After the rebellion was successful, I realized that this place was the Red Mansion

Chapter 259 After the agreement was established, the Mid-Autumn Festival was approaching.

The next day, Chu Yan was woken up by Yuanyang and Zijuan. He had barely moved when Daiyu, who was beside him, smiled and said, "You're awake?"

Chu Yan slowly came to his senses. He couldn't see her clearly in the darkness, and said, "Yu'er woke up so early?"

Daiyu said shyly, "You were being improper in my dream last night... I've been awake for a while now, I'm not tired, and I don't have anything else to do later. I'll just read a book, do some needlework, and chat with my sisters to pass the time. You, on the other hand, have to go to court."

Last night, the two met again in their dreams. They seemed to have something to say, but it was as if they didn't. They just lingered together for a long time.

Chu Yan said, "Mid-Autumn Festival is approaching, why don't you let your maternal grandmother stay in the palace for a few more days?"

Upon hearing this, Daiyu smiled and said, "Thank you for your kindness, but the old lady is used to living at home, so it's not good to disturb her too much."

Chu Yan nodded, reached out and stroked her face, and sighed, "Another day when I don't want to attend court!"

Daiyu chuckled and said, "You're really going to become a tyrant. Get up quickly, I'm getting up too."

As he spoke, he emerged from the tightly wrapped quilt. It seemed that because he had slept all night, the red silk quilt emitted a faint fragrance, which Chu Yan couldn't help but sniff twice.

Upon hearing the noise, Yuanyang, who was standing by the bed, pulled up the gauze curtains and helped the two get up with Zijuan.

Qingwen, Hongyu, and others also came into the room to serve.

After washing up and changing clothes, as dawn broke, Chu Yan sat with Daiyu in Xiaoxiang Pavilion for a while before heading out to the Xuanzheng Hall for the morning court session.

Daiyu saw him off outside the bamboo grove and watched his figure disappear. She felt a little empty and listless. She wanted to return to Xiaoxiang Pavilion, but then she felt that seeing the things reminded her of him. So she decided to go and find Yingchun to sit with for a while.

Daiyu turned and left.

Several days have passed in the blink of an eye.

That day, Chu Yan returned to Zichen Hall in the evening, and Yuan Chun, Qing He, Tan Chun, and Bao Chai came out of the house to greet him.

Chu Yan stepped forward and took Yuan Chun's hand, laughing as they walked, "It's rare to see you here. You must have something on your mind today? Come on, let's go inside and talk."

He led a few people into the house, still sitting on the couch, holding Qinghe in his arms, embracing her delicate young body, and immediately relaxed.

Yuan Chun smiled faintly and said, "Your Majesty often has young ladies visiting your chambers, but I am usually busy with palace affairs and have not been able to come as often. Please forgive me, Your Majesty."

Baochai glanced at this virtuous concubine. She was usually dignified and majestic. Although she was not the empress, she was in charge of the affairs of the six palaces and had the power of an empress.

But in front of the emperor, she could also adopt a soft and coquettish demeanor.

Chu Yan looked at them and sighed, "Sometimes I also feel overwhelmed and can't find the time to spend with you!"

Tan Chun hurriedly smiled and said, "Your Majesty is busy with state affairs and has to go to the military camp in his spare time..." She stopped talking at the right time and did not mention this matter again, and continued, "It is already an honor for us to be able to spend some time with you in your spare time."

Chu Yan smiled and beckoned to her, "Third Miss, come here."

As if realizing something, Tan Chun blushed on her bright and lively face. When she approached, the Emperor kissed her and ordered her to sit beside him.

Chu Yan put his legs on the couch and laughed, "Come and massage my legs. I'll enjoy it while I listen to your stories."

Tan Chun and Qing He were on the couch, one massaging his legs and the other rubbing his shoulders.

Baochai brought him a cup of tea and brought it to his lips.

After he had finished his tea, Yuan Chun spoke up, saying, "With the Mid-Autumn Festival approaching, the palace needs to prepare for the festival. I'm too busy to handle everything, so I'm planning to ask the princess and the other two to help me. What does Your Majesty think?"

