"Your Majesty, why are you rummaging through other people's things?" Mingxiu complained somewhat embarrassedly.

Kangxi raised an eyebrow at Mingxiu, leaned to one side with his elbow on the table, propped his head up, and looked at Mingxiu with a relaxed and carefree expression: "Yours, why don't you put it on and show me what it looks like, then I'll believe you."

Mingxiu's eyes widened, she twisted her body and stood there, pouting as she began to whine, "Your Majesty~"

Seeing her strange appearance, Kangxi burst into laughter, and Liang Jiugong, who was serving outside, heard his hearty voice.

I wonder what Consort Ming did to make the Emperor so happy.

"Your Majesty~" Mingxiu said angrily.

Seeing that Mingxiu was starting to feel embarrassed and annoyed, Kangxi stopped smiling and waved to her.

Mingxiu looked at him with a pitiful expression, then walked over and sat down next to him, turning her back to him.

Looking at the back of the person next to him, Kangxi felt somewhat helpless. This temperament was truly unique in the harem. He had never seen anyone in the harem get angry with him. Both thunder and rain were expressions of imperial favor. Only she was like that.

From the time he ascended the throne at the age of eight, his life was constantly filled with the struggle for power and desire. He was under constant mental tension and never had time to play. While others were still being pampered in the arms of their loved ones, he was already struggling to reach heights that others could never achieve in their entire lives.

He captured Ao Bai, quelled the Three Feudatories, and fought against court officials. Only now does he have a moment to catch his breath. He has never been a serious person. The concubines in the harem are intelligent, charming, and gentle, but only with her do he feel truly relaxed.

So he always liked to tease Mingxiu for no reason.

Mingxiu sat on the couch, sulking, waiting for Kangxi to coax her. But no matter how long she waited, there was no movement. She couldn't help but turn her head and saw Kangxi staring blankly at her back, seemingly lost in thought. His gaze made Mingxiu feel a little uneasy.

"Your Majesty," Mingxiu began cautiously.

Kangxi then came to his senses and felt a warmth in his heart when he saw Mingxiu's worried eyes. It was probably because he had no selfish motives in Mingxiu's heart. He was content with what he had and did not ask for anything for the family. His heart was only on her and Baocheng.

It was a wise decision to ask her to take care of Bao Cheng at that time.

Then Mingxiu saw that after she called out "Your Majesty," Kangxi's gaze towards her changed, becoming somewhat gratified.

It's even more painful now!

"Your Majesty," Mingxiu interrupted his thoughts.

Kangxi paused, looked at Mingxiu, stood up and pulled her into his arms: "Alright, I was just teasing you. I know you made this dress for me, why didn't you send it over?"

Mingxiu was held in his arms and was speechless when she heard his words. She nestled in his arms and said in a muffled voice, "Your Majesty saw it just now. My skills are really not good. If it were like the previous nightgown, I would have given it away. But this is an outer garment. I really can't give it away."

Hearing her words, Kangxi chuckled somewhat sullenly, looking down at the person in his arms, and tapped his forehead: "You, you know your skills are poor, yet you still don't practice properly, all you do is slack off. Tell me, since you entered the palace, you've only given me a few things, and that poorly made nightgown was given to me a long time ago. On the other hand, you've given Baocheng quite a lot of things." Thinking of this, Kangxi felt a little annoyed. He was always thinking about Baocheng, while he only had that one tattered nightgown, which he kept carefully and even wore to sleep from time to time.

Mingxiu raised her head and chuckled, "How can you compare them? Your Majesty, you see, everything I give to Baocheng is made by others. At most, I just offer suggestions. But what Your Majesty makes is made by me. The intentions are different, so how can we compare them?"

In reality, she really couldn't think of anything else from the Emperor. Besides, Bao Cheng was someone she had raised since childhood; how could he be the same as him?

Kangxi gave her a meaningful look, but didn't expose her. "I won't say anything before, but now, do you want to give me something? I think the style of the clothes you made is quite good. Make another one. Before leaving the palace, I'll have Liang Jiugong come and pick it up. Don't even think about peeking. It takes a year and a half to make one garment, you know?"

"Ah~" Mingxiu raised her head and looked at Kangxi. "Your Majesty, I really don't like doing needlework. Besides, I'm already very busy. I have to study every day and I don't have any time. How about I give Your Majesty something else? I promise I'll put a lot of thought into it."

"No, I only like the clothes you make. Make them well, understand? And don't leave anything else behind. Send them all over later." Kangxi looked at Mingxiu dangerously and directly rejected her words.

Mingxiu was dumbfounded. She hadn't expected that she wouldn't be able to shirk the task of making the clothes, but that something else would be added to her. She immediately dared not say anything more, afraid that something else might be added.

She could only sulk in Kangxi's arms, feeling distressed.

Kangxi ignored her, putting one arm around her waist and stroking her hair with the other. Mingxiu had already finished washing up, and her hair was tightly held in place by a hairpin. She didn't like using hair oil, so it felt very comfortable to touch her fluffy hair.

After a long while, Mingxiu gently scratched Kangxi's chest and whispered, "Your Majesty, I also need time to learn embroidery. This is essential. Could you reduce my schoolwork a bit? Otherwise, I won't be able to manage."

Feeling the itch on his chest, Kangxi felt a bit itchy and uncomfortable. Hearing Mingxiu's words, he really didn't know what to say. She really would do anything to be lazy.

In fact, after watching her study for a long time, Kangxi could clearly sense that she wasn't incapable of learning, but simply too lazy to do so. When teaching her the Four Books and Five Classics, she would say that she had never studied them, but as long as he explained them in general terms, she could understand their meaning.

The same applies when learning sheet music. Once I teach her, I can check her later and find that she has almost mastered it, even without much practice.

When she was teaching her, the only subjects that seemed to go wrong were calligraphy and drawing; she had completely given up on drawing. It's really hard to understand how her hands are shaped; they're usually quite nimble, but whenever she draws, her five fingers look like they've just grown out, which is infuriating.

He has already given up teaching her to draw.

Feeling Mingxiu's mischievous hand on his chest, Kangxi sighed almost imperceptibly. Oh well.

"From now on, all your homework except for calligraphy practice will be reduced by 10%, is that okay?"

Mingxiu excitedly raised her head. Although it was only 10% less, the Emperor had arranged so much for her that even 10% less was not a small amount.

"Thank you, Your Majesty," Mingxiu said with a smile to Kangxi.

She nestled back into his arms, wrapped her arms around his neck, and showered him with kisses, leaving countless kiss marks on his handsome, fair skin. She writhed and twisted in his embrace, her voice sweet enough to melt honey: "Your Majesty is the best! I love you the most! Don't worry, Your Majesty, I will certainly not disappoint you and will make you a fine dress." Mingxiu patted her chest loudly.