Adhere to Your Identity (Part Two)
With the passing of the Lantern Festival, the imperial court reopened.
With the court being reopened, it was exceedingly lively. The eldest prince and the second prince kept a close eye on the prime minister’s spot, hating that they could not stay in the palace overnight and had to return to their manors.
They competed to try and get someone from their faction into the position of prime minister. At this moment, whoever could convince His Majesty would take the lead in the competition for the position of crown prince.
For this, there were quite a few officials who had sent letters to Emperor Ning. Some were recommending officials capable of bearing such a heavy burden, while others went along with what the eldest prince or the second prince said.
As for the old topic of deciding on a crown prince, it was dredged back up by some of the older officials.
Emperor Ning had to deal with this noisiness for a long time and felt quite irritated. He had no choice but to move from his study to the inner palace.
“Your Majesty must be feeling quite frustrated. This concubine personally made a lotus seed and pigeon soup. It reduces the inner fire. Would Your Majesty like some?”
Inside QingHua Palace, Imperial Consort Xian personally brought out boccaro bowl. The fragrance of the lotus seed soup overflowed.
Emperor Ning took a deep breath and said with a smile: “We immediately knew that it was our beloved consort’s work. Though there are many members in the inner palace, there have not been many who would personally make food for Us over the past 20 years.”
His gaze gently landed on Imperial Consort Xian’s body. Imperial Consort Yu already had the eldest prince and was now in her 40s. The feelings between the two, however, remained profound.
The feelings were not that of youthful lust. Instead, it was something full of understanding, friendship, and love.
Imperial Consort Xian slightly nodded, her complexion slightly red, “It’s an insignificant matter. This concubine does not have any other abilities and can only offer Your Majesty with these small gestures. If Your Majesty can feel at ease for a moment, this concubine will be satisfied.”
Emperor Ning received the bowl that she had brought over. Feeling her frigid fingertips, he tenderly held her hand.
Imperial Consort Xian smiled and pulled her hand back, “It isn’t a problem. It was this concubine who accidentally came into contact with the cold water when washing the lotus seeds.”
Emperor Ning heaved a sigh and slowly put down his soup.
“The palace is without an empress, and you have helped Us by managing the inner palace. It’s important that you take care of yourself. There are some things that should be handled by the servants, so you can just leave them to the servants to handle. We don’t like people who don’t stick to their roles.”
His tone suddenly became stern, and Imperial Consort Xian hastily said: “Yes, this concubine understands.”
She vaguely felt that there was a second meaning to Emperor Ning’s words. It seemed that he was irritated with someone not sticking to their role.
After a moment of silence, she slowly moved behind Emperor Ning and began massaging his shoulders and neck. Those were areas that often got sore for him.
Emperor Ning suddenly realized that his tone had become more severe, “You must have been scared, right? We are not mad at you. We are mad at Yin Yan. He is a senior official who served me for decades. In Our heart, Marquis Gu is ranked first, while he is ranked second. Who knew that he would so lacking in sense of propriety, going so far as to try and assassinate the heir of Marquis Gu in an attempt to gain influence. This even made things more difficult for Us!”
Imperial Consort Xian gently said: “Your Majesty is talking about selecting a new prime minister, right? A country cannot go a day without a prime minister. Since Prime Minister Yin has already resigned, this selection needs to be done a little faster.”
Emperor Ning said: “How could We not know the reasoning behind that? Yin Yan left a choice for Us that We also feel was very fitting. But YiZhao and ChengZhi both recommended officials, while neither is backing down. Furthermore, they’re only recommending officials that are on good terms with them!”
Imperial Consort Xian dropped to her knees, “It was this concubine whose teaching was lacking. Though YiZhao is the older brother, the second prince is the prince born of the empress. He’s too lacking in understanding of the rules. How can he dare to compete with the second prince?”
Normally, when she said this sort of thing, Emperor Ning would always comfort her. The eldest prince was the older brother, and his position was not lower than that of the second prince.
He would also tell her not to feel so inferior in order to keep the eldest prince from feeling bad.
Today, however, Emperor Ning did not say anything.
Imperial Consort Xian remained kneeling on the ground, feeling more and more uneasy. She just felt Emperor Ning’s gaze linger on the top of her head.
After a long time, that gaze finally pulled back.
