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

This made the matter even bigger. Xie Ji poisoned his wife and killed the concubines in the palace, and was thrown into prison.

The officials of the Ministry of Justice worked all night long to investigate the case. It is said that they wrote down Xie Ji's crimes on ten pages and have not yet finished.

Zhang Miaoyu shook her head and sighed, "There's a lot of commotion outside right now. The emperor is furious, and the people are criticizing the Xie family. I'm afraid the Xie family is finished."

If Xie Ji had taken the initiative to admit his mistakes to the Wu family and willingly divorced Wu, the Xie family could have kept some of its reputation and survived for another three to five years.

But Xie Ji was too arrogant, thinking that he had the support of the Queen Mother, so he killed his wife and daughter, digging his own grave. The Xie family collapsed faster after he messed it up.

Zhang Miaoyu said: "Princess Lan has been buried. Her personal maidservant is loyal and volunteered to guard the imperial mausoleum. I used to dislike Concubine Lan because I always thought she was arrogant and naive. She was also a pitiful person. Death was a relief for her."

The room was quiet, Shen Wei was holding a hot water bottle in her hand.

Shen Wei suddenly asked: "Princess Lan has lived in the deep palace for a long time. How did she know when Xie Ji would come to the palace to plead guilty? Huayang Palace is remote and far away from the front palace. It is guarded by the imperial guards all the way. How could she hide a sharp blade and assassinate him?"

Zhang Miaoyu was stunned and scratched her head: "This...this..."

If you think about it carefully, it seems that there is indeed a loophole.

Think carefully.

Shen Wei's eyes were dark, and she tightly grasped the hot water bottle in her hand: "Someone must have fanned the flames."

In broad daylight, Zhang Miaoyu suddenly felt cold all over.

...

In the afternoon, the sun came out from behind the clouds, and the warm light made the courtyard warm. Shen Wei wrapped herself in a thick cloak and asked the eunuch to move the sandalwood bed to the courtyard. She leaned on the couch to bask in the sun.

After recovering from a serious illness, get more sun exposure to help your body recover.

In late autumn, the colorful chrysanthemums in the yard were in full bloom. Shen Wei was basking in the sun while looking through the palace's recent account books. Rong Mama, Cai Lian and Cai Ping were very capable. Even if Shen Wei was sick, she could still handle all the affairs in the palace in an orderly manner.

Shen Wei was very satisfied.

With excellent employees, she can worry less.

Shen Wei was looking through the account book when a palace maid came to report that Eunuch Deshun, in compliance with the Emperor's order, had sent Shen Wei a bowl of bird's nest and snow clam.

Bird's nest and snow clam were placed on the small table.

Deshun said respectfully, "Master, the emperor went to the Ministry of Justice today and will come to see you in the evening."

After a pause, Deshun continued, "You were recuperating in Xuanming Palace a few days ago. When the emperor was taking good care of you and helping you take medicine, Concubine Shu came over."

Shen Wei raised her eyebrows and asked, "Did she see it?"

Deshun lowered his head and smiled, "I took her outside the curtain, so she saw it. When Concubine Shu left, she looked dazed."

Deshun finished his report and left respectfully.

Shen Wei clutched the account book in her hand. She added fuel to the fire while she was sick. She didn't know if she could make Lu Xuan lose her mind and become jealous.

Once people lose their wits, they will go to extremes and bring about their own destruction.

Shen Wei continued to look at the account book.

The sun was warm, and Shen Wei felt warm all over, feeling very comfortable.

Until the sound of footsteps came from not far away, and Le You's soft voice rang out: "Mother! Mother!"

When Shen Wei looked up, she saw a white and tender girl running towards her. Le You ran very fast and threw himself into Shen Wei's arms.

Shen Wei touched Le You's little face and said, "Mother is fine."

Le You buried his head in Shen Wei's arms and said sullenly, "I hope my mother will never get sick."

Soon, other children came running over.

Li Chengtai and Li Chengyou stood next to Shen Wei, acting like a spoiled child in silence. Li Yao, Li Nanzhi, and Li Wan'er also came over one after another.

For a moment, Shen Wei was surrounded by children.

Shen Wei had just recovered from a serious illness and her strength had not yet recovered. She asked Rong Mama to take the children to the back hall to eat some cakes.

"Master, the queen mother is here." Cai Lian reminded.

Shen Wei quickly put down the account book in her hand and stood up to greet her. The Queen Mother slowly waved her hand: "No need, please sit down."

In the courtyard among the chrysanthemums, there was a Luohan bed that Shen Wei liked. In the middle of the bed was a small wooden table for tea and account books. The Queen Mother sat on the other side of the wooden table.

Shen Wei handed over the hot tea: "Mother has lost some weight, you must take good care of yourself."

The empress dowager had a few strands of white hair on her temples, and she looked even more haggard than Shen Wei.

The Xie family is on the verge of collapse. Although the Queen Mother has been separated from the Xie family for many years, she was once the legitimate daughter of the Xie family after all.

