Chapter 9

"It's nothing, I just feel like you're really annoying me."

Qi Nian'an let out a heavy sigh, pushed Shao Sizhi aside, and walked forward without looking back.

The lights in Consort Ling's palace had long been turned off. Shao Sizhi turned his head to look at her, then at Qi Nian'an's departing figure, but ultimately did not chase after her.

The two lonely shadows stretched even longer under the moonlight, and neither of them turned around.

*

"Your Highness Consort Ling, this is the Dowager Consort's bedroom, you cannot go in!"

"Get out of my way!"

Consort Ling's face was flushed. She pushed aside the palace maids blocking her way, disregarding all etiquette and rules. The silver hairpin in her hair trembled slightly with each step.

She pointed at the emperor with her hand and said through gritted teeth, "Last night I waited for the emperor for half the night and was woken up by someone. When I got up this morning, I saw that the area near the palace gate had been dug up in a mess."

How dare you!

Qi Nian'an sat listlessly in front of the bronze mirror, resting her chin on her hand, and glanced at Consort Ling.

"I'm sorry, but the emperor was supposed to come to your palace, but you went to sleep first, and then we had a fight, so he didn't go."

Consort Ling was speechless for a moment.

She grabbed a stool at random, hesitated for a long time, and finally couldn't resist.

"You had a fight with His Majesty?"

“We didn’t argue, but he felt something was really off. You know that feeling? It’s like he likes everyone, he’s friendly and indifferent to everyone, and then he’ll give them a little something in return. It’s just so uncomfortable.”

Qi Nian'an looked at Consort Ling's eyes, which were gradually shining, sighed, and continued to prop up her chin.

She was very frustrated, but Li Xiaoran had been busy with something lately and she could hardly see her, and Shao Sizhi hadn't lifted her confinement.

"How did they argue? And what was it about?"

Consort Ling casually picked up some melons and fruits from the table, gently waving her fan as if she wanted to stare at Qi Nian'an but was also a little embarrassed.

“If you explain yourself clearly, I will not hold your rudeness yesterday against you.”

"You don't care? We're all concubines, so there's nothing for you to complain about."

Qi Nian'an scoffed, and seeing that Consort Ling was about to get angry and slam her hand on the table, she quickly said, "Alright, alright, I'll talk."

"It's so boring in the palace. Shao Sizhi just locked me up here like he didn't care about me. What could I do? I tried to attract his attention by pretending to be a ghost and digging a pit, but he wouldn't fall in!"

"Not only did he not jump, he also tried to entice me to jump and mocked me."

"That's just how he is, and how dare you be so bold?!"

Consort Ling took a bite, then froze.

After a long pause, she suddenly jumped up and shouted angrily, "So you're trying to steal my favor, you!"

"I've explained what you said clearly to you, so you won't hold it against me."

Qi Nian'an smiled slightly, got up and walked towards Consort Ling, casually slipping a handful of melon seeds into her hand.

"Eat up, eat up, there's plenty of sunflower seeds."

As the two remained locked in their standoff, Liu Neng led a group of palace servants up the steps and leaned against the window, watching them with a smile.

"Steward Liu, what brings you here?"

Consort Ling noticed this with a glance, stepped forward, and smiled.

"Your Majesties, I have come to deliver the imperial decree."

Liu Neng waved the imperial edict in his hand and then looked at Qi Nian'an.

"Consort An received the imperial decree. His Majesty has granted her the lifting of her confinement order. He is pleased with her obedience and virtue, and remembers her previous act of risking her life to protect the Emperor. Therefore, he bestows upon her a rare copy of the 'Rules for Women,' a masterpiece of 'Qiyang Distant Waters,' a pair of exquisite wolf-hair calligraphy characters, a Yunyang inkstone, and a thousand taels of gold."

Qi Nian'an was quite confused.

Immediately afterwards, Liu Neng took out another imperial edict from his sleeve.

