Your Majesty, please do not disturb, the empress only wants to engage in business

Once you have an idea, many things become much simpler to do.

When most people are doing things, it's not that they lack the ability to execute, but rather that they lack a clear direction. Once they have a clear direction, their execution ability is quite remarkable.

Since the emperor intends to use the Empress Dowager to elevate Qiao Yanran, someone as sensible as Yao Jinse should naturally help her achieve her goal.

The relationship between her and Qiao Yanran wasn't exactly cold; in fact, there had been some feigned friendliness between them in the past. However, at that time, Qiao Yanran was only pretending to make peace to deceive the Imperial Concubine. Now that she was a favored concubine, Qiao Meiren would naturally not do such a thing again.

But on the surface, they are still close sisters.

The first rule for survival in the harem: Don't hit someone who's smiling.

On the surface, everyone had to maintain a respectable and harmonious image so that the women in the harem could leave an impression on the emperor that they were humble and not jealous. Even someone like Consort Rong, who once had a powerful family background, was only arrogant and domineering within the rules. Occasionally, she would make a few sarcastic remarks, which was already the most she could do.

Women in the imperial harem never lived freely, but then again, in this day and age, where can one find a carefree and unrestrained life?

Anyway, Yao Jinse hadn't thought about it.

From the day she opened her eyes and found herself trapped in this lonely, deep palace, the reality of spending her whole life in this palace was firmly imprinted in Yao Jinse's mind. Therefore, she was able to accept this situation long ago and made plans for herself in advance.

She is now able to navigate between the Imperial Concubine, the Empress, and the Empress Dowager, which is already an excellent situation. If it weren't for the fact that she made a good move, Yao Jinse wouldn't have thought about taking it a step further. Unfortunately, fate was not on her side. Despite her roundabout efforts for so long, she was still not as successful and quick as Qiao Yanran in directly winning over the Emperor.

But what can you do about it?

The emperor never entered the inner palace, and even when he did, he only visited a few specific people. Even Consort Zhao and Consort Zhuang had no chance to meet the emperor, so it was even more impossible for a Jieyu, who didn't even qualify as a concubine, to see him.

If the concubines dared to spy on the emperor's whereabouts, those who were favored were said to be devoted to him and could not forget him, but those who were not favored were guilty of a capital offense.

Yao Jinse never puts herself in dangerous situations. She might say things like "fortune favors the bold" to others, but she herself keeps her distance.

Wealth and status are everywhere; they're like gemstones, differing only in quality. There's no need to put yourself in danger to snatch a better one.

Having avoided Qiao Yanran, she could not go to the Empress Dowager's palace for the time being. Yao Jinse picked up a few things she had embroidered and sent them to Cining Palace.

These things may not be worth much money, but they are a token of affection. Whether the Empress Dowager appreciates them or not is another matter. The fact that these things remind her of Yao Jinse is a good thing.

Anyway, there's plenty of time in the future, so there's no need to rush.

After doing all this, Yao Jinse was more open-minded and more at ease than before. In any case, she couldn't easily control the affairs of the palace, so she might as well just live her own life.

Before you spread your wings and soar, you should conserve your strength.

While people in Yuxiu Palace were enjoying their freedom behind closed doors, Cining Palace presented a completely different scene.

Qiao Yanran certainly knew what the Emperor meant. In fact, Xie Yun'an had already sent someone to whisper some words before the Empress Dowager summoned Qiao Yanran to Cining Palace. His affection for Consort Rong was genuine, so he was willing to let the remaining members of the Duke's mansion off the hook for Consort Rong's sake. On the other hand, his affection for Qiao Yanran was also genuine. This feeling of being moved was like the first stirrings of love in one's heart when young, and the greatest joy was wanting to protect the person completely by one's side.

It is said that emperors always have bigger bellies than prime ministers; they can not only hold a boat, but also carry many people on board.

With the Emperor's hint, Qiao Yanran acted even more obediently and docilely in Cining Palace. She hadn't been very popular in Cining Palace before, and her visits to pay respects hadn't made the Empress Dowager remember her. But fortunately, with the Emperor's arrangement, things became much easier.

