In addition to the annual tribute to the imperial court, there are also regular tributes such as New Year's Day, longevity, winter solstice, etc., Xuan Ye worshiped the Empress Dowager and the Empress Dowager in the early years, and the longevity festival was rarely celebrated extravagantly, but the regular tribute of the vassal states would not be less, and every time it would be sent on time, only this year the Korean State had not been presented, when the emperor was on the way back to Beijing, no one cared about the court for a while, and the harem was not easily interfered with.

At this time, Lan Qi went to Jingyang Palace, and the Internal Affairs Office had sent some cotton silk, mink skin, deerskin, and flower mats, and silver and two horses would naturally not be sent to the harem, and the emperor would usually allocate some of these inconsequential things to the harem for the concubines to share by themselves.

Concubine Rong said: "The deer skin sent this year is excellent, and it must be very comfortable to sit on the kang for the Queen Mother in autumn." ”

Lan Qi didn't care much about the things used, the house was full of burning dragons on a cold day, and the mattress made of new cotton was comfortable enough, and these animal skins were rarely used in her house, and she always felt uncomfortable with the smell.

"These imperial concubines and concubines will be sent in the house, and I don't have anything to ask for the rest, send someone to ask Concubine Hui and Concubine Yi, and then let the concubines and concubines come to see for themselves, and give them according to their positions, so as not to say that we are unfair." Concubine Rong smiled, but took out a small saber from the box on the side, and said happily, "I mentioned to the emperor before, Yinzhi wants a knife to play with, I just said casually in front of the emperor, this time the emperor picked the best knife from the tribute, and sent it with these things, let me keep it for Yinzhi." ”

Lan Qi saw Sister Rong so happy, and deliberately said sourly: "I don't have anything, which of these animal skins are rare, their materials are not as good as ours, make clothes and wear hard clothes, sister give me a knife." ”

Concubine Rong pushed her: "Show your eyes here, you can sweep in the Yonghe Palace casually, which one is not a treasure?" Saying that, Pai Jixin went to Yikun Palace and Changchun Palace with a gift list to spread the word, while sitting down with Lan Qi to have tea, and said casually, "Do you know why Chang Gong of the Korean State is so late this time?" ”

Lan Qi heard a little gossip, but she didn't understand anything, but she only heard Concubine Rong sigh and say, "It's really the same everywhere, that Korean king also has many concubines, so it's not peaceful, I heard that this year's new concubine, this Zhang family was once kicked out of the palace, we don't dare to think about it." ”

Lan Qi smiled nonchalantly: "It's also a family that is difficult to read, but the family is bigger." ”

Concubine Rong said: "This is not unusual, just now the Ministry of Internal Affairs sent something, I casually asked why it was so late this year, they said that the king of North Korea was busy with the affairs of the palace concubines, and his princess was just kicked out in April, according to their words, it was abolished, and they also sent a fold to the court." ”

"Scrapped?" Lan Qi was a little surprised, according to the specifications in the Forbidden City, the princess over there is the queen here, although Shunzhi Ye was also abolished for a time, this was also talked about by the empress dowager for a lifetime, and the main room was easily abolished over there.

Concubine Rong sneered: "Said that the princess Min is jealous, I think this concubine is vicious enough, she is in the concubine position, one step away from the princess position, people are swordsmen and I am fish and meat, that princess Min has no heirs, and she has lost her grace, it is really pitiful." ”

Lan Qi took the tea and said softly: "The family doesn't know about the family, why should we sigh for irrelevant people." ”

Concubine Rong sighed: "The emperor will no longer be a queen for more than ten years, it makes sense to think about it, more things are better than less." ”

After Lan Qi left Jingyang Palace, or took the tribute of North Korea to Chengqian Palace, just when the imperial concubine just woke up and took medicine, and was talking to the fourth elder brother, Yinzhen saw that her mother was coming, and stood aside, Lan Qi put down the things one by one and showed them to the imperial concubine, the imperial concubine waved her hand and smiled: "Who is rare of their things, every year I look at the poor Baba to send tribute, but the things that our court rewarded back are enough for them to be proud, when have they been treated badly." ”

Because he saw Yinzhen standing aside and listening to the two of them stupidly, he ordered him to study: "I'll talk to Concubine De, it's none of your business, the homework that Xiao Hezi received today should be recited." ”

Yinzhen had a smile on his face, and the two mothers were happy, and after the child left, Lan Qi said that Concubine Rong got a small saber from the emperor, and asked if she wanted to ask Yinzhen for one, and the imperial concubine said disdainfully: "It's not rare that their knives are sent by Mongolia, and next time you remember to ask the emperor for one." ”

Because the imperial concubine's spirit was acceptable, the two talked about gossip, Lan Qi relayed the Korean gossip that Concubine Rong heard to the imperial concubine, and the imperial concubine listened to her quietly, and suddenly said for a long time: "The robe I wore when I summoned the Sixth Palace that day was the queen's phoenix robe, right?" ”

Lan Qi was stunned and didn't say anything for a while, and the imperial concubine continued: "That's not the robe I usually wear, you said to take it and let the noble Juezen change it, and it really fits, but it's not my robe." Where did you come from with this phoenix robe? ”

"Mother, found out?" Lan Qi was a little cramped and couldn't help but lower her eyes.

