allonlinenovel Chapter 199
Chapter 199
"The color is bright and beautiful, truly lovely."
The Eldest Princess stared at a touch of red on the jade hairpin and nodded.
Seeing this, Yun Wan lowered her head and gave a few instructions. Soon, the palace servants brought in a set of head ornaments mainly made of red coral.
Yun Wan picked up one of the beaded strings and chuckled, "I have never worn this set of ornaments. If you like it, Princess, I will give it to you."
Everyone's eyes instantly fell on the coral ornaments in the wooden tray, revealing envy.
"This red coral is radiant. The Princess has fair skin and a youthful, delicate appearance; it suits her perfectly."
"Her Majesty the Empress is truly generous."
They could understand Yun Wan's actions. As the Empress, the role model for the Six Palaces and the paragon of women in the world, treating the royal offspring well was her duty. They didn't find it strange.
The Eldest Princess looked at Consort Xian, hesitating for a moment, unable to make up her mind.
Consort Xian touched her temples and smiled faintly, "I remember Your Majesty once had a coral bracelet that you loved dearly. Thinking about it, Your Majesty is also someone who loves such things. If you give it to Li'er, wouldn't that be taking away what Your Majesty loves?"
Yun Wan nodded, "I did have a string before, sent by the Jewelry Bureau. Consort Xian has seen it too. However, for some reason, that bracelet broke and lost a few beads."
"Later, when His Majesty found out, he ordered someone to send a new set."
She paused, sighed, and said, "It's just that it's not the previous string after all. Once my interest passed, I kept it in the storehouse and never took it out. Now it's the perfect time to give it to the Princess."
Noble Lady Kang suddenly realized, "So it broke. I was wondering earlier, seeing how much Your Majesty loved that bracelet, why didn't I see you wear it later?"
When Yun Wan was still Consort Yun, she wore it once. The bright red string on her wrist left a deep impression on everyone.
The others agreed, "The Jewelry Bureau is getting more and more careless, making such a big mistake. Who knows how many good materials they have secretly embezzled?"
"I remember the Jewelry Bureau was previously managed by Consort Lu, right?"
Hearing this, everyone looked towards Consort Lu, seeing her sitting expressionlessly and quietly next to Consort Xian, and couldn't help but sigh.
Thinking back to when she was Consort Shu, assisting in managing the Six Palaces, how glorious she was.
Seeing the topic directed at her, Consort Lu twitched the corners of her mouth and mocked the other party, "So what if it is? The Jewelry Bureau is no longer under my jurisdiction now. Are you going to hold me accountable?"
Her words and attitude showed a bit of a reckless disregard.
The concubine she mocked choked and wanted to argue with Consort Lu, but Yun Wan's sweeping glance instantly stopped her.
Having no intention of dwelling on this topic, Yun Wan had someone send the head ornaments to the Eldest Princess. "Consort Xian, there's no need to decline. If the Princess likes it, it can be considered putting it to good use."
The Eldest Princess said, "Thank you, Your Majesty the Empress, for parting with your treasure."
Seeing her accept it, Yun Wan brought up the main business of the day, "I plan to host a banquet in the Huicui Hall in ten days to entertain the female family members of the capital. If you have any relatives you wish to see, you can give the list to Fuling, and the invitations will be sent out to the respective residences."
Hearing this, everyone was ecstatic.
It is said that once you enter the palace gates, it is as deep as the sea. Since entering the palace, apart from a few concubines who had children, the others had almost no chance to meet their families and exchange warm greetings.
Even the occasional meetings were just distant glimpses at palace banquets, with no chance to speak at all.
As for those from ordinary backgrounds, whose fathers and brothers served as officials below the fifth rank, they didn't even have the chance to attend the banquets. Yun Wan's decision undoubtedly gave them the possibility of meeting their families.
Even though they were long accustomed to the stagnant life in the palace and had practiced hiding their emotions, the concubines couldn't help but feel excited and thanked her one after another.
Only Concubine Hui, the person who usually loved joining in the fun the most, had a faint expression.
As for Consort Lu with her mocking face, Yun Wan automatically ignored her.
Yun Wan silently noted this, and after the others dispersed, she found an excuse to make her stay.
"What's wrong with you? I saw your face looked off just now," she asked with concern.
Concubine Hui froze for a moment, then her expression turned natural, "You must have seen wrong, right? Hasn't my face always been like this?"
Yun Wan shook her head, her tone firm, "No, it's different. Especially when mentioning seeing relatives, you didn't look forward to it at all."
Concubine Hui curled her lips, saying nonchalantly, "What's there to see? It's the same whether we meet or not."
"It seems your relationship with your family isn't very good," Yun Wan hit the nail on the head.
Concubine Hui raised an eyebrow, "Isn't Her Majesty the Empress the same?"
Yun Wan pulled her lips, "My mother passed away early, so naturally I lost my father. He elevated his concubine to be his wife, and they are a family. I have long lost any longing for home."
Perhaps she once had it, but the result was disappointing.
"You are different. Both your parents are alive, and you are their eldest daughter. Do you really have no longing for them?"
Concubine Hui was silent for a moment, lowered her eyes, and mocked herself, "To be honest, I have long severed ties with them."
"Severed ties?" Yun Wan was stunned. "Why?"
Concubine Hui opened her mouth to speak, but hesitated.
Realizing there was an inside story, Yun Wan signaled the palace servants, "You all step down first."
After only the two of them were left, Concubine Hui dropped another shocking bombshell:
"Forget it, there's no harm in telling you. Before I entered the palace back then, I was already not a virgin."
Yun Wan was shocked, instinctively touching her ear to make sure she hadn't heard wrong.
"It's a long story," Concubine Hui sighed.
Yun Wan focused her attention, "Then make it short."
"Entering the palace was truly out of helplessness for me." Concubine Hui fell into memories, saying distractedly, "When I was young and unmarried, I fell in love with a..."
She paused, showing disgust on her face, "A despicable man."
"He was my father's protégé. I fell in love with him at first sight, and then I created opportunities to encounter and interact with him."
"He did not reject me, and even became more caring and attentive. So I thought he had me in his heart. Of course, this was just my wishful thinking. I became more and more unreserved with him, and we became physically intimate."
"When I thought I would marry him in this life and was preparing to confess our affair to my father, I accidentally caught him acting affectionately with his female cousin, pouring out his heart to her."
Concubine Hui's tone carried endless coldness, "He said being with me was only to use me to gain my father's favor, and he had no love for me at all. He planned to take her in as a concubine after marrying me."
Concubine Hui felt struck by lightning at that time, feeling nothing but disgust. She immediately broke off all relations with him and told her father about this matter. Who would have thought—
"My father actually wanted me to marry that despicable man!"
Concubine Hui gritted her teeth, "I was unwilling, so I secretly submitted my name to the roster for the palace draft. My father, afraid that the matter would be exposed and implicate the family, severed our father-daughter relationship."
Yun Wan was silent. "And then?"
Concubine Hui shrugged and said, "The fact that I wasn't a virgin was still discovered by the examining mama. Just as I was about to be driven out of the palace, I happened to run into His Majesty, and he gave me a way out."
"That was for me to become His Majesty's pawn, acting as his eyes and ears in the inner palace, serving his purposes, while I also gained a place to stay."
This was the reason why Concubine Hui's rank in the inner palace had been neither high nor low all these years, yet she remained safe and sound.
Because she was Emperor Jingxuan's pawn, acting on orders.
After hearing this, Yun Wan was dumbfounded.