Chapter 292

Just a moment ago it was "I," and now she calls herself "this servant." Fuling shook her head helplessly. She had spoken the sincere truth; Lanzhi probably thought she was putting on airs to brush her off.

"Sister Lan'er, let this servant do this kind of thing."

Standing outside the door, through the half-open hall door, Fuling saw Lanzhi standing beside Lan'er, speaking respectfully and cautiously.

Lan'er sized up this clever palace maid beside her and frowned, "Do you know how?" The Consort was always served closely by Fuling, and there was simply no turn for her and Xia Yin to intervene. She disdained doing rough work like washing and sweeping, but seeing that the Consort treasured these begonias, she had just pruned the branches in passing.

Seeing that Lan'er's expression was not very good, Lanzhi hurriedly replied, "This servant once learned from the old nanny who pruned branches in the palace. My craftsmanship is certainly not as good as yours, Sister, but these chores should be done by us servants anyway. You just need to give me some pointers from the side."

Lan'er raised her eyebrows slightly; this palace maid had a sweet mouth. She handed the scissors in her hand to Lanzhi without ceremony and smiled, "Then thank you for your hard work."

Lanzhi looked terrified and said anxiously, "Not at all. This servant just arrived and doesn't understand anything; I will need you to give me more pointers in the future, Sister."

Lan'er nodded with satisfaction. After walking two steps, she suddenly turned back and asked, "What is your name?"

"This servant's name is Lanzhi."

After looking at her again, Lan'er smiled, "Then you prune first; I'll come back to check in a while."

"Yes." Lanzhi responded while bowing respectfully. Lan'er returned to her own room in a good mood. The respectful expression on Lanzhi's face immediately vanished, though she did the work in her hands quite earnestly.

Fuling sighed softly. People like Lanzhi were perhaps better suited for life in the palace; all she needed was an opportunity. In fact, everyone in the inner palace was competing for favor. The mistresses longed for the Emperor's favor, and the servants were the same, hoping to be appreciated by their mistresses. Everyone was competing. She had originally thought that Qingfeng and she were both people who didn't compete, but now it seemed Qingfeng was also competing.

This, this was the inner palace. Fuling suddenly felt like she couldn't breathe. Looking up at the stars filling the sky, a pair of cold and arrogant eyes suddenly flashed through her mind. That person... did he disdain competing? Realizing that she had thought of that cold and arrogant man again, Fuling's brows furrowed tightly.

"If you have something to say, speak."

Inside the room, the candlelight was warm, and the atmosphere was rarely harmonious. Yan Hongtian's tone was relaxed, and he seemed to be in quite a good mood. Qingfeng pondered for a while and said, "Nanny Xu has been by the Empress Dowager's side for so many years. Now that she is being expelled from the palace, there will be no one close to take care of the Empress Dowager's daily life and diet. It would be better to let her stay in the palace to serve the Empress Dowager well and make up for her faults with merits."

Yan Hongtian's hand holding the wine cup paused, and his cold eyes darkened slightly, "Is this what you wanted to say?"

His voice was very light, and no joy or anger could be heard. The Empress Dowager had pleaded many times; it was impossible for the Emperor not to give her face. If he hadn't agreed by now, it must be because he wanted to save this favor for her. She was saying such things now; there was nothing inappropriate about it, right? Qingfeng speculated inwardly before replying again, "Yes."

"Since my beloved concubine is pleading for her, it is granted." Just as Qingfeng expected, Yan Hongtian did not make things difficult for her, but why was there such coldness, and even some disappointment, in his tone? Just as she wanted to look up to see his expression, Yan Hongtian suddenly stood up, pushed open the door, and strode away under her astonished gaze. Staring at that striding figure, Qingfeng's heart was full of confusion. Was he angry just now? But what was he angry about? Or was he expecting her to say something else?

The Emperor had been gone for quite a while. When Fuling entered the room and saw her mistress standing there blankly with her brows locked, she couldn't help but worry and called out softly, "Mistress?"

