bookbashuk Chapter 139 Consort Xue
Chapter 139 Consort Xue
Little did Consort Qing know what the Empress was thinking.
She counted on her fingers, "The Empress has one in her belly, Consort De has one in her belly, Consort Li has one in her belly, and Lady Xue has one in her belly, that makes four in total."
"Your Majesty, have you considered what will happen to the imperial heirs born to Consort Li and Lady Xue? Neither of them is qualified to raise them, and as for Lady Xue, who knows what the Emperor will do with her?"
The Empress had considered it, but it wasn't up to her to decide.
"What about those concubines in high positions? Can't we keep any of them until they give birth? Or do you have some other ideas?" the Empress asked.
Consort Qing laughed and said, "Oh dear, what thoughts could I possibly have? I worry about the Second Prince every day."
Just then, it was announced that Consort Xue was requesting an audience.
The Empress was a little annoyed. All this back and forth today, wasn't she tired?
Consort Qing got up, the Empress leaned back for a moment, and then Consort Xue arrived.
She had lost weight, her eyes were lifeless, and she looked as cold and aloof as a delicate porcelain doll. When the Empress saw her, she felt a chill run down her spine, frozen by her expression.
After paying her respects, Consort Xue got straight to the point: "Your Majesty, I have come to ask you for a favor."
The Empress laughed and said, "You must be joking. If you had something to say, you would have told the Emperor. Would he not love you and come to me for help? Is it that the people in the palace are not serving you well, or have they been cutting back on your allowance?"
It means you can come to me for these things, but I can't help with anything else.
Consort Xue looked at her with clear, bright eyes. "Your Majesty, I am the daughter of a criminal, and the Emperor refuses to see me anymore. But I have been in this palace for many years, and it's not that I can't do anything."
"Your Majesty, I know that the Xue family's current prosperity is due to the efforts of Madam Shen and Madam Lin. I cannot let this grudge go unavenged. If Your Majesty is willing to grant my request, I may very well be able to help Your Majesty in the future."
She smiled faintly, "Your Majesty, the younger Shen is far more cunning than the elder Shen. She brought down an entire Duke's mansion with just a single sentence. Are you afraid?"
The Empress was puzzled. "What does the matter of the Duke of Wei's mansion have to do with Lady Shen?"
Lin Guiyou's father and brothers exposed the fact that the heir of the Duke of Wei was colluding with the enemy. This matter was known throughout the court, and the Empress also knew about it.
Consort Xue said, "Someone told me that when Lin Guiyou attempted suicide, Lady Shen persuaded her to stay and also advised her that if she wanted to be promoted, she should ask her father and brothers for help."
That's it!
In fact, this matter may not have anything to do with Shen Shixi. What if she didn't mean it that way, but rather wanted the Lin family father and brothers to gain merit on the border?
But if Xue can hate Shen, it will naturally benefit the Empress, so why should she say anything?
The Empress sighed, "Please accept my condolences."
Execute their entire family!
The scope of the crime was incredibly wide, no wonder the Xue family hated it so much.
"How do you want me to help you?" the Empress asked.
"Consort Li is about to give birth to the imperial heir. That vile woman Lin wants to raise the child, but Her Majesty the Empress knows that I am also unable to give birth. In terms of seniority in the palace, I am certainly more senior than Lin, am I?"
"Do you also want to adopt a dragon child?" the Empress asked.
This is a tricky matter. Will the Emperor agree?
Shen Shixi learned that Lady Xue had entered the Empress's palace. Bai Ping was extremely worried. "Your Majesty, what if Consort Xue misunderstands your words when you helped Consort Jin that day, and thinks that you encouraged the Lin family to report the Xue family, and then harbors resentment towards you? What should we do?"
"That was exactly what I meant. If she's not stupid, she'll know it too. Not only has the Duke of Wei's mansion become too powerful, but it also has no loyalty to the emperor. How can the young master Xue hide what he's done from anyone?"
If she behaves herself, the Emperor will allow her to live out her days in peace; if she doesn't behave, the Emperor will eventually lose patience with her.
How much affection could the emperor possibly have for her?
The emperor was only afraid of being seen as cruel and ungrateful. After all, she was his woman, and he couldn't just kill her without batting an eye. Moreover, she had lived deep in the palace for so long that he really didn't know about her family's situation, which was why he didn't touch her.
