Shoutout to Tachibanaswife for the commission!
I couldn’t figure out Qi Sheng’s thoughts, so I could only respond to change with constancy.
Qi Sheng stepped forward a few paces, took me from Luli’s hands, one hand supporting my arm and the other at my waist, guiding me toward the bed as he said calmly, “For these next few months, sit and move more steadily. Wait until your body is stronger before anything else.”
I was a bit flattered and surprised by his behavior. Subconsciously, I straightened my back a little, but my lower abdomen was still flat, it was too early to pretend to look like a pregnant woman. So I simply slipped away from the hand he had placed at my waist and gave an awkward laugh. “It’s just a pregnancy. There’s no need to be this delicate.”
Qi Sheng fell silent for a moment, then slowly withdrew his hand.
From outside the hall suddenly came a palace maid’s announcement: “Your Majesty, Your Highness, Chen Liangdi, Huang Xiangfei, and Lady Li Zhaoyi and others have come to congratulate Your Highness. They are waiting outside.”
I froze for a moment and glanced at Qi Sheng. Seeing that he had lowered his gaze slightly, as if he had no intention of responding, I cleared my throat and ordered, “Let them come in.”
Moments later, the sound of tinkling ornaments filled the air as many beautifully dressed women entered gracefully from outside. In an instant, the inner hall was packed with charming figures, plump and slender, each with her own elegance, one more beautiful than the next, one more delicate than the last. Though they all spoke words of congratulations to me, their little glances were all stuck on Qi Sheng.
A sour bitterness rose in my heart. So many flower-like beauties, all hanging themselves on this crooked tree that is Qi Sheng, where is the justice in that? If he doesn’t know how to cherish beauty, he might as well lower the palace walls so everyone can climb out more easily.
Qi Sheng, however, seemed somewhat impatient. With just a few words, he dismissed all the beauties, then instructed the attendant, “The empress has just become pregnant. Do not let them come to disturb her. For now, excuse them from their daily greetings.”
I was stunned, and inwardly wailed. D*mn it, this is my only bit of daily entertainment left, and you want to cut that off too?! “Wait!” I quickly called out to the attendant who was about to leave, then put on a serious expression and said to Qi Sheng, “Your Majesty, ritual cannot be abandoned. As the mistress of the six palaces, I must lead by example. The consorts’ daily greetings cannot be waived. I also need to lead them in paying respects to the Grand Empress Dowager and the Empress Dowager.”
Qi Sheng said nothing, his gaze dark and unreadable as he looked at me.
Since I had already started speaking, I thought it best to make everything clear. So I dismissed the palace maids and attendants, took a deep breath, and said, “Your Majesty, I once told you that rather than living by guessing each other’s thoughts, it’s better to speak openly and discuss things. The Zhang family is currently powerful. If I bear a child, the influence of the maternal relatives will only grow stronger. This pregnancy was not my wish. Whether you want this child or not is entirely your decision.”
Qi Sheng remained expressionless. Toward the end, he even lowered his eyes, becoming as still as a meditating monk. I felt quite anxious. Before, I could at least read some emotion from his eyes, but now there was nothing, I could only rely on guessing!
A wise person once said that when dealing with intelligent people, the best approach is to speak plainly. Playing mind games will only make them look down on you. And when dealing with idiots, it’s also best to speak plainly, or they’ll misunderstand you.
I figured that even if Qi Sheng wasn’t exactly intelligent, he could at least count as an idiot. Speaking directly to him shouldn’t be a problem. After thinking for a moment, I continued, “To be honest with you, I already know about the pregnancy at Youlan Palace. You also know that I have no intention of competing for favor, so I feel no jealousy toward Lady Jiang. Instead, I feel more sympathy and pity. However, although Zhao Wangfei is considered dead, many people inside and outside the palace have seen her. We need to wait a few years, until the matter fades from memory, before bringing her into the palace openly under a new identity. But the child cannot wait, we can’t let him grow up in the palace without a name or status. So… if you trust me, you might as well place him under my name first, giving him the status of the legitimate eldest son. That way, even if you want to pass the throne to him in the future, it will be easier.”
After such a long speech, my throat had gone dry. I reached for a cup of cold tea on the table, but before I could drink it, Qi Sheng took hold of the cup and coldly ordered, “Have them bring a hot one instead.”
