eurekapd Chapter 78 Ruyi's Royal Love in the Palace 5
Chapter 78 Ruyi's Royal Love in the Palace 5
This world is inherently unfair to women, subjecting them to all sorts of oppression, confining them to the inner quarters, making their husbands their heaven and earth, and relying on them for survival.
In such circumstances, if their husbands treat them badly, they will face utter disaster.
Therefore, when there were no conflicts of interest, Hongli was always quite lenient towards women.
Although Qingying was tricked by the Empress Dowager into killing the Empress of Jingren Palace, he was a normal person, so why should he argue with someone who wasn't thinking straight?
Little did she know that his gentle tone made Qingying's eyes light up, her heart surge with emotion, and she cried out silently, "My young man is so gentle to me."
"Your Majesty has been working hard these days with the mourning rites, so I have prepared a bowl of almond milk for you to soothe your lungs."
"You're so thoughtful!" Hongli nodded to his face, but inwardly he kept thinking: Your aunt is dead, and you still have the leisure to make almond milk!
If he didn't want to suppress this matter, he would really want to punish the person in front of him right now.
Seeing the woman's expectant gaze, Hongli spoke calmly:
"Qingying, Consort Jingren has suddenly died. She was your aunt after all. Go back to the palace and copy scriptures for her a hundred times. That will be your way of showing your respect."
Upon hearing her aunt mentioned, Qingying's eyes immediately reddened.
She couldn't bear to see the young man caught in the middle, and her young man, in turn, hadn't forgotten her pain.
"Thank you, Your Majesty!"
Qingying bowed with gratitude, left the almond dew, and then took Aruo back to copy the scriptures.
Hongli watched her departing figure, not quite understanding why she was thanking him when he had effectively placed her under house arrest.
Even if she spent all her remaining time copying the scriptures a hundred times, aside from eating, sleeping, and other daily necessities, it would still take her several months to finish.
Hongli shook his head, no longer trying to understand Qingying's thought process.
The Empress Dowager's affair taught him a lesson: he couldn't rely on the original owner's memories to treat people in the real world. The Empress Dowager was so arrogant, poisoning Empress Yixiu without hesitation; what about the other concubines in the palace? Since ancient times, the imperial harem has been a quagmire, and no one in it is clean.
He was adept at maneuvering in the court, so he couldn't let the harem hold him back!
We should send someone to keep an eye on the harem to prevent a repeat of the "poisoning of the empress" incident.
"A letter from Wu has arrived."
Wu Shulai was also a confidant of the original owner, having served him since childhood. He was more capable than Wang Qin, but Wang Qin was better at scheming and pleasing the original owner, so naturally the latter was more effective in front of the original owner.
Before long, Wu Shulai entered the hall with a bow, and knelt down respectfully to pay his respects.
"This servant greets Your Majesty!"
"Wu Shulai, I have a task for you to handle."
"Now the people in the harem are restless and the situation is turbulent. It is inevitable that some people will have the wrong ideas and different thoughts. You must immediately gather people together and plant spies in various parts of the palace. Report to us immediately if there is any disturbance."
Wu Shulai's mind was in turmoil, but he suppressed his excitement and accepted the order.
The Emperor's intention to appoint him to a high position is clear; he must perform his duties well so as to replace Wang Qin's position as soon as possible.
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On the third day of the ninth month of the thirteenth year of the Yongzheng reign, Hongli formally ascended the throne in the Hall of Supreme Harmony, designating the following year as the first year of the Qianlong reign. He then issued a series of edicts, first honoring the Holy Mother Niohuru as the Holy Mother Empress Dowager and moving her palace to the Cining Palace, and then conferring the title of Empress upon his wife, Fucha Langhua.
The turmoil involving the two empress dowagers in the palace has come to a complete end. The most anticipated matter now is the ranking of the concubines in the harem. At this time, Empress Fucha Langhua, who has already been named empress, drafted the rankings and sent them to the empress dowagers.