But to say that the emperor could sleep with her is impossible. He killed her entire family and then slept with her. How could he be so heartless!
Aren't you afraid of being strangled to death in the middle of the night?
After the New Year's holiday, Shen Shixi was given a red mark. The emperor did not come to Zhaoyang Palace for several days, and several of the new concubines who entered the palace this year were summoned to the emperor's bedchamber. Except for Xie Tingwan, she was pregnant.
It feels like it's the end of the year, a time to finish up all the backlogged tasks, and also like it's the end of the year, a time to reward the imperial concubines.
Among the elderly, the Empress and Consort De are pregnant, Consort Xue is neglected, Consort Qiong has long been out of favor, Lady Song has probably already been reincarnated, and Lady Fan, Lady Yuan, and Lady Guo, the Emperor probably won't even remember these three people until they die.
Yang Tingyue was also summoned to the emperor's bedchamber, but the emperor did not favor her and did not even see her. He simply let her sleep alone in Yanxi Hall for one night, but no one else knew this!
She became as smug as a monkey, and even on cold days, she would have loved to come in and show off whenever she passed by the Zhaoyang Palace gate, if Shen Shixi hadn't prevented her from entering.
Bai Ping and the others were furious.
Shen Shixi found it amusing. Yang Tingyue thought she didn't know, but Chaoyu was able to get some trivial information from Qianyuan Palace, such as the fact that the emperor didn't want Yang Tingyue to serve him in bed.
This is the downside of the Empress not holding morning meetings; it prevents Yang Tingyue from showing off in front of everyone. But the Empress really can't hold them; the further along her pregnancy progresses, the heavier her body becomes.
Although the emperor was on holiday, he didn't get a break. Some urgent matters came to him, and he still had to deal with them. On the eve of the Lunar New Year, the emperor came to Zhaoyang Palace.
Having finished dealing with matters concerning both the imperial court and the harem, Shen Shixi couldn't help but find it amusing to see him looking so relaxed.
"Your Majesty, you're finally back! I've missed you so much!"
Shen Shixi lunged at him, and Li Yuanke caught her. "You miss me? Why don't you come to Qian Yuan Palace to find me?"
Clearly, they didn't believe her; Shen Shixi was busy celebrating the New Year these past few days.
The palace staff distributed rewards, with the maids receiving jewelry and clothes, and the eunuchs receiving perfume and clothes. The highest reward was twenty taels of silver and a small mirror, while the lowest was six taels. Everyone was delighted and deeply grateful to Shen Shixi.
Therefore, the moment Li Yuanke stepped into the gates of Zhaoyang Palace, the feeling of the New Year was particularly strong.
"What are you doing?"
"I'll make firecrackers, not the kind made by exploding bamboo. I'll show you in a bit! Your Majesty, have you had your dinner?"
"No, I want to use it with you."
"Oh, Bai Ping, have the kitchen prepare a spicy chicken, a sweet and sour pork ribs, a steamed pork with rice flour, and a stew of pickled bamboo shoots and pork belly for the Emperor. The spicy chicken should be briefly fried in oil before stir-frying."
"yes!"
Upon hearing this, Li Yuanke felt hungry.
Shen Shixi finished making a firework and asked Li Yuanke to stand inside the hall. She took an incense stick, covered her ear with one hand, and lit the fuse in fear. Then she quickly ran into the hall and hid in Li Yuanke's arms.
Fireworks burst forth, like a dream.
Everyone who had never seen such a beautiful sight was mesmerized.
"It's so beautiful. Master's hands are so skillful; he can do everything," Lan Ying couldn't help but praise.
Shen Shixi looked up at Li Yuanke like a child, her bright, sparkling peach blossom eyes shining. Li Yuanke smiled, lowered his head, and kissed her lips. "Xi'er is amazing!"
Shen Shixi laughed smugly, like a child, "What's so great about me? Do you know who's the best at this?"
"Who is it?"
"Those Taoist priests who practice alchemy often blow up their furnaces, and the effects they produce are even more spectacular than this. However, if used properly, this can be very powerful. Does Your Majesty remember the explosion that happened in Beisha back then? The one that blew up half of the royal palace?"
Li Yuanke certainly remembered that when Beisha besieged and intercepted Shen Shixi, Shen Shixi sent people to bomb Beisha's palace, killing several concubines and even two princes.
This deterred Beisha, allowing Shen Shixi to escape danger completely.