Chapter 2
The Empress Dowager resided in Renshou Palace. By the time Qi Junmu arrived, she was leaning languidly against a warm daybed, looking unwell. Ruyan, the head palace maid of Renshou Palace, was massaging her shoulders, while the other palace attendants stood silently.
Ruyan was a favored palace maid of the Empress Dowager, and wherever she went in the palace now, others held her in high regard.
Physician Bai Feng from the Imperial Hospital had already taken the Empress Dowager’s pulse and was standing nearby, explaining her condition. When the Emperor arrived, everyone naturally had to stop what they were doing and immediately pay their respects.
Qi Junmu did not immediately tell them to rise. Instead, he walked over and sat down on heated couch, his exquisitely handsome face expressionless, making him look somewhat dull-witted. "How did Imperial Mother fall ill? Was it because the palace attendants did not care for her properly?"
When Qi Junmu first ascended the throne, the Empress Dowager and his uncle Lin Xiao had instructed him that his status had changed. He could no longer act as before; —he had to maintain his dignity at all times, projecting authority.
Now, no matter how many emotions churned inside him, his face remained as impassive as ever.
Qi Junmu’s words sounded ordinary, but to others, they were extremely grave. The eunuchs and maids serving nearby all knelt in panic, begging the Emperor for forgiveness.
The Empress Dowager slightly furrowed her delicate brows, looked at Qi Junmu, and spoke with some weariness. "It has nothing to do with them. I knew the weather was turning cold, yet I still craved something cool and ended upsetting my stomach."
Empress Dowager Lin, whose maiden name was Mingzhu, was as radiant and beautiful as her name suggested.
[Mingzhu (明珠): bright pearl or shining pearl]
She had entered the palace at fifteen as a Jieyu. At seventeen, she gave birth to twins for Emperor Jing—a son, Qi Junmu, and a daughter named Fuhua, who became the Emperor’s first daughter and was titled Grand Princess.
[For a clearer understanding of the harem ranking system, here's the Tang dynasty harem ranking system as reference: Empress - Consort Gui - Consort Shu - Consort De - Consort Xian - Zhaoyi - Zhaorong - Zhaoyuan - Xiuyi - Xiurong - Xiuyuan - Chongyi - Chongrong - Chongyuan - Jieyu - Meiren - Cairen - Baolin - Yunu - Cainu]
For bearing imperial heirs, she was granted the title Consort Shu.
The Empress Dowager was fortunate. She had successfully delivered a son and a daughter—an auspicious sign of dragon and phoenix, a double blessing. Giving birth to twin daughters would also have been a joyous event worthy of celebration. But if she had borne twin sons, that would have been an omen of misfortune.
Since ancient times, twin sons were considered inauspicious, believed to bring harm to their father. Not just in the imperial family, but even among commoners, this was taboo. If a woman truly gave birth to twin sons, the weaker one would inevitably be abandoned or drowned, so as not to bring misfortune to the father.
In this sense, the Empress Dowager, Qi Junmu, and Fuhua were all fortunate.
The Empress Dowager was now only thirty-five. Thanks to meticulous care, she looked no more than twenty-something. Among the glamorous ladies of the harem, she shone just like a flower in full bloom.
The Empress Dowager was indeed living comfortably now. Back when Emperor Jing ruled, his harem was filled with countless beauties, but his temperament had been strange and mercurial. Those favored one day were forgotten the next. Even consorts who bore him children did not receive extra attention. Serving him had been like walking on thin ice.
Emperor Jing could not tolerate any deceit. Any foul tricks in the harem, if discovered, would incur severe punishment—punishment that extended to the offender’s entire clan, nine degrees of relation. In the past, Emperor Jing's first wife, Empress Wang, fearing that pregnant consorts would compete for favor, resorted to harming the imperial heirs.
After verifying the matter, Emperor Jing directly deposed the Empress. The entire Wang clan of the previous dynasty was implicated. The Wang men were conscripted into the army as slaves, and the women became servants. Overnight, the Wangs—once lofty imperial relatives—became filthy things everyone avoided. Upon hearing this, Empress Wang took her own life in the cold palace, leaving behind her son, the Eldest Prince.
From then on, there was never another empress in the harem. Emperor Jing refused to appoint one.
With his harsh, unyielding, and ruthless methods, everyone in the harem lived in fear. This brought a long period of peace.
Emperor Jing had no particular affection for any of his consorts. Even if he favored someone, it was without affection. Even consorts who bore him children held no special place in his heart.
Under Emperor Jing's rule, no one could exploit favor to become arrogant. No one’s pillow talk ever reached his ears—and of course, given his temperament, no one dared whisper into them anyway.
Excluding children who died young, Emperor Jing had four sons and two daughters.
