As expected, in the next ten days until the New Year, Ning Chen went to Concubine Qian five times in addition to visiting Zhao Chunxuan once.
Many people go there to have a meal or just sit.
So some people speculated that it was because the empress dowager passed away and the emperor couldn't ignore the face of the Chen family, so he transferred the imperial favor to Concubine Qian.
Obviously this is the most reasonable explanation that everyone can see.
No matter what, because of her family background, as long as she is favored, she will be envied and flattered by others.
In the past, because of the Empress Dowager, the Ministry of Internal Affairs did not dare to deduct anything from Concubine Qian, but as for giving her anything extra, there would definitely be no such thing.
But things have been different since Ning Chen came a few times.
There were extra gifts for the snacks and meals, and even the roof and windows of the east wing where she lived in Yaoguangxuan were repaired.
She had been in the palace for six years, so of course it was old, but no one had repaired it before.
Now he is rushing to come.
The servants were all very happy, but looking at the boxes of jewelry that had just been awarded on the table, Concubine Qian felt uneasy.
The contact she had during the past few days made her clearly feel that her cousin, the emperor, was not as kind as he appeared to be.
I always feel like I'm approaching her with a purpose.
But thunder, lightning, rain and dew are all grace from the emperor, and she has no choice but to accept them one by one.
But he couldn't help but discipline the servants around him again and again, and reminded them to keep a low profile and not to show off and cause trouble.
At the end of December, there is a palace banquet on New Year’s Eve.
I thought the empress dowager who was recuperating would not attend, but Ning Chen still invited her out.
But he only showed up for a short while and left after sitting for less than an incense stick of time.
The Queen Mother does not look well and it seems that she needs to rest.
Yes, an old woman who is imprisoned, even if she is well-fed and well-fed, will never be in good health if she has a bad mentality.
Ning Chen's move was not to prove anything, but just to maintain the Queen Mother's last bit of dignity.
If she doesn't even attend such a grand occasion, then she is truly an empress dowager in name only.
After all, they are mother and son, Ning Chen doesn't want that to happen.
But there were indeed some people who couldn't come to the banquet.
Concubine Yao fell ill again.
Anyway, the imperial physician said that it was due to the fright he received in the Cining Palace that day.
This explanation was not pleasant to hear, so naturally it would not be told to the public. They only said that the Imperial Concubine's old illness had relapsed and she was unable to get up.
It seems now that among the concubines of the late emperor, Concubine Dowager De, who gave birth to two princesses, was the most stable.
Of course, everyone's attention will not be focused on the concubines of the previous emperor. After all, the concubines of the current emperor are the most important.
The annual ceremony of sealing off the harem on New Year's Eve has become a rule.
There is no doubt that Ye Jun will be promoted.
Whether she was favored was a later story at this time. The main reason was that she went out of the palace to pray for blessings, but the Fourth Prince was nearly murdered in the palace, so Ning Chen did it in the name of comforting him.
This promotion would make her Zhaoyi, and another promotion would allow her to become a second-rank concubine.
Hui Zhaoyuan was promoted together with her, which was meant as a reward for her.
Later on, Yi Shunyi was promoted to Zhaorong, and finally became one of the top three concubines among the nine concubines.
And Wan Xiuyi was promoted to Xiuyuan as compensation.
I thought it would end here, but Ning Chen paused and suddenly said.
"Let Concubine Qian be promoted to Xiuyi. Concubine Qian has been in the palace for many years and has served the Queen Mother diligently and respectfully. Duke Ying has also been helping me with my worries for many years. She deserves the position of a concubine."
Concubine Qian was stunned and stood up quickly, "Your Majesty loves me so much, but I have no merit and no children, I am ashamed to accept it."
"You are my biological cousin. I had a bad temper when I was young, so I ignored you for many years. Now you give me a chance to make it up to me. If I say you deserve it, then you deserve it." Ning Chen waved his hand.
Having said that, there was no room for refusal, and Qian Xiuyi had no choice but to accept the title.
Ning Chen smiled again and said, "Humble and docile, the title I gave you is correct."
He praised her continuously with such a serious look that it was hard to tell whether he was sincere or not.
But no matter what, Qian Xiuyi's promotion is still a good thing for the Chen family.
Even that night, Ning Chen went to Qian Xiuyi's place to stay overnight.
No one except the Queen has this honor.
For a moment, the harem looked at her sideways.
On the first day of the second day, one has to get up early and kneel in the Taimiao.
It was still dark and I couldn't see my hand in front of me, but suddenly I heard the door being pushed open.
Ye Jun opened his eyes dazedly, wondering if it was time to get up, but he was too cold to move.
He turned over, facing away from outside, and huddled into the quilt.
It suddenly snowed in the middle of last night, so I burned a few more charcoal braziers.
"Is it time yet?"
"Not yet. You can sleep for another half an hour."
The voice was not Huiyue's. Ye Jun was startled and woke up. He quickly turned over and stuck half of his head out to see.
Sure enough, I saw a familiar tall figure.
"Why is the emperor here? It's not even dawn yet." Ye Jun was very confused.
Didn't you go to Yaoguangxuan to rest yesterday? Why did you get up so early in the morning and come to her place
Ning Chen took off his outer robe, shoes and socks, opened the curtains and sat on the bed.
"I didn't sleep well, so I came to your place to take a nap."
After saying that, he lifted the quilt, came in, and hugged the person.
His body was naturally not as warm as the quilt at the moment, and Ye Jun shivered involuntarily due to the cold.
But it will only take a moment.
It is naturally comfortable to sleep in someone's arms in winter. I was still very sleepy at the moment, so I didn't ask any more questions and just slept together.
But she didn't know that Ning Chen had a very unpleasant dream at Qian Xiuyi's place, so he came here early in the morning.
In the dream, Ye Jun was angry because he always favored Qian Xiuyi, so he closed the door and refused to see him again. He ordered people to force open the door of Zhaochunxuan, but the inside was full of dust and cobwebs, and it didn't look like anyone lived there.
Only an elderly palace maid kowtowed to him tremblingly.
When the palace maid heard him mention Ye Jun, she looked puzzled and replied that Ming Zhaoyuan had died a long time ago.
He also asked where the Fourth Prince had gone.
The old palace maid replied that she lost her mother at a young age, who died in a secret struggle within the palace.
Ning Chen was so frightened by the dream that he broke out in a cold sweat. He could no longer lie down, so he got up without saying a word and went to Zhao Chunxuan.
Although it was just a dream, he was really scared.
He also didn't understand what it was that he loved about this woman. Perhaps it was her intelligence, or the fact that she was not as conservative as ordinary ladies, or perhaps it was her sincerity and insight.
In short, there were many things that attracted him and made him reluctant to let her leave.
So, under the influence of a bizarre dream, the young emperor, who had always been relatively calm, did something extremely unsteady.
She walked in the dark and snow early in the morning, leaving the other concubines behind and coming to Zhaochunxuan, just to lie next to Empress Ming in Zhaochunxuan for half an hour.
Of course, others might feel jealous or moved when they heard this, but if Ye Jun knew that this bastard dreamed that she and her son were dead on New Year's Day, she would definitely beat him up to vent her anger.
So this is why Ning Chen never told Ye Jun in his life why he did such a thing on New Year's Day that year.