"My dear sisters, you've all worked hard. Please return to your palaces and rest well. We'll cancel the morning greetings for today."

Consort Que and the others were delighted upon hearing this.

Consort Hui hesitated for a moment, then frowned and said, "Your Highness, is this inappropriate? As concubines in the harem, it is proper for us to pay our respects to Your Highness."

"Your Highness, the Imperial Noble Consort, you have shown compassion for the lower-ranking noble ladies and concubines by only requiring them to pay their respects on the second day of each month. This is already a great act of kindness."

Xu Lejin stopped and turned around to give Consort Hui a cool look.

"Does Consort Hui mean that you must insist on paying your respects? It's almost dawn now. Does Consort Hui mean that you should all go to my palace now and wait to pay your respects to me?"

"The key to paying respects lies in sincerity, not in the frequency."

Consort Hui murmured, then lowered her head sheepishly.

Xu Lejin gave Consort Que a wink and quickly left with the palace servants.

Back at Yikun Palace, she plopped down and said coldly with a stern face, "I've long wanted to exempt the concubines from their daily greetings, but Consort Hui is just stirring things up."

"Consort Hui lives in Yanxi Palace, the farthest from here, and she's still insisting on paying her respects every day. I..."

Xu Lejin snorted coldly and spoke angrily.

"I should really report to the Emperor and have Consort Hui live even further away, so that she is always on her way to pay her respects, and let her know how hard it is."

Ruhua and Nongying burst out laughing.

After a moment, Ru Hua whispered, "Your Majesty's method is indeed excellent. However, among the Six Palaces of the East and West, Consort Hui's Yanxi Palace is the furthest from our Yikun Palace. Even further away are the Southern Study, Wenyuan Pavilion, Wenhua Hall, and other former court buildings."

"Um."

Xu Lejin frowned, deep in thought.