Chapter 304

Chapter 304 After answering, Concubine Lu immediately realized what Xie Run had left unsaid. But in the end, she wasn't as open-minded as Xie Run. "Although the Prince favors those who don't contend, if we truly don't contend... I fear we won't be able to rest easy either." Xie Run stood up and patted her hand. "I know all your concerns." "Some things can only be discussed after we enter the palace." Xie Run then shared something that hadn't yet spread through the household: "I received word yesterday that two new sisters have joined the palace." Concubine Lu wasn't surprised—she knew this was inevitable—but she was curious: "Sister Xie mentioned it specifically, so are those two of special status?" Xie Run nodded slightly. "Of the two, one is the granddaughter of Duke Su of the Yang family, quite renowned for her beauty in the capital. Her name is Yang Zuilan, and she has entered the palace as Concubine Yang." "The other..." Xie Run paused briefly before continuing slowly, "The other has a special status. She is the divine physician who presented the Seasonal Plague remedy and saved His Majesty, and she is also the daughter of the Yunzhou Prefect." Hearing the words "Seasonal Plague remedy," Concubine Lu's scalp tightened. "What rank did the Emperor give her?" "She was made a Bright Lady, with the title 'Xian' bestowed upon her." Concubine Lu's eyes were full of astonishment. "Entering the palace directly as a Bright Lady? The Emperor truly values her." Among the Nine Concubines' ranks, the "Bright" tier had been completely vacant. Even for veterans with children, Prince Jing had started conferring titles from the "Xiurong" tier. Now this daughter of the Yunzhou Prefect had come in and become a Bright Lady right away. Though it was the lowest rank within the Bright tier, the palace had few high positions, and she had become the third-highest woman upon entry, towering over the other veterans from the Prince's household. Concubine Lu paused to compose herself before saying, "I'm afraid Ritualist Hui and Xiurong Gong won't accept this." Ritualist Hui was Consort Li, and Xiurong Gong was Fang Yuan'er. "Ritualist Hui may not contend, but she's served His Majesty for nearly two years and borne him a healthy princess. Now she's been overshadowed by a newcomer." As for Fang Yuan'er, there was no need to even mention her. Xie Run only said softly, "She saved the life of the Retired Emperor when he was still the Emperor, and her father's status isn't low. It's only natural she received a high rank." Back in the Prince's household, there had only been three ranks, so differences weren't obvious, and the importance of family background wasn't apparent. Now that they were in the palace, Consort Sun, who had kept a low profile, had leapt up to become Consort Jing—only slightly below Xie Run, who was favored and had a son. Aside from family background, no one could think of another reason for her high rank. Including Jiang Baobao, who had been demoted to concubine after being rejected by the Emperor, and Hua Yu, who had neither children nor favor—one became Beauty Duan and the other Lady Hua, both relatively high. Anyone with discerning eyes could see that these two had benefited from their family backgrounds. So it was only to be expected that the late-arriving Noble Lady Xian and Concubine Yang had their current ranks. After hearing this, Concubine Lu had nothing more to say. After thinking for a long while, she sighed, "If Beauty Duan finds out, she'll regret it so much her intestines will turn green." Both had presented remedies for the plague. Both were daughters of prefects. The other woman had leapt up to become Noble Lady Xian, while she had only managed to become Beauty Duan and was loathed by the Emperor. Xie Run raised an eyebrow. "Don't say that. When she first entered the household as a Side Consort, she was already that arrogant. I can't imagine how she'd bully those beneath her if she'd become a Bright Lady." Reminded by Xie Run, Concubine Lu immediately thought of how Consort Jiang had tried to suppress Xie Run—who was favored and eight months pregnant—the moment she entered the household. She couldn't help but sigh. "I wonder what temperaments these two newcomers have. I hope they don't learn from Beauty Duan. That would truly be..." There would be endless drama ahead. Xie Run fell silent as well. "That depends on the