"This morning in the court, that fifty - something yellow - robed imperial censor accused Lord Wang of the Supreme Court of Justice of extorting confessions by torture. They quarreled fiercely," Su Wan'er recalled the scene at that time and looked at him aggrievedly. "I didn't dare to say a word. That old man was about to bang his head against the pillar, saying he wanted to prove what he said was true."
Si Junlin gave a soft grunt, already picturing that heroic and tragic scene in his mind.
"Fortunately, someone stopped him. The yellow - robed imperial censor begged me to order a retrial. Afraid that he might do something rash, I just perfunctorily said I'd consider it. And... and do you know," Su Wan'er grabbed his sleeve and said angrily, "When I asked Fang Xi, it turned out that the son of the yellow - robed imperial censor was competing with Lord Wang's son - in - law for a position. Moreover, he had embezzled money. And Lord Wang, Fang Xi said Lord Wang was promoted by you and is extremely loyal."
"So the human heart is so unpredictable," Su Wan'er mumbled, resting her head on her arm. "I never thought that a minister who was willing to bang his head against the pillar would actually embezzle money secretly. Alas, you've really had a hard time."
A few days ago, Si Junlin would never have expected to hear such empathetic words from the person in front of him.
These things shouldn't be understood by anyone, for there is only one emperor in the world.
Those related by blood thought he was heartless, loyal officials thought he was overly suspicious, and villains thought he was terrifying. Only his queen thought he had it tough.
Si Junlin smiled, his mind in a whirl.
"I always thought that the Su family had been loyal for generations. My father had guarded the border for decades. Why couldn't he gain the emperor's trust?" Su Wan'er tilted her head, looked straight at Si Junlin, and said seriously, "Now I understand that there are too many people putting on an act in front of you. Being an emperor is really not easy."
Si Junlin looked at her silently, touched in his heart, but he didn't want Su Wan'er to know. So he simply slapped a memorial on her head. "Stupid. If they don't deceive you, who else?"
Su Wan'er dejectedly retracted her head, rested it on her arm, and fell sound asleep. All she could hear was the gentle rustling of the memorials being flipped.
That night, when Fang Xi came in holding a wooden tray, Su Wan'er warily sensed his furtiveness.
"Your Majesty, it's time to turn the name tags," Fang Xi said with an awkward smile, not mentioning that it was the empress dowager's urging. "You haven't been to the harem for several days. The concubines are all longing for you. Please take a look today and decide which concubine to summon."
When Su Wan'er shifted her gaze to the numerous name tags, she immediately saw the name at the very front. Behind it were Concubine Mei Fang Ruolin, Concubine Yu Wang Qingqin, Noble Lady Ling Qingyue, and so on.
Choose myself? Staring at the name tag with "Empress Su Wan'er" on it, Su Wan'er felt her hand itching. But when she thought of Si Junlin's gloomy face, this thought was quickly dispelled.
With a snap, the name tag of Noble Lady Ling was turned over.
Fang Xi quickly stole a glance. Just as he was about to shout and pass on the order, he saw Su Wan'er turn over another name tag. He was completely at a loss and carefully asked, "Your Majesty, shall this servant summon Noble Lady Qing?"
"Call them both over for some fun," Su Wan'er said casually.
Fang Xi was stunned. Call two? "Yes, yes, this servant will go and do it right away!"
Before he could turn around, he was horrified to see Su Wan'er turn over more than a dozen name tags in one breath and continue rummaging through the remaining ones.
"Call them all. Call all these people."
Holding the tray, Fang Xi for the first time felt that the wooden name tags were so heavy. He quickly responded with a yes, and a bead of sweat trickled down his forehead.
After having her fill of fun, Su Wan'er lay back on the recliner, enjoying the night breeze, and comfortably waiting for the beautiful concubines to arrive.
...
The news that the emperor had summoned more than thirty concubines to attend to him that night spread throughout the harem.
This news shocked everyone. Just imagining more than thirty concubines crowded in one bedroom, people couldn't help but fall into deep thought.
All the summoned concubines were overjoyed at first. They took baths, burned incense, and dressed up beautifully before going out. But when they learned that there were more than thirty other companions, even those with the thickest layers of rouge on their faces would turn pale. After cursing a few times, they mustered up all their energy to compete for the emperor's favor.
A quarter of an hour later, Su Wan'er was cuddling two concubines on either side. In front of her, someone was singing a gentle tune and winking at her from time to time. Behind her, a pair of delicate hands kept feeding her grapes. Every once in a while, someone would squeeze closer to her, and the room was filled with the gentle voices of the concubines.
The green - robed concubine was dissatisfied that the orange - robed concubine had taken a good position. In anger, she splashed a whole goblet of wine on the other concubine. The orange - robed concubine looked at Su Wan'er with tearful eyes, which made another concubine even more disgusted. She wished she could reach out and scratch the other's face.
"Your Majesty, it's windy here. Why don't you go to my palace to rest?"
"Pooh. Your palace is so far away. Aren't you afraid that Your Majesty will catch a cold from the night wind? Your Majesty, why don't you come to my place? I've prepared a poria cocos bath to dispel the cold."
Su Wan'er had been the empress for several years, but she had never been so glorious before. Enjoying the feeling of being surrounded by beautiful concubines, a cold breeze blew, and she was so touched that she almost shed tears. She thought this must be the peak of her life, with so many people vying for her favor.
In the midst of the hubbub, Fang Xi came in, hunched over. He forced his way through the crowd and leaned over to whisper in Su Wan'er's ear. With an embarrassed and anxious look on his face, he said in a low voice, "Your Majesty, the empress is coming."