Speaking of which, Zhang was a very miserable person. She had been in the palace for so long, but she had never had the opportunity to leave the palace to accompany the emperor, no matter how hard she tried.
He is really ambitious and has been trying hard to win favor, but he is just unlucky.
There are two reasons.
The first is that she was born at the wrong time.
Now that Ning Chen's foundation is not stable, he needs help from the previous dynasty, so looking at the harem, those who are favored are those with good family backgrounds and whose mother's family can work for Ning Chen.
Zhang was born in a humble family and was not in Ning Chen's eyes from the beginning.
The second is related to Ye Jun.
In the early years, Zhang Wanrong's effeminate behavior disgusted Ye Jun to the core. She had expressed her dislike for Zhang in front of Ning Chen more than once. If it weren't for the Queen's constant support, Zhang would have been sent to the cold palace long ago.
"I pay my respects to Her Majesty the Empress. It's summer now, and I specially made two new pajamas. I come here to present them to Her Majesty today." Zhang Wanrong bowed.
"No thanks, you can sit down." The queen smiled and waved her hand, "If everyone in the harem was as well-behaved and sensible as you, I wouldn't have to be so tired."
Zhang lowered her eyes obediently, "Your Highness is the mother of the country, and you have the fate of a golden phoenix. No matter how others try, it will be useless."
The queen was very pleased to hear this.
He raised his hand to support his temples and curled his lips.
"Fortunately, I now have the eldest prince, so I can finally put my heart at ease. This time when I go to Lingxi Garden to escape the summer heat, I have included you in the list of companions. I will ask someone to send you some new clothes and jewelry later. Now that you are outside the palace, there are fewer rules, and you can be bolder."
"Thank you very much, Your Majesty, for your support. I will be grateful and will never forget it." Zhang Wanrong was happy and stood up to express her gratitude.
The Queen looked at her and said, "Just remember my kindness. Did you take the pills I gave you every time?"
Zhang nodded, "I dare not disobey your majesty's order, so I eat all the meals I have in bed with you."
After hearing this, the queen's smile deepened.
But he pretended to be speaking in a serious and earnest manner.
"I am not against you having a baby, but you are still young. The most important thing is to win the emperor's favor. Once you have the favor and have established yourself, you can raise the baby yourself."
Zhang lowered her head, hiding the dark colors in her eyes very well, "Your Majesty is thinking about me, I understand."
"Okay, you go back. It's time for the eldest prince to finish school. I'll go see him." The queen waved her hand.
Zhang Wanrong bowed and stepped out.
After walking out of Fengqi Palace, she finally looked up at the sky. The dazzling sunlight made her feel uncomfortable.
But this little bit of irritation is nothing compared to the pain in my heart.
She wanted to make a name for herself, but she has struggled for many years without success. Now she lives under the Queen, and she has no control over her life. She can't even decide whether to have children.
Zhang felt bitter and resentful, but she wanted to be in a high position so much that she was willing to endure it.
In ten or eight years, she will be able to get there.
Qin Wanrong was in a different situation from her.
Qin didn't even have to ask Concubine Jingde for help, as she got the news. Concubine Jingde asked her to make good preparations and would definitely take her with her when she went to Lingxi Garden this year.
He even bluntly asked Qin Wanrong to take good care of her body and give birth to a royal heir as soon as possible.
Of course, this is because Concubine Jingde was injured while in seclusion in the palace and could no longer give birth.
So she needs others to give birth to children for her. The more princes she holds, the greater her chances of having the last laugh.
Qin herself understood and was willing to do so.
After all, with her family background and qualifications, even if she gave birth to a boy, she would not be able to move up to a higher position with her child. She and her child could only depend on Concubine Jingde.
Even if Concubine Jingde only wants to support the second prince to ascend the throne in the future, her child has been raised by Concubine Jingde since childhood and is not afraid of being liquidated.
Amid everyone's anticipation, the list of names of those who would accompany the emperor out of the palace finally arrived.
The Queen naturally had to go, followed by Concubine Shu, Concubine Jingde, Hui Zhaorong, Ye Yun, Yi Shunyuan, and Yao Xiang, who had children. Next were Concubine Qi, Concubine Wan, Concubine Zhou, Qin Wanrong, and Zhang Wanrong.
This time the Queen Mother also went.
This would be a huge group of people.
Originally, Lady Zhou was not on the list, but Ye Jun dragged her onto it.
We have to let our own people enjoy some benefits, right
There is no way to take Zheng Wanrong with her as there are too many people. We’ll talk about it later when there is a chance.
Because Miss Wan was pregnant, a larger carriage was specially arranged for her, which made others jealous.
On the first day in the garden, Ning Chen still went to see the queen.
Ning Chen gave the Queen all the proper respect.
Since she was already there, the Queen naturally wanted to show off, so she called the eldest prince over and the three of them had dinner together.
Although the eldest prince is still afraid of Ning Chen and the rules are not very thorough, he is indeed much more obedient than before.
"Thank you for your concern, Queen. The eldest prince has indeed become more sensible. Let the Queen take care of the child for the time being." Ning Chen said.
This was exactly what she was waiting for, and for a moment the queen was extremely happy.
She nodded quickly, "I will definitely treat the eldest prince as my own son and teach him with all my heart. I don't ask him to be outstanding, but I hope he will be a good child who knows how to act and how to deal with things in the future."
"I am confident in the Queen's work." Ning Chen narrowed his eyes, "The Queen's baby is also in your care. Please make sure nothing goes wrong."
"I obey your command." The queen replied, but her expression was noticeably paler.
Since we were out for summer vacation, as usual, we changed the daily morning greetings to once every three days.
Lady Wan would wait until her belly was three months full before coming to pay her respects.
As expected, Ning Chen stayed at Ye Jun's place on the second night he came to the garden.
Now everyone in the harem has tacitly agreed that Ming Shunyi is the most favored concubine.
The next day I went to Yi Shunyuan.
Just after dinner, someone came to ask the emperor to go and see Concubine Wan, saying that her stomach was not feeling well and they wanted the emperor to go and see her.
Few concubines had ever complained about their bellies before, and although Ning Chen thought that Wan was making trouble on purpose, he still went to see her.
At this point, Yi Shunyuan couldn't stop him and had to act magnanimous. She was so angry that her liver hurt but she had to laugh.
No matter where you go, there's no way you can come back. You were just intercepted like this.
However, Lady Wan was pregnant and could not be served, so Ning Chen returned to Jingqian Palace to rest.
The maid Shiqin sat beside the couch and rubbed her legs, whispering, "Beauty, aren't we being too ostentatious by doing this?"
"If I don't test the emperor's feelings while I'm pregnant, I won't have a good excuse to do this after the baby is born. Right now, the emperor still values me."
Wan squinted her eyes and leaned back on the pillow, feeling very comfortable.
"That's right. The beauty was born into a good family. When she gives birth to a prince in the future, he will be as good as Ming Shunyi." Shihua said with a smile.
Speaking of Ye Jun, Lady Wan's expression turned quite serious.
"You should keep a low profile and don't mess with the people around her. She is a person who eats a lot of meat and vegetables, and the emperor really loves her. She also has real military merits in her family. She can't be touched for a while."