Harem Daily Life

Lan Xin took the peach cake and the jewelry box and presented them to the Queen Mother. The Queen Mother carefully examined the bracelets with a hint of appreciation in her eyes. She gently stroked the bracelets, feeling the smooth texture and warm touch. The design of the bracelets was simple and elegant, without too many gorgeous decorations, but it exuded a restrained luxury.

She liked it very much, so she took one and put it on her hand.

"Queen Mother, I also have a gift from my sister." Xiao Jinan was eager to show off his jade pendant: "Queen Mother, look, my name is on it. May you be safe and sound."

The Queen Mother smiled and looked at the jade pendant. She had to look very carefully to see the small word "安". She was very satisfied with Lady Tao's attentiveness. It seemed that Lady Tao was sincere to this child and thought about this child in everything she did.

The Queen Mother looked at Tao Yanyan deeply and said, "You are very good to Jin'an. You really treat him sincerely."

Tao Yanyan smiled and said, "I have a connection with Jin'an. Since I adopted him, I will naturally treat him well. This child has a pitiful life. He doesn't know where his biological parents are, and why he was thrown on the roadside in the suburbs of Beijing. Fortunately, he was saved by a few beggars who left Beijing, and he survived."

When the Queen Mother heard about Jin'an's life experience, she became interested. She asked Lan Xin to take Jin'an out to play for a while and left Concubine Tao alone to talk.

"You mean, when the beggar found him, there was no one around him?"

Tao Yanyan nodded: "That's what the beggar who adopted him said. He saw a child thrown on the roadside, dying, with some small change on him. He also found an earring, so he felt pity for him and took him away."

"An earring?" the Queen Mother asked calmly.

Tao Yanyan nodded and said, "Those beggars said that the earrings were worth a lot of money and were sold for five taels of silver. I thought that if they were worth five taels of silver, they must be very valuable, because ordinary earrings, one tael of silver per pair, are considered very good. Your Majesty thinks that this might be a bastard born to a wealthy family in the capital, and has been investigating. However, because it has been a long time, and we don't know the style of the earrings, so we have not been able to find any information."

The empress dowager had a hint of sadness on her face. If he was really the prince, then little Jin'an had a miserable life. Not only did he not receive any love and care, he almost died on the roadside. It really made her heart ache just thinking about it.

Seeing that the Queen Mother looked unhappy and seemed about to cry, Tao Yanyan hurriedly comforted her, "Fortunately, he is now in the palace. Your Majesty is kind and has agreed to let me raise him. I will raise him well and send him out of the palace when he is twelve years old. I will buy him a house in the capital and assign him a few servants to take care of him. In the future, he will pass the imperial examinations and have a way out. In addition, he will get a good marriage and have children. It can be considered a perfect life."

After hearing this, the Queen Mother glared at her and said, "You call this a fulfilling life? How come you don't have any pursuits at all!"

Tao Yanyan: “…”

I have food, shelter, a job, a wife and children. What's not perfect?

But the Queen Mother's disdain was not concealed, which made Tao Yanyan reflect on whether he really had no ambitions...

"In my opinion, Jin'an will be very rich and powerful in the future, and it is possible that he will even be crowned a king. You need to have higher goals and know how to plan when raising a son." The empress dowager shared her experience, and Tao Yanyan was confused.

Seeing that Lady Tao was only sixteen or seventeen years old, these were beyond her scope. The Queen Mother shook her head and said, "Forget it. Bring Jin'an to Changchun Palace more often in the future. I will teach him myself. I have raised a king and have rich experience. Under my guidance, Jin'an will definitely be able to... become successful in the future."

Tao Yanyan was speechless. Was this going to bring both of them into the sphere of influence of Changchun Palace? One to cook, the other to study?

"Okay, you can have dinner in Changchun Palace tonight. I haven't eaten your cooking for a long time. Go to the kitchen and make a few more dishes if there's anything delicious." The Queen Mother ordered.

Tao Yanyan had no choice but to get up and go to the kitchen.

He Linzhang received reports from the Ministry of Works and the Ministry of Revenue that the drawings of the kang had been sent to all prefectures and counties. The villages closer to the capital have already seen initial results, with every household having a kang. This at least ensured that when the cold wave came, they would not suffer from the cold like in previous years.

This was all thanks to Tao Yanyan, so He Linzhang wanted to share his joy with her, so he asked Eunuch Zhang to send someone to notify Yingyue Pavilion to prepare dinner.

After a while, Eunuch Zhang came to report that Concubine Tao had taken the young master to Changchun Palace and would stay there for dinner before returning.

He Linzhang paused, thinking about the dispute between Concubine Xian and the Empress Dowager at the banquet yesterday. Concubine Xian was indeed disrespectful first. He pondered for a moment and then went to Changchun Palace.

Of course, we stayed in Changchun Palace for dinner, and the family of four had a great time.

Unlike the peaceful days in Changchun Palace, everyone in Xianfei's palace was on high alert. Xianfei ordered people to close the palace gates, and she lost her temper and smashed things in the house, and the floor was already a mess.

"You incompetent thing, I asked you to invite His Majesty, but you couldn't even invite him back. What use do I have for you? Come, drag him away and give him twenty lashes of the cane!"

Xianfei was furious when she came back last night. Since she entered the palace, she had never been ignored by the emperor. In the past, whenever she cried, the emperor would come to comfort her. But this time, tears were useless. Not only did he not accompany her back last night, but he also failed to come when she sent someone to invite him today. She also heard that His Majesty went to Changchun Palace later. She could only vent her anger on the servants, otherwise she would explode!

Jing'er stepped forward and advised: "Your Majesty, I heard that His Majesty has been worried about the winter cold disaster recently and has been busy making arrangements. I guess he is too busy with the affairs of the previous dynasty to take care of you. Your Majesty should try to please him and think about how to share his worries and win his heart!"

Qing Er also advised: "Your Majesty, if you get angry, it will only hurt your body. Doctor Li said that Your Majesty must keep a good mood so that your blood can flow smoothly and your body will be strong and healthy."

The virtuous concubine slowly calmed down, and wiped away tears while sitting in her seat: "You are right, I will not lose. I am the most favored virtuous concubine in the harem, how can a little beauty like her compare! You can also help me think about how to share the worries of His Majesty and let His Majesty see my good side!"

Jing'er thought for a moment and said, "Why don't you initiate a fundraising campaign? As the leader, you can call on the harem to donate money for the cold disaster and help the refugees. This will not only help your majesty, but also earn you a good reputation as a virtuous person."

"Donate silver?" The virtuous concubine frowned. Before, her father was found to have embezzled money. The emperor ordered him to make up for the embezzled silver. The Lu family couldn't raise the money, so they came to her to ask for several thousand taels to make up the amount. She didn't have much silver on her hands.