“Heh, this Concubine Yi is truly a clever one!”
Upon hearing Lin Pingzhi’s detailed report, Xie Shubing narrowed his eyes and let out a light, mocking chuckle, the corners of his mouth twitching upward.
[A genuine beauty, and one with a remarkably transparent heart!]
[Perfect. This gives me the chance to slap the faces of both the Duke of Jingwei and the Duke of Jingxuan, while also stripping Noble Consort Qi of her prestige. Better yet, it provides a justified opportunity to collect some wealth. Marvelous!]
[Truly marvelous!]
The Emperor felt a wave of relief as the frustration from his recent court affairs dissipated. His phoenix eyes cleared slightly as he gazed deeply at Lin Pingzhi and commanded:
“Then do as Concubine Yi wishes. Drag those chests of rubbish back to the Duke of Jingwei’s manor and have Fu Shipu inspect them personally in front of his gates.”
“Furthermore, pass on my imperial oral decree: I originally granted Concubine Yi a special favor by breaking precedent and increasing her dowry count—I did not do it so that Madam Qi could slap the face of my Concubine Yi! Since Madam Qi is incapable of managing the household of the Duke of Jingwei, then elevate the Lady of the Chu clan to the position of Secondary Wife and bestow upon her the title of a Third-Rank Lady of Mandate. From now on, the Chu clan shall handle the household management of the Duke’s manor!”
“Remember, tell the Lady of the Chu clan to prepare thirty-six carrying-chests of high-quality dowry for Concubine Yi!”
“Understood. Your servant will see to it immediately.”
Lin Pingzhi was briefly stunned by the profound implications of the Emperor’s words. Fortunately, his reaction was quick, and he immediately bowed deeply to accept the command.
“Go then.”
Now that his irritation had vanished, Emperor Taiyong didn’t mind helping Concubine Yi claim some interest. He waved his hand briskly to dismiss the eunuch.
As Lin Pingzhi retreated from the Imperial Study upon the Emperor’s signal, he muttered to himself:
‘Hah, Concubine Yi only had thirty-six chests earlier. Now that His Majesty is enraged, he changed just one word, and those thirty-six chests have essentially become seventy-two!’
‘Tsk tsk, Madam Qi has truly lost big this time—she lost her standing and her resources all at once!’
After this incident, it seemed the title of “Favored Consort” was likely to be firmly attached to Concubine Yi…
Just as Lin Pingzhi withdrew, Sheng Shizan stepped forward and whispered a few words into the Emperor’s ear.
The content was truly surprising to Xie Shubing. He narrowed his phoenix eyes. “It seems this Concubine Yi truly possesses some modicum of fortune. Inform Elder Qin; have him go personally to take a look and confirm the results before reporting back to me.”
“Yes, Sire.”
Having received the imperial command and seeing that His Majesty was about to resume reviewing memorials, Sheng Shizan immediately bowed and exited the Imperial Study, summoning his apprentice to carry out the task.
“Master, was it perhaps… unwise to do this?”
After supporting her master into the inner bedchamber, Suran spoke up cautiously to advise her. She worried that her master might lose face or imperial favor because of this.
“Hehe, Suran, what face do you think your master has left to lose?”
Fu Lingxi rubbed her palm, which was still aching from the slap she had delivered, and reclined on the daybed. She looked mockingly at the pomegranate tree outside the window and complained:
“If I hadn’t taken the opportunity to expose this myself, everyone in the palace would eventually know that I, Concubine Yi, received a ‘magnificent’ dowry of thirty-six chests from my father’s clan. If I ever left my palace gates later and couldn’t even produce a single piece of high-end jewelry, wouldn’t I be just as shameless then? But by that time, the only one losing face would be me!”
Therefore, when she saw that “guilty” look in Nanny Wu’s eyes, Fu Lingxi hadn’t hesitated for a second. She chose to air the family’s dirty laundry herself.
