Madam Hou

Chapter 24

On July 24th, it was the second prince's birthday, and a banquet was held in the palace to celebrate it. All high-ranking foreign wives in Beijing would enter the palace to celebrate.

Mrs. Linhou is Mrs. Yipinhou, so naturally she has to pack some gifts to enter the palace.Mrs. Chen has no rank, so she is not qualified to enter the palace, but she couldn't bear it. The day before, the Queen of the Palace passed on a decree and gave a sign. Concubine Chen has made great achievements in raising royal children. Recently, she misses her mother and sisters very much. Second Miss and Miss Chen San entered the palace to meet Concubine Chen.

After Madam Linhou received Yizhi, she began to prepare for Madam Chen and others to enter the palace.They told Mrs. Chen, Yinniang and Pingniang in detail. The palace was complicated. They asked Mrs. Chen and others to listen more and talk less after entering the palace. The relationship between the characters, let them know which concubine in the palace can be a little closer, and which one should be guarded against.

Ordinary people have a fear of the imperial palace. Mrs. Chen never thought of being able to enter the imperial palace in her life. Now she is very nervous when she has this opportunity. Therefore, when Mrs. Lin Hou told them these things, she listened very carefully. I am afraid that if I miss something, it will be too late to regret if I make a mistake.

On the morning of the 24th, Mrs. Lin Hou put on her makeup early, even Mrs. Chen and others, Mrs. Lin Hou also prepared dignified and decent clothes for them early.Because Mrs. Lin Hou felt that there was still something to be told, Mrs. Lin Hou asked Mrs. Chen, mother and daughter to share a carriage with her.

At the third quarter of the hour, the carriage drove steadily out of the gate of Yongning Hou Mansion.Mrs. Linhou is wearing high-quality clothing that weighs a few kilograms. It is bulky and heavy to wear. If it is better in winter, it should be used as a warm-up exercise. However, it is not summer yet, and the temperature is unbearable even in the morning. What's more, this heavy outfit is worn on the body.Fortunately, ice was put in the carriage to make people feel more comfortable.

In the carriage, Mrs. Linhou told her again carefully: "...there are only the empress and Concubine Shu who are above concubine ranks in the palace. After giving birth to the eldest son of the emperor, the Ningguo government contributed the most when the emperor ascended the throne. Now the power in the court and the public has faintly overshadowed the empress's mother's family, Kang Guogong. Years ago, the draft was canceled by the emperor on the grounds that the ruling and opposition parties were not stable, and that state affairs should be the most important thing. He only selected six daughters of minor officials from among the people to serve in the palace. There are not many, and only two of the nine concubines occupy the seats. They are Qin Kang who gave birth to the eldest princess and Bai Gui who just gave birth to the second prince and was promoted. Both Qin Kang and Bai Gui were drafted two years ago When they came in, Qin Kangbi always looked up to Concubine Shu, while Bai Guifei was favored by the Empress before, but for some reason the Empress ended up with her, but she didn't completely break her face, so these two people in the palace were the last ones. It's worth being careful."

Mrs. Chen and the three listened carefully to these words, and Yin Niang was still sorting out these relationships in her heart.The harem is divided into a kingdom for queens and a kingdom for concubines. The queen is the middle palace, and her position is supernatural. Although she has no children, she firmly holds the title of the main family. Concubine Shu gave birth to the eldest prince, and her natal family is powerful. The power in the harem is not small, even though she is a concubine, she seems to be able to compete with the queen.Concubine Qin belongs to the same country as Concubine Shu, so it goes without saying that she and her sister Concubine Chen definitely don't wear the same pair of trousers. After entering the palace, she must prevent her from stumbling.Concubine Bai Gui seems to belong to the queen's kingdom, but now her position in the Central Palace is a bit embarrassing, and she thinks of the second prince born to Concubine Bai, maybe it's because of the royal heirs. Concubine Chen's relationship will not be good either, and this is also the person to focus on.

Yin Niang sighed in her heart, now the harem is already so complicated with just a few people, and I don't know what will happen to the relationship when I will elect some concubines in next year's general election.

Mrs. Lin Hou and her party were actually quite early, but when they were approaching the gate of the palace, they still vaguely saw a long line of carriages in front of them.

The royal family always likes to put on a show when they do things. In the eyes of the royal family, it is a small banquet, and the extravagance can scare ordinary people who have never seen the world.What's more, there hasn't been a prince born in the palace for a long time. As the first prince born after Emperor Jinghui ascended the throne, the royal family pays more attention to it. Foreign wives who are above the fourth rank in Beijing have to enter the palace to celebrate. Is the scene really ordinary? People can imagine, at least Mrs. Chen can't imagine.

