Chapter 92: My Women

Zhu Youxiao wanted everyone to know that the imperial palace was not a place for them to fight for power and profit.

Whoever dared to reach toward his harem, he would kill them.

Whoever dared to cause trouble in the harem, he would drown them in the lake.

The Donglin Faction had always been reaching toward the harem, and this was one of the reasons Zhu Youxiao was disgusted with them.

The Donglin Faction publicly rejected eunuchs, denouncing them as "gelded dogs," yet behind closed doors, they had never once missed an opportunity to collude with the eunuchs inside the palace.

The current seal-holding eunuch of the Directorate of Ceremonial, Wang An, was a man of the Donglin Faction.

Originally, when he had first transmigrated, Zhu Youxiao had thought that at least the eunuchs in the palace would have some bottom line, and that news from the palace would not be easily leaked.

After these days had passed, Zhu Youxiao came to realize that his palace was like a broken house leaking from every crack—no information could be kept from getting out.

Everyone wanted to pry into the palace's secrets, everyone wanted to know what the Emperor was thinking.

Under such circumstances, controlling the palace was truly no easy task. Zhu Youxiao planned to hand this matter over to Empress Zhang.

The reason he had separated Wei Zhongxian and Chen Hong was simple—he did not want Wei Zhongxian to have any opportunity to meddle in palace affairs. It was enough for him to handle matters outside.

As for Chen Hong's collusion with the Embroidered Uniform Guard, Zhu Youxiao had naturally thought of that long ago—it was something he had tacitly approved.

The Embroidered Uniform Guard needed someone's support to counter Wei Zhongxian; Chen Hong was the same—he needed the Guard's support.

In Zhu Youxiao's view, this kind of balance was the true way of kingship.

"Your Majesty, is something troubling you?" Seeing Zhu Youxiao lost in thought, Consort Dowager Zhuang asked in a low voice, her face full of deep concern.

Zhu Youxiao was now her greatest pillar of support; she certainly did not want anything to happen to him. Originally, her position in the palace had not been good, but compared to now, it was like the difference between heaven and earth.

Ever since the current Emperor had backed her, aside from lacking the title of Empress Dowager, her power inside and outside the palace was immense—she already had the bearing of an Empress Dowager.

Those little sluts had all died off one by one, and Consort Dowager Zhuang's heart was thoroughly pleased.

As for Consort Dowager Zhuang's character, Zhu Youxiao understood it very well.

No woman who survived in this imperial palace was a simple character—they had merely lost in the competition for favor.

Now that Consort Dowager Zhuang had his support, no one in the harem dared to defy her.

"In reply to the Consort Dowager, I am fine—I was just thinking about some matters." Zhu Youxiao said with a smile: "There have been quite a few affairs at court lately, and all of them vexing ones. I am anxious in my heart, and these ministers simply will not give me a moment's peace."

"Your Majesty, there is no need to fret. There are too many affairs under heaven; one must alternate tension with relaxation." Consort Dowager Zhuang consoled him softly.

She too knew this was empty talk, so after offering this one word of comfort, she said nothing more.

Though her status was now exalted, Consort Dowager Zhuang knew her own situation very well—she was, after all, not the Emperor's birth mother. That His Majesty let her manage the harem affairs was already the utmost kindness.

If she still did not know her place and meddled in front-court affairs, then who knew when she would go keep the late Emperor company.

After offering a few simple words of comfort, Consort Dowager Zhuang said with a smile: "I am not good at consoling people, but it does not matter—soon there will be someone who will know whether Your Majesty is warm or cold."

Zhu Youxiao knew that Consort Dowager Zhuang was referring to his Empress.

As for Consort Dowager Zhuang's conduct, Zhu Youxiao was quite satisfied.

Consort Dowager Zhuang knew her limits and understood when to advance and retreat—she was a decent choice to temporarily manage the harem.

"This is all thanks to the Consort Dowager." Zhu Youxiao naturally would not say anything else; the proper attitude had to be maintained.

Hearing Zhu Youxiao's words, a smile also appeared on Consort Dowager Zhuang's face.

This was His Majesty's praise of her—clearly, he had acknowledged her favor.

That was enough. Thinking this, Consort Dowager Zhuang spoke up: "Your Majesty, shall we begin then?"

Gently nodding his head, Zhu Youxiao said respectfully: "I will follow whatever the Consort Dowager says."

Consort Dowager Zhuang also nodded and said: "Then let us begin."

Although this matter was very important, there was actually no grand ceremony for it.

It was merely that a row of palace maids stood on each side, and then three beautiful girls of fourteen or fifteen, dressed finely, walked in gracefully from outside.

Though the three of them had not yet been formally invested, no one dared to slight them.

Among these three, even the one who fared worst in the future would still be a Noble Consort.

Besides, in the palace, the Noble Consort's status was second only to the Empress. Though the Empress had taken the lead, no one in this palace could guarantee what would happen later.

The next step was to see who would give birth to an imperial prince first. If the Empress bore a child, then naturally there was nothing to contend for; if the Empress bore none, then the harem would become quite lively.

Zhu Youxiao did not care what others thought at this moment—his mind was entirely on the three girls.

Though he did not care who became his Empress, Zhu Youxiao still wanted to see what she looked like.

After all, this was the woman who would sleep beside him in the future. If Zhu Youxiao did not want to stir up waves in his harem, then he absolutely had to display the posture of doting on the Empress.

Though he knew Empress Zhang was beautiful, Zhu Youxiao did not know just how beautiful she truly was.

Watching the three beauties walking in gracefully, Zhu Youxiao's eyes suddenly brightened—the long-silent heart of one who had lived two lives still trembled somewhat.

They did not conform to the aesthetic standards of later generations—no oval faces, no pointed chins, no slender arched eyebrows, no enlarged eye corners.

In this era, the pointed-chin look of later generations' internet celebrities was called a fox spirit; the palace would never select such women.

In Zhu Youxiao's view, these three girls were not tall of stature, but neither were they short—neither fat nor thin, perfectly proportioned, with fair skin and delicate features, yet carrying a certain magnanimity between their brows and eyes.

Zhu Youxiao let out a soft sigh.

Beautiful indeed—pure natural beauties.

The beauties selected from such a large pool of candidates, from such a large-scale audition, had indeed not disappointed him.

All three girls were beautiful, but Zhu Youxiao still confirmed which one was Zhang Yan.

Because among the three, she was the most beautiful, her figure the most graceful and pleasing to the eye.

Though she was not standing in the center C-position, she stood off to the side with poise and ease, yet still drew everyone's gaze—as if wherever she stood was the C-position.

One could see she was exquisitely pure beyond the mundane, her countenance radiant—truly a stunningly beautiful woman.

She was only fifteen years old, yet already so lovely. Zhu Youxiao slowly withdrew his gaze and leaned back gently against the chair back—this was called a tactical lean-back.

He was now very satisfied in his heart, with a faint hint of anticipation.

In his previous life, he had been married before, but on the night of his wedding, he had felt no real excitement—only that he was exhausted to death.

After all, before the wedding night, he and his girlfriend—who later became his wife—had already been living together for four years.

But this time was different. Zhu Youxiao had a feeling that he shouldn't meet these three people.

He actually felt a kind of longing for that surprise of "never having seen each other's faces, lifting the veil on the wedding night."

Just like a lottery draw in later generations—you never know the outcome until the very last moment.

But Zhu Youxiao also knew that he could only dream about it; actually doing something like that was simply impossible.