Just when Ji Ling was about to speak, Concubine Qian interrupted from the side with a sudden smile: "Empress Mao Bi, there is no need to be anxious. If there is anything good, the Empress will tell us all soon."
Ji Ling raised his eyes and looked at her, only to see Concubine Qian facing him with a smile on her face, and there was a hint of flattery in her eyes.
I heard the eunuch standing outside the door and singing loudly: "Concubine Yu has arrived——!"
Everyone turned around and saw that Concubine Yu was wearing a dark purple orchid-patterned flag dress today. She was graceful and elegant. Because of her broad shoulders, the trim was also very wide, slightly concealing the meaning of decoration.
There was a purple glazed hairpin stuck on her temples. Before anyone came closer, a faint scent of orchid incense hit her face.
All the concubines stood up in a hurry and saluted Concubine Yu.
There were originally four concubines in the palace - Concubine Qi stayed in the Forbidden City, Concubine Nian died, and Concubine Ning was demoted to concubine Ning because she beat the other side of the palace, angering Yinzhen.
The only concubine is Yufei Geng.
She also had her fifth elder brother, Hong Zhou, and as they watched the fifth elder brother grow up day by day, everyone became more and more polite and complimentary to Concubine Yu.
Concubine Yu was supported by her personal maid, and she calmly sat down at the position below the queen. Then she told everyone not to be formal.
Her eyes slowly swept across everyone's faces, and when she spotted Hong Zhou's biological mother, Xi Bi, Yu Fei immediately thought of the Mid-Autumn Festival.
On the night of the Mid-Autumn Festival, in the Kunning Palace of the Forbidden City, when Hongli and Hongzhou were questioning the emperor, Hongli's eloquent talk overshadowed Hongzhou.
Thinking of this, Concubine Yu's eyes turned cold.
Xi Concubine stood up along with the concubines around her, and then she also glanced at Concubine Yu lightly.
With just one glance, she looked away in a nonchalant manner, and her face returned to its previous respectful and gentle look.
There was a movement at the back of the main hall, the eunuch in charge sang a salute, the curtain moved slightly, and Queen Uranala finally walked out surrounded by her servants.
All the concubines immediately stopped talking and laughing, put down their tea bowls, and stood up.
Today, Uranala wore a light yellow summer flag dress with clouds and peonies embroidered on the chest.
Because she was wearing casual clothes, she only wore a single pair of pliers on her ears, and her two large light gold pearl earrings were full of light.
The concubine with sharp eyes could see that the queen's eyelids were slightly swollen today, and even though she was covered with makeup, she still couldn't hide the look of depression on her face.
She entered the phoenix seat, raised her hand, and with her usual calm and dignified demeanor, said to everyone calmly: "Everyone, sit down!"
Everyone said in unison: "Thank you, Queen!" Then they turned around and took their seats again with the support of their personal maids. For a while, their rings jingled and their clothes rustled.
The queen looked at everyone and saw that Concubine Yu had a different look on her face. She leaned forward slightly and asked with concern: "Concubine Yu, I think you don't look well, but you were tired of traveling all the way and you just settled down yesterday. Are you still here?"
Not used to it?"
When Concubine Yu saw the Queen's question, she could only calm down and said with a forced smile: "In reply to the Queen, I thank you for your concern. I'm probably not used to it last night. I slept a little late and was a little tired. Yes.
I have been discourteous, please forgive me, the Queen."
Ulanara nodded, smiled slightly, and said: "It's a new arrival, so I'm not used to it. I don't blame you."
She turned her eyes and glanced over everyone, including Xi Bin, who was sitting quietly with her head lowered, and then turned back with a smile and said: "Concubine Yu, I'm afraid you don't know yet - the emperor has moved the northwest of Zhengda Guangming.
The Lotus Pavilion was given to the fourth elder brother and the fifth elder brother to be used as a place to study.
She paused: "That's a good place! The house is deep, warm in winter and cool in summer. In front is the Mingyu River Bridge, and to the west are the imperial dining room and the imperial tea room, where the slaves serve and study. In addition, the Lotus Pavilion is next to it.
To the east of the Zhengda Guangming Hall is the Diligent and Relatives, which is of great benefit for listening to political affairs and practicing.
The two children, Hong Li and Hong Zhou, are similar in age, and they are both at the time when they are studying and making progress. I am thinking that the emperor's arrangement is also based on this expectation!"
As she spoke, Concubine Yu slowly raised her head, her eyes shining brightly.
Xibi just lowered her head and remained silent.
The queen glanced over and said with a smile: "Xi concubine, thank you for your hard work! You have been in the Old Summer Palace for so long, only serving the concubine, worshiping Buddha and chanting sutras. I'm afraid you haven't seen Hongli for a long time."
"
After hearing the queen's question, Xibi stood up and walked up to Uranala.
