Too high to reach

Chapter 40 Women of the Harem
In the palace, the Crown Prince caught up with Li Jing and headed to Changshou Palace.

The Empress Dowager's original surname was Qian; she was not the Emperor's biological mother.

She gave birth to a son early in her life, but he died.

Few of the late emperor's concubines remained.

She had no children and did not set any restrictions on the emperor's ascension to the throne. Therefore, she became a winner in life and sat on the throne of Empress Dowager.

He usually enjoys wealth and luxury, doesn't manage affairs, and doesn't act like an elder.

The emperor gave her a lot of face.

She was usually prudent in her work, and even when her family was in trouble, she would take the initiative to advise the emperor to "act in accordance with the law".

Therefore, life was very peaceful.

In retrospect, it was the divination she received when the Taoist priest entered the palace that became the beginning of a series of tragedies.

However, that Taoist priest was always elusive and famously effective.

The Empress Dowager was consistently convincing, so no one held her responsible.

She just couldn't get over it. She was grief-stricken, angry, regretful, and terrified, which made her very ill. She almost died, and afterwards she became somewhat confused.

What's past is past...

Right now, she's holding a young girl named Qian Xiangqing, playing cards with the emperor's concubines.

When the Crown Prince and the Prince of Qi arrived, palace servants went up to greet them and bowed, while others hurried inside to report the news.

"Your Majesty the Empress Dowager, His Highness the Crown Prince and His Highness Prince Qi have arrived!"

The Empress Dowager, with her gray hair, adorned with jewels and jade, and dressed in fine silks, was truly a wealthy and noble old lady!
She put down the playing cards in her hand and said with a smile, "Oh? Let them in quickly!"

The Crown Prince entered, greeted the Emperor with a smile, and said, "Grandmother, please look, who is this?"

The Empress Dowager first smiled at the Crown Prince, then followed his hand to look at Li Jing, her eyes somewhat confused... it seemed she didn't recognize him.

He turned to the palace maid beside him and whispered, "Who is this big, dark-skinned guy?"

The palace maid respectfully replied, "Your Majesty, this is our Prince Qi."

"Oh, King Qi... what is his rank?"

Consort Shu smiled and said, "Your Majesty, he is the seventh prince!"

"Oh, Seventh Brother! Big guy, you're really sturdy!"

"Greetings, Your Majesty the Empress Dowager!" Li Jing greeted the Empress Dowager.

"Get up quickly! Let me take a closer look... Oh dear, he's quite handsome, but he's really too dark-skinned!"

Li Jing did not respond to that, but instead turned around and bowed to Consort De and Consort Shu, saying, "Your Highnesses!"

That attitude... was very perfunctory.

Consort Shu and Consort De were senior members of the Emperor's inner circle.

Consort De is Li Pu's biological mother. She has a deep-seated grudge against Li Jing, who lost an arm in the process. Moreover, she indirectly ruined her son's path to advancement. Now, she can only follow behind the Crown Prince, working for him and hoping to gain some benefits.

Therefore, she hated Li Jing the most, and sat there silently with a gloomy face.

Consort Shu didn't mind and nodded in response with a smile.

"Haven't I seen you in a long time?! Last time..." The Empress Dowager tried hard to recall.

The palace maid beside her chimed in, "Your Majesty, the last time we met was at your birthday banquet. The Prince has been gone for over two years!"

"Oh, right, right. Here I am... wait, what about that ointment that was just presented as tribute..."

"...Astragalus and Pearl Paste," the palace maid replied.

"Yes! That one works really well for me! Quickly get him ten or eight jars. He can apply it when he gets back!"

The Crown Prince laughed and said, "Grandmother, won't you leave some for your grandson?"

"The Crown Prince is already very handsome. What's the point of having that? Little Seven, you..." The Empress Dowager was about to say something, but then forgot what she was about to say.

"Your Majesty, the Emperor came to tell you a few days ago that the Prince is returning and getting married, and he wants you to help him choose a consort!" The palace maid had just finished reminding the Empress Dowager when she felt a chill run down her neck and shrank back. She quickly turned her head and saw that Prince Qi had his eyes lowered and wasn't looking at her…

"Yes! Little Seven, whatever kind you like, your Grandmother will find it for you!"

