Chapter 13: Persuading Eunuch An to Stop Him – He Was Extremely Frustrated

"Thank you, Your Highness, but you also know my identity. I am a princess of the Northern Zhou Dynasty, a foreigner. I suppose you know that I am very useful. Eunuch An will not let me go easily. I am still very useful to him."

Zhao Liangxu comforted Xu Huayue.

"If we're talking about being treated well, then I really need to trouble you to put in a good word for me. At least I can recover my health in Anfu."

What does Xu Huayue want to say?

"Also, actually, Eunuch An did not do what the lady-in-waiting said. He is a really strange person. I often offend him without knowing when. He would then use the pretext of teaching me to practice calligraphy and reading to make me copy words as punishment. But indeed, he is not the kind of twisted eunuch."

Zhao Liangxu always spoke her mind, and since she was now somewhat interested in Anhe, she naturally wouldn't say anything slanderous. In fact, she hoped that such words would help her bring up some things related to Anhe.

As for the fact that I had the thought of killing her many times, let's not talk about that.

However, if she has the chance in the future, she will have to find a way to let Anhe experience this feeling.

Kindness is one thing, but someone who succeeds in palace intrigue must have some skill.

"Sigh, fine, you can stay here for a few days. If Eunuch An asks you to go back, I'll put in a good word for you."

Taking this opportunity, Zhao Liangxu pressed further, "Your Highness, what was Eunuch An like before, and why has he become like this now?"

Upon hearing this, Xu Huayue's face showed a conflicted expression. She sighed and said, "I still can't tell you this. Otherwise, even if you are still useful to Anhe, he will definitely kill you. He is too smart. If you knew about this, he would definitely see through it."

"Apart from this, you can ask anything."

Zhao Liangxu felt a little regretful, but she became even more curious about Anhe.

She didn't ask any more questions, but instead inquired about the Empress Dowager.

"Your Highness, I noticed that the Empress Dowager is quite young, yet appears melancholic. I've never seen her before in the palace, but she clearly dislikes me from the moment we met. Do you know why?"

Xu Huayue flicked Zhao Liangxu's forehead: "You're such a clever one, asking such tricky questions. I take back what I said about you being a good kid."

"However, this matter is common knowledge in the palace, so it won't hurt to tell you."

Zhao Liangxu adopted a posture of listening attentively.

"The Empress Dowager is indeed young. She is only twenty-seven years old this year. She entered the palace ten years ago and immediately gained the emperor's favor. She is also very lucky. She gave birth to a prince not long after entering the palace."

But why have I never heard of her being favored by the emperor?

Zhao Liangxu looked puzzled.

Xu Huayue sighed: "In the end, it's all because of her background. It's already extremely lucky for the daughter of a disgraced official to be able to enter the palace. Even if she gives birth to a prince, her status is still not respectable. Like many other female musicians and singers who enter the harem, she will fade into obscurity."

She took a sip of tea and continued, "As you know, even if they gave birth to a prince, there was already a crown prince who was almost an adult at the time. The late emperor had many children, and His Majesty couldn't stand out at all. The mother and son were also resented by other concubines in the harem because of the favor they received back then. In this way, the princes and concubines who lost favor... You are a member of the Northern Zhou royal family and have been in the palace before, so you should know what the royal harem is like."

Indeed, one can imagine their situation.

"But what does this have to do with the Empress Dowager's dislike?" Zhao Liangxu asked again.

"I'm not entirely sure about that. I only know that she often involves people related to Anhe, perhaps because Anhe threatened him in some way."

This was pretty much what Zhao Liangxu had guessed; it was indeed because of An He.

Otherwise, since she had no connection with the Empress Dowager, why would she dislike her?

However, there was something out of place about this young empress dowager.

Despite its youthful appearance, it appears lifeless. The palace is surrounded by many plants and trees, seemingly in pursuit of tranquility, but the magnificent palace exterior seems out of place. It pretends to be calm and serene, like a hermit chanting Buddhist scriptures, yet it can be easily provoked.

That's strange.

There must be some hidden story, but that's not something Zhao Liangxu can find out in a short time.

Zhao Liangxu asked Xu Huayue some other random questions, which amused Xu Huayue quite a bit.

When they had finished chatting, Xu Huayue urged Zhao Liangxu to go to bed early so as not to upset her.

For the next few days, Zhao Liangxu did not see Anhe. Instead, she heard the palace maids gossiping about who in court was dissatisfied with Anhe's actions and was impeaching him. However, the emperor trusted him, and Li Ying waved his hand, dismissing the ministers' accusations as slander.

I have a feeling that I can already see this country's doom.

The emperor was young and favored treacherous eunuchs, who then held power.

Zhao Liangxu was curious that the Northern Zhou was so weak that it couldn't even defeat the Southern Zhou, whose top leaders were in complete disarray, and was even destroyed.

He's a complete waste of space.

Zhao Liangxu has been living a very comfortable life these past few days. Xu Huayue is quite satisfied with Zhao Liangxu, thinking that she is a smart girl who knows her place.

Zhao Liangxu also became close friends with the palace maids in the Empress Dowager's palace.

From Xiaoqing to Xiaoyu, the younger palace maids loved playing with her the most. After all, Zhao Liangxu could easily change the stories and knowledge she possessed and make the little girls listen with rapt attention.

Even when the infamous Anhe came to pick her up, these palace maids did not hide in the palace. Instead, they stood behind the Dowager Consort, trembling but reluctant to part, waving goodbye to her.

