Consort Hua said that the world is changing too fast, and she is having some trouble adapting...
She had been agonizing over this for several days. She had seen plenty of palace maids and eunuchs having affairs, and she had also heard of eunuchs having affairs with each other.
But the emperor and the eunuchs—this was truly beyond her imagination.
Even with a childhood friendship, Su Peisheng's appearance...
In fact, after spending so much time with Sun Miaoqing, Consort Hua understood. This girl appeared obedient and sensible on the surface, but in reality, most of her brain was filled with useless ideas, and she was extremely unconventional.
It's probably Su Fei, no, it's Su Peisheng who offended her somehow, which is why she's making such a fuss about him in her mind.
Otherwise, if such a thing really happened, how come these people didn't notice anything at all? It's clear they're just making it up.
That little girl is prone to overthinking. If others knew that this is all she thinks about, they would never let her off the hook!
*
Shou Kang Palace
Early in the morning, the Empress Dowager had someone "invite" Sun Miaoqing over.
She wanted to see for herself what this Consort Cheng, who was now so popular in the harem, really was capable of.
The Empress was one thing, she was always patient and adept at putting on a virtuous and gentle demeanor to deceive people.
But what about Consort Hua? Is it because her brother Sun Zhuhe was Nian Gengyao's moneybag? That might fool others, but it won't fool her.
Jealousy arising from divine favor is intolerable even among the closest of relatives, let alone these half-sisters.
Therefore, even before meeting the person, the Empress Dowager had already determined that Consort Cheng was sent by the Nian family to help Consort Hua have a son and secure her favor.
As for why it wasn't a daughter from the Nian family who entered the palace...
The prayer beads that the Empress Dowager was spinning in her hand stopped at some point, and her expression became extremely solemn.
Zhu Xi asked, "Empress Dowager, you are the most noble person in the world, why bother with such trivial matters?"
The Empress Dowager said, "Zhuxi, I suspect that the Nian siblings know something about the Huanyi Incense."
Zhu Xi was shocked to hear this. Such a matter was extremely secretive. The emperor had not yet secured his rule, and the northwest was in turmoil.
If Nian Gengyao, far away on the border and holding considerable military power, knew this, and acted rashly in a fit of anger, the entire Qing Dynasty would be thrown into chaos.
Zhu Xi asked in a low voice, "Empress Dowager, why are you suddenly bringing this up?"
"This matter was done discreetly; Consort Hua should not know about it."
"Besides, given Consort Hua's personality, if she really knew what was burning in her Yikun Palace every day..."
"How could he act like nothing happened?"
Upon hearing this, the Empress Dowager realized that she had been overthinking things.
Given Consort Hua's personality, if she really found out that she had been kept in the dark for so many years, it would be strange if she didn't make a big fuss.
As for enduring temporary pain for the sake of the future? The Empress Dowager shook her head; Consort Hua didn't have that kind of shrewdness.
"But Consort Cheng's matter is something I can't figure out. Consort Hua wasn't this close to Consort Li and Noble Lady Cao, so what is she after?"
Zhu Xi said, "Consort Hua has been in the palace for so many years without getting pregnant, so she must be getting anxious. Although the Emperor is still in his prime, he is not as strong as a young man in his twenties. It is only natural that Consort Hua wants to have a child."
"As for why we didn't choose a daughter from the Nian family to enter the palace."
"Your Majesty, please think about it. If another daughter of the Nian family were to give birth to a prince, where would that leave Consort Hua?"
"Consort Hua would have the imperial physician examine her pulse from time to time to see why she had not conceived. It was clear that she had not given up hope and was still hoping to give birth."
The Empress Dowager nodded. "Yes, if there are two princes in the palace with the bloodline of the Nian family, which one should the Nian family support?"
"Such a large family is likely to fall apart and be embroiled in endless internal strife."
Thinking of this, the Empress Dowager suddenly felt a pang of regret. If only she had taken another daughter from the Nian family as a concubine. That way, they could have been evenly matched and their power balanced.
If the emperor's attitude changed even slightly, they could turn the Nian family upside down by their own infighting. If necessary, they could use one of the Nian family's daughters to depose another. No matter how dissatisfied Nian Gengyao was, he wouldn't be able to say anything.
It's a pity I didn't think of that back then; it was a real blunder.
Just as the Empress Dowager was feeling annoyed by this, Sun Miaoqing followed Aunt Zhuying to the outer room to wait, and was only allowed to go in to pay her respects after being notified.
This was, in fact, her first time visiting Shou Kang Palace. According to custom, when a new concubine enters the palace, she is supposed to pay her respects to the Empress Dowager after the audience with the entire palace, but the Empress Dowager found it troublesome and did not see them.
In addition, the first and fifteenth of each month were also the days for all the concubines in the palace to pay their respects to the Empress Dowager. Since the Empress Dowager did not like to see people, these days were omitted.
Therefore, Sun Miaoqing prayed more than once in her heart that the Empress Dowager could continue this glorious tradition and that she should never have to pay her respects again.
Who knew that on this day, which was neither a holiday nor the first or fifteenth of the lunar month, she was the only one called here, and no one knew why.
The furnishings and decorations of Shou Kang Palace are all extremely magnificent, yet compared to Yi Kun Palace, they exude a touch of ancient simplicity and grandeur. It's unclear who arranged it, but with such ingenuity, they have managed to harmonize these two seemingly contradictory styles so perfectly.
"Your Highness, the Empress Dowager requests your presence."
"Thank you, Aunt Zhuxi."
Sun Miaoqing curtsied to Zhu Xi and followed him into the inner room. The Empress Dowager was sitting on the kang (a heated brick bed), engrossed in reading a copy of the Lotus Sutra.
"Your Majesty, I pay my respects. May Your Majesty enjoy boundless blessings and peace."
The Empress Dowager ignored her and continued looking at the scripture, as if there were truly some wonderful Dharma in that page of the scripture, which made her so immersed in it that she could not extricate herself.
This time, Ma Wei's tactic was old-fashioned, but effective...
Fortunately, it was winter, and there was a thick carpet on the ground. Shou Kang Palace was also burning floor heating, so it was still bearable for a short time.
Sun Miaoqing refused to believe that the Empress Dowager would actually make her kneel for an hour without a reason. If she really wanted to make things difficult for her, she shouldn't blame her for faking it.
She'll miscarry as soon as she gets back; let's see how she explains it to Big Fat Orange.
I don't know how much time passed, maybe a quarter of an hour, or maybe half an hour.
The Empress Dowager finally felt that it was enough, closed the Lotus Sutra, turned her head and saw Sun Miaoqing kneeling on the ground, her face showing surprise.
"When did Consort Cheng arrive? And why is she still kneeling? I'm getting old and my memory isn't what it used to be. Why didn't Zhu Xi remind me?"
Zhu Xi quickly lowered her head and said, "It's my fault."
The Empress Dowager said, "Hurry up and help Consort Cheng up. Pregnant women need to be extra careful."
Sun Miaoqing said, "Thank you for your grace, Empress Dowager."
"When I came here, I saw that the Empress Dowager was sincerely performing Buddhist rituals, so I dared not disturb her."
Smiling on the outside, cursing inwardly, being forced to kneel and be harassed while still being grateful—what kind of logic is that!
The Empress Dowager said, "I heard that the Emperor likes you very much, so I called you here to see you."
"Everyone says that a girl changes a lot as she grows up, and I didn't believe it before. But now that I've seen you, I have no choice but to believe it."
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