To put it bluntly, although they had no official positions, the rules within their family were sometimes even more numerous than those in the palace.
At the same time, they were well - known for protecting their own. They would never allow their eldest miss to have any connection with the royal family.
Back then, several generations of the He family's clan leaders had sworn that they would have absolutely no ties with the court or the royal family in this lifetime.
As for Concubine He, in fact, she was just a distant relative of theirs. If it weren't for her good relationship with He Hui, she wouldn't have been able to stand alone in the harem for so many years.
Shi Muyuan certainly knew that the He family would surely disagree. But if she could make the young emperor and He Hui take a fancy to each other first, and then hold the draft and inform the He family, it might not be impossible. Anyway, no one would suspect them.
After listening to her master's whole plan, Xiao Xiao was still a bit worried.
"Your Majesty, it's still too dangerous. How about giving it up? Those crazy people from the He family are almost as fanatical as our dead soldiers."
"This matter is settled. You should quickly arrange people to do it. During these days, Hui'er will stay here with me. If anyone has any objections, they can come to me directly."
Even when she had first traveled through time and hadn't met that concubine, she had heard that the concubine had only been able to achieve her current status by relying on the He family for all these years. If she was smart, she wouldn't stop her plan.
Sure enough, He Hui had been in the Shoukang Palace for several days. Normally, there should have been some stir, but unexpectedly, it had been somehow suppressed.
Shi Muyuan had taken it upon herself to let the young emperor and He Hui dine together several times. Some feelings had grown between them, but it hadn't been revealed to the outside world.
It seemed that the concubine knew exactly what was going on and also hoped that this matter would succeed.
Right, she was in a weak position and hoped to have a support behind her. The He family was the only option. But if they were to be subdued, they had to be dragged into this by getting their most precious person involved.
Just like this, after about half a month, when Shi Muyuan thought it was ready, she had people strongly advocate for the young emperor to take concubines during the court session.
At first, the young emperor wasn't very willing to do this. But with her pushing things forward, everything went smoothly.
On this dark and windy night, the young girl clearly noticed a figure flickering outside her palace.
She sneaked after it furtively, her eyes full of curiosity.
Staring at the reluctant figure not far away, she let out a long sigh of relief, knowing that her efforts during these days hadn't been in vain.
"Judging from these days, Hui'er can indeed do a good job as a noble concubine."
"Why is Your Majesty only giving her the position of noble concubine? Logically speaking, shouldn't she be given the position of empress?"
"The empress must be someone more suitable. The He family isn't stupid. They've been quiet for so long. We can't draw hasty conclusions. It's better to keep a back - up plan."
"Your Majesty is wise."
Xiao Xiao watched the two people cuddling each other in the distance and sighed. Although her master's actions were a bit improper, a great man could bend and stretch. All this was for the sake of the country.
Seeing the two people wave goodbye in the distance, Shi Muyuan and Xiao Xiao also returned to their sleeping quarters, acting as if nothing had happened.
The next day.
Since the girls participating in the draft had to live together separately, He Hui was taken away by the head maid.
Shi Muyuan patted her hand lovingly.
"Hui'er, I really can't bear to part with you. Don't worry. When you come to pay your respects in the future, I still want to have a good chat with you."
The girl blushed shyly. "Thank you for Your Majesty's kindness. I'll be able to accompany you soon."
"That's good. Go. Maid, Hui'er is used to being delicate. You should be careful. If anything happens to her, you'll pay with your life."
The maid showed a fawning smile on her face and led He Hui away slowly.
Shi Muyuan had pretty much done everything she needed to do in these days. All that was left was to wait for the whole process to finish.
She stretched lazily and decided to go out of the palace for a look.
What she didn't know was that since He Hui had come to the place where the draft girls lived, she hadn't been treated well.
Just like now.
All her bedding had been thrown on the ground, and someone had poured water on it. It gave off a foul smell, making the people around keep their distance.
"Yo, sister, why does your quilt smell so bad? I can smell it from a long way away. Could it be that a young lady like you can't even wash her own quilt clean?"
As she said this, everyone around laughed, but the ridicule in their words couldn't be hidden.
He Hui had never suffered such grievances since she was a child. She gritted her teeth, holding back her tears, and looked up to force the tears back.
"You all are ganging up to bully me. Although this is the harem and the place where the draft girls live, I'm not someone you can bully at will."
After saying that, she endured the stench and threw the quilt on the ground on top of all the other quilts. Just like this, all the freshly - washed quilts of the draft girls were stained with the smell. If they wanted to get rid of it, they would have to wash them again.
Seeing this, the girl who had been so smug just now immediately changed her expression. She wished she could swallow He Hui alive.
"How dare you! Do you know who I am? My father is an important official in the court. A young lady like you actually dares to damage my things. When I become a noble concubine in the future, I will never let you off easily."
Hearing this, He Hui wasn't afraid at all.
"So what? There are several forces in the court, but they all depend on the emperor. Could your father ride on the emperor's head?"
That young lady must have been spoiled all the time. So now, relying on the fact that she might have the highest status among these draft girls, she had no scruples.
"Although I can't ride on the emperor's head, it's enough to be one step above you. By then, even if you kneel down and beg me, I won't spare you."
After saying that, she changed the subject as if she had thought of something interesting.
"If you beg for forgiveness now, I can give you a chance. Wash my quilt for me, then kneel down and kowtow to admit your mistake, saying 'Miss, I was wrong'. As long as I'm happy, I'll let you go."
Her expression was arrogant, and her words were disgusting.
Even He Hui, who had been around in the circle of young ladies for a long time, couldn't stand it.
Almost without hesitation, she scooped up a ladle of cold water from the bucket beside her and splashed it directly on the haughty girl.
"Who do you think you are? Do you think you're the only one with connections in the royal family? Hmph, if you have the guts, say what you just said outside. Let's see if the laws of the Great Liang can't deal with you?"
These simple words, combined with the ladle of cold water, made the girl go crazy.