Flowery Hair: A Maidservant

Chapter 289 Greetings at Cining Palace

Cining Palace.

Perhaps it was because Empress Dowager Zhou had left the palace, the Emperor and Empress were always respectful and filial, and Consort Mei was flattering her, plus two concubines had become pregnant in succession, that Empress Dowager Jiang was in a very good mood recently.

The Empress led the Consort Chun and other concubines into the hall first. After they paid their respects and took their seats, Li, the eunuch of Cining Palace, stepped forward and announced that the newly promoted concubines should come in for an audience.

Xie Jieyu, Rong Meiren, and nine others filed in, lined up in order of rank, knelt down together to perform the three bows and nine kowtows ceremony, and then said in unison: "Your Majesty, we pay our respects to Your Majesty the Empress Dowager. We wish Your Majesty good health and longevity."

Empress Dowager Jiang sat high on her phoenix couch, raised her hand slightly, and said gently, "Get up, all of you."

Xie Jieyu and the others stood up and bowed their heads.

Empress Dowager Jiang's gaze slowly swept over the crowd, finally landing on Consort Xie. "Consort Xie, step forward and let me take a look at you."

Xie Jieyu moved gracefully and performed the curtsy again according to the rules. Today, Xie Jieyu was wearing a light yellow dress, which made her face look even whiter than snow and made her look charming and lovely.

"I heard that Grand Councilor Xie presented the 'Ten Strategies for Border Defense' before the New Year, which His Majesty reviewed until the wee hours of the morning. Your father is truly a pillar of the nation. After entering the palace, Consort Jieyu should also serve His Majesty well and share his burdens."

Consort Xie bowed gracefully, her voice clear and melodious: "Your Majesty is too kind. I will certainly remember Your Majesty's teachings, keep to my duty, and serve His Majesty wholeheartedly."

Empress Dowager Jiang nodded in satisfaction and instructed the nanny beside her, "Go and bring me the gold-threaded eight-treasure pearl hairpin that I acquired a few days ago, and give it to Consort Xie as a reward."

The nanny obeyed and left, and soon returned with a crystal-clear hairpin inlaid with rubies, sapphires and jade.

Empress Dowager Jiang took the hairpin and personally handed it to Consort Xie, saying, "The gemstones on this hairpin are brightly colored, and they match your makeup very well today."

Consort Xie accepted the hairpin with both hands and bowed again in gratitude: "Thank you for the gift, Your Majesty the Empress Dowager."

Empress Dowager Jiang then turned her gaze to Consort Rong, a subtle, profound meaning flashing in her eyes. "Consort Rong comes from the Li family of Zhao County and has been pampered since childhood. Her upbringing must be excellent. However, the inner palace is not like the household. The rules are strict, and you must be careful in everything you do. You must not act recklessly just because of your family's power. I hope you understand that in this palace, only the Emperor's favor is truly reliable."

Rong Meiren's heart tightened, but she still maintained a dignified smile on her face. She curtsied and said, "Your Majesty the Empress Dowager is right. I will keep it in mind and dare not slack off in the slightest."

Under the watchful eyes of Hua Yan and the others, Empress Dowager Jiang bestowed the jade Buddhist beads in her hand upon Consort Rong.

This reprimand, ostensibly for the transgressions of the Li family's collateral branch, also served as a gesture of appeasement by bestowing upon Consort Rong the Buddhist prayer beads she often played with.

Hua Yan personally believes that this move was probably authorized by the Emperor.

Facing the other concubines, Empress Dowager Jiang's tone softened: "Since you entered the palace through the selection process, you should support each other and not harbor any thoughts of fighting. As long as you behave yourselves, the Emperor and I will take notice."

They were also each bestowed with a set of palace-style headdress and jewelry, which, though not particularly valuable, added a touch of elegance.

However, when Empress Dowager Jiang's gaze swept to Wu Yunu at the end, she finally felt dissatisfied.

Wu Yunu and the deceased Concubine Yu were the ones she arranged to be by the Emperor's side. Although she didn't have high hopes for them, they were still people from her palace. Who knew they would be so incompetent? At the first banquet, how many of them had the face to let a Jieyu with a higher rank accompany them?

