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

Chapter 206

Princess Heyi's wedding date with Prince Gao Sui of Xichiyi was set for February 17th.

The Xichi delegation, which delivered betrothal gifts and also served as the wedding procession, arrived in the capital at the end of the first month of the lunar calendar, meaning that the princess would be married in half a month.

Because she was marrying out of the palace, the palace was decorated according to the standards for a wedding, with lanterns and colorful decorations, making it a lively and festive place. It was rare to find the entire palace filled with such joy.

"On the second day of the second lunar month, the dragon raises its head. Today is an auspicious day. Sister, let's go to Baohua Temple to pray for blessings later."

After the morning greetings were over, Consort Liu and Xie Jiu walked side by side and made a suggestion.

Xie Jiu had no objection. "Okay, let's go then. I haven't prayed for blessings in a long time."

Staying in the palace is boring, so I have to find something to do.

Once they had agreed, the two turned around and headed straight for Baohua Hall.

Weiyang Palace.

When the Empress heard that Xie Jiu had gone to Baohua Palace, she couldn't help but look somewhat annoyed.

“During the New Year, the Emperor had just bestowed a title upon her, and the envoys from Xichi Kingdom were all present, so it was not advisable to take action, which allowed her to escape a calamity.”

Tingyun stood by and said, "It's all arranged. If Your Highness wants to do something, you can ask them to do it anytime."

"No, there is no good opportunity now." The Empress shook her head. "Now is the crucial time for the two countries to discuss marriage. The trouble in Dingzhou has only recently been quelled. If the inner palace is not peaceful and many troubles arise, I'm afraid the Emperor will also be angry with me and think that I have not done my best to mediate and manage the situation."

Upon hearing this, Tingyun nodded and remained silent.

The Empress was silent for a moment, then stood up. “It won’t be so easy to bring her down. I’ve suddenly realized something: Xie’s favor is rooted in the Emperor’s favor. In this selection of concubines, we must choose a few more outstanding beauties from humble backgrounds to share her favor.”

“But wouldn’t that be inappropriate?” Tingyun whispered. “Last time, I heard the Empress Dowager say that she wanted to choose someone steady and docile, like Consort Wei.”

"Like Consort Wei?"

The Empress turned around, her eyebrows raised, her expression displeased.

"Isn't one woman like that enough to annoy me? If there are more, they won't be able to share Xie's favor, and they'll only cause me trouble. When choosing a wife, choose a virtuous one; when choosing a concubine, choose one with beauty. As long as she's good-looking and can please the Emperor, that's enough. Why should a concubine be so dignified?"

"Your Majesty is right." Tingyun nodded and said no more.

Baohua Hall.

Xie Jiu and Liu Cairen came to pray for blessings, and as they were about to leave, they unexpectedly ran into Sun Baolin.

"Your Majesty, I have met Consort Jin and Lady Liu." Sun Baolin bowed slightly.

"No need for formalities," Xie Jiu quickly waved her hand. "You're heavily pregnant, please don't stand on ceremony."

Sun Baolin seemed to be in a good mood, smiling and nodding, then asked, "Is Your Majesty also here to pray for blessings?"

Xie Jiu responded, "Yes, it's the second day of the second lunar month, the day the dragon raises its head. It's an auspicious day, so I'm just joining in the fun. Are you here to pray for blessings too?"

"Yes." Sun Baolin nodded slightly, holding the maid's hand. "I thought I would be giving birth soon, so I came here to pray for the baby in my womb, hoping that he would be born safely and grow up healthy."

"Of course," Xie Jiu said softly with a smile. Consort Liu added, "With the Emperor's dragon aura protecting you in the palace, and your complexion so good, it's clear the unborn child is healthy, and the delivery will surely be smooth."

"Then I'll take your kind words." Sun Baolin smiled happily and patted his belly.

After exchanging a few pleasantries, Xie Jiu and Consort Liu were about to leave when they suddenly heard a high-pitched and sharp female voice coming from the entrance of the main hall.

"I see you're about to give birth, and you still dare to run around outside. Do you not care about yourself, or about the imperial child in your womb? What will you do if something goes wrong? You're still asking for good luck here. I think that if you're this careless, no one's good luck will be of any use!"

The group looked in the direction of the sound and saw Consort Zhuang entering from outside.

His gaze swept coldly over the three of them, and he snorted.

"Open your eyes and take a good look. Those who entered the palace after you are all concubines. Those who entered the palace at the same time as you, even before giving birth, are already talented women. Only you are still a mere concubine even though you are about to give birth. Aren't you stupid? They may not even take you seriously, and you are still enjoying yourself!"

After speaking, she rolled her eyes at Sun Baolin, looking quite annoyed.

Sun Baolin was scolded harshly by her, and he didn't dare to utter a sound. He immediately shrank his neck and lowered his head like a quail, remaining silent.

Xie Jiu frowned, thinking to himself that Sun Baolin's temperament was really too incompetent. She was carrying the emperor's child and should be at the most precious time of her life, yet she was still so timid. No wonder she couldn't rise in rank.

This was probably when Zhao Xingjin wanted to grant her the title of Empress Dowager, but someone stopped him.

In Xie Jiu's opinion, Zhao Xingjin was not so cold-hearted as to refuse to even grant him the title of a talented woman.

In fact, Xie Jiu's guess was correct.

It was the Empress who said that a promotion would inevitably cause congratulations and disturbances, so it would be better to wait until the child was born before granting the promotion, so that it would be a double celebration. That's why Zhao Xingjin didn't grant the promotion.

Withdrawing her gaze, Xie Jiu did not want to get entangled with Consort Zhuang, so she simply bowed slightly and said calmly, "Your Highness Consort Zhuang, I have other matters to attend to, so I will take my leave now."

"Don't rush off." Consort Zhuang stepped aside to block her, her beautiful eyes sweeping over her. "I say, Consort Jin, you've been serving the Emperor for half a year now, and you've received quite a bit of his favor. How come you're still not pregnant? Come to think of it, Consort Sun only served the Emperor two or three times before she got pregnant. Could it be that there's something wrong with your body?"

After speaking, he paused, then suddenly looked enlightened, and then raised his hand to cover his lips, making a pitying gesture.

"Could this be from when you were following Wu Jue? You should definitely ask the imperial physician to take good care of you!"

Xie Jiu originally did not want to make things difficult for her, but Consort Zhuang's words were really too much. However, just as she was about to speak, she heard Consort Liu's voice suddenly ring out.

"As the ancients said, a blessed person will not fall into a place of misfortune. The Wu family of the Marquis of Weiyuan was a place of misfortune in the past, and naturally they were not favored by the heavens. Now that Consort Jin has entered the palace and serves by the emperor's side, the fortune that was brought down by the Wu family in the past will gradually improve. Consort Jin is young, so why worry about not having children in the future?"

At this point, his expression changed to one of concern.

"But Consort Zhuang, since giving birth to the Fourth Prince, why haven't we heard any more good news? Your Highness has been favored quite a bit. In fact, Consort Zhuang is older than Consort Jin, so you should have someone carefully take care of you."

Before Consort Liu could finish speaking, Consort Zhuang's face was already quite unpleasant. Hearing the words "old age" only made her angrier.

He immediately raised his hand and slapped Liu Cai Ren across the face.

"You vile woman, who do you think you are, daring to speak to me like that!"

Consort Liu instinctively closed her eyes in shock, but the expected pain did not occur. Instead, she heard Consort Zhuang's increasingly angry voice.

"Xie, how dare you stop me!"