Chapter 2: The Flower Banquet
The Empress has set up a banquet in the Imperial Garden, perfectly timed for the afternoon, just right for enjoying afternoon tea.
After Imperial Noble Consort Shen heartily finished gnawing on the leg of lamb for lunch, she waved her hand to have the plates cleared away. She washed her hands and, with Manchen carrying a plate of crispy fried fish, entered the inner chamber.
The cat was leisurely lying on the mat, swishing its tail and licking its paws. The tip of its nose caught a whiff of the delicious smell, and it immediately sprang up, meowing towards Manchen.
Consort Shen was very jealous, so she reached out to take a piece of fish that had been filleted and deboned, and personally fed it to her cat. Only then did the master (the cat,) reluctantly spare a bit of attention for the noble consort, lifting its head to glance at her and then opening its mouth to roll the meat into it.
It let out a satisfied "meow," nimbly jumped into the concubine's arms in a few light hops, and then scampered up to her head, settling down comfortably, waiting for its servant to continue feeding it.
Man Chen remained unfazed as if a mountain had collapsed, and handed over the dried fish without a hint of concern.
Consort Shen was already used to it and quickly finished feeding the cat.
After feeding Adult, I can finally bury my face in the tripe. However, I can only indulge for a little while; if I take too long, I'll end up with a face full of scratches.
Time flew by during the interactions between the noble consort and the master. By the time Manxing walked in to remind her mistress to get ready to leave, Shen Yuqing was playing a game of pawing with the cat.
Adult grumbled in dissatisfaction.
Shen Yuqing quickly leaned over and kissed its little chin. "I'll change my clothes first, little darling. I'll take you to the Imperial Garden to play later."
Adult was finally satisfied and let Shen Yuqing go.
The second-rank palace maid, Bige, who followed Manxing in to help the noble consort change clothes, couldn't help but exclaim inwardly, "This cat that the noble consort raises is too human-like; it can even understand human speech!"
Shen Yuqing put on her arm guards, then quickly changed her clothes. With the help of Manxing and Bige, she styled her hair, adorned with hairpins and jade pendants, and then slowly carried Adult out of the sleeping quarters.
Outside in the courtyard, a young eunuch had already been waiting by the sedan chair. As soon as Shen Yuqing got into the sedan, he quickly and deftly lifted it and headed towards the Imperial Garden.
After walking past the Mo Ye Road and the Tai A Road, and then passing through a hanging flower gate, they arrived at the Imperial Garden. At this time, the other ladies have almost all arrived..
The concubines each sat in their respective places, looking around, unsure why the flower banquet had not yet begun. Even the Imperial Noble Consort has arrived; who are they waiting for?
"The Noble Consort usually arrives early, what's so surprising about that?" The consort held a beauty fan, lightly covering half her face, and said in a soft and delicate tone, with a hint of sarcasm, "But Lady Mi served the emperor yesterday, didn't she? I suppose she’s still not quite recovered."
Concubine Mi hasn't arrived yet, but it's already afternoon. No matter how unwell she might be, it's not her first time being favored, so she shouldn't be late for the afternoon flower banquet. The Concubine is setting a trap for Madam Mi, so that when Madam Mi arrives later, everyone can make things difficult for her.
After the concubine finished speaking, the faces of the other concubines indeed turned a shade worse.
On either side of the Empress, there is a row of seats; the left side is the place of honor, currently occupied by Consort Shu, while the right side is empty. Below the Shufei sat Madam Wan, and opposite her, in the second seat on the right, was Yupi. Further down, there was a Xue Xiurong and a Yao Cairen. In this vast palace, there are only a few concubines now.
Including the noble lady in the cold palace, the sickly Shen Yuqing, and the yet-to-arrive Madam Mi, there are a total of nine people.
At this moment, Shu Fei was sitting on the left, with no one on the right. Everyone assumed that Shen Yuqing wouldn't come again and was just waiting for Madam Mi to arrive before starting. Who would have thought that Concubine Shen actually came?
