The Golden Partridge of An Lingrong's Rebirth

Chapter 183.loving mother

Concubine Jing walked in slowly with her head lowered. She lost her usual closeness and stood a few steps away from the soft couch. She leaned down and saluted, "Greetings to Concubine Rong and Concubine Xi."

"We haven't seen each other for a few days. Why are you so angry with Sister Jingfei? Sit down quickly." An Lingrong smiled and raised her hand to ask Dill to bring the stool over.

Zhen Huan also smiled lightly: "Sister, sit down first." She raised her eyes slightly and looked at An Lingrong, and the latter asked the waiters to leave knowingly, "It's rare that we have free time today, let's talk to each other. .”

"That's right, Hongzhao and Lingxi's sister Xi Sanli didn't come. If Jin Xi hadn't gone to invite her in person today, I'm afraid she wouldn't have been able to invite her." An Lingrong personally brought a cup of tea to Concubine Jing, as if He asked unintentionally, "Why didn't Hong Ruo come? I haven't seen him for a while, so I thought it was weird. Hong Hao told me yesterday that he was going to play Cuju with Brother Six."

Concubine Jing's face twitched unnaturally, and she reluctantly held the corner of her mouth: "Hongruo has been busy reading and practicing calligraphy these days, and he has no time. When he is free in a few days, I will take him to see Concubine Rong." She looked at Zhen Huan and changed the subject and said, "Concubine Xi is so happy to have twins, a dragon and a phoenix, and she has to deal with the trivial etiquette matters in the palace. She just wishes she couldn't be separated, and the concubines don't dare to come and disturb her."

"Sister, now she calls us empress. It seems like we are really going to have a falling out." Zhen Huan sighed matter-of-factly and said to An Lingrong.

An Lingrong frowned and smiled, slowly drinking tea with lowered eyes without saying a word.

"Even though the two sisters are polite, there is a difference in dignity after all." Concubine Jing breathed a sigh of relief and her smile became more sincere, "Now there are two concubines in the palace. Compared with Concubine Hua back then, the two sisters Her position as noble concubine is more than worthy of her title, so who am I?"

"When it comes to moral character and qualifications, can't my sister be a noble concubine?" Zhen Huan looked at Concubine Jing seriously, "Rong'er and I are in high positions, doesn't it mean that my sister doesn't have any other thoughts in her heart?"

Concubine Jing was slightly startled, and tightened the handkerchief in her hand, but still had a peaceful smile on her face: "How can I compare with my two sisters? The emperor has talked to me more than once about your relationship with my sister. In the scene when they first met in the Royal Garden, he praised his sister for her charming smile, and Concubine Rong. The emperor always talks about you and won't tolerate others saying anything bad about you." She looked at Zhen Huan, and then Look at An Lingrong, "As for me, a full 17 years have passed since I entered the palace. My years have passed and I cannot compare to my two sisters in their prime."

"When you were young, no one was beautiful, but your beauty grew old in a blink of an eye. You just watched your kindness flow like water and never looked back." Zhen Huan said lightly.

"Whether a woman in the palace has a good life or a bad life, it's just like this all her life." Concubine Jing's eyes were filled with water, and a flash of envy flashed across her face, "Both sisters are taken into consideration by the emperor, so their lives have gone smoothly. No worries.”

An Lingrong put down the tea cup and looked at Concubine Jing coldly: "Sister, you are smart. Since you know that the emperor values ​​me and Sister Zhen, why did you betray us for the queen?" She asked herself that she had done enough for Concubine Jing. , "Before the incident between Jin Xi and Su Peisheng happened, you had been in and out of the Queen's Palace many times, and you had only seen flaws in the Yingluo that caused the incident. You were the one who brought this matter to the Queen. Yes or no?"

Concubine Jing was speechless, with a hint of embarrassment on her face. She didn't want to defend herself, so she stood up and knelt down: "The imperial concubine has sharp ears and eyes, and her hands and eyes are astute. I have nothing to say, but it's up to you two empresses to handle it."

"Sister, you don't have to be like this. I know that you are doing all this for Sixth Brother." Zhen Huan stretched out her hand towards Concubine Jing, raised her eyebrows and smiled lightly, "I know that sister has never fought for favor, and rarely made enemies with others. Back then, Concubine Hua Even when she was alone, she could endure humiliation and protect herself. What happened today is just because of her loving mother. After all, the sixth elder brother is the legitimate son in the name of the queen. If she uses this as a bargaining chip to blackmail her sister, it is expected that her sister will be taken advantage of. However, sister You can tell me and Rong'er about this, why do you have to be with the Queen?"

