Chapter 192.1: Not That High of a Demand
“Too ugly, don’t want.” Four words that didn’t carry any fluctuation in his tone. Retracting his gaze, he lazily leaned back again.
Never mind the smile on the eight beauties’ faces stiffening, the expressions of the other people present were also somewhat broken. Everyone all knew, these women were just palace maids in name. Whether or not they will really just be palace maids needed to wait until the end to determine. In essences, they were just given to warm beds, if not for the Emperor, then it was just for the dignified w.a.n.gyes. So naturally, they’ve all gone through meticulous selection, else failing to solicit favor, instead ending up with a crime of ‘great disrespect’[1], wouldn’t that just be looking for death? Just based on their countenance, they were perhaps even more outstanding than the regular candidates for the imperial harem. After all, this was casting a net throughout the entirety of Qi Yuan, compared to when drafting for the imperial harem, the scope was much wider, so how could they be ugly?
“This emperor feels they’re all quite pretty, how are they ugly?”
“Since imperial father feels they are pretty, then just accept them all.” Li Hong Yuan indifferently spoke.
“b.a.s.t.a.r.d, your consort mother selected the people for you, practically just, practically just…………….”
“Because consort mother prepared them for this son, imperial father thus had misgivings. Originally, in your heart, you must have very much wanted to accept altogether.”
This time, Le Cheng Emperor directly grabbed the cup and smashed it over.
As the person getting smashed, he was calm and indifferent, but the others were all half scared to death, especially those that were seeing this kind of scene for the first time. This was precisely the so called, ‘the heavenly son once angered’, although under the current circ.u.mstances, it was unlikely for ‘millions of bodies to fall’[2], but it was still very frightening, all losing their heads out of fear, timid and trembling, just like a quail. Where did they still have the intention to display themselves.
Li Hong Yuan furrowed his brows, flicking the few water droplets that splashed on him. “Imperial father’s temper seems to be becoming increasingly irritable, if because the weather is hot, you’re suffering from internal heat, then just let the imperial physician prescribe some medicine to relieve the heat. Randomly throwing things like this, what if by chance this son didn’t dodge, wouldn’t that ruin one’s beauty? This son has a foundation in martial arts, so one’s movement can be considered quick, and for the most part, all able to dodge. What if by chance you were to slip up and hit someone else, for instance consort mother, how can that be good?”
Le Cheng Emperor was able to be easily stirred into anger by Li Hong Yuan. Right now, he didn’t want to scold anymore, he just wanted to beat him. However, this b.a.s.t.a.r.d won’t be like others and obediently stand there. If you really order him to kneel down, he will do as told, but at that time, he also won’t be able to bear hitting either. But if that anger isn’t let out, it’ll be both suffocating, and making him want to grab things and throw.
“Your Majesty.” n.o.ble Consort Su hurriedly reached out to stop him, “Please quell your anger, you also know this terrible temper of Yuan’er’s, but it’s also just as Yuan’er said, if by chance he didn’t dodge, getting injured, then when time comes, the one to heartache will still be you.”
Le Cheng Emperor in the end didn’t smash the thing over.
n.o.ble Consort Su then looked towards Li Hong Yuan, also helpless. This son, towards others, all mostly ignored, yet how come just love retorting his imperial father, “You ah, can’t you anger your imperial father a little less?”
Li Hong Yuan casted a glance at Le Cheng Emperor, hooking the corner of his mouth. No matter how one looked, it all appeared especially mocking.
Towards ordinary people, it was all this kind of provocation, let alone when the other party was even the Emperor. However, this provoking look was immediately followed by n.o.ble Consort Su’s pleading gaze. Le Cheng Emperor in the end endured it, averting his line of sight, out of sight, out of mind.
“Yuan’er, if you continue like this, just go kneel outside then.” n.o.ble Consort Su rather sternly said, yet in her eyes, carried helplessness, indicating for Li Hong Yuan to restrain his temper, stopping before going too far, and don’t really have your imperial father offended.
Li Hong Yuan slightly lowered his head, seemingly complying with n.o.ble Consort Su’s words, another look of extreme boredom.
n.o.ble Consort Su lightly smiled, her attention returning to those eight beauties, “Consort mother also feels they’re quite good-looking. Yuan’er, why don’t you point out, how are they ugly? If you really are able to say something substantial, consort mother won’t force you either, but if you can’t, it won’t be as simple as just picking two people.” From n.o.ble Consort Su’s expression, there very much was that intention to let him take them all back.
“The skin both rough and dark, the legs short, the waist stiff, and the face smeared with that thick of a layer of powder, where even the spots can’t be seen. After was.h.i.+ng the face, wouldn’t it just be a ghost face? Also, don’t know what poor quality incense was used on the body, but it’s strong and smelly. Just this, this son really doesn’t know what’s good about them, and what’s so beautiful about them?” Li Hong Yuan said, not the least bit polite.