He extended his hand, “Get up. YiZhao is already an adult. He has his own ideas and cannot be controlled by you. You have managed the inner palace for many years, yet you never brought up anything to Us that would overstep your authority. We fully understand.”
The corners of Imperial Consort Xian’s lips were a little stiff, as she held Emperor Ning’s hand and slowly stood up.
He did not understand.
A woman would not openly state what she wanted, but that did not mean that she did not want it.
She simply understood that if Emperor Ning did not take initiative in giving her something, it meant that he did not wish to give it away.
If not for that, the position of empress would not have remained vacant for so many years after the late empress’ death.
Imperial Consort Xian respectfully said: “This concubine thinks that YiZhao does not have any thoughts of overstepping his boundaries. Ever since he was young, he has been obedient and reasonable. As Your Majesty’s eldest son, he has helped share Your Majesty’s burdens and has done the best to fulfill his duties.”
“We are worried that he has gone too far in fulfilling his duties.”
Imperial Consort Xian suddenly lifted her head. Emperor Ning’s words were like a strike of lightning that struck the top of her head.
After a long pause, she spoke with a trembling voice, “Your Majesty means…”
“Beloved consort, do you know the meaning behind Our naming him YiZhao?”
Imperial Consort Xian said: “This concubine knows. Yi means to support, and Zhao means bright. Your Majesty hopes that YiZhao can support Your Majesty and be a bright and supportive person.”
“That’s right.”
Emperor Ning patted her hand, “Not only do We hope that YiZhao can support Us right now, but We hope that he can properly support the next ruler. Do you understand?”
The woman’s hand quietly pulled back and violently shook inside her broad sleeves.
From the moment that the eldest prince was born, she understood this.
The empress had not yet given birth to a son, yet she, an imperial consort, had given birth to the eldest prince. At that time, the empress and her family had many complaints.
For the sake of placating the inner palace, he came up with this name for the eldest prince. It was the same as telling everyone that the eldest prince could not succeed him.
Assistant to the ruler.
What Imperial Consort Xian never considered, however, was that Emperor Ning would remain unchanged years after the empress died.
She had worked diligently for many years and been a virtuous person, taking care of managing the inner palace for him, yet she was unable to receive even the slightest bit of his favor…
Adhere to Your Identity (Part Two)
With the passing of the Lantern Festival, the imperial court reopened.
With the court being reopened, it was exceedingly lively. The eldest prince and the second prince kept a close eye on the prime minister’s spot, hating that they could not stay in the palace overnight and had to return to their manors.
They competed to try and get someone from their faction into the position of prime minister. At this moment, whoever could convince His Majesty would take the lead in the competition for the position of crown prince.
For this, there were quite a few officials who had sent letters to Emperor Ning. Some were recommending officials capable of bearing such a heavy burden, while others went along with what the eldest prince or the second prince said.
As for the old topic of deciding on a crown prince, it was dredged back up by some of the older officials.
Emperor Ning had to deal with this noisiness for a long time and felt quite irritated. He had no choice but to move from his study to the inner palace.
“Your Majesty must be feeling quite frustrated. This concubine personally made a lotus seed and pigeon soup. It reduces the inner fire. Would Your Majesty like some?”
Inside QingHua Palace, Imperial Consort Xian personally brought out boccaro bowl. The fragrance of the lotus seed soup overflowed.
Emperor Ning took a deep breath and said with a smile: “We immediately knew that it was our beloved consort’s work. Though there are many members in the inner palace, there have not been many who would personally make food for Us over the past 20 years.”
His gaze gently landed on Imperial Consort Xian’s body. Imperial Consort Yu already had the eldest prince and was now in her 40s. The feelings between the two, however, remained profound.
The feelings were not that of youthful lust. Instead, it was something full of understanding, friendship, and love.
Imperial Consort Xian slightly nodded, her complexion slightly red, “It’s an insignificant matter. This concubine does not have any other abilities and can only offer Your Majesty with these small gestures. If Your Majesty can feel at ease for a moment, this concubine will be satisfied.”
Emperor Ning received the bowl that she had brought over. Feeling her frigid fingertips, he tenderly held her hand.
Imperial Consort Xian smiled and pulled her hand back, “It isn’t a problem. It was this concubine who accidentally came into contact with the cold water when washing the lotus seeds.”
Emperor Ning heaved a sigh and slowly put down his soup.