I hadn’t finished speaking and didn’t want anyone coming in to interrupt, so I reluctantly put the cup down, licked my dry lips, and continued persuading him, “I’m repeating old points, so don’t find me nagging. It’s not a solution for you to guard Lady Jiang like this all the time. She may be pitiful, but aren’t the other women in the harem pitiful too? You saw their looks just now. What women fear most is unfairness. If you sleep with Lady Jiang on the first day, you should change places on the fifteenth. Chen Liangdi, Huang Xiangfei, Li Zhaoyi, you are the emperor, you are meant to have a harem. Lady Jiang should understand that. Who expects a lifetime of one-to-one from an emperor? As long as your heart is with her, that’s enough. The other consorts in the palace should also be cared for somewhat, favor should be spread evenly…”
Before I could finish, there was a sharp crack. Qi Sheng had crushed the teacup in his hand.
Ah… I really was too nagging!
I quickly tried to remedy it. “Pretend I said nothing, nothing at all. Go ahead and be with Lady Jiang alone for life. I’ll manage the palace, I’ll manage it!”
Qi Sheng said nothing. He stood up from the table, stared at me with a dark expression for a long moment, then turned and left.
I sat there blankly for quite a while, feeling deep disdain for his habit of storming off whenever things didn’t go his way!
Luli came in from outside. Seeing the broken porcelain on the table, she cried out and rushed over, grabbing my hands to examine them closely. “Niang Niang, where are you hurt? How is there so much blood?”
I froze and looked carefully at the shards, only then realizing that there was indeed blood on them, and even drops scattered on the floor.
I immediately felt like smashing my head against the wall in regret. D*mn, this is bad, I’ve really offended Qi Sheng deeply this time!
Luli kept turning my hands over, trying to find a cut.
I pulled my hands back and instructed her, “Hurry up. Take care of everything I told you as soon as possible.”
Although Luli’s way of thinking could be a bit peculiar, her work efficiency was quite good. The very next day, the Zhang family’s Second Miss entered the palace under the pretense of missing her elder sister.
Zhang’s grandfather, General Zhang Sheng, though lame, was quite handsome. And since Old Madam Yan had also been a beauty in her youth, the Zhang sisters were both very good-looking. If Lady Zhang was a splendid peony, then Second Miss Zhang was an elegant white lotus.
Looking at the shy, head-lowered Second Miss Zhang before me, I felt deeply moved. Such a beauty, yet she had to be pushed into someone else’s arms. Ah, wasn’t this like cutting flesh from my own body?
After dismissing all the palace maids and having Luli stand guard outside, I beckoned to her. “Come sit beside me.”
She came over and sat down, still with her head slightly lowered. Her rosy lips parted gently as she softly called, “Niang Niang.”
It felt like a basin of cold water had been poured over my head, instantly washing away all improper thoughts.
I cleared my throat and asked in a low voice, “Do you know General He Bingze?”
Her face flushed red, and a flicker of panic flashed across it.
I nodded inwardly. It seemed there was indeed something going on.
Last summer, when the late emperor went to Fuping Palace to escape the heat, he had intended to summon several candidates for the Lord Toilet’s Wangfei. Second Miss Zhang had been among those invited. At that time, Crown Prince Qi Sheng, fearing a connection between the Zhang family and Lord Toilet, had arranged for the young and handsome General He Bingze of the Left Guard to escort them, intending for him to sabotage Lord Toilet’s chances along the way.
Unexpectedly, before they even reached the palace, the old emperor suddenly died of a stroke during intercourse. He Bingze turned back midway to the capital and led troops to support Qi Sheng’s ascension. It had only been a little over half a year, yet everything already felt like a different world. Last year during the Dragon Boat Festival, Second Miss Zhang had still blushed shyly at Lord Toilet, but now, just hearing He Bingze’s name made her face flush.
It seemed the rice was already half-cooked.
Ah, women, women, truly the most changeable.
