RNP Chapter 126 The Ceremony of investiture
Chapter 126 The Ceremony of investiture
Unexpectedly, the investiture ceremony was held at Qianyuan Palace.
Shen Shixi changed into her official robes and went there.
The crown and robes were brand new and fit perfectly. The people from the Imperial Household Department flattered her, saying that the Emperor had given an order in advance to prepare the crown and robes for the Empress.
Shen Shixi found it amusing. Did Li Yuanke prepare a set for her for each rank? However, she didn't ask. As long as it was new, hers, and she had something to wear, that was enough.
It was cold, so I wore a mink cloak over my clothes.
When they arrived at the door, Caiying came over and took the cloak from her.
Li Yuanke took his seat. The Ministry of Rites and Prince An had already arrived, as had the imperial concubines, who stood on both sides waiting. The Empress was given a seat and sat below the imperial platform.
As everyone watched Shen Shixi enter, her elegant attire accentuated her noble bearing. She was poised and graceful, a far cry from the unruly person she usually appeared to be. At this moment, she displayed the refined elegance of a noblewoman from a prominent family, and every movement she made was perfectly proper.
This is also what makes her impeccable; she always has the perfect grasp of degree.
Shen Shixi stepped forward and bowed, "Your Majesty, I pay my respects. May Your Majesty the Empress enjoy boundless blessings and peace!"
"No need for formalities!"
Li Yuanke must have just finished court; he was dressed in an ochre-red court robe, his eyes smiling, exuding both imperial majesty and otherworldly beauty. "Let's begin!"
The envoy, carrying imperial credentials, was summoned by the Ministry of Rites.
The imperial edict of investiture was still the same few words Li Yuanke had said that day, with the scholars helping to polish it slightly. The title of Consort was only given in the form of an official document, without any imperial seal.
Afterwards, Shen Shixi performed a grand salute to the Emperor and Empress.
Li Yuanke waited quietly for her to finish her ceremony, then stepped down from the platform and helped her up. He was very happy and reached out to touch the flower crown on Shen Shixi's head.
Shen Shixi had to pay her respects to the high-ranking concubines, and then people of lower rank would also pay their respects to her; there were quite a few of them.
Who would have thought that in just half a year, Lady Shen would rise from a seventh-rank Baolin to a third-rank Zhaoyi, becoming the head of the Nine Concubines.
Now, apart from the Empress, there are only two other high-ranking concubines: Consort De and Consort Qiong.
Consort Xue naturally did not come today.
Qing Zhaoyuan still had to bow to Shen Shixi, and although she only performed a half-bow, she felt like she was going to vomit blood.
She at least has a prince as a concubine.
Seeing such a solemn investiture ceremony, the Empress felt a tightness in her chest. On the day she was made Empress, all the concubines in the palace received their investiture ceremonies on the same day, which was so perfunctory and careless.
That day, the emperor sat on the throne, the Ministry of Rites read out the imperial edict, and then everyone bowed to the emperor under the empress's leadership. Afterwards, the empress was given a seat, and the concubines bowed to her. That was it.
At that time, she didn't even have her own dress. The Ministry of Rites found a dress that the late emperor's empress had never worn and gave it to her to make do with the occasion.
"Is this dress your sister is wearing newly made? The people in the Imperial Clothing Bureau are really efficient; they made such a dress in just three days," said Qing Zhaoyuan.
Shen Shixi knew exactly what they meant. "Sister Qing Zhaoyuan is jealous of me. Could it be that she resents the Emperor for not holding a investiture ceremony for her as well? Sister, don't be angry. The Emperor only didn't hold one for you because he pities you. I'm climbing up, while you're falling down. We're different after all."
The emperor had no interest in doing things for others.
Just as Consort Qing was about to retort, the emperor gave her a sharp look, and she quickly shut her mouth.
"Disperse, all of you!" the Emperor said, shaking Shen Shixi's hand. He then addressed the Ministry of Rites and Prince An, "Thank you for your hard work today, my dear ministers!"
Prince An said, "Your Majesty is too kind. This is nothing. However, Your Majesty, I would like to ask when those full-body mirrors will be available?"
The emperor, unaware of this, looked at Shen Shixi.
Li Yuanyin has been busy building the glass house lately, and with the mirror workshop being such a lucrative business, he dares not get involved.
Shen Shixi said, "If His Majesty wishes to bestow rewards, then of course there will be."
The emperor said, "Alright, send it to the imperial uncle today."