Shaking her head, Qingfeng still couldn't guess Yan Hongtian's thoughts and simply ignored it, "I'm fine."

Her gaze swept over the ink-black large umbrella standing against the wall. Qingfeng thought for a moment and said, "Fuling, it hasn't been raining lately; let's put the umbrella away first." If this umbrella were left here and seen by Ming Ze next time, wouldn't it be even more awkward? She couldn't always be so disheveled in front of him!

"Yes." Fuling picked up the umbrella and found that it had accumulated some dust. Taking the umbrella outside the courtyard, Fuling opened it, wiped the surface clean with a dry cloth, and when closing it, felt an uneven spot on the upper end of the handle. Looking closely, it was two characters—Qiyu? The characters were carved very small; if one didn't look carefully, one wouldn't see them at all. What did these two characters mean? Was it the owner's name, or a mark from the umbrella shop? Unable to guess the reason, Fuling didn't pay it much mind, closed the umbrella, and put it into its cover.

This umbrella had been in her mistress's room for so long; it must be special to her. Pulling open the innermost drawer of the cabinet, Fuling placed the umbrella inside, thoughtfully separating it from the other umbrellas.

The sun was setting. Qingfeng lay on the lounge chair in the courtyard, looking at the begonias filling the yard. They had clearly adapted to the new soil; their branches and leaves were lush and vibrant, but unfortunately, they hadn't bloomed yet. Qingfeng had also had people plant a few clusters of white chrysanthemums along the courtyard wall. Midsummer had passed, and it was early autumn. The white chrysanthemums had just sprouted new buds, and among the still-green dwarf bushes, they were particularly eye-catching, faintly revealing an elegance that faded into the breeze.

Under Fuling and Huang Jiao's careful care, her body had improved a lot, and her stomach no longer ached faintly. But Huang Jiao said she was still too thin, so Fuling changed the patterns of soups she stewed for her to drink every day, just like now.

Fuling brought the freshly stewed chicken soup to Qingfeng's side, only to hear her mournful voice rise, "Fuling, don't you feel that things have been a bit strange these days?"

Serving the soup to Qingfeng's mouth, Fuling smiled, "Nothing is strange." If she had to say something was strange, it was that they were trying every way to nourish this mistress, yet she remained skin and bones.

Sitting up straight and taking the soup bowl from Fuling's hand, Qingfeng rolled her eyes at her and said, "I mean, the inner palace is too calm. The Emperor didn't even investigate the so-called witchcraft thoroughly, and the Xin family just let it go and left it at that; it's really quite strange. What's even stranger is that the Emperor named me Consort Qing, and neither of the two Empress Dowagers summoned me to make things difficult, and the Empress is also so composed?"

Fuling smiled bitterly. It seemed that if she didn't explain things clearly, this mistress wouldn't be able to rest easy and nurture her pregnancy. "The celebration is about to begin, and envoys and merchants from various kingdoms have arrived in the capital one after another. The Emperor said that state affairs are paramount, so the witchcraft matter in the inner palace should be dropped and not mentioned again. Prime Minister Lou is getting married in two days, and the Western Empress Dowager is afraid that Princess Zhaoyun will do something foolish, so she has been accompanying her every day, which is why she hasn't been able to attend to you. The Eastern Empress Dowager has been at odds with the Emperor because of the conferring of the consort title, and coupled with Prime Minister Lou's insistence on marrying Miss Ling, she was angered. Fortunately, the Emperor finally allowed Nanny Xu to stay in the palace, so the Eastern Empress Dowager's anger subsided a bit. These two days, she is preparing to set off for the Linchuan Villa to recuperate, out of sight and out of mind. As for the Empress..."

Qingfeng asked vigilantly, "What about the Empress?"

Fuling sighed and smiled, "The Empress has been using the excuse that her health has not yet recovered, closing her doors and refusing to see guests."

