wear it lord god

Thinking about this, I became determined to sell this cheap and good-looking child.

But things shouldn't be rushed, or it might backfire. So she smiled and said, "I'm just giving you a heads-up. Your father got married at seventeen and had you at eighteen. You're already fifteen. In another year or two, you should get married too. It's good to start looking into it early so you'll be prepared when the time comes."

It turned out it wasn't going to happen immediately. Crown Prince Liu Ji breathed a sigh of relief and bowed, saying, "Mother is absolutely right. I will take note."

What are you even concerned about? This is something I, your mother, will have to plan for you.

After Liu Ji left, Xi Ning leaned against the wall, lost in thought. To the palace maids, she appeared to be daydreaming.

Qiu Shi brought over a plate of food: "Your Majesty, these are freshly presented mulberries. This year's mulberries are especially large. Any good things are first brought to our Changqiu Palace. It's clear that His Majesty cares for Your Majesty."

I was just trying to comfort her and cheer her up.

She's not the original owner of this body now; a few words of coaxing and she'll be happy for half a day, but in the end, she still dies a tragic death.

Now that the food is here, let's eat it.

The mulberries were all carefully selected and washed very clean, making them even better than the mulberries in the modern world.

Xining sat up lazily, picking at the mulberries one by one with her fingers, finding her long nails troublesome: "Qiushi, go get the scissors."

At that time, there were no nail clippers, only scissors.

Qiu Shi brought over the scissors, and I watched as she cleanly and efficiently trimmed all the long fingernails she had painstakingly grown.

Looking at my nails, with only three or four millimeters left at the tip, I suddenly felt much more at ease. In the summer, I can peel lotus seeds, in the fall, and in the evening, I can peel walnuts without having to be fussy and hold my nails up for fear of breaking them.

Qiu Shi stared wide-eyed, her mouth slightly agape. "Are you kidding me?" she thought. Coming to her senses, she quickly stepped forward, picked up the ten glistening fingernails, and pulled out her handkerchief to put them away.

She said with a pained expression, "Why did you have to cut it up for no reason? Who knows when it will grow back to that length?"

Without a care in her heart, Xi Ning uttered words that nearly made Qiu Shi fall over in fright: "I will be a virtuous empress!"

As lunchtime approached, Xining, accompanied by Qiushi, sat on the phoenix palanquin and was carried to the Chang Le Palace, where the emperor resided.

Upon arrival, Zhang Shanzhong personally came out of the palace to greet her, bowing deeply and showing exceptional respect: "Your Majesty the Empress has arrived! His Majesty instructed this old servant to wait at the door early this morning, eagerly awaiting Your Majesty's arrival."

Xi Ning laughed. Zhang Shanzhong had followed Liu Cheng since he was a child, and he was only thirty-four or thirty-five years old this year, yet he called himself an old servant.

Zhang Shanzhong saw this and assumed that he was pleased by what he said. He became even more attentive, his face beaming with a radiant smile.

She went in and saw Liu Cheng reviewing memorials behind his desk. Zhang Shanzhong was about to remind him when she gave him a wink, and he closed his mouth again.

He's a perceptive person; no wonder of the two eunuchs, two personal servants, and a dozen maids who served the Crown Prince, only Zhang Shanzhong remained, rising to the rank of Grand Attendant, equivalent to the Chief Steward of the Inner Court.

A young eunuch brought over ginseng tea, which she stopped, took, and carried away.

But even after placing the ginseng tea on the table, Liu Cheng still didn't notice her arrival.

It may be true, or it may be false.

She walked behind Liu Cheng and gently massaged his shoulders.

Liu Cheng looked at the memorial and said, "Hmm, make it more important."

She applied a little more force with her fingers, but it was clear this body lacked strength; her fingernails were already quite long, and her finger strength was pitifully weak. In this world and era, men from wealthy families generally practiced martial arts, while those without the strength to bind others were often from humble backgrounds. The reason was that they couldn't afford martial arts instructors.

In addition, the ideal of beauty is tall and strong, and even the standard for beautiful women is tall and sturdy. Those delicate and frail women are suitable to be concubines.

Liu Cheng, through generations of improvements and years of martial arts practice, was tall and imposing. His shoulders were thick and hard, as if made of iron, and his fingers ached from gripping them.