Even with light makeup, Concubine Shen still managed to overshadow everyone with her imposing presence. Dressed in pure white, she exuded an aura of grandeur, and as soon as she appeared, she captured everyone's attention.
The noble consort's expression slightly changed, and she smiled while covering her lips to greet her: "Why has the noble consort come?"
Shen Yuqing, without showing any anger, just glanced at her casually, making her unable to help but feel a bit intimidated.
Consort Shu couldn't help but mutter in her heart, wondering what His Majesty saw in this fierce woman. As a woman herself, she found it hard to stomach looking at Shen Yuqing. No matter how good-looking she was, what was the use? Getting into bed with her would just be terrifying.
"Consort Shu?" Shen Yuqing gave her a puzzled look.
The Consort feigned shyness, looking at Shen Yuqing with a pitiful gaze.
Shen Yuqing was about to say something when she suddenly looked up at the Empress sitting at the head of the table, squinted her eyes, and smiled at her.
The queen remained calm, merely nodding slightly, indifferent to the rivalry between the concubines.
Really interesting.
Shen Yuqing raised an eyebrow, withdrew her gaze, and shot a sideways glance at the Shu-Fei, her tone gentle yet laced with threat. "Sister Shu Fei, have you perhaps taken the wrong seat? I haven't been to the inner palace for a long time, and I didn't know that my sister had even forgotten the palace rules. “
"Although the Empress is busy with palace affairs all day and has no time to discipline you, you shouldn't be so unruly."
Unlike talking to people in the palace with veiled insults, Shen Yuqing's retorts depend entirely on her mood. If she's in a good mood, she'll go around in circles to criticize you; if she's in a bad mood, she'll go straight for the heart, showing no mercy at all.
Shu Fei was at least one of the four consorts of the first rank, just one rank lower than the Guifei, but the Guifei showed no mercy, making it seem as if Shu-Fei was not one of the four consorts but an inconspicuous minor consort who could be treated as one pleased.
Being scolded like that by Shen Yuqing, even a clay figurine would be furious.
What do you mean by "disciplining" them? You, Shen Yuqing, don't tell me you still want to discipline her as a concubine? Does she think she's the Empress?
A good man doesn't take a loss in front of his eyes. Since Shu-fei had no right to the seat, to avoid the fierce Shen Yuqing directly pulling her down, Shu-fei simply stood up and gave up her seat. But this doesn't mean she wouldn't hold a grudge against Shen Yuqing's offense; this white lotus immediately turned around and started crying to the Empress.
"I did not know that the noble consort was coming today and inadvertently offended her. I ask for the empress's forgiveness." She took a handkerchief and dabbed at her eyes, which were indeed moist. "It is only right for the Empress to discipline me. I am willing to accept the punishment."
It is only right for the Empress to discipline, but it is very inappropriate for the Noble Consort to overstep her bounds.
After applying the eye drops to the noble consort, Shu-Fei knelt in front, secretly waiting for the empress to take action against the noble consort. Who would have thought...
"Concubine Shu knows it well. After returning to the palace, copy the palace rules ten times and reflect in seclusion for three days."
The noble consort's face immediately turned ugly. Why isn't the empress angry?!
Just at that moment, Consort Shen let out a laugh, clearly mocking her for overestimating herself. The virtuous consort bit her lip and agreed, then sat down on the right.
Misstep, the Empress and the Noble Consort actually joined forces. Could it be because she has been too favored lately and feels threatened?
Consort Shu was deep in thought, twisting her handkerchief, looking like a little flower who had been terribly wronged. Unfortunately, everyone present was a woman, so no one appreciated it.
That's not right either. Since Consort Shen likes girls, she might actually appreciate her. Unfortunately, Consort Shu isn’t her type.
At this moment, the concubine sitting second from the right spoke up to ease the tension. She had a delicate and innocent appearance, looking like a girl who hadn't fully matured yet. But she had actually been in the palace for three years and was not as innocent as she appeared.
"Why hasn't Sister Mi come yet?" She blinked, "I heard that His Majesty gifted her a beautiful hairpin a few days ago. Sister Mi even said she would wear it today. I can't wait to see it."