"Consort Ling, receive the imperial decree. By the grace of Heaven, the Emperor proclaims: I have heard that the rules of the palace emphasize solemnity. As a consort, you should strictly adhere to these precepts, remaining cautious, quiet, and dignified. Recently, I have heard frequent rumors that you secretly met with the Dowager Consort in her palace and witnessed the behavior of the sons of the Li and Gao families. Such conduct is truly indecent and deeply disappoints me. If you repeat this mistake in the future, tarnishing the reputation of the Imperial Household, I will punish you severely according to the palace rules and will not tolerate it."

Consort Ling gritted her teeth and glared at Qi Nian'an with resentment. After receiving the decree, she turned and left.

Qi Nian'an looked at Liu Neng and asked, "What did His Majesty just say?"

*

The doors of Zhengyang Palace were wide open, and the winter sun was shining brightly. Qi Nian'an and Li Xiaoran each had a recliner with freshly squeezed juice beside them, looking quite content.

"On the surface, he rewarded you, but in reality, he used you as a comparison point in front of Consort Ling, stirring up hatred between you and Consort Ling. You two already didn't get along, and now this is perfect."

Li Xiaoran sighed softly.

"Honestly, staying away from him will reduce your troubles by more than half."

"But I want to win him over and make him fall in love with me."

Qi Nian'an pulled the blanket up to cover her face, looked up at the sky and let out a long howl, arching her back slightly.

"What trashy screenwriters and writers, what a trashy project."

Li Xiaoran sat up abruptly, looking at her strangely, and asked, "Your mission is to seduce Shao Sizhi?"

Qi Nian'an nodded, then suddenly seemed to realize something and asked, "Yours..."

"My mission is to kill Shao Sizhi."

Dry.

Qi Nian'an angrily pounded the recliner, and the two stared at each other in silence.

"It's fine. I don't plan to complete the mission. I can't bring myself to kill someone for this damn mission."

Li Xiaoran lay back down, smiling disdainfully.

"But if he dares to hurt you, I'll have to reconsider this mission."

Qi Nian'an hummed in agreement, then smiled wryly, turned around and took Li Xiaoran's hand.

Back then, Li Xiaoran was a gentle and kind motherly actress. When she was young, she married a famous director in the industry, but the director turned out to be a pervert, and the marriage was unhappy.

I had just started out at the time, and maybe I was just a newborn calf who wasn't afraid of tigers. I accidentally saw the director cornering me in a bathroom stall backstage. He was arguing with me about the difficulties of getting a divorce, and the well-dressed director got angry and started hitting me.

It's not that no one saw this, but no one did stop it.

Besides throwing a punch and knocking down the director without hesitation, and kicking Li Xiaoran in the groin before pulling her away, he abandoned the original script and presented evidence during a live broadcast, trying to help her get out of trouble day after day.

Because of this incident, I was banned for quite some time, which was very upsetting.

But she was used to being sad since she was a child, so she didn't think it was a big deal.

On the contrary, Li Xiaoran felt extremely guilty, feeling that she had implicated her, so she came over every day to chat with her and play games with her. Over time, she discovered that her soul was perfectly matched with Xiaoran's, so they decided to live together and get through that dark time hand in hand.

Until fate smiled upon them, their hard work finally paid off, and a generous hand was extended, pulling the two of them back into the spotlight and in front of the camera, making them an overnight sensation.

Li Xiaoran knew what she was thinking, squeezed her hand, and the two of them burst out laughing.

"I think you were too devoted to him before. If we're talking about strategies, to make him fall in love with you, you don't need to become the kind of person he likes. Instead, you need to make sure he likes you no matter what you are like."

"Then we need to look at his upbringing and past experiences, what kind of partner he desires, grasp the essence, apply it appropriately, and proceed gradually."

Qi Nian'an's eyes lit up when she heard this.

"I understand!"

"You're doing this..."

Li Xiaoran whispered something in Qi Nian'an's ear, leaving Qi Nian'an stunned and staring at her in disbelief, almost unable to believe his ears.

Her ears!!

"Don't worry, I know what I'm doing."

Li Xiaoran waved her hand, then lay back on the recliner, basking in the sunshine, looking quite content.

