boyutpedia Chapter 317 They Started Arguing
Chapter 317 They Started Arguing
Li Yuanke was very unhappy and was about to lash out when Shen Shixi held his hand down.
Her smile was truly like a blooming flower, incredibly beautiful.
"I've heard that Madam Zhang comes from a distinguished family, with impeccable manners and conduct. But seeing her today, she's nothing special! What, do you think that with your current status, I should personally cook for you?"
Everyone could hear the inappropriateness in Zhang's words, but on the surface she was praising the Empress. If we took it too seriously, it would seem petty and would lose the demeanor of an empress.
Is Shen Shixi looking for a certain demeanor?
Should she suffer injustice just for the sake of some worthless face and world peace?
Her words exposed Zhang's true colors.
Madam Zhang quickly smiled and said, "Your Majesty is too kind. How could I possibly have such audacity? I only said that I had heard that the pastries in Your Majesty's palace, such as chiffon cakes, are exquisite and delicious, and that the news has spread far and wide outside the palace. I meant no other than that!"
Consort Cui quickly spoke up for her mother, "Your Majesty, please calm down. My mother truly did not mean that. The palace banquets in previous years were not organized by you..."
Shen Shixi picked up a cup and threw it at her, hitting her right on the forehead and splashing water all over her face. "Weren't the palace banquets in previous years organized by me? Did you organize them? Do you have the right to speak when I'm talking to your mother?"
"In this harem, unless I repeatedly issue orders, there's no sense of propriety left? Guards, summon the head maid of the Censorate! Slap her ten times and teach her a lesson about manners, the difference between嫡子 (legitimate) and 庶子 (illegitimate) children, and the distinction between superior and inferior!"
Cui Meiren had a large cut on her forehead. When she touched it, her hand was covered in blood. She was so frightened that she burst into tears.
Madam Zhang was dumbfounded. She quickly knelt beside her daughter, hugging her and begging for forgiveness, "Your Majesty, please calm your anger. I have failed to properly educate my daughter. If Your Majesty wishes to punish me, please do so. I was wrong to speak and should not have offended Your Majesty!"
She pleaded for mercy, but her eyes were fixed on the Empress Dowager with longing.
The Empress Dowager hurriedly said, "What's wrong with the Empress today? It's such a small matter, why has it alarmed the Censorate? I think Lady Cui is a good person, filial and sensible. Lady Zhang is her mother, so I put in a few words of support for her. Why is the Empress still angry?"
Shen Shixi sneered, "Since the Empress Dowager thinks Consort Cui is good, for the sake of the Empress Dowager, your son is willing to exempt her from punishment. Since she is filial and sensible, from now on she will serve in Cining Palace, and the Emperor will not need to serve her."
"It is best that she can fulfill her filial duties for your son and Your Majesty. Your Majesty, in my opinion, considering her filial piety, why not promote her rank? In the past, the Empress Dowager would not meet anyone who was not a concubine. It is truly an injustice to the Empress Dowager that Cui is only granted the rank of Beauty."
When the Emperor saw the Empress Dowager speaking up for Lady Zhang, he was furious. "The Empress has already endured great hardship in bearing the imperial heir! The concubines have shown no respect for their rank and deserve to be punished. The women of the outer court are ignorant of their place and have insulted the Empress with their words. This is simply outrageous!"
"Guards, drag this mother and daughter away and give each of them twenty strokes of the cane!"
"Your Majesty!" The Empress Dowager couldn't help but stand up. "Today is the Mid-Autumn Festival, and all the nobles and ministers are here. Why make things so unpleasant?"
The emperor said, "Should we make the empress unhappy just to please others?"
"Madam Zhang didn't say anything wrong! The Empress is overthinking it!" said the Empress Dowager.
The emperor was clearly displeased. "He showed no respect for the empress whatsoever, and spoke sarcastically. The empress may be suspicious, but am I also being suspicious?"
