Chapter 1 Entering the Palace by Imperial Order

(She is a strong woman! She is acting in the first chapter! She is not a saint!)

July of the third year of Qiyuan.

This summer is much hotter than previous years.

Song Zhao looked through the diamond-shaped window at the wilted flowers in the courtyard.

Transparent steam rose from the lotus pond under the scorching sun, and even the cicadas on the branches seemed too lazy to make any noise.

But her boudoir was very cool.

Song Zhao leaned against the warm seat, fiddling with the ice in front of him with his slender fingers.

The cold mist lingered on her fingertips and dissipated with a shake.

Her boudoir was facing west, and she felt like she was living in a steamer all summer long.

Just a few days ago, the imperial edict for her to enter the palace as a concubine was sent to the Duke of Huguo's mansion, and only then did an endless stream of ice be delivered to her boudoir.

'Squeak'

Song Zhao heard the sound of the door being pushed open and subconsciously raised his eyebrows and glanced.

The maid Yunshan came in holding a crimson cloak and placed it neatly in front of her.

"Second Miss, the clothes for entering the palace have been delivered."

It was a crimson purple brocade embroidered cloak. Both the fabric and workmanship were top-notch.

As a concubine's daughter, Song Zhao had never even touched such a good thing before.

Now she has it, but she looks unhappy.

"Keep it for now. I will wear this one when I enter the palace tomorrow."

Yunshan took a look at the smoky blue cloud-patterned shirt Song Zhao was wearing. The material was ordinary, the stitching was rough, and the color was gray. He felt unhappy.

"Second Miss, I know you are unhappy, but the imperial decree to enter the palace has been issued, and everything is set in stone. There is no room for maneuver."

Seeing Song Zhao lowering her head in silence, Yunshan picked up the clothes and compared them with hers.

"Look, this color makes you look so energetic~ A concubine can see the emperor's face on the first day of entering the palace. The master said that you must seize this opportunity and let the emperor take a liking to you at first sight. If you are not valued in the first place, it will be difficult to gain favor in the future."

Song Zhao was silent for a moment, then asked, "What time is it now?"

"Noon. You will enter the palace tomorrow. The master and the mistress are waiting for you in the main hall to pay your respects and say goodbye."

"Help me up and help me with my dressing."

Yunshan's eyes sparkled when he heard this, and he said happily, "Great! As long as the Second Miss is willing to cheer up!"

In her opinion, the fact that Song Zhao still wanted to dress up meant that she had not completely given up on herself.

Although the road to the palace is difficult, it is better than staying in the mansion.

My young lady is extremely beautiful. As long as this face appears in front of the emperor, there is no reason why she would not be favored.

But if I stay in the mansion, I don’t know how much bullying I will suffer from the mother and daughter of the main wife.

While Yunshan was helping Song Zhao with her makeup, Song Zhao took out a new box of gouache from the drawer and handed it to her.

"This gouache was given to me by my elder sister when she learned that I was going to enter the palace. You can use it today."

Song Zhao has very fair skin, and her complexion is as clear and transparent as jade.

With a beauty like hers, she doesn't need any powder, just some rouge and lipstick, and she is already the most beautiful among all the other girls.

But today, Song Zhao asked Yunshan to apply another layer of watercolor on her.

Yunshan said: "In fact, the young lady is already very beautiful even without makeup."

Song Zhao looked at his delicate facial features in the mirror, smiled, and did not respond.

After dressing up properly, she went to the main hall, where the whole family had been waiting for her for a long time.

Sitting at the top seat was the Duke of Protector of the Country Song Shicheng, and sitting on his left and right were his wife Jiang, and his legitimate daughter Song Yue.

Three people, six eyes, all looked at Song Zhao, each with his own thoughts.

Song Zhao knelt down and bowed to the high seat.

"It is the daughter's fault that she came late and made her father, mother and elder sister wait for her."

Song Shicheng raised his hand to let her stand up, "I thought you were stubborn and didn't even want to see me for the last time before entering the palace. Please sit down."

After she sat down, she heard Jiang say in a sarcastic tone:

"You should know that letting you enter the palace is entirely for your own good. Your elder sister loves you, so she gave up her own place in the palace and begged the master to send you to the palace. There are endless splendor and wealth in the palace, and you have received such an advantage, so don't be ungrateful."

"Yes, thank you mother and elder sister." Song Zhao thanked them obediently, and her fingers scratched her cheek inadvertently while speaking.

The eldest sister Song Yue added, "There are only four newly selected ladies in the palace. Although you only got the position of a concubine because of your status as a concubine, the ladies in the palace are all easy to get along with, so I think they won't make things difficult for you."

Song Zhao nodded and agreed, "Eldest sister is absolutely right."

As she spoke, she never stopped scratching her face, and it became more and more intense.

Jiang's face turned serious. "We are talking to you, why are you scratching your head?"

After listening to Jiang's reprimand, Song Zhao put his hand down, enduring the itch on his face. But he heard Jiang exclaim again:

"Ah! Your face..."

Everyone looked over.

Only then did they see that Song Zhao's originally pretty face was now covered with red and swollen rashes, which was shocking to see!

Facing their surprised gazes, Song Zhao covered his cheek and asked doubtfully:

"What happened to my face?"

Song Shicheng hurriedly said, "Don't touch it yet! Someone, go get Doctor Zhang!"

While waiting for Doctor Zhang, everyone had moved from the main hall to the side hall, and Song Zhao also saw his own devastated face in the bronze mirror.

Women value appearance, and Song Zhao was born bright and beautiful, with a natural charm.

She could have earned a good future with this face if she entered the palace tomorrow.

But now that his face was disfigured, everything was over.

She cried so hard that her eyes were wet with tears, and I felt sorry for her.

Jiang's mother and daughter watched the joke from the sidelines, but Song Shicheng was very concerned about Song Zhao's injury.

To be precise, he was concerned about Song Zhao's face that was enough to charm all men in the world.

After all, he was still hoping that after Song Zhao entered the palace, he would be able to gain favor in front of the emperor and help him more.

Later, after Doctor Zhang examined Song Zhao, he quickly found out the cause of the redness, swelling and rash on his face.

"Master, the second young lady is showing signs of refusal to obey."

"The disease of insubordination?" Song Shicheng asked in confusion, "She only insubordination to peach pollen, but since she knew about this disease, the Duke's Mansion has banned the planting of peach blossoms. Now July is not the season for peach blossoms to bloom, so where could she get peach pollen from?"

Doctor Zhang stroked his beard for a while and guessed, "The symptoms are only on the face, which shows that the pollen is not mixed with food and taken. Maybe it has something to do with the daily expenses of the second lady."

Song Shicheng followed this clue and asked someone to investigate in detail.

Soon, the box of watercolor that Song Yue had given Song Zhao, which she had just used, was presented to everyone.

After a careful examination, Doctor Zhang said in fear:

"Master, someone has mixed peach blossom pollen into this gouache! And the pollen is ground very finely. If you don't check it carefully, it's very difficult to find out that it's not right."

As soon as these words were spoken, the side hall suddenly became a mess.

Before Song Yue could open her mouth to speak for herself,

Song Zhao started crying and questioned her, "Why are you so cruel to me, elder sister?"

(Ps: There is no time travel, no rebirth, no transmigration into a book, all the characters in the book are pure ancient people.

The heroine has 10086 ideas in her body, and she is crazy about creating. Please watch and cherish it. That's it~Pen refill~)