kingnovel Chapter 288 Favorite Woman
Chapter 288 Favorite Woman
Nanny Qian's eyes were filled with disbelief. "That shouldn't be the case. Your Majesty, you haven't committed any serious offenses, and you're pregnant. If His Majesty really wants to depose you and appoint another queen, I'm sure those censors in the court won't let it go."
"This is something that brings discredit upon the Emperor. How could Your Majesty allow himself to be tainted for the sake of a woman?"
The more she thought about it, the less likely it seemed.
"Your Majesty, you are just overthinking it... His Majesty definitely didn't mean that. His Majesty's decision to confer the title of Imperial Noble Consort now is surely just to appease that evil concubine and allow her to safely give birth to an heir."
Zhou Shiya was secretly filled with hatred.
No matter what the reason is, Qin Feiling's appointment of Zhou Lingge as Imperial Noble Consort at this time is not a good thing for her.
In the hundreds of years since the Qin Dynasty was established, no emperor had ever rashly appointed an imperial concubine while the queen was still alive and had not committed any major crime.
The Imperial Noble Consort is like a vice-empress, and her power and status are slightly lower than that of the empress.
This was a direct threat to her position as queen.
Besides, she no longer has the Phoenix Seal, so it is just a decoration in name only.
Zhou Shiya felt an overwhelming sense of crisis.
She clenched her palms tightly and gritted her teeth.
"That idiot Ye Wanxi, why didn't she feed the amnesia drug to His Majesty? And Qin Keqing, she was so powerful at the beginning, fooling everyone around, but in the end, she also failed..."
"Every one of them is a fool and a waste..."
She felt... cornered.
Her blood ran cold.
Suddenly, a palace servant came in with a joyful face and reported, "Empress, Eunuch Liu sent a message saying that His Majesty will be dining in Fengluan Palace tonight."
The emperor hasn't set foot in Fengluan Palace for a long time.
This time I came here, I must have wanted to break the ice with the Queen.
After all, he had just been conferred the title of Imperial Noble Consort, and he must have felt guilty towards the Queen. He came to appease the Queen and explain to her.
Nanny Qian's eyes were full of joy.
She excitedly grabbed Zhou Shiya's hand and said, "Your Majesty, you and he have been married for many years... You have a marital relationship. These days, you have been well-behaved and have not caused any trouble. His Majesty must have come to comfort you..."
"Your Majesty has appointed Zhou Lingge as Imperial Noble Consort, and that's probably the end of it. He certainly wouldn't be so foolish as to abandon a good queen like you and make her a concubine. Besides, your Majesty, don't forget that your engagement with His Majesty was granted by the late Emperor himself."
"Your Majesty respects the late emperor the most. How could he possibly disregard the late emperor's will and be so foolish as to enthrone a concubine's daughter as empress?"
Zhou Shiya listened to Nanny Qian's analysis, and the breath she had been holding in her heart couldn't help but relax a little.
Aunt Qian is right.
She was the marriage arranged by the late emperor and was the daughter-in-law that the late emperor favored.
Even if Qin Feiling ignores public opinion, can he still fail to live up to the late emperor's last wish?
Seeing that Zhou Shiya was still hesitating, Nanny Qian leaned over and gently touched her bulging belly.
"Your Majesty, don't forget that you are now pregnant with the Emperor's heir... You haven't done anything wrong these days, so how could His Majesty have any reason to depose the Empress?"
"In just over four months, the Queen will be due to give birth. At this point, no matter what, we must remain calm."
Zhou Shiya slowly breathed a sigh of relief.
She nodded gently. "You're right. I shouldn't have lost my composure in the heat of the moment. I haven't done anything wrong. His Majesty can't just depose the Queen."
"As long as this child is here, I can firmly sit on the throne of Queen... As long as I am alive, Zhou Lingge will never be able to ascend to the throne."
She quickly asked the palace servants to start preparing to welcome Qin Feiling's arrival.
Everyone in Fengluan Palace was excited and happy.
Being in the harem, even the queen needs the favor of His Majesty.
They hope that the Queen can reconcile with His Majesty and return to their previous state of mutual respect.
Fengluan Palace has been in a slump recently, and their lives are extremely difficult.
The imperial palace has always been a place where the powerful are flattered and the weak are bullied. Even the queen will be ostracized and bullied if she loses the emperor's favor.
Zhou Shiya hadn't been alone with Qin Feiling for a long time. When he suddenly came to Fengluan Palace for dinner, her silent heart began to stir again.
She sat in front of the bronze mirror and dressed herself up nicely.
She stroked her delicate face and said, "Your Majesty has always been distant towards me. Ever since Zhou Lingge entered the palace, I haven't been close to Your Majesty."
She really misses His Majesty.
Madam Qian chuckled softly, "Your Majesty is beautiful. With a little dressing up, she will look pretty good."
"If tonight can bring back the past love between you and His Majesty, that would be wonderful. Your Majesty, you must remember not to have any disputes with His Majesty over the Imperial Concubine's affairs..."
Zhou Shiya smiled shyly and nodded.
"I know..."
She was full of joy and waited for Qin Feiling's arrival with endless anticipation.
The dining table was filled with delicacies, fine wines and delicious food.
As soon as the sky darkened, the palace attendants at the gate of Fengluan Palace loudly announced: "Your Majesty has arrived."
Zhou Shiya hurriedly asked Nanny Qian to support her and walked to the palace gate to greet Qin Feiling.
Qin Feiling, wearing casual clothes, got off the dragon chariot.
Zhou Shiya lowered her eyebrows and bowed to him gracefully: "May your majesty be blessed with good health."
In the past, at such times, His Majesty would step forward to support her.
After all, she is the queen, so she should have some dignity.
She was already prepared for Qin Feiling to support her elbow, but she waited and waited... Qin Feiling didn't move at all.
He just stared at Zhou Shiya with deep eyes for a while.
Then, he put his hands behind his back, slowly stepped into the palace gate, and was the first to enter the Fengluan Palace.
Zhou Shiya's expression couldn't help but look a little ugly.
His Majesty, he is unwilling to even give her this respect now?
Nanny Qian quickly supported her arm and whispered, "Your Majesty, remember not to argue with His Majesty..."
Zhou Shiya gritted her teeth secretly.
Okay, she endured it.
She suppressed her dissatisfaction and followed Qin Feiling into the inner hall and walked to the table filled with food.
She smiled lightly and politely invited Qin Feiling to sit down.
Qin Feiling glanced around the inner hall and said calmly, "What does the Queen think of my canonization of Ge'er as Imperial Noble Consort?"
Zhou Shiya clenched her fists tightly, her sharp nails digging into the flesh of her palms.
She tried to calm herself down.
"My sister has worked so hard to bear your majesty's heir. Your Majesty loves my sister and has appointed her as Imperial Noble Consort as a reward. I have no objection."
"My sister and I share the same fate, and we share the same success... Her receiving this honor is a blessing for our Zhou family. I would like to express my gratitude to Your Majesty..."
These words were spoken in a grand and calm manner.
Qin Feiling raised her eyebrows and couldn't help but chuckle: "I didn't expect that the Queen would be so reasonable."
"Since you are so understanding, things will be much easier."
"I like Ge'er and regard her as the woman I love most in my life. Since she is my favorite, I naturally cannot treat her unfairly by making her a concubine and making our child a concubine..."