Emperor's judgment." To be honest, the Emperor's judgment wasn't really that good either. After chatting with Xie Run for a while, someone from Concubine Lu's courtyard came to fetch her, and she returned to her own quarters. Before leaving, Concubine Lu spoke what had been on her mind, urging Xie Run to have another child soon. Xie Run was still young and still favored—it was the perfect time to have another. Having a son was good, but two was always safer. With children secured, even if she lost favor in the future, no one could shake her position. Xie Run listened seriously to Concubine Lu's advice. She knew that Concubine Lu was telling her these things with her best interests at heart. Once the luggage was packed, Xie Run boarded the carriage heading to the palace. She had things to discuss with Dantao, so she had Nanny Xu take Taotao in the carriage behind, to avoid the child's laughter interfering with their conversation. Dantao shared the information she had gathered: "Mistress, Concubine Yang was raised by the Duke Su's household to be the Principal Consort of either the Seventh Prince or the Eighth Prince. But no one expected things to change so rapidly—the Seventh and Eighth Princes both met with misfortune one after another, and the Emperor ascended the throne." "The Duke Su pledged his loyalty to the Emperor while the Retired Emperor was gravely ill, and now, to show his sincerity, he has sent Concubine Yang into the palace." "Previously, the Duke Su had kept her information tightly sealed, so we couldn't learn much. All we know is that she was once a close friend of Consort Jing." Although Xie Run had said in front of Concubine Lu that she wouldn't contend, she still needed to understand what was worth knowing. She had never liked being blind. Xie Run lifted the curtain and glanced outside casually. "And what about Noble Lady Xian? Did she follow my instructions to carefully investigate her background?" "She's the daughter of the Yunzhou Prefect. How could she know medicine?" Dantao said softly, "Chunjuan spent two full days looking into this, and indeed found quite a bit of information." "Noble Lady Xian's biological father favored his concubine over his wife to an outrageous degree. In the early years, swayed by the noble concubine's instigation, he claimed that Noble Lady Xian's fate clashed with his own, and sent her to be raised in a countryside estate." Xie Run said in surprise, "So Noble Lady Xian actually grew up in the countryside?" Dantao nodded. "Her days in the countryside weren't difficult. She even apprenticed herself to a retired imperial physician who had returned to his hometown, and received considerable instruction from him—that's how she came by her medical skills." "Originally, when the Retired Emperor was gravely ill, the Yun family wanted to seize the opportunity to curry favor by sending a concubine-born daughter into the palace. But that daughter was unwilling, so they brought Noble Lady Xian back instead. By a stroke of fortune, Noble Lady Xian presented the Seasonal Plague remedy and saved the Retired Emperor. Now she enters the palace and is immediately ranked as Bright Lady." "The Yun family is now all fawning over her, terrified that Noble Lady Xian might hold a grudge over past mistreatment." Xie Run asked again, "And what of Noble Lady Xian's temperament?" "They say she is kind to others, cheerful and open—not someone with a scheming heart." Xie Run had wanted to ask Dantao whether she thought Noble Lady Xian might be Wan Linlang in disguise. But then she remembered she hadn't told Dantao about Wan Linlang's face-shifting abilities, and she didn't dare reveal with certainty that Wan Linlang might still be alive. Fang Yuan'er had the gift of prophecy—Xie Run did not. After Dantao finished speaking, Xie Run drank a cup of tea and pondered quietly. In the original plot, there was indeed a Concubine Yang. She too had been sent out by the Duke of Su as a gamble after the situation was already decided, entering the palace to serve Prince Jing as Concubine Yang. Because both Fang Yuan'er and Wan Linlang at the time were wary of this woman—beautiful, accomplished, and of high status—they joined forces to crush her in the third month of her palace entry. So in the original plot, she was merely an insignificant supporting character, and her future prospects were as yet unknown. Xie Run was more