The eight girls, who have always been relatively confident and satisfied with their outer conditions, this while, were biting their lips, the tears swirling in their eye sockets. Getting belittled like this, how could it just be described as feeling wronged inside.
n.o.ble Consort Su was speechless. According to this standard of yours, reckon there’s no beauties in the world. “Where are they rough, where are they dark? Clearly each and every one all delicate and tender. They’re just standing there, so how can you tell that waist is stiff, the legs short?” n.o.ble Consort Su glanced over, “And not all of them are short. The speckles on the face, majority all have, and using powder to cover up is also very normal. How many women don’t use powder? And this incense, if you don’t like, later just switch with one you like. This is purely ‘looking for a bone in an egg’, doesn’t count.”
“This son’s demands aren’t high either, the skin congeal like gel, comparable to frost and snow. A face, even without make up, would still be a divine beauty, flawless without blemish. The waist flexible, yet not weak, and the legs need to be slender and perfectly straight. And on the body, don’t need to use any incense, where even the summer sweat carries a pleasant fragrant. Consort mother, it’s not that this son is picky, with them like this, this son really is unable put one’s mouth to it.” To put it bluntly, he was precisely talking about Jing Wan. If Jing Wan wasn’t like her current way, but like the her after experiencing through hards.h.i.+ps, he probably would have another kind of saying. Even if the skin was dark and rough, he would still be able to say it as a wild kind of beauty.
This is called not having high demands? “Those women that served you in the past, could it be that they were all by this standard?” If it was really like this, how come others didn’t discover, and all got taken hold of by you alone? ‘Forcibly s.n.a.t.c.hing commoner girls’, this kind of thing, don’t think that it was just her son doing. For others, it was just that they didn’t stand out this much, getting covered by his ‘radiance’, that’s all.
“When one has the interest, naturally can lower the standards.” When not interested, if it doesn’t meet the standard, don’t want.
“Fine, fine, you don’t need to nitpick these with consort mother, if you don’t want, then just forget it. This kind of thing, would consort mother even be able to forcibly press onto you?” n.o.ble Consort Su somewhat impatiently waved her hand.
“It’s this son’s fault, troubling consort mother.” Li Hong Yuan rather apologetically said.
n.o.ble Consort Su blanked, “This child, consort mother doesn’t mean this. Consort mother hasn’t said anything, yet you overthought first. A grown man like you, this while, rather seem a bit like a little daughter.” Feeling both helpless and laughable.
Li Hong Yuan smiled, “This son knows consort mother is good to this son and have always engraved it in one’s heart. Just, this son is unable to return the favor, even making consort mother heartbroken from time to time.”
“What are you saying, getting more and more out of line.” n.o.ble Consort Su said with a smile, yet turned her head and used a handkerchief to dab the corners of her eyes. “If you really feel this way, then in the future, listen to consort mother for all things?”
Li Hong Yuan was never one that liked playing with sentiments, and precisely because he didn’t play, when occasionally doing it once in a while, this destructive power was definitely unmatched. Look how he immediately just made n.o.ble Consort Su shed tears, making even Le Cheng Emperor foolishly softening up along with, making Princess Min Xiang’s fear towards him steeply decline, and the eight women that had lost all their face because of him, also couldn’t help secretly glance at him again. As for Li Hong Ming, someone that he naturally didn’t get along with, this kind of tenderness probably will only intensify his hatred.
[1] In the chapter about the imperial exam, it mentions how very ugly people aren’t able to become officials, because their looks will offend the Emperor. This is same concept, and to some degree considered being disrespectful to the Emperor to send someone unpresentable to him, which may or may not result in an execution.
[2] 天子一怒，伏尸百万 – ‘The heavenly son, once angered, millions of bodies fall’; the original full line is 天子之怒，浮尸百万，流血千里。布衣之怒，流血五步，天下缟素, ‘the heavenly son’s anger, millions of corpses afloat, bloodshed for thousands of miles. The common people’s anger, bloodshed for five steps, the world in white silk mourning dress.’ This line is said by Tang Ju to the King of Qin, basically saying, you as a ruler, have the power to ma.s.sacre an entire country, but right now I’m only a few steps from you, so mess with me and your people will be mourning your death.
This line comes from the historical doc.u.ment, ‘Strategies of the Warring States Period’, where Tang Ju, a man from the State of Wei, who went to the Qin State as an amba.s.sador, said in reply to the King of Qin’s request to use five hundred li of land in exchange for Anling (a small va.s.sal state where Tang Ju resided, in concept it’s sorta like a fiefdom). At this point in history, the Wei State had already been conquered by Qin, but Anling, one of their va.s.sal states, had managed to survive. The Qin King wanted to use this method to forcibly take over Anling, it was a pretty dirty scheme.
The Ruler of Anling (安陵君) was the younger brother of the Wei King (魏襄王). A side tidbit, since this was prior to the establishment of the first imperial dynasty, King or w.a.n.g(王) was the highest level of a sovereign, so the va.s.sal states under them get the t.i.tle of Jun(君), which pretty much translates to ‘ruler’. This is roughly the same in concept to how the Emperor(皇) has w.a.n.gs(王) under him. Btw this Qin King later went on to become the first Emperor of china, conquering all seven warring states.