Chapter 4: ④ Cloud Thoughts
There's no rush in dealing with Su Qiaoxin; anyway, Shen Guifei's strategies are always the same. If words don't work, then just resort to hitting. She doesn't understand the concept of cherishing and protecting the delicate. As a "arrogant and overbearing" favored concubine, slapping someone is naturally an everyday occurrence. (T/n: Guifei = Noble Consort/Concubine)
However, usually, Concubine Shen doesn't get the chance to take action herself. It seems that Miss Manchen is afraid that their Concubine Shen might not control her strength properly and end up causing serious harm, so she always takes the initiative to act first. A few concubines tried to complain but failed, so later they learned their lesson and never said anything that would get them beaten. This way, they only had to endure the Noble Consort’s "sharp tongue."
Concubine Shen felt quite regretful; she still wanted to try if slapping someone really felt particularly satisfying.
In the past, Shen Yuqing always fought with a curved knife and had never really tried fighting without a weapon. She heard from a buddy, the beggar sister, that hitting people with a stick is quite satisfying, but unfortunately, Shen Yuqing hasn't learned any staff techniques, and the identity of a noble consort isn't really suitable for using a stick.
This time, there will always be a few newcomers who don't know their place, right?
Shen Yuqing decided to seize the opportunity and not let Manchen take it away again.
"Your Highness." Seeing her lady-in-waiting's eyes full of eager anticipation, Manxing had a bad feeling and couldn't help but step forward to wake the person lost in her fantasies.
"What do you want?" Consort Shen came to her senses and asked lightly.
Adult curled up in Manxing's embrace, and upon hearing Shen Yuqing's voice, squeezed out a little head from under Manxing's ample chest, getting stuck in the cleavage, with a look of bliss on its face. Shen Yuqing twitched her lips; this perverted cat, clearly being a female herself, always liked to burrow into her chest.
Manxing was already used to it, rubbing the adult's head while saying to the noble consort, "The Empress sent over a list for you to see if there's anything inappropriate."
Saying this, she waved her hand, asking the second-rank maidservant Bi Yan, who was in charge of the miscellaneous tasks, to bring the items up.
It wasn't anything important. Shen Yuqing unfolded it and saw that it was the list of this year's talented women. It only listed a few names, along with the ranks they would soon be given and the palaces they would be assigned to live in.
The rank was originally determined by the emperor, while the palace was something the empress could intervene in. However, if the emperor trusts the empress very much, the empress can make the decisions herself and just show them to the emperor at the end. Shen Yuqing is just a noble consort and doesn't assist in managing the harem, so she actually doesn't need to look at these.
But since the empress sent it as a favor, she naturally had to take a look.
On the list, there are only a few consorts from well-off families who need to be noted. As for those uncompetitive little minions, naturally, there are none. The emperor is not lecherous. Although the grand selection will be held as scheduled, he probably won't choose many people to enter the palace, especially since he has a beloved in his heart.
Besides Su Qiaoxin, who holds the highest rank, there is also the second young lady of the Right Prime Minister Yu family, who has been given the rank of a Fourth-Rank Zhaoyi. This young lady from the Yu family is a biological sister of the Yu Concubine in the palace, and they are actually identical twins. Three years ago, during the grand selection, both sisters were fifteen. Unfortunately, the younger sister, Miss Yu, suddenly fell seriously ill, her face nearly ruined, so naturally, she couldn't participate in the selection. So only Yu Pin entered the palace, while Miss Yu waited for three years.
At first glance, there seems to be something fishy about it. I wonder if this "sudden illness" is related to Yu Pin.
Besides that, there was also a young lady from the An family, the Minister of Works. The Empress intended to grant her the title of Shuyuan, a fourth-rank Shuyuan. There was also the daughter of the Minister of Justice, Miss Liu, who was given the rank of Fifth-Rank Noble Consort, and then it was over.