The Empress Dowager was currently riding high, and the Emperor was so sensible as to honor her as Empress Dowager and even renovate the Cining Palace for her to live in. She had nothing to complain about and felt that she hadn't made things too difficult for the Empress. She directly nodded in agreement to the titles and ranks that the Empress had proposed.
Fucha Langhua clutched the document detailing her official rank and wished she could slap herself. What was with all this pretense of generosity?
There's not much to say about others, but Qingying and Gao Xiyue were both nominated as Imperial Concubines.
Gao Xiyue is on her side, so giving her the rank of Imperial Concubine is fine, but if Qingying were to become Imperial Concubine, she would be furious!
She thought that since the Empress Dowager had always looked down on Qingying, she would definitely not agree to Qingying becoming a Noble Consort. So she wanted to use this opportunity to show her virtue and gentleness. Even if Qingying did not become a Noble Consort, the Emperor would not blame her, the Empress. After all, her assigned title was Noble Consort, and it was just that the Empress Dowager disagreed.
Unexpectedly, the Empress Dowager did not play by the rules and agreed directly, causing Fucha Langhua's plan to backfire completely.
Now that things have come to this, only the Emperor can demote Qingying.
But that's impossible!
The Emperor has always doted on Qingying and wished he could make her Empress. He would only dislike the low rank of Consort, not demote her.
It seems that this time she personally helped Qingying, a woman who always wanted to overstep her bounds, to rise to a high position.
With a heavy heart, Empress Fucha Langhua arrived at the Hall of Mental Cultivation: "Your Majesty, I pay my respects."
When Hongli saw that it was her, his attitude was quite good. He even stepped down from the dragon throne and personally helped her up.
Empress Fucha Langhua was his empress, a very important position, so he naturally paid more attention to her than to ordinary concubines.
Moreover, this empress is quite capable. She has managed the affairs of the palace since the time she was a prince, and she has never made a mistake. Although she is a bit weak in temperament, her ability to stabilize the harem is her greatest strength.
Hongli always held capable people in high regard: "What brings the Empress here?"
Empress Fucha Langhua valued her status and was unwilling to fawn over the emperor like other concubines in the Hall of Mental Cultivation. She would not come to the Hall of Mental Cultivation unless she had something to do.
"Your Majesty, this is a draft of the ranks and titles for all the ladies in the harem. Please take a look." Fucha Langhua handed over the draft with both hands.
"Your Majesty has worked hard!" Hongli took the memorial and frowned instantly upon reading it.
Fucha Langhua's heart was in her throat. Did the Emperor really think that Consort Qingying's rank was too low?
Unexpectedly, Hongli looked it over from top to bottom and finally picked up his pen to cross out Ulanara Qingying's title of Imperial Concubine and change it to the title of Consort.
Qingying conspired with the Empress Dowager to poison the Empress of Jingren Palace. It's not appropriate to bring this up now to punish her, but we can't just let it go so easily either. We should use her position to give her a warning first, and then find another opportunity to deal with her later.
Actually, if she hadn't been appointed as a secondary consort by the late emperor, he would have wanted to give her the rank of concubine, or even a noble lady.
As for Gao Xiyue, another concubine from the Prince's residence, the Empress also intended for her to be a Noble Consort. He hesitated for a moment. This Gao Xiyue was quite learned, but she was shallow-minded and easily swayed. She was very easy to be manipulated. If she were in a high position, she would become a target for others to use.
Upon realizing this, Hongli simply changed her rank to that of a concubine, but retained the title of 'Hui' that the Imperial Household Department had proposed for her. He also elevated her status and bestowed upon her the surname Gaojia.
Thinking that if Gao Xiyue performs well in the future, has outstanding virtue in the palace, or if her maternal family in the previous dynasty becomes useful, it would be possible to find an opportunity to promote her to the rank of Imperial Concubine.