and get up."
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