An Lingrong's Rebirth: The Lock of Qingqiu

After the emperor returned to the palace, although the ministers were dissatisfied, they still restored the order of the court.

However, as the adopted daughter of the empress dowager in the harem, Su Wan'er's years of maternal love were made up, and she was arrogant for a moment, and even looked at the seven-tailed phoenix on An Lingrong's head with envy. Although she didn't say anything verbally, whenever An Lingrong appeared, Su Wan'er's phoenix eyes never left An Lingrong's head.

In the Qing Palace, the empress could wear a phoenix crown (nine-tailed phoenix) with tassels hanging down to the shoulders, and could wear it on both sides at the same time. Once the tassels were hanging down, it looked quite beautiful. The imperial concubine could wear a side phoenix hairpin (seven-tailed phoenix) with tassels hanging down to the shoulders, and could wear it on one side.

The jewellery of the concubines was not only new in style, but also varied in variety, including hairpins, hairpins, head flowers, hairpins, tassels, bracelets, bracelets, rings, nail covers, pendants...

But in the current harem, the most beautiful thing is the seven-tailed phoenix on An Lingrong’s head.

The Queen Mother stared at Su Wan'er without blinking, and asked, "Wan'er, what's wrong? Do you like the ornament on Concubine Li's head?"

Su Wan'er smiled and said, "Mother, I just think that the seven-tailed phoenix on Concubine Li's head is very dazzling. Wan'er has never seen such a beautiful headdress in my life. If I can borrow it to wear and play with it, Wan'er will definitely be very satisfied."

The Queen Mother's mind moved slightly, revealing a heart-broken expression. She took a step forward and said to An Lingrong, "Noble Concubine Li, Wan'er likes the seven-tailed phoenix on your head. You can take it off and let her play with it. She will naturally return it to you when she is happy."

An Lingrong was stunned. This was a gift from the Emperor, a symbol of nobility. How could she take it down and let outsiders play with it? Su Wan'er was ignorant, so why was the Queen Mother so surprised?

An Lingrong was reluctant, but the Emperor was not present. The Queen Mother asked her to take it down, and she could not refuse the Queen Mother, so she stroked the Seven-tailed Phoenix with her right hand, carefully took it down, and placed it in Su Wan'er's palm: "Wan'er, you have to be careful, this is something the Emperor gave me, it must not be damaged in the slightest."

Su Wan'er smiled and said, "My queen, Wan'er knows. It's just for fun. It won't get damaged." After saying that, Su Wan'er inserted the seven-tailed phoenix on her head with her bare hands. She touched the hanging tassels with her hands, and kept playing with them, unable to let go.

The queen could not stop praising it: "Wow, when my Wan'er puts it on, her temperament is so different. It really looks very beautiful."

The Queen Mother pulled out the seven-tailed phoenix with her own hands and reinserted it into a slightly lower position for Su Wan'er, making Su Wan'er look more reserved and gentle.

A cup of tea passed, and Su Wan'er walked around wearing the seven-tailed phoenix, saying that she would take it off and return it to An Lingrong. However, after waiting for a long time, Su Wan'er showed no intention of taking it off. The Queen Mother said that it was beautiful on the left and on the right. An Lingrong could not help but urge her, "Okay, Wan'er, you have tried it on. This seven-tailed phoenix is ​​not for playing. You should return it to me."

Su Wan'er hesitated and reached out to pluck the seven-tailed phoenix, but was very reluctant to let go. She put her hand down, shook her head and said, "Mother, Wan'er really likes this seven-tailed phoenix of Empress Li. Can you ask the Empress to give it to Wan'er and ask the Emperor to make another seven-tailed phoenix for the Empress?"

The Queen Mother hasn't spoken yet!

An Lingrong's face changed. She took a step forward, stretched out her hand, and suddenly attacked Su Wan'er's head. She stretched out her hand and suddenly plucked the seven-tailed phoenix down. Holding it in her hand, she said in a stern voice, "How can this be! Do you still understand the rules of the palace? If you don't understand, didn't Aunt Fangruo teach you? The seven-tailed phoenix is ​​a gift from the emperor. Do you really take the emperor seriously? Do you have the word rules in your eyes? I will tell you today that the things bestowed by the emperor cannot be resold or given to others. Even if one day you pass away like Concubine Hua and the Empress, these things must be returned to the national treasury intact. It's not something fun. How can you be so casual and play with it as you want or borrow it as you want!"

