Shocking Harem Road: The Legend of Concubine Yi

Chapter 45
Today is New Year's Day, and the emperor will accept the worship of his ministers at the Wanfang Anhe Hall on Fushan Mountain.

The time to pay homage is set at the beginning of the Si hour. Before that, officials at all levels are waiting in the supporting halls at all levels outside the main hall.

The Wanfang Anhe Hall is built on the mountain and consists of three floors of courtyards.

When paying homage, the ministers, under the guidance of the etiquette officer, entered through the Wanfang Anhe Gate. Officials of the third rank and below rested and waited in the east and west side halls in the first courtyard, and officials of the second rank and above passed through the second palace gate. Enter the double courtyard and wait in the east and west side halls.

As soon as the auspicious time arrived, all the ministers lined up and entered the square in front of the Wanfang Anhe Palace through the third palace gate, and then entered the main hall from the steps in front of the main hall.

Among these people, there is only one woman, and that is Li Meier, Princess of the Zhen Kingdom.

The sun is shining today, and it seems that the dark clouds that shrouded the court have disappeared.

Xuanyu of the Ming Dynasty was wearing a dark black mian suit, with 9 crowns hanging on his head, and sat on the Kowloon throne in the middle of the Wanfang Anhe Hall to accept the worship of the ministers.

Looking at the dark crowd underground, he just showed an indifferent smile. No one else could detect that trace of a smile. Even if they were aware of it, few people could understand his deep meaning.

Xinyi is a female official, unable to enter the main hall to watch such a scene, so she and a few young eunuchs peeked through the gap in the east gate of the main hall.

She couldn't see the situation inside clearly at all, and she also felt bored, so she went to the East Side Hall to rest.

The palace people did not dare to treat her slowly, so they hurriedly made tea and invited to sit down, she also looked at ease.

Being flattered like this, since she lost her identity as a young lady, she can only curry favor with others.

The shouts of "Master Zhuang, Master Zhuang" can't help but remind her of her childhood.

At that time, my father was also called like this.

After so many years, even if she thinks about the past again, she will no longer cry like she did back then.

Everyone closed the door and chatted quietly in the house, and occasionally heard the sound of trombones and drums in the square outside the hall, as well as the ritual music played by the chime bells in the hall.

The room was full of gifts presented to the emperor by the princes and ministers. Xinyi asked: "When will the emperor look at the gifts here? If you don't look at them, won't the hearts of those adults be in vain?"

A eunuch said: "My lord, you don't know, the emperor just came over to take a look when he is free. Many of the previous gifts have been rewarded."

That's right, the treasures here are just like women, he doesn't care at all!

Thinking about it this way, she felt a little more at ease.

His heart is just like the weather, the sky is clear at this moment, maybe it will be cloudy the next moment.

The scene last night had fully made her understand this point.

Even though she thought so, she still couldn't treat him that way.

After about half an hour, a maid reminded her that the ceremony was about to end, so she hurried over to the hall.

A banquet will be held in the main hall in a while, and she has to go in to serve.

She was waiting for the summons with other palace people, but the waiting was a bit boring, so she walked over to take a look.

Suddenly, she collided with a person and almost fell to the ground.

The two cried out in pain, and when they looked closely, it turned out to be——

"What are you running around here?" he whispered.

It turned out that he recognized himself, Xinyi stared at him, dressed as a prince, he really was a prince!
"My servant greets the lord!" She bowed and saluted.

He rubbed his chest, but he didn't care about her saluting, and asked her: "Are you a female officer next to the emperor?"

She nodded, and he said: "I'm leaving first, if the emperor asks later, you are not allowed to say that you have seen me!"

"My lord, do you want to run away?" She didn't expect that there would be such a person, who would leave without attending the ceremony.

He made a hissing gesture and whispered: "Don't say it!"

Said, ran towards the corner door.

She looked at his back and couldn't help laughing.

Who will this person be?
I remember that during the training at Nian Gonggong's house, the eunuch there said that the current emperor has two younger brothers alive, namely the sixth prince Ming Xuanting who was named King Yi and the seventh prince Ming Xuanying who was named King Qian.Originally, the two princes were still young, but because of Ming Xuanyu's great marriage, the two were made kings and given a mansion early in the year.