Chu Yan nodded and said, "That's good. It's time-consuming and laborious for one person to be busy, and there are times when you can't take care of everything. But it's also chaotic when there are too many people. You can arrange the affairs. The ladies and concubines in the palace are mostly good at managing things. You can learn to manage the affairs in the palace gradually."

After thinking for a while, Yuan Chun still advised, "Your Majesty, please forgive my bluntness. I am a lowly person, and if I manage the palace and the harem for too long, it will inevitably cause controversy. I implore Your Majesty to establish an Empress as soon as possible."

He then stood up and respectfully kowtowed.

Her proposal to establish an empress was an overreach of court affairs, so she kowtowed and begged for forgiveness.

Baochai, Qinghe, and Tanchun remained silent; it was indeed best not to say much about this matter, nor to inquire further.

Conferring the title of a concubine is merely a matter of the emperor's word, but establishing an empress is a matter of great importance to the entire nation.

"Get up."

Chu Yan was indeed troubled by the matter of the Empress. He glanced around at them. Yuan Chun, needless to say, humbly referred to herself as "a person of lowly fate," meaning that she was a concubine of the previous dynasty and could not become Empress.

He then looked at the Qinghe River beside him.

Princess Xiuwan shook her head and smiled, "If I were to become empress, I fear it would harm the dignity of the nation."

She was a princess of the previous dynasty, and not only could she not become empress, but her son could not become crown prince.

To be able to become a concubine in the new dynasty after the fall of her country and the destruction of her family was already a sign of her being destined for wealth and honor in this life.

Chu Yan smiled and asked, "Where are Third Miss and Miss Bao?"

Tan Chun and Bao Chai quickly stood up and both said some self-deprecating words.

They could be empresses, but they probably lacked something.

Chu Yan simply called Qingwen in and instructed her, "Go and call the young lady and the concubines here, and say that you have something to discuss."

Qingwen hurriedly went out to deliver the imperial decree, sending out everyone in the room and also calling eunuchs and palace maids to the residences of the various ladies to invite them over.

Before long, all the concubines in the harem gathered at the Zichen Hall.

Chu Yan sat in the hall and smiled at them, "I called you here for no other reason than that Yuan Chun is earnestly requesting me to establish an empress as soon as possible, and it's the Mid-Autumn Festival. Let's see how we can make it lively!"

Xiangyun laughed and said, "I don't care about anything else, we must go boating, drinking, and composing poems on Mid-Autumn Festival night!"

Daiyu quickly smiled and said, "Yun'er has been nagging me about this eight hundred times these past few days, and she's started nagging me about it again in front of the Emperor today."

Everyone laughed and said that Xiangyun was reciting in their ears.

After a few jokes, the matter of the Empress was brought up later.

But since the matter was of great importance, Yuan Chun brought it up again, and everyone immediately fell silent, looking at the Emperor, only to see him sitting there with a smile but no words.

Xiangyun smiled and said, "His Majesty asked us to discuss who should be made Empress. There are rules among the Empresses that the harem cannot interfere in politics. Does that rule really apply?"

Chu Yan said, "Although the establishment of an empress is a matter of state affairs, it is also closely related to you. What do you think?"

He added, "It cannot be said that I am solely in charge of making the decisions!"

Keqing, the palace maid, Yingchun, Consort Wu, and others looked at each other, but dared not speak.

Chu Yan called out, "Yun'er, you're always the most outspoken, so you go first!"

Xiangyun's little face immediately turned into a bitter gourd, and she complained, "Brother Emperor is deliberately making things difficult for Yun'er. If Yun'er says that she is the Empress, it would seem shameless, and she knows that she is not capable enough to say it. But if I don't say it, Brother Emperor will definitely ask me again. If I say that Sister Lin is the Empress, Sister Bao is the Empress, and Sister Da is the Empress, I will inevitably offend people. There are people who want to be the Empress!"

Everyone laughed, and Li Wan said with a smile, "Yun girl has such a clever tongue, she said everything that needed to be said. If His Majesty asks us to say it again, we will say it just like her!"

