Chapter 471

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Protagonist:

Shen Yao

The incident that happened before the New Year only gradually subsided after the New Year.

After it subsided, the Emperor immediately issued an imperial edict to everyone to appoint an Empress.

This edict not only greatly diverted the attention of the court and the royal clan, but also sent the always low-key Furong Palace back to the top of the trending list.

Of course, the edict also included the matter of appointing He Meiren of Qimei Palace as He Jieyu, but unfortunately, in front of the Empress appointment, it was completely overshadowed.

"Ahhhhhh! Why! Why! Everyone get out of this palace!"

In the main hall of Qimei Palace, He Jieyu, who was already dissatisfied with the edict, became even more displeased upon hearing the news that Shen Yao was appointed Empress, and began acting crazy everywhere.

The ornaments and jewelry originally placed in the room were thrown everywhere, and even the servant girl attending her closely came out with a clear slap mark on her face.

The servants in the palace were panicked and uneasy, causing everyone in Qimei Palace to tremble with fear.

Until He Chongyi arrived, everyone seemed to have found their backbone, and they all asked for help and begged for assistance.

He Chongyi:...

"You all step back. Without my word, do not let anyone in."

After speaking, He Chongyi signaled the maid beside her, and pushed the door open with one hand, step by step.

"Get out!"

Bang—

Another porcelain cup was thrown out, shattering on the ground and scattering fragments everywhere.

He Chongyi couldn't help but frown, bypassed the messy things on the floor, and looked calmly at He Jieyu, who was half-sitting on the bed with disheveled hair, saying, "Had enough? At a time like this, shouldn't you learn to keep a low profile?"

Hearing this, He Jieyu raised her excessively pale face, "Low profile?"

How else to keep a low profile? Her child was gone, what was the use of saying these things.

He Chongyi grew increasingly impatient in her heart, "Whose fault is it that the child is gone?"

You don't learn to keep quiet, relying on your belly to cause trouble in the palace all day, could this child still be kept?

He Jieyu glared angrily, "Get out! Get out of here!"

He Chongyi did not leave, but sat down on a nearby round stool, "I will leave when the time comes. I came today just to kindly remind you, do not forget the family's instructions."

He Jieyu:...

Her originally angry face became strange, He Jieyu looked at He Chongyi with a mocking expression, this nominal cousin, actually a woman with no relation at all.

"Family instructions? Hahahaha, the He family is not my home. I am nameless and surnameless, an orphan by birth. Elder Sister, have you forgotten how we were brought back to the He family? It's only been a few years since we put on this skin, and the younger sister doesn't even know that Elder Sister's memory is so poor, truly surprising."

If not said, one wouldn't know; once said, one would be shocked. He Jieyu might have been stimulated into madness, daring to say anything to the outside.

He Chongyi's disgust for the other party rose to the peak in her heart, she hated this kind of fool the most! She hoped that the so-called sister sent by the family next time would be a clever person with a brain.

"This secret, if you don't say it, I won't tell it, no one will know."

"Unless you don't want to live anymore and want to take the He family and the Jiangnan clans to die together, otherwise, it's best to keep your mouth shut."

He Chongyi flicked the handkerchief in her hand and lightly repeated the family's instructions, "Since drinking the medicine is useful, then keep at it."

"Don't you want to climb up? In the imperial harem, offspring are far more useful than imperial favor. Elder Sister is waiting for your good news in Changle Palace."

After speaking, He Chongyi stood up and left. Even though many teacup lids flew out beside her, she still walked away steadily.

Opening the door, He Chongyi turned her head to face He Jieyu, who was panting heavily, pursed her lips and smiled, "The palace regulations have clear requirements. The bills sent by the Imperial Household Department are very black-hearted. Younger Sister, next time it's best not to smash things around."

Boom—

He Chongyi left the room, called the palace servants of Qimei Palace with a cold and stern face, "Take good care of your mistress. If there is anything, go to Furong Palace to ask the Empress."

Although not yet formally appointed, the edict had been issued. Calling the one in Furong Palace "Empress" was not excessive.

Behind her, the sound of porcelain breaking seemed to come again, but with the door blocking it, He Chongyi didn't hear it very clearly.

After briefly explaining a few words, He Chongyi left with her people, leaving the palace servants of Qimei Palace looking at each other, and finally dispersing on their own.

"Wah wah wah, wah wah wah, Host Host, this is really big news!"

The system clattered noisily, making Shen Yao's ears hurt. Shen Yao hurriedly put down the Empress's formal robes sent by the Imperial Household Department, raised her hand to rub her brow, "What's wrong now?" It was hard to let her be happy for a few days as she wished.

"Hehehe, Host, He Jieyu of Qimei Palace just said a big secret about the He family and even involving the Jiangnan clans."

Hearing the system's lowly tone, Shen Yao was helpless.

"Oh, a big secret. Don't you know that anything that can be spoken out isn't a secret?" Only what only oneself knows is called a secret.

If it's shouted so the whole world knows, that's called a notification.

System:...

"Host, the system suggests you should still listen. Maybe you can get a handle on the He sisters, and then win over the entire Jiangnan clans to our side."

Shen Yao put down the hand rubbing her brow, turned around, picked up the teacup and took a sip, "Speak. Being able to control the Jiangnan clans, unless they did something deceiving the sovereign and misleading the public, otherwise there's no chance."

