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

tear-

The rice paper in Liu Ruyan's hand was torn into two pieces, and the elegant plum blossom she had just painted was cracked in the middle.

Liu Ruyan thought she had heard it wrong.

"Imperial Noble Consort?" Liu Ruyan frowned slightly. According to the etiquette and rules of the royal harem, the ranks of the imperial concubines from high to low are: Empress, Noble Consort, Four Consorts, Imperial Concubine, and Honored Lady.

The title of Imperial Noble Consort had never existed in the Kingdom of Qing.

Of course, there have been "Imperial Noble Consorts" in history. For example, during the reign of Emperor Ai, the government was controlled by powerful officials, and Emperor Ai was forced to marry the official's daughter as his empress. But Emperor Ai loved a concubine the most, and he could not disobey the powerful official, so he created a new position of "Imperial Noble Consort".

The Imperial Noble Consort, who was the same rank as the Vice Empress, also symbolized the emperor's favorite. As long as the Empress died, the Imperial Noble Consort could legitimately take the throne of the Empress.

“Imperial Concubine, Imperial Concubine…” Liu Ruyan covered her chest with her hands, her heart aching as tears slowly emerged from her beautiful eyes.

Sad and aggrieved.

Back when the Emperor was still the Prince of Yan, during the time when Liu Ruyan and the Prince of Yan had the best relationship, the Prince of Yan never thought of abandoning the Princess and making Liu Ruyan his principal wife.

But Shen Wei did it.

Liu Ruyan closed her eyes and tears fell down, wetting the ink plum painting on the table.

Liu Ruyan spent the whole day in a daze and did not sleep a wink at night. At dawn the next day, the palace servants brought Liu Ruyan's wedding dress, and Liu Ruyan slowly changed into the bright and gorgeous golden red wedding dress.

Being demoted from a concubine to a concubine, the quality of her wedding attire was naturally inferior. Liu Ruyan looked at herself in the mirror, her eyes dark and haggard, her eyebrows and eyes no longer as charming as they were in the past.

She hated the gorgeous wedding dress, but had to wear it.

"Let's go to Yongning Palace." Liu Ruyan came to Yongning Palace in a daze, feeling unwilling.

The weather is fine today, the sun is shining, and everyone in Yongning Palace is filled with joy.

Liu Ruyan, wearing auspicious clothes, stood silently in the concubines' seat. The ceremony of conferring the title of Imperial Noble Consort was grand, only slightly inferior to the ceremony of conferring the title of Empress. Officials from the Ministry of Rites and the Ministry of Works held the title, treasures, gold and silver, and the Grand Secretary and the Minister of State presided over the ceremony.

The guard of honor led the way and escorted the newly-appointed Imperial Noble Consort Shen Wei to receive the ceremony.

Liu Ruyan stood on both sides of the road and looked at Shen Wei, who was wearing a gorgeous auspicious dress embroidered with a gold and red phoenix. The spring sunshine was shining on her, and she was as gorgeous as a phoenix.

The auspicious dress that Shen Wei was wearing took at least half a month to make. Today was also a rare auspicious day - it was obvious that the emperor had planned to confer the title on Shen Wei a long time ago, and all preparations had been made.

"Auspicious dress embroidered with a phoenix." Liu Ruyan murmured to herself, with a look of bitterness in her eyes.

There is an order of hierarchy in the harem, and only the queen can use the phoenix totem.

The emperor made an exception specifically for Shen Wei.

The conferment ceremony was long and involved many steps. Liu Ruyan watched the whole process numbly, and kowtowed at the reminder of the master of ceremonies.

Near noon, the long and complicated ceremony of enthronement ended. The concubines left with their own thoughts. Liu Ruyan stood at the gate of Yongning Palace and looked back at Shen Wei in the courtyard. The courtyard was shaded by green trees, and only a ray of sunlight fell on Shen Wei, making her look as bright as a jewel.

Even the sun favors Shen Wei.

Liu Ruyan had to admit it.

She was jealous.

