I traveled with them to the Northern Song Dynasty

Chapter 232 was too sudden.
...

Li Shishi, Zhao Yuannu, Cui Nianyue, Wang Zhongduan, and Xu Poxi were all top courtesans cultivated by their respective brothels. Because of Emperor Huizong's visit to brothels, they were arrested and sent to the Jiaofangsi (a government-run entertainment institution). Later, they were sent to the palace. Li Shishi was chosen by Zhang Chun, Zhao Yuannu by Ye Shiyun, Cui Nianyue by Li Lin, Xu Poxi by Yuan Qingcheng, and Wang Zhongduan by Guan Shi.

Although the five women were separated after entering the palace, their unparalleled beauty and figure, similar backgrounds, and shared experiences, along with the fact that, apart from Wang Zhongduan's wife, Guan Shi, the other four women all belonged to Zhang Chun, one of the five women who held a very special position in Zhao Yu's harem, ensured that they never lost contact with each other.

Later, because Xiduo's master was Ma Xiaojiao, Xiduo also had the experience of being sold into a brothel. Although Xiduo was inferior to Li Shishi and the other five women in terms of appearance, figure, or skills, Xiduo still managed to get into this small circle. In fact, because of her seniority and age, Xiduo became the "eldest sister" of the women.

Gradually, the six women's small circle became one of the more well-known among the hundreds of circles, large and small, in Zhao Yu's harem. Furthermore, because they were backed by Zhang Chun's five women, they could also utilize some of the resources controlled by Zhang Chun's five women, which gave them a place in Zhao Yu's harem and considerable influence.

Thus, the gathering of the six women received the support of Zhang Chun's five maids. After all, they were Zhang Chun's five maids' closest servants, and if they did well, it would also bring honor to Zhang Chun's five maids.

So, with Zhang Chun and the other five women making things easy for each other, Kita would organize a small gathering of the other five women every now and then.

Today is the day of the small gathering of Li Shishi and her six friends. Apart from Li Shishi, the other five women arrived early at their gathering place—Ye Shiyun's palace.

The reason Li Shishi arrived late was because her master, Zhang Chun, had slept with her again the night before. She had to serve Zhao Yu before leaving, and even wait until Zhang Chun had nothing else to do before she could have a small gathering with the other five women.

Fortunately, Zhao Yu got up early and left without having a meal there, so he didn't take up too much of Li Shishi's time.

However, before leaving, Zhao Yu unusually took the time to look Li Shishi up and down.

Li Shishi's features were exquisitely beautiful. A white palace gown accentuated her slender waist, and her movements were graceful, like a willow swaying in the breeze. Her skin, smooth and supple, shimmered faintly in the sunlight, barely concealed by the gown. Her lips parted slightly as if intoxicated, and her eyes, with their languid charm and alluring allure, blended beauty and elegance seamlessly, captivating all who looked into the shimmering spring light within her gaze.

In short, Li Shishi's beauty was not just about her pretty face and graceful figure, but also about an elegant temperament that emanated from her very being, like a fairy who was untouched by worldly affairs. She stood out from the crowd and was unforgettable after just one glance.

To paraphrase what Emperor Huizong of Tang (Zhao Ji) said to Empress Zheng and other concubines about Li Shishi's beauty: "If you were to select a hundred of your concubines, remove their hairpins and jewelry, put on plain makeup, and have her dressed the same way and mingle with you, people would immediately recognize her as different from you. Her charm and elegance cannot be appreciated merely from her appearance and figure."

Zhao Yu sometimes liked to use the image of female celebrities from later generations to describe the beauties he saw in his time.

But Li Shishi was different. Zhao Yu couldn't find a single actress who could describe her. The actresses who had played Li Shishi in his previous life—such as Zhong Lingling, Qi Meizhen, He Qing, Xie Ning, Xie Keke, Yu Na, Xiao Liujia, An Yixuan, Ma Su, Liu Yanxi, Han Zaifen, and Tao Luoyi—none of them could capture Li Shishi's unique and captivating beauty and charm.

'Is this the unique charm of the first courtesan in history?'

Looking at Li Shishi, Zhao Yu couldn't help but think, 'Such a peerless beauty has always been by my side, at my disposal, and I've actually let her grow up to adulthood. This is truly the greatest disrespect to her beauty!'

Zhao Yu then took a closer look at Li Shishi's curvaceous figure and said, "She has grown up."

Upon hearing this, Li Shishi's flawless face instantly flushed crimson. She lowered her eyelids shyly, not daring to look directly into Zhao Yu's burning and deep gaze. Her long eyelashes trembled slightly, fluttering like butterfly wings, and her heart pounded wildly like a deer.

A young woman is in love.

Moreover, Li Shishi came from a brothel and was trained from a young age to serve men. She was exposed to all things related to men and women. After entering the palace and becoming Zhang Chun's personal maid, she often served Zhao Yu and Zhang Chun and other women in sexual relations.