In an instant, Li Xiaoyi followed Zhiyang into Zhengyang Palace. Today he was wearing a sky-blue round-necked robe and a dark-colored crown. His sideburns had been carefully groomed, showing that he had put a lot of thought into it.

"Your Highness, Consort An."

Li Xiaoyi awkwardly looked away, fiddling with his cuffs through the screen, then sat up straight, hunching his back slightly before straightening up again.

"Recently, the Emperor bestowed upon Qiyang Clouds and Water Painting, but Consort An does not understand it. I have heard that Young Master Li is a famous talent in the capital. I wonder if I could ask you for some advice on what is so special about this painting, Clouds and Water Painting?"

Li Xiaoran asked with a smile, casually pulling back the screen and giving Qi Nian'an a nudge.

"Since you are teacher and student, let's not stand on ceremony. You two can continue your discussion. Lady Hou is still waiting for me inside the hall."

Having said that, he turned and left without any hesitation.

Qi Nian'an waved, and Li Xiaoyi slowly walked up, intentionally keeping a distance, and the two discussed the painting at a moderate distance.

"This painting was created by Zhang Jin, a recluse from the previous dynasty. Its composition is orderly and its momentum is magnificent. The foreground begins with withered rocks, which connect to tall trees and mountains. In the distance, a waterfall corresponds to the staggered red peaks. The three perspectives can be said to be perfectly natural. The brushwork and ink techniques are also..."

"What a huge rock!"

Qi Nian'an was getting drowsy listening to the conversation, but finally found an opening to interject and say something to show that she was listening attentively.

Li Xiaoyi looked up at Qi Nian'an in astonishment, his eyes gradually regaining their clarity.

He sighed and covered his face in frustration.

"Does Your Majesty find my speech tedious?"

"It's not that it's boring as you say, it's just that the things in these paintings aren't interesting. I think it's only interesting to stand in this scenery in person. I wish I had the chance to go and see it."

Qi Nian'an said earnestly.

...

Li Xiaoyi had never been so shocked as he was today.

"It is widely rumored in the capital that Her Majesty has exquisite features and is a noblewoman from a prominent family. Her skills in calligraphy and painting have already reached the pinnacle. When I received the imperial decree, I thought..."

"Please, bro, look at me. You say I'm completely clueless about music, chess, calligraphy, and painting, but I'm really good at singing and dancing."

Qi Nian'an patted Li Xiaoyi on the shoulder cheerfully and casually broke into a beatbox.

Young Master Li, feeling as if he had been transported to another world, finished appreciating this profound art with great unease, much like a rabbit that had stumbled into a pack of wolves, completely disoriented.

Qi Nian'an nudged him, and he took a few steps away.

The two of them finally decided to change the setting for an immersive teaching experience. It must be that this place was too cold and boring, which caused Consort An's temperament to change so drastically.

The palace boasts numerous magnificent sights, all meticulously arranged by renowned artists. But when it comes to the most spectacular winter scenery, the Plum Garden stands out.

Li Xiaoran was overjoyed to hear of the two's decision and issued a special decree ordering the young master of the Li family to teach Qi Nian'an the arts of music, chess, calligraphy, and painting. The euphemism was to cultivate her character and prune her crooked branches, but in reality, it was to find Qi Nian'an something to do so she wouldn't be thinking about digging pits and ambushing Shao Sizhi all day long.

Of course, it was also part of the plan devised by Qi Nian'an and Shao Sizhi as part of their romantic military strategy.

Qi Nian'an timed it perfectly: Shao Sizhi would leave court at this time, then argue with the young master of the Li family. This way, Shao Sizhi would definitely notice that he couldn't ignore this place, and then Qi Nian'an would take the opportunity to replace the tutor with Shao Sizhi.

That's settled.

Li Xiaoyi agreed, but Li Xiaoran insisted that it was unreliable. Qi Nian'an was naturally unconvinced. Helpless, he agreed to decide which version of the plan to adopt based on the results. Since Qi Nian'an's plan had not been realized, he reloaded the save and went back to listen to Li Xiaoran.