Chapter 356: Chapter 351: Imperial Concubine
The current master of Cining Palace is Empress Dowager Wang, who is not the biological mother of Emperor Ji Fei. Due to the lack of favor from the late Emperor in her early years, she only gave birth to Princess Yuhua. Later, seeing the power struggles amongst the favored concubines in the harem, she had no choice but to adopt the now Emperor Ji Fei as her own.
Because Emperor Ji Fei was an adopted son of the Empress, even his accession to the throne after slaying his brother was deemed legitimate. Therefore, after Emperor Ji Fei’s enthronement, he showed great respect for Empress Dowager Wang.
However, Empress Dowager Wang and Ye Qiu have always been at odds, and the reason is simply the word "power."
Empress Dowager Wang can be said to have legitimized Ji Fei’s accession, but it was the support of the Ye Family that solidified his rule. Without the Ye Family, Ji Fei would have been assassinated by the Eldest Prince and the Third Prince long ago.
At the beginning of the year, when Emperor Ji Fei assumed the throne, he went against many opinions and installed Ye Qiu as Imperial Concubine in the Central Palace, which lacked an Empress. He even gave her control of the phoenix seal, the symbol of power within the palace. How could Empress Dowager Wang, who had barely turned her fortunes around after years of oppression by favored concubines of the late Emperor, be willing to accept this?
Furthermore, Empress Dowager Wang’s niece, Wang Yaning, had given birth to the Second Prince, engendering in her another level of aspiration: if Lady Shufen could become Empress, then the Second Prince would be the legitimate Crown Prince, and the Wang family’s glory would be sustained.
Unfortunately, despite having all the advantages, Wang Yaning has a fatal flaw: she is not a legitimate daughter. The Daxin Dynasty places great importance on the distinction between legitimate and concubine-born children. Even if Wang Yaning is the niece of the Empress Dowager and the mother of the Second Prince, she cannot become Empress.
Luckily, the Wang family has more than one daughter, and with the new Emperor’s ascension and the harem being empty, it is the perfect opportunity to introduce the legitimate daughter of the Wang family into the palace. If this legitimate daughter could give birth to a prince, that would be ideal. Even if she couldn’t, they could still record the birth of the Second Prince under her name. However, what Empress Dowager Wang finds most unbearable is that Ye Qiu currently occupies the position of Imperial Concubine.
According to the ancestral laws of the Daxin Dynasty, the Imperial Concubine is equivalent to a Vice Empress, and in the presence of an Empress, an Imperial Concubine cannot be appointed. Likewise, now that Ye Qiu occupies the position of Imperial Concubine, this implies that if she does not ascend to Empress, another Empress cannot be appointed.
Therefore, even if the legitimate daughter of the Wang family enters the palace, as long as Ye Qiu does not step down, she can never become Empress. How can Empress Dowager Wang accept this?
But Ye Qiu is beautiful, and with the Ye Family’s significant power and influence, she is in the prime of receiving the Emperor’s favor. How can Empress Dowager Wang bring down Ye Qiu?
What reassures her most is that to date, Ye Qiu has not borne a prince. What can a favored concubine without a prince by her side amount to? She will not allow Ye Qiu to have the opportunity to adopt a son as her own, as she once did.
"Aunt, Yaning and Yu’er have come to greet you," said a lavishly dressed woman entering, while Empress Dowager Wang was deep in thought. She was wearing a peach pink palace dress, and her hair was adorned with golden hairpins, shining brightly but with a hint of nouveau riche opulence.
A concubine daughter is still a concubine daughter, ultimately unfit for public display. Empress Dowager Wang felt even more urgency to bring the legitimate daughter of the Wang family into the palace.
"Why did you not go to greet the Imperial Concubine today?" Empress Dowager Wang asked with a frown, her tone rather severe.
Lady Shufen stiffened, then quickly responded with a smile, "Yu’er was inexplicably crying all morning, and I really couldn’t leave his side. By the time I managed to soothe him, it was already past the time to greet her, so I came straight here to see you, Aunt."
"Isn’t Yu’er always well-behaved? If you can’t take care of him properly, leave him with me," Empress Dowager Wang warned, her gaze fixed on Lady Shufen.
