Free Web NovelChapter 214: Chapter 214: A Wife Is Not as Good as a Concubine, a Concubine Not as Good as a Stolen Lover
Faced with such a genial old woman, Ji Qingwu was uncomfortable from head to toe.
Just a few days ago, in the carriage on the way to the palace, Old Madam Ji hadn’t even deigned to give her a proper look. Yet this morning, she had shown up bright and early at Wutong Garden, and was even waiting for her to wake up.
’When something was this out of the ordinary, it meant one of two things: either her grandmother had been possessed, or there was a matter of incredible importance she needed to discuss.’
Instead of sitting next to Old Madam Ji, Ji Qingwu walked over to one of the lower seats and sat down.
"Grandmother," she began, "you’ve come so early. What is this urgent matter?"
Old Madam Ji gestured to Nanny Feng, who brought forward an exquisite rosewood food box inlaid with colorful mother-of-pearl, depicting flowers, birds, and auspicious beasts.
The moment Nanny Feng opened the food box, a rich, sweet fragrance filled the entire room.
"Fifth Missy, these are the pastries Old Madam Ji ordered the servants to buy from Fangcai House this morning. They had to wait in a long line, and the pastries are fresh from the oven. Please, Missy, try some while they’re warm."
The food box was filled with an assortment of exquisite little pastries, no two alike, and Lan Zhi couldn’t tear her eyes away.
Old Madam Ji smiled and said, "Their rose and red bean paste sponge cake is to die for. Qingwu, you probably haven’t tried pastries from this shop before. Your father loved this one when he was still at home."
Ji Qingwu merely glanced at the colorful assortment of pastries before immediately turning her head away.
It wasn’t that she was intentionally disrespecting the old madam; it was just that the cloyingly sweet aroma made her stomach churn.
Emperor Wu Su had fed her so much the previous day that she’d had indigestion, and she had only just managed to feel better this morning. The sight of these pastries made her frown instinctively.
In Old Madam Ji’s eyes, Ji Qingwu’s reaction only served as further proof that she had been involved with the Emperor for some time and had been hiding it from the family.
’Even the pastries from Fangcai House, the most famous in all of Lin’an City, were no longer good enough to catch her eye.’
Nanny Feng chimed in at the perfect moment. "Fifth Missy has only just woken up; perhaps she doesn’t have an appetite yet. Lan Zhi, take this food box away for now. Bring it out again whenever Missy feels like eating."
Lan Zhi carried the rosewood food box out. Nanny Feng followed, retreating outside to stand guard at the door.
Only the two of them were left in the room, along with the lingering sweet scent of the pastries.
Ji Qingwu looked up at her exceptionally kind-faced grandmother.
’She condescended to visit my courtyard so early in the morning and even brought such hard-to-get pastries. Since Old Madam Ji has swallowed her pride to seek a truce, it wouldn’t be right for me to expose her directly.’
"I am grateful you were thinking of me, Grandmother. It’s just that I haven’t had much of an appetite for sweets lately. Perhaps you could give them to Fourth Sister instead."
Old Madam Ji replied, "I brought these especially for you. Just keep them."
Ji Qingwu rose and performed a curtsy. "Thank you, Grandmother."
"My dear child, there’s no need for such pleasantries with me."
Ji Qingwu remained standing and said with a faint smile, "If there’s nothing else, Grandmother, I have other important matters to attend to, so I won’t be able to keep you company."
’She did, in fact, have other business to attend to. Besides, she didn’t want to exchange phony pleasantries with her grandmother any longer. It was just making her nauseous.’
"Qingwu," Old Madam Ji called out to stop her. "I came to discuss the matter of your marriage with you."
Standing in the center of the room, Ji Qingwu tilted her head and asked, "Does Grandmother still wish for me to marry the third son of the Li family?"
"As for the third son of the Li family, I was muddle-headed before," Old Madam Ji said. "The matter is settled. I’ve already sent someone to the Li family to give word to Mrs. Li, turning down the marriage proposal."