Therefore, Li Shishi was much more sensitive and precocious than ordinary women when it came to feelings between men and women.

In fact, Li Shishi didn't know when she started having Zhao Yu in her heart. From a very young age, her dreams were all about Zhao Yu.

In Li Shishi's dream, she replaced Zhang Chun and lived a shameless life with Zhao Yu, becoming the Li Imperial Concubine whom everyone in the harem envied.

When she woke up, Li Shishi was very shy, but she did not reject such a beautiful dream, because she knew very well that sooner or later she would also become Zhao Yu's woman, and Zhao Yu would really treat her the same way he treated Zhang Chun and the other women who had slept with him. Looking at it this way, it seemed that perhaps it wasn't all just a dream.

However, Li Shishi never expected that she would wait for so many years, and even now, Zhao Yu still hasn't taken her in.

To be honest, Li Shishi harbored some resentment towards Zhao Yu.

Now, Zhao Yu finally noticed that she had grown up. Li Shishi's womanly intuition told her that her night might not be far away.

Li Shishi's heart pounded faster; she could almost hear the rush of her blood. It was a mixture of anticipation, trepidation, and a sense of bittersweet relief.

To Li Shishi's slight disappointment, Zhao Yu left after uttering those abrupt and unrelated words. It gave the impression that he flirted and then left.

Li Shishi bit her lower lip and watched Zhao Yu leave with a resentful expression.

Only after Zhao Yu had gone far away did Li Shishi go to see Zhang Chun.

Zhang Chun, who had been thoroughly tormented by Zhao Yu the previous night, was now fast asleep.

Based on Li Shishi's years of experience, Zhang Chun would probably sleep until noon, so her going out for a while wouldn't have any impact.

So, Li Shishi explained things to the other palace servants in Zhang Chun's palace and then went to Ye Shiyun's palace, where she met Xi Duo and the others.

When Li Shishi finally arrived, Zhao Yuannu asked her, "Why are you so late?"

“My lady attended to me last night,” Li Shishi replied.

Upon hearing this, the five women of Kita stopped asking questions. In Zhao Yu's harem, nothing was more important than Zhao Yu himself. Anything related to Zhao Yu, even the most trivial matters, was more important than their lives, especially since this was just an ordinary gathering.

"I really envy Lady Zhang, who always gets to serve the emperor. If I could get even one or two tenth of that, I would die without regrets," Kita said.

The other five women rolled their eyes or shook their heads. They all showed their disdain for Kita's Versailles through their actions.

Not to mention that Xiduo was one of only two among them to have served the emperor in bed, this is something that Li Shishi, Zhao Yuannu, Wang Zhongduan, and Xu Poxi cannot compare to.

Moreover, because Kita was Ma Xiaojiao's maid before she rose to power and had also provided her with substantial financial support, Ma Xiaojiao always treated Kita like a younger sister and often brought Kita along when serving the emperor. Most importantly, Kita was fortunate enough to give birth to a son for Zhao Yu.

This is something even Choi Nyeon-wol, who only gave birth to one daughter for Jo Yu, cannot compare to.

As for Zhang Chun, whom Kita admired, how could they, as servants, compare to him?

Not to mention them, even Zhao Yu's other concubines couldn't compare to Zhang Chun and her five consorts in terms of the number of times they served him in bed. Among Zhao Yu's other concubines, only Empress Zheng Xiansu and Li Qingzhao, who were inexplicably favored by Zhao Yu, could rival Zhang Chun and her five consorts.

Kita's dream was to reach one or two tenths of Zhang Chun's number of times she served him in bed, something that even powerful concubines like Zhang Nan and Cai Xuan could only dream of.

Kita knew she had misspoke, making her seem tactless and overconfident, so she quickly tried to smooth things over: "It's just a wish, don't you guys have the same expectation?"

To say I don't want to would be a lie.

After all, in this deep palace, which woman doesn't yearn for the emperor's favor and long for his supreme tenderness and care? Even as maids, they harbored dreams of a bright future, hoping to one day stand out among the three thousand beauties and become Zhao Yu's favorite confidante.

Zhao Yuannu readily admitted, "Of course I've thought about it, but my most pressing concerns are not gaining more favor, but rather the opportunity to serve you in bed. Without the first time, how can there be a future?"

Li Shishi and Xu Poxi nodded vigorously in agreement.

Cui Nianyue said, "The most important thing is to maintain the emperor's favor. Hmm... one must also strive to give birth to a prince for the emperor, otherwise everything will be in vain."

Li Lin was the woman Zhao Yu slept with the most times. As Li Lin's personal maid, Cui Nianyue should have had many opportunities to serve him, just like Kita.

