"Why are you so anxious? What was Old Master talking about? He just came back from the palace and didn't even have time to change out of his official robe…Wait, what's with the official robe? Why is half of your shoulder wet?"
The Prime Minister was obviously extremely impatient and hurriedly interrupted his wife's words. He did not answer her question and hurriedly said,"Aiya-madam! When did you become so long-winded! All of this doesn't matter. Let me ask you first, can she…walk in Chang 'an now?”
"Not yet, but what are you saying, Master?”She didn't know why he came back in such a hurry to ask this question, but the way he asked this question was simply too... impersonal. His tone clearly indicated that he didn't want Chang 'an to get better!
Madam was a little angry." You asked someone to do it yourself. Don't you know what those servants are like? It had only been a few hours, and he almost couldn't make it through last night…You, how could you be so cruel!”As she spoke, she could not help but cry.
When the Prime Minister heard this, he was slightly relieved." That's good!”
It was still fine if the Prime Minister didn't open his mouth, but the moment he opened his mouth, he said the word 'fine' and made Madam extremely angry.
"What? Master, what are you talking about! You, you…do you really want Chang 'an to not get better?!”
"Aiya, Madam, what are you saying? It's not what you think-Madam, can you hear me out first?”The Prime Minister felt that he was no longer a human being. He had just suffered a bellyful of anger from the Empress in the Imperial Palace, and now he had to endure the misunderstanding of his wife after returning. What was the reason for this?
Madam looked at the Prime Minister's anxious expression and gritted her teeth."Tell me!" If he couldn't give a convincing answer, he would be completely heartless!
"The emperor is not in the palace at all!”He was so anxious that he did not know where to start. Instead, he was a little incoherent.
"What is it? The Emperor is not in the palace? What…what was going on? Didn't you just come back from the palace? The Emperor isn't here, so why has the old master been in the palace for so long?"Didn't you just come back from the palace?
Shock, doubt, and contemplation. The Prime Minister could even see the urgency in his wife's eyes…
He was finally willing to give her a chance to explain!
"It's the Empress. I only found out after I went there this morning that the emperor said he wanted to rest for five days, but in fact, he went to northern Hebei without a word.”The Prime Minister's tone revealed a hint of helplessness.
"How did this happen?" However, on second thought, he felt that why did he have to call her over for such a matter? Wasn't it better for fewer people to know about this matter? Could there have been some other mistake?
Seeing the confusion in Madam's eyes, the Prime Minister finally spoke the main point. His tone was filled with deep helplessness." Currently, the Empress is preparing for the selection of talents!”
Talent show? What was going on? Didn't the Emperor stop selecting talents for four or five years? Now that the Empress had brought it up again, and even without the Emperor's knowledge, who knew…what kind of dispute it would cause when the Emperor returned.
The relationship between the Emperor and Empress had indeed become more and more tense over the years!
"A talent selection…this is not bad. Now that the Qi Kingdom is prosperous and the people are peaceful, it can occasionally subdue some surrounding small countries. There's nothing wrong with a talent selection.”
The Prime Minister became even more anxious when he heard his wife's words. He shook his head and said,"You-you're just a woman!”
"What's wrong? Isn't that so?" She was not stupid. Since Old Master had already said so much, the meaning behind his words was already very obvious.
The Empress had to prepare for the selection of talents, so she naturally needed candidates. If Chang 'an did not have such a situation, she would probably be doomed, right?
"Naturally! The Empress specifically wanted the Eldest Miss of the Prime Minister's Residence! Madam could actually say such words?!”The Prime Minister's tone was impatient, but his voice was still suppressed.
The Prime Minister was immersed in his own emotions. At this moment, when he met his wife's eyes, he realized that his wife was not very anxious.
Although she knew that the other party was looking at her, she still said in surprise,"What?! How could this be? But, but, there was no need to worry too much, right? After all, Chang 'an's injuries would not recover for a while!”At this critical moment, Chang 'an's injury would definitely take some time to heal!
Her Chang 'an would naturally not enter the palace! How could her precious daughter, Chang 'an, survive in a place like the harem where people were vicious and full of schemes?
"That's why I asked Madam about her injuries just now!”
The Prime Minister was not as anxious as before. In fact, he had already expected this. The Empress was going to prepare for the selection of talents. As the Prime Minister of the country, the Emperor had left for a day and night. He would have heard some news. Now, he was just confirming it. Since the injury in Chang 'an had not recovered, he could not enter the palace to select talents. What he was worried about would not happen.
But now, he was faced with another problem." I'm afraid…Chang Ning won't be able to escape responsibility?”
"Chang Ning? The Empress specifically wanted Chang 'an, not Changning. What was the master worried about?”
"Things should have developed like this, but I told the Empress that Chang 'an was injured. The Empress was unhappy and said that she would find someone to replace her! Then who should he find to replace him? My Prime Minister Residence only has these two young ladies…"
At that time, Feng Yan was unhappy, but wasn't he also trembling with fear and treading on thin ice?
"Presumably, bengong and the empress dowager are discussing the matter of preparing for the selection.”The Empress looked at him calmly.
The Prime Minister felt that he could neither nod nor shake his head this time. If he nodded, it meant that he had already known. Since he already knew, he still used the family law on his eldest daughter. If he said he didn't know, then this Prime Minister's actions were too useless. Such a big matter was deliberately leaked by the Empress, yet he still didn't know?
It was difficult for him to speak for a moment. In the end, he decisively stood up from his seat and knelt in front of the Empress. He said obediently,"Empress, please understand that I have been busy helping His Majesty deal with the matter of the State of Wei submitting to the State of Qi…Therefore, I cannot help but neglect some matters! Please forgive me, Empress!"
