bookbashuk Chapter 76 I'll be a parasite for the rest of my life.
Chapter 76 I'll be a parasite for the rest of my life.
[Is Lady Pei out of her mind? Does she think that by getting Yang Tingyue into Li Yuanke's harem, someone will punish me? She was drugged herself, and instead of trying to find the culprit, she's targeting me? Does she think that if I die, Li Yuanke will become a good husband? How interesting!]
Whether the Empress thought this way or not is unknown, but in any case, she genuinely wanted Yang Tingyue to enter the harem.
That's exactly what I was thinking.
Shen Shixi is currently invincible, but she needs someone to restrain her.
Do you really think those in power have some clever methods? It's nothing more than the art of checks and balances.
The Empress smiled and said to the Emperor, "Your Majesty, no matter who Tingyue's chosen husband is, Your Majesty will grant her wish, won't you?"
The emperor glanced at her, his expression unreadable, and said, "The Empress is virtuous, but Tingyue's marriage will be handled by the Empress Dowager."
The Empress Dowager asked, "How is the Second Prince doing with you? The Empress has never given birth, so she probably doesn't know how to be a good mother. It's not appropriate for the Second Prince to be raised in the Empress's palace for so long. Your Majesty, you should return the Second Prince to his birth mother."
Presumably, after this incident, Kyung So-won has learned to restrain her temper.
This is a warning to the Empress.
"Yes, Your Majesty!" Although the Empress may not have wanted to raise the Second Prince, the Empress Dowager's words clearly implied that she was not fertile, which embarrassed her and left her speechless.
"Aunt!" Yang Tingyue cried out. The Empress Dowager's actions showed her displeasure with the Empress's arrangements for her.
Shen Shixi rolled her eyes at her. "Yang Tingyue, is that all you've got? Wouldn't it be better to find a wealthy family in the capital and become the mistress of the house? Why are you so eager to become someone's concubine? What are you after?"
The Empress Dowager also glanced at Yang Tingyue with displeasure. She did not object to her niece becoming her son's concubine, but her son did not like it. Could she force him to do so?
She saw that the Empress wanted to use Yang Tingyue to rival Shen Shixi.
Yang Tingyue retorted angrily, "What's it to you? If you're so capable, why don't you go to the palace!"
Shen Shixi was also annoyed. "Why wouldn't I enter the palace? It was the Emperor who ordered me in, so of course I'm coming. In terms of character, appearance, physique, talent, and martial arts, there's no one better in the world than the Emperor. If I'm going to choose, I'll choose the best. Why wouldn't I come in?"
Yang Tingyue jumped to her feet, stomped her foot, and pointed at her, "You, you, you, you're just jealous!"
If you can get married, why can't I?
Shen Shixi was just trying to annoy her.
"So what if I'm jealous? The Empress can't be jealous, but why can't I, a concubine? I've only ever heard of divorcing a wife, never divorcing a concubine! Yang Tingyue, I'm just jealous, I just don't want the Emperor to take you into the palace, what can you do about it?"
The Empress laughed, "Consort Yuan, that's not right. As the saying goes, 'Help others achieve their dreams.' Since Sister Tingyue wants to be our sister, why not grant her wish?"
Shen Shixi rolled her eyes. "To let her be beautiful while I am not? I don't have that kind of magnanimity. I wish the Emperor's harem would all die out, leaving only me. What then?"
Even the Empress has been insulted.
Li Yuanke said, "Shut up! What nonsense are you spouting? Don't you have any self-control?"
"No!" Shen Shixi said, "Her Majesty the Empress and His Majesty are a loving couple, and I'm sure Her Majesty thinks so too. I was just speaking the truth about what we women think. If we really had to take action, I haven't yet come up with a good way to eliminate them all at once."
The Empress Dowager was utterly speechless. She slammed her hand on the table. "I'm still here! What nonsense are you spouting? Go kneel in the Buddhist hall for a while, and if I hear you say anything like this again, I will not let you off easily!"
"Yes!" Shen Shixi followed Aunt Qingruo to the Buddhist hall.