concerned about Noble Lady Xian. There was no such figure in the original script. Because the Retired Emperor had never contracted the Seasonal Plague—he had only been bedridden with a severe illness—there was naturally no need for a divine physician to present a plague remedy. The original plot did mention Noble Lady Xian's father, the Yunzhou Prefect. He had initially not favored Prince Jing and secretly sided with Prince An. Hua Yu's elder brother had made his name in a single battle at Yunzhou, then risen steadily, posing a major threat to Prince An's faction. Acting on Prince An's orders, the Yunzhou Prefect tried every means to suppress Hua Yu's brother, and the two became bitter enemies in Yunzhou. But Hua Yu's brother was a prodigy—no mere prefect could hold him down. Thirty years later, fortunes reversed: Hua Yu's brother became the Grand General of the Realm, the Emperor's most trusted minister, wielding immense power, and naturally dealt with the Yunzhou Prefect in due course. Though at the time, it was also because the Emperor was preparing for war against the Xia Dynasty, was dissatisfied with the Yunzhou Prefect's incompetence, and feared he would hold things back—so he took the opportunity to strip him of his post. In this life, the Yunzhou Prefect had backed the Emperor early, and had sent the plague remedy to save the Retired Emperor, making the Emperor's succession even more legitimate. Back then, when the Emperor risked everything to save the Retired Emperor, everyone had openly or covertly expressed confusion, even mocking the Emperor for being foolish. If the Retired Emperor had died, the Emperor could have smoothly ascended the throne. If the Retired Emperor recovered, the Emperor would likely have remained Crown Prince for many more years, with no guarantee of a stable succession. Adding to that, Prince An had been fanning the flames among the common folk, stirring up no small amount of unfavorable rumors about the Emperor. But now, the tide of opinion had turned—all spoke of the new Emperor's pure filial piety, treating his father as heaven itself. Moreover, since the Retired Emperor had passed the throne to the Emperor while still alive, no one dared question the legitimacy of the Emperor's rule. And because his reputation for filial piety had spread far and wide, the new Emperor enjoyed great popular support among the people. If one could conduct a poll, one would find that public satisfaction with the new Emperor was far higher than with the Retired Emperor. Popular sentiment is an intangible thing, but sometimes it is very real. At the very least, few dared to obstruct the Emperor's ascension, and the resistance he faced in governing was far less than expected. Prince An, fleeing among the people, no longer dared spread rumors that the Emperor's succession was illegitimate. In this regard, the Yunzhou Prefect and Noble Lady Xian had rendered great service and were worthy of the Emperor's rewards. The situation in this life had changed too drastically; now one could only take things one step at a time. The auspicious time for entering the palace was calculated by the Imperial Observatory—at the third quarter of the hour of Shen. The moment Xie Run entered Zhaohua Palace, she saw a batch of eunuchs and maids kneeling in the courtyard, some twenty or so in total. Led by Chunjuan, they all paid their respects to Xie Run at once. "Your servant pays respects to Bright and Pure Consort. May the Bright and Pure Consort be blessed with ten thousand fortunes." Xie Run lightly raised her hand and said in a gentle tone, "Rewards!" Yueya'er and Chunjuan each took out embroidered pouches from their bags and distributed them one by one. After the rewards came the thanks. Xie Run, attended by Dantao and Xiaoshu, returned to the main hall. She assigned Nanny Xu and Chunjuan as stewards, then dismissed the others to rest in the courtyard. After a while, she sent Xiaoshu out to give instructions, while Dantao and Nanny Xu arranged how to store the items brought into the palace. In the past at Prince Jing's residence, Xie Run had only been a lowly concubine, so naturally she had to personally lecture the maidservants. Now that she had become a first-rank Bright and Pure Consort, such matters should be handled by her senior palace maids. If she did it herself, she would lose face. Having entered the palace, she had to follow palace