Chapter 61: Oh, He’s Throwing Up! (1 / 2)
Empress personally escorted Consort Qin out of the palace.
Originally, the Empress intended for Consort Qin to recuperate for another two months after her recent miscarriage before giving her a sum of money to leave the palace in secret. However, Consort Qin insisted on leaving immediately. As a compromise, the Empress arranged for her to recover at an imperial manor under her name.
“This is twelve thousand coins,” Empress said as she handed over an amount sufficient to support a family of five for a year. She accompanied Consort Qin to the carriage, where the interior was padded with thick bedding to shield her from the cold. “Keep it safe. Once you’ve recovered, use some of it to establish a livelihood.”
In the Great Xia Dynasty, women weren’t restricted from earning a living. They could brew wine, run tea houses, sell food on the streets, or work as waitresses in inns. Women were also employed as sedan chair bearers, cooks for banquets, or even as doctors. There were many options, so Consort Qin wouldn’t need to worry about exhausting her savings.
Consort Qin sobbed as she climbed into the carriage but then lifted the curtain and hesitated. “Your Highness… why are you so kind to me?”
Her fingers nervously picked at the wooden frame of the carriage, and she bit her lip lightly. “I… I’ve defied the principles of virtue and disrupted the palace order…” Shouldn’t I have been dragged out and beaten to death by now?
Empress gently pulled her hand down and tucked her into the carriage, wrapping her in blankets. “You mustn’t catch a chill,” she said before continuing, “His Majesty recounted the scene to me. He said…”
The emperor’s account had been laced with anger and disdain, his tone dripping with scorn. “They were cavorting in a cave, with all their ‘You smell so good’ and ‘Your Highness, don’t do this.’ Disgusting, insincere—flirting under the guise of protest.”
But what Empress saw was something different.