Each with their own thoughts

  He hastily returned to the Nurturing Heart Palace, and as soon as he arrived, he heard that the Emperor had placed the Third Prince in a side hall of the palace. He didn't dare linger and hurriedly rushed to the side hall. As soon as he entered and turned around the screen, he felt his stomach start to ache again: 'Good heavens, I say, Your Majesty, that's your dragon bed! You're letting one of the princes sleep on it, what is going on here...?'

  Long Hui didn't care about these things, Yongzhang was after all the biological son of this body, sleeping in his own bed wasn't a problem; besides, when he was young, he often squeezed onto the same bed as his father and imperial brother, his father would tell interesting stories or court gossip to coax them to sleep, this could be considered a way of educating one's children, at least he and his imperial brother were taught very well.

  Gao Wu Yong stepped forward a few steps to the bedside, bowed his head respectfully and said: "I have conveyed your message to Consort Chun, Your Majesty. She has always been intelligent and will surely understand your intention."

  Long Hui Tian merely raised his eyes and glanced at Gao Wu Yong, not saying anything more about the matter. Gao Wu Yong's words sounded like he was speaking well of Consort Chun, but in reality, he subtly implied that apart from the Emperor's decree, Consort Chun had also asked some other things, and he had replied to her with some unrelated trivial matters.

  Yongzhang was settled, and Long Yitian let out a soft sigh as he walked out of the side hall. Although he was unhappy in his heart, he still gave orders: "Prepare the carriage for Cining Palace."

  At this time, the Cining Palace was exceptionally lively, with birds singing and flowers blooming in competition. After all, these concubines were thinking that they could leave a good impression on the Empress Dowager, and those who were favored by her would have a great backing in the future. In any case, within the harem, it was the Empress Dowager's words that carried the most weight, even more so than the Empress herself.

  The Empress Dowager sat in the main seat, with Qing'er serving her on both sides. She looked at the concubines below and although she still smiled warmly on her face, in her heart, she had already scrutinized these people one by one before slowly opening her mouth: "Jing Xian, next month is the coronation ceremony, how are your preparations going? If there's any difficulty, just tell me, after all, this concerns the imperial family's reputation and can't be taken lightly."

  The Xian Huang Imperial Concubine, sitting at the head of all the concubines, was visibly delighted and her smile never faded from her face. Her complexion was also much rosier than in recent days, proving that the saying "When people encounter happy events, their spirits are refreshed" is still quite correct.

  "It's the Empress Dowager asking, so the Imperial Noble Consort hastily replied: "Your Majesty can rest assured, I also understand this principle and naturally wouldn't dare to be negligent. If there really is a need for Your Majesty's help, I won't hesitate to speak up either. Just don't blame me for being a bother at that time."

  "Hmm, as long as you understand." The Empress Dowager nodded in satisfaction. This Imperial Noble Consort was obviously more sensible and understanding of the rules than the other consorts, or else she wouldn't have chosen her to be the Empress. However, this Imperial Noble Consort's methods were still a bit lacking, and her personality was straightforward. In the future, it would be necessary for the Empress Dowager to help her out from time to time.

  The conversation between Empress Dowager and Imperial Noble Consort Yin seemed to be about the coronation ceremony, but in reality, all the consorts below them were as clear as a mirror.

  This is not about the Empress at all, it's clearly the Empress Dowager taking the opportunity to warn the concubines of various palaces, making it clear to everyone that this Empress has been recognized by her in her heart, she is the Empress's backing, and whoever dares to give the Empress a hard time in the future will be giving this Empress Dowager a hard time, don't blame her for being ruthless then.

  Concubine Jia also had a clever idea, holding her belly with one hand and smiling as she said: "I've been resting at home for the past few days to calm my fetus, so I haven't had a chance to see Sister Xin. Today, I'll take advantage of Her Majesty's presence to congratulate you first, Sister Xin."

  The Empress Dowager didn't catch the underlying meaning of Consort Jia's words at all, and simply replied politely on the surface: "Sister, why be so polite? These days I really have no time, after I'm done with this busy period, I will definitely go to your place for a visit."

  Pure Consort listened to Jia Consort's words and felt that something was not quite right, knowing that it wasn't the time to stir up trouble yet. She hastily smoothed things over, flinging her handkerchief aside as she laughed and said: "Sister, don't listen to her nonsense, she must be going crazy from being alone all the time. Otherwise, I would often go visit you these days, anyway my place is closer to your Yongning Palace. You should just focus on giving birth to a little prince for the Emperor."

  The queen's words sounded extremely intimate, but those with discerning ears naturally heard the underlying tone, and their minds were filled with all sorts of thoughts.

  Jiafei saw Chunfei come out to mediate, and deliberately hinted that she was now pregnant with the imperial heir, so she didn't continue to play tricks on her. She followed Chunfei's words and stepped down, intentionally laughing and saying: "Sister still understands me, after that day you must often go to my place to sit."

  The Empress thought that the relationship between the two consorts was still good, and if they got along well, she would have fewer worries as the future Empress Dowager.

