It was almost noon and the sun was scorching.
A subtle milky aroma wafts from the Zhaoyang Palace's bedroom, and just one sniff of it makes one's bones soften and their hearts surge.
Along with the milky aroma comes the sound of rushing water.
Two young eunuchs carried a large bucket of steaming hot water towards the bedroom of Zhaoyang Palace. After entering the bedroom, they lowered their heads to the point where only their toes could be seen, and their eyes were fixed on the ground beneath their feet as they walked inside, carrying the hot water.
"Auntie, the hot water is here."
After the two young eunuchs carried the bucket to the bathroom door, they put it down, lowered their heads to look at their toes, and reported inside, notifying the palace maids to fetch water.
It's a matter of life and death.
If they see something they shouldn't see, their lives will be in danger.
The palace has strict rules.
They, the young eunuchs, can only do these rough, tiring and dirty work and are not qualified to get close to the female masters in the harem. Those who are qualified to get close to the female masters in the harem are all senior eunuchs who are of a certain age and have a certain status.
Of course, even the eunuchs in charge did not do close personal service.
For example, tasks such as changing clothes for sleeping, bathing, and night watch are close service tasks that only personal maids are qualified to do.
Eunuchs are also half men. If they do these things, they will be close to death.
The emperor is not so magnanimous.
As for the unofficial historical records about eunuchs helping concubines bathe and change clothes, or even more erotic stories, these are all made up stories by people who did not understand the rules of the palace.
There was a large petal-shaped pool in the bathroom. Three palace maids wrapped in gauze were sitting on the edge of the pool, holding flower baskets in their hands. They would occasionally sprinkle some petals and essences into the pool, which was filled with milky white bath water.
There was a palace maid playing the zither outside the pool. The soothing and melodious sound of the zither echoed in the bathroom... ...
With her long legs and perky butt, Concubine Lu was taking a bath, with the water line just reaching her armpits.
Concubine Lu has a very nice figure, half of her round body is floating on the water, drifting with the current...
Two palace maids, wearing only a few pieces of clothing, served Concubine Lu Jing in bathing. Their techniques were skillful, their movements were slow, orderly and silent... ...
The bath water in the pool was not ordinary milk, but human milk specially sent to the palace by Concubine Lu's family, which was presented to the palace on time every week.
To this end, Concubine Lu's family specially hired more than ten young, beautiful and healthy wet nurses as a source of fresh milk.
This is the anti-aging recipe that Concubine Lu Jingfei obtained from the imperial physician at a high price. It is said to have the effect of maintaining a youthful appearance, nourishing the body, making the skin smooth and elastic, and also making the body firmer and maintaining youthful vitality.
"Have you found out everything?"
After hearing the young eunuch's report, three palace maids opened the curtain and came out. The leading palace maid looked at the two young eunuchs and asked.
"I've found out everything. Just now, Eunuch Liu from the lecture hall came over and said that..."
One of the young eunuchs stepped forward and whispered to the head palace maid exactly what Eunuch Liu had said.
"Well, this is a reward from the master, so go and get busy. But remember one thing, keep your mouths shut. If you hear any gossip outside, don't blame me for not reminding you..."
After listening carefully, the senior palace maid took out two golden coins from her sleeves and gave them to the two young eunuchs as rewards. After giving them some instructions, she sent them away.
"Don't worry, auntie. It's all saved by the monkeys." The two young eunuchs assured him repeatedly, lowered their heads and turned to leave.
The senior maid walked into the bathroom first, and the other two maids lifted the buckets with difficulty and followed her into the bathroom staggeringly.
"Your Majesty..."
After the senior palace maid came in, she took off her clothes and walked into the bath, preparing to help Concubine Lu take a bath while reporting the situation.
"Hehe... How's it going up front?"
Concubine Lu narrowed her eyes, pressed her little hands on the bottom of the pool, splashed the water with her little feet, and asked with a giggle.
"Your Majesty, today, in addition to the two lecturers from Prince Jing's residence, Mr. Gao from Prince Yu's residence, and old Mr. Liu Boqing from the Honglu Temple..." The head palace maid replied softly while gently wiping Concubine Lu's body.
"Well, Lord Liu is here too. He is well-known in the court and the country. On the list my father made for me, Lord Liu was at the front. Unfortunately, he is too cautious and doesn't dare to take sides. He doesn't want to offend both sides..." Concubine Lu opened her eyes.
"This time, Lord Liu praised Prince Jing, but did not praise Prince Yu." The head palace maid added.
"Hehe... My son is naturally a good one." Concubine Lu giggled.
"In addition to Mr. Liu, the one who comes to lecture today is Yang Guoliang, the Doctor of Five Classics from the Imperial College." The head palace maid continued.