The Empress did not know that the Prime Minister had beaten up her daughter, so she could not help but be puzzled by his actions. She looked at him in confusion." What does the Prime Minister mean by this? BenGong also didn't have the intention to blame ah…Hurry up and get up!”
The Prime Minister looked at the Empress gratefully. He thought that the Empress knew about this matter. After all, this matter could be said to be deliberately done for this person to see…
"Even if the Prime Minister knows about it now, it's still not over. Since it's a talent selection, the Di daughter of the Prime Minister's family seems to be quite good…"
When the Prime Minister heard the Empress 'words, he fell to his knees again." Empress, please forgive me!"”
"What's wrong, dear minister?" The Empress felt that the Prime Minister was a little strange today. Why did he always kneel down and admit his mistakes?
" Because my daughter, Chang 'an, was willful and unruly and didn't come back for the whole night... and was beaten by me." The Prime Minister looked up at the Empress, hoping that she wouldn't look too upset, but the result was obviously disappointing."I was too angry and hit her a little harder. She's still lying in bed and can't get up…"
The Empress's expression couldn't be any uglier. She casually threw the teacup she had just picked up at the Prime Minister's shoulder." My dear minister, you really know how to do things!" BenGong see, actually, beloved minister is not because busy sharing the emperor's administrative matters did not hear of this matter, I'm afraid beloved minister has long heard of it and made this move right?”
After that, the entire hall fell into a stifling silence. At this point, the Prime Minister could only bite the bullet and not speak. Things were already destined to be impossible. The Empress was unhappy, so it was useless for him to explain.
After a while, the palace maid served another cup of tea. The Empress took a sip before saying," Doesn't the Prime Minister have two daughters? Did they all get beaten up? If one of them couldn't come, the other one would come instead!”Even if they were sisters, there shouldn't be too much of a difference, right?
He raised his head in surprise and looked at the Empress. This, he never thought that the Empress would have such a move! After saying a thousand words, he was still careless. This time, he really had nothing to say. In the end, he wore a court robe that was wet on half his shoulder and returned to the Prime Minister's residence dejectedly.
The Prime Minister came back to his senses and looked at Madam. Actually, he could tell that Madam did not have the desire to continue listening. She should have known earlier that she had always been like this. She had never been as concerned about Changning as she was about Chang 'an.
It was not difficult to guess what the Empress was thinking. She had been fighting with Wan Fei for many years and Wan Fei had always been the champion. Now that the Emperor was not in the Palace, there was such a great opportunity to use the Emperor's name to conduct a talent selection. Why not seize the opportunity?
Although the relationship between the Emperor and Empress was not very deep, they had been husband and wife for many years after all. The Emperor would not easily fall out with them. Moreover, the Empress had the Empress Dowager backing her up. After five or six days, even if the Emperor was dissatisfied when he returned, it would not necessarily be a situation where he was furious. Moreover, when that time comes, the Emperor would only be in his forties when he sees those young and beautiful women…How could he be as unperturbed as Liu Xiahui?
If he wanted to overthrow Consort Wan's clan, he would naturally need to select women with similar talent and background. Then, within the circumstances of Qi State, in terms of beauty and family background, Chang 'an was naturally the best candidate!
"What should we do next, Old Master?”She asked the Prime Minister for his opinion. In fact, she was not in a hurry. Since this matter would not involve Chang 'an, why should she worry?
Moreover, if Chang Ning entered the palace, could it be that there would be any harm to the Prime Minister's residence?
There was no harm in it!
"Perhaps, we can only do as the Empress wishes.”
As long as that person was not Chang 'an, his worries would not come true. Chang 'an's appearance was too beautiful. He could not let her enter the palace no matter what. In the end, the Empress was just a woman, and her eyes were not as good as hers. If Chang 'an stepped into the harem one day, she would be no different from Daji and Baosi.
He did not know the Emperor's temperament very well, but he knew where his flaws were. Although Qi Country was currently in the Qing Ming Era, if this Qing Ming Era wasn't supported by all the officials, it would be difficult to maintain this prosperity!
"Then, what do you think, Second Madam?”
The Prime Minister frowned, as if he was deep in thought." I haven't told them about this yet…"
Madam naturally understood what the Prime Minister meant." That's strange! Why didn't Old Master send someone to inform her?”
He was hesitant. Although Chang Ning was not as beautiful as Chang 'an, it was still considered delicate and pretty. His concerns were not unreasonable, but his wife's thoughts were not the same as his at all...
"I understand Old Master's concerns, but since the Empress has already said it, then shouldn't we give the Empress an explanation for this matter?”
*——*——*
Lin Chang 'an had heard Qiao Hui mention this matter. When Qiao Hui first said this word, she was also very surprised.
"A talent show?"
"Yeah! I heard from them that it was originally decided that Miss would participate in the competition. However, because Miss is currently injured, the candidate has become Second Miss.”
Qiaohui's words were logical and seemed to be true, but Chang 'an did not take it seriously. Firstly, he felt that the Emperor was not in the Palace now. Secondly, he felt that the Empress and Consort Wan would not allow other concubines to compete for favor, right?
However, Chang 'an did not expect that the tension between the Empress and Concubine Wan was true, but it was often at this time that other people were needed to join in to achieve a balance.
In the end, Chang 'an only found out about this the moment before Lin Changning was about to enter the palace.
Naturally, she could not let Lin Changning enter the palace to be the imperial concubine. However, Chang 'an still did not understand why many things in this life were different from the previous life.
This book is provided by FunNovel Novel Book | Fan Fiction Novel [Beautiful Free Novel Book]