Read Novel Full The Empress’s Blessing in the Qing Dynasty Chapter 13
Chapter 13
Tong Guowei returned to the Tong Manor in a state of utter desolation.
His original plan was to drop a hint to the Emperor when his daughter entered the palace, nudging him to grant her a high rank. As the Emperor’s maternal cousin, even if she couldn’t be the Empress, she should at least be the highest-ranking consort below her. He had long been displeased with the Empress and the Hesheli clan; he had been counting on his daughter’s entry to show them that there is always someone better.
But… why would the Emperor say such things? The Emperor must have been bewitched by the Empress!
His daughter hadn’t even entered the palace yet, and the Empress already guarded against her so fiercely. He felt a deep-seated hatred; the Empress was so narrow-minded that she clearly envied his daughter’s status as the Emperor’s cousin—a status that nearly made her the Empress herself!
Furthermore, he had hoped that after his daughter entered, she would monopolize the Emperor’s favor and bear many little Princes. With her status as a favored consort and the mutual support of several Princes, she might even surpass the Crown Prince. Since ancient times, not even half of all Crown Princes had successfully ascended the throne. He was willing to let his daughter suffer slightly under the Empress for now; once the Emperor passed away and his daughter became the Mother Empress Dowager, the Tong family would still be the most illustrious nobility in the capital.
Yet, everything had been destroyed by the Empress before it could even begin.
Lady Tong saw her father immediately. Unlike before, when he was in high spirits giving her instructions about the palace, he now looked as if he hadn’t even seen her. However, she didn’t mind; she knew her father was supposed to talk to the Emperor today about her entry.
She asked eagerly, “Father, what rank does the Emperor intend to promise me? I wonder if Cousin wants to keep my rank low at first and then grant me a high position during the official Grand Investiture, or if he will give me a high rank the moment I enter?”
Either option was enough to make her expectant. The former would allow her to act with a low profile, while the latter would be a sign of her cousin’s favor. Thinking of this, Lady Tong’s face turned slightly red, and she vowed not to fail her cousin’s affection.
Of course, once she entered the palace, she had to be cautious. The Empress had a Crown Prince and was fond of clinging to her cousin; she was clearly not easy to deal with. Under the Empress’s suppression, life would not be easy… It was a pity her attempt at a preemptive strike yesterday hadn’t dragged the Empress down. That fool Zhao Jia!
Lady Tong cursed inwardly. Fortunately, she would be entering the palace soon, and she wouldn’t have to worry about being unable to deal with the Empress then. The person who should be buried with her cousin in the imperial tomb after a hundred years was her. The Empress’s seat… the Crown Prince’s position…
Tong Guowei looked coldly at the daughter before him. “Something terrible has happened. The Emperor intends to marry you to a Prince of the Imperial Clan or the Empress’s biological brother!”
“What?!” Lady Tong’s composed expression finally shattered. How could the Emperor marry her to another man!
Kunning Palace
Snow Lotus was carefully washing her mistress’s hands, the warm water splashing gently against Li Mu’s fair and tender wrists.
Snow Lotus said with satisfaction, “Your Majesty, the physician says your body is recovering very well. In a few days, I will add the medicinal herbs sent by the Hesheli family to your regimen; you will surely be back to your old self in no time.”
“Why the rush?” Li Mu looked at Yinreng, who was blowing bubbles nearby, and wanted to tease him. However, since her hands were busy, she could only mentally imagine pinching her son’s little face over and over.
“Your Majesty, that is the wrong way to think. You are young and one of the top beauties in the palace. If you don’t take this chance to lure the Emperor to Kunning Palace and add a few biological brothers for our Crown Prince, how will we manage?”
Snow Lotus seemed more excited than Li Mu herself. She had long regretted that the Empress’s beauty had to be hidden under layers of solemn makeup. Otherwise, as the Mother of the Nation, if she were more beautiful than all the concubines, she would be the subject of constant gossip, and even the Grand Empress Dowager might be displeased. After all, an Empress only needed to be dignified, not “alluring.”
Now that the Empress was so candid and favored by the Emperor, if she didn’t add some brothers for the Crown Prince now, when would she? If the concubines produced too many sons, wouldn’t that threaten the Crown Prince?
“I know, I know,” Li Mu said dismissively. If getting pregnant were that easy, the palace would have been full of pregnant concubines long ago; why would Zhao Jia be the only one?
Li Mu’s mind wasn’t on whether she would conceive. She had suffered a hemorrhage upon her arrival; without three or four years of recuperation, it would be difficult to fully recover. She was more focused on the current situation. Speaking of Zhao Jia, she thought of the child in her belly, which naturally brought her back to the Lady Tong who had not yet entered the palace.
Her heart and mind were entirely on how to deal with those people. The Zhao Jia incident had piqued her interest; rather than waiting to counter-attack, it was better to strike first. Of course, her image in the Emperor’s heart could not be ruined. Finding a way to act without leaving a trace was quite difficult.
As Li Mu fell into thought, Snow Lotus gave her a look of frustration. Fine, she thought, the Empress’s mind is entirely on those concubines. She and Nanny Zhou would just have to find ways to nurse her back to health. Having raised this lady themselves, they had to ensure she lived a better and better life.
