"Your Majesty...please...Your Majesty, please have mercy!"
With that, he tossed out the card that the Queen wanted most.
"Oops! It's burnt!"
The Queen pushed the cards aside triumphantly, "Come on, come on... pay up!"
"What the hell!"
"I'm not playing anymore!"
Consort Shu threw a tantrum.
"You two, master and servant, are working together in cahoots. Who can outmaneuver you? This is pointless! I'm done playing!"
"Yeah... I'm not playing anymore..."
Consort De chimed in, "We've been playing all day and losing all day. If we keep playing, my two children in the palace will starve."
The Empress watched them pretend quietly, and said with a smile, "The Crown Prince and Jin'er are both in the Southern Study, being cared for by His Majesty. They won't starve. But my son is still so young and needs money. If you don't want to play, you can settle all the money you lost today!"
Tsk...
We can't get away with this!
The two exchanged glances and reluctantly handed over the silver.
Just then, Chunyu came over to report that dinner was ready, so they took the opportunity to clear away the mahjong table.
They knew each other well and didn't stand on ceremony; they ate and chatted.
Consort Shu was young and had some infatuation with the emperor when she first entered the palace, but now her heart is as hard as iron.
She said to the Empress, "Sister... His Majesty said those things to Consort Xian in front of you today, which was really too much."
We don't really care about these things, anyway, His Majesty has never paid any attention to us, he just keeps us as mascots.
But my older sister is different.
Back then, my elder sister was also the most favored concubine in the harem. Even the deposed empress didn't dare to raise her head in front of you. You were the one His Majesty truly loved.
But looking at how much His Majesty dotes on Consort Xian now, it's even more so than you did back then.
"Sister, Consort Xian's status is special; she represents the entire Southern Dynasty. What if His Majesty truly becomes infatuated with her beauty and cannot extricate himself?"
Consort Shu expressed her concerns.
"yes…"
Consort De was also somewhat unsure, "What if Consort Xian, relying on His Majesty's favor, whispers in his ear? After all, the incorporation of the territory north of the Muyang River in the Southern Dynasty into the Great Jing territory was thanks to the efforts of your Xuan family. If Consort Xian were to..."
She didn't finish her sentence.
Upon hearing this, the Empress laughed, put down her chopsticks, and asked, "You don't trust His Majesty?"
The two were taken aback by her direct question and were momentarily at a loss for words.
"Actually, I don't trust His Majesty either!" The Empress's smile remained unchanged, but her eyes were unfathomable. "But I trust the Xuan family's hundreds of thousands of troops in the southern border, and I trust my son even more; he will be a very good heir!"
She secured her position as empress not because of the emperor's favor, but because of it!
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