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

Liu Ruyan used to be extremely beautiful, with lips that were red without makeup and face that was white without makeup. But after years of hardship, even the most beautiful appearance could not withstand the erosion of time.

Liu Ruyan looked at herself in the silver mirror. Her features were still as elegant and refined as ever, but fine lines could be seen at the corners of her eyes. Her lips were no longer as rosy as they used to be, and she looked tired from the inside out.

She needs to put on some makeup and regain some of her youthful beauty.

After washing and dressing up, Liu Ruyan took the palace maids to Yongchun Palace where the coming-of-age ceremony was held.

The sun was shining brightly, and Yongchun Palace was already bustling with activity. Scarlet gauze curtains were hung high, and pots of flowers and plants decorated the corners of the courtyard walls. The place was full of vitality, and the ladies of honor who were invited to watch the ceremony arrived early.

"Empress Mei has arrived," the eunuch announced.

The originally bustling Yongchun Palace suddenly became quiet.

Everyone looked at the belated Meipin Liu Ruyan in astonishment. No one expected her to be there. Liu Ruyan's cold and ruthless character was well known in the circle of noble ladies.

Even her mother’s family, the Liu family, would not associate with Liu Ruyan.

Liu Ruyan walked into the courtyard of Yongchun Palace with an indifferent look. The time for the coming-of-age ceremony had not yet arrived, and Li Nanzhi was still dressing in the side hall. Liu Ruyan walked slowly outside the side hall.

The door to the side palace was wide open, and Li Nanzhi, Imperial Noble Consort Shen Wei and Zhang Miaoyu were all in the room.

Xiaoxuan window is dressing up.

Zhang Miaoyu wiped away her tears while combing Li Nanzhi's hair. Her voice was hoarse and she choked with sobs: "Nanzhi, you should come back to the palace often in the future. If you encounter difficulties outside the palace, just tell your mother."

Li Nanzhi smiled obediently and took Zhang Miaoyu's hand: "Princess Yu, Nanzhi is just leaving the palace to live alone, not marrying far away. I will definitely come back to the palace to see you and Empress Chen from time to time."

Zhang Miaoyu felt even sadder when she thought about her child getting married in two years. She burst into tears and said, "You will get married in two years. I'm afraid you won't be able to come back to the palace often."

Having lived with Li Nanzhi for many years, Zhang Miaoyu had long regarded Li Nanzhi as her own daughter.

Zhang Miaoyu was extremely upset as the mother and daughter were about to be separated. She secretly hid in her bed and cried for a long time in the middle of the night. She lost several pounds and could not even swallow her favorite pork elbow in soy sauce.

Li Nanzhi comforted Zhang Miaoyu with soft words.

Inside the small window, the mother is loving and the daughter is filial, the atmosphere is warm and peaceful.

The wind blew, and Liu Ruyan's hair brushed across her eyes. Liu Ruyan gathered her messy hair back to her ears, stood at the entrance of the yard for a while, lowered her eyes, and turned away quietly.

In the main courtyard of Yongchun Palace, guests who came to watch the coming-of-age ceremony took their seats one after another.

Liu Ruyan didn't want to attract attention, so she sat in an inconspicuous corner. When she raised her head, she saw her mother, Madam Liu, and Xuemei in brocade from afar.

Liu Ruyan had not seen Xuemei since she left the palace. Now, from a distance, she saw that Xuemei had gained weight and her cheeks were round.

Xuemei, a slave from a humble family, was qualified to sit beside Madam Liu and watch the princess' coming-of-age ceremony. Madam Liu was all smiles, talking to Xuemei in a low voice, and the two seemed to have a very close relationship.

Liu Ruyan was dazed and didn't understand why her mother was so close to Xuemei.

I only heard the ladies around me talking in low voices:

"Whose lady is the one next to Madam Liu? Why have I never seen her before?"

"She is the maid of the Liu family. It is said that she served Princess Nanzhi in the palace before."

"A maid can actually watch the princess' coming-of-age ceremony. It seems that Princess Nanzhi respects her very much."

"Princess Nanzhi is pure and filial, but unfortunately she met...Alas."

There was constant discussion around.

The conversation didn't stop until the coming-of-age ceremony began.

Li Nanzhi's coming-of-age ceremony was carried out in an orderly manner and was very grand and lively. Liu Ruyan sat in the corner of the yard, looking at the bright and beautiful Li Nanzhi on the stage, feeling melancholy in her heart, and the old memories resurfaced before her.

She recalled the joy she felt when she gave birth to her daughter.

She also remembered that when she was in a cold war with Li Yuanjing, she deliberately left her daughter in the snow to starve and freeze.

She also remembered that her daughter tugged at her clothes again and again, crying and saying that she didn't want to go to the Eastern Palace and the Prince's Mansion.

The last thing she remembered was that her daughter was sent to Yongchun Palace and given to someone else to raise...

Li Yuanjing and she were in love with each other before, but unfortunately he changed his mind; her father and mother taught her carefully, but later became estranged from her; the only one who loved her, Li Nanzhi, is now the daughter of Concubine Yu, and Zhang Miaoyu raised Li Nanzhi very well.

