Golden branches and jade leaves

Chapter 24
The concubines of the harem enter the palace through drafting and selection. There is also a special kind, that is, the women selected as tribute by the extinct country, or the women presented by the vassal states and local officials to curry favor. These consecrated women are undoubtedly the most humble group in the harem, completely like playthings.It's not like picking and choosing, they are all justifiably entering the palace to serve.

Among them, the selection is mainly to select beautiful and high-quality women from good families from the folk to enter the palace.The selection is usually held once a year in autumn, mainly to fill in the vacancies left by the maids who were released from the palace that year.Therefore, most of them acted as maids of honor, and only a few with particularly outstanding appearance and qualifications could be named concubines. Concubine Yun was selected into the palace last time.

The official draft is held every three years, also known as Lixuan, and targets women from famous families or scholar-official families between the ages of 13 and 17. Among them, the ones with good looks and excellent qualifications are selected.After these women entered the palace, most of them were sealed as concubines, and some served as female officials, in charge of ceremonies or serving the queen mother and high-ranking concubines.

As the saying goes, "there are no rich families in the selection, and there are no common people in the selection".There is a clear distinction between civil servants and concubines. Among the concubines in the palace, whether they were born in a family or a poor family has a great impact on the future and status.

This is the second official large-scale election after Qi Taki's ascension to the throne, so everyone in the palace pays special attention to it. Before the new year, they began to draw up plans and prepare the roster. Now that the new year has just passed, the Ministry of Internal Affairs and All palaces and bureaus are busy.

The Bureau of Shangyi needs to prepare the etiquette work for beautiful women entering the palace, the etiquette for visiting the emperor and queen mother, and the ceremony for meeting the heads of the palaces.Once the show girls are selected, they will stay in the palace and be taught the etiquette rules for a month, and the Shangyi Bureau will need to send a teacher to teach them, and if any of these show girls violate the ancestral precepts of the palace system , Those who were responsible for teaching at the beginning will also be punished accordingly.

The Bureau of Shangfu is rushing to produce the costumes of Xiunu. The last draft was in the first year of Longhui. Qi Long had just succeeded to the throne. It was at the time of the death of the first emperor and the national mourning period, so even the clothing of Xiunu was simplified a lot. At least, this year can be regarded as the most orthodox draft after Qi Long succeeded to the throne. Naturally, the clothes must be grand and gorgeous, and must also conform to the rules of etiquette.I was too busy to wear a lot of clothes in the Bureau of Shangfu, which were used to decorate female officials.

In addition, the place where the show girls live also needs to be cleaned up to prepare for the new dignitaries.Meals also need to be examined in detail, and what kind of portions should be prepared.

……

……

……

The whole palace was bustling, especially the empress and Concubine Ni who were in charge of the affairs of the Six Palaces. There were even more people coming and going there, very busy.

If there is any place in Daqi's harem that is as quiet and peaceful as ever, then there is only the Compassionate Palace where the Queen Mother and other concubines live.

At this time, in the Palace of Compassion and Ning,
"That's the reason, now my mother understands what she said, Ning Qiu, what do you think?" Mrs. Dingguo asked anxiously.

The queen sat at the bottom, lowered her head, and said nothing.

Mrs. Dingguo was in a dilemma, she turned to look at the queen mother who was sitting at the head.

Received Mrs. Dingguo's look of pleading for help, the queen mother couldn't help but sighed, turned to the queen, and said sadly: "Ningqiu, I know, you don't want to in your heart, but now the situation is forcing, our Wang family face It looks glamorous, but in fact, alas, it would be fine if your stomach could win, but..."

Hearing the Empress Dowager's words, the Empress trembled slightly, remained silent for a moment, finally raised her head, and said: "Since it is the empress mother's and family's intention, Ning Qiu will naturally not object."

Hearing her words, Mrs. Dingguo breathed a sigh of relief.Patting her chest again and again, she said: "Ningqiu, don't blame us as parents for harming you. Anyway, the emperor's thoughts are not on you now. Instead of giving his favor to others, it will be more convenient for us to use after all."

"That concubine Su is a guard girl after all, and now your father can't help but lose his temper when he hears the word Wei." Mrs. Dingguo continued, "The guards are untrustworthy, think about how cunning Gu Qingting is." You can know if you are treacherous..."

The empress couldn't help flashing a hint of disgust, she wanted to say something, but thought about it, facing her biological parents, she finally didn't say it.

