The concubines had all regained their wits by then. They hurriedly greeted Mo Xuetong, all feeling rather wary!
Mo Xuetong did not stand on courtesy either. She smiled softly and said, “I invited everyone here today because I wished to meet you all. Even though I am young, I have to manage the back courtyard. Though His Highness has ordered for all of you to stay in the courtyards at the back and not allow you all to come out, I think it is better to release you all. Even though all of you are not official concubines, you all can be considered to be bed servants.”
Mo Xuetong’s statement had just classed all the concubines as ordinary bed servants. There were many who were displeased with that. Even though most of them were not of high status, they were still better than a bed servant. Some of them were from families with court positions and there was a concubine, Qin, who was from a noble family.
“My Lady, my father used to be colleagues with Sir Mo. It is just that Sir Mo had better luck at work and the Emperor trusted him, which was why he was promoted to being a third-grade official. Now that I think about it, I used to hang out with your eldest sister before I married His Highness. We can be considered friends.”
Concubine Yun smiled and took a few steps forward as she spoke to Mo Xuetong. She meant to deal with Mo Xuetong with a blow and tell her that her father and Mo Xuetong’s father, Mo Huawen, used to be of the same rank. She used to hang out with the eldest daughter of the Mo Manor as well. No matter how they looked at it, she was considered to be of noble status as well. She could not be considered a bed servant and should have a proper position.
Another woman came up and tried to get in good with Mo Xuetong as well. She was a beautiful woman called Concubine Ming. The smile on her face was gentle and harmless. “That’s right, First Miss Mo is a talented woman and we used to get along very well. I wonder how she’s doing now. Did she marry a good man and has forgotten all her friends?”
It was as if she were just simply mentioning it!
Mo Xuemin was just Mo Huawen’s eldest concubine-born daughter. Even though these concubines maintained connections to the outside world, they only talked about what concerned them. They would not mention these things. Furthermore, these people kept in contact with the outside world secretly and only talked business. As such, even though what Mo Xuemin did had caused a furor, these women did not know about it.
When they saw that Mo Xuetong did not speak, they thought that they had managed to use Mo Xuetong’s elder sister to oppress her. They wanted to see what else Mo Xuetong could say.
Mo Huawen had only brought Mo Xuemin and Mo Xueqiong with him when he entered the capital. At that time, Auntie Fang had been in charge of the family matters of the Mo Manor. She and Mo Xuemin would be the ones who welcomed guests, which was why some family members of court officials thought that Auntie Fang was Mo Huawen’s legal wife. Mo Xuemin was naturally the eldest legitimate daughter. Her status was definitely higher than Mo Xuetong, the legitimate second daughter.
They were truly stupid. Mo Yu pursed her lips behind Mo Xuetong. The mockery in her eyes was evident!
They wanted to use Mo Xuemin to oppress the Lady. That was too stupid!
Mo Xuetong seemed not to have understood what Concubine Yun and Concubine Ming meant. She smiled even more sweetly and looked at the two meaningfully before ignoring them. Then, she said to the other concubines, “Yesterday, His Highness ordered me to list down your names so you will all be considered an official part of the manor. In the future, your monthly allowance will be the same as the other bed servants lest any of you feel aggrieved.”
While what Mo Xuetong said sounded like what she should do after officially taking charge of the back courtyard, the concubines were all secretly seething because she kept calling them bed servants. They had thought that they would definitely be able to become official concubines. They did not expect that they would all be classed as bed servants. How would they take it lying down?
The first to speak up after Mo Xuetong was done, was the timid Concubine Lian.
She glanced at Mo Xuetong and seemed a little nervous. She said, a little fearfully, “My Lady, how can this be? The monthly allowance of a bed servant is not enough to keep us alive. And, we have to buy makeup and new clothes to please His Highness. My Lady, can you increase our allowance?”
Concubine Lian might have sounded like she was fighting for their monthly allowance, but she actually wanted a title.
Concubine Lian had already decided. It was impossible for her to defeat Mo Xuetong openly. As such, she had to do it in a roundabout manner. Even though a bed servant was an unassuming position, she would still be the master’s woman. If she got promoted, she would become an official concubine. With that, she believed that she would be able to defeat that lass who had yet to become a full woman.
Mo Xuetong’s lively eyes landed on Concubine Lian. She smiled slightly. This woman would be difficult to deal with. She had spoken tactfully, but her intentions were clear. While her eyes made her seem lovely and weak, she was not helpless at all. She was able to be the first to speak in such a situation and one could see that she was a sharp person. However, it was a pity. Concubine Lian wanted to use the many women around her to force Mo Xuetong into conceding defeat, but it would be to no avail.
“My Lady, His Highness once told me that I just had to ask the butler for anything I require. Is the manor unable to dispense with the upkeep for a few women? My Lady, if you do this, it will look like the King’s Manor is facing financial difficulty and cannot keep us, the women of His Highness, alive.”
Concubine Yun was another sort of person. She spoke directly to Mo Xuetong rudely without a hint of respect. Furthermore, she spoke loudly and did not stop at all.
“My Lady, that’s true.” Concubine Ming immediately continued. She used to be doted on by Feng Yuran and had been offended by Mo Xuetong earlier. When she saw that Mo Xuetong did not get angry at Concubine Yun, she spoke rudely as well. “When His Highness was in charge, he allowed us free reign of the back courtyard. We just have to ask for what we wanted to eat, use, and play with. Why are you forcing our hands after taking charge? Are you trying to kick us out!”
