Golden crown with pearl curtains, wearing bright yellow. She quickly lowered her head.

Vaguely, she felt his dark gaze linger on her for a while, giving her an indescribable sense of alarm.

She couldn’t look anymore. If she looked again, she would think of Lian Yu, would think that this was the position Lian Yu had sat in, would remember how they first met in this Golden Throne Hall.

Since last night, she had made up her mind—she must temporarily forget him.

Whenever she thought of him, she would hurt, would be unable to stay calm, would become fragile. This wasn’t good for taking little Lotus away. Now, she must survive here, guard against open attacks and hidden arrows, just as if she had never been wounded.

The child was his—no matter what, she had to protect it!

She tightened her hands again, looking down at the ground, quietly waiting for everything.

“Mm, Miss Feng has also arrived. This dowager will say a few words. This dowager is happy today because with everyone’s strong support, Prince Jin’s last wish has finally been realized. The rebel faction has been completely eliminated, restoring the legitimate bloodline of our Lian family to inherit this Great Zhou’s vast territory. The civil and military officials have just been confirmed one by one—some previously served in court, some were my late husband’s retainers, and some are talented people we’ve recruited over the years to govern the country. Led by Minister Wei, they will all be the backbone of the court in the future. I hope everyone will assist His Majesty well, making this new imperial dynasty of the Lian family enjoy eternal prosperity!”

Indeed, someone spoke. The voice was gentle and beautiful, yet carried its own authority—the former Princess Consort Jin, today’s new Empress Dowager. Undoubtedly, this lady greatly valued Wei Chenghui. Suzhen’s heart slightly tensed. From the corner of her eye, she glanced over and saw Wei Chenghui smile as he stepped forward from the ranks, nodding in acknowledgment. She also looked at Quan Feitong. That man was thick-skinned enough—he seemed completely unconcerned. Thinking about it now, Chao Huang was probably also present, just positioned in the rear ranks of military officers. She hadn’t paid particular attention when entering the hall earlier. These two brothers were quite capable of bending with the wind.

Previously, though the court had three divisions of power, Wei was clearly beneath Quan. Now the situation had completely reversed. Even his position wasn’t as good as Wei’s had been initially. Wei Chenghui was an old supporter of Prince Jin’s faction—how many here were his close friends from daily interactions!

“Today, taking advantage of this great celebration,” the Princess Consort Jin on the throne then stood and continued, “according to ancestral Zhou system, the monarch marries when taking power. Since His Majesty has ascended the throne, it’s perfect to establish the six palaces. The front palace and rear palace reflecting each other’s glory would be most wonderful—the rear palace ensuring family stability, the front palace governing the realm.”

“Yes, we respectfully follow the Empress Dowager’s wise decree.”

The ministers below responded in unison with great momentum. Suzhen had an urge to dig at her ears and roll her eyes. Had this discarded former fiancée been summoned to witness this historic moment of his selecting consorts?

However, she was quite curious to see how Li Zhaoting would actually establish his empress and select his consorts.

Who would become the empress?

She felt a sense of schadenfreude.

Throughout his life, Lian Yu had refused to involve her in palace harem struggles. These girls wouldn’t be so fortunate. This was both an honor and a shackle. Except for Miaoyin, regarding Aluo and Wei Wulei, she thought this was quite good.

At this moment, Li Zhaoting seemed to sense her malicious thoughts and suddenly stood up from the imperial seat, startling her.

Of course, facts proved he hadn’t actually sensed anything.

He spoke to the fifty or sixty-year-old eunuch below the steps: “Read it.”

Suzhen recognized that eunuch—the former head of the Internal Affairs Department, previously under Ming Yanchu. Now this old fellow could finally turn things around and sing his song. Little Chuzi, she thought to herself.

Seeing the old eunuch respectfully nod and open the imperial edict in his hands, she stopped her thoughts and listened first. Similarly, she could feel the atmosphere in the hall becoming slightly subtle. She could see the girls in the front rows were very nervous. These must undoubtedly be daughters of officials, all with family connections.

Though they stood with their backs to her and she couldn’t see their faces clearly, judging from their figures, they were all graceful and elegant. Though these were political marriages, there was still some quality assurance. Suzhen thought it would be better if ugly ducklings were assigned to him.

“By the Mandate of Heaven, the Emperor decrees: The female disciple of the contemporary great scholar Tingyu who studies all under heaven, Gu Xiluo of the Gu family, is virtuous, intelligent, benevolent, and wise, with filial piety and fraternal duty well-established. She has plucked the laurel crown in women’s examinations and is learned in scholarly classics—truly a model among women of the realm. She is worthy to assist Us, inherit the ancestral temples, and be a maternal example to the world. Hereby We bestow the precious册 and establish her as Empress of the Central Palace. From this day forward, she shall command the six palaces.”

The old eunuch finally read out the decree with proper intonation.

Once these words fell, Suzhen vaguely saw through the gaps that Aluo’s figure seemed somewhat unsteady, as if she too hadn’t expected that the one to ultimately become mother to the realm would be herself.

Teacher Tingyu’s divination that day had indeed proven prophetic!

Li Zhaoting truly loved Aluo. Since Suzhen now neither loved nor even hated Li Zhaoting, she naturally felt no jealousy or anger. Instead, she thought: it’s lonely at the top. But the more difficult Aluo’s path became, the happier she felt.

