She Holds the World After Being Reborn
Chapter 143: Change of Taste, the Seventh Prince has Recently Turned Vegetarian

Chapter 143: Chapter 143: Change of Taste, the Seventh Prince has Recently Turned Vegetarian

Fortunately, a palace attendant brought up the register of ladies participating in the selection of concubines, saving Empress Zhang Lanyi from a predicament.

"There indeed are a lot of young ladies participating in the selection, from the Zhang Family, the Wang Family, the Li Family,... every notable family in the Capital City is in it, but there are some subtleties," said Zhang Lanyi as she passed the register to Yan Wanqing.

Yan Wanqing needed only a brief glance to understand the situation.

It all came down to the fact that only the lesser daughters of truly powerful families were participating.

The true eldest daughters were not listed.

And for those families that were slightly declining, one could vaguely see some eldest daughters named in the register, such as those from the Zhang and Wang families.

Yan Wanqing didn’t voice her thoughts, and the Emperor, having snapped back to reality after frolicking with the concubines, noticed that the Empress already had the register in her hands and immediately smiled, saying, "The Empress is truly efficient in her work, it hasn’t been that long, and the register is already presented. Let Us have a look."

The Emperor opened the register, squinting his eyes.

"Oh, there really are quite a few."

There were numerous names of noble ladies densely packed together.

While looking, the Emperor squinted at Xiao Hongshen with an almost imperceptible gaze, "We recall there is some girl named Yun Ge in your household. You will need to choose an Imperial Consort in the future. These women from Fireworks Lane should not be kept in your home, don’t upset your future Consort."

Upon hearing this, Xiao Hongshen could only bow his head, "Father is right; upon my return, I will send someone to take her to an estate outside."

Initially, keeping Yun Ge had only been for the sake of Lin Yanran and the account book she had in her possession; who would have thought that the foolish woman genuinely had no clue about the account book? With this in mind, there was no need to keep her any longer.

The Emperor was very pleased with Xiao Hongshen’s sensibility.

After closing the register, he handed it back to Empress Zhang Lanyi, "Since that’s the case, let Us entrust the Empress with full responsibility. We believe with your virtuous and courteous nature, you will definitely be able to select a desirable Imperial Concubine for him."

Choosing a consort for the Imperial Family was not as simple as just dancing or showing one’s face—it started with assessing physical appearance and inspecting health. This initial challenge was left to the nursemaid personally attached to the Empress, and only those whom the nursemaid agreed to keep could then present themselves before the Emperor and Prince Seven.

An hour ago.

In a somewhat dimly lit room, a noble lady was getting dressed.

Li Chengyuan was at the very end of the crowd, her expression unclear as she stared at the nursemaids checking the bodies of the noble ladies up front.

She intentionally dawdled until she was last.

Seeing someone skulking behind a screen, one of the nursemaids called out impatiently, "Who are you?!"

That was when Li Chengyuan came forward.

She hastily stuffed a prepared purse into the nursemaid’s hands, "Reporting to nursemaid, I am the third young miss from the Li family."

The nursemaid, feeling the weight of the purse, cast a glance at the other nursemaids who then tactfully left the room.

Li Chengyuan finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Hefting the purse in her hand, the nursemaid questioned, "Li family’s third young miss?"

Li Chengyuan gave a shy smile, "Yes."

"What is the meaning of this?" the nursemaid feigned ignorance.

Li Chengyuan, her face flushed, motioned for the nursemaid to lean in closer.

The nursemaid’s eyes flashed with impatience, but for the sake of the money, she conceded and leaned in.

"Actually... I have long been with Prince Seven."

When Li Chengyuan finished her sentence, she expected the nursemaid to be shocked and respectful, but to her surprise, the nursemaid calmly pushed the purse back into her hand.

"Such tales, if I haven’t heard from five before you, then it was certainly three," the nursemaid snorted contemptuously as she sized up Li Chengyuan, "Tell a lie that’s at least plausible. With your flat chest and narrow hips, how could Prince Seven ever fancy you?"

"You!" Li Chengyuan was momentarily enraged.

She then saw the nursemaid smirk and say, "Do you know of Yun Ge, the woman from Prince Seven’s residence? She was once known as the number one beauty in the Capital City. If Prince Seven has truly taken a liking to you, it can only mean one thing."

"What thing?" Li Chengyuan pursed her lips, her heart burning with anger, but given that the nursemaid was a servant of the Empress, she could only suppress her own temperament.

"It means that the Prince has simply changed his taste recently," the nursemaid said gleefully to herself.

Li Chengyuan’s face turned an ashen hue.

She fumbled in her bosom once again.

Seeing this, the nursemaid said helplessly, "I’ve already said that Prince Seven is very strict in selecting his consorts. Even if you pass this hurdle with me, you wouldn’t succeed with Prince Seven either. No amount of silver can change that. If you’re not going to undergo inspection, then please leave. I still need to report the situation to the Empress."

But then, a jade pendant was thrust right in front of the nursemaid.

The nursemaid jumped in shock, retreating back before she could clearly see the character "Hongshen" on the pendant.

"You should recognize this, shouldn’t you?"

Li Chengyuan hadn’t wanted to take out this jade pendant, but who would have thought this old obstinate would be so utterly intractable.

The nursemaid was shocked and dismayed: "It really is Prince Seven’s jade pendant."

"This is the personal jade pendant of His Highness Prince Seven. He entrusted it to me. Isn’t that enough to illustrate the relationship between me and His Highness Prince Seven?" Li Chengyuan said, her expression somewhat triumphant.

She couldn’t help it, the power just made her so infatuated, and once she truly became the Imperial Concubine of Prince Seven,

and helped him ascend the throne, then she would be the Empress, second only to one and above ten thousand.

By then, let’s see who would dare to look down on her.

Li Chengyuan became quite agitated at the thought.

The nursemaid’s attitude did indeed take a one-hundred-eighty-degree turn, becoming eager towards Li Chengyuan.

Li Chengyuan stuffed the purse back into the nursemaid’s hands.

"Now, can you add my name to the register?"

The nursemaid accepted the purse with both hands and said cheerily, "Of course, Miss. When you rise to great heights in the future, don’t forget this old servant."

Having received the money, the nursemaid quickly added Li Chengyuan’s name to the register.

Li Chengyuan, having arranged this matter, felt much relieved.

Considering her relationship with Prince Seven in recent days, he was sure to choose her.

However, no sooner had she left the door than she was accosted by several daughters of Chief of Staff families with whom she used to be on good terms.

"Li Chengyuan, you actually have the gall to come here to compete for the position of Prince Seven’s Imperial Concubine."

The daughters of the Chief of Staff had been confined by their mothers since the last incident and were only released today. Thinking of the instigator Li Chengyuan, they clenched their teeth in rage and hurried over with their sisters to have a word.

"My, my, since we are all sisters, why such fury?" Li Chengyuan said with a giggling smile.

"What sisters?! Last time, you clearly said Li Chengxiang was an unlikeable coward. But why would Princess Anping and the Empress come to her aid?! Do you know how much we suffered because of you!" The more the Chief of Staff’s daughter spoke, the angrier she got, wishing she could slap Li Chengyuan then and there to find some relief.

Li Chengyuan was no pushover.

She always enjoyed conquering all through force of arms, and she never considered a few delicate young ladies to be worth her attention.

"I remember, your names are in the register too, aren’t they?" Li Chengyuan said, revealing a sinister smile.