The Daily Life of a Concubine's Daughter After Transmigrating

Li Anqi looked at Li Baoqin.

Seeing the expression on Li Baoqin's face, which seemed somewhat displeased, he realized that she was looking at him with displeasure.

The Empress Dowager spoke slowly, her smile kind and gentle.

"Although the eldest daughter of the Li family meant well, the gift from the second daughter of the Li family is more appropriate for the occasion and more to my liking."

The old lady smiled and said, "Both girls have their own strengths, and it's good that the Empress Dowager likes them."

prick--

A porcelain cup fell to the ground and shattered into pieces.

The concubines in the harem were so frightened that they all trembled and looked at Li Baoqin.

The Empress Dowager's smile gradually faded.

Li Miao turned pale with fright and hurriedly knelt down to beg for forgiveness.

"My daughter is ignorant of etiquette. I beg Your Majesty and Empress Dowager to punish her!"

The Emperor looked at Li Miao, a hint of disgust in his eyes.

Li Baoqin sat as still as a mountain, her face grim as she sulked.

The Empress Dowager glanced at Li Baoqin, then at the old lady, and said coldly, "That's enough. It was just an accidental knocking over of the cup. There's no need to make such a fuss."

Li Anqi lowered his head.

She had just seen that it was clearly Li Baoqin who, in a fit of anger, had deliberately smashed the cup.

Li Anqi shook his head inwardly and sighed softly.

"The Empress Dowager is right. You may rise." The Emperor glanced at Li Miao and turned his head to drink.

"Thank you, Your Majesty, and the Empress Dowager for your mercy!" Li Miao stood up shakily and returned to his seat.

The Empress asked with a smile, "Miss Li, you look quite old. I wonder which lucky family will be her match?"

Li Anqi's heart sank, a chill ran down his spine, and he broke out in a cold sweat.

The old lady said with a forced smile, "Anqi is kind and considerate. I want to keep her by my side for a few more years, so I haven't arranged a marriage yet."

The Empress exclaimed in surprise, "Really?! Then how about..."

The Imperial Noble Consort spoke up at the opportune moment, interrupting the Empress.

"Could it be that the Empress has taken a fancy to Miss Li and wants to give her to the First Prince as a concubine?"

The empress's smile froze on her face.

The Imperial Concubine feigned a smile and said, "The First Prince is over thirty years old and has already taken quite a few concubines. The Dowager Mother dotes on Miss Li so much. If the Empress only allows Miss Li to be a concubine, her rank would be far too low!"

Li Anqi looked at everyone present.

So this was the power struggle that Li Baoqin had mentioned.

The Ninth Prince, Ling Ye, had no interest in the court, while the Eleventh Prince, Ling Qing, was still young and his birth mother had a low social status.

Two opposing forces within the palace were secretly vying for power.

It was none other than the eldest prince Ling Xi, born to the Empress, and the third prince Ling Yao, born to the Imperial Noble Consort.

Unexpectedly, at this birthday banquet, I became the center of their conflict by some strange twist of fate.

Li Anqi clenched his fist secretly.

The Empress looked displeased and quickly gave the eldest prince a meaningful look.

The eldest prince was about to say something.

Just now.

Suddenly, Xiao Wang, who had been silent all along, stepped forward.

"Your Majesty, I have a request to make."

"Speak," the Emperor said.

"Your Majesty, I would like to request that you grant me a marriage and allow me to take a concubine."

The Prince of Xiao performed the courtier's salute and bowed deeply.

No one seemed surprised.

For nearly a year, it has been common knowledge throughout the capital that Xiao Wang and Li Baoqin have been deeply involved.

Li Anqi recalled that the old lady had previously said that Prince Xiao would marry Li Baoqin within a year.

It seems the time has come.

"Which woman has won the favor of the eighteenth brother?" the emperor asked, knowing the answer already.

"The second young lady of the Jingguo Mansion, Li Anqi, is deeply loved by my younger brother. I fell in love with her at first sight several years ago when we were sedan chair carriers, and I have never been able to forget her."

The Prince of Xiao knelt down and bowed, then continued.

