“You!”
“You venomous woman!”
Madam Xue refused to back down. “For the sake of this adopted son, you would even neglect your own flesh and blood?”
“With His Majesty having no heir, our Rong’er already faces hardship in the palace. And now he saves some Consort Zhen—isn’t this openly adding to our Rong’er’s troubles?”
At the mention of their daughter, General Xue felt a pang of guilt.
He remained silent for a moment before retorting, “Kuo has been stationed at the border for years. How could he possibly know Consort Zhen? This was an accident…”
Madam Xue snorted coldly.
The couple had reached a stalemate.
Madam Xue glanced at her husband, then at the room. “Let’s go. Why are we still standing here? We’re clearly not welcome.”
General Xue was indignant. “You go back first. I’ll stay and see if there’s anything I can help with.”
Madam Xue rolled her eyes in a rather undignified manner.
Having been married since their youth, General Xue paid it no mind.
“E’er, have someone send over some precious medicinal herbs and tonics later.”
“After all, Kuo is nominally our son.”
“His father once saved my life. Truth be told, our Xue family has treated him poorly all these years.”
At this, Madam Xue snapped irritably, “And you have the nerve to say that?”
“If you hadn’t been so vague back then, Kuo and I might have been as close as mother and son!”
General Xue was thoroughly embarrassed.
Madam Xue said impatiently, “I’ll have someone send them over shortly. Don’t worry, I know what I’m doing.”
With his wife’s assurance, General Xue felt relieved at once.
Once she had left, thoughts of his daughter’s situation in the palace caused General Xue’s brow to furrow deeply again.
Originally, everyone knew Emperor Qianwu had no heir.
Any father who cherished his daughter would not send her into the palace.
Yet some cared little for their daughters’ well-being and still sent them in.
Their aim was to compete for Emperor Qianwu’s favor and consolidate their power in the imperial court.
The reason the Xue family’s daughter, Xue Rong, entered the palace was of a third kind.
Xue Rong was about the same age as Shen Kuo, twenty-three this year.
She had entered the palace eight years ago.
Eight years ago, Princess Chaoyang was eight years old.
At that time, Princess Chaoyang’s birth had shattered the rumors of the emperor’s heirlessness.
Xue Rong had initially no intention of entering the palace, but during a palace banquet, she caught sight of Emperor Qianwu and was instantly captivated by the emperor’s majestic presence, willingly choosing to enter the palace to serve him.
In her heart, she harbored a faint hope.
Since Consort Chen could conceive Princess Chaoyang, it meant His Majesty’s health was not an issue.
Perhaps she, too, could bear a child?
With this thought, Xue Rong entered the palace alongside several other daughters of high-ranking officials.
Now, eight years had passed.
Relying on her father’s military achievements, Xue Rong had attained the rank of Fei, but it was a title in name only.
The other officials’ daughters either remained obscure or had offended Consort Chen, failing to win Emperor Qianwu’s favor, enduring hardship in the palace.
Palace authority had always been firmly held by Consort Chen and her daughter.
Eventually, Xue Rong came to understand: aside from Consort Chen, no one could conceive the emperor’s child. Thus, apart from her, all the women in the palace were in the same boat.
Occasionally, to balance the harem and the court, and to rein in Consort Chen somewhat, the emperor would specifically show her respect.
Consort Rong was more than willing to accept such respect.
As long as it inconvenienced Consort Chen.
In her eight years in the palace, Consort Rong had accumulated quite a few grudges against Consort Chen.
For instance, the imminent arrival of another consort—Consort Zhen—in the palace.
The Emperor praised her for her virtue and loyalty.
Yet there were multiple accounts regarding her origins.
Some said she was the biological younger sister of this year’s Tanhua Lang, the daughter of the late Lord Zhou Yanjin, and that she admired the Emperor and voluntarily entered the palace to become a consort.
There were also rumors that she had once prayed for blessings for Zhou Tanhua at Hanshan Temple, where she caught the Emperor’s eye, who then found an excuse to bring her into the palace as a consort.
There was an even more far-fetched rumor: she was said to have been abducted by villains but was unexpectedly rescued by General Shen Kuo. Upon seeing her, the Emperor fell in love at first sight and immediately took her into the harem as a consort.
Additionally, Xue Rong heard another version, which she believed to be the most credible.
It was said that Princess Chaoyang had taken a liking to Tanhua Lang Zhou Mingchong and had personally asked him during the palace announcement ceremony if he would be willing to serve in the Princess’s Mansion. Zhou Mingchong refused.
Enraged, Princess Chaoyang forcibly detained Lord Zhou in the palace, forbidding anyone from bringing him food, nearly starving him to death.
On one side was the only child of the Great Zhou Emperor, the most noble princess in the world.
On the other was this year’s Tanhua Lang, a handsome and talented young man.
However, Lord Zhou was an imperial official, and entanglement with a royal princess was a scandal.
After being detained by the princess, Zhou Tanhua suffered both physically and mentally. To compensate for his trauma, the Emperor specially allowed his younger sister to enter the palace as a consort as reparation.
Regardless of which version was true, at least her identity as the biological younger sister of this year’s Tanhua Lang, now the Hanlinyuan Bianxiu Lord Zhou Mingchong, was undeniable.
Although Lord Zhou’s official rank was not high, he was a top-three Tanhua, had entered the Hanlin Academy, was young and promising, with a boundless future.
Now, with his younger sister entering the palace and being directly enfeoffed as a consort, his prestige was unparalleled for a time.
Consort Rong knew what Consort Chen was scheming.
She had no desire to wade into these muddy waters.
After all, the Emperor was without an heir, and her feelings for him had gradually worn away within the depths of the palace.
Once a woman became the Emperor’s, leaving the palace was naturally impossible.
But she was also a consort, and her father served the nation on the frontier. As long as she did not cause trouble for herself, her life in the harem would remain comfortable.
Consort Rong asked her trusted palace maid, “Where did these rumors about Consort Zhen come from?”
“Where did you hear such elaborate tales?”
The trusted palace maid replied, “Your Highness, the young maids in the palace are whispering about it privately.”
Consort Rong understood even more clearly.
“Go and find out who is spreading these rumors. Trace them to their source, bind the person, and send them to the Guifei, asking her to cleanse the harem and make an example of them.”
The trusted palace maid abruptly looked up. “Your Highness, what does this mean?”
“It is said that besides Consort Zhen, there is also a Meiren whom the Empress Dowager brought back from Hanshan Temple, rumored to be the Heaven’s Mandate Maiden.”
Consort Rong immediately became interested.
“Oh? What Heaven’s Mandate Maiden?”
The trusted palace maid hesitated. “Regarding this Heaven’s Mandate Maiden, I haven’t been able to find out much. I only vaguely heard that the Empress Dowager listened to the abbot of Hanshan Temple, who said the Heaven’s Mandate Maiden was at the temple and could bear the Emperor’s child.”
“What?”
Consort Rong widened her eyes.
A child was the dream of countless women in the palace!
Just look at Consort Chen.
She had only given birth to a daughter for the Emperor and was enfeoffed as Guifei.
What if it were a prince?
She would likely be directly made Empress.
But Consort Rong quickly calmed down.
What Heaven’s Mandate Maiden?
Over the years, the Emperor, the Empress Dowager, even Consort Chen, and she herself had tried everything for the sake of an heir.
She had even secretly sent a letter out of the palace, asking her mother to help search for folk “fertility remedies.”
But none of it worked.
Consort Rong had long since given up.
What else could she do if she didn’t give up?
“The so-called rumors about the Heaven’s Mandate Maiden are not to be believed. There’s no need to pay them any mind.”