  At this time, the eunuch's announcement completely disrupted the "harmony" in the house. The hearts of the concubines, which were originally still calm, suddenly became restless. There was no other reason - the Emperor had arrived.

  As the eunuch's sharp voice fell, Long Yitian quickly walked in from outside the door. He only glanced at the concubines present and then came to the front of the empress dowager to pay his respects: "Your son greets you, Imperial Mother."

  The empress dowager looked at the emperor, who still showed respect and filial piety towards her. She was naturally delighted and her tone became even more gentle: "Your Majesty, please come and sit down, have you finished all the government affairs?"

  Concubine Gui led a group of consorts to pay their respects to Emperor Longyuan: "Your concubines wish you good health, Your Majesty, may you be blessed with good fortune."

  Of course, among them, there were also these concubines constantly throwing flirtatious glances, after all, the emperor was not easily seen on ordinary days.

  "Get up." After finishing speaking, Long Yitian sat down beside the Empress Dowager. He naturally knew what she was most concerned about, so he made sure to show respect on the surface. His words were laced with intentional reverence for the Empress Dowager: "I've just finished being busy, and first went to see Yongzhao before coming directly to you."

  The Empress Dowager heard that the Emperor had not waited for her to ask, but had himself brought up the matter of Third Brother. She then followed his lead and said: "I hear you've had Third Brother move into the Nurturing Heart Palace to live, but isn't the Nurturing Heart Palace your bedchamber? What's going on here?"

  The empress dowager's words made Consort Chun's heart skip a beat, but for now it wasn't her turn to speak, so she could only listen with rapt attention.

  Long Hui Tian felt that there was no need to hide this matter, so he told the truth: "Actually, it's nothing. It's just that Yongzhang has been ill for many days and hasn't seen any improvement. I think those slaves are lazy, so I had Yongzhang brought to Yangxin Hall to rest. Moreover, I have long intended to bring Yongzhang by my side to teach him, so you don't need to worry about this matter, Empress Dowager."

  It's already been said to this extent, the empress dowager can't possibly not understand that the emperor is clearly starting to cultivate a crown prince. This matter of the crown prince is a political affair, and the harem is not allowed to interfere in politics. So even if the empress dowager wants to ask more questions, she cannot open her mouth again.

  As for Consort Chun, her heart was exceptionally unquiet at this moment. The emperor's intention was so obvious, how could she not hear it? How could all these consorts not hear it? It seems that the days to come will really be unable to remain peaceful.

  The other consorts, although still calm on the surface, were secretly resentful in their hearts, and the handkerchiefs they held were almost twisted to shreds. Those with sons couldn't help but think about why the emperor favored someone else's child instead of their own, and they all thought about how to help their own sons gain favor. As for those without sons, they were all secretly calculating in their hearts that no matter what, they had to give birth to a son, otherwise, losing favor was only a matter of time.

  The empress dowager had to change the subject, with a hint of meaning, and said: "I know that some things Your Majesty has your own plans, but I still want to remind you that the rules left by our ancestors cannot be ignored. I don't hope that you will gain a bad reputation because of a momentary impulse."

  Long Hui smiled faintly and said in a tone that couldn't be discerned as happy or angry, "Empress Dowager, you can rest assured. I have my own way of handling things. After all, I am the Emperor of this great Qing dynasty, and everything I do is for the prosperity of our Qing empire. So if some people are speaking nonsense in front of you, just listen to it casually and don't take it too seriously."

  He made it very clear this time that he didn't want the empress dowager to question his decision, after all, he was the emperor and his words were absolute.

  The empress heard this and felt a complex emotion that was hard to put into words. She worried that if the emperor insisted on his own way, he would stir up trouble. She was delighted that the emperor had a resolute and decisive air, reminiscent of Emperor Kangxi's style. What pained her was that the emperor now had the complete demeanor of an emperor, and she feared that from now on, he would no longer listen to her words as his old wife.

  However, no matter what she says, she is still the empress dowager, and her status is there. As long as she and the emperor do not tear their faces apart, the emperor should still be good to her. So she also smiled and covered up the matter: "Since the emperor has already made plans, I won't bother with it either."

  Then, the Empress Dowager and the Emperor started talking about family matters again, mentioning the Empress's management of the enthronement ceremony.

  Long Hui Tian didn't have the heart to deal with these trivial matters, so he opened his mouth and fully entrusted Yu Huang Guifei with the responsibility. Anyway, not long after that, Yu Huang Guifei became the Empress, and taking charge of the harem was only natural.

  Other consorts, when seeing the emperor, all had words and actions that were biased towards Empress Dowager Rong. In their hearts, they began to secretly make plans again. Some wanted to curry favor, some wanted to trip her up, and some wanted to maintain a safe distance. In short, no one was at peace.

  Long Yinhao didn't stay for long and soon left Cining Palace, because there was a big pile of memorials in the imperial study that hadn't been dealt with yet. It seemed he would be busy again tonight.

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