Dual Queens GL - Chapter 1
“Miss, the new Empress is entering the palace tomorrow. I heard the Emperor is going to personally receive her. Now that Miss has lost the position of Empress, what will you do in this imperial palace in the future? Why don’t you fight for it at all, and just obediently give up the position of Empress?” Ye Meng asked worriedly. She couldn’t understand what was wrong with her Miss that the Emperor would completely disregard their past affection and make her give up the Empress position.
Her Miss is unmatched in beauty, kind and gentle in nature, and dignified and virtuous. After becoming Empress, she managed the inner palace, helped the Emperor with his worries, and kept the entire harem in perfect order—not a single fault could be found. Even the court officials spoke highly of her. This Emperor is truly heartless and ungrateful. He married her Miss for the throne back then, and now that he has secured his position, he’s abandoning her. Even if she didn’t have merit, she certainly put in hard work.
When the Emperor proposed establishing a new Empress, the entire court objected. Just as the Emperor and the officials were at an impasse, her Miss surprisingly took the initiative to offer to give up the position of Empress to that Miss Liu. Before a decision was even finalized, her Miss surrendered without a fight.
How will the Miss who lost the Empress position conduct herself in the palace from now on? How can she avoid being mocked and coldly treated? Since the Emperor shows no regard for Miss’s reputation and situation, she feels Miss would be better off throwing caution to the wind and fighting for it. The worst outcome would be to stay in the Cold Palace. In Ye Meng’s view, her Miss, having lost the Empress position and all face, is already no different from staying in the Cold Palace.
“Fight? How can I fight?” Ye Guichen asked with self-mockery. How could she fight against the love that is “stronger than gold” in the Emperor’s heart? By offering to give up the Empress position, she can still maintain some dignity and leave the Emperor with a residual sense of guilt. Does she really have to wait for the Emperor to depose her before she’ll be satisfied? If it were in the past, she might have held some hope for Yang Zhao, but now, she completely understands. No matter how much she does, how good she is, or how much she cares for him, she will never enter his heart. She might as well be sensible and not obstruct his path.
“Are you just going to let it go like this?” Ye Meng asked resentfully.
“Since I entered the palace at the age of six, although I was raised under the Empress’s care and greatly favored by the former Emperor and Empress, I was still always cautious, never daring to make a single mistake. Perhaps losing the Empress position is both a misfortune and a blessing for me—at least I won’t have to be constantly on edge. Now that I’ve voluntarily given up the Empress position, I can at least keep a Consort rank.
Although I’ve lost face, the Emperor must feel some guilt toward me. Relying on this sense of guilt from the Emperor, things won’t be too difficult. If I show resentment, he might think I have a mind to compete, and that would only make him despise me. Without the Emperor’s favor, what good is being the Empress? A-Meng, forget it, don’t fight for it. We can’t win anyway.” Ye Guichen instead tried to comfort her maid, Ye Meng.
“Miss, why are you trying to comfort me instead? Don’t you care at all?” Ye Meng couldn’t help but tear up for her Miss. How noble her Miss is, yet she has suffered so much grievance because of the Emperor.
Ye Guichen only smiled gently and shook her head at Ye Meng. She wasn’t particularly concerned about the position of Empress. What she cared about was that after years as husband and wife with Yang Zhao, she still couldn’t win even a little bit of his affection.
She was curious what the woman he was so devoted to looked like. She didn’t know where she fell short of her, and perhaps there was still some lingering resentment. Yang Zhao acting this way, however, allowed her to give up hope. Marital love is a luxury in an imperial family. Perhaps the deep love between her aunt and uncle was what gave her this aspiration.
“Let’s go for a walk.” Ye Guichen didn’t want to think about these matters anymore and wished to go outside to clear her mind.
“It’s very cold outside, Miss. It wouldn’t be good if you caught a cold going out,” Ye Meng warned, looking at the falling snow.
“It’s fine.” Ye Guichen put on her cloak and walked out. The charcoal fire inside the hall made her feel stuffy. Sometimes, she liked to wander aimlessly alone—that was the only time she felt a sense of freedom.
Seeing that she couldn’t dissuade her Miss, Ye Meng quickly followed her out.
“Miss Liu, we’ve arrived at the palace gate. I’ll inform the Emperor immediately. You arrived a day early, the Emperor will surely be extremely delighted.” Liu He said to Liu Hening inside the carriage.