"Your Majesty, I request that you grant me a marriage and that I take Li Anqi as my concubine."

Upon hearing this, everyone was utterly astonished!

prick--

Li Baoqin was stunned, and the cup in her hand accidentally slipped from her grasp.

This time, she really did it by accident.

Li Anqi was surprised and still couldn't figure it out.

During that sedan chair carrier incident, I didn't even see his face. How could he possibly fall in love with me at first sight?!

He clearly likes Li Baoqin!

And that day, when Zuo Siqing took advantage of me at the racetrack, his cold gaze...

Everything was telling her something.

He is lying!

Why did Xiao Wang do this?

Li Anqi's brows furrowed more and more, and suddenly he knelt down.

She swallowed hard, her voice trembling slightly, and forced a smile.

"Your Highness, you must be mistaken. The person Your Highness intends to marry is not An Qi, but your elder sister!"

The valiant king turned around, his expression cold.

Then, he smiled slightly, pursing his lips.

"I am not wrong. The one I want to marry is you, Second Miss."

"This……"

Li Anqi looked at the old lady with a pleading look in his eyes.

The old lady spoke with a serious expression.

“The Prince Xiao has always been very close to the young lady, giving her gold bracelets and teaching her to ride horses. What are these compared to that?”

The old lady implied that it was a foregone conclusion that Prince Xiao would take Li Baoqin as his concubine.

This whole mess is completely baffling to outsiders.

He has to give an explanation.

The Prince of Xiao, unperturbed, replied to the old lady.

"I told the old lady before that I and Miss Qin are just colleagues, at most friends. The one I actually like is Miss Qi."

"Then Princess Nanxia..." the old lady asked with a worried expression.

“Princess Consort Xiao has lived a secluded life since entering the palace, chanting Buddhist scriptures and reciting mantras… I have waited for her for several years, but she remains devoted to Buddhism. Now that I am taking a concubine, I am afraid she will be even happier than I am.”

Upon hearing what Xiao Wang had said, Li Anqi's body suddenly stiffened.

She bent over slightly, covering her collarbone with both hands, feeling a sense of suffocation.

The old lady looked at the Empress Dowager with no strength.

The Empress Dowager frowned slightly and asked the Emperor, "What does Your Majesty think?"

The emperor actually laughed heartily.

"I never expected Princess Xiao to be so ungrateful. It's a shame you've waited for her all these years, and she still doesn't have a child!"

The emperor seemed to be in a good mood, and was not as serious as he had been just moments before.

The happier he was, the more Li Anqi's heart sank to the bottom.

at last.

"Alright, then I'll grant your request. You may take Li Anqi as your concubine, and we will marry on a chosen date!"

The Emperor simply made a casual remark.

Li Anqi was then betrothed to someone.

Her mind went blank, and she felt as if her limbs were not her own, but rather a doll being manipulated at will.

When they were happy, they would manipulate the puppet to dance and sing.

When he was unhappy, he would casually throw the puppet into the stove to use as fuel.

However, even though the puppet itself has different thoughts, it can't do anything.

The Emperor smiled and pointed at Prince Xiao, then said, "You'd better give me and the Empress Dowager a big, healthy son soon!"

"Thank you, Your Majesty."

Xiao Wang's expression remained unchanged.

Li Anqi looked at the Prince of Xiao, and a thought inexplicably flashed through his mind.

For some reason, she found Xiao Wang to be terrifying.

But the thought vanished in an instant.

Soon, she was overwhelmed by a heavy sense of powerlessness and suffocation, and was swallowed up by it.

"Ling Luo, what am I to you?!" Li Baoqin suddenly stood up and questioned Xiao Wang with a complicated expression.

Her face was deathly pale, and her eyes were red.

“Miss Li, you mustn’t be rude,” the old eunuch stepped forward to remind her.

Li Baoqin seemed not to hear the old eunuch's words and continued to press Prince Xiao for answers.

"say something!"

Xiao Wang remained unfazed, without even blinking.

“I am friends with Miss Qin. If Miss Qin feels that our relationship has not yet reached the level of friendship, she can simply regard me as a business partner.”