Liu Cheng repeated the emphasis, so she simply clenched her fist and used a hammer to strike.

This satisfied Liu Cheng, but after a while he felt something was wrong. His fingers were so weak, and besides, who in the palace would dare to punch his shoulder?

Turning her head, she smiled and said, "Yu'er, it's you."

Ling means the sound of jade. Long means a jade object used for praying for rain. Therefore, Wang Linglong's nickname was Yu Nu. Liu Cheng, following her family's example, called her Yu'er, which showed their closeness and affection.

He placed her hand in his palm, his voice filled with concern: "Look, your hands are all red. From now on, let the servants do these chores."

Even the side of this palm is red; the owner of this body must have been pampered like this. It's no exaggeration to say that he was as precious as a treasure.

"Hmm?" Liu Cheng noticed something: "Why are your fingernails so short?"

“I’ve been strangled,” she replied. Without Liu Chenglai asking, she took the initiative to explain: “Last year there was a severe drought, the year before that there was flooding, and the year before that there was an earthquake. I plan to grow vegetables in Changqiu Palace, and in my spare time I will have the palace maids weave cloth and embroider, so that I can share the suffering of all the people.”

Liu Cheng suddenly realized something: "Are they still blaming me for selecting concubines? But then again, with years of disasters, it's really not the right time to waste resources and burden the people."

"Your Majesty, what are you saying?" Xining put on a magnanimous and benevolent appearance: "Now is the perfect time to select candidates."

"Oh?" Liu Cheng became interested: "Tell me, what should we do?"

Nonsense. If the selection of concubines is not agreed to, a group of ministers who are eager to send their daughters into the palace to become empresses will change their reason for procreation to impeach the empress for being jealous. Some even say that the previous natural disasters were warnings from heaven because the empress's favoritism caused an imbalance of yin and yang.

If they've already come up with such bizarre reasons, there must be even more unbearable and ridiculous ones to come.

Xi Ning slowly said, "Entering the palace is like entering a deep sea. It is said that every time there is a selection of concubines, many parents are so afraid that their daughters will be chosen that they rush to marry them off. Some even grab a husband on the road. In recent years, there have been natural disasters every year. With the selection of concubines at this time, there will definitely be a large number of marriages. Your Majesty will have more children next year, and the people will also have more children. Isn't that a good thing? In addition, Your Majesty has been on the throne for three years and has not yet held a selection of concubines. There is only one wife and one concubine, plus three others. Even the princes are only Ji'er, Wen'er, and An'er. Compared with the twenty-one sons of the late emperor, it is too few. The palace should also add some new people."

Liu Cheng looked at the Empress in disbelief. Was this still the same Empress who would make a scene at the mere mention of the imperial concubine selection? Had she been possessed by a mountain spirit?

I couldn't help but ask, "Do you really think so?"

"Hmm." She nodded. "I cried all night last night, and when I dressed up the next day, I saw my haggard face and couldn't help but feel ashamed. Thinking that I have already given birth to three sons and two daughters, and my health is deteriorating day by day, I suddenly realized how much strength I have left to have more children. Your Majesty is the emperor, the emperor of the whole country, not just me. Even if Ji'er is benevolent, filial and intelligent, the country needs more princes like Wen'er. Only when our own people are guarding the various places can we feel at ease."

To put it bluntly, I can't have any more children, so I might as well go with the flow and let more women help me have children.

Liu Cheng was finally relieved and patted her hand with a smile: "That's the right way to think. You are my Empress. The children born to other concubines all call you Mother, and they are all your children. My Crown Prince can only be Ji'er."

Haha, he died under mysterious circumstances in less than five years for treason, and wasn't even given a posthumous title. If he had been given one, it would probably have been something like "Li," "Yan," or "Ling."

Taking advantage of the emperor's good mood, Xining quickly said, "It's time for lunch. Although state affairs are important, Your Majesty also needs to eat."

"Alright, let's eat together." Liu Cheng was indeed in a very good mood at this moment.

He sat cross-legged at the low table, with the Empress kneeling beside him on her heels. As soon as the food was brought over, he quickly realized something was amiss. (End of Chapter)