Liu Ruyan vaguely realized that in order to pursue illusory love over the years, she had lost a lot of love that was within her reach.

Unfortunately, she can't go back.

...

...

Princesses who had reached the age of 15 left the palace one after another, and their weddings were held one after another.

Li Wan'er married the eldest son of Marquis Dongyang. Her husband was a modest gentleman. After marriage, they treated each other as equals and lived in harmony.

Li Yao was ordered to marry the second son of Zhang, the Minister of the Ministry of Revenue. When Li Yao returned to the palace, she only went to see the Queen Mother and Shen Wei, and did not set foot in Kunning Palace.

Spring passes and autumn comes.

The bleak autumn wind blew through the courtyard of Kunning Palace, and the wild chrysanthemums grew luxuriantly. The queen sat on the cold stone steps, and the Buddhist temple behind her was already deserted. The compassionate Buddha statue was covered with spider silk, and the niche was covered with thick dust.

It is useless to pray to gods and Buddhas. Gods and Buddhas will not help the queen to make a comeback.

The wind blew the wild chrysanthemums in the yard and made the wooden door creak. The queen stared blankly at the closed door of Kunning Palace. She hadn't seen Li Yao for a long time.

In this cold harem, it seemed as if everyone had forgotten that there was a queen in Kunning Palace.

"crunch-"

There was a noise from the door that had been closed for many days.

The Queen's lifeless eyes suddenly opened wide, and she saw Eunuch Deshun wearing the clothes of the eunuch leader, two accompanying eunuchs, and two palace guards.

The Queen stood up suddenly and said happily, "The Emperor sent you to pick me up? The Emperor pardoned me?"

Eunuch Deshun cleared his throat and told the queen the truth: "The emperor has spoken out that the queen, Tan Tai, colluded with foreign thieves in the past, plotted to murder the emperor, and harmed his descendants. This crime is unforgivable. I grant you a cup of poisoned wine and you must leave immediately."

The accompanying eunuch presented the poisoned wine.

The queen was stunned, thinking she had heard wrongly. She stepped back trembling and denied it flatly: "What do you mean by colluding with foreign enemies? I didn't do that. It must be that bitch Shen who slandered me!"

Eunuch Deshun said, "When the emperor was in the palace, you colluded with Prince Heng and conspired with him to kill her. The evidence is irrefutable."

The queen was suddenly frightened.

Back then, she was deceived by the sweet words of Li Yuanli, the Prince of Heng, and attempted to kill Li Yuanjing and Shen Wei. Later, Li Yuanjing escaped death, and the queen was secretly terrified, fearing that the scandal would be discovered.

She lived in fear for several years, but nothing happened, so the queen thought no one noticed.

Who would have thought it would be dug up again today!

It also became the evidence for her death sentence!

The queen's knees weakened, and she staggered and sat on the ground, as if mocking herself: "The emperor knew it a long time ago, it turns out he knew it a long time ago, he is really good at hiding it..."

Eunuch Deshun said, "Your Majesty, please go on your way."

The queen was unwilling to give up. She climbed up like crazy and tried to rush out of the cage-like Kunning Palace. The guards immediately stopped her. The queen screamed and struggled: "I don't want to die! I can't die!"

She thought madly, her son had not yet become emperor and her enemies had not yet died, how could she be willing to accept this!

The poisoned wine poured down her throat, and a slow stinging pain began to spread through her blood vessels. The queen curled up on the ground in pain, tears rolling down her cheeks.

The surroundings seemed to freeze, and the queen was in a trance. She saw the beautiful scene of herself marrying into the palace, the scene of her urging her children to study day and night, the death of her two sons - and she also saw herself sitting arrogantly in the main seat, with two beautiful young girls standing in front of her.

The Queen heard herself say - [Shen Wei, Zhang Yue, are you willing to be the prince's concubines? ]

The girl named Shen Wei replied: [I am willing to serve you, my lord.]

From then on, the princess began to fall into hell step by step.

"Ahem...I shouldn't have made her a concubine back then." The queen felt severe pain in her internal organs. She collapsed in the yard full of wild chrysanthemums, feeling extremely regretful.

But in fact, the queen knew better than anyone that even without Shen Wei, she would end up with a divorce and her children separated...

Because that man is born heartless.

It seems that only Shen Wei can enter his heart.

-

In late autumn, the queen "died of illness", and Kunning Palace became a completely deserted palace.

Li Yao asked his father for permission to send the queen's body out of the city for burial.

In the spring of the following year, Li Yuanjing issued an imperial decree to enthrone Shen Wei as the queen. Shen Wei did not like the gloomy Kunning Palace and continued to live in Yongning Palace.

Among the princes, the other princes were too mediocre, and Li Chengtai and Li Chengyou were the most intelligent.

Li Yuanjing was still examining the abilities of his two sons, and was worried that appointing a crown prince too early would cause disputes among the previous dynasties, so he did not appoint a crown prince for the time being, and only trained his two children more carefully.

...

Southern Chu State, the palace inside.