The Empress Dowager then realized that, since some time ago, the Emperor rarely referred to himself as "your subject" when addressing her, and always used the title "I" instead. She gasped, "Since we're on the topic, I also have a few words to say."
She looked at the Empress and said, "You are the head of the harem, and I shouldn't interfere in your affairs with the Emperor. However, since the Emperor returned from his campaign, he has been reluctant to leave the harem. It is the Empress's duty to advise him. It is only by showing your magnanimity that you can bestow your favor equally upon all women in the harem. Does the Empress understand this principle?"
Shen Shixi said, "Please forgive me, Mother, I don't understand! I only know that Your Majesty is my husband, and I should care about Your Majesty's physical and mental health. If Your Majesty is happy and healthy, then I am well!"
"You have two sons, but I only have one husband. What will I do if he becomes unwell? Should I force the Emperor to favor the concubines in the harem just to maintain a facade of magnanimity?"
"How can this be considered coercion?" The Empress Dowager was furious.
"It's not forced. Does Your Majesty have to think about which concubine to favor every day? Is Your Majesty such a foolish ruler? You are busy with state affairs, and Your Majesty cannot understand. You think that Your Majesty is an easy ruler. I have nothing to say."
"But as a mother, you don't understand the Emperor's character at all, and you see him as a lecherous man. I find this utterly incomprehensible!"
The Empress Dowager became angry, "Don't misinterpret my meaning. As the ruler of a country, it is the emperor's duty to continue the royal line. As the empress, you reside in the Qian Yuan Palace year-round. Is it reasonable for the emperor not to summon his concubines?"
Before the emperor could speak, Shen Shixi stopped him. "Mother, Your Majesty and I are husband and wife. I am your lawfully wedded wife. There is no rule in the ancestral system that forbids me from sharing the same bed and sleeping with Your Majesty. All parents in the world hope that their sons and daughters-in-law will be loving and affectionate!"
Your Majesty, I believe that our ancestors also thought the same way, and that the people of the land would not want me to be alienated from Your Majesty!
Seeing that the Empress Dowager was about to speak, and fearing that this would lead to a quarrel, the Minister of Rites stood up and said, "Empress Dowager, I think what the Empress said is very true! There is a difference between legitimate and illegitimate children, and it is not appropriate for the Emperor to favor a particular concubine too much."
Favoring a concubine over one's wife is a breach of etiquette. Moreover, the Empress is currently pregnant with the Emperor's child and is going through a difficult time. It is only right that Your Majesty be more understanding. I urge the Empress Dowager to reconsider!
Naturally, some people pleaded for leniency for Zhang and her daughter.
Liang Ji stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty the Empress has always been wise and handles court affairs with great efficiency. Today, for some reason, you have misinterpreted Madam Zhang's meaning. In my humble opinion, Madam Zhang did not mean to mock Your Majesty's superb culinary skills; on the contrary, it was a compliment. I implore Your Majesty to see the truth!"
Everyone could see that the Empress was trying to outdo the Empress Dowager. It was Zhang's own fault; when she went to the palace to see the Empress Dowager, she ignored the Empress and didn't even go to the Empress's palace to pay her respects.
Today, she's being so sarcastic and disrespectful to the Empress again. If the Empress could swallow this insult, she wouldn't be Shen Shixi.
Shen Shixi sneered, "Is Prime Minister Liang a mind reader for Madam Zhang? How could he understand Madam Zhang's thoughts so well? Or are you all in cahoots, here today specifically to mock me? I love to cook, who exactly spread the rumor that I enjoy cooking?"
Cui Fangli stepped forward and said, "If Your Majesty cares about your reputation, you should be careful with your words and deeds and leave behind a legacy of virtue and good conduct so that your name will be remembered in the history books in the future! But Your Majesty manipulated the court even before you were made empress, and now you are even urging the emperor to change the ancestral system and abolish the three departments. I really don't know how the history books will evaluate Your Majesty in the future."
For the sake of Her Majesty the Empress's future, I humbly request that Her Majesty reconsider before acting!