This year, the timing is just right. In the previous three years, the girls either didn't get elected in the grand selection or couldn't wait and got engaged and married directly. By this year, there were not many eligible noble ladies waiting in the capital. Some families were reluctant to let their daughters endure the hardships of the palace, so they had already sent their matriarchs to the palace to communicate with the Empress, allowing their daughters to leave the palace and marry on their own.
The emperor is not lecherous, nor is he an incompetent ruler who relies on concubines to win over his officials, so these matters are easy to negotiate. The Empress didn't make things difficult for them either; she simply approved it.
Shen Yuqing looked at the list with only four names on it, pondered for a while, and then smiled gently.
Su Qiaoxin giving the position of Fei to her really shows respect for the Grand Tutor, or rather, respect for the eldest daughter of the Su family. Even the daughter of the Right Chancellor only holds the rank of a Fourth-Rank Zhaoyi, but Su Qiaoxin comes in as a Second-Rank Consort, making her a prime target for envy. Let's just light a candle for this girl first; by the time Shen Yuqing makes her move, she'll probably have already been ganged up on by the women in the palace.
These newcomers have mostly moved into palaces that are already occupied. The Yu family young lady and the Liu family young lady both went to Yu Pin's Changzui Palace; after encountering Yu Pin, they probably won't have any good days ahead. Miss An is the most unfortunate; her Feiyue Palace already has an occupant, and coincidentally, it's the White Lotus Concubine.
The Empress is too wicked.
The remaining Su Qiaoxin lived alone in the empty main hall of Yunxiang Palace, which had been circled. It seemed that this was not the queen's decision, but rather the emperor's intention. The location of Yunxiang Palace is opposite to that of Jianjia Palace; one is in the Eastern Four Palaces, and the other is in the Western Four Palaces. Both are the closest palaces to the emperor's sleeping quarters, Zichin Hall. For a concubine, this position is the best besides Fengyi Palace, so… People’s hatred level for Su Qiaoxin is about to go off the charts again.
Shen Yuqing put away the list and said to Manxing, "I have no objections, let's go with this."
After giving the response, the young eunuch from Fengyi Palace went back to report.
Shen Yuqing called for the chief eunuch of the Jianjia Palace, Que Ri, who is responsible for gathering intelligence on a daily basis.
"How much do you know about the two young ladies from the Grand Tutor's family?" Shen Yuqing asked.
Que Ri immediately replied, "These two young ladies are both exceptionally beautiful and are among the most esteemed noblewomen in the capital. They have no trouble finding suitors." Especially the eldest Miss Su Qiaorong, who is dignified and virtuous. Back in the day, many families sought her hand in marriage, and she was quite the sensation in the capital. Second Miss Su Qiaoxin...”
"Wait a minute." Shen Yuqing interrupted him, "The older one is named Su Qiaorong?"
"Yes, Your Majesty."
Shen Yuqing seemed lost in thought.
Clouds resemble garments, flowers resemble beauty. No wonder the emperor gave Yunxiang Palace to Su Qiaoxin to live in; that palace was probably not for Su Qiaoxin, but for "Su Qiaorong's substitute." The emperor is truly devoted, but it's the women in the harem who suffer from unrequited love.
"Yunxiang Palace, was it always called Yunxiang Palace?" Shen Yuqing suddenly thought of this.
It's no wonder she thought of this, because there was another palace in the court that had its name changed, which was the Xianlu Palace where Madam Mi from Loulan lived. A month ago, it wasn't called Xianlu Palace; it was renamed after Madam Mi moved in, making the women in the harem extremely jealous, and by the way, Concubine Shen also "fell ill" from anger.
Que Ri thought carefully and said, "Yunxiang Palace was originally called Guanju Palace, opposite to Jianjia Palace." The name was changed only two years ago, and at that time, the palace ladies were still guessing who would move in. However, they didn't expect that after the name change, it would remain unused.
