In fact, Dong Lingyan really didn't mean to bring up the topic that Concubine Yi wanted to get into, but she opened the topic. Although no one of the ladies dared to answer the conversation, they were already ready to move in their hearts. Concubine Yi even took the opportunity to half-truth.
Fake way:
"Princess Yan's few funny jokes reminded me that you, all of you, who make me feel so happy, are going to join the palace to help the queen and the concubine share the hard work of being by your majesty's side. I don't think so.
It's quite suitable." Concubine Yi said and looked at Ximen Yourong and asked intentionally or unintentionally:
"Queen, do you think what I said makes sense?"
Ximen Yourong was naturally not that indifferent in her heart, but her face was indifferent. She looked at the wealthy ladies below who were like flowers in bud in spring, and said:
"If the concubine thinks it's suitable, then there will be no difference."
I don’t know if he wants to try to accept the reality that is inevitable. He knows that Concubine Yi’s purpose today is to help Dongling Yuanyong choose a concubine, but Ximen Yourong finds that he is calmer than he imagined.
It is inevitable that the harem must have more concubines. No matter how unwilling she is to accept it, she can only accept it. Who makes her uncontrollably give her heart to the emperor of Dachengguo?
Concubine Yi looked at Ximen Yourong's calm and calm face, she slightly raised her brows, then looked at You Kouyi with a smile and said:
"The imperial concubine was the number one noblewoman in the imperial city before she entered the palace. You should know all of them. Do you think any of them are suitable to accompany His Majesty in the palace?"
When You Kouyi saw Concubine Yi directing the words to her, she smiled generously and looked at the daughters and replied:
"I not only knew them, but before I entered the palace, it would be no exaggeration to say that I was their eldest sister. If any of them are lucky enough to enter the palace to accompany His Majesty, I'm afraid I will have to continue to be their eldest sister."
Before You Kouyi entered the palace, she was the first person in the circle of noble ladies, because no one could compare with her in terms of appearance and talent.
In the imperial city, her family background is one of the best, and she is the eldest among the noble girls who have not left the court. She has her own way of dealing with others. Even though everyone is somewhat jealous and dissatisfied, no one dares to openly challenge her.
Compare yourself to others.
So far, even though You Kouyi has entered the palace as a noble concubine, the title of the most noble lady in the imperial city still belongs to You Kouyi.
Today Concubine Yi almost invited the noble lady she knew before entering the palace. Of course she knew what would happen.
There are only queens and concubines in the harem, and the vacancies for concubines and concubines will be filled sooner or later, which You Kouyi knows well.
Therefore, compared to Ximen Yourong who was forced to accept other women into the harem, although You Kouyi was not happy to see new people joining the harem, at this time she felt that having more women entering was not necessarily a bad thing.
First of all, the mistakes she made under her pride have become a stumbling block for her to get closer to Dongling Yuanyong. In other words, if there are no other women, Ximen Yourong will really dominate the harem alone. She wants to regain favorable conditions and change her current situation.
It will be even more difficult.
But if other women join the harem, she may have more opportunities to turn passive into active.
It's just... You Kouyi looked thoughtfully at the ladies sitting below, who among them can she make good use of?
At this moment, You Kouyi's eyes met Chu Xuanji's, and suddenly she had a candidate in mind.
Now that this "letting a hundred flowers bloom" feast has been started for the purpose of selecting a concubine, You Kouyi showed her enthusiasm for promoting good things. She half-jokingly suggested that the ladies should show off their talents to see who is more powerful.
The ability to attract people's attention.
Although this proposal is not a serious competition, it livens up the atmosphere, and the ladies also take the opportunity to show off their talents and show off themselves as much as possible...!
The activity in the Royal Garden soon spread to Longtai Hall. After Dongling Yuanyong listened to Eunuch Cao’s report, he smiled and said:
"The mother-in-law arranged this event to let the queen personally choose a concubine for the widow!"
There are not enough concubines in the harem. According to the etiquette system, his harem should really admit new people.
"The Concubine must also feel that it is time for Your Majesty to recruit new people, so she is anxious to make plans for Your Majesty."
"Do you also think it's time for me to have a concubine?" Dongling Yuanyong asked casually.
Eunuch Cao looked at Dongling Yuanyong who looked calm. He actually knew very well that Dongling Yuanyong had no intention of marrying a concubine.
He was also happy to see that Dongling Yuanyong had found a close partner, but... Eunuch Cao didn't want to speak nonsense, but he still said tactfully:
"Your Majesty, I know your affection for the Queen, but Your Majesty is the king of a country after all, and there will always be a successor in this world in the future...!"
Eunuch Cao's words are actually self-evident at this point. Ximen has a body and cold poison, so the chance of getting pregnant is very slim. From this point of view alone, Dongling Yuanyong will have to marry other women to prolong the heirs.
Of course, Dongling Yuanyong also understood Eunuch Cao’s obscure words. He did not refute Eunuch Cao, but he said coldly:
"In the matter of choosing a concubine, no one is allowed to make the decision without my will."
Eunuch Cao opened his mouth to say something more, but thought about it and gave up. If Dongling Yuanyong didn't even give Concubine Yi face, it proved that he was determined not to accept the concubine.