“Don’t inform him yet, enter the palace first. Once we are inside, then you can tell him. Perhaps he’ll be even happier that way.” Liu Hening lifted the carriage curtain and spoke to Liu He, her voice gentle.
Jun Shen is the courtesy name of the current Emperor, Yang Zhao. Yang Zhao likes Liu Hening to call him by his courtesy name, so Liu Hening has always called him by it.
Liu Hening looked at the vast expanse of white snow outside and the imposing palace walls. A cold breeze slipped in through the lifted curtain. Liu Hening took a breath. The capital city is truly cold; she is not at all used to such cold weather. If she could, she wouldn’t want to come to the capital at all, wishing only to stay in Jiangdu. As for having Yang Zhao as a nominal husband, she didn’t mind it one bit.
Furthermore, Yang Zhao already has his own Empress, yet he still wants to bring her into the palace and make her the Empress. What will happen to the current Empress? Liu Hening felt a bit worried for her. She knew the current Empress’s name is Ye Guichen, with the pet name Hua Chao (Flower Dynasty). Just the name sounded like she must be a very beautiful and pleasant woman.
Ye Guichen was born in the palace. It was during the reign of Emperor Wen, who was hosting a banquet to appreciate flowers. Lady Ye, the twin sister of Empress Wenxian, entered the palace for the banquet. Lady Ye was already nine months pregnant and about to give birth, but because Empress Wenxian was highly favored and had a deep sisterly bond with Lady Ye, she was invited to the palace.
However, just as the flower banquet began, Lady Ye suddenly had labor pains and gave birth to the Ye family’s third daughter shortly after, right in the palace. Empress Wenxian, who had always been childless, was the child’s aunt. Just as she held her newborn niece in her arms, hundreds of pots of Epiphyllum (Queen of the Night) in the palace bloomed simultaneously. Coupled with the fact that this third daughter looked remarkably like Empress Wenxian and was exceptionally beautiful, the Emperor and Empress were extremely fond of her. Emperor Wen personally bestowed the name Guichen (Guiding Subject) and the pet name Hua Chao (Flower Dynasty).
Although Empress Wenxian was always highly favored, she remained childless. When Ye Guichen was six, the Emperor and Empress brought her into the palace, raised her under their care, and doted on her greatly. Ye Guichen grew up to be increasingly beautiful, pure in nature, and quick-witted. The late Emperor and Empress loved her deeply. When she was fifteen or sixteen, she was originally going to be granted the title of Princess, but the Emperor and Empress felt it was a pity to marry her outside the palace and wanted to keep her within the royal family. Thus, they entertained the idea of marrying Ye Guichen to the next Emperor as his Empress.
The Emperor had no sons and looked favorably upon the talented and handsome Prince Qin’s Heir, Yang Zhao, as the imperial successor. However, Yang Zhao was already engaged to Liu Hening, the youngest granddaughter of Grand Tutor Liu, who had retired. As they were not yet married, Emperor Wen and the Empress asked Yang Zhao to annul the engagement and marry Ye Guichen instead.
Yang Zhao could neither give up the throne nor let go of Liu Hening, whom he was determined to marry. He secretly sent people to the Liu Residence and promised that when he became Emperor, Liu Hening would surely be the Empress. The implied meaning was that he forbid her from marrying anyone else, and he would come to marry her when he ascended the throne and his power was secure.
Although the Liu family was reluctant, they had no choice. After all, Yang Zhao was the imperial successor and would soon be Emperor, a person they absolutely could not afford to offend. They could only begrudgingly agree. Fortunately, Liu Hening’s nature had always been to disregard worldly matters, so she didn’t mind it one bit. Liu Hening, who was supposed to be married, gained a few more years of freedom and was actually delighted.
The Grand Tutor’s wife doted on this youngest granddaughter the most, treating her like the apple of her eye. It is said that when Liu Hening was born, the Grand Tutor’s wife, who was devoutly Buddhist, was chanting sutras in the Buddhist hall. The setting sun shone through the window, illuminating the Guanyin (Goddess of Mercy) statue as if with a divine light. At that moment, a servant came to report the joyful news of a new baby girl in the family. The Grand Tutor’s wife felt this was an auspicious sign. When the elderly lady held the baby girl in her arms, she noticed a red mole between the baby’s eyebrows and a peaceful look in her eyes, further confirming to her that this child was an incarnation of the Bodhisattva.