Chu Yan looked at Daiyu, and she immediately returned his gaze, seemingly telling him not to mention making her empress. Firstly, she was unwilling and unable to be empress, as she was too weak to handle affairs. Secondly, she had heard him say that he should make her empress in private, but it was not appropriate to say it in front of her sisters.

Daiyu knew that she was more favored than the others. It was fine in private, but if Chu Yan doted on her too much in public, it would inevitably arouse jealousy among some people and cause discord in the harem.

Chu Yan still asked her, "What does Lin Meimei think?"

That's alright. Daiyu smiled and said in a clear voice, "Among His Majesty's concubines, there is still one Imperial Concubine who has not yet arrived in the capital. Yet we are discussing the Empress's affairs here. Wouldn't that disrupt the proper order of things?"

Everyone knew she was referring to Consort Xie.

Chu Yan said, "Perhaps because I said I wouldn't make her empress, she's become increasingly disrespectful to me. I've called her several times, but she hasn't come to the capital. A while ago, I asked her father to send someone back to summon her, but I haven't received a reply yet."

Consort Zhou said angrily, "Although I shouldn't speak ill of the Imperial Concubine behind her back, this Imperial Concubine Xie is far too arrogant!"

No one spoke; they wouldn't dare utter such offensive words. Only Consort Zhou, whose mind was blank, dared to say it.

Chu Yan smiled and turned to Baoqin, asking, "Sister Qin, would you like to say something too?"

Baoqin said, "Won't His Majesty be angry if I tell you?"

“Even if you say you want to rebel, I won’t be angry with you,” Chu Yan said, making them all lower their heads and laugh, because the emperor sitting in the main seat was the one who had seized the throne through rebellion.

Baoqin smiled and said, "I think His Majesty doesn't want to establish an Empress."

At first, everyone was surprised, but after thinking about it carefully, they suddenly realized that it made a lot of sense.

Chu Yan gave Qin a meaningful look.

Baoqin continued, "Before His Majesty entered the city, everyone was terrified. But after His Majesty took us as his concubines, we realized that His Majesty is a person who is 'fierce as a tiger in the heart, yet gentle as a rose in the hand'."

"Did His Majesty the Emperor say these words?" Xiangyun asked hastily, as she had never heard of such a statement before.

Baoqin nodded and smiled, “His Majesty treats all the concubines in the harem equally. He dotes on Sister Lin and Sister Yun, as well as Sister Da and Sister Er. He also shows great favor to Consort Zhuang, who is a princess of the previous dynasty. If an empress is established, it is inevitable that… it is inevitable that one will be neglected while another is taken care of, which would not be ideal.”

Chu Yan was filled with admiration. Baoqin was truly an extremely intelligent and clever girl; she had really guessed his thoughts perfectly.

Seeing that no one spoke, Baochai smiled and said, "We have been chosen by the Emperor to enter the palace, and we should always think about the fundamental virtues of women, being gentle, obedient, and humble. His Majesty usually dotes on us, but the affairs of the court are not something we girls should presume to discuss. If any of us sisters were to be made Empress, we would not dare to harbor any jealousy, much less act recklessly and cause chaos in the harem."

"Your Majesty, Your Majesty's divine will is absolute; we must strictly adhere to the hierarchy and wholeheartedly assist Her Majesty the Empress!"

Everyone agreed.

At least outwardly, they agree.

Chu Yan said, "Forget it, let's talk about the Empress later. Throughout history, there have been too many people who were the first to try something new."

Daiyu and the others had never heard this proverb before, but they could guess its meaning.

Chu Yan laughed and said, "Let's talk about the Mid-Autumn Festival. We'll stay up all night to admire the moon and drink to our hearts' content!"

Xiangyun clapped her hands and cheered.

To celebrate the Mid-Autumn Festival properly, money is inevitably needed. Yuan Chun has already listed the required funds, but the palace treasury is slightly short.

Consort Wu volunteered, "I have saved some money in previous years. None of the other ladies in the harem have as much money as I do. I will contribute some to help make up the difference."

Upon hearing this, Consort Zhou quickly replied that she also had several thousand taels of silver.

