The Marquise: I Earn My Own Worship

If we say that in the previous dynasty, there was the Holy Empress Dowager who showed favor to Queen Dowager Wang, then the Empress Zhu and Concubine Ning of today are replicas of the Holy Empress Dowager and Queen Dowager Wang.

The fate of Concubine Ning and Queen Zhu began at a talent show.

That was the first time Ning Lerou saw Queen Zhu. She looked so gentle and weak, and she was lovable at first sight.

The Emperor of Chu loved this kind of pitiful woman the most. The Queen naturally knew his preference, so she left her name card after meeting her.

But this was not the first time Empress Zhu met Concubine Ning.

Long before the concubines entered the palace, the queen had secretly visited the concubines' courtyard.

At that time, Ning Lerou was seen being bullied in the hidden room. Ning Lerou had a bad "background" and was surrounded and ridiculed by others.

The daughters of the newly rich were the most arrogant. They relied on the power of their fathers and brothers to wantonly slander the nobles of the previous dynasty who had already "died".

"You are the daughter of a fallen nobleman. Why do you dare to stand with us? You are really polluting the palace. I really don't know why your father and brother sent you here. You have simply caused His Majesty's dislike and implicated us."

At that time, it seemed like a shame to mention those nobles of the past.

The winner takes all, and the loser is destined to be unable to stand upright.

Because of the emperor's preferences and decisions, none of the descendants of the heroes who had followed the founding of the Great Chu had a good ending.

Queen Zhu stood at the hidden door, listening quietly, touching the baby in her belly in her hand.

Her belly, which was more than five months pregnant, was slightly bulging. She soothed her belly, which was fluctuating violently, as if she was soothing herself.

Those words were like needles piercing her heart, so dense and painful.

At this moment, she understood very clearly that the days of their success were numbered and they had to find another way out, otherwise they would surely bring about their own destruction.

And the only ray of hope is this child who is connected to the emperor and the nobles.

Once Prince Huiwen died, this unborn child became the last hope of all the nobles.

If they could support another emperor who was on their side, they would have a chance to breathe.

Why just a little bit? Because everyone knows in their hearts that the fall of the old ministers is unstoppable.

I just want some time to change myself and start over.

A spark cannot be extinguished, but when the east wind blows, the fire can spread across the entire prairie.

How could those poor people who had their resources robbed and been suppressed for many years just follow their wishes?

When Ning Lerou entered the palace, she moved directly into the Central Palace and was greatly favored by His Majesty, and even jumped several levels.

This was a backup plan left by Queen Zhu for emergencies.

However, what she didn't expect was that the emperor in his thirties actually found his true love through her efforts.

She was so happy.

Your Majesty is not like the late emperor and the ancestor emperor. Although he seems to have a bad temper, his methods are much gentler.

Queen Zhu took every precaution, and with the protection of Concubine Wen and Concubine Ning, she gave birth to a prince safely.

As soon as the nobles who had a backup plan learned the news, they began to make arrangements to preserve their power for the future.

Unfortunately, the joy did not last long. Looking at the healthy child, March suddenly passed away due to a fright.

Have you ever seen someone fall from heaven to hell?

Queen Zhu was physically and mentally exhausted. She locked herself in the hall and grew white hair on her temples overnight.

When the Emperor of Chu came and had his men knock on the door, she came out holding the lifeless child covered in bruises.

The gate of the central palace opened and the sunlight shone on her face, but she did not feel a trace of warmth.

She finally understood that when she met her former best friend in prison, he understood what she said about the sun being cold.

After vomiting a mouthful of blood foam, the queen slowly fell down, taking with her the dead prince of Chu.

Everyone thought that the queen had lost her beloved son and was in unbearable grief and vomiting blood, even Concubine Wen thought so.

But only Ning Zhaoyi at that time knew that this was not the case.

They all looked down on the Queen.

The Queen's pain is shared by many people.

Later, the seriously ill queen was taken out of the palace by the Holy Empress Dowager. She was gone for many years and only returned today.

"Your concubine pays homage to the Queen. May the Queen be in good health."

The concubines of higher status came in and stood in front to pay their respects, while those of lower status stood back in order, with the ladies at the outermost position being the lowest-ranking ones.

"Please stand up and take a seat."

Queen Zhu placed one hand lazily on the ring and raised the other hand slightly.

Concubine Ning was the first to sit on the chair closest to the Queen, looking at her sister with tears streaming down her face. The others sat down one by one, and Concubine Ning spoke.

"Sister, I haven't seen you for many years. How are you doing?"

Queen Zhu looked at Concubine Ning. Time had not defeated her beauty, and she was still the same as before.

However, the emperor took good care of her. Over the years, she only grew older but not smarter, and was still used to putting her life in the hands of others.

Or your own enemy.

Seeing her crying undignifiedly in front of the palace concubines, Queen Zhu sighed in her heart.

Never mind, I'm back at last.

"Don't cry, my sister, the Imperial Concubine, is she unhappy that I'm back?"

"Happy, happy, why not? I wish I could set off a bunch of firecrackers to celebrate."

Concubine Ning explained anxiously, and that person was about to leave his seat.

"Hurry up and wipe away the tears from your eyes. You are already a noble concubine, and your every word and action is being watched by the concubines below."

Queen Zhu smiled gently, but perhaps because of her thinness and overly powerful aura, in the eyes of the concubines below, the queen's majesty was even greater than before.

After hearing this, Concubine Xian and Concubine De tightened the handkerchiefs in their hands.

What did Queen Zhu mean by this? She started to give them a warning as soon as she returned to the palace.

"The concubines below," even if according to the title, Ning Guifei ranked first among the four concubines. But in terms of family background and royal heirs, they were much better than Ning Guifei.

I'm so angry, so angry!

Concubine De was the most angry, and she could hardly keep the smile on her face.

But who cares about her?

Queen Zhu pretended not to see it and called in the new concubines who had entered the palace one by one, offering them tea and admiring their beauty.

When she was not in the palace, the concubines who came in later were not served tea. Now that she is back, she must make up for it.

It took most of the day to serve tea to all the concubines who were only talented women or above, and everyone was a little tired in the end.

The concubines and imperial concubines who were sitting quietly tightened their waists, not to mention the standing concubines, whose legs began to tremble.

The queen sat upright, her back straight, without the slightest sign of slackness.

Fortunately, we finally waited until the last group of people finished offering tea.

Looking around, Queen Zhu observed the expressions on the faces of the concubines.