mtl008 Chapter 45 Even if I'm in a bad mood and beat you to death, no one can say a bad word about me.
Chapter 45 Even if I'm in a bad mood and beat you to death, no one can say a bad word about me.
Liang Zhaoyi was immediately terrified and trembled all over. She wanted to vent her anger for her son, but after her feverish mind cooled down, she also remembered that Lin Shiming was not someone she could easily mess with.
She immediately kowtowed deeply, but couldn't speak for a long time.
"Your Majesty, Your Majesty..."
Lin Shiming was impatient to wait for her to make up an excuse, and besides, his original target was not Consort Liang, but Consort Shen.
"That's enough." Lin Shiming leaned back, casually placing his hand on the armrest, interrupting Liang Zhaoyi's stammering. "Everyone else, get up first."
These concubines are all delicate and frail. I hope they don't kneel too long and get sick. If they all fall ill and no one can serve the emperor, the emperor will be bored to death.
Having received Lin Shiming's permission, the delicate and frail concubines finally rose cautiously and returned to their seats, not daring to make a sound. They acted like wooden puppets, afraid of angering the rough man above them who came from a military background and did not know how to cherish women.
But Consort Shen was different. She wasn't particularly bright to begin with, and her apparent intelligence was only highlighted by those who were even less intelligent. So, although she had been frightened into withdrawing her claws by Lin Shiming's achievements last time, seeing that Lin Shiming had calmed down these past few days, she had forgotten the Prince Ping's warning, and her ambition for power and profit was stirring again.
The person who submitted the memorial requesting that she be granted the right to rule the palace was a minor official whom she had secretly contacted behind the backs of Prince Ping.
Consort Shen picked up her teacup, striking a pose befitting a favored concubine.
"Why should Your Highness hold a grudge against Consort Liang? She is just a bit short-tempered, and what she said is not wrong. Although Your Highness is the Crown Princess, you cannot overstep the Empress's authority and accept our invitations to the An Ding Palace."
Hooked.
Lin Shiming smiled inwardly, lowering his head to hide the fleeting excitement on his face. He knew he wasn't very good at acting, nor at concealing his emotions.
Once the initial excitement subsided, Lin Shiming raised his head again, reverting to his inscrutable expression.
"Do others think so too?"
Who else would dare to challenge him? The only one who was a little arrogant, Consort Qin, was crushed into a pulp by Emperor Longyun not long ago.
Seeing this, Consort Yue took the lead again, stood up and curtsied, saying, "We dare not."
With one person taking the lead, the others quickly followed suit, saying, "We dare not!"
Lin Shiming nodded in satisfaction. It seemed that the others were quite obedient and sensible. Today, he only needed to target two people.
Consort Shen's face was filled with indignation. These vile women only know how to fawn over the Empress; just wait and see how I deal with them tomorrow!
Lin Shiming waved for them to sit down, finally turning his attention to the two targets of the day.
"It seems there are still more obedient people." Lin Shiming chuckled at Consort Shen. "Consort Shen, are you and Consort Liang perhaps hearing things? If you are, quickly summon the imperial physician to see a doctor, lest you delay serving the Emperor."
"Why has Your Highness humiliated us two concubines!"
Lin Shiming smiled and said, "What I just said was 'to come and see you on behalf of my mother,' not to accept your greetings. Where did the word 'overstepping' come from? It's as if you two have misheard."
"Or is it that Consort Shen and Consort Liang knew the truth but pretended to mishear, waiting to convict me and deliberately frame me?"
Consort Shen's expression changed drastically, "Your Majesty—"
"Consort Shen," Lin Shiming didn't give her a chance to speak, "Father showed me a memorial today. Wang Liancheng, the head of the Ministry of Rites, submitted a memorial requesting that Father reclaim the power of the palace and hand it over to the empresses and consorts. The first on the list of recommendations is none other than you, a first-rank consort!"
As he spoke, Lin Shiming looked at Consort Shen meaningfully, "Tell me, who ordered him to do this?"
Finished!
Consort Shen's face was ashen.
For concubines to have secret dealings with the court was a serious crime. However, this was difficult to completely prevent, as almost every concubine with some status and power would try to contact the court. Sometimes, the emperor would turn a blind eye.
It was common for people like Consort Shen to send tentative memorials, and the emperor usually wouldn't take it too seriously, simply keeping it quiet to express his opinion. After all, everyone knew that such things were difficult to prevent.
