The Beloved Imperial Consort Chapter 146

Zong Zheng Ying looked at the backs of Consort Shu and He Lian’shi with a sullen expression, her eyes filled with hostility. She had underestimated Zong Zheng Lin’s Principal Consort! She didn’t expect to almost land herself in trouble.

“Your Highness, Bengong heard that the Imperial Garden has recently acquired a batch of rare hibiscuses and was planning to go have a look. Does Princess have any interest in accompanying Bengong and providing an opinion on them?”

The sedan chair of Consort Qi stopped in front of Zong Zheng Ying. She lifted the curtain and revealed a well-maintained face full of smiles. Behind her stood a luxurious palanquin. Through its lowered bead curtain, a beautiful imperial concubine could be seen sitting inside. Faced with Zong Zheng Ying, she only nodded slightly without even a greeting.

Zong Zheng Ying coldly scrutinized Fu Zhaoyi¹, who had been recently highly favored and saw her dressed in simple yet elegant clothes. A single eastern pearl dangling hairpin adorned her head, which was very eye-catching. Upon closer inspection, she noticed that this rare and precious accessory was a matching accessory to the one that Yuancheng Emperor had bestowed upon Consort Shu. No wonder Consort Shu had quite an inscrutable expression on her face upon seeing this newly promoted favored consort.

“Since it’s Your Ladyship Consort Qi’s invitation, Bengong is naturally happy to go together.” Zong Zheng Ying rolled her whip and ordered people to prepare the princess’s sedan chair. She didn’t exchange any pleasantries with Consort Qi, but quietly admired the woman in the palanquin behind, who was as cold as frost.

Such a cold personality. Was she also like this in front of the Yuancheng Emperor?

——

“Mistress, Sir He Lian has privately attended two events in the past two days. The people he met were the Commander of the Infantry, Fu Zuo Yi, and the Deputy Chief Eunuch of the Evaluation Office of the Inner Palace, Wang Rui. In addition, Sir He Lian’s secondary wife² has a very close relationship with the newly appointed Duchess of An by the emperor.”

Wei Zhen reported all the information obtained by the secret guards and waited for Mistress Yao’s instructions.

Mu Xi Yao’s expression turned cold and she put aside the hu brush in her hand.

He Lian Zhang was quite daring, to secretly contact Duke Of An House. A few months ago, the old Duke could not hold on any longer and passed away. Yuancheng Emperor had only coldly sent someone to go and offer condolences. Afterward, with a stroke of the brush, he promoted the firstborn son of the duke household in accordance with established practice. This recently promoted Lord Duke was not only First Prince Zong Zheng Chun’s maternal uncle but also the full elder brother of Noble Consort Li dwelling in Yuye Palace, whom Mu Xi Yao had sent there indirectly to ‘recuperate’.

Mu Xi Yao suspected that both parties must have some undisclosed objective if they were taking the route of diplomatic efforts through the wife to secretly get into contact with the First Prince’s faction behind Zong Zheng Lin’s back. As Sixth Highness’s in-law, He Lian Zhang definitely wouldn’t overlook the fact that his actions would incur Zong Zheng Lin’s displeasure. Since he dared to ‘commit a crime’, he must have a way out. What was the old fox going to use to appease Zong Zheng Lin’s anger?

“Commander of the Infantry, Fu Zuo Yi?” Mu Xi Yao was not familiar with this person. However, she had heard Zong Zheng Lin mention his superior, Commander-In-Chief of Nine Gates³, Hua Chao Guang, a few times before.

“This person is one of the newly promoted trusted officials of His Majesty. When his third daughter was selected to enter the imperial palace, she caught His Majesty’s attention. In just a few months, she has risen to the rank of secondary class second-rank Zhaoyi, being granted the privilege of managing her own palace. She is currently in her prime of favor, and aside from Her Ladyship Shu, there is no one who can outshine her in the palace.”

Mu Xi Yao nodded. Yuancheng Emperor was indeed fast in his actions. Fu Zhaoyi? Next time she enters the palace to pay her respects, she’ll have to take a good look at her.

So, was He Lian House planning to use connections in the Inner Palace to get He Lian Wei Rui into Zong Zheng Lin’s household? This scheme was too cunning, wasn’t it?

What was the excuse? How did they plan to send their daughter to the Sixth Prince’s household at the time when Imperial Noble Consort was selecting a consort for Eighth Prince? This was clearly taking a side with a particular faction. How can He Lian Zhang, who was pro-royalist, keep his clean official hat?

“Well then, since He Lian Zhang has already made his move, at the least this game of chess finally has some direction.” Mu Xi Yao’s mind was serene. She picked up her brush and dipped it in ink. “Sir Wei doesn’t need to bother to keep an eye on them anymore. Only one or two secret guards need to be stationed at the He Lian residence to stand by for orders, while the rest can be withdrawn. Now we have to wait for news from the palace.” With the battle shifting to the Inner Palace, the secret guards were of no use anymore. Rather than risking exposure, it was better to remain calm and stay vigilant.

