The White-haired Queen

Wen Lanyue then asked: "What about Concubine Pang Taishu?"

Hong He said, "Pang Tai Shufei's father is the legitimate daughter of Pang Shouzheng, the Minister of Revenue. Among the six ministries of Personnel, Revenue, Rites, War, Punishment, and Works, the Revenue is the richest. Pang Tai Shufei is not short of money. She is a role model for the harem in terms of frugality. But she has a gentle temperament and is definitely not able to suppress Zhang Tai Guifei."

Wen Lanyue asked: "Do you two have anyone suitable to recommend?"

Hong He thought for a moment and said, "The other concubines usually appear to be indifferent to the matter, but in fact they all have their own side. They either support Concubine Zhang or Concubine Pang."

Wen Lanyue listened and thought: One of them has a brother who is the prime minister, second only to the emperor, and has power; the other's father is the minister of finance, who is in charge of the country's finances, and has money. Isn't it just for power and money that people choose to stand for?

So he asked, "So what you mean is that I will not be in charge of the Phoenix Seal, and I will choose one of them?"

Bilian explained, "Not counting us, the harem is actually divided into three factions. The Empress Dowager Cixi is the neutral faction. She also has two followers from small families. They generally enjoy their current lives and don't participate in the struggle for power. They don't mind who controls the Phoenix Seal."

Wen Lanyue said: "If that's the case, then there is no doubt that I will give the Phoenix Seal to Concubine Pang first, which can be regarded as doing her a favor."

Seeing that Honghe and Bilian did not refute, Wen Lanyue continued, "Then tomorrow morning, when they come to pay their respects, I will hand over the Phoenix Seal."

Wen Lanyue thought about it and said: There will be things to do tomorrow. So, she immediately changed her words and said: "Honghe, just tell them that I just got two cans of Zhengshan rock tea and invite them to come over and taste the tea. Bilian, prepare some cakes..."

Bilian immediately interrupted and said, "Queen Mother, it is getting late now. Some of the masters live in remote places. It is better to pay respects tomorrow morning."

Wen Lanyue opened the window and looked out. The moon was bright tonight, but there were no street lights in ancient times, so it was pitch black outside the window. It was indeed inconvenient to walk with a lantern. Without a watch and without understanding these timers, she had no idea what time it was.

He turned around and asked Bilian: "What time is it now?"

Bilian looked at the clock and said, "It's the end of the hour of Hai."

Wen Lanyue immediately said, "It's getting late. You two should go down and have a rest." After seeing them leave, Wen Lanyue moved the candles. With a thought, a manual and diagram of a wall clock provided by the "Tianxia Datong" library appeared in her hand.

Wen Lanyue took out a pen and paper, and slowly began to draw while translating the professional terms and comparing the text and drawings. It was really inconvenient to have no time.

The time for setting off the flare yesterday was after lunch, and I am not sure whether it was noon or 3 p.m. I wanted to provide the printing production technology first, but it seems more appropriate to provide the time timer first.

Watches are more delicate to make and require hardware and other things, while wall clocks should be relatively easier to make. I will first provide the production drawings of the wall clock. If there are some parts that are not available, we will see how to replace them when the time comes.

By the time Wen Lanyue figured out how to make the clock, the sky in the east was already turning white. After blowing out the candles and taking a short nap, Bilian came in and saw that the empress dowager was dressed neatly. She hurriedly asked, "Empress Dowager, did you not sleep all night?"

Wen Lanyue pinched her brows and said, "It's okay. I'll take a short nap."

Bilian said, "Empress Dowager, except for the Empress Dowager, all the masters are here."

Wen Lanyue rinsed her mouth, took the towel and wiped her face before leaving. Looking at these concubines who were still in their prime, Wen Lanyue's idea of ​​"monogamy" became more resolute.

Regardless of age, from the perspective of the Queen Mother, these are all sisters, so Wen Lanyue said: "Dear sisters, this is my new Zhengshan rock tea, please taste it."

At this time, a lady in rose pink clothes muttered, "This rock tea tastes a bit bitter and is not as fragrant as flower tea."

Bilian whispered to Wen Lanyue, "This is Concubine Zhang's cousin, Zhaoyi Hu."

Imperial Concubine Zhang smiled and said, "Sister, please don't be rude. Rock tea tastes a little bitter when you first drink it, but then it becomes sweet and lasting. The more you drink it, the better it tastes."

Hu Zhaoyi took over the conversation and said, "My cousin is really amazing. She knows everything."

Concubine Zhang smiled but didn't answer. Wen Lanyue glanced at her and ignored her, saying directly: "I am too busy in the court and the harem, so I am going to give the Phoenix Seal to Concubine Pang..."

Grand Concubine Zhang hurriedly said, "Grand Concubine Pang has never managed a harem, has no experience, and is cowardly. She will definitely not be able to convince the public."

Wen Lanyue asked: "Then who do you want to give it to?"

Hu Zhaoyi said: "Of course it's Concubine Zhang..." Wen Lanyue gave her a glare and Hu Zhaoyi immediately shut up.

Concubine Zhang said, "Since my sister is too busy, I am willing to serve in her place."

Wen Lanyue said: "I don't want to take the Phoenix Seal back from you again."

Grand Concubine Zhang said: "Sister should take the Phoenix Seal, and I will just assist in the management."

Wen Lanyue said, "The Phoenix Seal is still in my hands. What's the point of bothering me? I'll say it again. I'm going to give the Phoenix Seal to Consort Pang." Wen Lanyue stared at Consort Zhang and said word by word, "This is my decision, and you can't argue with me."

Imperial Concubine Zhang stood up immediately, touched her sleeves, and said stubbornly, "I refuse to accept this."

Wen Lanyue straightened her posture and said domineeringly: "There is no such thing as obeying or disobeying this decision."

Then, Wen Lanyue said softly: "Sisters, you must know that it is the rules and regulations that deal with you. I am just an executor, and now I am just changing the executor. As long as you don't challenge the rules and regulations, it doesn't matter who the executor is."

Grand Concubine Zhang was startled by Wen Lanyue's aura, but she was not easily frightened and continued, "I am afraid that Grand Concubine Pang may not handle things fairly, impartially, and openly, which may easily arouse everyone's doubts."

Wen Lanyue raised her eyes, said "oh" softly, and waited to see everyone's reaction.

Hu Zhaoyi spoke again: "Yes, it must be fair and just." Then, more than half of the people began to chatter, saying "it must be fair and just."

It seems that there are still many people who support Concubine Zhang.

Wen Lanyue thought for a moment and said, "Okay, you want to be fair and just, right?!" Then she glanced at all the concubines and said, "Then we will have a fair and just selection, but no one can have any opinions at that time..."

Wen Lanyue paused and looked at everyone's reactions. She saw that some concubines had a curious look on their faces - how was it fair and just? Some concubines didn't care - the Queen Mother had said that only those who challenged the rules would be punished, so they just had to behave themselves.

Wen Lanyue continued, "Then let's hold a speech voting election."

The concubines were all confused and started discussing the question of "What is a speech voting election?"