"Well, I've heard of Yang Guoliang. His Majesty even praised him and listed the books he wrote as reference books for the imperial examinations. In the list my father gave me, this man was ranked higher than Old Master Liu. It was said that he would be a master of the Four Books and Five Classics in ten years. Oh, by the way, I heard that this man's daughter married a nephew of Yan Song as a concubine..." Concubine Lu Jing turned over, lay on the thighs of a palace maid, and let the maid wipe her back.
"In addition to Dr. Yang, there is also a young man named Zhu Ping'an who will be preaching today. I heard that he is quite young..." the senior palace maid whispered as she used white pure silk cotton, dipped it in a special perfume, and gently and evenly applied it on Concubine Lu's back.
"Zhu Ping'an, I know him. He is the number one scholar in this year's special examination. He seems to be no older than the prince, he is young and naive, and he is not reliable in his work. In addition, his reputation has been bad recently. He was fined by the emperor. I heard that he is doing some business like selling pig offal outside, and he has become a laughing stock in the court and the country. Although he is also on the list that father made for me, his ranking is much lower... He is not a good choice to be a lecturer. He does not have the integrity of a scholar at all, and he will lead the prince astray." Concubine Lu shook her head slightly.
"Your Majesty, the main people giving lectures today are Dr. Yang and Zhu Ping'an." The head palace maid replied.
"Oh, what did they talk about?" Concubine Lu Jing asked with great interest.
"They are all talking about 'Guanju', the first poem in the Book of Songs." The senior palace maid said softly.
"What do they say?"
Concubine Lu became even more interested. Her favorite poem in the Book of Songs was "The Guanju", because when Concubine Lu slept with Emperor Jiajing for the first time and his clothes were loose, Emperor Jiajing said a line from "The Guanju".
A beautiful lady is a gentleman's dream.
That's it.
Concubine Lu still remembers the scene at that time and can still seem to hear the magnetic voice of Emperor Jiajing in her ears.
"Dr. Yang talked about "Guanju", saying that the whole chapter of "Guanju" is full of 'the style of a king and the virtue of a concubine', that the gentleman is King Wen of Zhou, and the lady is Queen Zhou, and that King Wen of Zhou wanted to find a virtuous queen to help him govern the country and bring peace to the world." The senior palace maid repeated the description of the young eunuch to Concubine Lu.
"The demeanor of a king, the virtue of a queen?"
When Concubine Lu heard this, her eyes lit up, and it was as if an electric current passed through her body, making her feel numb.
"Hehe... Dr. Yang said it very well." Concubine Lu giggled and agreed with Dr. Yang's theory on Guan Ju.
"But Your Majesty, I heard that Dr. Yang was stumped by Zhu Ping'an's question." The head palace maid said boldly.
"Oh, what did Zhu Ping'an say?" Concubine Lu became more interested. Was Zhu Ping'an's speech better than Dr. Yang's
"Zhu Ping'an said that Guanju is a folk song about love between a man and a woman, and also said it was a blind date." The senior palace maid replied.
"He's talking nonsense!"
When Concubine Lu Jing heard this, her pretty face darkened and she spoke out in anger.
"That's right. I also think he is talking nonsense. What he said is so vulgar. How can it compare to Dr. Yang's 'king's demeanor and queen's virtue'. But Xiao Liangzi said that Dr. Yang was stumped by Zhu Ping'an's question." The senior palace maid hurriedly agreed.
"Oh, yes, Zhu Ping'an is a sharp-tongued man who is good at sophistry. The "Thick Black Theory" that I showed you was written by him. It is reasonable that Dr. Yang, who is an honest scholar, cannot win the debate with him." Concubine Lu Jingfei thought of "Thick Black Theory" and her face was relieved. She shook her head slightly and smiled.
The "The Art of Thick Black" was what Concubine Lu saw from Emperor Jiajing when she was sleeping with him the month before last. I heard that it was presented to it by the Imperial Guards from the Hanlin Academy.
Emperor Jiajing laughed and scolded as he read the poems, saying that they "mislead young people." Concubine Lu Jing was curious and remembered the names and asked someone to collect them for her to appreciate.
It is indeed
The whole volume is absurd.
Shameless, selfish, cunning and deceitful...
These are all evil cult doctrines that mislead young people.
"No, I have to go find His Majesty. Today, His Majesty is openly giving a lecture, but in fact he is selecting tutors for the prince. Lord Zhang and the others are tutors themselves, and Liu Boqing submitted his retirement letter a while ago, so there are only Yang Guoliang and Zhu Ping'an left. I can't let the Du guy get ahead. Quick, help me change my clothes..."
When Concubine Lu Jing thought of this, she hurriedly stood up and told the palace maid to change her clothes.