I sighed inwardly and said, “Don’t ask how I know about your private relationship. You’ve hidden it well, but nothing stays secret forever. The family will find out sooner or later. In an ordinary family, the two of you, talented and beautiful, mutually in love, would make a fine match. But our Zhang family is one of imperial in-laws and holds military power, already drawing the emperor’s suspicion. And the He family is also a pillar of the military, and General He’s mother is the Grand Empress Dowager’s niece…”
Second Miss Zhang’s face grew paler and paler. Her hands clenched her clothing as she kept her head lowered in silence.
Unwilling to frighten her further, I softened my tone and asked gently, “I’ll only ask you this, what are your plans?”
She was already on the verge of tears. Suddenly, she got up and knelt before me, crying, “Elder Sister, I truly like him. I really do!”
Suppressing my sympathy, I deliberately paused before asking, “And him? What did he say?”
She hesitated, her face flushing, her voice as soft as a mosquito’s hum. “He said he would never betray me.”
Ah, what a “never betray you”! Qi Sheng had said the same thing before, yet turned around and pushed me into the Wan River. And now his subordinate says the same to my sister.
I looked at her intently and asked in a low voice, “Can you give up your status and position?”
After thinking for a moment, she nodded firmly.
“Then it’s simple. Go find He Bingze. Tell him that for his sake, you are willing to give up your identity as the Zhang family’s Second Miss, that you only wish to stay by his side, even as a maid or concubine.”
Her eyes widened in shock.
I smiled, leaned closer, and said softly, “Silly girl, think about it. That will only move him and make him cherish you more. But would the He family dare let the empress’s own sister be a maid or concubine? As long as you two act first, both families will have no choice but to suppress the matter for the sake of face. Not to mention, I’ll help you from behind the scenes.”
She was a clever girl. After thinking it over, she understood my meaning. Still blushing, she asked softly, “What if… he doesn’t…”
I laughed and winked at her. “In matters like this, the decision has never been in the man’s hands.”
She froze, then became bashful, lightly hitting me as she said coyly, “Elder Sister, you’re so bad!”
Yes, I thought so too, but what choice was there?
After Luli saw Second Miss Zhang off, she returned, puzzled. “Niang Niang, why encourage Second Miss to elope? If it’s exposed, her life will be ruined.”
Since Luli was the only one around me I could rely on, and some things couldn’t be hidden from her anyway, I decided it was better to be open than let her half-understand and ruin things.
“Right now, the military is divided into three powers. Our Zhang family is the strongest; the others are the He family and the Yang family of Jiangbei. The Yang family has unclear ties with Chu Wang, so the emperor dares not use them. To suppress our Zhang family, the only military force he can rely on is the He family. As long as Second Miss gets entangled with He Bingze, regardless of the outcome, a rift will be created between the emperor and the He family. When the emperor uses them again, he will think twice.”
Luli stared in shock. After a long while, she finally came to her senses and praised me, “This servant understands now. Niang Niang is truly brilliant!”
I ignored the flattery and asked instead, “Luli, do you know why I don’t hide anything from you?”
She was slightly startled and looked at me in confusion. After thinking, she said, “Because this servant is loyal to Niang Niang.”
I smiled and shook my head. “Loyalty is the hardest thing to define. I trust you only because our lives are already tied together. If I live, you live; if I die, you die. In this world, nothing matters more than one’s own life and death.”
She lowered her head and remained silent for a long time, then looked up at me. “Since Niang Niang sees things so clearly, why not put effort into winning the emperor’s heart? People say Lady Jiang is clever and perceptive, but I think she is not even half as good as Niang Niang.”
“That brings me to another point,” I said. “The most untrustworthy thing in this world is the human heart, and the least reliable of all is a man’s heart.”
Luli stared at me as if she didn’t recognize me. “Niang Niang… what has happened to you?”
I reached out and gently stroked her hair, smiling. “Luli, what your Niang Niang wants to tell you is this: although men like clever women, most choose to marry foolish wives. Why? Because the more foolish you appear, the more at ease he feels, the less he guards against you. Just like with you in front of me, no matter how clever you are in secret, the more simple-minded you act on the surface, the more confidently I will use you.”
Her body trembled slightly as she asked shakily, “What is Niang Niang saying? I don’t understand.”
I didn’t want to pursue it further. Raising my brows slightly, I smiled. “If you don’t understand, forget it. Now hurry and find a way to arrange for Chu Wang to enter the palace to see me.”