The system was choked, and haltingly repeated everything He Jieyu had said, during which some of He Chongyi's part was mixed in.

Shen Yao:...

Shen Yao put down the teacup in her hand, laughed lightly, "Really interesting. Isn't this just the trick of substituting one thing for another? As long as the Emperor doesn't pursue it."

After all, the Emperor letting his trusted ministers select beauties for the palace in Jiangnan was not a public matter in the first place.

The selected beauties were mostly to please the Emperor, not to win over the Jiangnan clans.

So the Jiangnan clans choosing carefully selected adopted daughters to replace their own biological daughters didn't seem to be a problem. After all, who made the Emperor love this?

"The identities of these adopted daughters are fine. The trouble is their origins."

Shen Yao touched her chin, indicating that Jiangnan has always been a rich and prosperous place, and also the main area for tax revenue and grain production.

Many of the Jiangnan commoners were villagers who had migrated there from the surrounding areas.

"The Jiangnan region isn't dangerous; what's dangerous is the Nanman further south," that place was no longer Yu Guo's territory, and small-scale melees broke out there several times every year.

The border was unstable; the border here referred to the territories on all four sides of Yu Guo, not just one or two places.

"System, go probe the possibility of the Jiangnan clans colluding with the Nanman."

"If this speculation turns out to be true, we might really be able to pin down the Jiangnan clans."

If they really did something as major as confiscating property and exterminating clans, perhaps Shen Yao would need to use the Emperor to suppress the sharpness of the Jiangnan clans a bit, after all, this was shaking the foundation of Yu Guo.

It might even be appropriate to exaggerate further: a woman of foreign bloodline, with the help of the Jiangnan clans, sneaking into the Huang Hou and successfully giving birth to an imperial heir—this kind of operation that confused the Royal Bloodline was a crime of deceiving the sovereign, punishable by execution of the whole clan.

Ancient royalty placed great importance on bloodlines; there were countless such records in history.

What the Jiangnan clans did, the severity of the problem depended entirely on how those in power viewed it. Once the true origins of these concubine candidates were involved, it would become incomparably complex.

Human nature is greedy; just like those women who appeared in the pleasure quarters, how many of them were truly voluntary?

In recent years, the Jiangnan consorts in the Huang Hou had already exceeded the count of both hands, and more would continue to be selected from Jiangnan in the future; as long as one of them had impure intentions, she would drag down everyone connected to her.

System:?!?!

The System was shaken by the Host's thoughts; perhaps it had initially thought this was just an ordinary case of misattribution, but hearing the Host's various analyses, tsk, the System felt its brain wasn't enough.

"Host, if it turns out there really is a connection, should we tell the Emperor?"

"I don't know; analyze the specific situation specifically, depending on whether the circumstances are serious."

"What counts as serious circumstances?"

Shen Yao raised an eyebrow, "If someone really dares to collude with the Nanman, knowing but not reporting, deliberately disrupting the times."

The Jiangnan region was difficult to handle because it was too prosperous and wealthy; most of Yu Guo's annual expenses relied on Jiangnan's support, and if it were suddenly cut off, it would be more terrifying than turmoil at Court.

"Be careful; mainly monitor the consorts of the Jiangnan faction in the Huang Hou; it should generally be safe," otherwise it would have been dug up by the gossip-loving System long ago.

The System guaranteed it would definitely do so, while also monitoring the Jiangnan faction officials at Court on the side, a two-pronged approach; as long as there was a problem, none would escape its eyes.

…………

Time quickly came to the second month; besides the Emperor's birthday being eye-catching, there was also Shen Yao's Investiture Ceremony.

The Empress's Formal Robes from the Imperial Household Department were altered again and again, and finally, on the day of the Investiture Ceremony, they did not lose face.

Shen Yao attended in Auspicious Robes and worshipped the ancestors of Yu Guo together with the Emperor.

Hearing the people below the Stairs shout "Empress," Shen Yao felt indescribable emotions in her heart.

No matter how difficult this step was, she still managed to do it.

That night, Shen Yao, who had already moved to Fengyi Palace, and Yu Yu drank the wedding wine belonging to them.

The ceremony of the Secondary Empress could not compare to that of the First Empress, but Yu Yu also compensated in other aspects, including the Palace Authority and Phoenix Seal that had been scattered earlier, now all gathered into Shen Yao's hands.

It could be said that Shen Yao was now truly the mistress of the Middle Palace; all affairs of the Huang Hou were decided by her.

"As I have just become Empress, some things I am not yet familiar with; take the daily greetings for example, coming every day indeed delays your rest, Sisters."

I have temporarily decided on a morning greeting once every three days, not counting the first and fifteenth.

I do not know what you, Sisters, think?"

A new official makes three fires upon taking office; the only thing Shen Yao could burn was the stagnant greetings.

Smiling, she stated her purpose, then had Xiao Ji present the Meeting Gifts that had been prepared early; Shen Yao made these rituals watertight.

Even if someone was displeased (specifically He Jieyu), they could only mutter quietly; on the surface, everyone was respectful and meek.

"I am a bit tired; I will leave first, Sisters, make yourselves at home."

"Subject/Imperial Consort respectfully sends off the Empress."

Not long after Shen Yao left, the others gathered at Fengyi Palace also slowly dispersed.

Xiao Ji leaned close to Shen Yao's side and whispered a few words; Shen Yao smiled and nodded, "Go arrange it."