Empress Cao said, "So, I also said to leave them alone for now. Anyway, they are now in the Northern Desert. No matter how powerful Murong Jie is, can he still cause trouble?"
She waved her hands, signaling the prince to go out, and the prince bowed and walked out.
Empress Cao clapped her hands and said, "Come on, please invite Empress Qing!"
The emperor's expression softened when he heard Concubine Qing's request. "It's the Queen who knows my feelings."
Cao Duan picked up the wine, took a sip with a smile, and a light flashed in his eyes, then disappeared.
After a while, Concubine Qing came in holding a zither.
She was wearing a green palace dress, her skin was whiter than snow, she had almond eyes, a beautiful nose, and soft red lips. In the autumn, the palace dress with a double-breasted collar was tight-fitting, revealing her slender white neck. Her bun was languid, and her steps were full of charm. I felt pity for her.
When the emperor saw her, his eyes widened.
The queen smiled and stood up. "Okay, I still have things to do. Concubine Qing, please accompany the emperor. The emperor is worried."
"Yes, I respectfully send off Her Majesty the Queen!" Concubine Qing bowed, slightly opened her red lips, and spoke softly like a trickle of water, making people intoxicated by her voice.
The queen looked at her meaningfully, then walked away slowly, her skirt sweeping across the white jade steps in the palace, looking indescribably elegant and graceful.
Concubine Qing bowed, "Your Majesty, I pay my respects to you!"
The emperor smiled and waved, "Come here!"
"Yes, Your Majesty!" Concubine Qing walked over and sat on the emperor's lap. She placed the zither on the table, turned around and hugged the emperor, smiling coquettishly, "I heard from the Empress that the emperor is upset. Who is it that makes the emperor upset?"
The emperor reached out and pinched her chin. "There's nothing to worry about. I'm feeling very proud right now."
"Proud? What good news is that? Why don't you tell it to me so that I can feel proud too." Concubine Qing smiled softly with her hands covering her mouth.
"I have lured the regent of the Great Zhou to come here. Without Murong Jie on the battlefield, it will be difficult for the Great Zhou to win." The emperor laughed, his eyes shining.
Concubine Qing asked doubtfully, "But aren't the Regent and his wife here to treat the epidemic?"
"That's just to appease the people. This war has to be fought no matter what. As for the Regent and Xia Zian, they can also ask those peace advocates to come over to stop nagging in my ears." The emperor kissed her cheek and put his big hands on her chest, rubbing it wantonly.
Concubine Qing smiled shyly, "Your Majesty, it's still broad daylight."
"What's wrong in broad daylight? You are mine." said the emperor domineeringly.
Concubine Qing dodged for a moment, "Your Majesty is so mean, not only does he bully me, he also bullies Prince Qi. If Prince Qi knew your true intentions, he would be furious."
"My brother is just a piece of wood." The emperor stopped and looked a little bored. "Okay, go play a song on the zither. I want to drink some wine."
Concubine Qing stood up and said, "Okay, what does the emperor want to hear?"
"Golden Swords and Iron Horses!" The emperor smiled domineeringly.
The ancestors of Beimo conquered the world on horseback, and only through war can their achievements be expanded.
Everyone thought that he kept going to war because he was instigated by the queen.
Qing Fei's slender fingers swept across the strings of the zither, making clanging sounds. This song of war and iron horses had a grand opening and closing from the very beginning, with thousands of troops galloping. It could only be performed by someone with excellent piano skills.
The emperor closed his eyes and imagined that the iron cavalry from the northern desert would cross the border of the Great Zhou and march towards the capital of the Great Zhou.
The Great Zhou was his ultimate dream, with fertile land, beautiful women, and the world-famous Miss Yuan.
He had only met her once, and after watching her paint once, he would never forget it for the rest of his life. If he couldn't experience the feeling, what was the point of him being the emperor
Prince Qi left the imperial study and stood at the palace gate, not knowing where to go.
He didn't dare to return home, as he didn't know how to explain to the Regent. All his previous promises seemed like bullshit.
