Selling wife for fame? Kick out the scumbag and marry the new emperor to enjoy the harem of favors

Chapter 130 A Tough Job
"Your Majesty, I obey." Consort Wei accepted the arrangement without objection.

However, Xie Jiu did not agree.

"Your Majesty the Empress thinks too highly of me, even entrusting me with the management of a place like the Imperial Kitchen. But a person should know his own limitations. Even though Your Majesty is too kind, I dare not be presumptuous. Your Majesty, please entrust me with something else. I absolutely dare not get involved in the Imperial Kitchen. If something goes wrong, it will be disastrous."

"You are truly humble." The Empress smiled. "Among those around the Emperor, you serve him most attentively. It's clear you are incredibly meticulous. How could you not do a good job?"

As he spoke, he winked at the person next to him.

Tingyun, who was standing by, immediately took a stack of books from the maid behind her, walked quickly to Xie Jiu, and handed them over.

Xie Jiu's expression was slightly cold.

Does this mean she has no choice but to agree?

Chunrong stood behind Xie Jiu, observing her expression, but did not reach out to take it.

This left Tingyun somewhat embarrassed.

Just as I was about to place the things directly on the small square table next to Xie Jiu, I saw Xie Jiu put her hand on it.

This made it impossible for Tingyun to let go; she couldn't very well leave it to Xie Jiu.

"Since Your Majesty insists that I take charge of the Imperial Kitchen, I also have a request, and I hope Your Majesty will grant it first," Xie Jiu said.

The Empress's expression darkened, but given Xie Jiu's recent favor with the Emperor, she patiently nodded.

"Come and listen."

"Firstly, Consort Sun is pregnant, so her diet needs to be handled with extra care. I have just taken over the Imperial Kitchen and I am afraid that with so many people and things going on, I might not be able to manage it properly and make mistakes. In order to ensure the safety of Consort Sun's unborn child, her food will no longer come from the Imperial Kitchen."

Xie Jiu calmly stated her first requirement.

The Empress pursed her lips. "You don't need to worry about that. Consort Sun's meals are prepared separately by the Imperial Kitchen, so there won't be any problems."

"Better safe than sorry." Xie Jiu said with a forced smile. "Your Majesty, I don't want to get involved in the affairs of the Imperial Kitchen, but Your Majesty insists that I do. If Consort Sun makes any mistakes in the future, Your Majesty will probably be held responsible. It would be better to allocate a small kitchen in Yanqing Palace for Consort Sun to use, and no outsiders are allowed to get involved."

"Why are you being so delicate? Everyone has been pregnant before," Consort Zhuang snorted.

She was already unhappy. Why should Wei Jieyu and Xie Jiu, who were of lower rank, get the power to assist in managing the six palaces, instead of her? And now that Xie Jiu was being picky, she was even more annoyed.

Xie Jiu glanced at her, too lazy to even say anything to her.

It was Liu Cai Ren who reminded her from the side, "Your Highness, Consort Xie's request is actually a good thing for you. If Consort Sun is living in your palace and there is any unrest, it might not be good for you either."

Upon hearing this, Consort Zhuang's eyes flickered, and she regained some of her composure. She pursed her lips and said nothing more.

Seeing this, the Empress had no choice but to agree to the condition.

"Since it's for the sake of the imperial heir, then let's do as you say. As for the rest..."

"I have one more request," Xie Jiu said, a smile playing on her lips as she looked at the Empress.

Interrupted, the Empress's eyes darkened immediately, and her tone was no longer as calm as before, "Is there anything else?"

Despite the Empress's displeasure, Xie Jiu remained calm and composed.

Her eyebrows curved slightly as she spoke, “His Majesty told me that this time, assisting in the management of the six palaces is partly to help Your Majesty share the burden, and partly so that Consort Wei and I can learn more from Your Majesty. Therefore, if there is anything I am unclear about in managing these affairs, may I often come to Your Majesty for guidance?”

These words instantly calmed the Empress's anger.

She nodded slightly. "Of course. If there's anything you don't understand, I'll teach you." "The same goes for Consort Wei. If you don't know anything, just come to Weiyang Palace and ask." The Empress turned to look at Consort Wei, her expression softening considerably.

"Yes."

Wei Jieyu responded expressionlessly.

She was not affected by the Empress's different treatment of her and Xie Jiu.

They left Weiyang Palace.

Xie Jiu didn't linger; she still had something to investigate regarding Xie Mingshen's illness.

Seeing that she seemed to have something on her mind, Consort Liu didn't go over to talk to her and went back to Zhongcui Palace with Consort Wei.

As everyone dispersed, it was inside the Weiyang Palace that the Empress's face fell.

"This Xie family member is getting more and more arrogant, taking advantage of being favored and acting extremely presumptuously!"

Thinking about how Xie Jiu had embarrassed Tingyun in front of all the concubines, the Empress felt as if she had been slapped in the face, and her face burned with pain.

As the Empress, if she wanted to assign a concubine a task, she had to agree to the concubine's request first. This was something that would be ridiculed if it got out.

Although Xie Jiu's suggestions were all reasonable, they still made the Empress uncomfortable.

But if Xie Jiu were to say it, it's his own fault.

After all, the Empress originally had ulterior motives in sending Xie Jiu to manage the kitchen.

Tingyun poured hot tea again and handed it to the Empress. "Your Majesty, please calm down. As the saying goes, the higher you climb, the harder you fall. Consort Xie is so arrogant now. If she falls out of favor in the future, she will suffer even more. Besides, the kitchen is the most chaotic place. Even if she singles out Consort Sun, things may still go wrong elsewhere. Your Majesty, just watch how chaotic she gets."

These words pleased the Empress somewhat. She took the teacup, sipped it twice, and then said in a deep voice.

"We'll see. I'd like to see what she's really capable of."

“Your Majesty, I think Consort Xie has always been the same kind of person, and she is relatively easy to deal with. On the contrary, Consort Wei seems to be different from before,” Tingyun said from the side.

The Empress frowned slightly. "The plan to kill two birds with one stone failed. Instead, it lessened Wei's hostility towards Xie. I shouldn't have punished Wei in my impulsive anger last time."

"Your Majesty, please don't say that. It is only right that a concubine should be punished for disrespecting the Empress. Your Majesty has done nothing wrong. If Consort Wei holds a grudge against Your Majesty because of this, then it is her fault," Tingyun comforted her.

"That's true, but I am indeed much more impatient than before. I should think things through more carefully."

The Empress was not entirely unaware of the changes in herself.

However, the real challenge lies in recognizing a problem and immediately making changes and adjustments.

However, no one else cares much about what's happening in Weiyang Palace these days; Ninghua Palace is the real focus and the hot topic.

Upon hearing that the Imperial Kitchen would be temporarily under Xie Jieyu's control, the people in charge were all very excited, but Xie Jiu didn't have time to deal with them at the moment.

Upon returning to Ninghua Palace, the first thing he did was to invite the imperial physician who had visited the Xie residence the previous day.

"Jieyu, Imperial Physician Wang has arrived." Chunrong led him in.

"Wang Shiqing of the Imperial Medical Academy pays respects to Consort Xie." The imperial physician, who appeared to be in his early fifties, bowed respectfully.

Xie Jiu smiled gently and waved his hand. "Lord Wang, you may excuse yourself. I invited you here to inquire about my father's condition. I appreciate your visit to my residence yesterday."