Prince An returned home in high spirits, and the emperor ordered someone to present the Minister of Rites with a target mirror.
The Minister of Rites, not knowing what it was, picked it up and saw an old face crisscrossed with wrinkles—a face he had never seen before. Terrified, he screamed, "A ghost!"
My hand slipped, and the mirror fell to the ground.
He was shocked again. It was a gift from the emperor! He immediately fainted and collapsed to the ground.
Fortunately, a young eunuch in the palace reacted quickly and caught him, preventing him from falling to his death.
This startled Li Yuanke, who immediately summoned the imperial physician.
The Minister of Rites slowly awoke. Upon seeing the Emperor, he hurriedly scrambled to his feet and bowed. "Your Majesty, I am guilty. I did not intend to damage the imperial gift. It was simply that the shadow that appeared inside was too frightening."
Seeing that he was alright, Li Yuanke didn't bother with him anymore. "Li Fude, you tell him what it is."
Li Fude also received a small mirror from Shen Shixi, which he cherished every day. He explained to Lu Shixun, "Minister Lu, this is a rare item; you couldn't buy it for any amount of money outside. If it weren't for your hard work in making this trip for our Consort Zhaoyi, would the Emperor have been willing to bestow it upon you?"
Upon realizing he had frightened himself, Lu Shixun was utterly mortified.
He took out a mirror and looked at himself repeatedly, and a wave of sadness washed over him. How could he have such a face? Last night, his concubine said she liked him, and he was quite proud of herself at the time. Now that he thought about it, she probably wasn't lying to him!
In Li Yuanke's study, Shen Shixi was writing out a recipe for making mirrors. She asked Li Yuanke, "How does Your Majesty plan to run this mirror workshop?"
"Let's listen to Xi'er!" Li Yuanke was too lazy to think about it.
Shen Shixi said, "Your Majesty, such a highly profitable industry needs to be well monitored. Otherwise, it will not only enrich others and harm Your Majesty, but it will also leak the formula."
Although the information will be leaked sooner or later, wouldn't it be better to delay it by one day?
Li Yuanke asked, "How does it work?"
Shen Shixi said, "There's no other trick to it, it's just playing the balance of power game. There are three separate teams for purchasing raw materials, production, and sales, and the accounts are managed by a dedicated person."
At the same time, they were given certain production authority and priced according to the number of items. For example, they would be paid a certain amount for each qualified mirror they delivered. With clear accounts and a complete system, no one could fool the emperor.
The operating system of later companies.
Li Yuanke was also a quick learner. Shen Shixi sometimes felt that he was more open-minded than modern men. Many modern men couldn't stand their women being better than them, as if it would hurt their pride.
Li Yuanke did not have this problem; he was very receptive to advice and could even apply it to other situations.
On that day, Zhaoyang Palace bestowed many gifts, and the Empress Dowager also sent a lot of gifts, including three sets of headdresses, which were quite valuable.
Naturally, the rewards from Qian Yuan Palace were the main attraction. A set of gold filigree sapphire and pearl jewelry was extraordinary. In those days, there was no cutting technology, so it was very rare for sapphires to be polished to such a brilliance.
There was also a box of various glittering gems, including a red diamond, which was an extremely rare treasure. Shen Shixi had all the red diamonds picked out and sent to the Imperial Household Department to make a set of jewelry.
Shen Shixi picked out a few pieces from the dozen or so boxes of fine leather and had Lan Ying send them to the Imperial Clothing Bureau to make cloaks and clothes. He also picked out a few pieces to have Chao Yu send back to the Shen family.
"Your Majesty, these ten boxes of brocade were just presented as tribute. His Majesty ordered that the best colors be sent to you. I heard that the south suffered a disaster this year, so there are not many Yun brocade and Song brocade left. All the nicer ones are here."
Shen Shixi asked, "The south has suffered a disaster. How come we didn't hear about it before?"
"It happened after autumn. They say that the area suffered from heavy rains this year, which lasted for a whole month and flooded many prefectures. As a result, the amount of silk sent as tribute was half of what it used to be, and the Emperor is now worried about it."
Shen Shixi didn't ask any more questions. She changed her clothes, combed her hair again, and wore only a red plum blossom hairpin. Three plum blossoms made of red tourmaline were attached to the branches, with three tassels hanging down. Round red tourmalines were strung on gold threads, making it truly dazzling.
This one piece of jewelry alone surpasses the effect of a complete headdress.
When she arrived at Fu Bi Pavilion, Lin Guiyou was already there, with a bundle placed beside her.