kingnovel Chapter 645: A Show of Power
Chapter 645: A Show of Power
Nian Susu looked at Qiu Minjing who had a guilty look on her face, and secretly sighed in her heart: Just spoil her.
A lot of people came in one after another. There was just one chair prepared for each person in the hall, and they sat from front to back in order of their status.
"Changzai" is the highest rank among all the beauties in this selection. In addition to Qiu Minjing, there is another person who was also given the title of "Changzai", she is Ma Chunxi, the sister of Ma Chaoxing, the leader of the Hulin Guard.
Ma Chunxi was tall and her skin was not as fair and delicate as other concubines. Instead, it showed some signs of being sunburned.
She walked in with a cold face, and under the guidance of the palace maid, she sat opposite Qiu Minjing, which was also the position to the lower right of Nian Susu.
Ma Chunxi was not like the others who sat down and started talking to the sisters around them. She had a blank expression from beginning to end, and seemed not to care about what they were saying, and was even more disdainful of joining in the discussion.
The concubine sitting next to her took the initiative to talk to her several times, but she responded coldly, giving off an aura of keeping people away, and forcing people to stay ten meters away.
Nian Susu was quite curious about her.
Ma Chaoxing was a military general, and his father was also a military commander. Ma Chunxi should not have the personality of a delicate young lady.
……
Within the specified time, all the concubines came to hand in, a total of twenty-four. Nian Susu, who was sitting at the end, could hardly see their faces, but there was one person she could recognize even if she turned into ashes - Shen Xinran.
Shen Xinran ranked last, looking dissatisfied.
After everyone was gathered, they all performed the ceremony of three kneelings and nine kowtows to Nian Susu. No one dared to be lazy in this step.
"See the Queen."
Nian Susu sat in the main seat, feeling a little dazed for a moment. This was too unreal. She had suddenly become the head of the harem. Wouldn't she have to deal with conflicts between herself and the concubines in the future?
Although these girls seem to be law-abiding, there is no guarantee that there won’t be bad people among the crowd, so you still have to be cautious.
"My lady..."
She was immersed in her own thoughts, and it was only after Zhihua called her a few times that she realized it was time to wake up.
The concubines below all turned pale with fear and were terrified, but no one dared to speak. The half-squatting, half-kneeling position became difficult to maintain for a long time, and their legs were trembling.
New officials have to start with their first few moves. Who dares to question or resist the queen's show of power?
"Cough cough cough... stand up." Nian Susu felt uneasy.
They must have thought she did it on purpose.
It’s better this way. If she appears to be easy to talk to and soft-tempered when they first meet, no one will listen to her in the future.
The concubines walked to their seats in a crooked manner.
Nian Susu sighed, recalling the manuscript he had written last night. Although he had recited it several times, he still hadn't remembered some of it. Fortunately, he could improvise on the spot.
Fortunately, she has seen a lot of palace fighting, so she can still come up with words like "sisters live in harmony" and "serve the emperor wholeheartedly".
Then, just like a boss painting a rosy picture for his employees, he would look into the future with full vision, making them feel that as long as they were down-to-earth and worked diligently, they would be able to sit on the throne of imperial concubine one day.
The speech lasted for an hour in total, and when the concubines came out of Zhongling Palace, the sun was already overhead.
Zhihua massaged Nian Susu's back with eyes full of admiration, "You are so amazing, Madam. There are some things I can't say no matter how hard I try."
"The words sound nice, but how many people really take them to heart?" Nian Susu closed his eyes tiredly.
-
On this day, a rare guest came to Zhongling Palace.
Zhihua brought the person into the palace. Nian Susu couldn't help but raise his eyebrows and stare when he saw him, and said in a slightly surprised voice: "Fifth Prince?"
Qin Wenyuan's face was wrinkled, and he looked unhappy. He bowed and said in a muffled voice, "Greetings to Her Majesty the Queen."
Nian Susu quickly helped him up and led him to the tea room, asking, "Shouldn't you be studying in the Qinian Palace at this time? Why are you here?"
Zhihua was smart and immediately went to get some snacks.
Nian Susu poured tea for Qin Wenyuan and pushed some snacks in front of him, asking him to eat.
Qin Wenyuan is already thirteen years old, but the baby fat on his face has not completely disappeared, and his voice is as childish as a seven or eight-year-old child.
He said unhappily, "My mother is ill, and my brother allowed me to rest for half a day."
"What's wrong? Is it serious? Have you asked a doctor to see it?"
Qin Wenyuan held a piece of cake in his hand but didn't eat it.
"The imperial physician said it was a heart attack. It's not serious, but the condition is extremely unstable. It could take a turn for the worse overnight."
"My mother has been ill for seven or eight days. She has been unable to get out of bed in the past two days, so my royal brother asked me to visit her." He lowered his head worriedly.
"Too much worry will lead to illness." Nian Susu muttered to himself, as if thinking about something.
Illness is really like a mountain falling on you. On the day of the selection, Concubine Chunyi was still full of energy, but within a few days she was so sick that she couldn't get out of bed.
Heart disease cannot be cured by taking medicine alone. It also depends on the patient's own mood and open mind for improvement.
Seeing that he was really worried, Nian Susu was wilting and felt uncomfortable. She couldn't help him and could only comfort him: "Don't worry, you also said that heart disease is not a serious illness that cannot be cured. Maybe if you spend more time with Concubine Chunyi, she will feel better when she sees you, and her illness will naturally go away."
These words brought hope to Qin Wenyuan. He suddenly raised his head and looked at her expectantly, "Really?"
Nian Susu touched his head and said, "Of course it's true. Think about it, when you went to visit Concubine Chunyi just now, did she look much better after seeing you?"
Which mother would not be happy to see her child? Especially for Qin Wenyuan, who was fostered in the Temple of Prayer for Good Harvests, where the mother and son could not see each other for several months, the meeting was particularly precious.
Qin Wenyuan recalled carefully, just as Nian Susu said, his mother sat up as soon as she saw him, and although her face was pale, she couldn't suppress the joy in her eyes.
"Then I will visit my mother more often in the future!" Qin Wenyuan finally smiled, but he didn't know what he was thinking about. His face suddenly fell, his brows knitted, and he pursed his lips and said, "But I have to study, practice calligraphy, and memorize articles every day. I don't have time to visit my mother at all."
Nian Susu was dumbfounded. "You are only thirteen years old. Is your schedule so full?"
"No, I have to have a good talk with your brother..."
"Don't!" Qin Wenyuan hurriedly held her arms with both hands, looking up at her pitifully, "Don't tell my brother to lighten my schoolwork... The queen helped me once before, and it has helped me a lot. The current course arrangement is just right. I learn a lot of new things every day. My life is very fulfilling. I like this feeling."
"Also... I also want to finish learning as soon as possible, so that I can help my brother share some of the official duties, so that he doesn't have to work until late at night every day."