The prince is more stable

Chapter 856 Former Nobles
It's normal that Zheng Chunhe didn't recognize Xue Meiyun; he was just a personal attendant to the emperor, not the Grand Eunuch.

It's normal that Zhao Xiaoqian didn't recognize Xue Meiyunye. He hadn't been the master of this palace for long, and he couldn't possibly waste his time searching for beautiful women in the palace every day.

Neither of them had any recollection of this stunningly beautiful woman.

Zhao Xiaoqian stared at Xue Meiyun, scrutinizing her from head to toe. His aggressive gaze made Xue Meiyun feel uncomfortable. She lowered her head, gently bit her lower lip, and her face quietly turned red.

After a long silence, Zhao Xiaoqian suddenly asked, "Are you a concubine in the palace?"

Xue Meiyun hurriedly shook her head: "I entered the palace through the imperial concubine selection the winter before last. The late emperor did not favor me, so I was not granted the title of concubine."

Zheng Chunhe, who was standing next to him, suddenly realized and said, "Your Majesty, after the death of Crown Prince Chongxian two years ago, the late emperor was very anxious. That year, he issued an edict to select a concubine to enrich the harem. More than 300 women were selected to enter the palace. The late emperor favored more than 100 of them, but did not favor the others and kept them in the palace."

Zhao Xiaoqian understood.

There was indeed such an incident back then, and Zhao Xu's early death was directly related to his unrestrained favoritism towards these concubines.

The official historical record states that he "suffered from the severe cold several times, which gradually led to illness, and medicine was ineffective."

However, after Zhao Xu's death, there was one person in the court who spoke the truth. This person was Zeng Bu, who was involved in treason and was imprisoned.

The Imperial City Guard found a "Daily Record" in his home, which was equivalent to a diary of later generations. It directly revealed the cause of Zhao Xu's death, one of which was "spermatorrhea," caused by unrestrained indulgence.

Of the more than 300 women selected to enter the palace, Zhao Xu favored more than 100 before his health deteriorated.

He was already physically weak from childhood, and he recklessly consumed elixirs and had no restraint in his sexual activity, thus completely draining his life force.

However, Zhao Xiaoqian understood Zhao Xu's actions at the time. After the young prince died, Zhao Xu was really anxious. Without an heir, he was under immense psychological pressure. In his desperation to have a child, he didn't care about his own health.

Zhao Xiaoqian asked curiously, "You are quite beautiful, why weren't you favored by the late emperor?"

Xue Meiyun lowered her head, her face turning even redder. How could a young woman bring up such a topic?
Zheng Chunhe whispered from the side, "The late emperor favored them quite casually, not paying particular attention to their appearance, but rather instructing the palace servants to observe their figures, with those having a physique suitable for having sons being preferred..."

Zhao Xiaoqian understood. In order to produce a prince, Zhao Xu only favored those with large pelvises and buttocks, purely out of desire and purpose, without any feelings.

Although Xue Meiyun was stunningly beautiful, she was rather thin and had a delicate, gentle air typical of women from Jiangnan. This kind of figure was probably not appealing to Zhao Xu.

What he wants is to have a son, not to have a sweet romance with his "white moonlight" (ideal love interest).

Thus, Xue Meiyun, with her exceptional beauty, somehow slipped through the net, a truly ironic twist of fate.

Zheng Chunhe was a clever woman. Seeing Zhao Xiaoqian hesitate and remain silent, she whispered, "Since His Majesty ascended the throne, he has not favored any of the women in the palace. If His Majesty is interested tonight, this servant can make arrangements for him."

Zhao Xiaoqian smiled: "Keep it, I'll deal with it when I remember."

Xue Meiyun was so ashamed that she wanted to disappear, so she lowered her head and dared not let him see her expression.

Just as Zhao Xiaoqian was about to leave, he suddenly turned around and asked, "Where is your ancestral home?"