Thinking of this, Empress Dowager Jiang looked at the Empress with some dissatisfaction, but in the end she still said that the Empress and Consort Wu should stay, while Consort Chun and the others bowed and took their leave.

After leaving Cining Palace, Consort Pei naturally followed behind Consort Mei. It was no secret that she came from Jiangzhou, and most people in the palace knew about her connection with Consort Mei.

Qu Qingge (Qu Baolin, who had just entered the palace) watched Yun Baolin talking with Consort Chun and looked on with envy. Her maid, Aqing, whispered, "Does Your Highness want to go up and pay your respects to Consort Chun? She is still under house arrest. If you want to visit her at Qianying Pavilion, you will need Consort Chun's permission."

Qu Qingge shook her head slightly, "No rush. It's not good for us to disturb Consort Chun's reunion with her cousin. Now that we've entered the palace, we'll be able to meet her cousin eventually."

Ah-Qing seemed to be deep in thought. Her mistress was always intelligent, so there must be a reason for what she said. She only hoped that the other woman wouldn't be too much of a burden to her young lady.

There were more than a dozen concubines, along with their attendants and eunuchs, totaling more than thirty people. Consort Chun frowned and said, "You may all disperse. The day after tomorrow is the Dragon Boat Festival. Do not forget to go to the Department of Treasures to collect the orchid-infused water and other items."

"Yes."

Consort Mei's eyes flickered slightly, and an enigmatic smile appeared on her lips. Upon seeing this, Consort Pei felt a chill creep into her heart for no apparent reason.

"Return to Zhaoqing Palace." Consort Mei left first, followed closely by Consort Pei, who gradually walked away into the distance.

Consort Rong stared blankly at Consort Mei's retreating figure, wondering to herself if Consort Mei had been involved in the sabotage before the banquet.

......

Yun Yao was quite lively, and on the way back to the palace with Consort Chun, she talked non-stop about her experiences in Chuzhou.

Chuzhou is located in the Jianghuai region and is rich in resources. Yun Yao was talking enthusiastically, and Consort Chun pulled Hua Yan along to listen to her talk with great interest.

Before coming to the capital, my grandfather and mother prepared many local gifts from Chuzhou.

This cloud and mist tea is made from tea seeds brought back from Sichuan and Guizhou by Abbot Wuzhen of Amitabha Temple. The seeds are planted in the valleys of the South and North General Mountains. The monks in the temple pick the new buds when the clouds and mist are thick, and the resulting tea has an excellent aroma after processing.

I brought a lot with me this time. If my cousin and Lady Meng like it, I will write again and ask my mother to send some over.

In addition to Yunwu tea, Yunyao also gave her dried Jinyu Chu chrysanthemums. Chunfei loved chrysanthemums, so she immediately asked Mengzhu to take both of them to the tea room to brew.

"I heard that my cousin has a very skilled cook in the palace. Dujuan also makes some pastries at home, especially sesame candy and snowflake cake. It's a pity that Ganlu Palace doesn't have a small kitchen..."

Consort Chun smiled and said, "Since you're talking about it so enthusiastically, I'd like to try it too. Ruizhu, take Dujuan to the kitchen to find winter melon and tell her to make some dishes from Lin'an. My cousin will have lunch here at noon."

Ruizhu happily agreed and stepped forward to take Dujuan's hand as they left the main hall.

Hua Yan had been sitting quietly to the side, listening attentively, but gradually, Yun Yao began to intentionally or unintentionally shift the conversation to the Emperor.

When the conversation touched on the Emperor's preferences, Hua Yan looked at her with a hint of amusement.

Consort Chun said frankly, "It is understandable that Cousin Yun is new to the palace and knows some of the Emperor's preferences, but you must not be too hasty. Consort Xie and Consort Rong are the best among you in terms of family background and rank, and they will surely be the first to be favored."

Yun Yao looked embarrassed and stammered, "What my cousin says is true. I grew up in Chuzhou and have limited experience. I am truly apprehensive and think I must not do anything taboo..."

"My cousin just needs to be patient, and she will naturally have the opportunity to serve the emperor."