Chapter 16

Chapter 16

Once a palace maid came to report that the women in my palace had all left, I headed back as well. Only after asking the maid did I learn that His Majesty had still decided to give both sides fifty strokes of the paddle each-wasn’t that just because he couldn’t bear to truly come down hard on either side?

“Then whose palace is His Majesty going to tonight? He can’t be planning to sleep alone in the Hall of Mental Cultivation, can he?”

Lilu glanced at me cautiously, then at Yuanluo.

“Well? Why are you looking at Yuanluo?” Yuanluo had come out with me, so naturally she had no idea what Lilu was looking at either.

“His Majesty said he would come to Your Highness tonight.”

“Well, would you look at that. Shifting the disaster eastward,” I muttered.

His Majesty arrived rather late that night. If Lilu had not repeatedly insisted that His Majesty had indeed said so before he left, I would have suspected she was tricking me.

After so many years as husband and wife, His Majesty and I really had little to say to each other. Sweet talk? Sorry, I had no interest in romance, and I imagined His Majesty had no desire to discuss that with me either. Poetry and essays? I was even less interested in those. In the end, all we could do was make small talk.

Discussing concubines and children with one’s principal wife was rather dull too. However, His Majesty suddenly told me that he wanted to place the Sixth Princess in Consort He’s care.

The Sixth Princess was only half a year old. Her birth mother had been a palace maid in Noble Lady Mei’s quarters and had died in childbirth. His Majesty had taken pity on the young princess, so she had remained in Noble Lady Mei’s palace to be cared for all this time. I had thought he intended to let the child be raised there, and later find some excuse to promote Noble Lady Mei to the rank of Concubine, which would have been only proper. I did not expect him to come up with this instead.

“What about Noble Lady Mei?”

“Imperial offspring ought to be raised by a consort who holds the main position in her palace. Noble Lady Mei has cared for her long enough.”

Noble Lady Mei and I had no real personal relationship, so naturally I would not waste too much breath pleading for her. “His Majesty is right. Only, is Consort He willing?”

“In any case, she cannot have children of her own. I cannot bear to see her all alone.”

His Majesty said it so bluntly that I was startled. How was he so certain Consort He would have no children? Or had he done something? But I did not care.

After morning greetings the next day, I kept Noble Lady Mei behind and told her about it. Her reaction lagged by half a beat. “Why does Your Highness suddenly want to send the Sixth Princess away?”

“This is not my decision.”

At that, her mind worked faster than usual, and she quickly realized whose decision it was. “His Majesty’s?”

Seeing me nod, she asked again, “Can I truly not keep the Sixth Princess?”

“Do you think you can make His Majesty change his mind?” I asked. She shook her head dejectedly. If she truly had such ability, how could she still be a mere noble lady?

“Enough. Go back and properly pack up the Sixth Princess’s belongings. Send them to Consort He as soon as possible.”

She suddenly dropped to her knees before me. “Your Highness, I beg Your Highness to help me. I only have the Sixth Princess.”

I bent down and lifted her chin. “Help you? Why should I help you?”

She froze, unable to speak for a long while, only kowtowing to me over and over.

“Enough. Things have already come to this. If you know what is good for you, it will be better for both you and the Sixth Princess. Acting like this is no different from slapping His Majesty in the face.”

“But Consort He… How could she truly treat the Sixth Princess well?”

“How could she not? Are you not also someone who is not the Sixth Princess’s birth mother? What difference is there between you and Consort He?”