69novels Chapter 277 Elevate one, kill one
Chapter 277 Elevate one, kill one
Li Yuanke was asking about the jade plaque that Shen Shixi had when she first entered the palace. It had been hanging there for one or two days, but it was taken down and never put back up again.
The Imperial Household Department quickly found it for him.
Li Yuanke used a handkerchief to wipe the jade pendant, which was already clean, and took out the small box that was specially used to store the things Shen Shixi gave him. He put the jade pendant and the begonia letter she wrote this time into the box and locked it.
He glanced at the jade plaques again and said, "Destroy them all. There's no need to bring them up again."
The people from the Imperial Household Department were still confused and were about to speak when Li Fude quickly chased them away.
This man is also Li Fude's godson. It's all so confusing; there's no such rule. How can the Emperor choose his concubines then? "Godfather, what does the Emperor mean by this? Does he dislike his son or something?"
Li Fude tapped him on the forehead, "If the Emperor says we don't need it, then we won't need it anymore. Just listen to the Emperor. From now on, the Empress will be in charge of the affairs of the harem."
"Ah, son understands!"
When the man returned, he destroyed all the jade pendants.
No one understood the Emperor's thoughts better than Li Fude. The Emperor was no longer planning to take concubines. Well, he already had eight or nine sons, and the Empress hadn't given birth to a legitimate son yet. Even if he stopped going to the inner palace, the people in the court had no reason to say anything.
The emperor and empress are husband and wife. I've only ever heard of forbidding favoring concubines over wives, but I've never heard of forbidding favoring one's principal wife.
After the people left, Li Yuanke went to Zhaoyang Palace, but didn't see anyone. He asked, "Where is your empress?"
Lan Ying hurriedly replied, "Her Highness is at the hot spring, and Qinghao is giving her a massage. This servant will go and fetch her right away!"
"No need, I'll go there myself."
He took off his outer robe and headed towards the hot spring, where he overheard Shen Shixi asking Qinghao about her health, "How long will it take to recover?"
"It will only take two or three months. Her Majesty's health is already very good. As long as she stops taking the medicine, two or three months will be the best time."
Shen Shixi said, "Well, let's stop the medicine now. There's no need to decoct it anymore."
"Yes……"
Then, Qinghao looked up and saw the Emperor. She was so frightened that she almost lost her soul. The Empress had been trying to avoid pregnancy, and it seemed that the Emperor did not know. Now that this had been overheard, if the Emperor and Empress had a conflict, she would be the one to suffer.
Seeing Qinghao's horrified expression, Shen Shixi knew Li Yuanke had arrived. "You may leave!"
She lifted her head from the couch and looked at Li Yuanke. "Li Yuanke, do I have no rights? You never ask anyone to let you in. What if I'm doing something bad and you catch me?"
She had long, flowing black hair and wore only a peach-colored silk dress, the kind of long-sleeved pajamas of later times. She lay sprawled on the pillow, her body relaxed and languid after the massage. Her eyes were slightly raised, giving him a teasing glance.
As her collar fell, a glimpse of white, along with her cleavage, caught Li Yuanke's eye.
He felt a tightening in his lower abdomen, followed by a surge of heat.
Li Yuanke pretended not to hear what she had just said, pulled her into his arms, and pinched her. "The wedding date is set for your birthday, two days before. I will send you back home, and on the wedding day, I will come to your house to pick you up."
Shen Shixi was a little puzzled and wrapped her arms around his neck. "Why make things so complicated? I've lived in the palace for three or four years now. If you suddenly send me back, won't my father be scared to death?"
Li Yuanke laughed and bit her lip. "For my wedding, the three letters and six rites must be observed without exception. Whatever men and women in the world have, you and I must have too. Xi'er, I want to grow old with you!"
"Oh, of course, we can't divorce each other, and I won't accept being divorced. Li Yuanke, if you won't give it to me, I won't take it. Since you've placed me in the position of Empress, you can't have any other thoughts from now on. If you dare, you know my temper!"
Li Yuanke hugged her and kissed her, saying, "I had no idea about your temper!"