Qi Junmu had two older brothers. The eldest, Qi Junyan, one year older than him, was born of Empress Wang. Naturally dull-witted and later implicated in Empress Wang’s affairs, he was disliked by Emperor Jing. At sixteen, he left the palace to establish his own residence as Commandery Prince Rui. After Qi Junmu ascended the throne, he was mercifully ennobled as Prince Rui.
The second brother, Qi Junyou, was handsome, learned, and well-versed in classics. His mother came from a family of high-ranking officials and enjoyed great prestige. She entered the palace as a Zhaoyi (a high-ranking concubine) and was titled Consort Xian after giving birth to Qi Junyou. At sixteen, Qi Junyou left the palace and was granted the title of Prince Ping.
There were two princesses in the palace. Princess Fuhua, the twin sister of Qi Junmu, had been born slightly earlier, making her the eldest princess. The second princess, Yueqing, who was one year younger than Fuhua, was born to a consort who had originally been a maidservant and was later given the title Meiren.
Finally, there was Qi Junzhuo, the youngest son of Emperor Jing, two years younger than Qi Junmu. He was the Fourth Prince.
His mother was from a foreign tribe and was granted the title Consort Rong upon entering the palace, but she died giving birth to him. He was born with pale golden eyes, which people called demonic. After his birth, many said he was an ill omen—someone who would bring disaster upon Da Qi. Some ministers even urged Emperor Jing to have him killed.
Emperor Jing merely laughed coldly, then ordered the elderly minister who raised this matter to be caned. The world dared not speak further, and Qi Junzhuo survived.
Qi Junmu and Qi Junzhuo had an excellent relationship. Emperor Jing had never paid special attention to his children. He cared little for his consorts or his offspring—as long as they lived, it was fine. How they lived, he did not care at all.
The consorts and princes could scheme against one another; as long as they did not get caught by Emperor Jing, that was considered their own skill.
Thus, even those in the harem who were titled consorts or gave birth to princes did not dare bully others. Emperor Jing’s harem was peaceful, orderly, and deeply oppressive.
Qi Junzhuo had no mother to care for him, and his maternal family was far beyond Da Qi’s borders. No one looked after him specially. He was raised by palace attendants, who, aside from ensuring he would not starve, did not care for him carefully. Consequently, he could not speak until the age of three.
The consorts in the palace did not harm him, but they did not look after him either, letting him live or die as fate would have it. When Qi Junmu was six, he encountered Qi Junzhuo being bullied by palace attendants near the cold palace. He took him back to Consort Shu’s palace and gave him a piece of pastry.
From then on, Qi Junzhuo became a little shadow trailing behind him. Later, Qi Junzhuo endured many hardships for his sake. Qi Junmu truly regarded him as his own younger brother.
During Emperor Jing’s reign, no crown prince was ever appointed. He treated all four sons equally, showing no favoritism. No one knew what the Emperor truly thought.
No matter what the princes privately desired regarding the throne, no matter what schemes they hatched in secret, on the surface they showed nothing.
Emperor Jing’s sudden death from illness caught everyone off guard. Even more unexpected was that the posthumous edict found in the brocade box bore the name Qi Junmu. Qi Junmu himself had not anticipated it. He had thought he would have to shed blood to claim that seat.
After all, he had two elder brothers—one dull-witted, but the other exceptionally clever and well-connected through his mother’s family.
The edict was read aloud by Emperor Jing’s personal eunuch and Lin Xiao. Naturally, some courtiers expressed disbelief. But the edict was personally written by Emperor Jing and bore his seal.
Moreover, Qi Junmu’s maternal family held power and had privately supported him over the years. Now, with Emperor Jing’s posthumous edict, he ascended the throne amidst the complicated gazes of the court.
Looking back, it was all quite surprising and rather amusing.
Qi Junmu lowered his gaze. Having lived two lifetimes now, he still could not fathom what Emperor Jing had truly thought, why he had passed the throne to him.
But soon he stopped dwelling on it. No matter what his late father had been thinking, he was now the Emperor of Da Qi.
These thoughts flickered through Qi Junmu’s mind without the slightest trace showing on his face. He turned his gaze to Bai Feng. Bai Feng was young, just thirty. Since entering the palace, he had taken the pulse of Qi Junmu and the Empress Dowager for routine health checks. Now his status had risen considerably, and he enjoyed the Empress Dowager’s high regard.
Bai Feng was quick-witted. Meeting Qi Junmu’s gaze, he hurriedly explained the Empress Dowager’s illness. In short, she had caught a chill from eating or drinking cold things, which upset her stomach. A few doses of medicine and avoiding cold foods from now on would be enough to cure her.
Bai Feng’s words were believable to Qi Junmu. He turned his gaze toward the Empress Dowager and said, "Imperial Mother, how could this be your fault? In the end, it’s the palace attendants in your palace who aren’t diligent."
After saying this, his tone turned cold, and he cast a heavy gaze. "Today, for Imperial Mother's sake, I will spare you. But if you fail to serve properly next time, you will all go to the Execution Office to receive your due."
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