Chapter 388: Chapter 383: Imperial Concubine
Consort Hui lowered her head and took a sip of the bird’s nest soup. It was warm, and it spread a comforting warmth in her belly, making her feel grateful for Imperial Concubine’s attentive care. She, being a concubine without real power or favor, would never have received such devoted service from the palace attendants if not for Imperial Concubine’s orders.
However, now that she had received Imperial Concubine’s care, should there ever be a need for her assistance in the future, she would definitely do her utmost. Anyway, her father had said that as long as she did not involve herself in the harem rivalries and took good care of herself and the child in her womb, that would suffice.
Today, all the noble ladies of the capital had also entered the city. Her father was Marquis Weiyuan, in charge of defense, and held a high position, so the seat of her mother was quite forward. She nodded and smiled, giving her mother a reassuring look.
But by contrast, the ladies of the Wang family did not have it so easy. Relying on the Empress Dowager’s grace, Mrs. Wang also sat in the front row, but her own biological daughter, Consort Jia, was not present today; instead, it was a concubine daughter who often scorned her that flashed a provocative smile at her.
Mrs. Wang’s face was stiff, her handkerchief nearly torn to shreds in her grip. This little wretch, if she had known this day would come, she would never have sent her to the Emperor’s residence, preventing this lowly-born concubine from flaunting herself in front of her every day, while her own daughter could only be locked up for interrogation.
At this thought, she cast an anxious look towards Empress Dowager Wang. She heard that Imperial Concubine had accused her daughter of being the criminal behind the attempt on the Heir’s life. If this crime were truly confirmed, what would become of her daughter? And her Wang family?
The Wang family’s fortunes rose and fell with the Empress Dowager’s—it was imperative that Empress Dowager not leave them to their fate!
Once the darling of everyone, the Wang family’s ladies were now surrounded by a chilly air, whereas the Ye Family’s daughters-in-law were bustling with activity. Who didn’t know that with Imperial Concubine’s favor, the Ye Family wielded great power? Although everyone knew that a big tree catches the wind, who wouldn’t want to enjoy the shade beneath it?
Among these women, the most eager gaze belonged to Princess Yuhua. Since the last incident, there had been successive news of Consort Jia’s miscarriage and the drowning of two Princes. To prevent her from getting involved, Empress Dowager Wang had forbidden her from entering the palace.
Without access to the palace, Princess Yuhua naturally could not see Ye Mu, whom she constantly longed for. In this time, she had met several other famous young gentlemen in the capital, but none seemed to compare to Ye Mu, thus intensifying the obsession in her heart.
Suddenly, she remembered what her elder brother had said before. He forbade her from entering the palace to look for Ye Mu, lest she distract him from his duties, but he had mentioned that she could ask an official matchmaker to legitimize their relationship!
She had been troubled all this time because Ye Mu’s parents were at the border, making it impossible for her to act. But fortune had it that Marshal Ye and the Marshal’s wife had returned just as she was losing hope. Even heaven seemed reluctant to separate them—wasn’t this fated?
Therefore, Princess Yuhua looked at Mrs. Ye with a warm gaze. Since she was Ye Mu’s mother, she could certainly condescend to please her.
"Mrs. Ye." Princess Yuhua was dressed exquisitely today, and she even wore a hair accessory fit for a young girl, lest Mrs. Ye think her age, two years older than Ye Mu, a barrier to their match.
Mrs. Ye had last returned to the capital upon the death of the late Emperor and the ascension of the new Emperor, so she did not recognize this Princess Yuhua. Met with a pretty girl greeting her so cordially, she was totally bewildered, only to be reminded by the palace maid attending her that this was Princess Yuhua. However, having just returned, she was not yet aware that this Princess Yuhua coveted her younger son.
She was therefore surprised by the greeting: "I greet Your Highness, Princess."
"Mrs. Ye, please rise." She personally helped Mrs. Ye up, at a loss for words. She did not get along well with her Prince Consort’s family, and her relationship with her mother-in-law was particularly antagonistic.
By tradition, she should pay respects to her mother-in-law, but according to royal protocol, her mother-in-law should pay respects to her. After greeting each other twice, neither mother-in-law nor daughter-in-law felt at ease, and the practice of greetings eventually fell by the wayside.
However, Princess Yuhua thought to avoid such embarrassment and trouble, she and Prince Consort Ye could just live in the Princess Mansion after their marriage. She could still save Mrs. Ye’s face by occasionally meeting her.
At this moment, Princess Yuhua had even planned for after her marriage but never considered whether the Ye Family would agree at all.
Mrs. Ye looked at the Princess, bewildered by her shy expression, wondering what she was doing standing in front of her without speaking. Could it be that there was something wrong with her mind?
Meanwhile, Empress Dowager Wang watched her own daughter eagerly rushing to ingratiate herself with Mrs. Ye, almost dying of anger. This fool, has she not yet given up those illusory thoughts?
It was no secret that Princess Yuhua fancied Ye Mu; after all, she had once sought him out in the palace in front of many guards. Those eligible to serve as Imperial Guards were either Imperial Family or trusted important officials of Ji Fei. They all came from significant backgrounds, and a few words would spread throughout the entire capital.
Therefore, nobody found it strange for Princess Yuhua to approach Mrs. Ye, and some even wanted to continue watching the farce.
Now that Guard Ye had reached a fifth-rank official position, marrying the Princess would actually downgrade him to a Secondary Fifth-Ranking, and he would even be barred from participating in political affairs in the future. Who would be happy with that? Not to mention that this Princess wasn’t born of the same mother as the Emperor and had even been divorced for being childless.
Unless someone was extremely vain or from a financially weak family, who would be willing to invite such a troublesome ancestor into their home!
"Mrs. Ye, I..."
"Serve the dishes." Before Princess Yuhua could finish her careful phrasing, Ye Qiu interrupted her, "Princess, if there’s nothing urgent, please return to your seat. The Empress Dowager hasn’t been in a good mood these days. Your Highness could also come over and keep the Empress Dowager company."
When Ye Qiu said this, the Imperial Mandate ladies stifled their laughter for two reasons: a Princess was publicly reprimanded by the Imperial Concubine, and the cause of the Empress Dowager’s poor mood was self-evident. It was said that the two sisters from the Wang family had been fighting each other viciously, which understandably gave the Empress Dowager a headache.
They also admired the situation—how the Wang family had fumbled what seemed like a winning hand, and at the same time, they took the lesson to heart that life in the harem was not easy. Sometimes greed for too much ended up in loss.
Furthermore, they deeply realized the prowess of the Imperial Concubine—without deploying a single soldier, she had caused the Wang family’s two concubines in the harem to be utterly defeated, and still kept the Emperor firmly in her grasp. Truly remarkable!
"Yuhua, come here." Seeing that Princess Yuhua still wanted to say something to Mrs. Ye, Empress Dowager Wang sternly commanded.
"Empress Mother!" Princess Yuhua walked over to Empress Dowager Wang, stamping her foot in frustration.
"Sit quietly, and don’t go provoking the Ye Family," Empress Dowager Wang rebuked in a low voice.
Ye Qiu, seeing the mother and daughter both sporting an ashen face, laughed heartily, inviting the seated Imperial Mandate ladies to taste the new dish prepared by the Imperial Chef as if she hadn’t witnessed this awkward scene.