Liu Ruyan has always prided herself on being noble and looked down on ordinary people and vulgar women. But in fact, when she saw the radiant and glorious Shen Wei, she still felt sad.

"Why? How could she win the emperor's love?" Liu Ruyan couldn't understand. The lowly peasant girl whom she once looked down upon slapped everyone in the face time and time again.

Every time when everyone thought Shen Wei would completely fall out of favor, Shen Wei always managed to survive and get up again, standing higher and higher.

In the boring and tedious harem, Shen Wei is always full of vitality.

Liu Ruyan sighed deeply, knowing that she had lost completely. She dragged her tired steps and walked away step by step.

As distracted as Liu Ruyan, there was also Concubine Liu Qiaoer. Liu Qiaoer attended the ceremony today, and looking at the glorious Shen Wei, the bitterness in her heart almost overflowed.

After returning to her palace, Liu Qiaoer felt uncomfortable all over. She could only comfort herself that the emperor's love was short-lived.

Even though Shen Wei is in a good position now, she still has a long way to go. It is easy to fall hard from a high place - maybe one day, Shen Wei will fall from a high place.

"Wait, wait. I'm waiting for the day when she falls into the quagmire." Liu Qiaoer closed her eyes and hid in the gloomy darkness.

...

...

The ceremony of enthroning the Imperial Noble Consort was grand and the sound of music could be heard throughout the entire harem.

The Changxin Palace was filled with the strong smell of medicine. Lu Xuan leaned against the bedside sickly, and the palace maid Xiaoqi was holding a bowl of bitter medicine and carefully feeding it into Lu Xuan's mouth.

"It's so noisy outside. What happened in the palace today?" Lu Xuan looked tired and her face was as pale as wax.

His face was filled with death and his eyes could hardly be opened.

Xiao Qi didn't dare to tell Lu Xuan about Shen Wei's canonization, and tried to brush it off: "The emperor received the meritorious officials today, it was a bit lively."

Lu Xuan coughed violently twice.

Lu Xuan said slowly: "You don't have to hide it from me. The ritual bell rang twelve times, which should be a happy event... Ahem, tell the truth."

Xiaoqi pursed her lips.

Lu Xuan said weakly: "Now you don't even listen to me?"

Xiao Qi lowered her eyes and whispered to Lu Xuan: "The Emperor has appointed Concubine Chen as Imperial Concubine... Today is the appointment ceremony."

Lu Xuan tilted her head and murmured to herself: "Royal Consort...Royal Consort...The Emperor doted on her so much, why did he only give her the title of Royal Consort..."

Lu Xuan covered her mouth and suddenly began to cough violently, her throat tasted fishy and sweet, and she vomited a lot of blood. Xiao Qi jumped up in shock and quickly took out a handkerchief to wipe Lu Xuan's mouth.

Xiaoqi's eyes were filled with tears: "Master, don't be sad. When you recover from your illness, you will definitely be able to be a noble concubine in the future."

The blood soaked the bedding.

Bloody and bloody.

Lu Xuan closed her eyes, her eyes were wet, she was so weak that she could hardly cry. Lu Xuan just felt very sad, her voice was hoarse: "I lost to her, I am convinced."

Lu Xuan’s eyes went dark and she passed out.

...

...

Yongning Palace under the night sky.

After the grand enthronement ceremony ended, Shen Wei took off the heavy ceremonial clothes with the help of Cai Lian and Cai Ping.

The auspicious dress was inlaid with gold, silver and jewels. Wearing it was like wearing a heavy iron suit, which made Shen Wei gasp for breath. And the gorgeous hair crown inlaid with rubies and pearls weighed a full ten kilograms!

Shen Wei waited until the ceremony was over, took off her heavy wedding attire, and felt a lot more relaxed. The bath water of suitable temperature was ready, and Shen Wei soaked in the hot bath water, the hot water was thick, the fragrance was floating, and she squinted her eyes comfortably.

Cai Ping took out a handkerchief and wiped Shen Wei's back, muttering, "Master, the porridge-giving shed outside Anguo Temple has been built. According to your instructions, we will provide porridge for ten days."