But this is only based on the emperor's leniency. If the emperor were to hold it against him, it would be a serious crime.
What's more, this time she offended the ruthless Crown Princess.
Therefore, Consort Shen was immediately panicked and her legs went weak as she knelt down next to Consort Liang.
Lin Shiming sneered and knocked the teacup beside him to the ground. With a few crisp sounds, shards of porcelain shattered in front of the two kneeling men.
The concubines hurriedly tried to get up and kneel again, but Lin Shiming impatiently said, "Sit down."
I'm so angry! I didn't see clearly just now, but why did my mother prepare a bone china teacup for him to smash? These things are expensive! If he smashes it, the whole set will be ruined!
Lin Shiming grew angrier the more he thought about it; he had really lost out big time by acting in this play! He angrily twirled the pearl bracelet on his wrist, his eyes practically blaming murder on Consort Shen.
"Shen, although I am married to the Crown Prince and have become his consort, I am still a man, and there are some things I don't want to argue with you weak women about. But that is not a reason for you to be so presumptuous in my presence!"
"A concubine who can be bought and sold at will dares to try to seize power in the inner palace, secretly collude with the imperial court, and even think about suppressing me, the legitimate heir apparent! With such ambition, being a concubine is too much of a disservice for you, isn't it?"
"Your Majesty, I dare not. I was merely confused for a moment..."
"A moment of confusion?" Lin Shiming scoffed. "Whether it was a moment of confusion or not, you know in your heart."
"I have the trust of my father and mother, and the Phoenix Seal and the Empress's letter are both in my possession. Therefore, Aunt Lianqiu, convey the imperial decree."
"The servant is here."
"Announce to the inner palace that Consort Shen is demoted to the rank of Lady Wan and ordered to copy the palace rules one hundred times."
"Your Highness, this is unacceptable! I am the birth mother of the prince, a first-rank Consort Shu, how can I be demoted seven ranks and punished so severely!"
"Is it not allowed?" Lin Shiming stood up and walked to her. "Do you think your status is so high that I cannot dispose of you at will?"
"What a joke! The status of women in our dynasty is far higher than before. Therefore, the royal selection process also requires voluntariness. If a woman regrets her decision during the selection process, she can report it and leave. Even if she has been selected, the palace will confirm her willingness again before issuing the imperial decree."
"Three questions, three chances. Shen Wanyi, you voluntarily accepted the imperial decree and entered the palace as a concubine. You should have known from that moment that your life, death, honor, and disgrace were all in the hands of others. Your rank was just a matter of a word."
"A concubine, to put it bluntly, is a servant or a plaything. Even if I were to punish you severely without regard for your dignity, or even if I were to beat you to death or sell you for a hundred taels of silver to someone else because I was in a bad mood, no one could say a word against me."
The hall fell silent for a moment.
Shen Wanyi suddenly collapsed to the ground, tears streaming down her face silently.
As for Consort Liang—
"Your Highness! Your Highness, I misunderstood. I did not mean to question you. Please forgive me. I will go back and fetch the imperial physician!"
"Fine. Deduct three months' salary."
"Thank you, Your Highness!"
Lin Shiming gave a soft hum and turned to sit down.
"I am in charge of palace affairs and do not wish to make things difficult for you concubines. But you should not forget your status as concubines. If there are any problems in palace affairs in the future, have someone report them to the Imperial Household Department or the Crown Prince's Palace, and I will handle them myself. But if anyone disregards the palace rules and has any improper thoughts, don't blame me for being ruthless."
Everyone was terrified and rose to their feet to pay their respects.
"Your Majesty, we (the concubines) obey your command."
"That's all for today, everyone go back."
"Your Majesty, I (the Concubine) take my leave."
Everyone lowered their heads and withdrew from the main hall. After everyone had left, Bai Qiongzhu led Lu Tingsong out from behind the screen.
"Well done, very much in the style of the Empress Dowager! After today's show of killing the chicken to scare the monkey, no one will dare to cause trouble for at least a year or two."
Lin Shiming helped Bai Qiongzhu to sit in the main seat, then immediately breathed a sigh of relief and leaned back in the chair below him.
"Luckily, I am not like my father, who can't memorize his lines, otherwise I would have been embarrassed today!"