Su Wan'er's eyes were red, and the Queen Mother stepped forward to argue, "Li Guifei, it's just a small matter. Wan'er has just entered the palace, and I don't have too many rules and requirements for her. I have no requirements, so Li Guifei, don't ask for anything. I just want Wan'er to live happily in the palace. Now the things have been returned to Li Guifei. Look at your imposing appearance, Li Guifei, you scared Wan'er."

An Lingrong's expression changed again and again, and she said bluntly: "Empress Dowager, since Su Wan'er has entered this palace, she must understand the rules. Otherwise, when I manage the six palaces, people who don't know will blame me for not managing the six palaces well and accuse me of dereliction of duty. Since she is the adopted daughter of the Empress Dowager, she must pay more attention to etiquette and rules, so as not to lose face for our Great Qing Dynasty and the Empress Dowager."

Su Wan'er lowered her head and moaned, "Mother..."

The Queen Mother raised her head, her eyes full of arrogance as she said, "What's wrong? Imperial Concubine Li, you are making a fuss about nothing. When will it be your turn to teach me a lesson in this palace? Isn't it just a seven-tailed phoenix for fun? Is it worth making such a fuss? This only shows that you are narrow-minded and petty. What you have, no one else has, including Wan'er, so naturally everyone envies you. What etiquette, what rules? I am the rules! Come on, kick Imperial Concubine Li out!"

An Lingrong stood up with disdain and said, "I will take my leave now! Queen Mother, please calm down. I will naturally mention this matter to the Emperor. If the Emperor agrees, I will personally deliver this seven-tailed phoenix to Su Wan'er and let her play with it every day to her heart's content!"

The Queen Mother said angrily: "You..."

Just after dinner, the emperor summoned An Lingrong to sleep with him, so An Lingrong brought the seven-tailed phoenix to the Yangxin Palace.

"Your Majesty, Princess Wan'er took a fancy to the seven-tailed phoenix on my head and said she wanted to borrow it to play with. The Empress Dowager told me to give it to Wan'er without any explanation. Wan'er liked it and refused to take it off. It was only after I persuaded her that she took it off and returned it to me. The Empress Dowager was very dissatisfied with me and said that I was stingy and narrow-minded." An Lingrong knew that the matter was not over yet, so she naturally had to tell the Emperor. The seven-tailed phoenix was a gift from the Emperor. If the Emperor agreed, it would be fine to give it to Su Wan'er.

The emperor said angrily, "Ridiculous! How could Su Wan'er be so ridiculous? She must have done it on purpose to anger me."

An Lingrong didn't say anything either, but silently added tea to the emperor's cup, leaving it to the emperor to see how he would respond.

The emperor pondered for a while and said, "Since Longkodo passed away, my mother has devoted all her attention to Su Wan'er. She has spoiled Su Wan'er to the point of lawlessness! But Rong'er, how could you let her play with the seven-tailed phoenix I gave you just because she asked to borrow it? You must not do this next time! This seven-tailed phoenix originally belonged to you. It has been worn by others, especially Su Wan'er. I feel upset when I put it back on Rong'er's head. The unique thing I gave Rong'er is to show Rong'er's uniqueness. If this thing is stained with dust, it can no longer be kept."

An Lingrong looked sideways and said, "What should we do? We can't have it anymore! It's in good condition and not damaged, so why can't we have it anymore?"

The emperor took her hand and said, "Rong'er, it's not a question of whether it's bad or not. This seven-tailed phoenix was specially made for Rong'er. It's not okay to wear it on someone else. Let's do this! You personally send this one to the Queen Mother's palace. I will make you a new one that looks completely different. I will also announce to everyone that the old style of the Royal Concubine's phoenix crown in the palace is invalid and the new one is officially in use."

An Lingrong thought that after Su Wan'er returned to the palace, she basically wanted everything she liked and wanted to snatch it all, and the empress dowager wanted to give her back all her years of favor and obey her in every way. If the emperor objected, the empress dowager would threaten to commit suicide, causing the emperor a terrible headache.

It’s not that it’s not allowed because someone else has worn it, but the emperor doesn’t want to make the empress dowager angry!

An Lingrong quietly leaned against the emperor's side, letting his hand gently stroke her hair, and listened to the emperor's magnetic voice saying, "Rong'er, you have suffered a lot for me, I don't want you to suffer any more, I want to make you the queen, tomorrow I will ask the Ministry of Internal Affairs to tailor a nine-tailed phoenix crown for you."