"Craftsmen have been sent to repair and expand the orphanage so that it can accommodate at least a thousand orphans."

"Also, the gifts sent by the women of the imperial court, gold and silver jewelry, amounting to about 100,000 taels of silver, will be sent to the border on a chosen day to serve as food and fodder for the soldiers."

Shen Wei lay on the edge of the bathtub, closing her eyes comfortably: "Good deeds should be remembered, and should be spread well. I am a good concubine, not a demon concubine."

Cai Ping: "Okay."

Shen Wei was conferred the title of Imperial Noble Consort this time. The conferment ceremony was grand and magnificent, and exceeded the rules in many aspects.

For example, Shen Wei's imperial concubine's auspicious dress is almost the same as the queen's auspicious dress. Shen Wei's imperial concubine's salary is also the same as the queen's. To some extent, it can almost be regarded as a "queen's canonization ceremony."

There are always a group of stubborn old officials in the court who want to criticize the excessiveness of the enthronement ceremony. Shen Wei has to take the initiative to build a good reputation and shut up these officials.

The bathhouse was filled with hot steam. Shen Wei continued to take a bath while Cai Ping went outside to get soap beans.

Shen Wei was soaking in the hot bath, feeling dizzy. She heard footsteps outside the house and thought it was Cai Ping, so she said casually, "Rub your back again and massage your shoulders for a while."

The slightly rough big hands covered Shen Wei's smooth and white back.

Shen Wei opened her eyes immediately.

The air was hazy with water vapor, and Li Yuanjing, wearing black and gold court robes, was close at hand. Li Yuanjing's handsome face relaxed, and his eyes lingered on Shen Wei's flushed face for a moment, then fell to Shen Wei's round and white shoulders, and then moved down.

Li Yuanjing's throat was hoarse: "Don't move, I will serve the Imperial Concubine."

Shen Wei stopped moving.

Li Yuanjing has been practicing martial arts and keeping fit for a long time, so his hands are very strong.

He massaged Shen Wei's shoulders, and as he did so, he began to change positions...

Shen Wei bared her teeth and hid on the other side of the barrel, covering her heart with her hands. She stared at Li Yuanjing with misty eyes and complained, "Press my shoulders if you want, but where should the emperor put his hands?"

The hot water was surging and white mist was spreading.

Shen Wei's smooth black hair was wet, her cheeks were flushed by the hot water, and her exposed shoulders were also flushed with an ambiguous and seductive red. Rose petals were soaking in the wooden barrel, and a few wet petals were pressed against Shen Wei's collarbone.

Rippling and moving.

The soft touch seemed to still remain between Li Yuanjing's fingers, and his throat was dry.

Since Shen Wei was poisoned, Li Yuanjing had not eaten meat for a long time. Now Shen Wei's body is recovering day by day, and Li Yuanjing even summoned the imperial physician to ask about it privately. The imperial physician said that it was okay to do something appropriate.

Li Yuanjing untied his black and gold court robe and stepped into the bathtub.

The originally spacious bathtub suddenly became crowded.

Water splashed everywhere.

Shen Wei trembled slightly, and the corners of her eyes turned red.

The bath water was changed three times.

The clusters of beautiful flowers in the yard closed, the moonlight fell, and the noise in Yongning Palace stopped late at night.

Li Yuanjing had not forgotten the imperial physician's advice, and did not dare to go too far. Finally, he personally changed the dizzy Shen Wei into clean and soft pajamas and dried Shen Wei's long hair.

Insects chirped softly at night, and Shen Wei leaned on Li Yuanjing's arms and fell into a deep sleep. Moonlight leaked through the bed curtains, and Li Yuanjing held Shen Wei's warm hand, lowered his head contentedly, and kissed her forehead.

Fall asleep.

...

The next day, the sky turned pale.

At the door of the bedroom in Yongning Palace, a palace maid was holding hot water but was afraid to enter the room.

"Breakfast is ready, why don't you go into the room and help the master change clothes? Can you afford to delay the master's meal?" Cai Lian saw it and came over to ask with a frown.