Mu Xi Yao dismissed her attendants and sat alone before the desk to complete the daily homework assigned by Big Boss. She constructed sentences using corny words to please the boss while sighing at how the direction of the matter made her a bit worried.

If things continue like this, was it possible that she would be dragged into a palace struggle again? And the timing was not right. Wasn’t she being too proactive, going up against her father-in-law’s concubines?

Wasn’t the palace struggle supposed to take place in Jianan Emperor’s Inner Palace where women would engage in fierce competition? At this time, Big Boss hasn’t ascended to the throne yet, but she, as his favored consort, continued to make frequent appearances….this was no different from grabbing the spotlight. Mu Xi Yao pouted. If this was shooting a drama, it would definitely be considered overtime and she was unhappy about it.

He Lian House was unwilling to live a good life and instead stirred up troubles. This debt had to be remembered!

In the letter to the Sixth Highness, Mu Xi Yao emphasized how hard she worked to take care of the household and how she had endured hardships multiple times for the sake of the Sixth Highness. It was written with deep and heartfelt emotions. In the end, she didn’t forget to remind Zong Zheng Lin to find a famous chef from Shu Zhong for her. If he could send the chef to Shengjing earlier, it would be even better. She used the excuse that she had been picky about the food lately because of the little one in her belly.

Three days later, news arrived from the palace.

After a period of recuperation in the palace, Noble Consort finally received approval from the imperial physician. The Emperor went to visit her in person, and everything returned to normal afterward.

In the morning, all the imperial concubines paid their respects to Imperial Noble Consort in her palace. Upon seeing Her Ladyship Noble Consort who had been absent for many days, they only noted that Her Ladyship’s complexion looked good and her arrogant demeanor had toned down significantly. Due to the passing of the old Duke, the clothes she wore were plain and she had only a wooden hairpin on her head. She spoke more politely than before and began to distance herself from others.

After the greetings were over, Noble Consort performed a full ritual of obeisance in front of the Imperial Noble Consort for the first time and then left silently with her attendants. There was no idle talk during the whole process, and she only sat there coldly for half a ke’s time⁴. She showed no smile to her old acquaintance, let alone a word of greeting.

“Noble Consort has recovered from her illness?” Mu Xi Yao looked at Wei Zhen in surprise, and let the wet nurse take Cheng Qing to play on the side.

Although she knew early that it was impossible to completely bring down Noble Consort with just the case of Consort Liu, she did not expect that Yuancheng Emperor would lift the ban so quickly. With the passing of the old Duke, the hatred in Noble Consort’s heart must have increased a hundredfold. Mu Xi Yao had never regarded this woman’s capability highly, but she was secretly wary that she would resort to possible extreme actions as a result of experiencing an intense level of emotional stimulation someday. She hasn’t lived long enough to fight against a madwoman.

“Has Fu Zhaoyi had any contact with Noble Consort in these past three days?” To be able to plead for Lady Li’s release in front of Yuancheng Emperor, the only variable in the palace was none other than Fu Zuo Yi’s daughter. Sir He Lian’s move was indeed effective and produced immediate results.

“Fu Zhaoyi’s palace has caught on fire. Her life was saved all thanks to the prompt decisions of Noble Consort and proper directions she gave to the palace attendants.” Wei Zhen dared not underestimate He Lian House’s methods. They even dared to orchestrate fire in the palace. There must have been a few hidden chess pieces involved.

“She is quite fast at running away.” Mu Xi Yao chuckled. Although Fu Zhaoyi and Noble Consort both resided in the Eastern Palaces, there was Consort Qi between them. Did this mean that Noble Consort was competent or Consort Qi was wilfully ignorant?

“Was the person in the middle a corpse? Can this trick fool the Emperor’s eyes?” Mu Xi rolled her eyes.

Wei Zhen had grown accustomed to Mistress Yao’s casual way of speaking in private. The rules in the palace were even stricter than those in the household, but if Mistress was unwilling to comply, even His Highness wouldn’t force her, so he had no place to comment.

“Her Ladyship Consort Qi went to the Imperial Garden with her attendants to aid digestion. She wasn’t in the hall.” Wei Zhen reported truthfully.

“Indeed, the dinner served at Consort Qi’s palace must have been ‘Full Garden of Wealth’. It’s quite a burden for her to choose the third quarter of Xu hour⁵ to take an after-dinner walk.” Mu Xi Yao swung her head from side to side, exhibiting non sense of grace or poise.