The Queen Mother must have felt bad watching her mother's family decline.

The Queen Mother sipped her tea, a look of sadness on her face: "I knew long ago that the Xie family would seek their own destruction. I have advised them and scolded them, but wealth and fame are so attractive that people in the situation are always confused."

Shen Wei stood up and couldn't help asking, "Mother, why did you cut ties with the Xie family?"

This is something Shen Wei has always been curious about.

The Queen Mother put down the teacup and said sadly: "That was many years ago..."

Back then, the Queen Mother was the legitimate daughter of the Xie family, and she and the late emperor were childhood sweethearts. The Queen Mother came from a prominent family, and she married the late emperor as she wished. The two of them treated each other as equals and were quite affectionate.

The Queen Mother did not forget her family at that time. She used her position as Queen to seek many benefits for the Xie family. One year during the Spring Examination, the Queen Mother secretly manipulated the list of candidates and let a male from the Xie family occupy the quota for the Spring Examination.

This was just a trivial matter not worth mentioning. At that time, all the major families did this and it was commonplace.

Later, the Queen Mother and the late Emperor went to offer sacrifices outside the city and inspected the newly built dam in Yunzhou. When they passed by the dam, it was washed away by heavy rains for several days. The Queen Mother and the late Emperor were saved by a lame and disfigured hunter.

The late emperor noticed that the hunter was well-spoken and well-read. After some inquiries, he learned that the hunter was a candidate in the imperial examination three years ago. He was admitted as a Jinshi, but his place was occupied by the Xie family. He went to appeal for justice, but his legs were broken and his face was disfigured. His wife and children were separated, and he had to hunt for a living.

What's even more outrageous is that the official who supervised the construction of the Yunzhou dam was the man from the Xie family who had usurped the hunter's quota. The man from the Xie family was illiterate and embezzled the money for building the dam. The dam was destroyed by a flood, and tens of thousands of people were displaced.

Recalling the past, the Queen Mother closed her eyes solemnly: "It was then that I realized that I had made a mistake. The partiality and indulgence of those in high positions and power are like a torrential flood to the common people."

If the Queen Mother had not favored the Xie family and allowed the hunters with talent and ability to serve as officials, the dam built by the hunters would not have collapsed, and tens of thousands of people would not have suffered heavy casualties.

Those in power control the fate of hundreds of millions of ordinary people.

When those in power become greedy and selfish, the people suffer.

The Queen Mother sighed, her eyes becoming more and more aged. "The noble families are the termites of Daqing. If they are not suppressed, Daqing will be eaten away by them sooner or later. I am a daughter of the Xie family, and I am also the mother of Qing. How can I harm my family and country for my own selfish reasons?"

The Queen Mother took the initiative to cut ties with the Xie family, hoping that the Xie family would keep a low profile.

However, the greedy Xie family was still ambitious and married into the Wu family, gradually sending themselves to the grave.

In the courtyard of Yongning Palace, the breeze blew, and the autumn chrysanthemums in the yard swayed.

Shen Wei poured hot tea for the Queen Mother and understood why she took a liking to her.

Shen Wei is not a girl from an aristocratic family. She was born in poverty but cares about the people. She does not show favoritism to her family. She is a good parent and can help Li Yuanjing suppress the aristocratic families. She is the most qualified virtuous wife who assists the king.

The Queen Mother held Shen Wei's hand, and said with hope in her tone: "You should take good care of yourself. I hope you can accompany Yuan Jing for a few more decades."

Shen Wei nodded gently: "Mother, I know."

The Queen Mother was in a languid mood. She talked to Shen Wei for a while, then left Yongning Palace exhausted, supported by Madam Qian. Shen Wei watched the Queen Mother leave. In just a few days, the Queen Mother seemed to have aged suddenly.

Shen Wei sighed inwardly, called Leyou and several other children over, and gave them careful instructions, asking them to spend more time with the Queen Mother every day.

...

When it gets dark, palace lanterns light up, dispelling the chill in the palace and casting a dim light on the walls.

Li Yuanjing lifted the pearl curtain.

He saw Shen Wei holding a bowl of steaming pork rib soup in her left hand and sipping it; with her right hand she was flipping through a map, looking at it with sidelong glances, as if she was thinking.

Shen Wei looked much better, and her face, which had been pale for several days, now had a blush on it.

Li Yuanjing secretly felt relieved.

He didn't like Shen Wei's pale and sickly appearance. She was like sand in the palm of his hand, which could not be grasped and easily slipped away, causing him to feel uncomfortable and painful in his heart.

The lively, healthy, rosy-cheeked Shen Wei made him feel at ease.

"What are you looking at?" Li Yuanjing sat down and picked up the map next to Shen Wei.

This is a layout map of the harem palace, with palace gates of all sizes listed in it.

Shen Wei put down the bowl of soup and stared at Li Yuanjing with her dark eyes: "The Princess of Donglin Kingdom is coming. I am thinking about which palace to arrange for her to stay in. What position does the emperor intend to give her?"