"Your Majesty, I am doing well in the harem."

Xiuning lowered her head, thoroughly annoyed by the way the question was phrased. It was as if she were teasing a pet cat or dog, but reality was harsh; she had to put on a smiling face, after all, the Emperor was the most powerful person in the harem.

After hearing Xiuning's words, Kangxi was not surprised, because whether it was the Empress, Consort Shu, or even the Mongolian concubines who had the support of the Empress Dowager, they all had to be obedient and sensible in front of him if they wanted to win his favor.

If Xiuning were to try to show off her uniqueness at this moment, she might end up making a mess of things and getting scolded by Emperor Kangxi.

"That's good. I've been busy with state affairs these past few days, so I'll have to postpone my promise to spend more time with you."

After saying that, Kangxi suddenly changed his tone and asked Xiuning a question that left her bewildered, "Do you resent me in your heart?"

Um?

Xiuning was startled by these words and immediately came to her senses. How could she dare to blame the Emperor?

He raised his head and stared straight into Kangxi's intrigued eyes.

Xiu Ning's eyelids twitched slightly, her eyes clear and pure. "If I say I don't resent Your Majesty, Your Majesty certainly won't believe me. If I say I resent Your Majesty, I have no reason to."

Your Majesty is wise and discerning, always acting as a wise ruler, and would never betray the nation, the people, or the Qing dynasty.

Instead of explicitly stating whether he resented it or not, Xiuning simply used two hypothetical inferences to elevate Kangxi's behavior to an unattainable level, and even praised Kangxi's self-pursuit.

In reality, the companionship that Kangxi spoke of was merely a natural expression of deep affection; anyone who believes it is a fool.

Emperor Kangxi was surprised by Xiuning's answer. He lowered his head and remained silent for a while before saying, "I didn't expect you to think that way. I misunderstood."

Kangxi thought that Xiuning would be like the other women in the harem, saying she had no complaints and always showing her gentleness and virtue. However, Xiuning changed her approach and made Kangxi even more satisfied.

"Your Majesty has no misunderstanding. I am just a humble woman, but deep down I still long to be with Your Majesty."

As long as Your Majesty hasn't forgotten me, I'm happy.

As she spoke, Xiu Ning revealed a bright smile, radiating an infectious energy from within.

"You're quite clever."

Looking at Xiuning's smiling face, Kangxi reached out and patted the back of her hand, "Even if I forget someone, I will never forget Ning'er."

Hmm, he can spout nonsense so easily; no wonder he's a man who can keep the many concubines in the harem in check.

"Your Majesty~"

With a glance, Xiu Ning lowered her head shyly, her whole aura so gentle it seemed to melt into a puddle of water.

Seeing this, Kangxi couldn't help but swallow. It wasn't that he couldn't control himself, but Xiu Ning was just too tempting, like a ripe peach that made him want to take a bite and enjoy it.

It wasn't dark yet, and Kangxi dared not do anything out of line at such a time.

Forcibly suppressing his temper and changing the subject, Kangxi chatted with Xiuning for a few more minutes, but the topic unconsciously turned to offspring.

Emperor Kangxi has few children now, and his only son, Prince Chengrui, is not in good health. Consort Shu and Lady Zhang, who are pregnant, are not the ones he desires. So naturally, he wants Xiuning to be pregnant and give him a son or daughter.

Xiuning blushed with embarrassment at these words, thinking to herself that the Empress had not yet given birth to a legitimate son, and anyone who dared to overstep the Empress's authority would be waiting to be targeted by the Empress and Hesheli.

"Your Majesty, what you say is true. The matter of having offspring cannot be accomplished by me alone." Halfway through her sentence, Xiu Ning's eyes seemed to be hooked, leading Kangxi to think in an inappropriate direction.

The atmosphere in the main hall became ambiguous. Xiu Ning licked the corner of her lips, her cherry-pink lips looking particularly alluring.

Glug glug—

After swallowing several times, Kangxi's eyes unconsciously darkened.

...

The main hall of Kunning Palace was brightly lit by candlelight.

Hesheli Fangyi stood at the entrance of the main hall, like a lifeless statue, her gaze fixed on the distance.

"Your Majesty, it's getting late. You have to pay your respects tomorrow, so you should rest."

Granny Li walked up to Hesheli Fangyi and carefully reminded her mistress.

But Li Mama couldn't remind her about Hesheli Fangyi's condition.

The person remained motionless, not sparing Li Mama even a glance.

Granny Li: ...It's really strange. How come the mistress has changed so much since the new concubines entered the harem? She wasn't like this before.

Tap tap—tap tap tap—

Light footsteps came from outside the door. When Li Mama saw Tan Yun running so fast, she was so frightened that she immediately waved her hand. Didn't she see that her master was grieving and sad? At this time, she still dared to run over without knowing her own death.

Tan Yun didn't care about that. She had made a major discovery, and once she finished speaking, her master wouldn't have time to wallow in self-pity.

"What? The concubine Borjigit of Yonghe Palace is pregnant, and Consort Shu is plotting to have her aborted?"

Hesheli Fangyi was jolted awake by the big news brought by Tan Yun. She immediately lost all her sadness and focused all her attention on Tan Yun. "Tell me in detail, what exactly happened?" She had missed so much important information.

Tan Yun replied softly, "Yes," and then began to tell her master the whole story of the Borjigit concubine.

Hesheli Fangyi's eyes lit up upon hearing this, which made Li Mama's heart tighten. She quickly reached out to support her, saying, "Your Highness, let's go back to the inner room to talk about this."

The main hall was still not safe. Li Mama did not doubt that there was a problem between the three of them, but she was uneasy about the palace servants outside, thinking that the Empress Dowager was still holding on tightly to the power of the palace.

With a soft "Mmm," Hesheli Fangyi nodded and turned around, signaling for the person to follow.

"Do we have spies at Yonghe Palace?"

Such top-secret information could not have been discovered without connections.

“There was a young palace maid, whose job was menial, but she was responsible for the daily washing and changing of the clothes of the Borjigit concubine.”

This time, it was because Consort Borjigit's period was a few days late. The young palace maid sensed something was wrong and happened to see someone adding something to Consort Borjigit's medicinal food, which led her to discover the truth.

Tan Yun felt that it was all just luck. Who could have imagined that this would happen? Even the concubine of Borjigit herself did not think she could get pregnant.

If this little palace maid hadn't discovered it, even if Consort Borjigit had miscarried, she might not have suspected anyone of poisoning her; she would have just thought she was careless.

"Your Majesty, we can simply refrain from taking any action and observe the conflict from the sidelines."

Li Mama felt that with Consort Shu, who was willing to risk her life to cause trouble, her mistress didn't need to get herself involved.

"It's good to sit on the mountain and watch the tigers fight, but it's better to be the one who waits in the wings and reaps the rewards."

Thinking of the child in Consort Shu's womb, and then of the Empress Dowager's lingering interest in the Mongolian concubines, Hesheli Fangyi smiled slightly. "I have my own plans for this matter. Perhaps we can achieve two goals at once, and our Kunning Palace will be the ultimate winner."