An Lingrong after rebirth

"And according to Yixiu's plan, if Concubine Wan doesn't take the position of Imperial Concubine now, is she waiting for her enemy to be reinstated and promoted to a higher position to disgust herself?"

"But this action was a bit impatient. The emperor's expression was tinged with an unknown meaning, but he did not refuse after all."

"The queen is virtuous, so let's do as you say and make Consort Shu the Imperial Consort."

"The change in the emperor's tone immediately alerted Yixiu. After a little thought, she understood what the other party was thinking."

This is probably because she is worried that she and Concubine Shu will "go along with the evil" and plot for Hong Zhao to take over his throne. A smile appeared on the corner of her mouth. "Your Majesty, I dare not respond to your words."

"Your Majesty sympathizes with Concubine Shu's hard work over the years, so he issued such a gracious decree. How come all the credit has become mine now? If Concubine Shu knew, what if she only cared about thanking me and forgot about Your Majesty? Wouldn't it be a waste of Your Majesty's kindness?"

It was very rare for Yixiu to tease the emperor like this, and the atmosphere in the palace seemed to relax for a moment.

"What I wish for is harmony in the harem. It is because of the queen's virtue that this is possible. I should thank you very much."

"Your Majesty, I am ashamed to accept your words. The harmony among the sisters in the harem is due to your majesty's power. With the Queen Mother in charge of Shoukang Palace, everything will be fine."

So, the topic was skipped and the emperor started to ask, "How is Hongshi's wife doing recently? Is she still healthy? Can you find out whether the baby is a boy or a girl?"

"Your Majesty is looking forward to having a grandson, and so am I. When I was paying my respects to Concubine Qi two days ago, I asked her about it. She said that Concubine Fu Jin is in good health, and seeing her belly is pointed, I think it must be a prince."

"Well, Hongshi has made great contributions, and so has Concubine Qi. I think we should also reward Concubine Qi."

Yixiu raised her eyebrows slightly. What does this mean?

It would be fine if the number of concubines exceeded four, but does it have to be the same for the imperial concubine?

"But Yixiu doesn't care about these. Aren't the so-called palace rules and regulations just for the emperor's words?"

"Does His Majesty intend to take advantage of the promotion of Concubine Shu to also promote Concubine Qi?"

"But the palace rules and regulations state that there can only be two imperial concubines..."

"The emperor seemed hesitant, but Yixiu understood the meaning of his words clearly, and a chill rose in her heart uncontrollably."

Obviously, she had no such intention before, but in this short moment, she became suspicious because I mentioned the promotion of Concubine Shu.

"Your Majesty, you are worrying too much. The palace rules and regulations were set by our ancestors. Your Majesty is also the Son of Heaven, so why can't they be changed? And didn't the number of concubines exceed four before?"

"Your Majesty is considerate of the sisters in the harem. I think it is not a big deal if they go a little beyond the limit."

"But Concubine Qi is mediocre, and so is Hongshi. Let alone a noble concubine, even if she is immediately made an imperial noble concubine, can she stop me in the slightest?"

Yixiu naturally didn't care at all.

But it was her attitude that eased the emperor's doubts.

But even so, there is no thought of withdrawing my sincerity.

"Since the Queen has the same idea, then let's promote Concubine Qi to Imperial Concubine this time. The Queen will have to take care of the canonization."

Early the next morning.

Jingren Palace.

Su Peisheng walked in holding the imperial edict. Except for Yixiu, everyone else looked puzzled.

But Su Peisheng did not keep everyone waiting for long. He bowed to the queen and then unfolded the imperial edict.

"The Emperor, in accordance with the Will of Heaven, declares: Consort An is a wise and virtuous woman with a prudent nature. She has shown virtuous manners and performed her duties with great respect. I hereby, in compliance with the Empress Dowager's benevolent instructions, promote her to the rank of Imperial Consort. I decree this!"

"The Emperor, in compliance with the Will of Heaven, proclaims: Concubine Qi Li is kind, thrifty and modest, like a piece of unpolished jade and pure gold, warm and honest, and humble and submissive. I hereby, in compliance with the Empress Dowager's benevolent instructions, promote her to the rank of Imperial Concubine. I decree this!"