Inwardly cursing, Lady Shufen thought in spite of giving birth to the Second Prince and becoming Lady Shufen, why did her Aunt always look down on her? If she really sent the Second Prince over, would he still be close to her in the future? Wasn’t she aware of her Aunt’s intention to bring Wang Yajing into the palace? Perhaps she would even lose her son eventually.
Lady Shufen forced a stiff smile and said, "It’s normal for children to be fussy. I’m worried he’ll bother you, Aunt, so I’ll take care of him myself."
Empress Dowager Wang gave her a sidelong glance: "The palace is not like Prince Wang Mansion; you need to follow the proper rules and etiquette here."
"Yes, Yaning respectfully heeds Aunt’s instruction."
"However, you are still a daughter of the Wang family, the biological mother of the Second Prince, and the Lady personally bestowed by the Emperor; you must not lose your dignity in your conduct."
"Yes, Yaning understands."
"Empress Dowager, Imperial Concubine Mingming is here with Fang Pin and Consort Zhang to pay their respects," the eunuch reported just after finishing speaking.
"Let them come in!"
"Chirp!"
"I pay my respects to the Empress Dowager, wishing you everlasting prosperity and peace." Ye Qiu performed the palace greeting meticulously.
"Today, the Imperial Concubine Ye Qiu seems to have learned to behave more properly," Empress Dowager Wang said nonchalantly while sipping her hot tea, her tone still pressing.
Empress Dowager Wang did not tell her to rise, but Ye Qiu did not get annoyed; she smiled and seated herself on a nearby chair: "Thank you for the Empress Dowager’s unwarranted praise. However, as the Imperial Concubine personally bestowed by the Emperor, my every move represents the etiquette of the Royal Family; naturally, I dare not make a mistake. Otherwise, not to mention the Emperor’s blame, I would feel guilty myself."
Empress Dowager Wang glanced at Ye Qiu with a cold eye, her tone somewhat sharp: "Imperial Concubine Ye Qiu is quite sharp-tongued today."
"I come from a military general’s family, after all, I can’t compare to Lady Shufen whose family has a deeper foundation. However, even though I am favored by the Emperor, I would never dare to become arrogant because of it. It’s also fortunate that I have always been cautious with my words and deeds, so as not to become the subject of ridicule," Ye Qiu replied with a gentle smile, countering Empress Dowager Wang’s words while subtly mocking Lady Shufen for relying on her high family status to lack manners.
Empress Dowager Wang’s breathing became heavier with anger, and she glared fiercely at the indiscreet Lady Shufen.
Wang Yaning’s heart constricted, and she hurriedly stood up to pay respects to Ye Qiu: "I pay my respects to my sister. Today, the Second Prince was crying and making a fuss, which delayed me past the designated time. I thought it was the same to come to the Empress Dowager’s palace to pay respects, not realizing it was a breach of etiquette. Please, sister, punish me."
"If the Second Prince is unwell, he should be taken to the Imperial Hospital for the Imperial Physicians to examine. As for paying respects, twice a month indeed seems too frequent; I’ll ask His Majesty on a day when I have the time to make it once a month instead, so as not to disturb Empress Dowager’s peace. However, even if you are busy, you should still have the eunuchs and palace maids report it, so as not to keep everyone waiting just for you, right?"
"Paying respects on the first and fifteenth of each month is a rule established by our ancestors; how can it simply be changed at a whim?" Empress Dowager suppressed her anger and spoke. Although she held the position of Empress Dowager in the palace, she had no real power. How could she establish her authority if the new concubines visit only once a month after they entered the palace?
"Lady Shufen was negligent this time, so let’s penalize her with a forfeiture of her monthly allowance as a warning to others," suggested Empress Dowager.
"Since the Empress Dowager has said so, I am not in a position to plead for Lady Shufen. Let’s do as the Empress Dowager suggests," Ye Qiu said with a light smile, immediately acknowledging Lady Shufen’s fault for the day.
"I accept the punishment and thank Empress Dowager and Imperial Concubine Ye Qiu for their grace." Lady Shufen said with restrained anger. In the past, she had also skipped paying respects due to her status; why was Imperial Concubine Ye Qiu not letting it go today? And the Empress Dowager too, although she might not be a legitimate daughter of the Wang family, she was still her niece, so why would she join outsiders in bullying her own?