"I still feel it's strange." Shaking her head, Qingfeng absolutely did not believe that Xin Yuening would just let it go.

Pregnant women are easily irritable and suspicious. Fuling looked at the sky; the sun was setting behind the mountains, and the sunlight was not so intense. She smiled, "Why don't this servant accompany you for a walk? The imperial physician said that moving around more is good for you and the child."

"That's fine."

The two strolled along the small paths of the inner palace. Palace maids and eunuchs knelt on the ground from afar when they saw her. Other concubines either hid far away, or if they really couldn't hide, they would wisely come over to pay respects and then flee like they were escaping after she nodded. Was this the treatment of a so-called favored consort? The feeling of stepping on people along the way was not unpleasant, but it was also exhausting. Even a favored consort like her, who was borrowing the Emperor's power, had such a feeling, so what about Yan Hongtian? Qingfeng inexplicably thought of the way he suddenly left a few days ago. She could be certain he was angry, but she couldn't understand what he was angry about.

Qingfeng smiled faintly. The women in the inner palace really had nothing to do except think about men, and what's more, they could only think about that one man.

Approaching the Imperial Garden, various flower scents mixed together and assailed them. Qingfeng felt a bit like vomiting, picked up a silk handkerchief to cover her mouth and nose, and whispered, "The flower scent in the Imperial Garden is too strong; it makes me feel uncomfortable. Let's go for a walk elsewhere."

"Yes." Knowing she liked quiet, Fuling supported Qingfeng and walked toward a quiet path to the side.

On both sides of the path were newly grown acacia trees. It was early autumn, and the branches and leaves were still lush. The setting sun fell through the layers of leaves, casting mottled shadows on the ground. Qingfeng stepped on the dappled afterglow, smelling only the faint fragrance of grass and trees. Her steps became slower and slower, and a shallow smile hung on her lips; she liked it here. Until the last trace of the evening glow was swallowed by the night, and the sky gradually darkened, Fuling saw that Qingfeng still had no intention of returning and advised softly, "It's getting late, Mistress, let's return."

Qingfeng stood still, pointing to a woman not far away, and asked, "Fuling, look, who is that person?"

Fuling looked closely. A thin figure was holding something in her hand, looking around as she walked forward cautiously. Looking at that figure and appearance... Fuling replied, "It seems to be Wu'er from Consort Hui's side."

It had just turned dark, and being so sneaky, it definitely wasn't anything aboveboard. Qingfeng whispered, "Let's go over and take a look."

Following Wu'er for a distance, they saw her skillfully pass through a small round gate. Qingfeng wanted to follow, but Fuling stopped her, "Mistress, ahead is the Cold Palace. Wu'er is probably just going to see Consort Hui. Your body is delicate; it's better not to go over. This servant will go and take a look."

What the situation was like in the Cold Palace, besides Zhen Zhen and Wu'er, she didn't know who else was inside, and she was pregnant, so following in like this was indeed inappropriate. Thinking for a moment, Qingfeng nodded and replied, "Hmm. Be careful yourself. No matter what you see, don't make a sound, and come back as soon as possible."

The worry in Qingfeng's eyes warmed Fuling's heart, and she smiled and nodded, "Hmm."

After Fuling went in, only Qingfeng was left. She noticed that this place was indeed remote. Other palace paths would have a small palace lantern lit every three to five yards, but here it was pitch black. The bushes on both sides of the road were poorly cared for and had grown wildly to about the height of a person; looking over now, it was a dark mass. The night wind also picked up. Qingfeng rubbed her arms gently and began to feel that letting Fuling go in was also a wrong decision.

After waiting for a while, Qingfeng was worried about Fuling. Just as she was hesitating whether to enter the Cold Palace to take a look, a rustling sound suddenly came from three or four yards behind her, and the waist-high bushes shook violently, not like it was blown by the wind. Qingfeng was startled, who was there?

(End of chapter)