"The Empress Dowager has instructed that Your Highness should finish copying these scriptures here. There is no need to rush. You should copy them carefully. If Your Highness is tired, you may rest for a while. You must not make any mistakes."

Yu Mama had a smile on her face. As the person who had served the Empress Dowager the longest, her appearance in front of Qiao Yanran at this moment naturally showed how much the Empress Dowager valued Qiao Yanran. It was just that the Empress Dowager was not feeling well today, so she did not summon Qiao Yanran.

But people outside won't know any of this.

To outsiders, it would only seem that Yao Jinse had won the Empress Dowager's favor, which gave her the opportunity to appear before the Empress Dowager. As for what she did by the Empress Dowager's side—whatever she did was an honor and a glorious thing. If Consort Qiao didn't like it, there were plenty of concubines in the harem who would like it and were waiting in line.

"What are you saying, Granny? Her Majesty the Empress Dowager is unwell and should rest well. Speaking of which, it's always cold outside in winter, so it must be because Her Majesty the Empress Dowager is so blessed to be able to stay warm in Cining Palace."

After seeing off Granny Yu, who also had a smile on her face, Qiao Yanran finally relaxed her sore cheeks from smiling and sat down at the table to prepare to copy the scriptures.

She was quite familiar with copying scriptures. In the capital, the aristocratic families would at least pay homage to one of the Three Pure Ones or Buddhas and Bodhisattvas, and some would even worship both.

With such a trend, noble ladies from prominent families would naturally be influenced by this from a young age, learning to copy these scriptures and articles by their mothers' side—believe it or not, it would be somewhat embarrassing if they couldn't keep up with others' comments.

Therefore, these things were quite familiar to Qiao Yanran. She was already able to write beautiful small regular script, and although she couldn't use such a delicate font when copying scriptures, the two arts were more or less similar, so she didn't feel tired.

"But these three or four scriptures, I don't know when it will take to finish copying them. The Empress Dowager wants to finish copying them before the end of the year, which is really tiring for you, my lady."

Unfortunately, these things can only be copied in the Cining Palace. If they could be taken back to their Liuchun Pavilion, it would be much more convenient.

Among the maids who accompanied Qiao Yanran to the palace as part of her dowry, there were some who were skilled in calligraphy.

"Keep your voice down. This is the Empress Dowager's palace after all. Aren't you afraid that others will hear you saying these things?"

Although there was no one else in the small pavilion at this moment, who knows if there were ears on the other side of the wall?
It was nothing more than going through the motions and copying things. Serving the emperor in the Hall of Mental Cultivation was far more nerve-wracking than this; exhaustion was commonplace. The real reward was getting the benefits into one's hands. Qiao Yanran's mindset naturally caught the Empress Dowager's eye. Many things aren't about what you say, but what you do and what others see.

She understands these things very well, so naturally she can do them well.

……

"But if that's the case, wouldn't all of Your Majesty's preparations have been in vain?"

Following the Empress's instructions, Xia Zhu put several scriptures into a box. Originally, these scriptures were to be presented to the Empress Dowager through the Empress, but the Emperor visited yesterday, and this morning the Empress ordered that these things be put away and sent directly to the Baohua Hall for the master to recite at a suitable time, instead of sending them to the Cining Palace.

How could anyone serving the Empress be stupid or incompetent?

Anyone with a keen eye could easily find out what happened last night. Although the emperor did stay in Kunning Palace and the empress did indeed attend to him, those around her knew best whether the empress was truly happy or not.

The Empress would probably rather not accept such favors obtained for the benefit of others.

"Who cares? As long as the Emperor is willing to come to our palace, that's a good thing. The Empress has been depressed these days. Although she doesn't seem to be doing anything on the surface, even Consort Lin could tell that the Empress wasn't happy."

Chunju chided Xiazhu, reminding her to be careful with her words. Some things are fine to say in private, but if the Empress heard them, she might be very upset.

In the eyes of us servants, the days our mistress spent in the palace were sometimes not as pleasant and comfortable as when she was in the Prince's mansion.

"I know I'm not stupid enough to say this to Her Majesty, but the end of the year is just around the corner. In previous years, His Majesty would stay up with Her Majesty at the Prince's residence at this time. But ever since he entered the palace, look at last year..."