Beside Aluo, Wei Wulei behaved extremely properly, even reaching out to support her. Aluo said something quietly—probably thanks. Miaoyin beside her didn’t do these things, but turned with a smile to show congratulations.

Finally, Aluo stepped forward from the ranks, slowly knelt to receive the imperial edict from the old eunuch’s hands, and tearfully kowtowed in gratitude for the imperial grace.

Li Zhaoting stepped down from the throne, personally helped her up, and the two joined hands, ascending the steps together to stand in the center and accept the ministers’ congratulations.

“Long live His Majesty, long live, long live! Long live the Empress, long live, long live!”

The officials kowtowed, once again making the great hall resound. Suzhen, being under the eaves, had to kneel, but thought: Accept this old man’s kowtow—you’ll have a pile of troubles.

She took the opportunity to glance again at Wei Chenghui, then at Prime Minister Miao on the other side. But neither showed anything on their faces—both wore shallow smiles.

She had originally thought the position of Empress would go to either Wei Wulei or Miaoyin, since both their fathers were great contributors who helped Li Zhaoting win this war. Wei was more likely, but now…

She paused slightly, then suddenly thought of something.

Yes, this arrangement was actually most suitable for the moment. Whether the empress position went to Wei Wulei or Miaoyin, the other person’s father wouldn’t be satisfied. Wei’s contributions were undoubtedly greater than Prime Minister Miao’s, but Prime Minister Miao had Wei’s backing. Rather than this, it was better to have Aluo become the Empress. Wei and Miao couldn’t be compared, so face was preserved. Given their power, they currently didn’t need to care too much about this title, and it could fulfill Li Zhaoting’s feelings for Aluo.

Of course, future struggles over imperial heirs would be hard to predict.

“By the Mandate of Heaven, the Emperor decrees: The daughter of current First-Rank Loyal and Brave Marquis Wei Chenghui… the daughter of Prime Minister Wei… are both elevated to Noble Consort.”

As she thought this, she heard the old eunuch continue reading. This time, Wei and Miao were simultaneously invested, with the Noble Consort position extraordinarily changed to two positions!

The two women stepped forward to receive the decree. Prime Minister Miao and Wei Chenghui bowed in thanks simultaneously. The Princess Consort Jin, in phoenix robes flowing, personally came down to assist them—first helping up Wei Wulei, then Miaoyin. She was clearly most satisfied with these two girls who could assist Li Zhaoting, especially favoring Wei Wulei.

On Aluo’s side, she seemed to watch indifferently without much expression, as if Li Zhaoting’s happiness was all that mattered.

Suzhen was calculating the distribution of harem power when she suddenly noticed the old eunuch looking toward her. She immediately shivered. Sure enough, he unrolled another new decree and read: “There is Feng Suzhen of the Feng family, whose father Minister Feng formerly served as Great Zhou’s Judge and once saved Us and Our mother from danger. Though his intentions later shifted, We think of him day and night and still feel grateful for his kindness. Hereby We bestow the precious册 on the Feng family, elevating her to the position of Consort Shu. We hope that from now on she will cooperate with the Empress and Noble Consorts to manage the six palaces, and not disappoint Us.”

Suzhen stood there with her ears buzzing for a long time, unable to hear sounds. She only saw the old eunuch’s mouth opening and closing, apparently urging her to step forward and receive the decree.

But her feet seemed nailed to the ground, unable to move.

She had thought that day when she rejected him and he became angry, this matter would be written off. Heaven was truly amusing. Back when she had desperately wanted to be close to him daily, this paper bond was detested by him and became an unreachable shore for her. Now, when she didn’t want it at all and even deeply abhorred it, it came with the wind.

She only saw countless gazes coming toward her again. Among them, Quan Feitong on the right side frowned deeply, his eyes showing cold anger, as if mocking her—if she had agreed to him that day, perhaps there would still be a way out later.

Wei Chenghui’s venomous snake-like gaze reached her as he looked at her with a half-smile. Suzhen instinctively wanted to glance toward Wuqing, but how could he help her at this critical moment?

Aluo smiled slightly as she looked at her, her lips moving like that old eunuch’s, apparently also telling her to bow and thank the imperial grace. Miaoyin frowned slightly, but she seemed to hear nothing.

“Feng Suzhen,” at this moment, the Princess Consort Jin, who had been standing gracefully and quietly, finally couldn’t help raising her voice: “Did you hear? Why don’t you quickly step forward and receive the decree!”

“Your Majesty the Empress Dowager, this Miss Feng has always… most admired His Majesty. Now that her wish has suddenly come true, how could she not be overjoyed? She’s probably dizzy with happiness.”

On the steps, someone spoke with a pleasing smile—it was Aunt Li, who had often opposed her in the past, unexpectedly speaking up for her now.

Her body alternated between hot and cold, but amid their conversation, Suzhen finally collected herself, respectfully bowed to the Empress Dowager, then looked toward Li Zhaoting. Among the crowd, he said nothing, standing there with hands behind his back, chin slightly raised, gazing at her with dark, cold eyes. The pearl curtain swayed gently before his forehead, as if he absolutely would not… let her go if she dared say one word of refusal.

No update tomorrow. Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday—four thousand words each day to catch up. See you Sunday.