There are two most famous love poems in the Book of Songs, one is "Guan Guan Ju Jiu on the islet in the river" from "Guan Ju," and the other is "Jian Jia Cang Cang, Bai Lu Wei Shuang" from "Jian Jia." If Yunxiang Palace was previously called Guanju Palace, that would be quite normal. The positions are relative, the names are relative, and it aligns with the ancient people's aesthetic of symmetry.
And two years ago... Su Qiaoxin turned fifteen and could get married. But she rejected all her marriage proposals, determined to enter the palace.
Shen Yuqing hugged Adult who had jumped into her arms and smoothed it’a fur. It seems that the emperor has been setting up this scheme for two years, just waiting for Su Qiaoxin to enter the palace this year.
"This is a good thing." Shen Yuqing tapped the table and looked at Manxing, "When Miss Su enters the palace, make sure to explain the reason behind the renaming of Yunxiang Palace to everyone. I'm sure Miss Su will like this explanation."
First, build up Su Qiaoxin's reputation, elevate her to the heavens, make her a target, and then, bring her crashing down hard. This way, His Majesty the Emperor should be very pleased, right?
Manxing nodded with a smile, "Yes, Your Highness."
Shen Yuqing hugged her cat and returned to the inner palace to rest. Lying on her bed, she thought about it and felt that she was truly at fault, becoming more and more like a wicked villain. The poor "protagonist" hasn't even entered the palace yet, and she's already rushing to create obstacles for her, even plotting to poison her. It's just unbelievable.
But who told Shen Yuqing to take the emperor's salary to work for the emperor? The customer is always right, so we can only make do with this ill-intentioned Miss Su.
The cat climbed up from Shen Yuqing's belly to her chest, stepping left and right, finding a comfortable spot in the soft flesh, happily lying down, yawning slightly, and then fell asleep. Fortunately, this cat is small, not even the size of two palms, otherwise Shen Yuqing would be suffocated by its weight.
Looking at the cat on her chest, Shen Yuqing decided not to think too much about it anymore.
That person used their wealth to avert disaster for others; who cares about right or wrong?
Just focus on doing your own job well first.
Close your eyes, go to sleep. Tomorrow, the selection of the maidens will take place again, and she has to be there.
The next day, Consort Shen rarely dressed up for an outing, aiming for the Palace of Chuxiu in the East Fourth Palace, which was also the place where the newcomers would participate in the re-selection.
With Manxing, Que Ri, and three second-rank palace maids and eunuchs accompanying her, Concubine Shen boarded the palanquin, cradling the still-sleeping Lord Cat. They soon arrived at the Xu Palace. At this moment, the ladies-in-waiting were indeed gathered in the West Side Hall, waiting to be summoned.
Two burly eunuchs stood guard at the side hall's entrance, not allowing anyone to approach. The young ladies listened to the commotion coming from the courtyard, their curiosity piqued, but they didn't dare to go over and join the fun.
Among the group of talented women, there were a few who were highly sought after by the crowd, looking much more composed than the average person, not craning their necks to look around. For example, Su Qiaoxin, who occupied the best spot, was leisurely adjusting her clothes, completely unconcerned about the commotion outside.
"Sister Su, aren't you curious?" A timid girl in pink asked softly.
Su Qiaoxin glanced at her and said, "What are you curious about? Today the Emperor isn't coming again, and outside there are only the high-ranking concubines passing by. What's there to see?"
The young lady widened her eyes slightly, looking a bit disappointed: "Is His Majesty not coming?"
“I thought I would get to see the emperor!”
Su Qiaoxin glanced in the direction of the palace gate, feeling quite unhappy. The emperor indeed won't come; the family has already inquired. This time, only the empress and the noble consort will preside over the selection, and even the empress dowager doesn't plan to attend. What does this indicate? This shows that the emperor doesn't care about these palace maids at all, and the empress dowager doesn't pay any attention to them either.
However, it doesn't matter. Su Qiaoxin knew that she would definitely enter the palace and eventually have the opportunity to meet the emperor.
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