Liu Hening was indeed connected to Buddhism. In addition, she was very intelligent from an early age, quick-witted, and her temperament was different from ordinary girls. The Grand Tutor’s wife took her little granddaughter to and from Buddhist temples. The child, barely two or three years old, could sit still in the temple and Buddhist hall, neither crying nor causing trouble.
When the elderly lady chanted sutras, she would follow along. At a young age, she could already recite countless sutras. As she grew older, she could discuss Buddhism with eminent monks. She was also skilled in calligraphy and painting, especially painting Guanyin. Everyone who saw her paintings was amazed, saying she was the reincarnation of Guanyin, so she was called “Little Guanyin” from a young age.
When Liu Hening was sixteen, she was invited by an eminent monk to the temple to paint Guanyin. Coincidentally, Prince Qin’s Wife brought her Heir, Yang Zhao, to the temple to pray for a good marriage for her son, who was already in his early twenties but still unwilling to marry a formal wife. Yang Zhao, who was talented and handsome, had a high opinion of himself and declared that he would marry the most extraordinary woman in the world. His mother searched for good daughters from all the major families in Guzhou, but he was dissatisfied with all of them. He was now over twenty-three; ordinary men his age had already married and had children, but he still refused to settle for a marriage, which was driving Prince Qin’s Wife to despair. Prince Qin’s Wife heard that the Daming Temple in Jiangdu was very effective for prayers, so she insisted on bringing her Heir to pray for a marriage.
Perhaps the prayers were truly answered. Yang Zhao was immediately captivated by Liu Hening, who was painting a Guanyin mural for the temple. It was love at first sight. He immediately inquired about her from the temple abbot. That very day, mother and son rushed back to Guzhou City, and immediately asked Prince Qin to hire an official matchmaker to propose marriage and deliver the betrothal gifts to the Liu Residence.
It was an engagement of equal families and a match made in heaven. However, the Grand Tutor’s wife had spoiled Liu Hening since she was little, treating her like her own heart and soul, which resulted in Liu Hening’s willful and unrestrained personality. She was very different from the usual girls raised in the inner chambers; how could she understand how to manage a household? They feared she would be unable to be the wife of a major family’s heir.
Since the Liu family had produced such a semi-celestial figure, if they couldn’t find a husband who would dote on her as much as her own family, it wasn’t impossible to just keep her at home. Thus, the Liu Residence rejected the Prince Qin’s marriage proposal, stating that Liu Hening’s nature was unrestrained and she didn’t understand worldly affairs, making her unsuitable to be the Heir’s Wife.
Yang Zhao was persistent and, unwilling to give up, personally brought his parents to the Liu Residence to ask for her hand in marriage, stating that the very unrestrained nature of Liu Hening, which was so different from all other women, was what he sought, and he would never demand that she conform to the standards of an ordinary worldly woman.
Seeing Yang Zhao’s sincerity and genuine affection for Liu Hening’s personality, the Liu family finally agreed to the marriage and set the engagement, waiting for Liu Hening to turn eighteen before marrying into the Prince Qin’s Residence. Who knew that just half a year after the engagement, an imperial decree arrived from the capital, summoning Yang Zhao to the capital to be adopted by the current Emperor and established as the imperial successor? The wedding was thus delayed for many years.
After serving as the imperial successor for two years, the former Emperor passed away, and Yang Zhao ascended the throne as Emperor, which has been four years now. However, Yang Zhao has always remembered Liu Hening, who had captivated him at first sight. Thus, after his foundation was secure, he immediately dispatched his personal guard, Liu He, and others to Jiangdu to bring Liu Hening into the palace.
Actually, Yang Zhao had sent people to Jiangdu to fetch her a year ago, but Liu Hening refused to come to the capital, preferring to defy the decree, on the grounds that the Grand Tutor’s wife was old and didn’t have much time left, and she wished to attend to her and accompany the elderly lady to enjoy her final years. Yang Zhao had no choice but to let her be. Six months after the elderly Grand Tutor’s wife passed away, Yang Zhao heard the news and immediately sent people to Jiangdu again to bring Liu Hening into the palace. Liu Hening didn’t want to enter the palace at all and managed to stall for another six months before finally having no choice but to follow Liu He to the capital.
“That’s good. The Emperor will surely be exceedingly joyful.” Liu He deliberately sped up the journey, arriving a bit earlier than the scheduled time. The delay in Jiangdu had been too long, and he only hoped that the Emperor would be in a great mood upon seeing his beloved and not pursue him for the crime of being ineffective.