The evil sister is in charge, and the mother is getting married

Chapter 276 After the Empress's unexpected death, the Emperor was heartbroken for a long time. Alas!

So Granny Qiu told Sheng Wanqiu everything she wanted to know, including that the emperor had fourteen children, eight daughters and six sons. She added that this was only temporary, as there were many concubines in the palace and things could change if the emperor were to be more active at night.

The other concubines are not important. The most favored concubine at present is Consort De, who has a son and a daughter. There is also Consort Qiu, who is considered the emperor's new favorite. The late empress has passed away, and the emperor has no plans to establish a successor empress.

The Empress Dowager had five children, three sons and two daughters. Her eldest son was the Emperor, her second son was the Prince of Ding'an, her third son was the Prince of Linyang, her eldest daughter was Princess Lexuan, and her youngest daughter was Princess Leqing. Both of these princesses had long been married and lived in the capital.

"Granny Qiu, can you tell me about the Empress? I heard that our Emperor is deeply in love with the Empress. Is that true?" Sheng Wanqiu asked with a smile, pretending not to care.

"Yes, it's true. Back then, the Emperor doted on the Empress. We servants all saw it. The Empress was a very good person, with a gentle personality, and she always spoke with a smile."

"The Emperor was heartbroken for a long time after the Empress's unexpected death, alas!" Granny Qiu sighed. When such a thing happened back then, they, as servants, were also heartbroken for a long time.

The main reason was that the Empress was very considerate of them, the servants, and never beat or scolded them. Moreover, if anyone asked the Empress for help, they would usually get it. So no one in the palace spoke ill of the Empress, and everyone was eager to go to her palace to serve her.

Sheng Wanqiu rolled her eyes inwardly. Pshaw! If men are reliable, pigs can fly.

If he were truly in love, why would he have children with other women? Where did these dozen or so children come from? Anyway, believe it if you want, but she doesn't believe there's any real affection between the Emperor of Great Yue and the Empress.

Accompanied by the tinkling of the small bells hanging from the four corners of the carriage, Sheng Wanqiu's carriage entered the Dayue Royal Palace.

Inside the magnificent palace, a grand court banquet was slowly beginning. As night fell, the entire palace was brightly lit and resplendent. After getting off the carriage, Sheng Wanqiu slowly walked into the banquet hall under the guidance of the young eunuch who came to greet her.

"Wanqiu, come here quickly, our seats are next to each other."

Lu Shuxue's eyes lit up when she saw Sheng Wanqiu enter the main hall. Sheng Wanqiu had arrived particularly early with her grandfather and was sitting there idly, lost in thought.

"Sister Shuxue, you're here so early!" Sheng Wanqiu immediately smiled and walked over, lifting her skirt. When she came in, she noticed that the seating arrangement was quite thoughtful.

The princesses and princes sat facing each other, with the emperor and empress dowager or some of the more favored concubines above them. The princes and ministers sat right next to the princesses and princes.

Naturally, Qiao Wenyuan's position was separated from Sheng Wanqiu's. He was seated next to Prince Wu'an, opposite Sheng Wanqiu.

“It’s my grandfather. He was in a hurry to come, otherwise I definitely wouldn’t have arrived so early.”

"It's a good thing you came, otherwise I would have been so bored!" Lu Shuxue pouted helplessly. She really didn't like these kinds of gatherings because her least favorite people would come, and she had just discovered that there was more than one person she disliked today.

Taking advantage of the fact that no one was around, Sheng Wanqiu secretly stuffed a piece of pastry that looked quite delicious into her mouth, then happily squinted her eyes. It really was true that the pastries in the palace were quite good. Seeing Sheng Wanqiu's sneaky little action, Lu Shuxue couldn't resist reaching out, grabbing a piece, and quickly popping it into her mouth to eat.

The long table in front of them was now laden with pastries, each one looking exquisite. The fruits were also cut and plated, indicating that they would be removed when the main dishes were served. Why wait to eat now?

Sheng Wanqiu happened to be hungry after playing around at the Yu family's house, so she decided to grab some to tide her over. She figured she could just take it and eat it secretly without anyone noticing.

Seeing Sheng Wanqiu eating, Lu Shuxue followed suit. Since she was a martial arts practitioner, she expended a lot of energy and got hungry quickly. So the two of them took a piece and ate quietly.

"Tch! Some people, even if they become princesses, still look poor and shabby, they're not presentable!"

A rather disdainful female voice rang out from behind the two of them, startling Sheng Wanqiu so much that she almost choked on the delicious pastry in her mouth.

Granny Qiu reacted quickly and immediately poured Sheng Wanqiu a cup of tea and handed it to her.

"Who do we have here? Isn't this our Second Princess, who calls herself the most beautiful woman in the palace? Some people are really meddling in other people's business! Your seat isn't here, do you want to sit in my sister Yun's seat?"

"Tch! What a pipe dream!" As long as she doesn't clash with her father Lu Zhi, Lu Shuxue's little mouth becomes incredibly talkative. The annoying person she mentioned before is this second princess, Lu Shiyun, who always compares herself to Lu Lingyun.

Sheng Wanqiu finally swallowed the pastry in her mouth. Turning her head, she saw a girl dressed in a pink palace dress being surrounded by a group of palace maids. She was indeed quite beautiful, belonging to the category of stunning beauties. However, she disliked the way the girl looked at people, as it had a look of contempt.

Although she was pretty, beauty is in the eye of the beholder, and she still preferred the cool and aloof beauty, Lu Lingyun.

"Lu Shuxue, you'd better show some respect. So what if you're a princess? You're still Father Emperor's biological daughter. What are you so smug about!"

"Let me tell you, don't get cocky just because you helped Father find the treasure! Don't forget that I am Father's daughter."

These words were extremely grating to Sheng Wanqiu's ears. She knew that the princess was making veiled attacks on Lu Shuxue, but every word she uttered was directed at her.

Sheng Wanqiu couldn't stand it. With her immunity from death in hand, she could rip the skull off anyone who dared to mess with her. She didn't care what kind of princess she was; if anyone was not convinced, she could have her father chop off her head.

"Heh! What are you barking about, you dog? Do you live by the sea? Mind your own business!"

"Aren't these pastries meant to be eaten? Why put them here if they're not meant to be eaten? Are they just for show? I'll ask the Emperor when he arrives!"

"And I don't care who you are, I'm going to tell you one thing right now: start by flirting with the cheapskate!"