Concubine Jing looked at the weather-beaten hand in front of her, as if she saw the hand that Sixth Brother extended to her when he was taken away. Tears welled up one by one: "Without Hongluo, I am afraid that this half of my life will be useless." I was half happy. The queen had him taken away and kept him in my brother's house without me visiting her. She threatened me that if I didn't obey her orders, she would never let Hongrong see me again. She also said, If I help her this time, when the matter is settled, she will change Hongluo's jade dish to my name."

She raised her hand to wipe her tears and squeezed out a smile: "The palace is lonely and the night is long. There are 320 six bricks in Xianfu Palace. I have touched each one countless times. Before Hongluo came, there were already Tiny cracks appeared on 31 bricks. After he came to me, I never touched those bricks. A few days ago, I carefully counted one side and found four more bricks with cracks. .”

Concubine Jing's tears couldn't stop and wet her clothes: "I didn't know that obeying the queen's orders would be a dead end, but I had no choice. In the past few days when Hongluo was not with me, I couldn't sleep all night long. As soon as I closed my eyes, it was all about him crying..." She looked up at An Lingrong with tears in her eyes, "When he came to me, he had already remembered things, he was not close to me, and all he was thinking about was You, but I don’t care. From the bottom of my heart, I regard him as my own flesh and blood. I try my best to treat him well. So, when he calls me Niang, do you know how happy I am? "

An Lingrong opened his eyes slightly: "Can Hongrong speak?"

"On your birthday that year, he could speak. You reminded me specifically that Hongluo's name was still in the Queen's name, but I didn't think so." Concubine Jing wiped away her tears hard and smiled bitterly. He said, "Concubine Xi, I can't bear to harm you this time. I'll beat you or punish you. Please do as you please."

The palace was so quiet that you could hear the drop of a pin. After a long time, Zhen Huan slowly spoke: "The Queen is very scheming in this situation. Whether she is using your hand to defeat me or using my hand to defeat you, she will be beneficial and harmless. Even after you were suppressed by me, she could regain the sixth brother and have another bargaining chip in her hand." She raised her eyes to look at An Lingrong and said with a smile, "Rong'er, look, our queen My dear, you are so awesome."

"It's a pity that she miscalculated one thing." An Lingrong followed her words, stood up and walked to Concubine Jing, "The friendship between us and my sister has never been about interests, but about friendship." She said. He stretched out his hand to help Concubine Jing, "The only thing my sister did wrong in this matter was not trusting me and Sister Zhen."

Concubine Jing's face was full of surprise and she opened her mouth, but she was so choked that she couldn't speak.

"Okay, it's time to think about how to successfully bring Brother Six back to my sister." Zhen Huan let go of her tight official airs and looked at Concubine Jing with a smile, "After Jin Xi comes back, I will I had people go and investigate everything, but I couldn’t figure out how much my sister was involved in it. That’s why today’s incident happened, which scared my sister.” At the end, she sighed again, “My sister is a loving mother. However, after this incident, we also know that Jingren Palace will no longer be able to recruit people." An Lingrong motioned to Concubine Jing to sit down and turned around He said, "She has done a lot during this period of time when she was ill. Jingren Palace was almost completely reorganized, and none of the informants I originally arranged were left."

"If you can't find a few grains of bad rice in the rice bag, it would be a good idea to throw them all away." Zhen Huan asked Cui Jinxi to bring a cup of tea to Concubine Jing, "We originally had to deal with the matter of your entering and exiting Jingren Palace. We couldn’t find out, it was someone close to the Queen who deliberately revealed it, and we found out then.”

"She just wants us to fight to the death among ourselves so that she can reap the benefits." Concubine Jing regained her composure and calmed down.

An Lingrong smiled and shook his head, and said helplessly: "The queen did really well in this game. Even if we turned the tide and helped Jin Xi and Eunuch Su, and did not fall out with sister Jingfei, she still won this game for real." In the field, not to mention the return of power, my sister’s chance of winning when she used Qi Guiren to establish her power after returning to the palace was also shattered by her.” She looked at Zhen Huan and said happily, “If my sister’s pregnancy is not twins, I’m afraid At this moment, her tricks followed, and there were rumors, and my sister couldn't explain clearly even with her mouth open. Once the dirty water is splashed on it, it will be difficult to clean it off."