Two imperial edicts were issued at the same time, and not only Concubine Qi, but even An Lingrong herself was shocked.

Su Peisheng bowed to the two of them and said, "My two noble concubines, please accept my order and express your gratitude."

The two looked at each other, and then An Lingrong pulled Concubine Qi, and they stood up and knelt together, "I obey your order and thank you for your grace, Your Majesty."

After receiving the imperial edict, Su Peisheng turned around again and took another imperial edict in his hand.

Just as everyone was wondering, Su Peisheng spoke again, "Noble Concubine Shu, please accept the order!" An Lingrong didn't understand what he meant, and subconsciously glanced at Yixiu. Seeing that there was only a smile in her eyes, she felt a little relieved.

She stood up and knelt down again, "I accept your order."

"Noble Consort An, for giving birth to the royal heir and for her hard work in managing the six palaces, is granted the title of the Manchu Army's Plain Yellow Banner and the surname Anjia. I decree this!"

"Su Peisheng's voice was majestic. Although it was only a few short sentences, the content made An Lingrong and the others in the palace stunned."

The honor of carrying the flag!

Even when the Nian family was at its peak, Concubine Hua did not receive this honor!

Now it is Concubine Shu's turn. It is really a matter of time and fate.

Everyone was shocked and bewildered, and An Lingrong herself was not much better.

Even if she racked her brains, she couldn't imagine how she could receive such a reward in her lifetime.

Anshi…

Anchorage…

"Is this what they mean by fate playing tricks on us?" An Lingrong looked a little dazed until a voice came from behind.

"Shu Guifei was so happy that she forgot to thank you."

Yixiu's voice brought An Lingrong back to her senses. She bowed her head and said, "Your Majesty, I thank you for your grace."

Su Peisheng gave An Lingrong a false helping hand and she stood up. "Thank you, Eunuch Su, for making this trip early in the morning. When you are free later in the day, you must go to Chengqian Palace for a cup of tea."

Su Peisheng understood the meaning of An Lingrong's words and smiled and returned the greeting, "Your Majesty is too polite. The imperial edict has been delivered and it is time for me to take my leave."

An Lingrong did not speak immediately, after all, they were in Jingren Palace at the moment. She turned to look at Yixiu, and when she saw her nod slightly, she said, "Take care, eunuch."

After Su Peisheng left, everyone stood up and knelt. "Your servants/concubines, congratulations to the Imperial Concubine Shu and the Imperial Concubine Qi."

"Sisters, please excuse me."

Concubine Qi spoke first. An Lingrong walked to Shen Meizhuang's side, helped her stand up, and whispered, "Sister, are you as polite as me?"

Shen Meizhuang pretended to glare at An Lingrong and did not say anything in response, but both of them understood each other's intentions.

After a few polite words, they sat down again. Yixiu smiled and said, "Although the palace rules and regulations stipulate that there are two imperial concubines and four concubines, the Third Prince's wife is pregnant with the emperor's eldest grandson, so Imperial Concubine Qi has made great contributions. In addition, Imperial Concubine Shu has given birth to a dragon and a phoenix for several years. The Empress Dowager and the Emperor are very happy. She naturally deserves to be an imperial concubine."

"So when it comes to the matter of status, the emperor's thoughts are naturally the most important. If my sisters can have more happy events, I will naturally ask the emperor to reward them again."

"Yi Xiu's words gave the lower-ranking concubines great hope. If they could also give birth to a prince, how could their future positions be bad?"

They all stood up and thanked him again, and the greetings ended there.

After leaving Jingren Palace, An Lingrong took Shen Meizhuang's arm and walked slowly along the palace path.

"Even after two lifetimes, An Lingrong's heart still can't calm down for a long time. She is not completely happy, but there are still hidden worries in her heart."

Shen Meizhuang seemed to sense An Lingrong's thoughts. She turned her head to look at her, then smiled and said, "You are the only one in the harem who has the honor of raising the banner. I will be happy for you for a long time."

An Lingrong held Shen Meizhuang's arm tightly and said, "Sister, the flowers are blooming and the fire is boiling. I am more than happy."