She swallowed her words halfway through, and just around the corner not far ahead, a group of eunuchs hurried past, carrying bonsai made of plum blossoms of various colors. She and Chunju walked a few steps forward and heard the head eunuch talking to Granny Hua about the bonsai: "This winter, the flower room specially cultivated these ornamental plum blossoms. The Emperor thought they were quite good, saying that the colors are so varied, not just the monotonous red and white. He specially ordered us to send them to Her Majesty the Empress for her enjoyment."

Those flowers were indeed beautiful, and they looked exquisite in the flowerpots. Red and white plum blossoms were common in the palace during winter, but these plum blossoms that were either pink or green were particularly fresh.

However, this reward came suddenly and was unexpected.

The Empress ordered Granny Hua to take the items back, gave her some reward money, and instructed the young eunuch from the flower room who delivered the potted plants to report back: "When you report back, please thank the Emperor for his kindness."

There was nothing wrong with what he said, but it sounded a bit cold. The eunuchs, having received their reward, happily accepted the task. Chunju and Xiazhu exchanged a glance under the corridor, both seeing the worry in each other's eyes.

The Empress truly had no interest in looking at these things. In the past, when the Emperor bestowed gifts upon her, she would never have accepted them so casually. She would have carefully examined them before instructing someone to reply.

Moreover, the one who replies will inevitably be either Chunju or Xiazhu, who are the Empress's personal maids, which shows the Empress's true feelings for the Emperor.

"Enough, it's no use for us servants to worry about these things. We just hope that Your Majesty can put your mind at ease. It's all because of Consort Qiao's seduction that the Emperor was seduced. It's only because Your Majesty is magnanimous. If it were the former Imperial Concubine, she would have taught Consort Qiao a lesson long ago."

Chunju also sighed, but she was quite helpless: "What's the use of saying all this now? Besides, Consort Qiao will probably not be Consort Qiao anymore soon. The Emperor is so kind to her, who knows how much of a future she will have."

No one knows what the future holds, but the current prospects are just around the corner.

After three days of diligent copying at Cining Palace, Qiao Yanran quickly finished copying the four scriptures. She flipped through them several times, carefully read them aloud, and made sure there were no mistakes before handing the scriptures over to Granny Yu.

Besides receiving praise from Granny Yu, Qiao Yanran, upon returning to Liuchun Pavilion, soon heard the Empress Dowager's imperial edict to the six palaces.

It's nothing more than those nice words praising a person's gentleness; the important part comes later.

By the grace of the Empress Dowager, Lady Qiao of Liuchun Pavilion is promoted to the rank of Jieyu and granted the title of Ning.

From now on, she shall be called Ning Jieyu.

When the news spread throughout the palace, some were happy and some were sad. This was something that was expected, so Yao Jinse put it aside after hearing it. As for Chengqian Palace, because Yao Jinse had informed them in advance, the reaction was not very strong.

He Yunqing and Bai Fengping were naturally delighted to go to Liuchun Pavilion as soon as they heard the news. They had somewhat anticipated Qiao Yanran's promotion, but neither of them expected that it was through the Empress Dowager that she had access to the six palaces. Even when Qiao Yanran visited Cining Palace a couple of days ago, they thought it was nothing more than the rumors circulating outside, that Qiao Yanran was trying to curry favor with the Empress Dowager.

This is truly a joyous occasion.

In that case, wouldn't it mean that Qiao Yanran not only won the emperor's favor, but was also favored by the empress dowager?
No one would complain about having many powerful backers, let alone their sisters. Everyone in the harem helps each other, and with such a strong sisterly bond, naturally, your benefits are my benefits too.

However, Chen Meiren and the others were not in a good mood.

Yao Jinse had only waited a short while in the palace when she saw Consort Chen rushing in, her face even showing a hint of anger.

"Sister, what's wrong? Sit down and have a cup of tea to calm your temper. Getting angry is bad for your health. Why are you getting upset over these things?"

"I'm not angry about that."

Consort Chen sighed again, "I thought things would finally get better this year, and I could at least take advantage of the New Year to beg the Emperor to promote my rank. But after this incident, how can I even bring myself to say that?" (End of Chapter)