Compared to the mutual bickering between the Noble Consort and the Consort, the concubines naturally paid more attention to the late-arriving Lady Mi. Madam Mi entered the palace a month ago. She is a princess from the small Western Region country of Loulan, sent here for a political marriage. Her appearance is quite different from that of the people of Dayan, and she also performs Western Region dances. Recently, she has been favored by the emperor, even surpassing the ever-favored Consort Shu and Consort Gui.
“I heard that a month ago, the noble consort fell ill because of Madam Mi's entry into the palace.”
“But today, how come she’s fine again?”
The favored concubine Shen, who was the target of the rumors, leisurely played with the cat, completely ignoring the group of women. Her only task here is to confront Concubine Shu.
Who is Lady Mi? Not important to her.
However, the Empress, upon hearing Yu Pin's words, said lightly, "Madam Mi has suddenly fallen ill and cannot come."
From the very beginning, the positions in the imperial garden were already decided. Without Madam Mi, the left side was reserved for the Noble Consort. However, the Consort took it upon herself, thinking the Noble Consort would not come, and occupied the left side. Then she got slapped in the face.
Actually, there's not much difference between sitting on the left or the right; Shen Yuqing is just looking for an excuse to confront the Consort. By the way, the left seat is slightly higher, closer to the enigmatic Empress.
It's been a year, and Shen Yuqing still hasn't figured out the details of this empress; she only knows that the emperor values her highly. But she seemed different from herself, not because she helped the emperor secure the position of empress through a transaction.
But there is one thing Shen Yuqing is sure of, she and the emperor are definitely not in a husband-and-wife relationship. Shen Yuqing went out to play at night and passed by Fengyi Palace several times, and found that the emperor slept in a side hall, and his attitude towards the queen… Very respectful.
However, Shen Yuqing is not a person with a strong sense of curiosity, so she never thought of secretly investigating and has been putting it off until now.
The Empress did not pay attention to the scrutinizing gazes, both overt and covert, of the crowd. In their eyes, she was an unloved Empress, as the Emperor only stayed overnight in Fengyi Palace on the first and fifteenth days of each month, when he was required to visit the Empress's palace. Although he often visits the Empress and shows great respect for her as the legitimate wife, it doesn't mean much.
She is more like a lady-in-waiting than a chief wife.
In comparison, the concubine who spent fewer nights with the emperor seemed even more favored. After all, the Gui-fei is arrogantly confronting people everywhere every day, and the emperor is quite partial to her. Without the aspect of bedchamber service, she is practically the ultimate pampered concubine's standard configuration.
Maybe emperors are just more content and less greedy? He is a wise ruler, spending most of the month in his Zicheng Hall, working late into the night reviewing memorials.
"Today's flower banquet is mainly to inform you of something." The queen, seizing a moment while serving tea and snacks, brought everyone news that almost no one wanted to hear, "His Majesty has decreed that the selection will proceed as usual this year."
In the Dayan Dynasty, there is a major selection every three years and a minor selection every year, where young women are chosen to serve the emperor or are assigned to royal relatives. Nowadays, the concubines in the harem, except for Shen Yuqing who entered the palace a year ago and Madam Mi who entered a month ago, are almost all those who entered the palace three years ago. Only Madam Wan and Lady Yao, who came from the ranks of palace maids, did not go through the selection process.
And the small elections in the following two years were all canceled by the emperor. Originally, I was hoping that this year's general election would also be canceled, but who would have thought that it would actually go ahead as scheduled? Doesn't that mean that a group of young and beautiful women will be entering the palace again?!
The concubines looked at their disappointing bellies and secretly resented themselves.
It's been three years, and not to mention princes, there is only one princess, and she was born to Lady Wan. Moreover, with so few people in the palace, it's no wonder they had to hold a grand election. Unfortunately, they arrived three years early but didn't take the opportunity to have a son or daughter.
Everyone instinctively looked at Shen Yuqing, the noble consort. She must be even angrier, right? No wonder she suddenly recovered; it turns out a new concubine is coming to the palace, and she's rolling up her sleeves, ready to deal with the new concubine.
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