Chapter 573 Lin Wan'er and Fan Ruoruo Participate in the Talent Show
The new emperor was really angry about the rebellion of Prince Pingnan.

The most direct manifestation was that the four selected concubines awarded by the empress dowager were treated coldly for more than half a month and were not summoned to sleep with the empress.

It was already September, and the new emperor was still living in the imperial study in the Weiyang Palace, looking as if he was determined to give up beauty and work hard to govern the country.

The Queen Mother, as her own mother, saw her own son working day and night to handle government affairs, and it hurt her heart.

After arriving at Yanshou Palace and paying respects to the Empress Dowager, she expressed her concerns:
"Aunt, Qian'er is already eighteen years old this year, and he has been on the throne for a month. The position of the head of the harem is still vacant. I want to hold a selection to choose a concubine for him. What do you think?"

"Yeah, I think it works."

The Empress Dowager lamented that the royal family had no offspring, and then sighed:

"When you choose, look for those that are beneficial to health. Otherwise, the royal bloodline will be weak, and an old woman like me will not be able to face my ancestors."

"That's what Auntie said."

After obtaining the approval of the Grand Empress Dowager, the Empress Dowager returned to her own Yeonbok Palace and immediately issued an imperial decree to all officials and dignitaries across the country, asking them to send their girls of marriageable age to government offices to participate in the selection of concubines for the new emperor.

As soon as this imperial decree was issued, a huge uproar broke out in Nanqing.

The spotlight on the Pingnan Prince rebellion was overshadowed by the topic of this talent show.

Nanqing had thirteen routes and seventy-six prefectures, with over a thousand officials.

Even if one official registered one girl of appropriate age, there would be at least a thousand girls participating in the election.

In fact, many officials signed up enthusiastically. They not only reported the names of their legitimate daughters, but also the names of their concubines' daughters.

After all, this selection is not like the previous ones, where you can enter the palace to become a maid.

This time, we will choose a queen or a dozen concubines.

Who doesn’t want to take a chance?

If God is lucky enough and my daughter is elected as the queen, my family will be elevated to great heights.

In the end, the number of contestants who registered for the show exceeded three thousand.

On average, two girls of appropriate age were recommended for each official family.

Some local prominent families with many descendants simply recommended seven or eight girls of appropriate age.

These people all want to achieve success overnight.

Of course, there are those who actively participate in the election, and there are also those who are unwilling to participate.

Those who are unwilling to run for election from other places can also bribe the local eunuch who is in charge of this matter.

The eunuch in charge of the garrison could just fill in a sheet about a hidden illness and get away with it.

In Kyoto, it is extremely difficult for girls of marriageable age to avoid participating in the election.

Because the person in charge of the screening task for Kyoto City was the eunuch who was close to the Empress Dowager.

In the mansion of Earl Sinan.

Fan Jian looked at the Empress Dowager's edict delivered by the eunuchs in the palace, and felt helpless and irritated.

The Queen Mother has not forgotten that Fan Jian confiscated her family's property and exterminated her clan.

Fan Jian also did not dare to forget.

Now, her own daughter has received an imperial decree to go to the palace to participate in the election. Isn't this like a sheep walking into a tiger's mouth?
Seeing that her master was unhappy, Fan Jian's wife Liu Ruyu could only comfort him softly:

"Master, if you don't want Ruoruo to participate in the election, why don't you go to the emperor and ask for mercy? You are the late emperor's brother, and the emperor will definitely give you this favor, right?"

"You've already said that, that was the late emperor. A new emperor chooses his own ministers. How could the current emperor give me this favor and go against the Empress Dowager's order?"

Fan Jian saw things very clearly.

Since the new king ascended the throne, he has been visiting his parents morning and evening, which can be said to be a daily routine.

Would such an emperor help me to go against the empress dowager's order?

Fan Jian doesn't think he has such a big face.

Besides, what does it mean that you don’t want your daughter to enter the palace?
Do you look down on the royal family?

Fan Jian thought a lot and saw everything clearly.

In the end, he could only sigh and asked Liu Ruyu to inform his daughter to prepare to participate in the audition.

The Fan family’s case is an extreme one.

For some families, it is a particularly embarrassing situation.

For example, Lin Ruofu also received the imperial edict.

Lin Gong, the second son of Lin Ruofu, was puzzled when he saw that his father had been frowning since receiving the imperial edict:
"Father, the Queen Mother allowed my sister to run for the election. This is a good thing. Why are you not happy?"

Lin Ruofu also loved Lin Wan'er, his illegitimate daughter, very much. After hearing what his son said, he sighed and said:
"Gong'er, your sister has been weak and frail since she was young. How can she enter the palace to serve the emperor?"

"Father, you are worrying for no reason. The Grand Empress Dowager and the Queen Mother both treat my sister as their own daughter. And...and the eldest princess is still in the palace. My sister will never be wronged after entering the palace."

Lin Gong's comfort did not work.

Lin Ruofu looked at the imperial edict in his hand, hesitated for a long time, and then said to his son:

"Gong'er, go see your sister and ask her if she is willing to enter the palace and participate in the selection. If your sister herself is unwilling, your father will not let her suffer any injustice even if it means losing his position as prime minister."

"Father, I'll go see my sister now."