She knelt down and said with a meek look: "Regarding the Empress, it is my concubine's blessing to be able to serve at the side of the Dowager Empress. It is also the blessing for Hongli to have such a wise mother as the Empress to teach him."
!”
The queen's eyes were flowing, she raised her hand to caress the pearl earrings on her temples, smiled at the people around her, raised her finger and pointed at Xi Bin, and said: "Listen, listen to Xi Bin's sweet mouth - she is beautiful and has a gentle temperament.
, she also talks softly and softly, no wonder the Dowager Empress likes her from the bottom of her heart, dragging her to the Peony Terrace last night and refusing to let anyone leave!"
Ji Ling suddenly realized - no wonder he could see Xi Bin's back from a distance in the morning.
She was wondering at that time: Looking at the direction Xi Bin was walking in, she should be coming from the east.
In front of me again.
You should meet her on the way - why haven't you seen her after you've been out for a long time?
It turns out that they came directly from Princess Cheng’s Peony Terrace.
She raised her eyes slightly and looked at the expressions of the concubines around her. Sure enough, many people exchanged subtle glances when they heard the words "It's strange that the concubine likes her."
I also heard the Queen say that Concubine Xi "was at the Peony Terrace last night."
Peony Terrace, where is that place?
That is the place next to the emperor Jiuzhou Qingyan!
To put it bluntly, the empress' magnanimity is not as close to Jiuzhou Qingyan as the Peony Terrace is to Jiuzhou Qingyan!
From Peony Terrace, you only need to cross a small bridge to reach Jiuzhou Qingyan.
We couldn't be closer to the emperor.
If the emperor comes out of the palace at night, stands by the back lake to admire the moon, and if the wind blows or something, Xi concubine comes out of the peony terrace, maybe she can hang out in front of the emperor.
The tower near the water gets the moon first, but that's it.
Many people had a hint of jealousy in their eyes.
Who knows whether Xibi was really held back by Concubine Cheng and not allowed to leave as the Empress said, or whether she tried her best to stay in the name of serving the Concubine?
The palace maids brought cakes and cakes, and fish and dragons shuttled through the palace. For a while, plates and lamps clinked and jingled.
Concubine Qian was sitting at the back, and taking advantage of the sound to cover her mouth, she covered her mouth with a fan, turned her head slightly, and said in a low voice to Li Guiren: "In the past, she was just a princess when she was hiding in the emperor's residence. If the emperor
I like it, I have liked it for a long time! Now that the fourth brother is so old, she is still thinking about making a name for herself, she is really not ashamed!"
Ji Ling sat across from her, watching her and Li Guiren whispering to each other. Li Guiren nodded like a chicken pecking at rice, and Qian Bing had a contemptuous smile on her lips from time to time.
After the circle of pastries for the concubines had been served, the maids quietly walked backwards.
Uranala smiled, and continued what Xi concubine had just said, and said: "Besides, how can I be so bright and wise? If we talk about Minghui, Hongli's child is called Minghui!"
She raised her eyes and looked at Xi Concubine, with a regretful tone: "Oh! Xi Concubine, it's a pity that you have been busy in the Old Summer Palace and didn't even see the palace. During the Mid-Autumn Festival, the emperor asked Hongli about his homework. This child was really up to date and gave excellent answers.
Your Majesty, what a compliment!"
Hearing this, Concubine Xi lowered her head even lower and said with a smile, "It's all thanks to the empress's teachings!"
Ji Ling subconsciously glanced at Concubine Yu.
Concubine Yu's face became as dark as if she was about to drip.
After Uranala said this, he suddenly raised his hand slightly, covered his mouth with a handkerchief, as if to hide it, and coughed lightly, as if he had just reacted, and turned to look at Concubine Yu, with a look on his face.
With a bit of embarrassment, he forced a smile and said: "...Of course, Hong Zhou is also smart. Despite his young age, this child is very humble and friendly, and knows how to 'give way' to Hong Zhou in everything!"
She seemed to intentionally or unintentionally accentuate the pronunciation of the word "give in".
Yu Fei raised her head suddenly.
Immediately, she realized her gaffe, frowned, and forced a smile on her face.
Ji Ling sat opposite her and looked at Yu Fei's smile - it was even uglier than crying...
Xi Bin still lowered her head, as if she had become a statue.
The queen looked around everyone with a smile, and suddenly locked her eyes on Ji Ling, and said unexpectedly: "No matter how hard Concubine Yu works, she can't work as hard as Ji Gui people - I heard that the emperor went to Ji Gui people's natural paintings last night... take a look
, Mr. Jigui, I’m afraid he hasn’t had a good rest until now? He’s now quite black and blue!”
Ji Ling:......!
Everyone's eyes turned to Ji Ling.
Uranala continued with a smile: "There is another happy event about the auspicious nobles. Maybe some of you already know it - in fact, after the Mid-Autumn Festival, when I was still in the Forbidden City, I had already started to prepare for the auspicious nobles to be concubines.
matters.