These women were not proper consorts or even second consorts whose names would be written into the royal genealogy. It would not matter if Mo Xuetong kicked them out of not. Mo Yu and the other servants who were standing behind Mo Xuetong all felt surprised. They all secretly thought that these concubines were really difficult to deal with. They all tried to force Consort Xuan’s hand through their mean and sharp words. These people came in all shapes and sizes and were all so demanding. If Consort Xuan had been anyone else, she would have already been intimidated by them.
It was a pity that the person they were up against today was their Lady. As such, they would not be able to get anything off Mo Xuetong.
Concubine Lian felt upset when she heard what Concubine Ming said. Her tears rolled down her cheeks as if they were free of charge. She wiped her tears and said helplessly, “My Lady, my sisters are right. It is normal for you to want to save a little on the expenditure since you’re starting to take charge of the back courtyard. However, I have always been poor in health. If His Highness had not worried about my health and allowed me to take ginseng and other expensive herbs, I wouldn’t be able to see you today. These… these are all expensive things. If My Lady, My Lady really wants to give us an allowance of a bed servant, I, I…”
She could not continue any longer and started to sob.
She meant that if Mo Xuetong gave her the monthly allowance of a bed servant, she would have no money to treat her illness. The only path forward for her would be death.
Mo Lan, who was standing behind Mo Xuetong, could not help but frown. She thought to herself that these concubines were all too ambitious. They were all deliberately trying to cause trouble. If they embarrassed Consort Xuan today, they would be able to bargain in the future. Furthermore, if they all wailed and cried and threatened to kill themselves, Her Ladyship would not be able to get anything done.
Mo Xuetong picked up a porcelain teacup. She stroked away the froth on the surface of the liquid with the cap of the cup as if she had not heard anything the concubines had said. She took a slow sip and then put the cup down. Once the concubines were done speaking, the parlor fell eerily quiet. Then, Mo Xuetong smiled and looked at the concubines. She said, “What if I insist? Are you all going to rebel?”
This sounded very serious and Mo Xuetong was even trying to oppress the other women with her position. In just a statement, she managed to impress this upon them. She was Consort Xuan and she wanted to do this. What could they do?
The concubines who had spoken the loudest earlier immediately paled. Then, they flushed and looked at Mo Xuetong in shock. They did not understand why Mo Xuetong had suddenly become so hostile when she had been so easy-going earlier. Was she a shrewd person? But she didn’t look like it. That elegant and beautiful face of hers made her look more like a fairy who did not care about matters of the mortal world. However, how did she know how to play the game?
Then, Mo Xuetong continued, “Even though I am young, I know the rules of the King’s Manor. Makeup and accessories are all allocated based on one’s rank. You all don’t need to spend money on that. The clothes will be made every season by the manor. After I take charge of the back courtyard, I will not mistreat you all. How is five taels of silver insufficient for you?”
King Xuan’s Manor was considered to be generous by giving a bed servant five taels of silver. Some official concubines from other families would only get this much.
Concubine Yun and a few others paled when they heard that. They were speechless.
“As for Concubine Lian, you do not have to worry. I have already asked the manor’s physician and he said that it is because your health had been poor since childhood. You just have to be a little more careful. You should not take too much medicine or herbs as they will be bad for you. Medicine is still poison in the end and you will fall ill even if you are not if you consume them. Concubine Lian should take less of these herbs.”
Concubine Lian’s health was not much of an issue. She just pretended to be sickly to vie for attention. She just wanted Feng Yuran to be good to her. Now that Mo Xuetong had revealed that, she did not dare to say anything else. Instead, she just did her best to start coughing, pretending to be ill to show how ill she was.
She secretly glanced at a person in the corner, hinting that the person could come out now. If that person did not step out, they would not be able to stop Consort Xuan.
A cold harrumph came from the corner. “My Lady, your eldest legitimate sister is an educated and elegant person. She is kind and gentle and is sincere to all. She is also a famous talented woman of the capital. She is considered to be a famous young lady. Why are you completely different from First Miss Mo? You are so harsh on us. I am the legitimate daughter of a duke; am I not worthy of being a consort?”
A young woman emerged from behind the other concubines. She was elegant and beautiful. There was a hint of arrogance on her face and one could tell by just a look that she was not from an ordinary family. She was Concubine Qin whom Feng Yuran had gotten when he made trouble outside the manor back then. Mo Xuetong immediately knew where she was from.
Speaking of this Concubine Qin, she was Duke Wanping’s daughter. No matter in terms of status or rank, she was much nobler than Mo Xuetong. She was nobility and her status and rank were both very high. It was said that Concubine Qin was beautiful and quite a scholar. She used to be close friends with the Fifth Princess and could be said to be a darling of God.
This woman had mocked Feng Yuran brashly at a banquet. The young and haughty Feng Yuran had thrown the girl into a lake in a fit of anger. Then, he pulled her to shore after she was frightened to death. It might have been because she was soaked in the lake for quite some time. The coat was torn off by Feng Yuran just like that.
More than one person had witnessed that. Emperor Zongwen gave Feng Yuran a dressing down and then allowed Duke Wanping to send Concubine Qin to Feng Yuran’s King Xuan’s Manor in a little sedan chair. The concubines in the manor were all unofficial and they were told that the concubines would be given official titles once there was a legal consort in the manor.