"My ancestral home is Jiangning Prefecture, and my father was Xue Zhengxiao, the Vice Prefect of Hangzhou."

Zhao Xiaoqian suddenly realized why the woman spoke with a soft, gentle Wu dialect accent; she was indeed a woman from Jiangnan.

The women selected to enter the palace back then naturally had to have a clean background. Most of them were daughters of officials. Yes, there was political vetting in ancient times, just with different terminology.

After giving Xue Meiyun a deep look, Zhao Xiaoqian turned and left.

Zheng Chunhe followed behind him, whispering as they walked, "Does His Majesty not like this girl?"

"How could I not like someone so beautiful?" Zhao Xiaoqian said calmly.

"Then why doesn't the Emperor favor her?"

Zhao Xiaoqian smiled and said, "When you discover something beautiful, you don't have to possess it immediately. You have to slowly enjoy the feeling of being pulled and eroded, conquering it step by step. This is the most wonderful process in the world. Old Zheng, you don't understand."

Zheng Chunhe blinked; he really didn't understand, and he didn't need to.

Zhao Xiaoqian chuckled again, "Sitting quietly in the pavilion, even singing lyrics I composed, this woman has a bit of cunning. She's still young, after all, and lacks experience in seducing men. Hehe, it's harmless, quite interesting..."

Zhao Xiaoqian paused slightly, then suddenly asked, "What happened to the women who were favored by the late emperor?"

Zheng Chunhe said, "Several women who were favored were granted the title of Cai Ren. Among the other hundred or so women, more than twenty were granted the title of 'Jun Jun'. The others... were not granted any titles."

Zhao Xiaoqian said in surprise, "So, among those women who were favored, the highest rank they were given was only the title of 'Talented Lady'?"

It was indeed a bit of a surprise. After all, she was a woman he had slept with. At least bestowing upon her the title of Jieyu or Meiren wouldn't be too much to ask, right? Zhao Xu was so ruthless, even more of a scumbag than himself…

After thinking for a moment, Zhao Xiaoqian said, "Those women who were selected by the late emperor to enter the palace, whether or not they were favored, let the palace servants ask them what they want. Those who are willing to stay in the palace to live out their old age can receive a monthly stipend and will have no shortage of food and clothing."

"Those who do not wish to remain in the palace will be given funds from the Imperial Treasury to leave the palace and find other suitable husbands."

Zheng Chunhe immediately bowed and said, "Your Majesty is benevolent and kind-hearted, a blessing to all the people of the world."

Zhao Xiaoqian twitched the corners of his mouth.

He's kind and benevolent, and he's happy to hear others praise him for it.

Mainly, he doesn't have a penchant for seducing widows, unlike some useless father...

......... Zongzheng Temple.

The Imperial Clan Court was a quiet and quiet government office, specializing in handling matters concerning the imperial family. Usually, imperial relatives who were summoned to the Imperial Clan Court had caused some serious trouble, which was why they had to come to explain the situation and await investigation.

The gates of the Imperial Clan Court were usually tightly closed, as if abandoned. Even the few imperial guards on duty at the gate were listless and dispirited.

Today, the side gate of the Imperial Clan Court suddenly opened, and in the morning, Prince Duan, Zhao Ji, walked out from inside the side gate.

Emperor Huizong (Zhao Ji) was under immense pressure, and even now that he has been released, the pressure remains.

Because... he had a wooden cangue around his neck and shackles on his feet, making it extremely difficult for him to move.

Behind him followed several officials, who looked at him impatiently, clearly dissatisfied with Zhao Ji's snail-like pace. If it weren't for his former noble status, the officials would have kicked him long ago.

Yesterday, the Ministry of Justice, the Court of Judicial Review, the Censorate, and the Court of Imperial Clan Affairs held a joint trial and finally reached a conclusion.

"Treason and usurpation" was the charge leveled against Zhao Ji, and the case was closed with no possibility of being overturned.

