I Was Supposed to Be the Villainous Consort

Song Yunzhao had never read in any books that concubines brought dowries with them into the palace. She’d watched palace intrigue dramas before and never saw concubines with dowries. ’So, concubines actually bring dowries into the palace?’

’Why don’t I have one?’

When she first entered the palace, she had only brought her personal savings and the small private allowance her father had given her.

Her family hadn’t prepared a dowry for her at all.

Perhaps Yun Zhao’s expression was too tragic. Princess Consort Wan opened her mouth, and after a long moment, she said, "Your relationship with your mother is terrible, so it’s not surprising she didn’t prepare one for you. Don’t be sad. It’s not like you’re short on money for a dowry now, are you?"

Song Yunzhao looked at Princess Consort Wan despairingly. ’How can that be the same?’

’A person with a dowry carries themselves with a different kind of confidence.’

’I can’t believe I’m someone without a dowry!’

Song Yunzhao stared dazedly at Princess Consort Wan. She could casually offer up a shop for her to use, which just went to show how substantial her dowry must be.

Princess Consort Wan looked into Song Yunzhao’s eyes and, in that instant, suddenly understood what she was thinking.

’I really wasn’t trying to show off,’ she thought. It was just a casual remark. How could she have known Song Yunzhao’s situation was so pathetic that she actually had no dowry?

Song Yunzhao couldn’t help but ask, "Do all the concubines in the palace have dowries?"

Princess Consort Wan replied, "Those of us who entered the palace together did. We were all young ladies from the Capital City, and we all knew each other. Wouldn’t it be humiliating if a family didn’t prepare a dowry?"

Song Yunzhao understood. She was the one who had been shamed.

"However, I don’t know if your group had them when you entered the palace." Princess Consort Wan thought that saying this might make Song Yunzhao feel a little better.

Song Yunzhao was not comforted. With a wooden expression, she rose to take her leave.

Princess Consort Wan watched her look so stricken. She thought about how the Song Family was from Nanyu; their family’s wealth probably wasn’t substantial. Perhaps they hadn’t prepared a dowry because they were unfamiliar with the Capital City’s customs, or maybe they simply lacked the means.

With that thought, Princess Consort Wan understood. ’No wonder Song Yunzhao wants to open a shop. Is she that short on money?’

’The Emperor dotes on her so much. Are the rewards he gives her not enough for her to spend?’

’He’s being too stingy, then.’

Princess Consort Wan packed up a few Jade Handicrafts meant for the Eldest Prince, stuffed them into his arms, and said to Song Yunzhao, "These are for the child to play with."

Song Yunzhao: "..."

’I think Princess Consort Wan has misunderstood something,’ she thought, ’but since she didn’t say it outright, I can’t very well explain.’

When Feng Yi returned that evening and saw what Feng Ze was playing with, he asked her, "Where did these come from?"

Who knew better than him what was in Yaohua Palace?

Song Yunzhao said, "Princess Consort Wan gave them to him."

Feng Yi frowned. "Why the sudden gift?"

Song Yunzhao explained, "I asked Princess Consort Wan to prepare fragrance formulas for Baozhuang Building. I took Feng Ze with me today to discuss it with her, and she gave him these to play with. When we left, she insisted we bring them back."

Feng Yi didn’t think much of it at first. But the next day at Taixi Hall, the more he thought about it, the more something felt off. He knew Princess Consort Wan’s temperament well enough—proud and aloof, with a scholarly air about her. ’Did she misunderstand something?’

The more Feng Yi thought, the darker his expression became. He directly ordered Meng Jiuchang to open his private treasury and had several chests of items carried to Yaohua Palace.

Song Yunzhao was stunned when she received the rewards. They were all for Feng Ze, a dazzling variety of items, all sparkling and glittering.

Feng Ze loved them, and Yun Zhao loved them too.

Who in this world doesn’t like nice things?

Song Yunzhao specially had the kitchen prepare ginseng soup and send it to Taixi Hall to express her gratitude to the Emperor.

