The Eunuch's Declaration of Loyalty

Chapter 65

In his previous life, the emperor never established an empress, and among the four consorts, the Imperial Concubine Wang Yuexiang was the head, jointly managing the harem. Although it was said to be jointly managed, almost everyone could see that the Imperial Concubine Wang Yuexiang was the one who truly had the power.

At that time, Liu Qingtang didn't want to get too involved in her nephew's harem. After all, as an elder, she didn't need to interfere so much, and she wasn't the kind of person with such a controlling nature that she would meddle in even her own nephew's affairs. However, since the emperor took concubines, no princes had been born in the harem for many years, and even those who were pregnant had miscarried mysteriously. As the Empress Dowager, she had to take it seriously because it concerned the imperial heir.

But when the concubines who had miscarried were questioned, they all either feigned fear or claimed it was an accidental miscarriage, and all of them were certain to die of illness within a few months. How could Liu Qingtang believe this was a coincidence? Even if she hadn't experienced the infighting within the harem herself, she was certainly aware of the conflicts and rivalries that existed there. She assumed the matter of the children was merely a game of scheming and infighting among the concubines vying for the emperor's favor, and without a second thought, she placed her suspicions on the emperor's harem.

Among them, the one she suspected the most was Consort Wang Yuexiang. For some reason, Wang Yuexiang always seemed to be targeting her unconsciously, and would occasionally show that sarcastic expression, but it would disappear quickly. At least on the surface, she was still very respectful to her most of the time, but Liu Qingtang just felt very uncomfortable with the way Wang Yuexiang looked at her.

Logically speaking, there shouldn't be any major conflict between her and the Empress Dowager. Back then, Liu Qingtang and Chief Minister Wang weren't the kind of open or covert rivals they are now, but rather they made many concessions. There was no reason for Wang Yuexiang to make things difficult for her like this. In her previous life, Liu Qingtang couldn't understand it at all, and could only think that she and Wang Yuexiang were probably just naturally incompatible. But now, after learning about Xiao Huaixu's unsavory thoughts about her, it all makes sense.

Wang Yuexiang probably knew, which is why she acted that way. Back when Liu Qingtang still considered Xiao Huaixu her beloved nephew, she never held Wang Yuexiang, a woman he adored, against her in many ways, truly displaying remarkable tolerance and magnanimity. When she was first reborn, Liu Qingtang still considered using Wang Yuexiang, the woman Xiao Huaixu cherished, for something, but after learning she was merely a shield, everything had to be overturned and started anew.

Back during the plague, Liu Qingtang had sent people to intercept Wang Yuexiang, whom Chief Minister Wang had placed in the Emperor's Chang'an Palace. At that time, she was posing as an ordinary palace maid. Liu Qingtang took her away without warning, and she died in the palace prison in less than two days. Chief Minister Wang probably didn't care much about this illegitimate granddaughter who hadn't yet demonstrated her value, and pretended not to know anything about her.

Replacing Wang Yuexiang's original position, the woman who became the emperor's favorite and a close confidante was the one sent by Chief Minister Feng—the very woman Liu Qingtang had prepared long ago. This woman, named Xuan Ge, was said to be extremely favored by the emperor, who required her to be with him daily. Those women in the Nixiu Palace who hadn't yet entered the harem already knew this news, and seeing this young palace maid who had suddenly appeared out of nowhere vying for his favor, they naturally had their own thoughts.

Regardless of how they gradually shed their initial naivety over the past two months, Liu Qingtang abandoned her initial plan to control these people and decided to simply observe from the sidelines. Since learning of Xiao Huaixu's intentions, she knew it was inappropriate for her to get involved in many things. This grand palace drama should have been orchestrated by her, but now she had to become an uninvolved spectator.

It may sound cruel, but since Xiao Huaixu didn't care about these people, Liu Qingtang naturally wouldn't waste too much effort on them. What she wanted was for Xiao Huaixu to die at the right time, not just to suppress him as she had initially done. The only use these women had in Liu Qingtang's eyes now was probably to bear Xiao Huaixu's child—a boy who could silence public opinion after his death and allow her to raise him as the next emperor.

On the day of the selection, the Emperor, as always, smiled and said he would leave everything to the Empress Dowager. Liu Qingtang then selected all the women who showed ambition. The specific ranks would still be considered. Taking into account the backgrounds and factions of the selected women, someone would make reasonable arrangements. Liu Qingtang and the Emperor only needed to watch and decide which ones best suited their preferences. Ignoring the joy on the faces of the selected women and the ambiguous expressions of disappointment or relief on the faces of those who were not chosen, Liu Qingtang turned to speak with Xiao Huaixu.

"I've heard that the Emperor has taken a liking to a palace maid. If he truly does, I am not one to be heartless. Bring her here so I can take a look. If she is a good one, I will give her a rank and have her serve the Emperor well alongside these newly entered concubines."

Liu Qingtang now avoids speaking to Xiao Huaixu unless absolutely necessary, and even when she does, she keeps it very brief. Xiao Huaixu remains unmoved by her aloofness, remaining humble and gentle, his words filled with warmth and trust. Hearing her say this now, he smiled without showing any sign of unease, "Then I thank you, Mother."

The next day, Xuan Ge, the new favorite whom the emperor had kept hidden and whose name was the talk of the palace, came to pay her respects at Cixi Palace. Perhaps having heard the news, the young ladies-in-waiting who had not yet been assigned a position arrived early. Even if they truly wanted to see Xuan Ge, they had to find a reason to pay their respects to the Empress Dowager, even though many of them actually felt a sense of fear towards Liu Qingtang.