“The palace is without an empress, and you have helped Us by managing the inner palace. It’s important that you take care of yourself. There are some things that should be handled by the servants, so you can just leave them to the servants to handle. We don’t like people who don’t stick to their roles.”
His tone suddenly became stern, and Imperial Consort Xian hastily said: “Yes, this concubine understands.”
She vaguely felt that there was a second meaning to Emperor Ning’s words. It seemed that he was irritated with someone not sticking to their role.
After a moment of silence, she slowly moved behind Emperor Ning and began massaging his shoulders and neck. Those were areas that often got sore for him.
Emperor Ning suddenly realized that his tone had become more severe, “You must have been scared, right? We are not mad at you. We are mad at Yin Yan. He is a senior official who served me for decades. In Our heart, Marquis Gu is ranked first, while he is ranked second. Who knew that he would so lacking in sense of propriety, going so far as to try and assassinate the heir of Marquis Gu in an attempt to gain influence. This even made things more difficult for Us!”
Imperial Consort Xian gently said: “Your Majesty is talking about selecting a new prime minister, right? A country cannot go a day without a prime minister. Since Prime Minister Yin has already resigned, this selection needs to be done a little faster.”
Emperor Ning said: “How could We not know the reasoning behind that? Yin Yan left a choice for Us that We also feel was very fitting. But YiZhao and ChengZhi both recommended officials, while neither is backing down. Furthermore, they’re only recommending officials that are on good terms with them!”
Imperial Consort Xian dropped to her knees, “It was this concubine whose teaching was lacking. Though YiZhao is the older brother, the second prince is the prince born of the empress. He’s too lacking in understanding of the rules. How can he dare to compete with the second prince?”
Normally, when she said this sort of thing, Emperor Ning would always comfort her. The eldest prince was the older brother, and his position was not lower than that of the second prince.
He would also tell her not to feel so inferior in order to keep the eldest prince from feeling bad.
Today, however, Emperor Ning did not say anything.
Imperial Consort Xian remained kneeling on the ground, feeling more and more uneasy. She just felt Emperor Ning’s gaze linger on the top of her head.
After a long time, that gaze finally pulled back.
He extended his hand, “Get up. YiZhao is already an adult. He has his own ideas and cannot be controlled by you. You have managed the inner palace for many years, yet you never brought up anything to Us that would overstep your authority. We fully understand.”
The corners of Imperial Consort Xian’s lips were a little stiff, as she held Emperor Ning’s hand and slowly stood up.
He did not understand.
A woman would not openly state what she wanted, but that did not mean that she did not want it.
She simply understood that if Emperor Ning did not take initiative in giving her something, it meant that he did not wish to give it away.
If not for that, the position of empress would not have remained vacant for so many years after the late empress’ death.
Imperial Consort Xian respectfully said: “This concubine thinks that YiZhao does not have any thoughts of overstepping his boundaries. Ever since he was young, he has been obedient and reasonable. As Your Majesty’s eldest son, he has helped share Your Majesty’s burdens and has done the best to fulfill his duties.”
“We are worried that he has gone too far in fulfilling his duties.”
Imperial Consort Xian suddenly lifted her head. Emperor Ning’s words were like a strike of lightning that struck the top of her head.
After a long pause, she spoke with a trembling voice, “Your Majesty means…”
“Beloved consort, do you know the meaning behind Our naming him YiZhao?”
Imperial Consort Xian said: “This concubine knows. Yi means to support, and Zhao means bright. Your Majesty hopes that YiZhao can support Your Majesty and be a bright and supportive person.”
“That’s right.”
Emperor Ning patted her hand, “Not only do We hope that YiZhao can support Us right now, but We hope that he can properly support the next ruler. Do you understand?”
The woman’s hand quietly pulled back and violently shook inside her broad sleeves.
From the moment that the eldest prince was born, she understood this.
The empress had not yet given birth to a son, yet she, an imperial consort, had given birth to the eldest prince. At that time, the empress and her family had many complaints.
For the sake of placating the inner palace, he came up with this name for the eldest prince. It was the same as telling everyone that the eldest prince could not succeed him.
Assistant to the ruler.
What Imperial Consort Xian never considered, however, was that Emperor Ning would remain unchanged years after the empress died.
She had worked diligently for many years and been a virtuous person, taking care of managing the inner palace for him, yet she was unable to receive even the slightest bit of his favor…