As soon as the word "Feng concubine" came out, a ball of thunder seemed to explode in the palace, and everyone immediately looked at Ji Ling.
Although many people have vaguely thought in their hearts: with the degree of favor given by the auspicious noble, it will be a matter of time before she is named a concubine.
But I really didn't expect it to be so soon.
It's so fast!
Ever since the incident involving Hai Guiren came to her in the winter, it didn't take long for the emperor to designate her as a noble person. Now that a year has not come yet, she has become a concubine again.
And she has never given birth until now!
Why?
The current concubines in the palace - apart from Concubine Ning who was demoted to concubine Ning, the other concubines Mao and Qian have all given birth to children, but they died in infancy.
Let’s talk about my mother’s family.
Qianbi's father was a third-rank official in the court.
And although Ji Guiren's father was promoted to the third rank by the emperor, it was just because of his daughter's glory. With his qualifications and ability, he was simply incomparable with Qian's father.
Mao concubine's background is more ordinary, similar to Ji Gui's mother's family, but she entered Qiandi early! With so many years of time and qualifications, she can win the position of concubine and convince everyone.
Uranala sat upright and said with a pleasant expression: "My lord Ji, the emperor favors you so much. It is your blessing and your honor to be so favored by the emperor. There are not many heirs in the palace now. Since you have received the emperor's favor, you will be more favored by the emperor."
You have to take good care of yourself and work hard to spread your wings for the Emperor!"
When she said this, her voice paused slightly, and she seemed to sigh: "The Emperor and I are waiting for your good news... we have been waiting for a long time!"
When everyone heard the words "The emperor's favor is so deep" and "I have been waiting for a long time", everyone's eyes became more subtle - did you see it? Even the queen was vigilant and beating the noble man!
Ulanara chatted some more, just casually asking everyone about their living situation in the Old Summer Palace. Many people were still thinking about the upcoming concubine ceremony of Jiguiren - the pride of others only reflected their own situation.
It was unbearable. Even the answers to the Queen's questions were listless and absent-minded.
Seeing that the fire was almost done, Ulanala smiled and said: "Okay, the scenery in the Old Summer Palace is very beautiful, with green trees, clear water like jade, quiet and elegant, it is the most suitable for exploring the beauty. I'm afraid it's a big guy.
I can’t sit still anymore, so let’s stop here today!”
For a moment, everyone stood up, bowed their knees and bowed before leaving.
After everyone had completely exited, the queen narrowed her eyes slightly, landed on Hai Yaosheng in the corner, and said calmly: "Aren't you leaving?"
Hai promised to come forward.
Although she was dressed shabbily and simply, and her hair was only combed into the promised bun, she still couldn't conceal her natural graceful demeanor. She walked up to her in a hurry, and even the queen couldn't help but look at her a few more times.
Hai agreed to kneel down, and his voice was not very loud. He just said in a low voice: "Queen, my concubine was favored by the emperor when she first entered the palace. She was young and impetuous, arrogant, and ignorant. She failed the queen."
Lift up.”
Uranala had just been talking to her concubines for a long time, and her mouth was dry. She was drinking a bowl of white fungus and pine mushroom soup. When she heard this, she almost laughed out loud.
She raised her hand to take the handkerchief given by Hua Rong. She glanced at Hai Yaosheng with a look that seemed to be sarcastic or disdainful, and said: "You are so good at putting gold on your own face! When has the emperor ever favored you?"
Have you added me before? It's just that I promoted you, and the emperor saw it as fresh, so he summoned you a few more times."
Ulanara tilted his chin back slightly and said: "You always tell me that you have grown up now! But I see that you are still the same as before - you can't understand anything at all!"
She stood up, walked forward slowly, slowly stretched out her hand, and raised Hai's chin.
The armor on her hands was inlaid with gold and jade, and the cold light of gemstones shone in the darkness of the open palace.
Ulanara held Qian's chin and turned it on both sides. Then he dropped his hand in half-interest, turned around and took a few steps, sighing: "There is beauty but no clever heart. What a pity."
This is a good skin for you!"
Hai promised to kneel down and not speak.
The queen sat down on the phoenix throne again, raised her eyebrows, and said with a half-smile: "Get up."
The sea agreed to obey and rise.
The queen's voice became gentler before she said: "Okay, if I really abandon you, how can I help you over and over again? Just go back and take care of yourself. Remember, the emperor is also a human being, beautiful.
In the future, he will never be annoyed! The days are long, let’s take our time.”
As she spoke, she looked up and down at Hai Yaoyong. When it fell on her hand, Ulanala frowned and said, "Why are your hands like this?"
I saw that the tiger's mouth of Haiyi's hands was slightly red and peeling, with a layer of calluses rubbed on it, and there were a few cracks on the side.