SLLBTT Chapter 27
Translated by Q the Panda (ko-fi)
⋇⊶⊰Chapter 27⊱⊷⋇
Liu Jiao spent the night again at the Snow Hall on the Wolf Mountain.
This news naturally reached the master of the harem. Without a queen, the one now in charge of the harem was the Queen Dowager of the Qingque Terrace.
Early in the morning, an attendant from Qingque Terrace went to the bedside of the Queen Dowager to report, "Last night, Liu Jiao spent the night again."
Queen Ming said nothing, only silently lying on the bed, looking down at the red marks on the back of his hand — the scars left by the dart thrown by the Snow Wolf King yesterday.
"The current king has not been in office for long, and there are not many people in the harem. The first concubine he appointed is Liu Jiao, and since then, no other consorts have been summoned for favor," the attendant added. "So, Liu Jiao can be considered the 'exclusive favorite'?"
"That's truly absurd," another attendant said, "The Queen Dowager has recommended the fox spirit Suisui several times, but the Great King always acts ignorant and refuses to agree."
Queen Ming chuckled. "Young kings, who isn't naive at that age? It's exactly why they need guidance and instruction from elders like me. So, he'll learn that whoever he favors becomes a target."
Being the exclusive favorite was an honor that many favored concubines throughout history had not experienced.
Queen Ming truly didn't expect that the seemingly foolish Liu Jiao could effortlessly achieve the level of achievement worthy of being called "calamity to the country and the people" or "disastrous beauty."
The Censorate also sensed the emergence of a "seductive beauty endangering the nation" in Liu Jiao. Today, as soon as the Snow Wolf King held court, Censor Xu announced his intention to submit a memorial.
The Snow Wolf King wanted to tell him to shut up, but on the surface, he had to maintain the appearance of a wise ruler — otherwise, it would affect his performance evaluation, and all those completed tasks would be in vain.
"Minister, do you have something to report?" the Snow Wolf King asked.
Censor Xu said, "Great King, I wish to report that Beautiful Lady Jiao has violated palace rules and behaved improperly toward the other consorts."
The Snow Wolf King then inquired, "Where does this information come from?"
Censor Xu replied, "He enjoys the exclusive favor, yet fails to advise you on fairness and justice in your affections."
"The way you put it makes it sound like it's my fault. Should I be denied the right to favor him if he refuses?"
Censor Xu insisted, "While the Great King may have faults, it is the duty of the consorts to advise."
The Snow Wolf King thought to himself, "I casually mentioned it as my fault, and he actually dares to agree."
On the side, Censor Li, sensing the situation, quickly spoke up for the Snow Wolf King, "The Great King governs diligently and cares for the people. He hasn't summoned many consorts in a month. From Beautiful Lady Jiao's perspective, is being summoned only four times a reason to refuse? That's quite unreasonable."
Censor Xu was momentarily stunned, unable to refute. Clearing his throat, he said, "Of course, that's just the tip of the iceberg."
"Oh? What else is more serious?" asked Censor Li.
Censor Xu continued, "Liu Jiao is just a mere beauty, yet he rode in the royal carriage with the Great King. This is an act of overstepping."
Hearing this, the Snow Wolf King frowned slightly, recalling that there was indeed such an incident — though it happened only once. How did it reach Censor Xu's ears?
Censor Li hadn't heard of this incident and retorted, "Is this true? Censor Xu, don't rely on hearsay!"
"Are you suggesting I'm slandering Beautiful Lady Jiao?" Censor Xu coldly snorted and added, "Great King, what do you say? Is this true?"
The Snow Wolf King explained, "At that time, Beautiful Lady Jiao wasn't feeling well but insisted on waiting for the sedan. Unable to bear it, I asked him to ride in the royal carriage with me."
"Then it's true!" Censor Xu asserted decisively, a hint of satisfaction in his tone.
However, the Snow Wolf King continued, "But Beautiful Lady Jiao refused. He said consorts should uphold the virtue of riding in a separate carriage." Pointing to Hong Huli, he added, "Speak, isn't that what happened?"
Hong Huli hurriedly confirmed, "Yes, yes! Beautiful Lady Jiao refused and even mentioned it was a story he learned in Chinese class from Consort Ban."
Censor Xu frowned. "So, did Beautiful Lady Jiao eventually ride in the royal carriage?"
Hong Huli glanced at the Snow Wolf King, his eyes shifting, and said, "Certainly not."
Censor Xu was surprised. "Not?"
"Nope," Hong Huli replied calmly. He added, "If Lord Censor doubts my words, you can ask the people who were present at that time."
The Snow Wolf King's attendants, seemingly brainwashed, all chimed in unison, "No, certainly not."
Censor Li sneered, "Censor Xu, as a high-ranking official, a single accusation from you can condemn someone. It's better to choose words carefully and not spread baseless accusations."
Censor Xu's face turned red from stifling his anger but remained powerless.
The Snow Wolf King smiled and said, "Censor Xu meant well but lost sight of proportion. Just be more cautious in the future."
However, Censor Xu stamped his foot, gritted his teeth, and declared, "I have something else to report!"
"More?" Censor Li exclaimed, "Are you still accusing Beautiful Lady Jiao?"
"Of course!" Censor Xu said sternly.
Censor Li wondered, "Did Liu Jiao pull weeds from Censor Xu's ancestors' graves? Is that why he's being treated like this?"
The Snow Wolf King grew increasingly displeased, but he maintained a faint smile, "What other charges do you have? Speak them all at once."
"I wish to report that Beautiful Lady Jiao cheated in the exam!"