As a last resort, he had to go and pay his respects to the Empress Dowager.
After talking for a while in the Empress Dowager's room, the Empress Dowager felt tired and wanted to rest, so he could only wander around the Imperial Garden.
He knew that this battle would not stop.
Murong Jie came to Beimo and took the enemy commander into his hands, so Beimo had a high chance of winning.
However, if this happens, the people in the epidemic area may have no hope of being saved.
The epidemic will spread. How can we contain it? Does the emperor really intend to sacrifice the lives of hundreds of thousands of people
He stood with his hands behind his back, not knowing what to do. He really couldn't face this mess.
What he feared most was betraying someone's trust, especially since the other party was the regent of the Great Zhou.
When I came out of the Empress Dowager's place, I saw Concubine Qing and her palace maids coming to pay their respects to the Empress Dowager.
"Empress Qing!" Prince Qi bowed.
Concubine Qing nodded calmly, "Your Majesty, have you come to pay your respects to the Empress Dowager as well?"
"Yes, the Empress Dowager has already rested. Concubine Qing, please come back another day." Prince Qi said.
Qing Fei was a little disappointed. "You've taken a break? I was thinking of playing the piano for her, but I'll go back now."
"Have a safe journey, Queen Qingfei!" said Prince Qi.
"Prince Qi, please wait here. Xiaoling, go back to the palace and get some ginseng for Prince Qi, and have him take it back to the Concubine Dowager." Concubine Qing ordered.
"Yes!" King Qi replied.
Qing Fei glanced at him and turned away.
Prince Qi waited for a while, and then saw Xiao Ling beside Concubine Qing coming with a box.
"This is what the Concubine Dowager asked Concubine Qing for when she entered the palace before. The Concubine Dowager must have known that Concubine Qing had received the thousand-year-old ginseng as a reward from the Emperor, so she asked Concubine Qing for it in front of the Empress Dowager." Xiao Ling said, her tone obviously a little angry.
Prince Qi said calmly, "Please thank Queen Qingfei on my behalf."
"Your Highness, you don't have to be polite. It's just that Your Majesty is not in good health. This ginseng was originally given to Your Majesty by the Emperor to nourish her body. So, Your Majesty Qing is worthy of this thank you." After Xiao Ling finished speaking, she turned around and left proudly.
Prince Qi had no expression on his face. He held the ginseng box and walked out.
After walking a few steps, the prince came after him and said, "Uncle, I have to leave the palace too. Let's go together."
Prince Qi glanced at the Crown Prince and said dejectedly, "Okay, let's go."
As the two walked out, the Crown Prince glanced at the box in Prince Qi's hand and said, "Isn't this the ginseng that Father gave to Concubine Qing? How did it end up in the hands of the Emperor's uncle?"
"Empress Qing said to give it to my mother and asked me to take it back." Prince Qi said with a heavy heart.
"Oh?" The prince smiled, a gleam of light flashed in his eyes, "I heard that this is a thousand-year-old ginseng. I have never seen a thousand-year-old ginseng. I wonder if the emperor's uncle can open it and let me have a look?"
Prince Qi stopped and looked at the Crown Prince, "Why not give it to the Crown Prince?"
The prince waved his hands repeatedly, "I can't do that. This is something that Concubine Qing gave to the Concubine Dowager. How dare I take it? I just want to take a look and broaden my horizons."
Prince Qi opened the box and said, "This thousand-year-old ginseng is something I have never seen before. Mother, how dare you ask about something that the Emperor gave to Concubine Qing?"
There was a ginseng lying in the box. It was not particularly big, but it had a lot of ginseng roots and was wrinkled all over. It looked more like an old man than a ginseng.
The prince stared at the box and then laughed, "Is this the thousand-year-old ginseng? It's not very good-looking!"
Prince Qi put the box away. "Things that are not good-looking are usually good things."
The prince smiled and said, "Oh, by the way, I remembered that I still have some things to do, so I will not leave the palace with my uncle. My uncle will go first."
Prince Qi hummed, "Okay, then I will leave."
(End of this chapter)