If she didn’t expose it now, she would have to swallow the bitter loss in silence. Furthermore, if any scandals occurred in the Duke’s manor in the future and she didn’t step up to help her father’s clan, she would be branded with the label of an “unfilial daughter.”
She wasn’t stupid; why would she ever play into Madam Qi’s hands?
“…Your servant spoke out of turn. I did not consider things thoroughly.”
Upon her master’s reminder, the equally clever Suran immediately understood the intention and asked for forgiveness.
“It’s not your fault.”
Fu Lingxi took a sip of warm water, her tone filled with dark irony: “My legal mother is the most adept at these sorts of underhanded schemes. I survived under her for over ten years; no one understands her better than I do.”
“She prizes her reputation above all else and loves to play the role of a generous, virtuous wife! And yet, she is inherently jealous by nature. She can never play the role of a ‘virtuous wife and mother’ well!”
“But my father, the Duke, clearly knows what his primary wife is like, yet he chooses to deceive himself. He insists on believing that I am the one with a crude and unruly temperament—a ‘rustic brat’!”
“He doesn’t stop to think: when I entered the Duke’s manor, I was just an innocent girl of five. No matter how wild I was, how far could it have gone? Even if I were wild, I am still his biological daughter! If the upper beam is straight, how could the lower beam grow crooked?”
“Hehe… in the end, it’s his own incompetence. He can’t suppress Madam Qi!”
“It’s just a pity for my younger brother, who hasn’t seen much of the world…”
It was indeed laughable. When the Duke of Jingwei met the Lady of the Chu clan again, he was captivated by her gentle nature. Yet, he didn’t dare to openly offend the Duke of Jingxuan’s manor (Madam Qi’s family), so he could only keep the Chu lady in his own courtyard to protect her.
As for his concubine-born daughter who had grown up “wild” outside the manor, the Duke truly disliked her. There was no helping it; of all people to look like, the original owner of this body looked like her grandmother. This didn’t just earn her the Duke’s dislike, but also Madam Qi’s deep-seated hatred for her appearance…
[Tsk tsk, the original owner’s suffering was truly a tragedy!]
Suran remained silent, listening with an open ear but a closed heart as her master spoke of the old affairs of her family. As a first-class palace maid, she naturally understood that these words were her master’s private business and taboos. She didn’t dare to interrupt or make a sound, but simply knelt by the daybed, occasionally topping off her master’s cup with warm water to soothe her throat.
Before long, her master leaned back against the daybed and drifted into a nap, tears still clinging to her lashes. Suran breathed a soft sigh of relief. Seeing Xuduo peeking in, she gave her a sharp look. When Xuduo happily pulled her head back, Suran also let out a small smile.
It seemed that she and her sworn sisters had very good luck this time. Master Yi was generous and reasonable. At least, she felt that Master Yi was much easier to get along with than the aggressive and competitive Lady Jin or Lady Jing.
In truth, as high-ranking maids, not everyone wanted to “climb the ladder.” Most simply hoped to live peacefully until they were twenty-five, be released from the palace, and start a new life where they could be masters of their own destiny.
At this moment, Fu Lingxi did not yet know that after Lin Pingzhi received her order, he had turned around and dragged Nanny Wu to report the entire matter to the Emperor. Unexpectedly, this resulted in a massive benefit for her birth mother.
Not only did the Lady of the Chu clan immediately become the Duke’s Secondary Wife, but she also received the official title of a Third-Rank Lady of Mandate. She had finally made it through her hardships in the Duke’s manor. From this point forward, the children born of the Chu clan would be considered legitimate secondary offspring of the Duke of Jingwei’s manor.
The beneficiary, naturally, included Fu Lingxi herself. From now on, no one would dare to openly spit on her for being “concubine-born.”
About four hours later, Fu Lingxi woke up naturally. By this time, the entire harem had heard the news of what happened at Yukun Palace and the Emperor’s reaction. The subsequent developments were simply astounding!
Yukun Palace, where Concubine Yi resided, was nearly the last palace to receive the latest news.
