mtl008 Chapter 124: Conspiracy
Chapter 124: Conspiracy
"My lady, it's time to leave the bedroom!"
"My lady..."
"Aunt Jinxi, I'm awake now."
Zhen Huan stretched out her hand from behind the curtain and sat up with the help of Cui Jinxi.
After she finished washing, Liu Zhu put makeup on her, and deliberately put more powder under her eyes, but it failed to cover the dark circles.
"Master, the kitchen has made some rice dumplings with fermented rice wine. Please have some first."
Zhen Huan waved her hand.
"I can't eat. Suiyuxuan is far from Jingren Palace, so let's go and pay our respects."
The emperor had clearly promised to come to Suiyuxuan to see her yesterday, but he went to Yonghe Palace for lunch first, and then went to Zhongcui Palace to visit Concubine Chun.
The dinner on her table gradually lost its temperature, and no news was delivered.
What was even more embarrassing was that Huanbi had somehow learned that the emperor was coming to Suiyuxuan, and the news had been spread to everyone.
When the palace maids in Suiyuxuan knew that the emperor had broken his promise, they all kept silent, fearing that they would displease their master.
The other concubines who came to pay their respects in Jingren Palace were not so cautious. Their glances, either overt or covert, kept sweeping over Zhen Huan, making her feel very uncomfortable.
But no matter how embarrassed she felt, she couldn't show it on her face.
Shen Meizhuang, who was sitting next to her, looked at her worriedly, but couldn't say anything in front of so many people.
The others still had some dignity, but Concubine Ke, who was pregnant, laughed out loud with glee.
"Sister Wanpin, the emperor didn't come to Suiyuxuan to see you yesterday. I guess something delayed him. Please don't complain."
She didn't give Zhen Huan any chance to refute and pretended to be magnanimous.
"I heard that Concubine Chun of Zhongcui Palace is seriously ill. As her elder sisters, we should take good care of her."
Anyway, it's not her face that is damaged, so she doesn't care.
"Sister Kepin is right. Especially since Sister Wanpin and Concubine Chun are like sisters, she should naturally take better care of them."
Concubine Cao put down her teacup and spoke softly.
It seemed like she was trying to help Zhen Huan out, but in fact, when she said this, she glanced at Shen Meizhuang who was looking at Zhen Huan sideways.
First, Shen Meizhuang helped Zhen Huan to secure the emperor's favor, so why didn't Zhen Huan use the sick Concubine Chun to seize the emperor's favor later?
No matter what the truth is, as long as the emperor doesn't go to other people, Zhen Huan will arouse public anger.
Zhen Huan, feeling distressed, was about to speak when Jiang Fuhai's singing could be heard from behind the pearl curtain.
"The Queen is here!"
"Your humble concubine pays homage to Her Majesty the Queen."
"Sisters, please don't be polite."
The Queen looked at Zhen Huan, who looked unhappy, and felt even more satisfied.
"I want to share a good news with all the sisters."
"The Emperor has given us a sister."
"Rou promised to come out and greet the sisters soon."
A woman in plain clothes appeared at the door. An Lingrong felt that she looked familiar with her fresh and elegant appearance.
When she heard the other person's voice, her heart was shocked.
This was the voice she had been trained to have by the Queen in her previous life!
Could it be that this person was promoted by the Queen to consolidate her favor?
When Rou agreed to pay her respects, An Lingrong, upon closer inspection, discovered that she bore some resemblance to Zhen Huan.
No wonder the emperor would break his promise to stay for such a woman.
She smiled and said no need to be so polite, then looked up.
"Your Majesty, I see that Rou promises to be gentle and polite. May I ask if you have arranged accommodation for her?"
"Sister Shufei, Rou promised to serve Concubine Chun beforehand."
"She is grateful for Concubine Chun's support and has requested to stay in Zhongcui Palace."
"I have always been a helpful person, so I'll just follow her wishes."
The queen's answer directly pointed out the origin of Rou's ascension to the throne.
