The wives of the concubines are empresses

Shangguan Wanjun walked in lightly in a light pink dress and a blue lotus shawl.

"Your son greets the Queen Mother. May the Queen Mother be well!"

Concubine Wen - Li Youwen was wearing a light blue long brocade robe today, and a golden crown inlaid with green jade on her head as she bowed respectfully.

"Your Highness greets your Majesty, Mother. May your Majesty be well!"

The still charming face of Empress Dowager Xigong was full of kindness and enthusiasm.

"Please take a seat, my son, come and sit next to your mother."

Shangguan Wanjun smiled slightly and walked forward. The Empress Dowager Xigong held her hand and she sat down.

"Your Highness seems to have lost some weight. Has he not been eating well recently?"

Shangguan Wanjun shook her head slightly. "I've eaten on time every day. I guess I've been busy lately and have consumed some food. Don't worry, Mother."

When Empress Dowager Xigong heard this, her beautiful eyes were filled with heartache.

"My prince, you have worked hard, but you must balance work and rest. Your body is your greatest asset."

"I understand and will keep in mind your mother's teachings." Shangguan Wanjun smiled gently.

Seeing that the mother and daughter were as close as before, Nanny Cui felt relieved for her master.

"Mother heard that the Lan family sent their son to the palace. Is this true?"

Shangguan Wanjun paused while sipping her tea. "Mother, this is indeed true, but it's been a few months. Why are you bringing it up all of a sudden?"

Could it be that there was something else behind what my mother said? Did someone whisper something in her ear?

She looked up at Aunt Cui and the others, and Aunt Cui was slightly startled.

Is the emperor dissatisfied with them?

But they have always been very obedient. Why does the emperor look at them like this? Thinking of what the empress dowager just said, Nanny Cui understood.

It seems that the emperor has become suspicious, and it’s really not their fault.

The Queen Mother of the Western Palace sighed softly, "Your grandfather asked your grandmother to enter the palace. Implicitly, he wanted to send someone else to the palace. Mother doesn't know what to do."

Seeing the embarrassment on her mother's face, Shangguan Wanjun understood that it must be someone from the Earl's Mansion. Seeing that someone from the Lan family was sent to the palace, her mind began to become active again.

"What did mother say?"

"Mother said everything depends on you."

Shangguan Wanjun was still satisfied with her mother's answer.

"The Lan family sent someone into the palace, and I acquiesced to it. I also warned the person involved before." The Queen Mother Xigong was stunned. She never thought that there were some twists and turns in this matter.

But after hearing what her daughter said, she asked hesitantly.

"My prince, do you not want the children of your maternal grandfather to enter the palace to accompany you?"

Concubine Wen-Li Youwen also looked at her, and Shangguan Wanjun nodded lightly.

"I really don't want to. After all, I don't want to give birth to a stupid child."

The Queen Mother Xigong was shocked when she heard this: "How could it be?"

Wenpin-Li Youwen also looked at her in confusion, wanting to hear her explanation.

"Mother, I am related by blood to the Zhang family's immediate family members. If we have a child born from this union, our blood relationship will be even closer."

"Isn't that a good thing?"

"No, not at all. Mother, do you know why the survival rate of the offspring of emperors in previous dynasties was low, or why concubines were prone to miscarriage?"

The Queen Mother of the Western Palace shook her head. "Mother doesn't know much about those things, especially medical skills. However, in a palace like this, there are bound to be some private and dirty things, so the survival rate of children is naturally low."

"Not only that, children born to people whose blood relationship is too close will have a harder time surviving and generally won't be very smart."

Empress Dowager Xigong was shocked: "Is it so serious? But this is not absolute, right?"

Shangguan Wanjun sighed and reached out to hold her hand.

"Mother, I'm sure you hope that I will give birth to a healthy child. If I, a great emperor, give birth to a foolish or less intelligent child, I will be ridiculed for the rest of my life. Do you want to see others laugh at me?"

First convince people with reason, appeal to their emotions, and persuade them with reason, then the losses will be minimized without sacrificing a single soldier.

The Queen Mother Xigong hesitated for a moment, then nodded solemnly.

"Mother understands. My son, please relax. Mother will take care of your maternal family. You just need to manage the court well."

Upon hearing this, Shangguan Wanjun smiled slightly.

"Thank you, Mother. I'm hungry after all this talk. Let's eat."

The Empress Dowager Xigong nodded and said, "Madame Cui, serve the meal."

Madam Cui bowed respectfully: "Yes, Queen Mother."

Concubine Wen - Li Youwen looked up at the girl sitting next to the Queen Mother of the West Palace. The emperor was so smart and capable that he solved a problem with just a few words, which made him really admire him.

January passed quietly, and the Jinshi candidates entered the palace for the examination.

Taifu Yun and six other imperial teachers served as the chief examiners and invigilators of this examination, and they were always hovering among the candidates.

Shangguan Wanjun brought the talented Concubine Wen - Bai Xuanyi, Concubine Shu - Gao Zihao, Concubine Mei - Hu Siyang and other imperial husbands to the place where the palace examination was held.

Today she was wearing a bright yellow phoenix robe, paired with an orange shawl with a dragon pattern, and a phoenix and dragon hairpins on her head, which were inserted in her hair on both sides. Her every move showed her gentleness, dignity and imperial majesty, and she walked into the hall with dignity.

"The Emperor has arrived! Concubine Wen has arrived! Concubine Shu has arrived! Concubine Mei has arrived! Concubine Hui has arrived!"

The four concubines followed her into the palace examination room one after another. At this time, all fifty candidates had finished the exam.

When they heard the announcement, they had already stood up, bent down, and bowed respectfully.

"Students pay their respects to the Emperor, the Concubine Wen, the Concubine Shu, the Concubine Mei, and the Concubine Hui."

They were a little confused as to why the empress brought the concubines with her.

Shangguan Wanjun sat on the dragon throne with the support of Concubine Wen. She looked forward and raised her jade hand slightly.

"My Lords and candidates, please excuse me."

Everyone expressed their gratitude.

"I thank the emperor."

"The student thanks the emperor."

Shangguan Wanjun glanced at the Jinshi candidates calmly and found that they all had excellent temperament. There were some who were not outstanding in appearance, but their temperament was also good.

"What do you think of this exam? Was it difficult?"

She originally wanted to incorporate some of her own thoughts into the exam questions, but after thinking it over, she finally decided to give up and take another look next year.

The candidates were in deep thought, and some of them bowed in response.

"Your Majesty, some of the questions are quite difficult."

"Which aspect?"

The candidate replied: "State governance policy."

Shangguan Wanjun pursed her lips and smiled faintly when she heard this, then stood up and said, "Let me take a look."

The gazes of Master Yun and the others followed her. At this time, Shangguan Wanjun had arrived at the desk area and walked towards the candidate.

"Please point!"

Shangguan Wanjun looked in the direction of his finger and found that it was a question about irrigating farmland.

"Which teacher wrote this question?"

The thirty-five-year-old Junior Master bowed and said, "Your Majesty, this is what I wrote."

Shangguan Wanjun looked up at him, continued to review the questions, and finally asked a question.

"Young Master, do you come from a humble family?"

The young master was stunned: "How does the emperor know?"

Shangguan Wanjun smiled softly and said, "This question is so rigorous. If a child from an aristocratic family were to answer such a meticulous question, I'm afraid he wouldn't be able to."

The young master was shocked.