“Pfft—!“
Having just finished washing up and slowly taking a sip of warm water, Fu Lingxi nearly choked while listening to Xuduo’s detailed report. After spitting out a mouthful of water, she asked:
“Wait, Xuduo, are you saying my concubine-mother has become the Duke’s Secondary Wife?” She looked at Xuduo in disbelief, following up with shock: “And she even received an imperial rank as a Third-Rank Lady of Mandate?!”
“Master, it’s absolutely true! From now on, you can call the Second Madam Chu ‘Mother’! Congratulations, Master! Blessings to you, Master!”
Xuduo nodded excitedly and congratulated her master along with the other two senior maids. She then pointed toward Eunuch Fang, who was standing at the hall entrance, and said, “Master, if you don’t believe my words, you can ask Eunuch Fang. I would never dare lie to you!”
“…Oh.”
Taking a slow, deep breath, Fu Lingxi felt a bit dazed. [Waking up to something this stimulating??!]
Hearing this, Eunuch Fang stepped forward with a joyful smile, his expression serious yet happy as he added slowly, “In response to Master: what Xuduo says is indeed the truth.”
“No, no, you’ve misunderstood me. It’s not that I don’t believe in the Emperor’s grace; I’m thinking that my legal mother… she might actually be fuming to death right now!”
“Master, watch your words!”
“Master, watch your words!”
Upon hearing this, Ziluan and the others turned pale. Suran immediately made a gesture as if to cover her master’s mouth, casting a meaningful glance at Eunuch Fang. Though her palm didn’t actually touch her master’s lips, she whispered a reprimand:
“The Second Madam of the Duke of Jingwei’s manor is a grace bestowed upon your father’s clan by the Emperor. The First Madam of the Duke’s manor naturally received the imperial decree with joy; how could there be any dissatisfaction!”
Disrespecting imperial authority was a capital crime! No matter how noble Madam Qi’s background was, she was ultimately just the daughter of a titled official. She would never dare to openly show even a shred of dissatisfaction with the “Imperial Will.”
In fact, under the personal supervision of the head eunuch Lin Pingzhi, Madam Qi hadn’t even dared to shed a single tear. She had been forced to maintain a grateful, joyful expression as she followed the Duke in the triple-kneeling and nine-kowtow ritual to accept the decree!
“Ah, I have overstepped and misspoke. I deserve punishment!”
Reminded by Suran, Fu Lingxi hurried to stand up. Facing north, she bowed and then performed a formal curtsy of apology, saying seriously: “I have failed the palace rules and etiquette. I voluntarily ask for the punishment of eating only vegetarian food for one full day. I pray for the Emperor’s peace and the prosperity of the nation.”
Once Concubine Yi finished her ritual of apology, Suran and Ziluan stepped forward to help her sit down again.
“Eunuch Fang and Xuduo have both worked hard today.”
After harshly scolding herself in her heart for being “reckless,” Fu Lingxi maintained a gentle smile as she kindly addressed the servants:
“Ziluan, take the meat dishes meant for me during my penance and distribute them among Eunuch Fang and you three. You all should go down and rest to recover your energy. When the dowry chests are moved into Yukun Palace later, I will still need to trouble you all to lead the servants in recording the dowry list.”
“Suran, first call Huichun and Xiuxia in to serve.”
“Understood.”
Seeing that their master valued them and knowing the vow she had just made, Suran and the others didn’t try to dissuade her further. Suran led the way, taking Eunuch Fang out of the inner chamber.
Fu Lingxi did not yet know that what had just happened in Yukun Palace had been reported to the Emperor in less than half a tea-break’s time. Emperor Taiyong had even let out an amused, thin smile because of it, causing Sheng Shizan to be secretly overjoyed and pay even more attention to the affairs of Yukun Palace.
A moment later, the two second-class maids were silently led in. After they curtsied to greet Fu Lingxi, she instructed one to massage her legs and the other to massage her forehead…