The queen mother did not have such scruples, she put down the teacup in her hand abruptly, and Madam Dingguo was interrupted with a loud "bang bang". Madam Dingguo was startled, almost fell off the chair, and did not respond. Come here, the empress dowager's reprimand has been slammed down: "He still has the face to lose his temper?! If you are defeated by others, you must learn to accept the lesson. What kind of temperament is it that you will only get angry? When did our Wang family teach such Is the person here? You go back and tell him, if you don’t know how to correct your self-importance, you may suffer in the future. Last time it was Gu Qingting, who knows that Nan Chen Beiliao will not have a second and third What about Gu Qingting? He didn't live up to his expectations. He fled in embarrassment after being beaten to the ground by a little Weiguo, and now he wants to let his own children bear the consequences. On the contrary, he still has a plausible argument. You just tell him what he said. Listen, if you are not convinced, ask him to come and argue with me!"

Hearing the empress dowager's tone was unprecedentedly severe and indifferent, Mrs. Dingguo trembled with fright, and suddenly fell silent.

The queen seemed not to hear these words, she just lowered her head with a cold and indifferent expression, as if she was not her mother after being reprimanded.

For a moment, the empty hall became strangely silent.Mrs. Dingguo bowed her head and dared not speak.After a while, the queen broke the silence and asked, "Who is it that arranged to enter the palace this time?"

Mrs. Dingguo quickly raised her head and said, "It's the youngest daughter of Shi Qian's family, the head of the inner guards, named Shi Rou'er, she is a stunning beauty, no worse than those Concubine Su and Concubine Yun."

The queen nodded and said nothing.

"Well," the queen mother sighed, and said: "Since that's the case, let's do it this way. My body is getting worse every year. It's no wonder you are so worried. It's not a solution if Ning Qiu can't give birth to a child. We The future of the Wang family also needs to be considered."

Mrs. Dingguo looked at the faces of the two, hesitated for a moment, and said, "There is another..."

"What? There is another one? Could it be that there are so many beauties in Daqi today." The Queen Mother asked with a bit of sarcasm.

"The queen mother is joking." Mrs. Dingguo said with a smile: "It's Ningshuang's child. He just came of age, and the clan said that he happened to participate in this draft, and his looks and talents are all first-class."

The queen's complexion is a little bit bad. Wang Ningshuang is her cousin and a direct daughter of the Wang family. She is the direct daughter of Wang She's younger brother. She is only 15 years old this year. When the queen was not in the palace, the two were often together. She is extremely disgusted with this cousin, she is arrogant and self-willed, of course, most of the girls in her family have such a personality, but this cousin is especially disgusting to her. There are many descendants.Among the many direct daughters of the Wang family, her appearance can be regarded as the most outstanding, so she is extremely arrogant.When I was a child, I ignored her because the queen mother admired and loved the queen, and I often complained about this cousin. Later, the cousin became a queen, and my words and deeds were a little restrained.

Seeing the Queen's complexion getting worse and worse, Mrs. Dingguo couldn't help but lower her voice, she barely said a few homely words, and then she left.

Neither the Queen Mother nor the Empress asked to stay, but only said: "You are going back now, I still have a few words for you to take back, you can talk to your master carefully."

Mrs. Dingguo bowed down respectfully to obey.

The Empress Dowager thought for a moment, and then said: "I told you, the emperor's appointment of him this time is a sure thing, but that kind of temperament that can't afford to lose needs to be changed. When he was with the late emperor, although He is brave in battle and claims to be invincible. Although he himself is wise and brave, and fights hard, part of the reason is that he has never met a real famous general because of luck. The position of the patriarch of the royal family belongs to him. Now that Chen Qian, the prince of Cheng in Nanchen, is said to be no less famous than Gu Qingting, if he is still so self-righteous and arrogant, he will directly resign from his position this time That's good, don't confuse our Wang family any more, and don't make trouble for Daqi!" After speaking, the Queen Mother's voice became severe.

Mrs. Dingguo responded obediently, but she was secretly crying in her heart. She knew Wang She's temper best. It was okay a few years ago, but now because of frustration, she has become more and more irritable. He doesn't like to listen, even he, the wife of the main house, and Yipin have to serve carefully, and he beats and scolds other concubines frequently, and he can barely maintain obedience in front of his own sister. He listened, afraid that a scolding meal would be indispensable.

Just think about these words in my heart, of course I dare not complain like this, Mrs. Dingguo repeatedly said yes to the Queen Mother, and then left.

Seeing Mrs. Dingguo's disappearing figure, the queen mother turned to the queen and said, "I still feel uncomfortable?"

The queen was slightly shocked, and quickly lowered her head and said: "It's nothing, the queen mother doesn't have to worry."

The queen mother looked at her for a moment, and said earnestly: "Ningqiu, you have to understand that our wealth and honor are all based on the dignity of our royal family. In this deep palace, no matter how favored and honored they are, they are just rootless duckweeds, which may be blown to nowhere by a sudden storm at any time, so the family must be the most important thing in everything."