The imperial concubine sighed: "I don't think you have the courage to do such a thing, although it is only a subtle difference, but the queen is the queen, and the imperial concubine is the imperial ......."

"It's the emperor's meaning, the phoenix robe is newly made by the Internal Affairs Office, and the concubines also heard the Zen nobles say that the specifications of this robe are not quite right, only to find out that it is the queen's clothing." Lan Qi explained seriously, "The concubine didn't dare to trespass, let alone trouble you, so she asked the emperor specifically, and the emperor just nodded and said, 'Just take that dress for the imperial concubine to wear', so the concubine let the noble people of Juechan change it with confidence." ”

The imperial concubine looked at her blankly, she thought about it for several days, and always felt that the people below didn't dare to do that kind of thing, she was a person who was dying soon, what was it to be charged with such a crime? She didn't care about other things, so she didn't want to implicate the fourth elder brother because of this, but fortunately, no one mentioned it, and it seemed that she hadn't seen how the queen should dress for more than ten years, and no one could seriously see the difference. She thought about whether it would be Xuan Ye's intention, but what would she do with such a thing.

"It's a pity it's just a robe." The imperial concubine was stunned, turned her face, moved her body slightly and wanted to change her position, Lan Qi came to support her, when the tentacle touched her arm, the horror that had been missing for eleven years drilled into her heart again, and the former Queen Niu Hulu was also like this, and in the end she was so sick and skinny.

The imperial concubine found a comfortable posture to lean, after taking a deep breath, she closed her eyes softly to rest, Lan Qi sat aside, thinking that she was going to sleep, and was thinking about whether to leave, but heard the imperial concubine speak: "You said that Fengqi Wuluan stopped bamboo, why don't I hope so much in my heart, my aunt's queen is posthumously sealed by the emperor, our Tong family has never produced a serious queen, since the first day I entered the palace, I have been looking forward to living in Kunning Palace, but now he is willing to wear a phoenix robe for me, it is too late." ”

"Does the mother really care about the reputation?" Lan Qi asked, "The emperor will do this, doesn't it mean that in his heart, only you are worthy of the middle palace?" ”

The imperial concubine snorted: "You are so coaxing, in the end you are held on the tip of your heart, and you are so naïve to think about things." She paused, then sighed, "What kind of robe do I wear, and what impact can it have on Yinzhen's future?" Only the different status above my head can I shade him for a long time, the queen and the imperial concubine, after all, is the difference between a wife and a concubine, you don't care, I care. ”

They are indeed different. Lan Qi is the daughter of a small family, from a palace maid all the way to a concubine, she herself feels that this life should be at the top, she does not dare to hope for a higher status, and even feels that it will suppress her blessings. But the imperial concubine is different, the daughter of the royal relatives, from the first day she entered the palace, she thought she was the best choice for the master of Kunning Palace, but she missed it back then, and after the death of Empress Niu Hulu, although the emperor gave her the highest status as a harem concubine, he never let her enter the middle palace.

The imperial concubine smiled and said: "It's a pity that there is no suitable girl in our family, I always want our family to have a serious queen, I originally planned to choose a daughter-in-law for Yinzhen in the clan, but I didn't like it for several years, but it was Yuxi's child, how to look at it, I hope she can teach her husband and children well in the future, and take care of Yinzhen for me." ”

Listen to the words before and after these words, Lan Qi knows that it is good not to answer, the meaning of the imperial concubine's words is that the daughter-in-law she chose for her son is to be the queen in the future, this kind of words, the imperial concubine is saying it like this now, she can't just talk about it, although in her heart, she doesn't feel that this is too rebellious, who knows what will happen in the future.

"Let Yuxi come into the palace tomorrow to come and see me, I want to meet the child." The imperial concubine instructed Lan Qi, "Tell her at home, I want to keep her for a few days, it's boring for me to raise patients here, and it's not convenient for Yinzhen to grow up, take you to live there for two days, and come to see me during the day." ”

Lan Qi promised: "The concubine will arrange it." ”

After talking for a while, Yin Zhen came to see them uneasily, just as Lan Qi was leaving, but the imperial concubine suddenly called her down, and said with a serious expression: "I don't need you to convey my words just now, if I want to say it, I will naturally tell him, I don't want you to open his mouth and he will look at your face and give me charity." ”

Brainless words, Yinzhen listened a little nervously, he didn't want his adoptive mother and biological mother to be discordant, but Lan Qi smiled and agreed, and patted Yinzhen on the shoulder and said, "Go and rub Eniang's legs, she has been lying down with blood and qi that is not smooth." ”

"Yes." The fourth elder brother agreed, sent Lan Qi away, returned to the bed of the imperial concubine, saw that Eniang was in a good mood, smiled and took his hand and said, "Ming'er Yuxi entered the palace, are you happy?" ”

The fourth elder brother likes Yuxi, and he is happy to know that she can enter the palace, but why Yuxi enters the palace now, he understands better than anyone else, he is sad in his heart, and he is not down-to-earth all night, and the next day in front of the gate of Chengqian Palace, when he saw Yuxi, who was wearing a summer lotus-colored brocade, and was as delicate as a lotus, although his eyes lit up, the sadness that immediately floated made Yuxi look nervous.

She saluted gently and said, "Fourth elder brother, I haven't seen you for a long time. ”

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