The harem is too complicated; the empress, a lazy bum, wins by doing nothing.

Chapter 312 Respect
Ruan Changzi's chest heaved heavily, and it took him a while to calm himself down. He could hear the sounds from inside Lingxiang Pavilion again.

This voice doesn't belong to Qiu'er, but to Xi Guiren.

"Never mind her. Go and send this ginseng to the imperial kitchen. Have them stew a pot of the finest ginseng chicken soup to nourish my body."

After speaking, Consort Xi touched her slightly protruding belly and walked towards the main hall, completely unaware that Consort Ruan had returned halfway there.

After leaving Lingxiang Pavilion, Granny Zhang went directly to Kunning Palace.

"Granny Zhang." Upon hearing the voice, Shen Qingwan came out from the main hall. "Why did you come here in person? I wonder if the Empress Dowager has something to discuss with me?"

Zhang Mama curtsied and said, "Your Majesty the Empress, the Empress Dowager has sent me to deliver some things to you."

“No need for such formalities, Granny Zhang.” Shen Qingwan said, extending her hand to Zhang, gesturing for her to come inside and sit down. “Granny, please have a cup of tea in the palace before you leave. I have brewed some red date and longan tea.”

Zhang Mama nodded. "Your Majesty is too kind. I need to go back and report to the Empress Dowager later."

“Since you’re all here, there’s no rush. I was thinking of sending some over to the Empress Dowager, and since Zhang Mama is here, I can take some for her. I can take a break.” Shen Qingwan said with a smile.

Zhang Mama hesitated for a moment. She originally didn't want to go in, but the Empress's warm invitation made her wonder if the Empress had something she wanted to tell the Empress Dowager. So she followed the Empress inside.

The main hall of Kunning Palace was warm and cozy. Unlike other palaces where the maids stood stiffly, the servants were busy around a stove with charcoal fire.

When the palace maids saw Zhang Mama enter, they were not flustered at all. They naturally walked to the side, moved a stool for Zhang Mama, and placed it next to the stove.

Granny Zhang was an old servant in the palace, having served in the inner palace her entire life, and she had never seen such a scene in any other palace.

No wonder that when palace maids left the palace, Kunning Palace had the fewest. Apart from Consort Xian's spies, there was only one palace maid who resigned because her mother was seriously ill, and now she went to the imperial palace to serve her.

If we calculate it this way, there isn't a single palace maid in Kunning Palace who is willing to leave.

When she first learned of this, the Empress Dowager had told her about it, thinking that the Empress had said something that made the palace maids unwilling to leave. After all, Consort Xian had used threats and inducements in the palace to prevent the palace maids from leaving, saying many unpleasant things.

It seems that the palace maids in Kunning Palace were truly unwilling to leave the palace.

Palace maids were also pitiful people. They entered the palace to serve at a young age. Before the empress changed the palace rules, many palace maids did not live to see the age of leaving the palace. Even if some lived to see the age of leaving the palace, what could they do after leaving the palace?

Being a concubine to someone much older than oneself, living a life constantly at the mercy of the principal wife, is worse than dying of old age in the palace. Unless one becomes a high-ranking palace maid of a master, who might, when in a good mood, be betroth her to a guard or imperial physician. Such rare good fortune is not something every palace maid has; the fate of most palace maids is ultimately tragic.

If one could find a good master in the palace and serve there, wouldn't that be a good outcome?

When Zhang Mama left Kunning Palace, she still hadn't heard what the Empress was going to say.

On the contrary, when she was drinking tea in the main hall of Kunning Palace, she couldn't help but tear up, whether it was because the charcoal fire in Kunning Palace stung her eyes or because it reminded her of the New Year she spent with her family before entering the palace, sitting around the stove chatting about everyday things.

She glanced down at the two food boxes in her hands. One was for the Empress Dowager, and the other was for her. The contents of both boxes were exactly the same. Having served the Empress Dowager for so many years, she had seen all kinds of delicious food and drinks. It wasn't that the Empress herself had made these things; it was just that she felt... as if she were being respected.

After taking a few steps, Zhang Mama couldn't help but turn back and glance at Kunning Palace again.

She really couldn't understand why the Empress had changed so much.

What kind of shock would cause a person to suddenly have a change of heart?
Fortunately, the Emperor and Empress have now consummated their marriage, and the past is over. Things should get better for the Empress.

After Zhang Mama left, Zhen'er gave a wink to the palace servants serving in the hall, and one by one they withdrew. Only then did she walk to Shen Qingwan's side and lower her voice to say, "Your Majesty, you really don't need to be so polite to Zhang Mama. Even if Zhang Mama is the head maid in the Empress Dowager's palace, she is still just a servant, while you are the mistress, not to mention the Empress. With your noble status, how can you give her the food you made yourself, and even give her the same food as the Empress Dowager? If the Empress Dowager finds out, she will definitely blame you. How can she share the same food as a servant?"

Zhen'er finished speaking almost in one breath, without pausing at all, giving Shen Qingwan no chance to stop her.

Even after she finished speaking, she still felt unsatisfied, her lips pursed and her chest heaving with heavy breaths.

Shen Qingwan found her expression amusing.

"What's wrong with you today? You keep calling me a servant, and your words are so rude."

“I!” Zhen’er paused, her cheeks flushed red, and it took her a while to speak. “I didn’t say anything harsh. I was just stating the facts. Even if Zhang Mama is the Empress Dowager’s personal maid, she is still a servant and does not deserve to be treated so well by Your Majesty the Empress.”

Shen Qingwan nodded in agreement. "So, in the near future, will others say the same thing about you? Will they also tell their masters not to be so good to you?"

"what?"

Zhen'er was stunned by Shen Qingwan's words. Even the tears she had just prepared were stuck in her eyes. Before they could fall, her mind went blank.

"No, Your Majesty...you?"

Zhen'er carefully considered Shen Qingwan's words in her heart. After thinking for a while, her eyes suddenly lit up.

If the crown prince ascends the throne, then the empress will become the empress dowager.

If the Empress becomes the Empress Dowager, then she will be the head maidservant by the Empress Dowager's side.

That is to say...

If the Empress had become the Empress Dowager, then her position would be the same as that of Zhang Mama at this time.

Thinking about it this way, it seems, perhaps, that there's nothing wrong with the Empress treating Zhang Mama better.

After all, once she becomes the head maid in the Empress Dowager's palace, the current Empress will reward her with something...

A lowly palace maid, striving with all her might to climb up the ranks, isn't this the very day she's aiming for?