rules to survive well. Nanny Xu was originally someone who had served in the palace. When the Empress assigned attendants to each palace, she gave Xie Run great authority, allowing her to personally select the staff for Zhaohua Palace. In the entire palace, only Xie Run had this privilege. The palace maids and eunuchs in the courtyard now were all chosen after Chunjuan and Nanny Xu had made inquiries on Xie Run's behalf. Having returned to the palace, Nanny Xu naturally became the head nanny of Zhaohua Palace, and Chunjuan, being trusted by Xie Run, took on the role of head eunuch at a young age. Upon first entering the palace, they had to arrange the belongings brought from the prince's residence, win over the new people in the courtyard, and gather news from all the palaces—everyone in each courtyard was busier than they could handle. Xie Run also had the Empress to thank. Everything in Zhaohua Palace went smoothly, and she had mostly settled matters within just a day and a half. This left her much more time to arrange other things. In the blink of an eye, three days had passed. On the fourth day, all the palaces were to pay respects to the Empress and the Empress Dowager. This was also the first time they would pay respects after entering the palace, and it was a very solemn occasion. Xie Run rose early and had Taotao dressed in rich and adorable attire. Nanny Xu specially combed Xie Run's hair into a palace chignon and taught her how to dress properly. Ever since the Emperor had ascended the throne, Xie Run had people teach the residents of Chunshan Courtyard the palace rules. Dantao had nimble fingers and had always been the one to comb Xie Run's hair before. In the two years at the prince's residence, she had learned quite a bit. But in the end, her origins were humble, and she hadn't received much training, so she didn't know how to style a palace chignon. Even if she tried to learn on short notice, a few days wouldn't be enough to improve. Today was Xie Run's first time paying respects after entering the palace, and it was precisely the time when all the palaces vied to outshine one another—no mistakes could be made, so Nanny Xu was brought in to comb Xie Run's hair. When Xie Run arrived, there were already many people at Fengyi Palace. Except for Consort Jing and Noble Lady Xian, everyone who should come had come. To avoid awkwardness, Xie Run immediately bowed respectfully to the Empress upon entering Fengyi Palace: "This consort pays respects to Your Majesty the Empress. May the Empress enjoy good health and everlasting joy without worry." A faint smile hung on the Empress's face. "Rise." Seeing Xie Run, those who had been seated all stood up in unison to bow to her. "This consort pays respects to Bright and Pure Consort. May Bright and Pure Consort be blessed with ten thousand fortunes!" Xie Run looked at the bowed heads before her and suddenly understood a little why everyone in the palace fought so hard to be above others. This feeling of being saluted and paid homage by the crowd was something only those who held power and status could enjoy. Xie Run merely smiled and said, "All sisters, please rise." "We thank Bright and Pure Consort." Xie Run, supported by Dantao, took her seat at the first position below the Empress. Now in the harem, she was truly second only to one person and above ten thousand others. Behind her, Nanny Xu stood respectfully, holding Taotao, who was dressed in brand-new clothes. Xie Run was just about to exchange a few pleasantries with the Empress when she heard the announcement at the door: "Consort Jing and Noble Lady Xian have arrived!" PS: Harem rankings: Empress—Princess Consort Xie Run—First-rank Bright and Pure Consort—Zhaohua Palace Consort Sun (daughter of the Duke of Ying)—Consort Jing—Yongning Palace Consort Li (a palace maid by Noble Consort Rou's side, gifted to Prince Jing)—mother of the Third Princess—Ritualist Hui—Yongming Palace Fang Yuan'er—Xiurong Gong—Fanghua Palace Hua Yu—Lady Hua—Chonghua Palace Jiang Baobao—Beauty Duan—Zhizhu Pavilion Concubine Fang (raised the First Princess Ruyi, formerly a maidservant of Concubine Yun)—Liuyun Pavilion—Concubine Fang Concubine Lu (formerly a maidservant of Concubine An, allied with Xie Run)—Lady Lu Concubine Ye, Concubine Wu (the last batch to enter the prince's residence, entered together with Consort Sun)—Talented Lady Ye, Talented Lady Wu