Don't be a salted fish, the daily life of the concubine in the palace

The King of Yan put the rattle in front of the child and shook it. The child shook it vigorously with his two little hands, becoming even more excited.

After playing with the child for a while, Shen Wei asked the wet nurse to take the child down to feed him. The maid served hot tea to the King of Yan, who took a sip. Shen Wei arranged the new cloth in her hand and gestured to the King of Yan twice.

"Your Highness has lost some weight, so the waistline of his clothes needs to be tightened." Shen Wei accurately found the place where the clothes needed to be altered.

King Yan felt warm in his heart and smiled, "Except for Weiwei, no one noticed that I have lost weight."

It was a busy early spring with water affairs, military affairs, agricultural affairs, as well as files of all sizes, all of which needed to be discussed by the Prince of Yan and the Crown Prince. The Prince of Yan was tired and lost some weight.

Shen Wei looked at him distressedly: "Your Highness is tired, I asked the kitchen to stew some nourishing soup, please drink more later."

Shen Wei gave the cloth to Cai Lian. Her strength had not yet fully recovered after giving birth, so the task of sewing clothes for Prince Yan had to be handed over to the embroiderer.

There was no need for Shen Wei to make every piece of King Yan's clothes herself, as it was too time-consuming and labor-intensive. She occasionally made three or four pieces by herself every year, which showed her love.

The spring night was slightly chilly, and the newly planted yellow forsythia flowers in the yard were weighed down by the branches. After dinner, King Yan and Shen Wei went for a walk in the yard, and then went back to the baby room to play with the child. When it was time to rest, the two of them took a bath and slept in their clothes.

Shen Wei leaned on the silk pillow and fell into a deep sleep.

The candlelight shone through the bed curtains and softly poured into the bed. King Yan opened his dark eyes, looked at Shen Wei sleeping beside him, and listened to the faint chirping of insects outside the room. He suddenly felt very satisfied.

Only with Shen Wei could he feel peaceful and at ease from the bottom of his heart. This was the peaceful life he had longed for for many years.

...

Time flies, and two months have passed in the blink of an eye. The grand Spring Examination has finally come to an end. This year, many candidates participated in the Spring Examination. The final list was hung outside the Ministry of Rites, and the list was filled with the names of 300 candidates.

Gongshi can already be appointed as an official.

After the Spring Examination, the candidates took part in the Palace Examination, which was personally written by the Emperor of Qing. Three hundred candidates were tested and their grades were divided according to their scores.

After the list of the top three candidates in the palace examination was released, it was immediately passed to Prince Yan. Prince Yan was in a good mood and went to the palace to pay his respects to the Queen.

Meanwhile, in Kunning Palace, the Queen was worried about Shen Wei's promotion. It had been almost two months since Shen Wei gave birth to her child, but she had yet to hold a full-month banquet. If the Queen wanted to raise Shen Wei's position, she would definitely encounter many obstacles.

Especially Prince Heng's mother, Concubine Qian, will definitely take the opportunity to make a big fuss and attack the Queen's reputation for virtue.

"Forget it. For Yuan Jing's future, I don't mind enduring a little injustice." The queen clenched the handkerchief in her hand and had made up her mind.

The Queen was about to get up to discuss with the Emperor. After taking two steps, her throat started to itch and she started coughing softly: "Cough cough cough..."

Nanny Qian hurried forward, gently patted the Queen's back, and brought her a bowl of pear soup to relieve her cough.

The queen had caught a cold in winter, and although she recovered, she was left with a cough. She would cough occasionally during the day, but at night, when she lay in bed, her throat would itch for no reason and she would cough non-stop.

The cough medicine given by the Imperial Hospital was only average in effect.

The queen was coughing when the maid outside came to report: "Your Majesty, the Prince of Yan is here."

The Queen hurriedly said, "Quick, please invite Yuan Jing in. Madam Qian, bring the newly made cherry biro from the imperial kitchen and let Yuan Jing have a taste."

Prince Yan walked into the main hall and saluted the Queen.

The queen hurried forward to help the prince of Yan up, and looked him up and down with concern. Seeing that the prince had a stern look and a strong and upright figure, she couldn't help but smile and said, "I knew you were busy, so I thought you would be tired and thin. Today, I took a look and found that you have become stronger."

In the past, the Prince of Yan would often train his troops in the south, or go on southern tours on behalf of the emperor. He would lose a lot of weight after each trip, and it took him a long time to gain it back.

Now, although the Prince of Yan and the Crown Prince were busy dealing with the affairs of the court every day, the Queen was very surprised that the Prince of Yan did not lose weight.

The King of Yan said with a tone of boasting and satisfaction: "I am busy in the East Palace, and Shen will send people to deliver soup and food. I eat a lot, so I won't lose weight."

The queen was very satisfied. As a mother, she naturally hoped that her son would have no worries about food and clothing and receive the best care. Obviously, Shen Wei took good care of the Prince of Yan.

The Queen sat down and asked the maid to bring the freshly-cooked cherry biro to the Prince of Yan. The Queen smiled and asked, "The palace examination results are out. At this time, you should select talents for yourself. Why do you still have time to come to me?"

King Yan did not answer directly, but asked his personal guard to bring a box of tea.

The ebony box is very delicately drawn. When you open the lid, you will see some dried tangerine peel, red dates, etc. inside.

The Prince of Yan told the Queen, "I mentioned to Shen a few days ago that your mother always coughs in the spring nights. It was an unintentional remark, but Shen took it to heart and specially prepared some dry cough medicine to present to your mother."

After a pause, the King of Yan said, "Shen's rank is low, so she cannot enter the palace to meet the Queen Mother. I specially gave this box of cough medicine to your son. If you enter the palace one day, you can present it to the Queen Mother in your name."

A small box of cough medicine shows the care that Prince Yan and Shen Wei have for the Queen.

The Queen was naturally moved and admired Shen Wei even more.

A sensible and well-behaved woman, if she can become the good wife of Prince Yan, she will be able to help Prince Yan resolve many harem conflicts in the future.

After laying the groundwork, the Prince of Yan got straight to the point and said, "Mother, I want to make Shen my concubine. I hope you will approve."

The queen was slightly stunned. All along, the queen had concealed her thoughts very well. She wanted to raise Shen Wei's position, and this idea was only known to the nanny who served the queen.

The queen did not expect that her idea coincided with that of the King of Yan. This also indirectly shows that Shen Wei is capable of quietly letting two big men consider her future.

"Ms. Shen is smart and has the ability to give birth to children. Of course, I want to make her your concubine." The Queen took a sip of pear soup and reminded the King of Yan, "But she is a peasant girl, so you will be criticized."

Prince Yan smiled and said, "Your Majesty, don't worry. Shen's younger brother, Shen Xiuming, is the runner-up in this year's palace examination. Moreover, Shen Xiuming is a student of Yang Xuanji, so he also has the support of the poor faction."

Officials in the court were divided into several factions.

There are conservative aristocratic factions, new and cutting-edge aristocratic factions, and poor factions. There are not many poor officials, and they have ordinary family backgrounds. They are selected as officials through the Spring Examination. Poor officials have always been neutral. If the King of Yan uses Shen Xiuming, it is equivalent to winning over the poor faction.

The queen was shocked: "Second place?"