"This story is in Seclusion atm" Continue Dreaming ~ ELOD

Chapter 19 - 16th Birthday, Morning of Surprises

Ever since Yueling was born the queen wasn't able to conceive another child. The king wasn't worried at all if he was able to have a son at all to inherit the throne. He even said to the queen that he will pass his throne to his daughter in the future so they can retire and live a happy life together. But all the officials at court were not happy about his decisions. They kept on pressuring the king to select a few more young ladies to add his harem so he soon could have a son to inherit the throne.

Over centuries in China, the tradition is, there must be at least a son to take on the family name. A woman is useless since they will only hold the family name until she married off. They are simply a tool to produce children in most eyes. For those that are born in higher positions in society, they have other functions like, a valuable object to make a trade for wealth, power or even better peacekeeping. In the lower rank in society, they are simply used for pleasure only. So a son is what most want.

Little did they know, no matter how many more young beautiful ladies he adds to his harem it doesn't make a difference. It's not that the queen can't conceive another child, it's the king that didn't want her to go through the same danger again. He almost lost her the last time when she went into labour three months earlier then she was supposed to and it took over twenty-four hours to bring YueLing to this world. He's been giving her contraceptive medicine every time the morning after.

The queen has been persuading him to visit and stay over at Lady Yang and other concubines in the harem but he refuses to do so. He is not interested in other women and he can't even persuade himself to even try to even kiss or even touch them intimately. The queen knows it's unfair to all the women in the harem to live like this for the rest of their life. Even the king knows it's not right but he just can't break his loyalty to his only love.

Everyone in the harem thinks it is the queen that is controlling the king like this so most of them hate the queen just like Lady Yang. The queen is lucky most of them were in very very low ranks and were settled in further deserted parts of the palaces which they can't harm her.

There are only a few in the harem that don't hate the queen because they understand once you're in love with one person you just can't love another. Most of those were forced to leave behind the one they truly loved and used as a treaty tool by their father or brothers from close by tribes, states and countries. But they understand their position as a girl, and as a girl born into a somewhat royal family. They actually envy the queen since she is able to have his majesty's whole heart while they can only think about their own one and only. Some are even glad that they didn't have to serve his majesty in any ways either.

There were some that tried to seduce or drug the king so they could have even one night of pleasure and hoped to bear his child as well so they could have some sort of power. But before they can even walk into his majesty's chamber they already failed. Most of the time he asks them why before sentencing them. Most of the answers are the same;

"Your majesty, ever since entering this royal palace, you haven't even placed an eye on me before. Am I just that ugly? All I wanted is your love and doting."

"Your majesty I loved you since the day I saw you but you never even stepped foot in my chamber before, so you forced me to take actions into my hands."

"What am I to you, am I simply a flower vase that you put around the palace?"

"I am human too, I have feelings too, watching from afar as you and queen are so enjoying your happy times together really hurts."

"I know you love me, why else would you take me into this palace? I know it must be that evil queen that forbids you to come to me. She's evil! I can be a better queen than she is."