Chu Yan said, "It's not time to ask you for money yet. This festival, and the expenses for the rest of the year, will mainly be used for food, clothing, and winter heating. We should save on those extravagant things as much as possible."

Yuan Chun smiled and said, "That should be enough."

Chu Yanchao Qinghe smiled and said, "I've remembered someone else. Does the princess have any idea who it is?"

Qinghe nodded and said, "My sister-in-law is still at Ci'en Temple."

Realizing his words were inappropriate, he quickly added, "It is Zhang who is still at Ci'en Temple!"

That's even more wrong! Wouldn't that be like trying to hide something obvious?!
"Hahaha!"

Chu Yan laughed loudly, and everyone blushed. Daiyu lightly spat at him, ignoring this lecherous and foolish emperor.

Qinghe blushed and said shyly in a low voice, "I'll write a letter to... my sister-in-law and ask her to return to the palace for the Mid-Autumn Festival to enjoy the moon with us."

Xiangyun asked, "Didn't you write a letter to the Empress last time?"

Qinghe was in a dilemma. Her sister-in-law would probably need the Emperor to invite her to return to the palace as a concubine.

Chu Yan sighed, "If neither of them wants to enter the palace, I will lose face. So be it, Qinghe, receive the decree."

Princess Qinghe quickly stood up.

"You must find a way to bring your sister-in-law back to the palace. If you can't, lead people to Ci'en Temple to bring her back. I will punish her myself!"

Chu Yan gave the order, and Qinghe could only obediently accept it. He thought to himself that perhaps there was no need to write a letter; he could just go to Ci'en Temple to invite his sister-in-law back.

At this moment, Xiuyan also stood up and said, "Your Majesty, please grant me permission to go to Daguan Palace and invite Miaoyu from Longcui Nunnery to the palace to enjoy the moon."

Baochai and the others looked over, seemingly lost in thought.

Chu Yan nodded and said, "Alright, since she's coming too, let's prepare a vegetarian meal for Miaoyu at the Mid-Autumn Festival banquet, and also prepare a place for her to stay. Xiuyan, you can do that."

Xiuyan felt neither embarrassed nor annoyed at being addressed by her name, and quickly agreed.

They chatted for a while about the various activities for the Mid-Autumn Festival banquet, where to go, where to admire the moon, and what programs to have. After making a general decision, everyone dispersed.

Daiyu and Xiangyun did not stay, leaving Yuanchun, Baochai, and others who were in charge to continue discussing matters in the room.

Baoqin waited for her sister inside the house, and the two went out together.

"Sister, do you still remember that night?" Baoqin asked with a hint of worry. "Auntie..."

Baochai said softly, "After the Mid-Autumn Festival, Mother will stay in the palace for a few more days to celebrate."

Baoqin whispered, "Sister, have you heard that His Majesty is going to personally lead an expedition against the Jurchens?"

Upon hearing this, Baochai hurriedly asked, "Do you know when the expedition will begin?"

Baoqin shook her head. "I only heard from the palace maids that the court has already mobilized troops, and some officials have advised His Majesty not to personally lead the expedition. As for when... I think it will be around the Mid-Autumn Festival."

Baochai thought about it carefully again and found it to be very reasonable.

After the Mid-Autumn Festival, the soldiers will have had enough rest and recuperation. If we don't send troops now, it will be even harder to fight when it gets colder in the north after the snow.

Baochai sighed, "It seems that the day of parting will indeed be after the Mid-Autumn Festival."

She couldn't help but furrow her brow and let her mind wander.

Baoqin was relieved to see that her sister had no interest in her aunt's affairs. It was clear that for her sister, caring about His Majesty was more important than drinking with His Majesty with her mother.

After a while, Baochai came to her senses and smiled at her, "It's amazing that you guessed when His Majesty would go on the expedition. Don't tell anyone about this, or you won't be able to have a good Mid-Autumn Festival. If your Sister Lin and Sister Yun find out, they'll probably cry."

Baoqin covered her mouth and laughed, "Sister, are you going to cry?"

Baochai blushed, smiled, and pinched her cheek. The two sisters played around in the night for a while before saying goodbye and going back to rest.

The Mid-Autumn Festival is approaching.

(End of this chapter)