Anhe sneered, which made the palace maids tremble.

"You're quite capable. You've only been with the Dowager for a few days, yet the palace maids treat you like family."

Zhao Liangxu said fearlessly, "I suppose it's because I treat people kindly."

An He was too lazy to listen to her nonsense. Although he hadn't known Zhao Liangxu for long, she didn't seem like the so-called "kind and gentle person" he was used to.

Her heart is probably cold.

"Pack."

Zhao Liangxu always thought An He was pretentious, but little did she know that An He also genuinely thought she was pretentious.

That's really turning the tables.

"So, Eunuch An, are you sending me back?"

"You wish! You want to go back before we've even finished our shift? Of course, you'll come with us to wait for His Majesty."

Just as An He was about to leave with Zhao Liangxu, Xu Huayue spoke up, "Eunuch An, please wait. The number of bolts of cloth delivered by the palace servants a few days ago seems to be incorrect. Could you please take a look?"

Anhe paused.

He was about to say that he would let his servant handle the matter when he suddenly noticed Zhao Liangxu, who was looking up at a tree.

I understand.

It must be related to Zhao Liangxu, otherwise why would the Empress Dowager say such a nonsensical thing?

"Then you can wait outside for a while, Princess Zhao."

He specifically named Zhao Liangxu.

We know exactly what you're thinking.

Zhao Liangxu turned away from admiring the red leaves and raised an eyebrow at An He.

After Anhe and the Dowager Consort went to the storeroom, Xiaoqing, Xiaoyu, and the others dared to approach.

"Miss Zhao, do you really have no choice but to follow him?"

Xiao Qing didn't even dare to mention the name of the Ninth Prince, so she used "he" instead with a wink.

"Don't worry, I'm very capable, I'll naturally be fine."

Zhao Liangxu, distracted by comforting them, walked towards the tree.

The leaves weren't this red just a few days ago.

Xiao Qing exchanged glances with the others, and it was clear that Zhao Liangxu hadn't been listening to them carefully!

This person is good in every way; he is polite and can tell stories. He gets along well with them on weekdays, but they always feel that he doesn't seem to care about anything.

She only focuses on what she wants to focus on.

They were worried sick about Zhao Liangxu, but Zhao Liangxu still had the leisure to admire the trees!

Zhao Liangxu noticed that the tree in front of her not only had beautiful red leaves, but also a thick trunk, with branches so thick that a person could lie down on them.

Ah, I wonder how wonderful it would be to lie there, reading a book while enjoying the scenery.

Zhao Liangxu tentatively touched the tree trunk.

Unfortunately, with her small arms and legs, she had never practiced any tree-climbing skills, making it difficult for her to climb up.

"Xiaoqing, have you ever climbed a tree?"

Zhao Liangxu said something for no apparent reason.

This left Xiao Qing speechless for a moment.

Zhao Liangxu touched the tree trunk with regret, her face full of remorse.

When Anhe came out of the warehouse with a belly full of sarcastic remarks, he saw Zhao Liangxu and found her inexplicably sighing with regret at a tree.

Are you attached to appearances?

Anhe looked at the tree strangely. Nothing special about it.

The old tree in the palace.

An He irritably told Zhao Liangxu to hurry up and leave with him: "I really don't know what you're thinking all day long. I really want to chop off your head and kick it around like a ball."

Xu Huayue coughed from behind.

Hearing the cough, Anhe became even more furious: "What kind of bewitching potion did you give the Dowager Consort to make her speak for you!"

The Empress Dowager, relying on their past relationship, actually spoke up for her just to say a few good words.

If it weren't for the fact that the Empress Dowager had treated him relatively well in the past, and that he wasn't the kind of person who would forget kindness, he would have killed anyone else who spoke up for Zhao Liangxu, even if he didn't use Zhao Liangxu's status to cause himself trouble. He would have killed Zhao Liangxu and the person who spoke up for her.

"You'd better make the best of your ability. I won't kill you as long as you're still useful, but if you really break our family's taboos, the Empress Dowager's words won't matter."

This can be considered a response to the Dowager Consort.

As long as no taboos are broken, he can let Zhao Liangxu stay put.

Li Ying's palace, Zhao Liangxu accompanied An He to the emperor's residence.

"What's the point of me staying here?"

Zhao Liangxu really didn't understand why An He would rather bring her here than let Zhang Sheng take her back.

"You? You will naturally serve His Majesty alongside us."

Anhe gestured for the eunuch guarding the door to go in and report.

Soon, a loud shout from a young man echoed from inside the palace: "Quickly, call Eunuch An in!"

Anhe turned to Zhao Liangxu and said, "Don't you write well? You can teach His Majesty to write today."

"???"

Ah, me?

Zhao Liangxu was puzzled. She had only been learning from An He for a few days and was still a novice.

“You teach him to correct his brushstrokes. Both of your characters look like black lumps. Princess Zhao must have gained some insights from practicing. You teach him.”

They even dragged me into their insults.

Zhao Liangxu felt that she was mentally strong and had never felt frustrated by any of An He's sarcastic remarks, thanks to the skill of letting things go in one ear and out the other, which she had learned while studying in the modern world.

"Then Eunuch An, just you wait and see."

We cannot afford to lose in terms of momentum.

A note from the author:

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I just discovered that this is my first unofficial collection! So touching!

(Finally, I didn't order it myself, haha ​​:P)