Wei Zhen’s face twitched. Mistress Yao took no breaks when criticizing people. ‘Full Garden of Wealth’ was not an imperial dish, but a grand feast that Juxian Tavern in Shengjing had prepared only a few times. The most recent occasion was over a decade ago when they celebrated Crown Prince’s grand wedding, with nearly a thousand dishes served. One table of the feast would have been enough to feed serval hundred strong men.

Yuancheng Emperor didn’t have it easy. Mu Xi Yao sighed. To be an emperor, he also had to turn a blind eye to these women’s clumsy schemes. His endurance was something she could only aspire to.

The most powerful figure in Shengjing was probably feeling guilty for not allowing Noble Consort to attend the memorial service after the passing of Duke of An. Now that the vexing old scoundrel had kicked the bucket, he countered a scheme with a scheme and let the person out as it had become a trivial matter.

Those who were emperors were all very cunning. Each of them was a talented actor!

Noble Consort, Consort Qi, Fu Zhaoyi, these three women being together was too troublesome. It was all because Consort Shu was overshadowing others. The jealousy she aroused has brought them all together. As a member of the Sixth Highness’s household, Mu Xi Yao could only suffer along.

However, He Lian Zhan was very accurate in his understanding of Yuancheng Emperor’s intentions, proving himself worthy of being flaunted as the Emperor’s trusted aid.

“Come back when there’s news. This play has just begun. Let’s watch it slowly.” Mu Xi Yao was unperturbed. She roughly figured out what methods He Lian Zhang would use next.

Sure enough, in the following days, Yuancheng Emperor flipped over Noble Consort’s card⁶ twice. Fu Zhaoyi was also not to be outdone. On the contrary, Consort Shu remained steady and unruffled. No matter how many women the Emperor had, there were always a few days when Yuancheng Emperor went to Consort Shu’s palace without fail. This made the women in the palace see clearly that the position of Consort Shu seemed quite stable…

Fu Zhaoyi rarely smiled in front of the emperor. However, when the cold beauty showed a rare stunning smile, made an awkward plea for a favor, and said something nice, Yuancheng Emperor was still very receptive to her. See, as a way of repaying the favor of saving her life, Fu Zhaoyi made several attempts and finally convinced the Emperor to visit Noble Consort’s quarters twice.

With such exchanges, the two of them gradually became closer, and they started to visit each other and engage in chatter more often.

On this day, when He Lian Min Min went to Empress Dowager’s place to pay her respect, she did not encounter Zong Zheng Ying, but the Noble Consort who was at the forefront of ‘He Lian Faction’.

Ironically, He Lian Min Min had to confront the very force her family bribed. What a scene. Mu Xi Yao couldn’t help but feel amazed when she heard about it.

The Fengan Palace was very lively. The imperial concubines and princesses fawned over Empress Dowager Jin so much that smile never left her face.

“Speaking of talented women in Shengjing City, none can compare to the Second Miss of the Grand Preceptor House, Yu Hong Ying. Her poem ‘Ode to Catkins’ from the Poetry Society years ago was truly a stunning masterpiece.”

The topic of discussion among the women shifted from Shengjing’s number one beauty, Shi Yan Ling, to the talented women in the capital who were admired by many.

Zong Zheng Ying frowned, “Since ‘Ode to Catkins’ Yu Hong Ying hasn’t produced any other great works. However, Zhu Ge Li’s poetry is unparalleled in all of Shengjing and has no equal.”

Zhu Ge Li was the beloved daughter of Sir Zhu Ge, the Commander of Imperial Guardsmen, and the Grand Minister of Secretariat. Not only was she an outstanding writer, but she was also quite beautiful.

Zong Zheng Ying’s words immediately received everyone’s approval. Zhu Ge Li’s literary works were almost included in the top three works of《Collection of Culture Promotion》. Among women, she was already widely recognized.

“This statement is biased. Chengqie knows at least two people who are not inferior to Miss Zhu Ge in terms of literary talent or looks.” Fu Zhaoyi’s cold voice immediately attracted everyone’s attention. Even Empress Dowager Jin waited curiously for her next words.

Was there anyone else who could rival Zhu Ge Li, and there were two of them? Who were they?

Translation notes:

[1] Zhaoyi is the highest rank among Imperial Concubines but below Consorts. (source)

[2] Secondary wife – some men in ancient China had two wives. The second one was referred to as a secondary wife. These women usually went through wedding ceremonies as legal wives and had higher statuses than concubines. However, their statuses were not equal to legal wives, and had to address them as their “elder sisters”.

[3] Commander of Nine Gates refers to the infantry commander-in-chief in charge of the defense of the nine gates in the capital city.

[4] Half a ke refers to 7-8 minutes as a ke is a quater of an hour.

[5] Xu hour refers to 7-9 PM.

[6] Flipping over card – in ancient China, the emperor chose whom to sleep with for the night by flipping over a card with a concubine’s name on it.

Relationship Diagram  (by Sith Kazar)

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