The Empress felt somewhat disheartened. "Sister," she inquired, "is this truly not normal?"
Sister Ji furrowed her brow. Whether it was normal or not, that was hardly the issue. But without sharing a room, how were children to be conceived?
"Your Majesty, you're still young. Do you really not plan on having a prince of your own?"
After pondering for a moment, the Empress lowered her head and blushed. "What do you mean by that, Sister? Of course, I wish to, but this..." It wasn't as if she could just decide on her own.
Sister Ji thought for a while, then whispered, "Perhaps... some wine or... some medicine?"
The Empress was shocked. "Sister, that is unacceptable! You've been in the palace for a while now; how can you not understand this principle? Don't you know why Honored Lady Shih was rejected by the Emperor?"
"One misstep leads to a cascade of errors! I cannot afford to be confused!" By this point, the Empress was growing angry.