’Ji Qingwu knew full well that even if her grandmother hadn’t turned them down, given the prophecy about her from the previous dynasty, no one would dare risk universal condemnation by marrying her anytime soon.’
Her eyes twinkled as she began to smile.
"Don’t tell me Grandmother has now taken a liking to the fourth son of the Liu family, or perhaps the fifth son of the Zhang family?"
Detecting the sarcasm in her tone, Old Madam Ji’s expression soured.
Her mouth tightened. "Qingwu, enough with your petulance."
"I asked you before if you were willing to enter the palace, but you kept things from me. You’ve already given yourself to His Majesty, and you spent so long in the Diligent Governance Hall yesterday. You should be thinking carefully about the current situation, not acting so willfully."
Seeing that her grandmother had finally revealed her true intentions, the curve of Ji Qingwu’s lips widened, and the mockery in her eyes deepened.
Old Madam Ji did not dare scold Ji Qingwu too harshly, as she might have in the past.
Recently, whether with Mr. Ji’s case or the matter concerning Prince Yong, the Emperor had shown immense grace. If either of those two men had fallen, the Ji Family’s power would have been diminished by half.
And it was self-evident for whose sake he had done so.
’Now that Ji Qingwu was in the Emperor’s favor, she ought to make the most of her most radiant years and secure some advantages for the family.’
Old Madam Ji sighed, her tone consultative. "Qingwu, I’m not here to criticize you. I want to help you plan for your future. Otherwise, by the time your beauty fades and the sovereign’s favor is lost, it will be too late for regrets."
Ji Qingwu toyed with her little finger, wondering, ’How did news of my meeting with the Emperor in the Diligent Governance Hall yesterday spread?’
’Especially since she had been disguised as a palace maid from Anle Hall. Every other time had been fine, but for some reason, the news got out yesterday.’
’The fact that Old Madam Ji found out about palace affairs so quickly must mean the Empress Dowager intended for her to know.’
’If the Empress Dowager really had ways of knowing what happens inside the Diligent Governance Hall, then her eyes and ears truly reached the heavens.’
Ji Qingwu sat down again, her expression softening as she spoke. "Grandmother, why are you so certain I will be able to enter the palace?"
"You..."
Old Madam Ji asked, shocked and uncertain, "Hasn’t His Majesty said when he will take you into the palace?"
Ji Qingwu’s eyes dimmed. "Grandmother, at your age, you’ve surely seen much of the world. Have you ever heard the saying, ’A wife can’t compare to a concubine, and a concubine can’t compare to a stolen affair’?"
Old Madam Ji’s lips trembled.
"You mean to say... His Majesty has no intention of bringing you into the palace? He’s only used your body, but refuses to take responsibility?"
Ji Qingwu bit her lip, looking aggrieved. "What you say is true, Grandmother."
The grand vision of the Ji Family’s prosperous future, which Old Madam Ji had constructed in her mind on the way to Wutong Garden, suddenly turned to smoke.
"How could you be so foolish!"
Old Madam Ji pointed a finger at her. "When you first saw the signs, why didn’t you tell the family?"
If Ji Qingwu hadn’t been sitting so far away, her grandmother’s finger would have been jabbing her in the forehead.
With misty eyes, Ji Qingwu said sullenly, "Grandmother, that’s the Emperor. How could I possibly stop him from doing what he wants? How would I ever dare to defy him?"
She then looked up at her grandmother and said expectantly, "Unless... you could go speak to His Majesty for me, Grandmother?"
If she were still a maiden of pure standing, Old Madam Ji might have actually been willing to swallow her pride, go before the Emperor, and ask why he was unwilling to make Qingwu a concubine.
But Ji Qingwu was a young widow.
Although no explicit law forbade an unchaste woman from serving the sovereign,
it had been the custom for a thousand years. If the Emperor had no real intentions and was merely looking for a novelty, then Ji Qingwu would never be able to enter the palace gates...
