The Self-cultivation of a Salted Fish Concubine

"I knew you were very ambitious, but I never thought you would harm the Queen."

The queen will die sooner or later. Concubine Jing Shu really doesn't understand what Xi Chongrong is trying to achieve by doing this?

Xi Chongrong had a very strange expression on his face. "You don't understand. None of you understand."

"Of course, I thought you would understand."

Concubine Jing Shu: “…”

She really didn't understand the thoughts of fools.

Xi Chongrong's anger dissipated, and there seemed to be a hint of memories in his eyes.

"We witnessed the Emperor and Empress' wedding. Do you remember?"

Concubine Jingshu was stunned, and then she thought of the wedding that Xi Chongrong mentioned. It was when the empress married the emperor, who was still the King of Jing, as a princess of the Xia Dynasty.

Xi Chongrong: "The entire road from the capital city gate to Prince Jing's mansion was guarded by the Imperial Guards. Countless people came to watch the ceremony. The surrounding area was filled with the blaring of gongs and drums, and the sounds of congratulations filled the air. The bride's escort hadn't even finished walking for half an hour."

At that time, the Xia Dynasty was powerful and married the princess to the Yu Dynasty, which naturally received her with the highest etiquette.

Later, when other princes and other royal families got married, there was never such a lively ceremony.

This is the only way that Prince Jing is superior to other princes.

"We were still young at the time, and we'd made an appointment to watch the wedding ceremony from the top of the Zhezhi Building. We watched the lively scene from afar... Do you remember what I said then?"

It had been so long that Concubine Jing Shu had no memory of the wedding, let alone what Xi Chongrong had said.

Seeing that Concubine Jing Shu was silent, Xi Chongrong sneered, "You are different from me, so naturally you don't remember."

She looked up to the window, her thin jaw outlined with a hint of pride in the weak sunlight.

Xi Chongrong said proudly, "I said back then that if I ever get married, it would be a grand occasion like this!"

Concubine Jing Shu raised her eyebrows slightly, as if a little stunned, but she immediately understood what Xi Chongrong wanted to say.

At that time, the Duke Su's Mansion was at its peak, and Xi Chongrong was a noble lady in the capital, raised by thousands of people. Even when she met the princesses of the previous emperor, she did not seem weak at all.

Princesses can only marry down, but noble ladies in the capital can marry up.

Concubine Jingshu also came at that time and could best understand Xi Chongrong's arrogance and ambition.

Xi Chongrong: "As I watched the wedding procession, I was wondering how an unfavored princess of the Xia Dynasty could receive such honor and favor?!"

"She had such a grand wedding, I should be better than her!"

The young Xi Chongrong had a sense of pride in his heart.

She is the daughter of a duke and a descendant of the nobility. In the future, she will marry better and live a better life than the people in the sedan chair.

Xi Chongrong thought of her brightness and pride in her youth, and then of the dilapidated Suguo Mansion today, and her eyes suddenly turned red.

"Who would have thought that her brother and father would later die on the front lines, and this unloved Xia Dynasty princess would become the empress?!"

"Because of the decline of Duke Su's Mansion, I was sent to the palace to seek favor and became a small concubine."

"How ridiculous?!"

There has never been peace on the border between the Xia Dynasty and the Yu Dynasty, and wars have often occurred over the years.

It was only after the emperor ascended the throne that he launched a large-scale war, and the fighting between the two sides became more and more intense.

But before that, many soldiers died defending the territory.

Xi Chongrong's father and brother both died on the front line.

Concubine Jing Shu pondered for a long time before saying, "I vaguely heard that the one who killed your brother was none other than the Second Prince of the Xia Dynasty."

"Right! Isn't it ridiculous?!" Xi Chongrong's red eyes were filled with tears and hatred, "My father and brother died at the hands of her own brother, and yet she can still sit firmly on the throne of the empress of my Yu Dynasty?!"

"Don't tell me there's a bad relationship between the Queen and the Xia Dynasty!"

"If it weren't for those soldiers like the Second Prince of the Xia Dynasty fighting on the front lines, how could she have become the empress?!"

"No matter how bad our relationship is, her status and honor were given by the Xia Dynasty. Everything she has is achieved by stepping on the blood of our Yu Dynasty soldiers!"

So even though Xi Chongrong knew that the queen would die sooner or later, she still gave her a push!

One is to vent one's own unwillingness and to speak out against the fate that should have beenfallen one!

The second is to avenge her father and brother who died on the front line!

But everything that has happened will never change because of the queen's death.

The resentment in Xi Chongrong's chest never dissipated.

She stared at Concubine Jing Shu intently: "Duke Yingguo is lucky enough to survive the battlefield and even at such an old age he still protects your descendants."

"Only my Suguo Mansion is unlucky. Our sons died on the front lines, and our family is declining. We can only rely on selling daughters to gain glory."

"If the situation were reversed someday, and your Duke of Ying's mansion had no one to support it, and you went from being a noble lady in Kyoto to a target for power-seeking, despised and picked on, and then had to watch the person who harmed you ascend to the throne of empress and be suppressed by her, then I would respect you if you could still laugh about it!"

This is the greatest resentment and anger in Xi Chongrong's heart.

In her eyes, Concubine Jing Shu's words were just empty talk!

The Duke of Ying's Mansion carefully cultivated Concubine Jingshu, and she was a rare talent. They had long planned to marry her to a prince, so they kept her for a few more years and treated her with great respect.

When Concubine Jingshu entered the palace, she was already considered to have married late.

But Xi Chongrong entered the palace later than her.

It was not because the Duke Su's Mansion had a long-term vision and kept her to send her to the palace to curry favor with him, but because the Duke Su's Mansion planned to use Xi Chongrong's marriage to marry into a noble family so that they could support the Duke Su's Mansion in the future!

Unfortunately, the people that Duke Suguo’s Mansion looks up to are looked down upon by others.

After all these years of choosing and choosing, Xi Chongrong's marriage was delayed, and in the end entering the palace became the best choice.

Originally, Xi Chongrong was unwilling to enter the palace.

Firstly, she did not want to be a concubine and be inferior to the queen. Secondly, she knew that the Duke Su's Mansion was in decline, and sending her into the palace would not give her a good position.

A concubine's position may be considered a high position for a concubine.

But how could Xi Chongrong, who was once looked down upon by even the princess, be willing to do so?

But she couldn't go against the family's decision!

After hearing Xi Chongrong's inner resentment and unwillingness, Concubine Jing Shu sighed: "Even so, you have a prince, you have become Chongrong, and the Duke Su's Mansion is thriving. It's a time for great hope in the future..."

"But I can't get over it!" Xi Chongrong roared, "I once thought of marrying a good man of equal status, having children, and managing the household. I don't ask for a harmonious marriage, but just mutual respect and understanding... With my abilities, I can still support the Duke's Mansion!"

"Now, outsiders say that I have become a ninth concubine and have a prince by my side, which makes me a blessed person. But I am trapped in the deep palace, not being loved by the emperor, being ignored, being looked down upon, and having no end in sight. I have had enough of these days!"

Xi Chongrong shouted hysterically, looking at Concubine Jing Shu with a mocking look, "Have you never felt resentment or hatred?"

"Your appearance is damaged. It's rare for the emperor to even look at you in this life. Even your son isn't your biological son. Every day you touch the cold pillow, and you tell me you haven't regretted it?!"

"You tell me you wanted to live like this?!"

"I'm only twenty-three, I don't want to live like this for the rest of my life!"

The husband she wants to marry must either give her respect and love, or give her power and status.

If she can't get either, what's the point of her life?!

Where should she put all the pride she had been raised to have?!