Since the shop was essentially a crowdfunding project, Song Yunzhao decided to "crowdsource" the employees as well to give everyone a real sense of participation. For example, each investor could assign one person to work in the shop.

This way, everyone could keep track of the shop’s activities and, secondly, feel genuinely involved.

A greater sense of participation would lead to a stronger sense of responsibility. She wasn’t seeking much personal gain from this shop; the silver earned would be shared with everyone, so she wasn’t worried about the shop’s income being figured out by others.

The initial purpose of this shop was to win people over, unite everyone, and give her the power to contend with the Empress Dowager. Profit was actually secondary.

Therefore, she invited everyone to gather at Yaohua Palace. When she explained the matter, they were all quite surprised.

Princess Consort Wan was the first to refuse. She couldn’t be bothered with such trivial matters.

Consort Shu, however, agreed readily. This was her area of management, after all, and she found the novelty quite appealing. Wang Zhaorong and Feng Yunjin didn’t refuse either. Since the palace rules had changed, getting news from the outside was no longer as convenient as before. If they could place their own people outside, monitoring the shop would be a minor matter; the main priority was getting information about the outside world.

Song Yunzhao then told everyone to report the names of the people they wanted to assign to Consort Shu, who would be in charge of this matter. Consort Shu readily agreed, quite pleased.

’Opening a shop for fun seems rather interesting.’

Finally, Song Yunzhao added that she planned to entrust procurement to Zhang Maoquan.

Entrusting it to anyone else might seem like favoritism, but Zhang Maoquan was different. He came from the Emperor’s side, so everyone trusted him. As expected, the proposal was passed unanimously.

Zhang Maoquan, dazed and ecstatic, sizzled with excitement as he accepted. Such a great opportunity was like meat that had fallen right into his mouth; he wouldn’t let anyone make him spit it out.

The division of labor was completed today; tomorrow, everyone would start their new roles.

The first to get busy were Han Jinyi and Lu Zhixue, along with Zhang Maoquan, who was in charge of procuring raw materials.

The work at the workshop was plentiful and complicated. After a few days, Han Jinyi and Lu Zhixue had slimmed down from the hard work, but their spirits were much higher. Lu Zhixue’s eyes, in particular, were shining.

Song Yunzhao thought, ’It’s such a waste to keep these well-read women cooped up in the harem. They should be given the chance to build a career. Seeing how diligent and dedicated they are, maybe my shop really can expand across the entire country.’

’A person has to have a dream.’

’You might not be able to achieve it, but you must dare to dream it.’

While Song Yunzhao’s side was bustling with activity, the Empress Dowager’s expression turned quite foul when she heard the news at Shouci Palace. ’The Emperor is simply fooling around! How could a concubine open a shop? If word got out, people would laugh their heads off!’

However, the Empress Dowager didn’t dare to confront her son about it directly. Their mother-son relationship wasn’t very good to begin with, and it had been strained by the unpleasantness during Song Yunzhao’s childbirth. Furthermore, with An Shutong about to enter the palace soon, she had to save what little affection remained between them for that occasion.

After much thought, the Empress Dowager had someone summon Qin Xiyue.

Qin Xiyue was caught off guard by the Empress Dowager’s summons. She didn’t dare refuse, but she didn’t want to go either. Looking at Yourong, who was smiling at her, she gave up any thought of trying to fish for information. ’This is one of the Empress Dowager’s most loyal servants; I definitely won’t get anything out of her.’

She asked Yourong to wait for a moment, went back to change her clothes, and only then followed her to Shouci Palace.

Upon entering Shouci Palace and paying her respects to the Empress Dowager, Qin Xiyue saw her grim expression, and her heart skipped a beat.

’The farce at Zhichun Palace has long since become common knowledge. Did the Empress Dowager summon me because of that incident?’

The more Qin Xiyue thought about it, the heavier her heart became. ’What ability do I have now to compete with Song Yunzhao? Besides, the Empress Dowager is an extremely selfish person. If she orders me to do something, she certainly won’t pave the way for me. Isn’t that just sending me to my death?’