Wang Shu's learning process was also very interesting.

After all, she's a beautiful but dim-witted girl, so she can't be too smart, but she can also be so stupid that it's infuriating. How to portray a likable underachiever is the key and challenge of Wang Shu's acting.

Fortunately, Emperor Kangxi did not have high expectations for her; in fact, he had very low expectations. Although she was not smart, she was not the kind of person with a bad memory, but rather someone with a poor understanding of things.

Emperor Kangxi taught him that there were times when he found her annoying, but some of the things she said often made him laugh and find them extremely interesting.

Although Kangxi felt that she lacked intelligence and beauty, she was innocent and kind, just a little more so than the average person, and not hopelessly stupid.

Most importantly, even teaching her to read and write made Kangxi happy.

Wangshu offers a wealth of emotional value.

Jingyang Palace gradually became a place for Kangxi to pass the time. Anyway, he could stay in his room. Although he could not completely control the palace, he could still manage Jingyang Palace without any problem.

At the very least, Wang Shu discovered that many palace servants had been replaced in Jingyang Palace; some of the more clever ones were gone, but Granny Zhang and Su Mu were still there.

Several months passed like this, and as the weather grew colder, Granny Zhang of Jingyang Palace suddenly gave out a sum of money, roughly equivalent to a month's salary. The reason was that Wuya of Chengqian Palace had given birth to a prince.

This money was given by Consort Tong, because the child was given to her to raise as soon as he was born.

Then Wangshu noticed that Kangxi was in a good mood. Well, with a healthy son, how could he not be in a good mood?

He was over twenty years old. Over the years, many concubines in the harem had become pregnant, but either they couldn't give birth or the babies were weak and couldn't be raised. He longed for a healthy child.

Emperor Kangxi was naturally happy that Lady Uya had given birth.

Have you also had some good news?

Kangxi countered, "You encountered it too?"

Wang Shu said with a cheerful expression, "Wu Ya gave birth to a healthy prince, and Consort Tong gave her a month's salary as a reward! We in Jingyang Palace usually don't have many opportunities to receive rewards, so this is naturally a joyous occasion."

Kangxi suddenly became curious: "Didn't you intend to serve the Emperor? How come you're so happy that Uya promised to give birth to a healthy prince?"

Emperor Kangxi knew exactly what his concubines were like and never believed they could truly get along peacefully.

But Wang Shu gave him a different feeling; she didn't seem to care much.

Wang Shu looked at him strangely: "Is there a conflict between serving the Emperor and Wu Ya agreeing to have children?"

“Wuya promised to be a palace maid. If you can serve the emperor, won’t you be competing with her for his favor in the future?”

Strictly speaking, you are enemies.

Although Emperor Kangxi did not have a detailed understanding of the bondservant families, he was not completely ignorant of them, as many of his concubines came from such families.

This was intentional on his part, and it was also a means of checks and balances. However, Wuya was a special case; she was not directly selected to enter the palace as a concubine, but had previously served as a palace maid in Chengqian Palace.

Uya agreed that she was clever and knew how to read people's expressions, and Kangxi naturally liked such a knowledgeable, tactful, and gentle concubine.

Wang Shu's appearance was so striking that she would look exactly like Wu Ya when she entered the palace. As a palace maid, even if she could achieve a high position, there could only be one of her, and he could only promote one of her.

Does Wang Shu know about this situation?

Of course she knew, but she was an "idiot," and how could an idiot understand all these intricacies?

Wang Shu said somewhat dejectedly, "Who the Emperor likes is not something you can win by competing for favor. Although I have never met Consort Wuya, I have heard that the Wuya family has carefully cultivated her for the Emperor. I definitely cannot compare to her. I don't want to compete at all. It's too tiring. I would be content to be a concubine and not have to work every day."

Emperor Kangxi never expected that she would be so insecure and so easily satisfied.

"You're spineless!"

Even so, he was still quite happy.

People who are cunning and calculating find it easy to get along with honest and straightforward people!

Wang Shu glared at him: "Where is the lack of ambition? A person lives a lifetime, and it is already good enough to be alive, or to live a slightly more comfortable life. If it weren't for my cousin's kindness, it would have been good to be a palace maid in Jingyang Palace for the rest of my life. With a friend like you by my side, it would have been good not to serve the emperor."

Kangxi's main concern was, "Having a friend like you by my side."

He was still young when he ascended the throne, and he was surrounded by sycophants. Over time, he found it difficult to distinguish who was sincere and who was hypocritical.

Those who can stand in front of him and gain a foothold almost all have excellent acting skills.

His understanding of the way of the emperor was that one should not care about what people think, but rather observe what they do and employ capable people. As for their thoughts, that is not important.

That's not important.

Wang Shu's feelings for him may not have been romantic love, but they were certainly genuine.

As he grew older, Kangxi felt less and less genuine affection, which even overturned his perception of her. The Empress Dowager, his maternal grandmother, also became somewhat unfamiliar to him.

Back at the Qianqing Palace, Kangxi suppressed his original intention to promote Lady Wuya to the rank of Noble Lady.

Originally, he wanted to promote the Wuya family, but when he thought of Wang Shu, he felt that Dai Jia was also a good option.

"Liang Jiugong, select more items to send to Wuya."

Liang Jiugong was taken aback when he didn't hear that Wuya had agreed to the promotion, but he quickly recovered and said, "Yes, this servant will arrange it right away."

In Chengqian Palace, Consort Wuya was still in her postpartum period. As the palace maid read out the Emperor's rewards, she couldn't feel happy because they were missing the imperial decree for promotion that she wanted.

With a smile, she said, "Please thank the eunuch who presented the imperial gift for me, and don't forget to pay for the tea."

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!