"How can rumors be stopped? The mouth is always on others, and one word can be said at the same time. Even if the evidence is irrefutable, the discussion should still be discussed." Zhen Huan was open-minded and did not dwell too much on the matter. He was talking about Sixth Elder Brother, "The most important thing now is to get Sixth Elder Brother back as soon as possible."

Concubine Jing nodded repeatedly.

"This is not simple. Sister Jingfei loves the sixth elder brother so much. Naturally, the sixth elder brother only recognizes sister Jingfei as his mother-in-law. Both sides have feelings for each other. It's just a matter of pushing." An Lingrong's eyes flickered and she covered her head. With a slight smile on his lips, "Sixth Brother is young, suddenly separated from the people close to him, and the people who serve him are not dedicated, so it is not surprising to get sick."

On September [-]th, Zhen Huan officially conferred the title of Concubine Xi.

"Concubine Xi is smart and intelligent, and good at general knowledge. The emperor asked her to assist in the management of the Sixth Palace, so I can rest assured." After the ceremony of bowing, the emperor wanted to give Zhen Huan the right to assist in the management of the Sixth Palace. The queen opened her mouth and said, "I'm already in trouble." Well, although you can't overwork yourself, Concubine Xi also has to take care of a pair of children. Princess Longyue is also in the Yongshou Palace now, so I'm afraid Concubine Xi will be too busy and add more weight to her workload."

"I have discussed with Concubine Xi and decided to hand over Lingxi to Concubine Rong to raise her to comfort her in the pain of losing her daughter." The emperor looked at Zhen Huan with joy in his eyes. He was very satisfied with her decision and sighed that she was sincere. After An Lingrong recovered, he immediately protected her in every possible way, "Hongzhao has a wet nurse to take care of her. Wuyue has always been sensible and well-behaved. Now that she is older, Concubine Xi won't need much effort."

"It's my concubine who is worrying too much." The queen had a perfect smile on her face, but she changed the subject and added, "It's just that Concubine Xi is taking care of the affairs of the harem for the first time. These things cannot be said to be too much or too little. It’s a bit difficult, so why not…”

Before the Queen finished speaking, Zhen Huan, who was kneeling on the ground, interrupted her with a smile on her face: "What the Queen said is absolutely true. I am young after all, and not as experienced as your sisters. Sister Duan Fei was the first to enter the palace, and Concubine Jing is My elder sister has also assisted the queen in managing the harem for many years. I am very willing to ask for advice from my two sisters. Furthermore, Concubine Hui also assisted in managing the harem in her early years and was highly praised by the emperor and empress. If there is anything unclear, I should not be ashamed to ask. ."

"It's best if you think so." The emperor made a final decision, and the matter was settled. He then asked a routine question, "Does the queen have anything else to tell Concubine Xi?"

"Concubine Xi, from now on you and Concubine Rong will share the position of concubine. You must always keep in mind your status. Since you have the right to co-manage the Sixth Palace, compared to Concubine Rong, your status is higher. You can be regarded as the head of the concubines in the harem. You must set a good example. From now on, you must be diligent in palace matters, serve the emperor well, and add a few more princes to the emperor." The queen calmly sow discord, even though she knew that these harmless words would not What effect will it have, but people's hearts are fickle, and one day the two of them may fall out?At that time, these words will be a knife to the heart.

Zhen Huan smiled and said, "I am trained by the Queen. I will never disappoint the Queen's expectations."

The sound of singing and dancing in Chonghua Palace could be heard from afar. The Weiyang Palace was lit with lamps and became lively for the first time in a long time. A group of people gathered around a little baby and made noises in a suppressed voice. The seventh elder brother was holding a small bed and trying his best to stand on tiptoes to watch. Looking at this new sister, her big eyes are full of curiosity.

"Mom, has the elder sister become a younger sister?" Seventh Prince ran to An Lingrong's side and asked childishly.

An Lingrong paused while rummaging for some small clothes, turned her eyes and said with a smile: "Honghao, your sister is a fairy in the sky. She lost a treasure before, and she went back to heaven to get it. Now she's back. But when you grow up, you will naturally become a younger sister."

Honghao's eyes were bright: "Then will she follow me in the future? Just like I followed my sister before."

An Lingrong touched his head, smiled and nodded.

　On September [-]th of the fifth year of Yongzheng's reign, Zhen Huan was deposed and left the palace; on September [-]th of the eighth year of Yongzheng's reign, Zhen Huan was named a noble concubine.

　　So far, it has been three years.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)