Huanbi, who was sitting at the back, had red eyes from jealousy.
She and Biyun served the master together. Why was Biyun given the title of concubine and a given name as soon as she served him in bed?
Huanbi turned her gaze to her eldest sister, but saw that her eldest sister was looking at Rou with a smile and agreed.
Even when it was Rou's turn to pay her respects, he gently invited her to visit Sui Yuxuan often.
The other concubines are nice to Biyun, but why is the eldest sister like this too?
She was so angry that she planned to embroider Biyun herself, but she didn't expect that after paying her respects to the concubine, she returned to the embroidery bench at the end.
She was so angry that she had no place to vent.
The Empress was in a particularly good mood today, and three out of ten sentences she spoke were related to the Emperor's new favorite, Rou.
In the morning, Jianqiu personally went to Zhongcui Palace to deliver gifts, followed by Hua Fei and An Lingrong.
At Zhen Huan's urging, Huanbi reluctantly gave a piece of cloth of a dull color.
Zhongcuigong
Fang Jiachun held Rou's hair in a bun with tears in her eyes and agreed, speaking apologetically.
“Biyun, Miss, I am not trying hard enough, but it only makes you suffer.”
"Miss, please don't say that. If Madam hadn't picked me up from the mass grave, I would have become a wandering ghost long ago."
"I was frozen when I was young, and I will never have children in my lifetime. It is a great blessing to have the honor of serving the emperor."
Biyun knelt in front of the bed to comfort the pale young lady.
Even Concubine Wan, who had been kind to the young lady, took the opportunity to add insult to injury. If she didn't help the young lady, everyone in Zhongcui Palace would definitely be bullied and have no place to stand.
Seeing that the young lady was crying even harder, Biyun hugged her in her arms out of heartache.
"Miss, I will do whatever you don't want to do. I will never let anyone hurt you again in my life."
Biyun patiently coaxed the young lady to sleep and left the inner room with red eyes.
"Rou agreed. The East Side Hall has been cleaned up. You can go and rest for a while."
Xiangyun stepped forward to support the person who was trembling as he walked.
The young lady was attacked by snakes twice in succession, and she was very resistant to outsiders approaching her except for those close to her.
They had no choice but to push the loyal Biyun out.
"Sister Xiangyun, I'm fine."
"The main hall is five rooms wide. Please prepare a bedroom for the master."
"My lady, I obey your orders. The palace has strict rules, so please call me by my name from now on."
The young lady in their family was like a frightened bird and could no longer withstand the slightest disturbance.
At three quarters past three in the afternoon, the emperor put down the memorial in his hand.
"Su Peisheng, go to my inner treasury and find a rubbing of an inscription. I want to appreciate it with Wanpin."
"The slave obeys the order."
Su Peisheng randomly picked up a rubbing from the late Ming Dynasty.
"Your Majesty, may I ask if you would like to inform Sui Yuxuan?"
"No need, I'll be there soon."
He broke his promise yesterday, so coming in person today seemed more sincere.
"The Emperor has arrived!"
Hearing the singing, Huanbi jumped up from the couch and hurried out to pay her respects.
"Concubine, please see the emperor."
"Get up."
The emperor said this casually without even looking at her, and walked past her to help Zhen Huan who was about to salute.
"Han'er, there's no need to be so polite."
"I have come across a rubbing of an inscription from a previous dynasty, and I've brought it here for you to appreciate. Let's go in quickly."
Huanbi looked at the two people walking into the main hall together and bit her lip hard.
In the main hall, the emperor and Zhen Huan finished appreciating rubbings of inscriptions and calligraphy in the study, and after dinner they were pulled to play chess.
"Zhen Yuandao is indeed a good parent. Huan'er is not only extremely talented, but also has excellent chess skills."
"Your Majesty, I am deeply ashamed to accept your praise."
After the two played two more games, Zhen Huan stood up and apologized.
"Your Majesty, I suffered a miscarriage last time and have not yet fully recovered. Please forgive me."