The harem was in decline, and over the years, very few women had visited Cixi Palace. Now that these young ladies-in-waiting had arrived, they were openly and secretly trying to win over and reward the palace servants in Cixi Palace. Even those sweeping the courtyard were given silver as a reward. Qin Shu had always managed Cixi Palace very well, and he knew this and had his own ways of dealing with it, so Liu Qingtang never needed to worry about it.

As the most powerful woman in the harem, favored by the Empress Dowager, Qin Shu, the Grand Eunuch, naturally had no shortage of people trying to win her over. Liu Qingtang trusted him and always remained silent, letting him decide how to handle things. However, one day, when Tao Ye was joking with her, she mentioned that the treasures in her treasury were becoming increasingly abundant. When she asked what was going on, she learned that Qin Shu had been silently expanding her secret stash of money.

The palace had respectable eunuchs who amassed considerable wealth in private. As long as one had power, money would naturally flow into their hands—a fact the masters understood and tacitly approved of. Just like the corruption of officials in previous dynasties, as long as it didn't exceed a certain limit, those in power would turn a blind eye. After all, without the drive of profit, many things would be inconvenient.

Of course, Qin Shu was different. In Liu Qingtang's eyes, her things and her money belonged to Qin Shu, and she had long ago given him the right to use the money in her account, and also entrusted him with the key to the storeroom. Liu Qingtang didn't mind Qin Shu giving her more money, because he was far too careless about himself, a stark contrast to how much he cared for her. Apart from the nice things Liu Qingtang prepared for him, he hadn't thought about anything else.

Therefore, it's understandable that her private treasury is getting increasingly full, a fact that Liu Qingtang finds amusing. No one would believe it if she knew, but Qin Shu, the head steward, didn't have much money on hand; he simply transferred whatever he earned outside into Liu Qingtang's private treasury. Liu Qingtang didn't know what to say about him. What amused her most was that after she found out about this, she specially prepared a large red envelope of a thousand taels of silver for him for the New Year, and he immediately put it into her treasury.

This time was no exception. After receiving a generous amount of red envelopes from a group of beauties in the harem, Liu Qingtang turned around and found that her private treasury account had indeed been increased by several entries. She immediately shook her head and chuckled.

While the other beauties gathered around Xuan Ge, the emperor's favorite, either showing jealousy or trying to be friendly, Liu Qingtang only glanced at her face, which was supposedly covered by a veil with a rash, before turning her gaze away with feigned disinterest. No one knew better than Xuan Ge why she had developed a rash at this time.

Seeing that she looked well and remained calm despite being surrounded by people, Liu Qingtang could tell that Xuan Ge had been well-trained before entering the palace. After all, the seemingly gentle Xiao Huaixu wasn't willing to put in effort for just anyone, and she couldn't rely solely on her looks without some cunning. That face was her asset, but also her burden; it had both advantages and disadvantages, which was necessary to be a competent pawn.

After all the young ladies-in-waiting received their ranks, Xuan Ge was also granted the title of Consort. In the harem, aside from the Empress and the four Imperial Consorts, even among the Consorts, the highest rank was only Consort. Of the other young ladies-in-waiting, only two were currently only Jieyu (a lower-ranking concubine). For a palace maid to be granted the title of Consort was a clear indication of the Emperor's undisguised favoritism. Moreover, the palace where Xuan Ge, now Consort Huai, resided was Qingyin Palace, the closest palace to Chang'an Palace.

This was enough to arouse the jealousy and resentment of all the women in the harem. The emperor even issued a special decree saying that Consort Huai liked quiet and did not allow the other concubines to set foot in Qingyin Palace. The emperor also brought all the rewards to Qingyin Palace without missing a beat, and she stayed in Qingyin Palace for many days in a row.

Unable to see the emperor, all the concubines flocked to Empress Dowager Liu Qingtang, disregarding how terrifying the empress dowager was. Their words all implied that Consort Huai was bewitching the emperor.

Regardless of how much they disturbed her and Qin Shu's rest time, watching their hypocritical pretense was actually quite amusing; it was like watching a big show.

Unfortunately, if you were to ask who in the palace was happiest about the Emperor's favor towards Consort Huai, it would naturally be Liu Qingtang. How could she possibly stop it? However, in this situation, she still had to put on an act. So she summoned the Emperor and spoke in a manner most befitting her status as Empress Dowager, while simultaneously feigning dislike for Consort Huai.

Whether the emperor was truly obedient or not, after Liu Qingtang's words, he at least visited the other concubines a few times. However, everyone knew that his favorite was still Consort Huai. This almost exclusive favor caused the harem to become lively again. In order to get the emperor's attention away from Consort Huai, the women used all sorts of tricks. This reminded Liu Qingtang of her past life. It seemed that nothing had changed, except that Wang Yuexiang from back then had become Xuan Ge now.

The turmoil in the imperial harem also began to stir up unrest in the imperial court.

Author's Note: Su Nian threw a landmine.

A truly lazy person threw a landmine.

Boss Jia threw a landmine

Boss Jia threw a landmine

Ivory threw a landmine

Ivory threw a landmine

Ivory threw a landmine

Ivory threw a landmine

Ivory threw a landmine

[Thanks to the girls for throwing grenades~ Another row of grenades, what can I say? Looking at the grenades thrown by the eunuch side and then at the beehive side, I feel like the girls are going to buy me the whole fish pond~]