Hustle Queen in the Harem: My Consort Won't Stop Grinding

Chapter 42: Chapter 40: The Many Faces After the Banquet

Most concubines in the harem were from aristocratic families, so one would think Jiang Xian, the daughter of a mere eighth-rank official, would have a difficult time. But the Imperial Palace seemed to suit her; she looked even more beautiful than before.

The original owner of the body had been pure and naive, a delicate flower tenderly nurtured by her parents. She had been left to wither after being betrayed by that scoundrel. The last time Young Master He saw her, he noticed her cheeks were so sunken she was nothing but skin and bone. The sight made him feel smug, and it solidified his resolve to latch onto someone of higher status.

’Hah. Women. They just can’t live without me, can they?’

But Jiang Xian was different.

Her mind wasn’t on Young Master He in the slightest. Her entire focus was on acing tonight’s "performance review," and her aura had been personally refined by the legendary siren, Daji. Thus, the woman who appeared before He Siyuan was a glamorous, enchanting beauty of a kind he had never witnessed before.

Amazement, indignation, and jealousy swarmed out of him like insects from under a rock.

’She’s become so impossibly alluring.’

The thought that her newfound radiance was a result of the Emperor’s favor made He Siyuan burn with jealousy and rage. He was furious with Jiang Xian for her infidelity—how dare she, when she had so clearly adored him, abandon him to enter the Imperial Palace.

Watching Jiang Xian’s dance conclude, He Siyuan completely lost his composure.

Why do men build careers? For money and power, to live better than everyone else. He Siyuan had never even considered improving his parents’ lives; though he’d been in the capital for quite some time, he hadn’t brought them over from their old home, choosing instead to live the good life as a resident son-in-law at the Xia Mansion. He had studied his fingers to the bone, dreaming of the "mansions of gold" promised in books. Once he was promoted, he believed he could have any "jade-like beauty" he wanted.

He had sworn that the concubines he would one day take would have to be ten times more beautiful than Jiang Xian.

Only now, seeing the Jiang Xian who had entered the palace, did He Siyuan realize how deluded he had been.

His wife, Xia Rongzhi, noticed the change in his expression and read the emotions in his eyes with perfect clarity. She pursed her lips in anger, already planning to give him a piece of her mind once they returned to their mansion. ’Does he still have feelings for that slut?!’

At the same time, her resentment turned toward Jiang Xian, who had been granted a seat beside the Emperor.

’What a shameless vixen!’

’Even after entering the palace, she can’t be content, still trying to bewitch my husband.’

’You can tell just by looking at her she’s no proper woman.’

As it happened, Xia Rongzhi’s thoughts were perfectly aligned with those of the women at the imperial consorts’ table—

’So that Jiang woman was hiding her true abilities, silently plotting to pull off such a spectacular stunt!’ The others weighed her performance in their minds. Forget imitating it; they couldn’t even fathom how she’d done it. That pillar was so high you’d be terrified just standing on it, yet she was able to dance gracefully up there? And what about the silk ribbon she used to walk up? Just how light must she be?

’No wonder she has the Emperor completely captivated. He actually promoted her to Noble Lady.’

When they heard her title was being changed, all the concubines who didn’t even have a title of their own felt the air leave their lungs.

So, while they were still without titles, the Emperor had already decided the title ’Shu’ wasn’t good enough for Jiang Xian. He wanted a name with a more profound meaning. The new title not only subtly praised her as a Moon Palace Fairy but also implied he wished to "long look after" her.

Noble Princess Consort Rong, who had been granted special permission to attend for the Longevity Festival, felt an immediate urge to storm out.

Unfortunately, she couldn’t.

If she actually did that, not even the Rong Family could save her. At best, they would simply send another one of their daughters into the palace to replace her.

But then they thought of Consort Guo, who had just changed out of her dance costume and returned to her seat...

Suddenly, the other concubines felt they weren’t the most pathetic ones in the room after all.

She hadn’t even had time to warm her seat as the "Harem’s Best Dancer" before the title was snatched away by that Jiang woman.

Now, that Jiang woman had been promoted to Noble Lady and even granted a special title, making her even more distinguished than Consort Guo herself.

The secondhand embarrassment was almost too much to bear.

Feeling the stares from all sides, Consort Guo wished the ground would swallow her whole. Then she remembered her parents were also in attendance to celebrate the Emperor’s birthday. They had undoubtedly witnessed the entire contest. She, who had entered the palace in the same cohort as Jiang Xian and held the highest initial rank, had been outshone by the daughter of a lowly eighth-rank official. She had brought utter disgrace upon her parents.

The people of this era placed immense importance on the family. Since childhood, Consort Guo had been taught that the family rises and falls as one. She hadn’t entered the palace out of any admiration for the Emperor, but to bring glory to her clan. Her initial rank of Noble Lady had been secured through her family’s influence; now, she was the weak link in the chain. Mortified and furious, she was overcome with humiliation. A deep blush that no amount of powder could conceal crept up her face, and her eyes reddened as she fought desperately to hold back her tears.

This display did not go unnoticed.

Princess Consort Zhang sighed to herself. ’Consort Guo is still too immature. In this palace, there will be many days when you find yourself outshone. How can she wear her heart on her sleeve, letting everyone so easily read her every emotion?’

In contrast, the newly promoted Noble Lady Gu, seated at the Emperor’s right hand, wore a faint, pleasant smile—perfectly suited to the festive occasion, yet not excessively triumphant. Even Princess Consort Zhang found it peculiar. How could the daughter of a mere County Magistrate possess such grace and self-restraint? Despite her sudden promotion to Noble Lady, she showed none of the smugness typical of the newly favored. Instead, her composure was so absolute that it made her courteous treatment and preferential seating seem entirely natural, as if it were simply her due.