"This matter is not urgent," King Qi said indifferently, clearly not wanting to discuss it at all.

The Empress Dowager, however, did not see the problem: "How can that be? Look at your brothers, which one of them doesn't have a princess? They're all getting on in years, how will they manage without wives? There's so much to do, managing things inside and outside the home, raising children!"

The Crown Prince laughed again: "Grandmother, Seventh Brother should at least make sure his face is white first. Otherwise, this charcoal-faced boy will scare the girl to tears!"

Everyone laughed again.

Li Jing ignored what they were saying and went his own way: "Your Majesty, I brought some gifts. I'll bring them in later, and you can decide how to distribute them. I've just returned, and I still have a lot to do. After greeting Your Majesty the Empress, I'll be leaving the palace."

The Empress Dowager didn't mind his attitude. "The Empress is busy right now. It would be good for you to go to Zhengyang Palace and see her. Tell her to come over when you're done. I want to discuss the welcoming feast for you with her."

Li Jing nodded slightly and turned to walk out.

As we approached the gate, a beautiful woman in palace attire swaggered in from outside.

They came face to face with Li Jing, who was walking out, and neither of them showed any intention of giving way.

Li Jing took long strides and arrived in front of the beautiful woman in the blink of an eye.

But that beautiful woman was already arrogant, and she had come here specifically to cause trouble. However, she never expected that this scoundrel would not give way to her at all. If she took another step, she would bump into him.

What kind of talk is that?

She hesitated... and the palace maid beside her quickly stepped in front of her.

"How dare you!" the beautiful woman screamed.

The Crown Prince finally realized what was happening, took a few quick steps, grabbed Li Jing's arm, and pleaded, "Seventh Brother!"

Before the beautiful woman could speak again, Li Jing coldly said, "Who is it that dares to offend this king?!"

The beautiful woman glared at him hatefully, but a palace maid stepped in and said sternly, "Your Highness, this is our Imperial Concubine!"

"Your Highness?" Li Jing glanced at the beautiful woman out of the corner of his eye, but did not speak to her. Instead, he turned to look at the palace maids in the Empress Dowager's palace.

"Who is the head steward of the Longevity Palace?" he asked loudly.

A middle-aged eunuch hurriedly came over: "This servant Wang Wang greets Your Highness!"

Li Jing didn't even look at him, and said coldly, "What, is Changshou Palace a general store? Can just anyone barge in without announcing themselves?! Or can't the palace afford to keep guards?"

With just one sentence, he made everyone laugh...

Regardless of his true feelings, Wang Wang appeared quite nervous. He immediately knelt down, "Your Highness, this servant has failed in his duty!"

Li Jing flicked his sleeves and left without even exchanging greetings with the Imperial Concubine.

The Crown Prince, who had been trying to smooth things over, was quite surprised to see this: "Eh?! Seventh Brother!" He then awkwardly bowed deeply to the Imperial Concubine, "Your Highness, please don't be offended, Seventh Brother's temperament..."

The beautiful woman's eyes widened in anger, making her even more beautiful: "I must ask the Emperor how this disrespectful scoundrel should be punished!"

The Empress Dowager asked the person next to her, "What's wrong? What happened?"

Wang Wang quickly scrambled to his feet and ran over, saying, "Your Majesty, this servant has done something wrong and has been criticized by Prince Qi... Please punish me, Your Majesty!"

"That's what they deserve!" the Empress Dowager said, and that was it. "You've arrived?" she asked, looking at Consort Dong.

"Your Majesty the Empress Dowager!" Consort Dong huffed and puffed as she approached the Empress Dowager.

Consort Shu and Consort De exchanged a glance but remained silent.

When the Crown Prince came out, Li Jing had already strode away. He shook his head and smiled bitterly: "Seventh Brother's temperament hasn't changed at all over the years."

As the crown prince, he has his own dignity and cannot always follow Li Jing around.

The subordinate quickly offered a way out: "Your Highness, it's enough that you've accompanied Seventh Prince this far! There are several officials waiting for you to discuss matters ahead! Seventh Prince is going to see the Empress. Don't you know the Empress? She's the most lenient, so please don't trouble yourself."

"Very well! The Empress Dowager won't find fault with him!" The Crown Prince smiled and turned to leave the palace.

(End of this chapter)