After entering the imperial palace and arriving at the Changchun Garden where the harem received the wives, the wives who had come earlier were already waiting here.Among them are Mrs. Kang Guogong, Mrs. Ning Guogong, Mrs. Weibeihou, Mrs. Fuyanghou, Princess Shouyang and others.Among the reigning wives, Mrs. Kang Guogong and Mrs. Ning Guogong are also headed faintly, and they are divided into two factions.

Mrs. Linhou and Mrs. Fuyanghou were handkerchiefs when they were boudoirs, and they both married in the capital. After marriage, the relationship between the two has always been good.But since Mrs. Fuyang Hou rejected the marriage of Yongning Hou Shizi, Mrs. Fuyang Hou felt faintly uncomfortable every time she saw Mrs. Lin Hou. When people met, they greeted each other casually and walked away.

On the contrary, Mrs. Linhou and Mrs. Weibeihou, Mrs. Xiao Yang, did not have any relationship with each other, but because of the relationship between Mrs. Linhou and Concubine Chen, the relationship between Concubine Chen and the queen, and the relationship between the queen's natal family and Marquis Weibei, The relationship between the two is two points closer.

Although Xiao Yang was born as a concubine, this does not prevent her from growing into a long-sleeved and good dancer.Mrs. Yang came over and saluted Mrs. Lin Hou, and said, "Sister Tian, ​​I haven't seen you for a long time, how are you doing these days?"

Tian is Mrs. Lin Hou's maiden name.The Tian family was the richest man in the world in the previous dynasty. Later, peasant uprisings frequently occurred in the downfall of the previous dynasty. The ancestors of the Tian family had a unique vision.After Taizu ascended the throne, he appointed the head of the Tian family as Marquis of Toyama at that time, and the Tian family jumped from a merchant to a noble with a marquis in one fell swoop.

Mrs. Linhou is the eldest daughter of the previous Marquis of Fushan, and the younger sister of the current Marquis of Fushan.Because the Marquis of Fushan was not a marquis for military merits, he had little influence in the court.Although the political strength is small, the family background of the Marquis of Toyama is strong enough, and the economic strength should not be underestimated. Therefore, Marquis Toyama still has some face in the home of the Marquis of Merit.

Xiao Yang is a beauty, although she is nearly forty years old, but her appearance is not old. When she salutes, she has an orchid-like style, but it does not make people feel distant.Mrs. Lin Hou's affection for Mrs. Yang was also greatly improved because of the relationship of eighteen turns. After returning to Mrs. Yang's gift, she took Mrs. Yang's hand and said, "What's the matter with me?" , It’s just busy work, but sister, you recently had a grandson, aren’t you overjoyed?”

Speaking of her grandson, Xiao Yang was very happy, and said with a cheerful face: "The newborn baby is really cute, much cuter than Brother Ying when he was a child, and now I really can't see him for a day. uncomfortable."

Mrs. Linhou was a little envious. Weibeihou's second son was only two years older than her eldest son, and now she was already in her arms.She looked at Yin Niang again, she is only thirteen years old now, she is too young, she will get married next year, and her grandson will be born, at least in the next year.She herself married late, and her son was born late, and now her son is married late, and she doesn't know when her grandson will appear.

Mrs. Yang is a person who is good at observing words and expressions. Mrs. Linhou's envy and her glance at Yinniang have not escaped her eyes. She can't help but blame herself for being a little lost in complacency, so she changed the subject and looked at Chen. Madam asked: "This is Mrs. Chen's family, I don't know what family my sister came from?" After asking, she bowed to Madam Chen again.

Mrs. Chen quickly returned the salute and said, "Madam, you are welcome. My maiden name is Lu."

Xiao Yang said with a smile: "If you don't mind, I'll call you Sister Lu. My maiden name is Yang. In terms of age, I'm afraid I'm a few years older than you. You can call me Sister."

Mrs. Chen was a little flattered and said: "It's me who climbed high."

Xiao Yang said: "Why did Sister Lu say that? When I saw my sister, I felt kind and wanted to be close to her. When I have free time, I invited her to come to my house to talk." After speaking, she turned to Yinniang and Pingniang: "These two are Ms. Chen Er and Ms. Chen San. They are really beautiful. I also have a daughter in my family. How old are you, I will let her post a post and invite you to play."

Yinniang and Pingniang followed the etiquette taught by Mrs. Linhou, and thanked them in a respectful manner.

Mrs. Yang still wanted to say something to Mrs. Chen. At this time, the servants in the Queen's Palace came out to Mrs. Linhou and Mrs. Chen and said: "Mrs. Yongninghou, the empress wants to see Mrs. Chen and the two young ladies. Mrs. Chen and the two young ladies went to Fengyi Palace to have an audience."

Mrs. Lin Hou saluted and thanked her, she said goodbye to Mrs. Yang, and led Mrs. Chen, Yinniang and Pingniang to Fengyi Palace with the servants.

(End of this chapter)