King Yi looked childish, and he was only seventeen after the new year. It is said that he was still very stubborn, and he often hung out in the theater, or painted poems and paintings with many literati.Moreover, Yi Wang's attainments in calligraphy and painting are quite high, and even many famous masters in the world admire him.

King Yi's mother died early, and Empress Dowager Feng took him to her palace to raise him.Because Ming Xuanyu was registered as the crown prince very early and moved to live in the East Palace, only the late fourth prince Mingxuan frame and sixth prince Ming Xuanting were with Empress Dowager Feng.

Therefore, in this sense, King Yi and Ming Xuanyu were raised by the same mother.

King Qian was younger, less than 15 years old, and was raised by his mother, Concubine Duan, in King Qian's mansion.King Qian is naturally playful, but unlike King Yi, King Qian's family has raised many monks and priests, who often recite scriptures at home.

Rumor has it that King Qian was weak, and Concubine Duan often performed religious rituals in order to keep her son healthy.

So, from this point of view, this prince should be Yi Wang Ming Xuanting!
Xinyi speculates.

After a while, the grand ceremony ended, and Xinyi and all the palace people entered the hall to set up a banquet.

The banquet started, exquisite dishes were served one after another, musicians played music, and dancers performed dances.

Standing next to the high throne, with a panoramic view of everything in the hall, she couldn't help sighing in her heart at the grandeur.

"Hey, why is the sixth brother missing?" He still noticed the absence of King Yi, and Zhang De stretched his neck to see, it really was.

"This kid, you keep doing this kind of thing!" Ming Xuanyu said, and Xinyi couldn't help laughing when she thought about King Yi's expression just now.

Zhang De glanced at her, and she immediately regained her composure.

All the ministers whispered to each other, while Yu Wang Mingqin chatted with Mu Wang Mingqingang who was sitting next to him. Xinyi noticed that Ming Xuanyu looked towards Yu Wang, but his face was very calm.Looking at the prime minister again, he was sitting there drinking wine in a serious manner, looking at King Yu and King Mu seemingly unintentionally.Seeing the prime minister looking over, the two kings raised their wine bottles as if toasting, and all three of them smiled.

Just as Yang Dezhang put down his wine bottle, he said to Taishi Zhao who was sitting next to him: "Your old man must be tough, otherwise, Yang doesn't know how to calm down the bandits in the south!"

The grand master stroked his white beard and said with a smile: "Xiangguo values ​​me so much, I am really flattered!"

Yang Dezhang also said with a smile: "Teacher, you are the minister of the imperial court, and Yang's wishes are all for the country and the country!" But he turned sideways and whispered in Taishi's ear: "Your family is really not good recently. Stop it! I heard that Zhao Mo, Marquis of Yingshan, who is in charge of the Tiger Roar Camp, is very busy!"

He narrowed his eyes and said: "The duty of the Tiger Roaring Battalion is to accompany the emperor on hunting trips, so it has not been registered in the Ministry of War. The Tiger Roaring Battalion has no establishment, and the truth should not be asked. It's just that I heard some Rumor has it that I have to remind the Grand Master. Marquis Yingshan is your old grandson, so don’t do anything wrong. Otherwise, if you violate the court’s law, the prince will break the law, but he will be guilty of the same crime as the common people!”

The grand master glanced at him, smiled and cupped his hands and said, "Thank you, Mr. Xiangguo, for reminding me! This old man will keep your kindness in mind!"

Yang Dezhang also cupped his hands and said with a smile: "The old grand master is out!"

The two looked at each other and laughed.

Zhao Taishi is the elder brother of the Empress Dowager, who inherited the title of Duke of England. After the first emperor ascended the throne, he appointed his uncle as Taishi.

Princess Antai was sitting with King Mu and King Yu. Seeing Yang Dezhang talking to the Grand Master across the street, Antai asked King Mu, "Why don't you see my uncle visiting the Prime Minister's Mansion recently? Did you find something interesting? Tell me about it?"

King Mu smiled and said, "What can I do? I'm just fooling around, and I'm just an idler! It's not as busy as you!"

