"The Queen likes Ming Jieyu, which is her blessing. However, Ming Jieyu has no merits and no children. If she is promoted again, she will be one of the nine concubines. It is a bit difficult to convince the public."
The Queen Mother who was sitting in the middle suddenly spoke softly.
The mother-in-law objected, and the queen was reluctant to reject her for a moment. However, she thought that the Chen family was weaker now, so she couldn't help herself.
"It's my daughter-in-law who didn't think it through. She only thought about seniority. At that time, Ming Jieyi was the prince's concubine appointed by the late emperor. If it wasn't for the emperor's mourning, which delayed her entry into the palace, she shouldn't have only been a Jieyi."
If she really entered the palace and was granted a title as the prince's concubine, she would at least be a Zhaoyi, let alone a second-rank concubine.
The Queen's strong performance was rare, which made the Queen Mother feel a little uncomfortable and a little angry.
The empress dowager could be kind in front of Ning Chen, as Ning Chen was the emperor and his son. However, she did not want to tolerate the empress, a daughter-in-law whom she was not very satisfied with.
But before she had the chance to speak, her son spoke first.
"The Queen's words have reminded me that according to the late Emperor's wishes, Ye is only a concubine, which is indeed a bit low. But what my mother said makes sense, so let's just promote her to Xiurong for the time being."
After a pause, he continued, "Concubine Chen has served me for some time, and she was the first batch to enter the palace, so today she will also be promoted to Concubine."
Ning Chen promoted Ye Jun by using both pushing and beating, and also brought Chen into the equation, which served to shut the empress dowager up.
A gentleman’s word is as good as gold. From now on, Ye Jun will be a proper concubine.
"Thank you, Your Majesty, the Queen Mother, and the Empress for your kindness. I will definitely abide by my duties as a concubine and live up to your high expectations!"
Ye Jun stood up with a smile to express his gratitude, and raised his glass to toast the person in the main seat.
The emperor and the empress drank out of respect, but the empress dowager just nodded and didn't drink.
But Ye Jun didn't care, as she didn't rely on the Queen Mother to survive.
Her promotion this time completely suppressed the news that Concubine Su was pregnant in the palace.
After all, Ming Xiurong became one of the Nine Concubines because of favor.
Everyone had an expression of celebration on their faces, but they were all gritting their teeth inwardly.
Especially Yao Xiang.
It's rare to see her with a gloomy face.
I can understand that.
She had just been scolded by Ye Jun, but in the end, not only was Ye Jun fine, but he also got promoted. It would be strange if she wasn't angry.
Ye Yun's promotion not only consolidated her position in the harem, but also showed the emperor his trust in the Ye and Chu families to his court officials.
This Mid-Autumn Festival was very meaningful.
The dinner was over.
Normally, today is the fifteenth day of the lunar month, and the emperor should go to the queen's place to rest.
But the Queen took the initiative to say, "I drank too much at the dinner tonight and I feel a little unwell. I am afraid I can't serve the emperor well. The emperor should go to Ming Xiurong's place."
"As it happens, I am the one who is really drunk. My eyelids are almost closed, and I am even more unable to serve you. Moreover, today is the fifteenth day of the lunar month, and Your Majesty should accompany the Empress. This is in accordance with the rules, and I dare not cross the line."
Ye Jun doesn't like this.
Now is not the time to ignore the rules of our ancestors.
Moreover, the Queen might not be sincere in saying this, she might just be testing her.
What a pity. She has always believed that ambition must match strength. Right now, her ambition is not on the throne, so there is no need for the Queen to test her.
There is no need to flatter her too much, she is not stupid.
"Ming Xiurong is sensible. I will go to the Queen's place to rest tonight."
In the end, it was Ning Chen who made the final decision.
The queen felt relieved and smiled like a flower.
Under the gaze of all the concubines, Ning Chen helped her onto the imperial sedan chair, and the couple left together.
"Congratulations, sister." Wang Xiuyi walked forward with a smile.
This congratulations is absolutely sincere.
Now it seems that she has made the right bet.
Ye Jun bowed with a smile, "Thank you, sister. We will have to support each other in the future."
"Of course." Wang Xiuyi nodded, "I don't expect favor, I just hope the second princess can get better. I hope my sister can take care of her in the future."
This was the first time that Wang told her openly that she did not crave favor.
Wang looked at her with sincere eyes, without any avoidance, and she really just wanted to protect her daughter.
"Don't worry, sister. I will definitely help you if you need me." Ye Jun said.
When you raise a princess, the final important thing is marriage.
As long as she was still in favor at that time, it would be easy for her to say a few words to the emperor and ask for a good marriage for the second princess.
This exchange between the two men has somewhat consolidated the alliance.
As the crowd dispersed, the excitement of the dinner also faded away, and Lingxi Garden returned to peace.
But there was no peace in the palace.
Ye Yun’s promotion was announced to the six palaces.
Early the next morning, the news had already been reported back to the palace and reached Concubine Su's ears.
She had just taken a pregnancy-preserving medicine, and even a piece of candied fruit couldn't get rid of the jealousy in her heart.
"I was the one who was pregnant. The emperor gave me some gifts and sent me away. Why can Ye be promoted to the ninth concubine?"
"Jieyu, please calm down. She just seduced the emperor for a while. As you said, she is not pregnant. She is sitting in the position of the ninth concubine and cannot raise her head. When you give birth in the future, won't you be more noble than her?"
Baicao stood by and fanned her, coaxing her softly.
Right now, Su's belly is the hope of both master and servant.
Ever since the news of her pregnancy broke, the Imperial Household Department has been eager to serve her and would not dare to send her anything other than good things.
The feeling of being pampered like this finally reminded the master and servant of their past days in Zasak, and their pride gradually returned.
In the past, Sudiya was the third prince's most beloved daughter and lived a life of luxury. This could be seen from the fact that she, a concubine's daughter, could play with Duolan, a legitimate princess.
If Su had never been praised since entering the palace, she might have been able to tolerate it, but now that she really enjoyed the feeling of being valued, she was even more afraid of losing it and being outdone.
"You're right. As long as I give birth to this child, whether it's a boy or a girl, it will be a hundred times better than if Ye Shi couldn't give birth to one."
Su Jieyu stroked her belly, and her eyes brightened a little.
Ye Jun himself had no idea that he had become someone's imaginary enemy.
I did drink too much at the dinner yesterday, and fell asleep as soon as I got home.
It just so happened that the Queen was exempted from paying respects to the emperor for another day, so she slept until almost noon.
When I woke up, I heard a lot of noise outside.
He pulled on an outer coat and went out to take a look, and saw rewards being carried in like a stream of water.
"Xiu Rong is awake?" Hui Yue turned around and found her, and hurried over to help her. "I was busy sorting these things and neglected it for a moment. I will help Xiu Rong wash up first."
Ye Jun hadn't fully come to his senses yet. He just nodded and was then escorted back into the house.
After she had washed and dressed, she belatedly remembered that she had been promoted yesterday and was now one of the nine concubines.
"I forgot yesterday. Everyone in Jiaotang Garden will be rewarded. Huiyue, Nanzhi, Luzhi and Baizhu will each receive 20 taels of silver, and the rest will each receive 5 taels. Those who came to Jiaotang Garden to give rewards today should give some to each person."