Shen Meizhuang nodded after hearing this. "Of course I understand what you mean, but Rong'er, I have something to say, but I don't know if I should say it."

"Sister and I are friends for life and death, so there is naturally nothing to hide. If you have anything to say, just speak directly."

Shen Meizhuang's eyes fell on a bird on the distant palace wall. "Like the Nian family back then, it was because of their great achievements that frightened the emperor. But my sister's father died early, and there are no brothers in the family. Even if the emperor is suspicious and fearful, he should not treat you."

An Lingrong nodded and said, "Sister, I understand what you said, but the child is growing up day by day, and I am afraid that the father will doubt the son."

"Your Majesty is suspicious, and it is normal for you to have such thoughts. Then why don't you go back and ask the Empress?"

"If there really is something wrong, the Queen should have told me about it. Now I just hope that this is just my random thought and it will never come true."

As soon as the voice fell, a voice came from behind, "My Lady Imperial Concubine!"

"The two men paused, and when they turned around and saw that it was Jianqiu, they frowned and looked at each other with worry in their eyes."

In this short moment, Jianqiu had already arrived in front of her, knelt down and bowed, "Your Highness, the Queen Mother remembered that when the Sixth Prince had dinner in Jingren Palace two days ago, he left a collection of poems he copied for you. I would like to trouble you to come back."

Shen Meizhuang's heart suddenly tightened, and she subconsciously pinched An Lingrong's arm.

An Lingrong shook her head at the other party, then looked at Jianqiu and smiled, "It's such a small matter, why bother your aunt to make this trip? In this case, sister, you go back first, and I will go to Jingren Palace again."

"Although Shen Meizhuang had hidden worries in her heart, she couldn't say anything more in front of Jianqiu. She could only nod and watch An Lingrong turn around and leave."

All the way back to Jingren Palace, An Lingrong did not ask Jianqiu anything.

"She also knew clearly that if Hong Zhao really had any poetry collection, he would definitely send it back to his Chengqian Palace. How could it be left in Jingren Palace?"

"The Queen is like this. I guess I guessed the Emperor's thoughts correctly and wanted to give me some advice. When I thought of this, I suddenly felt even more worried."

His footsteps did not stop for a moment, and soon he entered the gate of Jingren Palace again.

Yi Zheng was sitting at the table with some breakfast items in front of him.

Seeing An Lingrong coming in, she said, "I asked you to come back at this time, thinking you must be hungry. Come and have breakfast with me today."

An Lingrong did not refuse and walked over to sit down opposite him. "Yes, thank you for your consideration, Your Majesty."

As if they had something on their mind, they spent almost no time on breakfast and both put down their chopsticks.

An Lingrong took the initiative to speak, "Empress, I dare to ask if the Emperor is dissatisfied with my position?"

Yixiu shook her head slightly and said, "I think this matter is ultimately my fault."

Yixiu's words left An Lingrong puzzled.

But she didn't need to ask, Yixiu followed up, "Yesterday, the emperor took the initiative to mention the matter of Concubine Wan's death and the birth of a phoenix in Jingren Palace. I knew that the emperor needed to borrow your auspicious dragon and phoenix to cover up Concubine Wan's misfortune."

"I originally thought that the emperor only wanted to promote you, but he actually mentioned raising the flag."

"After we agreed on the matter of raising the flag, I thought that you and I had planned that Concubine Wan would be favored again, so we naturally couldn't let her be promoted to the position of Imperial Concubine in the future, so I took the initiative to mention that I would give you a double reward."

At this point, Yixiu suddenly paused and sighed helplessly, "Who knew that it was because of this that the emperor became suspicious and mentioned that Hongshi's wife was pregnant, and wanted to promote Concubine Qi at the same time."

"To be honest, I was too eager for quick success and in my haste I fell short and caused the emperor to become suspicious."

Yixiu said a long string of words, which were not much different from what An Lingrong had guessed. After a pause, An Lingrong smiled bitterly and said, "Your Majesty has taken so much trouble for me, how can I blame you? After all, I deserve all the benefits."