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

Chapter 353 Repaying the favor
Shen Qingwan glanced absentmindedly out the window.

The servants in the flower room must have heard about it, so she sent everyone from Kunning Palace to the Imperial Garden to pick flowers, and then fainted in her bedchamber.

Originally, they thought she had been punished by Emperor Yuanwu and was confined to the palace to reflect on her mistakes. Only now did they realize what had happened and hurriedly sent flowers to make amends.

A new variety?

If they truly intended to send these new varieties to Kunning Palace, they should have sent them when the flowers were still in bud, instead of waiting until they were fully in bloom.

These flowers have a short blooming period to begin with, and they were delivered just as they were in full bloom. I reckon they'll need to be replaced with a new batch in a few days.

"What's wrong, Your Highness?" Zhen'er asked, puzzled. "Does Your Highness dislike those flowers? I noticed that they are all rare colors. There's one pot of flowers with pink petals on the top and white petals on the bottom. It's so beautiful."

Shen Qingwan gave a faint smile. "Since you say it's so beautiful, then I'll go with you to take a look."

Zhen'er nodded happily.

Shen Qingwan glanced at the flowers and saw that about a dozen pots of flowers had been delivered, arranged in two rows around the main hall of Kunning Palace. "Shen Qingwan pointed to a few pots on the east side and said, 'Go and deliver these pots to Consort Zhen's palace. The eldest princess likes flowers, and these pots are brightly colored. I reckon the eldest princess will like them.'"

After speaking, she paused, "Send these two blue pots to Consort Shu's palace, these two to Consort Jin's palace, and the remaining pots, one to Consort Liang, one to Consort Rou, and one to Consort Yan."

Zhen'er was stunned. "Your Majesty, if we send them over like this, Kunning Palace will be completely empty. Doesn't Your Majesty love flowers the most? Why don't you keep a few for yourself? These rare varieties, if we don't keep them now, we'll have to wait until next year to see them again."

Shen Qingwan responded with a faint "Mm".

next year……

She hadn't felt anything special when she first heard those two words, but now, hearing them, the word "next year" suddenly seemed very distant.

Zhen'er didn't ask any more questions. She ordered people to send the potted plants to the various palaces as the Empress had just said, feeling a pang of heartache.

"When you go there, just pass on a message to them, saying that I am unwell and there is no need for me to come and express my gratitude."

"Yes, Queen."

The news of the Empress bestowing flowers quickly spread throughout the palace. Although they could not express their gratitude, everyone was happy. After all, such novel varieties usually ended up in the Hall of Mental Cultivation or in the palaces of favored concubines, and most of the time, they could only catch a glimpse of them from afar.

Now that she has such a potted plant in her palace, she can see it every year. What woman doesn't love flowers? How could she not be happy?

However, when Huang Zongxiao, the eunuch in charge of the flower room, heard that the Empress had bestowed all the flowers without keeping a single one, he was not so happy.

"Did you see clearly? The Empress really didn't leave a single pot?"

The young eunuch, oblivious to the gravity of the situation, beamed with delight, "Reporting to Eunuch Huang, this servant saw it clearly in the Imperial Garden just now. Aunt Zhen'er, along with the maids from Kunning Palace, gave away all the dozen or so potted flowers we had just sent over. It's clear that Her Majesty the Empress truly cherishes them." "Damn it, cherishes you!" Huang Zongxiao slapped the young eunuch across the face.

The young eunuch was stunned by the slap. He knelt on the ground, one hand covering his burning cheek, and said in a tearful voice, "Eunuch Huang, did I say something wrong? The Empress is usually very generous and always gives away the best things. Today, Her Majesty the Empress gave away these flowers, which shows that she considers them to be valuable. Why are you not only unhappy, Eunuch Huang, but you also slapped me?"

Huang Zongxiao was furious. "Fool! You're a fool, a fool like no other in a century! The Empress gave away all the flowers we sent. That just means she didn't even care about what we sent."

"Didn't you like them? But those are the best varieties that our greenhouse has cultivated this year." The little eunuch was even more confused.

Huang Zongxiao pursed his lips deeply. "How could I raise such a bunch of stupid, shining dogs as servants? If Her Majesty the Empress really wanted to bestow rewards, she would naturally keep two pots that she liked and give away the rest. Now that she has given them all away, what does that mean?"

As Huang Zongxiao spoke, he patted the little eunuch's hat twice, "That can only mean that Her Majesty the Empress is angry. She doesn't want a single pot of flowers and thinks they're an eyesore in the palace. It's over, it's over, it's really over..."

Seven days later, Shen Qingwan was completely healed.

She was indeed weak; even a common cold took her so long to recover.

Emperor Yuanwu had been staying in Consort Yan's palace these past few days, but on this day, he unexpectedly chose Consort Xia.

Consort Xia?
Shen Qingwan smiled, somewhat surprised.

Consort Xia had been in the palace for some time now, and Emperor Yuanwu had only visited her palace once when she first entered the palace, as if to give face to Prince Rui, and had never visited her again.

Why did Emperor Yuanwu suddenly remember Consort Yan when she was enjoying the Emperor's favor?
“Your Majesty, this servant says that Consort Yan is menstruating and unable to attend to His Majesty in bed. Last night, His Majesty encountered Noble Lady Xia on his way back to Yangxin Hall from her palace and remembered her,” Zhen’er explained.

So that’s it?
I had initially thought that Consort Xia was a cold and aloof person, but now I realize that I had misjudged her.

Yes!

Once a woman enters the harem, how could she be indifferent? Who wouldn't want to win more favor, be promoted, secure a better future for themselves, and bring more glory to their maternal family?

"Zhen'er, go and investigate who else is in Consort Xia's family?" Shen Qingwan said leisurely.

“Your Majesty, I remember when Consort Shen entered the palace, she said that she was originally the daughter of a merchant. Later, her family was robbed by bandits, and her parents died. Prince Rui rescued her and took her into his residence. Seeing that she was literate, Prince Rui put her in charge of his private residence on the outskirts of the capital. When she reached marriageable age, Prince Rui wanted to act as matchmaker to help her find a good family to marry into. Coincidentally, Prince Yao and Prince Xiang both sent women to the Emperor to enter the palace. In order to repay their kindness, she volunteered to enter the palace.”

Shen Qingwan listened without saying anything. This matter was also recorded in the Imperial Household Department. Her seemingly perfect background could not withstand close scrutiny.

If Consort Shen is the daughter of a merchant, she must not be from an ordinary small family, doing business on the street. If she were from a wealthy family, she would surely have servants, stewards, and a steward. What kind of bandits could wipe out such an entire family?
Doesn't she have any uncles or aunts?

Her father managed all the family's business affairs by himself...