The little palace maid blushed and stammered, "Aunt Cailian... Your Majesty, Your Majesty is still inside. Please let me go in later."

Through the door, you can still faintly hear the beautiful noises in the house.

Cai Lian had followed Shen Wei for many years, so she naturally knew what was going on.

Cai Lian coughed slightly and said, "It's a day off today, so it's reasonable for the masters to sleep for half an hour longer. Go to the water room and wait. I'll bring you hot water when the master gets up."

The little palace maid took the water for washing her face and ran away.

There was a faint fragrance in the air in the bedroom.

Shen Wei was so angry that she kicked Li Yuanjing. Li Yuanjing held her slender white feet and rubbed them slowly, smiling: "The Imperial Concubine is so fierce."

Shen Wei: ...

Damn your ancestors!

Another wave came crashing over.

It was not until the daybreak outside that they were able to rest. Today was a day off, and there were no chores to attend to, so Li Yuanjing patiently waited for Shen Wei to get up, taking care of her in every possible way.

It was almost noon when the hungry Shen Wei finally had a sip of hot soup.

Seeing Shen Wei's tired look, Li Yuanjing regretted his rashness yesterday and hurriedly sent someone to call Mo Xun to take her pulse. When Mo Xun said "The Imperial Concubine is fine", Li Yuanjing was relieved.

He changed into the emperor's regular clothes, relaxed his muscles and bones, and went to the training ground to teach his son riding and shooting with a refreshed mind.

...

After lunch, Shen Wei felt sore all over that even walking was painful. She could only lean on the chaise longue to look at the account book.

Mo Xun sat at the small table next to him and ate some snacks. He occasionally glanced at the dark circles under Shen Wei's eyes and the purple bruises on her wrists, and said with a sigh, "My dear concubine, you must exercise restraint."

Shen Wei said unhappily: "You should talk to the emperor about this."

The emperor, who had been holding back for a long time, was like a hungry tiger out of a cage.

Although restrained, he is still strong.

Mo Xun shrugged: "I dare not - by the way, I came to see you today because I wanted to say goodbye to you."

Shen Wei put down the account book in her hand and sat up: "You want to leave the palace?"

Mo Xun nodded seriously.

A few days ago, Mo Xun finished reading the "Taihua Notes" given to her by Shen Wei. The contents of the notes were mostly bizarre and complex texts, which Mo Xun could not understand, but she felt that she could understand it.

She stroked the words in the notebook, each stroke filled with a sense of familiarity. Mo Xun even felt vaguely that this book was written by her.

But how is that possible?

The Queen of Southern Chu was a figure from over a hundred years ago, and had long since turned to bones. Mo Xun was less than thirty years old, but miraculously he had a spiritual resonance with the Queen from a hundred years ago.

Mo Xun's intuition was always accurate. She told Shen Wei, "I want to go to Nanchu."

Mo Xun had a hunch that by going to Nanchu, she might be able to find some hidden truth and discover her own destiny.

Shen Wei was a little reluctant to part with Mo Xun. Mo Xun's superb medical skills were Shen Wei's support in the harem; Mo Xun had a cheerful personality and was a good friend.

"Southern Chu is in civil strife and war is raging. Why don't you wait until the war in Southern Chu is settled before going?" Shen Wei kindly reminded.

Mo Xun shook his head and said firmly: "It is precisely because of the civil unrest in Nanchu that I can take advantage of it. Don't worry, I will come back to accompany you in the future."

Seeing that she was determined to leave, Shen Wei could only sigh inwardly.

Life is a long journey and separation is the norm.

Mo Xun left a lot of prescriptions for Shen Wei, and also gave Shen Wei a few detoxification pills. Shen Wei didn't know what to give her, so she could only give her a banknote.

When you go out, you need money to pave the way.

Mo Xun was very efficient and quickly handed over the chores of the Women's Medical Office. He found a dark and windy night, slipped out of Yanjing City like a cat, and ran towards Nanchu.