An Shuyi nodded, "Don't worry, I was just expressing my feelings to you. I won't do it in front of him." She's not stupid; she wouldn't do something so foolish.
The two finished their drinks before going back to their room to sleep.
Two months passed quickly. The palace was busy with the selection of an empress for the emperor, and the whole country was filled with joy as everyone hoped that their daughters or granddaughters would be chosen by the emperor.
The ministers were not idle either. Half of the ministers in the court urged the emperor to not only choose an empress, but also to choose other concubines.
Unfortunately, no matter what they said, or even if they submitted memorials, it was useless. The emperor simply did not listen and acted as if he had not heard them at all.
An Shuyi and Xia Hua are also very busy. They not only have to deal with the affairs of the harem, but also prepare for the emperor's selection of an empress. They even have less time to rest.
On this day, young women of suitable age from various regions entered the palace to participate in the selection of imperial concubines. Their rosters had been carefully investigated by the Ministry of Revenue before being sent to An Shuyi and Xia Hua.
At the palace gate, the girls were led into the Imperial Garden by palace maids, and then entered the Selection Hall in groups of ten. There were guards and nannies watching over them, and no one dared to cause trouble.
At the beginning, An Shuyi and Xia Hua will look first and pick out the girls with good character. Then the Emperor will choose the Empress from the rest.
The two men sat there, and if they saw a girl they liked, they would have her wait on the side while the others went out. By noon, they had finished looking at all the girls and had selected several dozen.
After the Emperor finished dealing with the matter, he entered the palace and first arranged for the girls to have a meal before making a selection.
After the meal, the Emperor sat in the main seat, with An Shuyi and Xia Hua sitting beside him. Then, the ten girls who had been chosen came in first.
But after selecting dozens of girls, the emperor still didn't choose one. When the selection was finally completed, he didn't announce which one he had chosen, but instead made the girls wait outside.
“Grandmothers, the second young lady of the Dali Temple Minister’s family is acceptable, but I still need your decision,” Yan Zhen said.
An Shuyi nodded and took out the registration paper for the second young lady of the Dali Temple Minister's family. It contained details about her life from childhood to adulthood, as well as who her family members were and how they treated their servants.
After reviewing the information, I found that she was a nice person. She wasn't the gentle and timid type, but she was well-educated and kind to the servants, though not indulgent. Her family was also simple; her parents were still alive, and she had two older brothers.
Her grandfather was the Minister of the Court of Judicial Review, her father worked in the Ministry of Justice, and they had no concubines. They also had her uncle's family, but they were in business.
These were all discovered by the secret guards; they couldn't possibly be faked.
"Zhen'er, invite her in. Ask her directly what she thinks and see if she's willing. Also, tell her that besides choosing an empress, you also want to choose a few concubines this time."
Even though we have this information, we can't falsify it. But if it's well hidden, we won't be able to find it. So we'll still invite the person in and take another look.
This is the selection of an empress; we can't be careless.
Yan Zhen nodded and asked Eunuch Deng to invite the person in.
"Miss Xie, I wish to choose you as my empress. Would you be willing?"
Xie Yayuan was taken aback. Although she had been invited back in and could guess some of the reason, she was still not sure. Being asked so bluntly still surprised her.
After she came in to participate in the selection, how could their opinions matter? In fact, she didn't want to, but her age was just right. Her grandfather said to let her give it a try, even if it didn't necessarily work out.
She would rather marry a man who doesn't have multiple wives and concubines, but the emperor clearly couldn't do that, and she couldn't say she disagreed.
"Your Majesty, are you skilled at selecting concubines?"
“Of course, as the ruler of the world, it is perfectly normal for me to have concubines. Moreover, those ministers have also asked me to select four concubines this time.” After Yan Zhen finished speaking, he glanced at the girl who had her head down, so that he could not see the expression on her face.
"If I were to express my own wishes, would I be convicted?" Xie Yayuan asked again.
If I say yes, will you tell the truth?
"I will not." She couldn't not consider her family.
Yan Zhen said, "Miss, you can raise your head and speak without being reserved. I can understand that you do not wish to be Empress."
Xie Yayuan looked up at the Emperor and was surprised to see how handsome he was. "It's not that I'm unwilling, it's just that I don't want to share a husband with someone else."
An Shuyi said, "There are many women in this world who share one husband, and having three wives and four concubines is also common. Why is it that you just don't want to?"
"Is my grandson really that bad that you can't bear to make sacrifices for him?"
"Your Majesty, the Emperor is well, but I would prefer to choose a husband, have two sons, and grow old together."
Xia Hua said, "Since you are so unwilling, then I will make you enter the palace. Your Majesty, issue the decree to let the second daughter of the Minister of the Court of Judicial Review enter the palace as Empress. I want to see how she chooses a husband, has two sons, and grows old together."
Seeing the angry Empress Dowager, Xie Yayuan was so frightened that she knelt on the ground. Her grandfather was right. After entering the palace, she had to be very careful with her words and actions. Now she had spoken her mind, which had caused her to enter the palace.
Seeing that her face had turned pale with fright after hearing Grandma Xia's words, Yan Zhen hurriedly said, "Grandma Xia, don't scare her like that, or I'll be heartbroken."
An Shuyi and Xia Hua exchanged a glance, stood up, and Xia Hua said, "The wife hasn't even entered the family yet, and you're already protecting her. Fine, we won't get in your way here. Go deal with those girls outside."
"You should have a good talk with this Miss Xie, and when it's about time, have someone escort her out of the palace."
"I understand, Grandma. I'll leave those young ladies outside to you," Yan Zhen said.
"Don't worry!" The two of them went out, and the palace maids and eunuchs were also called out.
After everyone left, Yan Zhen came down. "Miss Xie, please get up. Don't worry, what Grandma Xia said just now was just to scare you."
Xie Yayuan did not get up, but asked, "Does Your Majesty mean that you will not let me become Empress?"
Her mind was in a mess. The Empress Dowager said that the Emperor felt sorry for her even before she was married, implying that she must be the Empress. But the Emperor said it was just to scare her. She couldn't process what was going on.
"No, you are still the Empress. But you can rest assured that there will be no other concubines. There will be no other concubines in the harem besides you."
"How could this be? Even the Emperor..."
Before she could finish speaking, Yan Zhen said, "Everyone has three palaces and six courtyards, but that's other people, not me. I'm willing to choose one husband, have two children, and grow old together with you."
"There are many affairs in the palace, so I may be quite busy and unable to take care of you in some ways. I wonder if you would be willing?"
"Is His Majesty truly capable of having no other concubines?"
"Of course it's true!"
"But how could the Empress Dowager, the Empress Dowager, possibly agree to this!"
"Miss Xie, please rest assured. As long as you trust me, I can only have you. My grandmother and mother won't interfere." Actually, according to his grandmother's wishes, there could only be one person, no more.
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