However, Eunuch Cao carefully inquired:
"Your Majesty rejected the concubine's wishes. I wonder if the concubine will be sad?"
Dongling Yuanyong was well aware of Eunuch Cao's concerns, but he didn't say anything and instead gave instructions:
"Have someone go to the border to fetch Se Jin."
"This...why did your Majesty suddenly want to take Mrs. Sejin into the palace?" Eunuch Cao was quite surprised!
"Se Jin is my concubine in the frontier. Even though her status is ordinary, she still has a status. There is nothing wrong with taking her into the palace and promoting her to a concubine!"
Now Eunuch Cao understood. It turned out that Dongling Yuanyong was not refusing to accept concubines, but was accepting a ready-made one to fill the harem. In this way, it was considered as giving an explanation to Concubine Yi!
Unknowingly, time passed very quickly. The Royal Garden had been bustling for a long time. Concubine Yi was tired, and the goal she wanted to achieve was also achieved.
Therefore, she asked people to collect the paintings, poems and even music composed by the noble daughter and put them aside. Then she looked at Ximen Yourong and said "jokingly":
"Queen, these noble ladies are showing off their magical powers today. I'm still dazzled by the sight of them. I can't tell which one of them is better than who. I wonder if the Queen would be willing to take the trouble to help me identify them."
Ximen Youyong understood what Concubine Yi meant. Concubine Yi had to choose one, two or three. In this way, she could only agree calmly:
"My knowledge is shallow. If the concubine is not worried about my daughters' talents being judged randomly by me, I wouldn't mind helping the concubine share some of her worries."
"I believe the Queen will not let me down!"
There was an undisguised purpose in Concubine Yi's gentle smile. She asked people to hand over the collected drawing papers, poems and other works to Ximen Yourong, as well as a booklet with unknown contents to Ximen Yourong!
After Ximen Yourong collected the things, Concubine Yi expressed some concern for You Kouyi and asked her to go back and rest more. Then everyone sent concubine Yi to leave first.
After Ximen Yourong told the palace officials to take good care of the daughters of various families and left the palace to return home, she also took her people back to Lengyue Palace.
The daughters of each family were sent out of the palace one by one, but Chu Xuanji was left alone by You Kouyi, who invited her to be a guest at Xiangyun Palace.
Chu Xuanji didn't know why You Kouyi kept her here. She took a look at the grandeur of Xiangyun Palace, then smiled and complimented:
"The palace where the empress lives is so splendid, and I heard that your majesty often gives you many valuables. It shows that your majesty really values your empress."
"It's just some external possessions. You and I both come from powerful families. You might think these things are nothing new." You Kouyi smiled coldly.
"That's not to say. We don't think it's unusual to have valuable items. But if the person who sent these items is Your Majesty, then it's a different matter!"
"So, you also want to be rewarded by His Majesty?"
You Kouyi's voice was slightly cold. Although her displeasure was not obvious, Chu Xuanji was also sensitive to it. She smiled awkwardly and explained:
"Mother, please don't misunderstand me, how dare I dream of such unrealistic things!"
"Why don't you dare? And if you want to enter the palace, it's not unrealistic, right?"
"Mother, I...!"
"Don't be nervous. It's normal for you to have the idea of entering the palace. Besides, are you the only one who wants to enter the palace and become a concubine? I see that none of the other five people present today doesn't want to enter the palace!"
You Kouyi took a sip of tea, then looked at Chu Xuanji meaningfully and said bluntly:
"Sister Xuanji, how about I help you enter the palace?"
"this……?"
Chu Xuanji was shocked for a moment, then she was surprised and happy, but she suppressed her excitement very well, because she didn't think You Kouyi would pave the way for her for no reason.
To be honest, thinking of Dongling Yuanyong's imperial attitude, how could she not want to enter the palace and become a concubine.
You Kouyi is right. None of the six daughters who appeared today do not want to enter the palace, and Chu Xuanji is no exception.
Today, the six of them were suddenly invited into the palace by Concubine Yi. At first, they only guessed that it was related to the selection of the concubine, but they were not sure.
After entering the palace, although Concubine Yi didn't say it clearly, it was no different than she did later!
However, the six people who appeared today are all about the same status, talent and appearance. Unless all six of them can enter the palace at the same time, if not, then some of them will be eliminated.
Therefore, You Kouyi's initiative to help Chu Xuanji enter the palace as a concubine gave Chu Xuanji a better chance of winning than others, and it was difficult for her not to be tempted.
You Kouyi is a leader in strategy, and she can spot Chu Xuanji's pretense of being reserved at a glance.
However, she didn't care whether Chu Xuanji's face was real or fake at this time, she said again lukewarmly:
"You don't have to think it's weird that I'm helping you, and I don't want to pretend that I don't care about the number of women around His Majesty. However, this is not a situation that I can avoid if I care. If I enter the palace as a concubine, I have nothing else to do.
I have an epiphany. I know the outcome of sharing a man with other women. If there is a new person in His Majesty’s harem, even if it is not you, it will be another woman... When I say this, do you understand what I mean?"
You Kouyi chose Chu Xuanji to win over, not because of how close she is to Chu Xuanji, but because Chu Xuanji has conditions that she can take advantage of, so she doesn't mind supporting Chu Xuanji to rise to power!