Princess Antai smiled and remained silent.

Mu Wang looked at her and said: "Mei'er, girls should take care of themselves, youth is short! Your family Yuanqin is an honest man, but you also need to know that a man's heart is always flamboyant. You Don't be so at ease, be careful that one day he will ask for a concubine to enter the house!"

King Yu laughed when he heard this, and echoed, "Meier, that's exactly what happened! Uncles don't want to see you serving a husband with others!"

King Mu continued: "What the fourth brother said makes sense!"

After that, the two brothers laughed.

Princess Antai smiled slightly and said, "Meier thanked Uncle for your concern! It's just that Meier will take care of this housework by herself!"

King Yu said: "Of course we believe what you said! Mei'er can handle even the important affairs of the court with ease, let alone small matters in the boudoir?"

King Mu nodded.

Xinyi was standing beside Ming Xuanyu, observing everything in the hall.

Now the people in this hall are all pillars of the imperial court, could it be that his master is among these people?

If so, who would that person be?

To monitor the emperor, who would want to monitor the emperor?

Her eyes flicked back and forth from the people in front of the highest seat, looking for clues.

On the side of the Wanfang Anhe Hall, the emperor and his ministers held a feast; on the other side of Fushan, the Yunkai Xiaran Hall, the queen was accepting the worship of the harem concubines and princesses, and the sky was full of drums and music.

Yunkai Xiaran Hall is completely different from Wanfang Anhe Hall. Facing the Houhu District of Changchun Lake, it is a courtyard with two entrances and exits, and its architectural style is more casual.There are east and west side halls in the front yard, but the main hall in the back yard is connected with the side halls by corridors.There are carved doors in the hallway. When the door is closed, it is a different room. When the door is opened, it is a smooth room.

The entire palace is surrounded by magnolia, osmanthus, peony and other flowers and trees, which are full of flowers in different seasons.

Empress dowagers and empresses of all dynasties often summoned their female relatives here to enjoy the scenery.

The empress dowager said she was not feeling well, so she asked Hong Shanggong to send a message to the empress, ordering everyone not to wait for her.It is only said that Princess Heshun Ming Ruoxi came to Leshantang to teach her how to play the piano.

Seeing that Lafayette hadn't arrived, all the women were still a little uneasy, especially the queen.

However, today, Princess Mu was summoned to bring her son to visit the queen.

Seeing the Empress holding Princess Mu's youngest son in her arms and amused her from time to time, Concubine Zhen just smiled faintly, and asked Concubine De next to her, "Sister, I heard that a cousin of your family is on the waiting list?"

Concubine De replied: "It's from my aunt's family. She's fifteen years old."

"Is it the daughter of Master Zuo Tong, the servant of the door?" Zhen Guifei asked, and De Fei nodded.

"Oh," Zhen Guifei said with a smile, "Then I want to congratulate my sister! In the future, it will be a happy event for your sisters to serve the emperor together!"

Concubine De accompanied her with a smile and said, "As long as you do your duty, that's fine, other than that, there's nothing to hope for!"

Concubine Zhen said: "Sister, what you said is wrong. Whoever enters the gate of this palace does not want to favor the sixth palace? With your own temperament, how do you know that your cousin is the same as you?"

As she said that, she took Concubine De's hand and sighed: "You are well-behaved, and you are the most suitable for Lafayette. Although the emperor doesn't say anything, he still loves you from the bottom of his heart. You must hurry up and conceive the dragon seed." That's right! We can't be like others, staring at other people's children!"

After finishing speaking, she looked at the Queen, Concubine Shu, and Concubine Mu, but Concubine De just smiled and said nothing.

After a while, Hong Shanggong brought someone to bring the meal, saying that it was a gift from Lafayette to all the ladies.

Concubine De smiled and said: "I don't know what new meal Lafayette rewarded this year?"

Concubine Xian said: "No matter what it is, Lafayette gave it to you, you have to eat it like this every year!"

Concubine Gui and Concubine De smiled and remained silent.

The banquet of the women's relatives was going on like this. Although the concubines looked amicable, they were worried about the upcoming new round of draft activities.

(End of this chapter)