Chapter 30: Rage
The morning court was not over until near noon.
Xuan Yi returned to Jingming Palace and sat behind his desk, supporting his forehead with his hand, not reading a single word on the memorial.
This morning, he was lost in thought for several times, his mind full of the beautiful scenes of last night.
It made him feel so frightened that he couldn't control his reason.
"His Majesty…"
Zhuang Yu, standing by, asked tentatively, "It's time for lunch. Your Majesty, would you like to summon a concubine to serve?"
"…Need not."
Xuan Yi's expression slightly withered as he lowered his eyes to look at the memorial: "Serve the meal."
"yes."
Zhuang Yu hunched over and retreated, shaking his whisk suspiciously.
Your Majesty's expression, does it look like he's angry...
Inside the hall, Xuan Yi put down the memorial and stood up. He walked to the bookshelf and took out the painting of the shy beauty. He used his fingertips to carefully trace the outline of the person in the painting.
His father, the late emperor, favored a concubine and neglected the empress, which led to him being framed and thrown into a dry well.
Therefore, after he ascended the throne, although he had no feelings for love between men and women, he never missed the rule of visiting the queen every month, and he never showed favoritism to other concubines who had served him in bed.
What he did last night was already a foul for him...
"Your Majesty, the Empress and the Crown Prince are here."
A boy of four or five years old followed the queen into the hall, and timidly stepped forward to pay his respects.
"Your Majesty, I have seen you."
"Child, I have met my father..."
"Um."
Xuan Yi rolled up the portrait and put it back into the grid, then turned around and sat back down at the desk. He glimpsed his only son grabbing the queen's clothes with a sudden jerk, and couldn't help but frown.
"come over."
“…”
The Queen gritted her teeth secretly, bent down and pushed her son: "Father asked you to go over, go."
“…Wu…”
Xuan Rui pouted and his eyes turned red. He hunched his shoulders and moved forward a little, lowering his head and not daring to look at anyone.
"Father, Emperor..."
Xuan Yi's jaw tightened slightly, his dark eyes stern. "I asked your teacher this morning, and besides the Three Character Classic, you couldn't even recite the complete Hundred Family Surnames. And yesterday, you even skipped class to play in the lotus pond. Do you know where you went wrong?"
“…Wuwu…”
The queen's face changed in shock and she hurried forward and knelt down.
"Your Majesty, please forgive me. It's all my fault for not being able to discipline him properly. Rui'er is still young, so it's inevitable that he will be naughty and playful. I will definitely supervise him well..."
"The Queen."
Xuan Yi raised his eyes, his expression indifferent: "A loving mother often spoils her child. Remember your identity."
"...Yes, I will remember your Majesty's instructions."
Xuan Yi lowered his eyes to look at the frightened child who was sobbing uncontrollably. "Go back and copy the Hundred Family Names ten times as punishment. The teacher's class will continue as usual."
"Uh, uh, uh..."
The Queen quickly replied, "Yes, I will definitely urge him to complete it, Your Majesty, you..."
"Get out."
"…yes."
The hall fell silent again, Xuan Yi frowned and rubbed his forehead.
Xuanrui was his eldest legitimate son, and he naturally had high hopes for him. However, for some reason, this eldest son always looked afraid when he saw him, and he really couldn't find a way to get closer to him.
…
The queen entered Zhaohua Palace with a gloomy expression and violently overturned an expensive porcelain vase.
“Wooah!”
Xuan Rui's eyes were already red and swollen from crying, and now he was frightened and opened his mouth wide and cried until his voice became hoarse.
“Stop crying!”
The Queen roared in anger, "You cry all day long! You can't even speak clearly to your father. What's the point of giving birth to you?"
"Your Majesty, calm down!"
Li Ma Ma hurriedly asked the palace maid to carry the child out: "Your Majesty, what are you doing? The eldest prince is still young and can't help being frightened. Even if you are angry, please don't say harsh words in front of the child."
"I've had enough!"
The Queen sat down panting, her eyes red. "I put so much thought and effort into giving birth to him, and now look at him, he's already five years old and can't even speak clearly. He's timid and submissive, not only doesn't he have any of his father's intelligence and aura, but he also brings shame to me!"
"Your Majesty, what are you talking about? Your Majesty is very talented, and the eldest prince is naturally a rare talent. We can slowly teach him in the future. Why do you have to do this?"
Nanny Li waved away the palace maid who was cleaning up the debris on the ground and sighed inwardly.
"Your Highness, I know you are in a bad mood right now, but the eldest prince is the hope for you and the Shen family's future. You must not lose your composure because of a mere concubine."
“…”
The queen took a deep breath, her eyes cold.
"How can I be at ease? You are also an old man from the palace. In the years since His Majesty ascended the throne, apart from staying in my Zhaohua Palace on the first and fifteenth days of the month, when have you ever seen him stay overnight in any of the concubines' rooms? How many days has Su Ci only been in the palace? How many times has His Majesty seen her? He gave her such a big face, how can I not be anxious!"
"Your Majesty, are you distracted again?"
Nanny Li frowned and spoke earnestly, "Didn't you already know that His Majesty was using her to warn the Shen family? Why are you so angry? Isn't this playing into Su Yan and Su Ci's hands?"
The queen sneered.
"I thought so before, but I was the Crown Princess for three years and the Queen for five years. I understand His Majesty much better than you do. He can't go to such lengths to suppress the court officials. If he says he has no feelings for Su Ci, I will never believe it!"
Nanny Li sighed secretly.
"Your Majesty is the Son of Heaven, and you visit the imperial concubines for the sake of the heir. The Queen Mother is dissatisfied with you because the harem is too quiet. Your Majesty, please listen to this servant's advice."
"Now that Su Zhaorong is definitely unable to conceive a prince, you should stop giving the several concubines who follow you the medicine and let them distract Su Zhaorong from her favor. This will not only relieve the Empress Dowager's resentment, but also ensure the future of our eldest prince."
"…hehe."
The queen twitched her lips, her eyes red and watery: "I really regret it. Back then, I used strong drugs to conceive a dragon heir, but I never thought that it would cause me to almost have a difficult labor. From now on, I can no longer get pregnant. Otherwise, if I had more children, I wouldn't have to go through so much trouble like now..."
"Why did you bring up those things again, Madam?"
Nanny Li glanced cautiously behind the curtains and said, "Your Majesty, our eldest prince is the legitimate son of the empress, and the rightful heir. Your Majesty is such a stickler for rules, even if there are other princes, he won't be easily shaken in his decision to establish a crown prince."
"Baorong Palace is clearly dissatisfied now. Your Majesty's actions last night were a clear warning. You should take advantage of the fact that Su Zhaorong is still young and let the other concubines share your favor. You are the Queen Mother. As long as you raise the princes and princesses born by them by your side, won't everything be under your control?"
"Also, the Shen family has not yet cleared themselves of the case. The master and his wife sent a message yesterday, asking Your Majesty to be cautious and to find some support for the Shen family. If you can show some favor and allow the concubines to sleep with you, their families will naturally help the Shen family through this difficult time."
"Your Majesty, you can't just focus on your relationship with His Majesty right now. The future is the most important thing."
“…”
The queen closed her eyes and clenched her hands tightly.
"The fifteenth is the day after tomorrow. Please arrange the meals for His Majesty in advance. Let Liu Xiuyuan serve the meal. She is a bit stupid, but her father is the Minister of War. If she puts in some effort, she should be able to help the Shen family get through this difficult time."
"Your Majesty is wise."
…
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