She knelt down on the prayer cushion that the Empress Dowager usually used for worshipping Buddha, and watched Aunt Qingruo light incense.
"Her Majesty the Empress Dowager didn't mean to punish you, Your Highness. Please don't take it to heart. If what you said gets out and people take it to heart, it could be disastrous. The Empress Dowager is only doing this for your own good!"
Shen Shixi said, "Auntie, you're being too polite. How could I not know that the Empress Dowager dotes on me? I really don't want to stay outside anymore; I can't stand hearing those things, and it's really hard to leave. It's good to stay here and enjoy some peace and quiet."
Aunt Qingruo lit incense and then went out.
After a while, Li Yuanke came in and asked with a smile, "Are you tired?"
He knelt down beside Shen Shixi. Shen Shixi had never knelt like this before and was in great discomfort. She leaned against him, and he hugged her, glancing at the half-burnt incense. "I'll plead with the Empress Dowager for you!"
"Forget it, I don't want to. I don't want to owe you a favor!" She clung to him.
Li Yuanke rested his knees on the prayer mat, supporting her like that, and said, "Who told you to be so talkative!"
He bit her lips; they were red, plump, and juicy, with a beautiful shape, like a ripe cherry. He couldn't resist and lowered his head to kiss her.
Shen Shixi pushed him away, but couldn't move him, so she wrapped her arms around his neck and the two kissed deeply for a while.
"This is in front of the Buddha, are we blaspheming the gods?" Shen Shixi asked breathlessly.
Li Yuanke chuckled, "It's not at that stage yet. Let's try it sometime."
He gently stroked Shen Shixi's lips with his fingertips to ease the swelling. He was afraid that if he went out like this, people would notice something. "You really don't want me to plead for you?"
"If you're going to ask, just ask. Why do you keep asking?" Shen Shixi shoved him. "Get lost, I don't want to see you anymore!"
Li Yuanke was nearly knocked over by her push, and he became somewhat angry. "You insolent brat, how dare you talk like that? Don't you remember who you are?"
"I remember, of course I remember, I'll never forget it in my entire life! To be one of His Majesty's concubines! What an honorable status! To be His Majesty's concubine is a blessing bestowed upon me by my ancestors for eighteen generations!"
Li Yuanke was so angry at her that he almost had a heart attack. He jumped up and shouted, "I shouldn't have felt sorry for you, I shouldn't have come to see you!"
Shen Shixi knelt upright, ignoring him, and picked up a wooden mallet to strike the wooden fish with deafening force.
The emperor hurried out.
When the Empress Dowager entered, Shen Shixi put down the wooden mallet.
"Get up, stop kneeling!" The Empress Dowager sighed. "Tell me, when you said those things, were you harboring resentment towards the Emperor, or were you angry with the Empress, or were you dissatisfied with me?"
Shen Shixi lowered her eyes and said, "No, I just wanted to upset Yang Tingyue."
"Your temper is more stubborn than a donkey's! I truly hope you genuinely don't want Tingyue to enter the harem. I know these palace walls and the surrounding sky may confine you, but aren't women ultimately destined to spend their lives in the inner palace?"
Shen Shixi shook her head and said, "Empress Dowager, I really didn't mean that. If I didn't want to enter the palace, the Emperor might not have forced me, but now that I've entered the palace, I've never thought of going back on my word."
Women are destined to marry eventually. Since they're going to spend their lives with one man anyway, and the Emperor is handsome beyond compare, at least the concubine is pleasing to the eye.
Aunt Qingruo was amused.
The Empress Dowager couldn't help but chuckle, "Then what brings you here today?"
"I was rude today; I forgot to invite the Empress. Tomorrow, I will go to thank His Majesty for helping me resolve this matter, and I will never be so rude again."
[From now on, I'm completely laid down and won't care about anything anymore. The Emperor will probably have my second uncle promote the planting; with that credit, I can rest easy. The Shen family are all honest people, so I don't need to worry about them. I can truly be a freeloader for the rest of my life!]
Upon hearing this at the door, Li Yuanke turned around and left.