Shen Shixi squinted at him, her eyes filled with a dangerous glint. "Why don't you give it a try!"
[I don't have Empress Lü's good temper. If you flatter someone, I'll kill them. What kind of human pig would I be? Why bother making trouble for myself? Wouldn't it be better to just kill them directly?]
Li Yuanke couldn't help but laugh. He was handsome, and his smile was truly captivating. He teased her, "Wait until I find a better one!"
Shen Shixi pushed him away, turned around and pulled the blanket over herself. Li Yuanke laughed loudly, in a really good mood, and hugged her to comfort her.
"Alright, I was just kidding. What's yours will always be yours. You possessive little thing, you can't even take a joke."
"A ruler's word is law; haven't you heard that? Do you even know your place? You haven't attended court in ages; do you still remember you're an emperor? The knowledge your teacher taught you… no, the knowledge your Grand Tutor, my grandfather, taught you—do you still remember it all?"
[Duck, I slipped up and almost blurted out whether I could still get into the top ten in the exam! That's dangerous!]
Li Yuanke buried his face in her chest, laughing so hard his shoulders shook. "I don't remember, Xi'er, would you like to review it for me again?"
Shen Shixi patted his head, "Get off me, you're so heavy, you're making it hard for me to breathe, ugh..."
Li Yuange took a bite, and Shen Shixi trembled all over, her body going limp like a puddle of water.
Male beauty can be a trap!
Shen Shixi ran her fingers through Li Yuanke's hair, her body arching involuntarily like a cooked shrimp. Li Yuanke pressed her legs down, clinging tightly to her.
Loosen it again.
Shen Shixi wrapped her legs around his waist, and he leaned down on her. Their lips met, and their sweat mingled together.
The temperature inside the hall rose sharply, and the sounds of soft moans and heavy breathing intertwined to create a captivating melody.
Li Fude and the others moved a few steps away.
A small meeting is being held in Baoci Palace. The current consorts under Consort De are Consort Su, Consort Wang, Consort Cui, and Consort Liang. The two behind them are the newly appointed consorts this year. One is the granddaughter of the new Grand Secretary Cui Fangli, and the other is the granddaughter of the Chamberlain Liang Ji.
The positions of Grand Secretary and Attendant-in-Ordinary were both posts that Shen Shixi planned to eliminate, so it was impossible for the two men to defect to Shen Shixi.
Moreover, after the Grand Tutor passed away, the Shen family's prestige was no longer as great as before, and many people in the capital looked down on the Shen family, a group of simple-minded people who only knew how to work and didn't know how to scheme.
To Consort Cui and Consort Liang, how could Shen Shixi, a third-rank official whose father was previously an unimportant official like the Chancellor of the Imperial Academy, become Empress? Why couldn't they be the ones to do so?
"His Majesty has been back in the palace for more than ten days, and he has not summoned any of the women in the harem. They either stay in the Empress's palace or the Empress occupies the Qian Yuan Palace. If this continues, I don't care. The princess is already so grown up, so it doesn't matter whether she serves the Emperor or not. You are still young, how can you keep delaying like this?"
"It is important to give the Emperor an heir as soon as possible, so that there will be hope for the future."
If we're talking about who's the most enviable person in the harem, it's naturally Consort De.
She has three children.
Even if the Empress holds a high position, it's only because the Emperor personally led the expedition this time, leaving no one to manage state affairs. Shen Shi has come in handy. Under these circumstances, if she doesn't become Empress, who will?
What's important is having offspring.
If the emperor doesn't summon her, how can she have children?
Wang Baolin, also known as Wang Yuehuai, said, "I have no hope left, so I can only rely on my sisters."
She looked at Cui Cairen and Liang Baolin.
The two were puzzled. Although they looked down on Consort Wang, who came from a humble background, she had arrived before them, so there was no need to offend her. Consort Liang asked, "Sister Wang is only a few days older than us, why are you saying such things? Sister is also naturally beautiful, the Emperor probably likes her very much!"
That's a compliment!