Chapter 292: Concubine Ying is defeated
In the following days, Song Zhao dominated almost all the concubines.
Because she was pregnant, Xiao Jingheng accompanied her every day. The empress dowager also asked for rare bone-retaining Buddhist beads from a Buddhist temple, and asked a master to chant sutras and consecrate them. She also told Song Zhao to wear them every day to ensure the safety of mother and child.
On the fourth day of May, which was Song Zhao's birthday, everyone in Suzhou had a great time because of her.
Although Xiao Jingheng and the Queen Mother did not say it explicitly during the banquet, their words implied that they would promote Song Zhao to the position of Imperial Concubine after she gave birth safely.
Yes,
After all, the only imperial concubine locked herself in her room every day and refused to see anyone, and even made Xiao Jingheng be turned away for five consecutive days.
Men all like submissive women, not to mention that Xiao Jingheng is the emperor?
He originally wanted to reconcile with Ning Wanshuang, but repeated setbacks made him lose face as an emperor, and later he simply stopped going to her room.
Song Zhao was pregnant this time, and because she was outside the palace, it was much more convenient for Rong Yue to move around privately, so she took extra care of Song Zhao.
She paid close attention to everything that concerned Song Zhao and the safety of the unborn prince.
Even the food that was sent to Song Zhao every day, even though it had been checked three times by the people in the kitchen, the people in the imperial court, and the people in Song Zhao's room, Rong Yue still had to check it again to make sure it was perfect.
Before the meal that day, Song Zhao saw Rong Yue's attentiveness and said jokingly:
"Now that I'm pregnant, I've become a burden. I hope my sister can feed me mouthful by mouthful of food."
Rong Yue said, "This thing is related to the health of you and your child, how can we be careless? I am very afraid that another rattlesnake like Huipin will appear, so don't plot against you in secret."
As she spoke, she checked all the dishes and smiled with relief.
"Okay, this will work. I saw you liked the shrimps yesterday, so I picked some fresh ones today. You can try them."
Yunshan was supposed to do the job of preparing the meal, but with Rongyue around, she couldn't help and could only jokingly say:
"Master Tong comes here every day, and has made me lazy~"
Rong Yue smiled and said to Song Zhao in a low voice:
"I just got a story, and I'm telling you about it, just for fun while we eat."
Song Zhao asked curiously: "What?"
Rong Yue put down her bowl and chopsticks, moved closer to Song Zhao, and lowered her voice and said, "The acne on Concubine Yao's face has become more serious in the past few days, and it has also developed symptoms of ulceration and pus."
Song Zhao's expression changed slightly. "When I saw her last time, she looked much better, didn't she?"
Rong Yue sneered and shook her head, "She eats hotpot with Concubine Ying every day, so it's all her own fault. Hotpot is a food that makes you get angry, and I heard that they also added mutton to the hotpot.
Mutton is hot in nature, and the summer heat is just the time when internal internal fire is rampant. If you eat too much of that kind of food that increases internal fire, you will naturally get acne.
I have also seen her in private. Concubine Yao felt that she was not beautiful because of the acne she had, so she used powder to cover it up. If the acne broke and pus oozed, it would probably leave scars. "
Song Zhao thought about it for a moment and understood what the other party was planning, so he said:
"Is Concubine Ying trying to monopolize the favor?"
Rong Yue said calmly, "It's no wonder she has such a plan. Now that the Queen and Huipin have returned to the palace, the Imperial Concubine and the Emperor are not on good terms, I just had a miscarriage and you are pregnant, so neither of you can sleep with the Emperor. If Yaopin's face gets bad again at this time, then wouldn't Yingfei be the only one standing out?"
As he spoke, he gently stroked Song Zhao's belly and said with a hint of meaning: "After all, you are blessed to be pregnant, and others also want to get a taste of your luck."
"idiot."
Song Zhao put a shrimp into his mouth, chewed it slowly, and then sneered:
"After Concubine Ying made such a fuss, how could the Emperor not see what we could see? This method of competing for favor is cheap and stupid. How could the Emperor continue to favor her as she wishes?
"Tomorrow we will set off for Lin'an. The local officials will send carefully selected innocent women to serve the emperor. Jiangnan women are as gentle as water. How can the emperor still think of her who was born in Ada and only knows how to bend the bow and shoot eagles?"
Song Zhao sneered, then said after a pause, "If you ask me, Concubine Ying must use up her favor thoroughly before she can feel at ease."
"Who cares about others?" Rong Yue held Song Zhao's hand tightly. "The more they make trouble, the better. Just think of it as paving the way for you."
The next day, the emperor set out for Lin'an.
By water, they arrived at Lin'an City two days later.
Lin'an Governor Chen Kuangxiang and Navy Commander Tong Chishan, along with local civil and military officials, came to greet the emperor.
The welcoming banquet was held at the Xianyu Villa in Lin'an.
The late emperor loved the south of the Yangtze River, and this imperial garden was built by his order.
Upon hearing that the emperor was coming, this place was cleaned up two months in advance for Xiao Jingheng and his concubines to stay and rest.
Today's dinner is very lively.
Not only are the dishes exquisite and delicious, but there are also performances of Kunqu Opera, Pingtan Opera and Yue Opera.
In recent years, Lin'an has made good progress in water management, and Tong Chishan's "Essentials of Water Management" has been highly praised by the whole country.
Seeing the hero today, Xiao Jingheng was delighted and drank a few more cups without realizing it.
During the banquet, Ning Wanshuang excused herself from the banquet on the grounds of feeling unwell. The remaining concubines were listening to music and watching opera when they unknowingly noticed that Xiao Jingheng seemed to be a little drunk.
The Queen Mother was not present, and Ning Wanshuang left first. Among the female family members present now, Song Zhao, who holds the power to assist in managing the six palaces, has the most honorable position.
Normally, she should have advised Xiao Jingheng not to drink too much.
But men's affairs at the drinking table are all about saving face. If Song Zhao spoke out to advise him now, the court officials would think that Xiao Jingheng was drunk, which would be embarrassing.
So she said nothing, but told Yunshan to use a purple clay pot to serve a cup of sobering soup to Xiao Jingheng.
When Xiao Jingheng was drinking tea, he noticed that the taste was not right, and he understood what Song Zhao meant.
In this way, the emperor's face was taken into consideration, and the empress's duty of advising and admonishing was fulfilled, thus achieving the best of both worlds.
At this moment, Rong Yue, who was sitting behind Concubine Ying, whispered to Concubine Ying.
"Empress Ying, we see that the emperor is a little drunk. It is the responsibility of the concubines to advise him, but Concubine Yi is sitting there motionless, which is probably against the rules."
When Concubine Ying heard this, she thought to herself,
Song Zhao was not thoughtful enough and acted unruly during her pregnancy. She has the highest rank among the remaining concubines, so she has to behave herself well.
Then he stood up and bowed to Xiao Jingheng, saying:
"Your Majesty is a little drunk. I think he must be tired after two days of traveling by sea. How about I take care of Your Majesty and let him rest today, and then we can go tomorrow..."
"No need." Xiao Jingheng interrupted Concubine Ying in a cold voice, "I am happy to see you all today, so you should enjoy yourself. If Concubine Ying is tired, you can go back and rest first."
"this......"
Concubine Ying was left aside in an awkward situation.
Fortunately, the governor of Lin'an said at the right time,
"Since Your Majesty has come to Lin'an, how can you not appreciate the beauty of West Lake? The boat has been prepared. It will be a special experience to cruise on West Lake at night."
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