kvmb Chapter 223 The Emperor Finds Another Beauty
Chapter 223 The Emperor Finds Another Beauty
Sun Lanxin is Sun Kuang's only daughter. Now Sun Kuang is on the run and colluding with the Ryukyu Gang. In addition to wanting to deal with the Fang family, his most important goal is naturally to rescue Sun Lanxin.
However, Sun Lanxin is now imprisoned in the Sky Prison, and rescuing her is extremely difficult. No matter how powerful the Ryukyu Gang is, they dare not act rashly.
Fang Qingqing smiled, an idea forming in her mind. If she wanted to successfully wipe out the Ryukyu Gang, she would be needed. Now that she had agreed to cooperate, she only needed to cooperate obediently.
Since I'm already here, I might as well go to the palace to meet the emperor and discuss with Prince Jiajing about using Sun Lanxin as bait to capture Sun Kuang and the Ryukyu Gang.
"My dear Miss, you are here. The Emperor has been thinking about you these days. The weather is getting colder, so the Emperor has specially asked the Imperial Household Department to pick out some high-quality charcoal and send it to Fang Mansion today. This charcoal is smokeless, odorless, and warm. Burning a pot of it will warm up the whole house."
When Eunuch Zhao saw Fang Qingqing, the wrinkles on his forehead bloomed with joy. He was worried that she might fall due to her physical condition, so he almost ran over to support her and led her carefully towards the Yangxin Palace.
"The young lady is not feeling well. If there is anything, just let someone know..."
Eunuch Zhao had naturally heard about Sun Kuang's repeated attacks on Fang Qingqing by hiring assassins from the Ryukyu Gang. She was due to give birth in a month, so she couldn't afford any more trouble during this time.
Fang Qingqing smiled gratefully. It was really not easy for Eunuch Zhao to be so sincere and kind to others in the treacherous and complicated harem for so many years.
From the very beginning, when she and Li Zhenting were at loggerheads, Eunuch Zhao had been constantly speaking in her favor in front of the Emperor. When Concubine De was faking her pregnancy, Eunuch Zhao even risked his own life to advise the Emperor. Eunuch Zhao played a crucial role in the Emperor's ability to see Sun Lanxin's true colors.
"A few days ago, the Emperor selected another beautiful woman from the imperial selection. Now, the palace has added two new noble ladies, Liu and Mei. Both are from Kyoto, are healthy, and are good at singing and dancing. The Emperor seems to be in a good mood. If you have any questions, please feel free to tell him..."
Eunuch Zhao led Fang Qingqing forward and told her what had happened in the palace recently.
Fang Qingqing felt a little uncomfortable. In the cold winter, Li Zhenting led the elite Thunder Army on a march, while the emperor was selecting concubines in the harem...
She forced herself to let it go. This was the rule of the time. Speaking of which, the Jiajing Emperor was considered an enlightened emperor. He only had a dozen concubines. But which emperor in history didn't have a horde of concubines?
In the Hall of Mental Cultivation, two young girls in colorful dance costumes were dancing to the sound of graceful string music. Prince Jiajing was enjoying the beauties' dance with a look of satisfaction, tapping the rhythm lightly on the dragon throne with one hand. When he looked up and saw Fang Qingqing coming, he immediately smiled and waved to Fang Qingqing, calling her Qing'er.
"Qing'er pays homage to His Majesty..."
"Look, you don't even want to call me father? Qing'er, no matter what happens between you and Ting'er, father will always be your father. Hurry up and take a seat..."
Several palace maids and nannies stepped forward quickly and placed tea and snacks on the table in front of Fang Qingqing. Tong'er, who was serving Fang Qingqing, carefully picked up Fang Qingqing's favorite osmanthus cake, quietly tested it for poison with a small silver needle, and then handed it to Fang Qingqing.
Prince Jiajing was naturally unaware of Tong'er's actions and continued to talk to Fang Qingqing with a smile.
"A few days ago, the palace was selecting beauties, and I was hoping Qing'er's presence would help alleviate my boredom. Look, that girl with a figure as lithe as a willow branch in March is called Liu Yingyue, a Jiangnan woman from Sucheng. The girl in a plum-colored gauze dress with a face as bright as a flower is called Mei Ruoxue, and she's from the Prince of Pingnan's fiefdom."
"Qing'er, the royal family is so thin. You are giving birth to twins this time, which is a great contribution to our Great Yan. If nothing unexpected happens, the child you give birth to will be the crown prince of Great Yan..."
"After Ting'er returns from his expedition, the matter of appointing a crown prince should be put on the agenda. Qing'er, don't blame your father for being nosy. I see that Ting'er is completely satisfied and happy with Qing'er. Even if Ting'er becomes the emperor in the future, I'm afraid he won't be able to recruit new people into the palace like your father..."
Fang Qingqing couldn't help but smile. She naturally understood the hidden meaning of Prince Jiajing's words. In fact, he just wanted to persuade her to reconcile with Li Zhenting.
Humph! He was the one who proposed the divorce, and if they wanted to reconcile, he had to be the one to propose it. How could she agree so easily?
She called out "Father" softly and briefly explained her plan to use Sun Lanxin to lure out Sun Kuang and the Ryukyu Gang.
"Okay, okay, that's no problem. Your Majesty is very confident in Qing'er. I'll summon Chang Tianli to the Fang Mansion to find Qing'er later. You can decide how to trick Sun Kuang into taking the bait. Also, for the month leading up to the birth, Qing'er should stay safely at home. I'll send Imperial Physician Wen to check Qing'er's pulse on time every day. The midwife and the Imperial Physician will be on call at all times..."
"Also, Father has already asked the palace maids to prepare various items for the grandson, and they will be delivered to him when we get back..."
Fang Qingqing expressed her gratitude repeatedly. The old man, Prince Jiajing, was quite reliable. Just like ordinary parents-in-law, he even helped to prepare items for the children.
"Thank you, Father. Congratulations on finding another beautiful woman. Let Qing'er help you prepare some more medicines to nourish your body. In a year or so, there will definitely be more heirs in the imperial palace..."
This statement made the Emperor Jiajing extremely happy. His two new concubines, Liu Yingyue and Mei Ruxue, were both only 28 years old and in good health, so their fertility was naturally beyond doubt. Furthermore, with Qing'er helping to prepare tonics, it was only natural that the two concubines would help the royal family expand.
"The Third and Fourth Princes have been taking the potion prepared by the eldest lady and are now attending school normally. The teacher said that these two children have basically returned to normal. There's still time to teach them..."
Eunuch Zhao's words made Prince Jiajing even more delighted.
"This is all thanks to Qing'er. If Qing'er hadn't discovered the reason, there would be no hope for these two children."
When mentioning the third and fourth princes, Prince Jiajing naturally thought of Princess Yunqing and Concubine Song.
"Concubine Song has been living in Ping'an Garden for over a month. It's time for her to come back. Qing'er, when you have time, try to persuade Yun Qing to let her return to the palace with Concubine Song to live for a while."
Yunqing is his only princess, a cutie who was so attached to him when they were little, but now she doesn't even want to see him. It's a bit sad to say.
"Don't worry, Your Majesty. Qing'er will definitely convey this message when we return..."
Fang Qingqing agreed with a smile, letting Yunqing come back to live for a while, so as to ease the relationship with Prince Jiajing, and to mention Yunqing's marriage to Xuan Qingshan to the emperor.