The verdict was handed down: Zhao Ji was exiled to Lingnan and forbidden from returning to the capital for life.

Fortunately, Zhao Ji was born into a powerful family. If it were anyone else, they would have been beheaded for the crime of treason. However, he was only exiled to Lingnan. It was thanks to his noble lineage that his life was saved.

Emperor Huizong of Song has now completely lost his ambition; all he wants is to survive.

The former Prince Duan's mansion has been sealed off, and the mansion's staff have either fled, scattered, or been questioned and convicted.

Emperor Huizong had no time to care about the fate of others; he only hoped to reach Lingnan safely.

After leaving the Imperial Clan Court, several officials escorted him directly towards the city gate.

Once the verdict was handed down, there was no time to linger; everyone had to leave Beijing and head south immediately.

Zhao Ji didn't care; he didn't want to remain in this cold and ruthless city as a loser.

Everything here no longer belongs to him.

Convicts being exiled were not entitled to ride in carriages; they had to walk to their destination.

Emperor Huizong of Song (Zhao Ji) was pampered from a young age and almost became emperor; his health was much weaker than that of ordinary people.

After leaving Bianjing city, he had walked less than five miles when he was already too tired to go on.

After all, the pressure was too great, not only in his life but also in his body.

The wooden cangue around his neck weighed at least twenty pounds, and he was also wearing shackles on his feet. Making a delicate and frail member of the clan walk with these shackles on was more painful than killing him.

After gritting his teeth and managing to walk five miles, Zhao Ji was exhausted. His body went limp and he collapsed to the ground, panting heavily.

The officers behind him weren't going to tolerate him. One of them stepped forward and kicked him hard, shouting, "You've only gone a few miles and you're already playing dead? Get up! Keep going!"

Emperor Huizong felt deeply humiliated, but now that he was in a weaker position, he could only plead pitifully, "Gentlemen, please allow me to rest for a while. I really can't walk anymore. Please forgive me..."

The officials sneered repeatedly.

In the past, even if they knelt and kowtowed before Prince Duan, Emperor Huizong probably wouldn't have given them a second glance.

But now the situation has reversed. The emperor has changed, and Zhao Ji is no longer as good as yesterday's flowers. He has no chance of making a comeback.

If that's the case, why be polite to him?
"If you don't leave, you'll get beaten up. That's the rule, Zhao Ji. Don't cause trouble. You probably haven't experienced the methods of these officials before," one of the officials said coldly.

Emperor Huizong pursed his lips in frustration, but under the relentless gazes of the officials, he had no choice but to continue pleading.

"My brothers, although I am now down on my luck, I still have some spare money. I own an estate twenty miles outside the city..."

The official sneered, "All the properties and land under your name have been confiscated. What's the use of saying this now?"

Zhao Ji hurriedly said, "No, although the manor twenty miles away was confiscated, I buried more than a hundred taels of gold leaves under an old locust tree in the manor. No one knows about this."

"If you gentlemen don't mind, I'm willing to give you all of these hundred-plus taels of gold leaves, only asking that you look after me on my journey..."

Upon hearing this, the officials were moved. They exchanged glances, and their expressions and tones immediately softened.

"It's hot, so it's fine for you to rest a bit longer. We'll wait a bit. Here, have some water."

As he spoke, an official took off his water bag and held it to his lips.

Indeed, high-end services come at a price.

Zhao Ji secretly rejoiced at the gold leaf he had unintentionally buried in his early years. He was always a thoughtful person, and before he succeeded, he worried about future failures, so he hid gold and silver in many places in case he could run away at any time.

In this respect, Emperor Huizong and Emperor Xiaoqian had much in common: they always worried about failure before they could succeed.

In retrospect, those gold leaves truly saved his life; otherwise, given the officials' appalling attitude, he probably wouldn't have survived to reach Lingnan.

(End of this chapter)