The queen nodded, and said firmly, "I know what to do. Don't worry, the queen mother. How can I be the kind of person who only knows how to be jealous and doesn't understand the importance?"

"Well, I have always been at ease when you handle affairs," the Queen Mother said with a gratified expression, "You have been calm and alert since you were a child. Alas, others only know the wealth and honor of our daughter of the Wang family. Has anyone thought of the things under this honor. "While speaking, the Empress Dowager's expression also became bitter, she hesitated for a moment, and said: "I know, you feel uncomfortable because you still have a heart for the emperor."

The queen was startled, as if the most secret part of herself had been nakedly exposed, she suddenly fell into a state of panic, she tried to justify: "I..."

"Needless to say," the queen mother waved her hand, stopping the queen's words: "The emperor is your husband, the man you rely on for the rest of your life. Although the current emperor is not a unparalleled figure in the world, but in terms of appearance, talent and learning, he can be regarded as worthy of consideration." He is a first-class talent. No matter from which aspect, it is reasonable for you to have affection for him."

"It's just that when you first entered the palace, I told you that in this palace, it's fine to have any thoughts, but you must not be moved by your heart. Since ancient times, men are ruthless, and rich men are even more ruthless." , and the emperor who is rich in the world and sits in the six palaces will only be more ruthless!" The queen mother said earnestly: "You are sinking yourself, but you are suffering."

The queen's body couldn't help trembling, she really didn't know how to explain, or in other words, facing such a wise and discerning queen mother, facing the elders she has always respected, is there any need for her to make a distinction?Thinking of Qi Long, her heart felt unspeakably bitter.

"Although there are many girls in the generation of the Wang family, most of them are mediocre, or have good looks but no talent, act foolishly, are more than submissive, not aggressive enough, or have talent but no virtue, have beauty in vain, and are arrogant and unruly. I don't know how to advance or retreat. You are the only one who can be made, and I insisted on letting you enter this palace wall, but I did you a disservice." The Queen Mother sighed full of regret.

"Mother," the queen couldn't help shouting, "I don't regret it. Although it is hard to enter this deep palace, I would rather choose to enter the palace than marry an ordinary man and live a busy life. What's more, now I am the empress of a country, and my dignity is unparalleled, which is beyond the reach of ordinary women. It is the queen mother who is worrying too much."

The queen mother was not angry at all when she was interrupted by the sudden shout. She smiled bitterly in her heart, "Even if it is a noble life, is it happy? In the end, the best result is just like me, sitting all year round. In this seat..." But what he said was: "I am also pleased that you can think this way. As for the woman entering the palace this time, it is also the result of our royal family considering the overall situation. If you have children in the future, It's up to you to keep these people or not, if you still have no children, alas, you still have to adopt one." After a pause, he continued: "As for that Concubine Su, if she is obedient and obedient, it's fine to keep them, after all, there will be an ambulance The emperor's credit."

The Queen nodded absently.

The queen mother confessed again: "Originally, the more chess pieces, the better. The harem is best when all flowers bloom together. It is a big taboo to stand alone."

The empress nodded submissively, she sighed and said: "There is no other business, you can go first."

The queen got up and left.Her back was still straight and proud, but it shifted and trembled slightly in the bitter cold wind, telling the owner's helpless mood at the moment. In the early spring, it seemed that even her figure turned pale. Her slender and slim back gradually faded away, and the queen mother couldn't help feeling sad, "The daughter of the Wang family will eventually pass this threshold. Alas, why didn't this palace survive like this back then."

※※※※※※※※※※※※※※※※※※※※※※※※※※※※※※※※※※※※※※

Late at night, in Fengyi Palace.

Yurui handed over a volume of files just delivered by the Ministry of Internal Affairs today, "My lady, this is the roster of women to be drafted this year, which Director He of the Ministry of Internal Affairs has just compiled, please have a look at it."

The queen was silent for a while, and raised her hand to take the volume wrapped in gold leaf. It was obviously a light book, but it seemed to weigh evenly in her hand.The queen's hands couldn't help shaking, as if she couldn't bear such a weight.

Yurui couldn't help being a little surprised, she had served the queen for many years, and she had never seen such a gaffe from her master.

The queen opened the scroll, and there were brightly colored names written in bright red cinnabar, representing each and every fresh young girl in bloom.On the first page, the three big characters Shi Rou'er came into view. For the first time, the empress felt that this specially made scarlet dye mixed with gold powder was so dazzling, it seemed to be the same color as blood.

Suddenly she couldn't stand it any longer, and threw her hand out forcefully, throwing the booklet far away. With a "bang", the booklet hit the ground, and the rest of the force still didn't stop, and it slid quickly on the ground. It didn't stop until it hit the pillars of the inner corridor.