The problem is that, as Zhao Yu's private instructor and sparring partner for "Convict Conditioning" and "Yoga", Li Lin mostly communicates with Zhao Yu alone in places like martial arts training grounds. Cui Nianyue doesn't easily get guidance from Li Lin, so she can't compare to Kita.

But this doesn't mean Li Lin isn't helping Cui Nianyue.

Back then, if Li Lin hadn't taken Cui Nianyue to Yan, Cui Nianyue would have been able to serve the emperor frequently during that period, and even had the opportunity to serve him alone.
It was around that time that Cui Nianyue became pregnant with Zhao Yu's child. Not long after returning to Bianliang (Kaifeng) from Yan, she gave birth to a daughter for Zhao Yu.

That period was the happiest time of Cui Nianyue's life.

After returning from Yan, no, not even before returning from Yan, ever since Yelü Yanxi and his ministers presented Zhao Yu with three hundred beauties from various ethnic groups, Cui Nianyue had never had a good life again.

Furthermore, because Li Lin rarely served Cui Nianyue in bed at home, Cui Nianyue had few opportunities to be served by Li Lin.

This is also why Cui Nianyue was unable to give birth to a son for Zhao Yu.

Therefore, Cui Nianyue also envied Xiduo. She used her own experience to tell the women that temporary favor is useless. You have to be favored all the time, or at the very least, you have to maintain the frequency. Otherwise, you will suffer from drought when it is dry and flood when it is flooded.

“Your wives are all His Majesty’s favorite concubines. You have the advantage of being close to the emperor and can serve him in bed sooner or later. My sister, on the other hand, has only served him in bed three times since she entered the palace, and all of those were three years ago. In recent years, she has seen His Majesty up close less than ten times. How can she serve him in bed and how can she help me?” Wang Zhongduan said.

Although Lady Guan was with Zhao Yu earlier, she was quite ordinary in many ways. Since Zhao Yu had more women, she no longer had the opportunity to serve him in bed. She could only rely on her seniority to serve as a lady-in-waiting in Zhao Yu's harem. She was not doing very well, but she was not bad either. She was neither the best nor the worst off, and her life was certainly not a problem.

However, for the women in Zhao Yu's harem, without children, their lives were forever uncertain.

Lady Guan was unwilling to remain childless and destitute in her old age, so she always wanted to try again and strive for the opportunity to serve Zhao Yu in bed, hoping to give birth to a prince. Even giving birth to a daughter would be much better than having no children at all.

However, Zhao Yu's harem has grown so large that even Guan Shi and Pei Sui now have difficulty getting the chance to serve him in bed, let alone Guan Shi.

Later, seeing that Wang Zhongduan had grown up to be increasingly alluring and beautiful, practically a demon, and was getting close to Zhang Chun's five maids, Guan Shi knew that Wang Zhongduan's future achievements would be beyond Guan Shi's reach. In order to please Wang Zhongduan, Guan Shi simply stopped recognizing Wang Zhongduan as her daughter and instead recognized her as her younger sister. She treated Wang Zhongduan very well, planning to wait until Wang Zhongduan seduced Zhao Yu and then work together with her to see if they could conceive a child for the emperor.

It is worth mentioning that the reason why Guan Shi stopped being Wang Zhongduan's adoptive mother and became Wang Zhongduan's adoptive elder sister was because she was afraid that Zhao Yu would think she was too old and not give her the opportunity to serve Wang Zhongduan in bed, even though she was only twenty-seven years old.

Because of Guan's attitude, Wang Zhongduan had much more freedom than the other five women, which also enabled him to help them with things they wanted to do but didn't have time for.

This might be why Wang Zhongduan has been able to stay in this industry.
In fact, outsiders would find the conversations between Li Shishi and her friends tedious and boring. They would either talk about Zhao Yu or discuss current events and gossip in the palace, and even when they talked about the latter, they would quickly steer the conversation back to Zhao Yu.

As for their expectations, without exception, they all wanted to gain Zhao Yu's favor and love, and to bear him children, the more the better.

In fact, it wasn't just these six women who were like this; it was the same for all the women in Zhao Yu's harem, including those from Liao, Western Xia, or other places.

It is no exaggeration to say that Zhao Yu was their everything, as if they were born for him.

This is the most realistic portrayal of the women in the emperor's harem under feudal society.

Li Shishi and the others chatted for a while, and then ate some pastries and dried fruits together. Around noon, Li Shishi returned.

More than half an hour later, Zhang Chun woke up.

Li Shishi immediately led people to serve her.

Just as Li Shishi was combing Zhang Chun's hair, Zhang Chun casually said, "You should tidy yourself up properly later so you can serve me in bed tonight."

Upon hearing this, Li Shishi's exquisitely crafted silver comb with the inscription "Zhou Xiaosi's Record" and the plum blossom and double lion design fell to the ground with a "thud"!

Li Shishi covered her mouth, and tears streamed down her face!
This happiness came so suddenly...

……

(End of this chapter)