The harem is too complicated; the empress, a lazy bum, wins by doing nothing.

Chapter 72 Unwilling to Serve in Bed

Of course, she was also unwilling to serve the emperor in bed.

"Mother, the Emperor has been staying in the inner palace these days, but as for which concubine he is with, I really have no choice..." Shen Qingwan said, troubled.

“I know you are virtuous, and I am anxious about it. However, Consort Xi has not served the emperor since last time. You had her dance at the palace banquet, and the emperor was pleased. She has become his favorite. My idea is to ask the empress for help. After all, they entered the palace because of their maternal families. If they are left out like this, it will not sound good if word gets out.”

Shen Qingwan: ...

After all that, it turned out that the Empress Dowager meant for her to think of a way to get the new concubine to Emperor Yuanwu's bedside, rather than advising Emperor Yuanwu to visit the new concubine.

Older gingers are more spicy!
But she really can't do it!!!

"Mother, we should wait for the right time. If the Emperor does not favor the new concubine, I will think of another way around the Lunar New Year."

"Your Majesty knows this matter has put you in a difficult position, but as long as the Emperor is willing to come to the inner palace, it doesn't really matter which concubine he favors. No matter which concubine is pregnant, it's a joyous occasion in the palace. However, I heard from the imperial physician that Consort Xian's fall this time was quite serious, and coupled with her age, I'm afraid she will never be able to conceive again. Consort Shu injured her health in her early years, and Consort De has also received a lot of favor, but after so many years, her belly hasn't shown any signs of pregnancy. None of the concubines at the current rank are promiscuous; we still need to cultivate a few from among the newly entered concubines," the Empress Dowager sighed.

Shen Qingwan understood the Empress Dowager's concerns. After all, she also had to make plans for the Crown Prince. Even if there were many imperial offspring in the harem, if they were all born to concubines of lower rank, it would be difficult for them to maintain control in the court in the future.

Besides the emperor's favor, another important reason why high-ranking concubines were favored was the influence of their maternal families, which could help the emperor consolidate his throne.

It's true that the affairs of the court and the harem are intertwined; a single move can have far-reaching consequences.

"I have remembered what Mother said. I will keep it in mind. Right now, it is of utmost importance to protect Consort Rou's pregnancy."

The Empress Dowager nodded: "The Emperor has been unable to let go of the matter concerning Consort Li for so many years, but now he has finally relented. Empress, among all the concubines, who do you think is more suitable for the position of Imperial Noble Consort or Noble Consort?"

"Your Majesty, the Imperial Noble Consort holds a noble position, equivalent to the Empress Dowager, and is the head of the concubines. In addition to her high moral character, benevolence, humility and modesty, she should have a prince by her side in order to gain the respect of the people. As for the Noble Consort, since His Majesty has favored Consort Xian, it is acceptable. Your daughter-in-law has no objection."

Shen Qingwan's words startled the Empress Dowager slightly. She had been thinking about how to comfort her, since the Empress had been at odds with Consort Xian since the day she married into the family.

Now, the Empress is not only open-minded, but so magnanimous that even the Empress Dowager finds it hard to accept.

When Shen Qingwan came out of Cining Palace, it was snowing lightly outside. The snow was like gauze, transparent and clean. Shen Qingwan reached out and caught a snowflake in her palm. Before she could see the shape of the snowflake clearly, the warmth of her palm melted her into water.

"Your Majesty, I have been looking for you for a long time." Consort Shu ran all the way over from afar.

"Has something happened?" Shen Qingwan asked.

"This morning, it was said that Consort Qi of Ning Shou Palace was not well and they wanted to send Imperial Physician Zhang to take a look. I dare not make the decision myself, so I came to ask Her Majesty the Empress for her opinion."

Consort Qi was the most favored concubine during the reign of the late emperor. Originally an Imperial Noble Consort, she was demoted to the rank of Consort due to the repercussions of her maternal family. Before his death, the late emperor instructed Emperor Yuanwu to treat Consort Qi well.

The Empress Dowager and Consort Qi had always been at odds, but the late Emperor's dying words left her with no choice but to let her fend for herself in Ning Shou Palace.

Consort Shu dared not make a decision on her own, fearing that mishandling the matter would offend the Empress Dowager. Whether Consort Qi was truly suffering from a serious illness and did not wish to die, or whether she had other motives, remained unknown. After all, everyone in the harem knew that Physician Zhang was the Empress Dowager's man.

"Since you say you're not feeling well, just have the Imperial Hospital send someone to take a look. Just tell them that Physician Zhang isn't on duty," Shen Qingwan said.

"It is Your Majesty the Empress. I was completely at a loss just now. I can only feel at ease when Your Majesty is in charge of the affairs of the harem."

Shen Qingwan didn't say anything, but simply pulled her aside.

"There's something I must tell you first. The Empress Dowager and the Emperor both intend to elevate Consort Xian to the rank of Noble Consort. The Emperor has already stated that the Third Prince will not be raised by Consort Xian. I'm afraid someone might have designs on you, so you must be extra careful in everything you do."

Consort Shu's face turned pale, clearly she was really frightened. Her lips trembled, and after a while she slowly said, "Thank you for the reminder, Your Majesty. I will be careful."

"Of course, you don't need to worry too much. I'm just guessing. Just pay more attention to what you do on a daily basis." Shen Qingwan saw that Consort Shu was quite frightened and comforted her with a few more words.

When Shen Qingwan returned to the palace, the maids from Consort Rong's palace had just left, and they brought her several exquisitely patterned purses and a cotton bag for a hot water bottle.

The purses are decorated with lilies and peonies, while the cotton bags are plain, embroidered with pine and bamboo.

Shen Qingwan suddenly remembered that once when she went to Consort Rong's palace, she saw her embroidering a purse and casually said something. She didn't expect that Consort Rong would remember it and actually finish embroidering it and have it sent over. It was rare to find someone so thoughtful. It must have taken a long time to finish embroidering it.

Shen Qingwan didn't know how good the original owner's needlework skills were; in any case, she knew nothing about these things and could only tell whether something looked good or not.

"Put these things away carefully. Go to the small kitchen and check the pastries made yesterday. Take some to Consort Rong and thank her for me. Tell her that I like them very much."

"Yes, ma'am."

No sooner had Zhen'er left the palace than Su Tianhe rushed in, flustered.

"Your Majesty, something terrible has happened! You must go and see! The First Prince has fallen into the water!"

Shen Qingwan's eyes flickered, and she stood up from the stool: "What happened?"

"Your Majesty, the maidservant from the First Prince's palace just reported that he doesn't need to go to the study today. He went fishing by the pond in the Imperial Garden, but unexpectedly slipped and fell into the lake."

Shen Qingwan frowned, feeling that things weren't so simple.

She had met the eldest prince a few times. Children are naturally playful, but Shen Qingwan did not think the eldest prince was a child without manners. Although she had always loved catching fish by the river in the Imperial Garden, she had not gone to the river to catch fish for a long time since she gave him a hint last time. Why would he suddenly run over to catch fish when it was snowing?

"Did the eldest prince go fishing by himself? What about his maid? Was no one with him?"

"I just heard a report that a maid was with him. It seems the First Prince sent someone to fetch something from the palace. They had only been gone a short while when the person fell down..."

(End of this chapter)