When Lin Gong heard his father say this, although he did not understand his father's concerns, he was very obedient and immediately rode to the royal villa where Lin Wan'er lived.

Although it is called a royal villa, it is actually located in the inner city and very close to the imperial palace.

Lin Gong knocked on the door. When the doorman saw that it was the princess's second brother, he quickly invited him in. Lin Gong handed him the reins of his mount and asked:
"Is my sister home?"

The porter took the reins and replied:
"To reply to the Second Master, Miss Ye is here today, and the princess is accompanying her to appreciate the chrysanthemums in the back garden."

"Well, I see."

Lin Gong and Miss Ye were also acquaintances, and they didn't usually shy away from each other. While he ordered someone to go in and report, he strode towards the back garden.

Soon, Lin Gong arrived at the back garden.

Then he saw two pretty girls, one in red and one in white, walking out of the pavilion and wanting to greet him.

Seeing this, Lin Gong quickly spoke up to stop him:

"Chen'er, it's windy outside, don't come out."

"Brother, I'm fine. My cousin gave me some Pei Yuan Dan a few days ago. I've gotten much better in the past few days."

Lin Wan'er's complexion is indeed much better than before.

Originally, her skin color was the same as that of her mother, Princess Li Yunrui, whiter than snow and as white as ice.

But now, her face is pink and tender, and she looks very healthy.

Lin Gong was still worried about his sister's health, so he pulled her into the warm room.

Lin Wan'er and the other three sat down and asked with a smile:

"Second brother, why are you here at this time?"

It was almost time for dinner. Normally, Lin Gong would not come so late.

Lin Gong looked at his fairy-like sister and didn't know how to start talking for a moment.

However, Ye Ling'er, the girl in the red skirt next to her, suddenly showed a surprised expression:
"Master Lin, you are not here to inform the princess to prepare to participate in the selection of concubines, are you?"

"Hmm? Are you going to run for election too?"

When Lin Gong heard Ye Ling'er's words, he keenly realized the meaning of her words.

Ye Ling'er has been learning martial arts since she was young. She has a bad temper and does not have the temperament of a lady at all.

Would the palace want a girl like this?

Ye Ling'er understood the meaning of Lin Gong's words, and her face flushed with shame, but she still nodded and said:
"My family has also received the imperial decree. I came here today to say goodbye to Wan'er and to go back to my hometown to hide for a while."

"Evade? Do you want to disobey my order?"

After hearing what Ye Ling'er said, Lin Gong almost laughed out loud.

The Emperor of Nanqing was extremely majestic. Lin Ruofu, as the chief minister of the cabinet and the prime minister of the current dynasty, did not dare to easily disobey his order.

Ye Ling'er is such a troublemaker that she even dares to evade the imperial decree.

"I'm not disobeying the imperial order. I just didn't receive the imperial order by chance."

Ye Ling'er's words were somewhat sophistry.

However, her words also reminded Lin Gong of the recent rumors in Kyoto City.

Ever since the rebellion of Prince Pingnan occurred half a month ago, many rumors have been spreading in Kyoto.

The most surprising and confusing thing is that the legendary Hong Sixiang is not the grand master, and the grand master in the palace had died long ago.

Once this rumor came out, it was recognized by many people.

Originally, Nanqing was able to suppress Beiqi and Dongyi because Nanqing had two great masters.

Now, there is only one Grandmaster, Ye Liuyun, left in Nanqing, and Beiqi and Dongyi are ready to make a move.

However, this incident is a bad thing for Nanqing, but it is great news for the Ye family.

Because Nanqing now needs to rely on Ye Liuyun to maintain its reputation. I believe that even if the palace knows that Ye Linger disobeyed the order, they will not make things difficult for the Ye family.

Lin Gong thought about it for a while and decided to put the matter aside. He planned to go home and ask his father what exactly happened.

And now, what he cares about most is whether his sister is willing to participate in the draft.

"Chen'er, are you willing to participate in the talent show? If you don't want to, don't be afraid, your father will help you turn it down."

Lin Gong did not say Lin Ruofu's original words in order not to put psychological pressure on Lin Wan'er.

However, after hearing what her second brother said, Lin Wan'er blushed and murmured in a low voice:

"My cousin is a very good person. I am willing to follow the Queen Mother's arrangements."

'Willing to follow the Queen Mother's arrangements' means being willing to participate in the selection.

Lin Gong breathed a sigh of relief. His sister was willing to marry the current emperor. This was the best outcome and his father would not have to be embarrassed.

After the three of them chatted for a while, Lin Gong bowed and said goodbye.

As soon as Lin Gong left, Ye Ling'er also remembered that she had sneaked away, and hurriedly said goodbye:
"Wan'er, I have to leave quickly, otherwise if my family finds me, I will definitely be arrested."

"Then you should be careful on this journey."

Lin Wan'er's temperament is just like her name, gentle and pleasant. Seeing that her best friend was unwilling to participate in the talent show, she naturally supported her in escaping the imperial decree.

Lin Wan'er even thought that if her cousin the emperor wanted to punish the Ye family, she would definitely plead for Ye Ling'er.

"Don't worry, nothing can happen to me."

Ye Ling'er didn't think too much about it. She just laughed, took the whip, led her mount, and slipped away from the back door of the royal villa.

(End of this chapter)