Only slaves of criminals or palace slaves who had committed mistakes would be sent to the Ye Ting to do hard labor.

The servants in the palace were busy all day and returned to their rooms to rest late at night. Lu Yun, dressed simply, lay quietly in the corner of the big bunk bed, staring at the moonlight leaking in with her eyes open.

Recently, a female businessman who had committed a crime came to the Ye Ting. This female businessman has been selling goods in various countries for many years and has a wide range of knowledge. At night, everyone couldn't sleep, so they all gathered around to listen to the female businessman's talk.

Tonight, the female merchant recounted her experiences in Qing. She said, "Qing is now a powerful country, and the emperor is a wise ruler. Did you know that the new queen of Qing was a farmer's daughter?"

Everyone was surprised.

Some people were curious: "How could a little farm girl become a queen? She is so lucky."

The female merchant said unhappily, "Don't judge a hero by his birth! The new queen's elder brother is a general, her younger brother is a capable official in the court, and she is virtuous and dignified, so she is naturally worthy of the title of queen. The previous queen was jealous, and the concubine was implicated by her family and died of depression... Last year, I was selling gems in Qing State and happened to pass by Anguo Temple..."

The female merchant spoke eloquently, recounting the deeds of the Queen of Qing, and everyone listened with great interest.

Only Lu Yun, who slept in a narrow corner, had a cold look in her eyes and was full of resentment. After the fall of the Lu family, Lu Yun seduced the guards of the Tianlao with money and beauty, escaped from the prison with a narrow escape, and defected to the Emperor of Southern Chu.

Being in a foreign country, Lu Yun was in great pain. Recently, she learned of her sister's death, which made her extremely distressed.

After her sister left, she had no relatives and became completely alone. Lu Yun thought of the prophecy in her dream. She closed her eyes and muttered to herself: "What if Shen became the queen? Maybe she will follow my sister's old path..."

Lu Yun prayed silently in her heart, hoping that Shen Wei would die soon.

Lu Yun even often suspected that her sister Lu Xuan's death was closely related to Shen Wei.

The night in the palace was cold, and the pale moonlight shone on Lu Yun's face. Lu Yun stared at the half moon in the sky and prayed silently in her heart.

"God, please open your eyes and send Shen to hell."

...

...

Time flies. The leaves of the ginkgo tree planted in Shen Wei's yard turn yellow and then green, and then green and then yellow.

In the blink of an eye, several years have passed.

The children grew up very fast, like bamboo shoots, and they grew taller and taller every year. Li Chengtai and Li Chengyou were already twelve years old and had grown into strong young boys.

As the princes grew up, discussions about appointing a crown prince gradually increased within the court and the public.

Shen Wei turned a deaf ear to all the discussions in the court and the public, and was content to be the queen. She did not win over the court officials or interfere in the government. Shen Wei knew in her heart that if nothing unexpected happened, her son would basically be guaranteed the throne.

She just needs to pay more attention, protect her child to grow up healthy, and let everything take its course.

On a leisurely summer afternoon, Shen Wei took a nap on a waterside chair, applying a new whitening and tenderizing mask from Qixiangzhai on her face and resting her eyes. As you age, you can't neglect beauty care.

She was half asleep and half awake when she suddenly heard the sound of heavy footsteps.

"Mother!"

A small whirlwind came flying, accompanied by a loud call.

The fish in the pond were startled, and the lotus leaves in the pond rustled.

Shen Wei had just fallen asleep when she was woken up by her own brat. She slowly opened her eyes and saw Li Chengyou rushing into the waterside pavilion like a whirlwind, greeting Shen Wei with a wronged look on his face: "Good afternoon, mother."

Shen Wei wiped off the mask on her face and glanced at her youngest son: "What's wrong again?"

Li Chengyou is twelve years old this year. He has a big appetite and grows fast. His height is increasing rapidly and his voice has started to become deeper, as if he is entering the voice change period of boys.

Li Chengyou went to the training ground to practice horse riding and archery all year round and learned martial arts from the masters. He grew very strong and his skin was slightly tanned.

Li Chengyou said: "Mother, the Empress Dowager and Father do not agree that I want to go to Liangzhou. Mother, I want to go to Liangzhou, please persuade Father!"

As the boy grows up, he is like a falcon that has just learned to fly. He is no longer satisfied with the small city of Yanjing, but yearns for the wider world.

Last year, my uncle Shen Mieyue came back to Beijing to take up his post and tried his hand at the palace training ground. Shen Mieyue was tall and strong, and he wielded a long-handled broadsword with great power, beating the martial arts masters in the palace training ground step by step.

As powerful as a rainbow and as majestic as an air of power!

A group of teenagers who were watching the fun were stunned.

Especially Li Chengyou, his admiration for his uncle is like a surging river, endless.

Li Chengyou had only seen such a mighty general in folk picture books. The appearance of his uncle brought a huge impact on the young Li Chengyou, and he also wanted to be a man like his uncle who defended his country!

So Li Chengyou began to pester his father, wanting to follow his uncle to Liangzhou.

Li Yuanjing naturally disagreed!