The Daily Life of a Concubine

Chapter 44 - The Most Ruthless Imperial Family

"Be careful not to bring disaster with your words." The Empress had never paid much attention to Lan Guifei's provocations because she knew that the daughters of the Tan family would never bear children in the harem.
Why was this so?
One only needed to recall the side that the Tan family had once stood on. The old patriarch of the Tan family had supported Prince Duan back then. If it weren't for the Emperor's decisiveness, he might have been betrayed by his own teacher.
With such deep resentment, how could the Emperor ever truly care for the Tan family? Though the Tan family now stood tall and prosperous, the Empress was merely waiting for their eventual downfall.
"It was a slip of the tongue, Your Majesty," De Fei admitted her mistake, not daring to speak further about the consort, but she couldn't help but feel stifled when thinking about the two-character title she had been granted.
"I'm afraid she'll get even more arrogant now,"  De Fei said, clearly displeased with Consort Lan—or rather, Noble Consort Lan (Lan Guifei), as she was now titled.
"So what if she gets arrogant? Let her. Sooner or later, someone will teach her to be more humble. Don't concern yourself with this matter. Just focus on taking care of the child you're carrying," the Empress said indifferently, completely unfazed by Lan Guifei's arrogance.
No matter how arrogant she was, she could never surpass the Empress. As long as the Empress lived, all others were mere concubines.
At the mention of her child, the malicious expression on De Fei's face softened, revealing the loving gaze of a mother. "Yes, this time, I will ensure that my child grows up safely." She didn't ask for her children to achieve great things, only that they could grow up in peace and live a happy life.
"Go back and rest. I suspect others will be vying for favor soon. Stay out of it if you can. Also, send away those living in your courtyard," the Empress waved her hand, once again reminding her out of concern.
De Fei understood the Empress's good intentions. "Yes, I'll have them move to Yilan Courtyard, which is closer to the Emperor's Qian Palace."
For the sake of her child, De Fei was willing to go to great lengths.
"Do what you think is best."
No one knew the details of the conversation between the Empress and De Fei.
Meanwhile, after discovering her pregnancy, Lan Guifei was stunned. She had longed for a child for years. Everyone in her household had once conceived, except for her—not even once.
She had been anxious about it, praying to the gods and drinking bitter medicines, yet nothing happened. As years passed, she had nearly given up. She never expected that heaven would finally show mercy and grant her a child.
"Quickly, summon the Emperor."
Those were the only words she spoke after being diagnosed with pregnancy.
On the other side, Emperor Rui naturally received the news from the imperial physician. He didn't rush to see either Lan Guifei or De Fei, but instead summoned the physician to inquire about their conditions.
The imperial physicians were loyal to the Emperor. With his vigilance and methods, both the Imperial Kitchen and the Imperial Hospital were firmly under his control. No one could surpass him. The physicians, loyal as they were, had already been waiting outside Qian Palace before being summoned.
"Tell me, what's the situation with Lan Guifei?"
No one knew Lan Guifei's condition better than the Emperor. Although he hadn't intentionally caused her infertility, he had allowed it to happen. The Empress Dowager, not wanting the harem to be too closely tied to the political court, had strictly controlled who could bear children. A month after Lan Guifei entered the palace, she was given a secret medicine that damaged her body and destroyed her ability to conceive.
Years passed, and Lan Guifei indeed bore no children with the Tan family bloodline, much to the dissatisfaction of the Tan family. After the retirement of the old Tan patriarch, his eldest son took over the position of Prime Minister, and Lan Guifei was his eldest legitimate daughter.
If Lan Guifei bore a prince, would the Tan family continue to support Prince Duan?
Of course not. This was why the Empress Dowager had dealt such a ruthless blow to Lan Guifei.
Emperor Rui was fully aware of this. He hadn't intervened because he didn't want a Tan family prince either. He couldn't bring himself to like the Tan family. However, because of the late Emperor's influence, the intellectuals of Da Yue had grown increasingly dissatisfied with the political system, to the point that civil service exam halls were not even filled anymore. The monopolization of knowledge by aristocratic families meant that few poor scholars could rise to prominence.
This was the main reason the Emperor acted against the Tan family. The literary world was dominated by the Tan family, and their influence was widespread. If not for the Cheng family stabilizing the borders, the Emperor would not have been able to focus on addressing the power of the literary aristocrats.
But back to the main topic.
"Your Majesty, Lan Guifei has a cold constitution, which makes pregnancy difficult. Now that she has forced herself to conceive, I'm afraid the child in her womb..."
The imperial physician trailed off, too afraid to continue.
"Speak," the Emperor said, tapping the table as he urged the physician to continue.
"I'm afraid the child won't survive past five months," the physician finally admitted. This was assuming Noble Consort received proper medicinal care every day. Any negligence could result in a miscarriage without the need for external intervention.
Upon hearing this, the entire hall fell into silence. The Emperor was momentarily at a loss for words. A myriad of emotions flashed through his eyes, but in the end, a trace of sorrow settled there. "Do everything you can to save both Lan Guifei and the child."
Yet the Emperor's heart remained cold. Any normal husband who learned such news would want to remove the threat to prevent further harm. But he intended to use the child in Lan Guifei's womb to suppress the Tan family. It had to be said—no one was more heartless than an emperor.
The physician trembled as he responded, "Yes, Your Majesty, I will do my best." He braced himself for several restless months ahead.
After dismissing the physician, the Emperor stood up. "Let's go see Lan Guifei," he said as he strode out. De Fu followed closely behind, his head lowered, expressionless.
Having served the Emperor for so long, De Fu understood the Emperor's burdens.
When they arrived at Yongze Palace, a large crowd had already gathered around Lan Guifei.
Seeing the lively scene, the Emperor felt a wave of displeasure. He had always known that Lan Guifei was arrogant and domineering, often leading the charge in oppressing other concubines. Yet, he had allowed it. But when had Lan Guifei become so friendly with the rest of the harem?
Most of the women in the harem were connected to the court. Except for one, whom he had brought into the palace purely out of personal interest, every other concubine was the daughter of a court official.
Looking around, he realized that half of his harem was present. De Fei was also pregnant, yet the concubines still favored Lan Guifei. This showed how deeply entrenched the Tan family's influence had become. The courtiers were scrambling to curry favor with the Tan family, to the point where even the Emperor was outdone.
"What are you all doing here? Don't you know that Lan Guifei needs rest during her pregnancy?" Emperor Rui's authoritative voice rang out behind the concubines, startling them from their lively conversation.
"Greetings to Your Majesty. May Your Majesty live long and prosper."
The group quickly bowed to the Emperor. Wen Jieyu, pretending not to notice the Emperor's displeasure, took a step forward with a flourish of her handkerchief. "Your Majesty, we heard that the Noble Consort is pregnant, so we came to check on her. Seeing that she's in good health, we are all delighted for both Her Highness and Your Majesty."
Her words were polite, and her smile sincere, but what she truly felt was anyone's guess. With two high-ranking women in the harem now pregnant, Wen Jieyu naturally felt a sense of loss.
"I haven't yet congratulated Your Majesty," she said, presenting her most graceful side as she approached the Emperor. "Congratulations, Your Majesty, on the joyful news of a prince." With a graceful bow, she showed that she was still just as charming as the younger concubines who had entered the palace after her.