"Your Majesty is really making me hate you by taking me away like this. When we leave Jingqian Palace, they will tear me to pieces!"
Ye Jun was really reluctant to come here. It was so tiring and she still had half an article of palace rules to copy.
Even though she didn't want to, she couldn't say it out loud, so she said this half-complaining, half-coquettish sentence.
Ning Chen snorted and pretended to be cool.
"Since Ye Wanrong is unwilling, I will replace her with someone else. You go back."
"I won't leave." Ye Jun took small steps forward and stretched out her hand to hold Ning Chen's sleeve. "The emperor called me here, so there is no reason for me to return. I was just acting like a spoiled child with the emperor. Isn't it better for the emperor to just say that he will protect me?"
Ning Chen was really surprised. How could a woman say that she was just acting coquettishly and say it so clearly
He thought he didn't like women's nagging, but today he really enjoyed it.
She coughed unnaturally, still arrogantly, "You are the most eloquent, go and grind the ink."
Ye Jun pursed her lips and smiled, took off the jade bracelet on her wrist, had her hands washed by the maid, and then she stood quietly beside Ning Chen.
Yuan Jiu naturally didn't want to stay here. He made a gesture to Huai'an, and the master and disciple retreated.
"Master, I'm scared to death. Ye Wanrong is so bold that she even blames the emperor!" Huai An said with lingering fear.
"What do you know, kid?" Yuan Jiu knocked his head gently and said with a smile, "This Ye Wanrong looks bold, but in fact she is very careful. Didn't she see that the emperor enjoyed it? In the future, Ye Wanrong will have to pay attention to it!"
Huai'an nodded repeatedly. Although he didn't quite understand what the master meant, he just did as he was told.
He then remembered that he had helped Ye Wanrong deliver snacks last time and that he had not offended anyone, and he felt even more relieved.
As for the people in the harem, they were naturally angry.
However, Xia Cairen herself was rather indifferent.
She was born in a humble family. If she had not been appreciated for embroidering clothes for the Empress Dowager that year and was given to the Emperor, she would probably still be suffering in the needlework bureau.
So now that she can have a little favor, have no worries about food and clothing, and can even conceive a dragon heir, she is truly satisfied.
It was precisely because of her genuine satisfaction that Ning Chen did not dislike her even though she was the Queen Mother's person on the surface.
The news of Xia's pregnancy naturally had to be passed back to the palace to let the Queen Mother know, and at the same time some other news was also passed back.
The fact that Chen Baolin was under house arrest could no longer be concealed.
The Queen Mother was so angry that her liver ached. "Why is Su Yu confined to her house just because she drew a lamb kneeling to suckle? The Emperor is too disrespectful to me! He has become the emperor overnight, and I, his biological mother, am nothing but dirt under his feet!"
Nanny Fu was also worried and could only try to persuade the Empress Dowager kindly. She was now a bystander and could see things more clearly. If the Empress Dowager really made a fuss, it would probably only make the Emperor more estranged from her.
The royal family has always been indifferent to family affection, not to mention... ... the Queen Mother herself had never been very good to the Emperor in the past.
The Queen's family was powerful at that time, and the eldest prince was also talented. The Queen Mother gave birth to children only to consolidate her position. She felt that one child was not enough, and wanted to have another one, so she only focused on winning favor, and the children were all raised by wet nurses.
Later, when Ning Chen was ten years old, the Queen Mother was also getting older. Seeing that there was no hope of having another child, she began to think about getting close to the child.
But at that time Ning Chen was closer to the wet nurse. She was furious and regardless of what the child thought, she found fault with the wet nurse and drove her out of the palace. Later, the wet nurse died of illness. Others didn't know about it, but Nanny Fu knew that it was the Queen Mother's doing.
The children of the royal family were sensible even at the age of ten, and naturally they had resentment towards the Queen Mother, so that over the years, the mother and son were not actually very close.
Now the Queen Mother is only focused on supporting her own family and doesn't care about the Emperor's thoughts, so the two have become even more distant.
Nanny Fu tried hard to persuade the empress dowager for a long time and finally calmed her down. At least she didn't ask her to do anything.
At that time in Jingqian Palace, Ning Chen had just finished reviewing the memorials and was looking at something while holding a cup of tea.
Following his gaze, I saw Ye Jun washing his hands.
Ning Chen is undoubtedly a hand control. His slender hands like snow, with light nail polish, look like perfect works of art.
The women in the harem all have fair skin, but none of them have skin as good as Ye Jun's, let alone a pair of well-proportioned, slender and long hands like hers.
Ye Jun had long noticed that the emperor was looking at her hands, so she deliberately washed them for a while longer. At the end, she came straight over, deliberately ignoring the jade bracelet that she had not yet put on.
When the maid ran over to bring the plate of jewelry, Ye Jun smiled and stretched out her hands in front of Ning Chen.
"I will help Your Majesty grind it. Would you please help me put on the bracelet?"
Ning Chen raised his eyebrows. At this moment, he really wanted to play with the little concubine for a while, so he put it on her himself.
The touch was softer than I had imagined, and I couldn't help but pinch it. "Your hands don't look like the daughter of a military commander."
"Your Majesty, what you said is true." Ye Jun snorted and pulled her hand away. "Does it mean that the daughter of a military officer must have calloused hands? I am loved by my parents and have been carefully raised since I was young."
The tenderness in his hand was gone, and Ning Chen actually had an urge to grab that little hand back. Fortunately, he resisted it, but he still felt a little unsatisfied.
Looking at the arrogant woman in front of him, he narrowed his eyes as if in disdain, "What kind of temper is this? I can't say a word to you."
If someone said this, it means he doesn't really dislike the person. If he really disliked the person, he would have kicked the person out long ago.
Ye Jun still hummed twice, and then stopped.
The servants set out tea and snacks, and the two men sat down to talk.
Most of the questions were asked by Ning Chen, and he asked some questions about the Chu family, some of which were quite detailed.
Being as sensitive as Ye Jun, she naturally sensed that something was wrong, but she answered the questions truthfully and carefully.
After thinking about it, and considering the current situation where the court is monopolized by the aristocratic families, he understood most of it.
The Chu family is a family of merchants and has accumulated many connections over the years. Although they are wealthy, they are from a humble family in terms of status. If such a "humble family" with extensive connections can be used by the emperor, it will save much time and effort to train them compared to those from real humble families.
After figuring this out, Ye Jun understood that the emperor called her here today not because he liked her very much, but because he wanted to use her to connect with the Chu family.
If this is true, it would be a great opportunity.
My grandfather married my mother to the Ye family, and my uncle took great efforts to educate my two cousins, and also made friends with various talented scholars, so naturally he wanted to enter the officialdom.
In this era, traveling merchants are ultimately looked down upon.
Now that the emperor is determined to train her, as long as the Chu family is compliant and willing to help the emperor fight against the aristocratic families, both sides will benefit.
Moreover, although she could gain the emperor's favor on her own while in the harem, she would be able to stand firm only if she had a strong mother's family.
Pampering is all false, having the support of the mother's family is the real truth.
Her brother is still young, and she can’t rely on him alone. If her uncle’s family can get better, it will be a bargaining chip for her.