"Niang Niang?" Yu Rui knelt down in panic, and the maids and eunuchs who were serving around her also knelt down quickly, and the whole room knelt down.

The queen stood up, only feeling dizzy for a while, she supported her forehead, and sat back heavily on the seat, for a while, no one in the room dared to make a sound, the whole hall seemed to be empty Quiet, after a long time, the queen came to her senses, and said in a low voice: "I'm in a bad mood today, you all go back, you don't have to serve here anymore, it will be noisy if there are too many people watching."

Hearing the queen's words, the palace people retreated quickly and orderly as if they had been pardoned.

Soon Yu Rui was the only one left in the hall, and she secretly looked up at the queen hesitantly.

"Go and pick up that booklet, I haven't finished reading it yet." The queen said indifferently, her tone was calm and indifferent, as if the booklet was not thrown out by her just now, but accidentally dropped of.

If it wasn't for the glittering golden booklet still lying there quietly, Yurui couldn't help thinking that the shock just now was just a hallucination.I have served the queen for many years and have never seen such a gaffe and anger from her.Is it because there are newcomers in the palace?Yurui thought suspiciously, but there have been several drafts and selections before, and she has never seen a queen be so jealous.

Although she still had doubts in her heart, Yu Rui didn't express anything on her face. She knew that now was not the time to talk, so she picked up the booklet obediently and handed it back to the queen.

Then Yurui approached the long candles carved with phoenixes with thick arms on both sides, picked out the wicks, and made the hall even brighter.The queen behind said: "Why is it so cold? Yu Rui, go and get some more stoves to warm the room."

Yu Rui took the order and left.

The queen opened the scroll, letting the bright red glittering with golden light flood into her eyes again, and suddenly her eyes began to feel dry and unbearable.

What is it for me to struggle so hard in this cold deep palace?
She still remembers when she first entered the palace, Qi Taki kindly held her hand and smiled at her tenderly.He was born so handsome, just like those elegant young masters in the book, almost in an instant, his young girl's heart was excited.This is the man I have served with and accompanied all my life.

After entering the palace, although she is the main palace, but Qi Long has a lot of pets, she is somewhat disappointed, but fortunately, Qi Long is not bad to her, it is the respect a husband should have for his wife, although it cannot be called tenderness Affectionate, but also raise eyebrows.After all, he also values ​​himself, maybe he should be like this, to be a virtuous woman for him, worthy of the status and trust of this queen, she made such a determination at that time.

It was her father who really shattered her dream. Qi Taki was deeply infuriated by the defeat of the great general Wang She in front of her several times. When visiting her husband but being kicked out of the hall, the pain and shame are piercing.There was also the undisguised disgust in his eyes when he begged him to spare his father.Everything is fake!The tenderness and respect he gave to himself was not for that woman named Wang Ningqiu, but for the family behind him, for the Wang family, the most wealthy and noble family in Daqi. He didn't marry her, he married the huge Wang family. power and relationships.

Shark silk cut into pieces, do not send lovesickness.

She didn't realize until then that the so-called lover was just a joke, a nightmare involving an infatuated woman, and the so-called favor was just a deal, a deal built on the cornerstone of power, one side was rich Ronghua, one side is beauty and love.

It is easy to find no family treasure, but it is rare to have a lover. Men are ruthless, rich men are even more ruthless, and rich men from all over the world are even more ruthless.

Looking for true love in this harem is nothing more than looking for flowers in the mirror and looking for the moon in the water.

After being heartbroken, she began to have an epiphany. She finally understood that she was just a symbol. In the eyes of her husband, she represented a huge power. In the eyes of the concubines, she represented a solemn and It is also an obstacle.

Maybe the only thing I can rely on is my family, only my relatives, as long as the glory and power of the Wang family do not fall, my position will not be shaken in the slightest, and I will always be his justifiable wife, not those hordes in the harem. concubines.

But, now, even the family he trusts and relies on the most has to abandon him?It was because her stomach was not up to snuff, she couldn't give birth to the prince they needed, and couldn't satisfy them... It turned out that in the eyes of everyone, she was just a symbol, and she could find someone to replace her at any time. Zhong Wang Ningshuang's name, she smiled happily and bitterly, and she didn't understand this truth until today.

There was a soft sound at the door, and it was Yurui who came in carrying a purple-gold copper stove.

Hearing the sound, the Queen suddenly turned her head to face Yu Rui.

Yu Rui, who was just stepping in, was stunned. Just now she seemed to see something passing across the smooth and soft cheeks of the master she had served for a long time, like shining stars, crystal clear, and passed away in a flash.

what is that? !

Maybe it's her own illusion, she thought with some uncertainty.

(End of this chapter)