“By the way, how is Zhao Jia doing?” Li Mu had almost forgotten to ask. Ever since she heard that the Grand Empress Dowager had severely reprimanded Zhao Jia, she hadn’t paid much attention to her. She had given Zhao Jia more than enough generous treatment, yet Zhao Jia had shown her no gratitude. Now that Li Mu had stopped caring, Zhao Jia didn’t even dare to make a sound.
“It is said that although the child was saved, her health is not good,” Snow Lotus reported. She had no affection for Zhao Jia. The Empress had gone to great lengths to save her pregnancy, yet Zhao Jia was so ungrateful that she ignored the person the Empress had bestowed upon her, leading to her own child’s issues and then turning around to bite the hand that fed her.
“I see,” Li Mu said thoughtfully. “Go and check if the Imperial Household Department has prepared any consort uniforms.”
“Yes. But Your Majesty, why are you asking about that?”
Li Mu thought for a moment and said, “The Emperor still has a cousin, doesn’t he? It’s still some time before the Grand Investiture. Even if those concubines get promoted, the Imperial Household Department won’t prepare their uniforms so quickly. But the treatment for the Emperor’s cousin would be different.”
It was the perfect way to judge when Lady Tong would enter the palace.
“Understood.” Hearing that it concerned an important matter for the Empress, Snow Lotus didn’t delay and left immediately.
Tong Manor
After learning the details of the situation from her father, Lady Tong said with a dark face, “Father, how did you respond to the Emperor?”
Tong Guowei’s expression was even worse than hers. “I said that you are single-mindedly in love with the Emperor and how could you possibly marry another.”
“And then, Father? What did the Emperor say?” Lady Tong asked urgently. This was the key to whether she could enter the palace!
Tong Guowei’s lips trembled as he recalled the Emperor’s subtle expression when he said those words. “The Emperor said that you haven’t seen him many times since childhood, so how could you be single-mindedly in love with him? Furthermore, your entry into the palace was a matter of discussion between the Emperor and myself—it is a matter of parental command and matchmaker’s words!”
In other words, the Emperor did not acknowledge her “feelings.”
“The Emperor also said that if you marry into the Imperial Clan or to the Empress’s maternal family as a Primary Wife, he, as your cousin, will surely provide a generous dowry for you.” Just as he had when the eldest Lady Tong was married off.
Hearing this, Lady Tong’s eyes rolled back, and she nearly fainted. The Imperial Clan? The Empress’s family? A Primary Wife? “Those are just nice words! What man in this world can compare to Cousin? If I am to marry, I will only marry the best man in the world! How could Cousin say such cruel things…”
Even being a concubine in the palace was a thousand times better than being the wife of an ordinary Prince. Her cousin didn’t even believe her devotion. “The Empress! It must be the Empress!”
Lady Tong gnashed her teeth in hatred. “Father, so the Emperor does not intend to welcome me into the palace?”
Tong Guowei nodded. This was the reason he had been so despondent upon his return. His carefully groomed imperial consort had, in the blink of an eye, become no different from a girl from an ordinary household. How could he accept this?
“Father, I must enter the palace!” To expect her to willingly lose to the Empress and bow to her for the rest of her life—never.
“We must think of another way now.” Tong Guowei was also unwilling to let the daughter the family had raised go to waste.
“I heard the Empress Dowager has not been in good health lately…” Since the Emperor didn’t want his daughter to enter, he would find a way to make the Emperor willingly welcome her.
Qianqing Palace
Kangxi had just finished reviewing the memorials and wanted to enjoy some tea when he saw Liang Jiugong happily bringing over a bowl of tonic. “Your Majesty, the Empress has sent another nourishing soup.”
“Set it down,” Kangxi said with a smile. “What is the Empress doing now?”
He naturally took the bowl from Liang Jiugong and lowered his head to drink. The soup was warm, exactly the temperature he liked. He remembered how the Empress used to send the soup secretly; at first, he had thought it was a new dish from the Imperial Kitchen. Wondering why the eunuchs there were so active, he had Liang Jiugong question them.
Before Liang Jiugong could even speak, the chef from the Imperial Kitchen had tremblingly explained everything—that the Empress had ordered him to do it this way. It had made him both laugh and feel touched. No wonder the soups sent lately were far more satisfying than those sent by the concubines; the Empress truly understood his heart.
Why did the Empress always do these things in secret? Those concubines, on the other hand, couldn’t wait to send soups every single day. At first, he thought they had him in their hearts, but as time went on, he realized it was just a struggle for favor. They all wanted to overfeed him without any consideration for his health.
Only the Empress had specifically asked the physician about the timing and frequency of his intake before ordering the chef to send the soup. She even took his tastes into account, fearing he wouldn’t like it.
This level of nuanced care was something Kangxi had never experienced—it was specifically for him alone. Kangxi began to sense the meaning of the ancient saying: A couple joined in marriage should love each other without doubt. In this world, the only person who could care for him so selflessly was his Empress.
“The Empress is currently playing with the Crown Prince. I heard the Prince is already able to sit up.” Speaking of the Crown Prince, Liang Jiugong’s eyes curved into smiles. Last time, the Prince had placed his small hand on his own, which had made him happy and honored for a long time.
“Come, I shall go see.” No sooner said than done, Kangxi ignored his tea. It had been nearly a day since he last saw the Empress and the Crown Prince. If he didn’t go now, the mother and son might enjoy themselves so much they’d forget all about him.