After they had all gone far away, Chu Xingmo came out from behind the screen.
The Empress Dowager asked impatiently, "Mo'er, how is it? Among the ladies selected for the imperial concubine selection, is there anyone you fancy?"
Chu Xingmo remained calm and answered without the slightest hesitation, "No."
"oh?"
The Empress Dowager looked into his eyes and said, "In my opinion, Li Yunyan is quite charming. What do you think, Mo'er?"
Suddenly, a pair of bright, shining eyes appeared in Chu Xingmo's mind.
His eyes flickered, and he replied, "Your subject does not remember."
Liu Yuan, standing behind him, frantically winked at the Empress Dowager. His Majesty had finally developed feelings for a woman, and regardless of whether those feelings were romantic or not, as a servant concerned for his master, he had to let the Empress Dowager know!
The Empress Dowager slightly raised her eyes and sighed, "That's such a pity! Such a fine woman, I really do quite like her!"
Chu Xingmo remained noncommittal and did not reply.
The Empress Dowager felt that it was enough. Today, Mo'er had already agreed to give her bracelet to Li Yunyan, which was already quite difficult!
He probably didn't even realize that he would never agree to give away his personal belongings to other concubines, even if they were to be smashed or burned!
Now that it's confirmed that Mo'er's feelings for Li Yunyan are different, the Empress Dowager certainly won't let this opportunity pass!
After Chu Xingmo left, the Empress Dowager said to Qiuyue beside her, "Qiuyue, go to Chuxiu Palace and tell Jiangyue to arrange for Li Yunyan to go to Feihong Pavilion to copy Buddhist scriptures for me every day from Shenshi to Youshi!"
"yes."
Qiuyue accepted the order and immediately headed to Chuxiu Palace.
She was the personal maid brought into the palace by the Empress Dowager and watched the Emperor grow up. The Emperor had always been indifferent to women, and she was just as anxious as the Empress Dowager.
Feihong Pavilion is a pavilion connecting the front court and the inner palace. After finishing his daily affairs, Chu Xingmo would go to Feihong Pavilion to sit for a while. This has been His Majesty's habit for many years, and only the Empress Dowager and those serving His Majesty know about it.
The fact that the Empress Dowager could come up with the excuse of having Li Yunyan go to Feihong Pavilion to copy Buddhist scriptures for her clearly meant that she was giving Li Yunyan an opportunity to get close to His Majesty!
Qiu Yue wished that Li Yunyan had more skills so that she could seize this opportunity to win His Majesty's heart!
Jiang Yue and Qiu Yue were both old servants who had served the Empress Dowager before she entered the palace. Hearing Qiu Yue's words, Jiang Yue immediately understood the Empress Dowager's intention. She repeatedly assured her, "I understand. Go back and tell the Empress Dowager that Jiang Yue will certainly not fail her trust!"
Qiu Yue and Jiang Yue were good friends. After finishing their business, they chatted for a bit. She took Jiang Yue's hand and asked softly, "Is the daughter of Prime Minister Li really that outstanding?"
Jiang Yue didn't hide anything from her, covering her mouth as she said, "Let me put it this way, if even Li Yunyan can't win His Majesty's heart among this year's candidates, then there's even less chance for the others!"
A hope rose in Qiuyue's heart, "Your judgment has always been the best. If you say it's good, then it must be right!"
"You can rest assured and report back to the Empress Dowager!"
"Okay, I'm leaving then."
*
The next day, after completing the homework assigned by Aunt Jiang, Li Yunyan followed Aunt Jiang's instructions and, guided by a young eunuch, arrived at Feihong Pavilion.
Liu Yi led Li Yunyan to the entrance of Feihong Pavilion and said to her, "Miss Yunyan, Feihong Pavilion is here, please come in!"
"Thank you very much, Eunuch Liuyi!"
Li Yunyan stepped up the stairs and then pushed open the door to go inside.
Feihong Pavilion is a five-story tower with latticed windows made of glazed tiles all around, making the interior bright and luxurious.
The first floor was quite spacious, with a carpet shaped like a tortoise shell and a ruyi (a traditional Chinese symbol of good fortune) on the floor. Several landscape paintings hung on the walls, and a set of rosewood tables and chairs stood against the wall. On the table was a purple-gold incense burner shaped like a small animal, emitting a faint scent of ambergris.
The second floor resembled a leisure area, with a small table by the window displaying a chessboard. Opposite the table sat a guqin (a traditional Chinese stringed instrument), its condition suggesting it was a rare and valuable piece!
Upon reaching the third floor, it resembled an office space. Several rows of bookshelves lined the walls, and writing implements, ink, paper, and inkstones were laid out on the table.
Just as Li Yunyan was about to go up to the fourth floor to take a look, she heard the system say: [Host! Chu Xingmo has arrived!]
Li Yunyan raised an eyebrow. "This is truly heaven's help!"
Could it be that Aunt Jiang arranged this on purpose?
Regardless of whether it is true or not, she will thank her properly in the future!
She quickly found the Buddhist scriptures that Aunt Jiang had instructed her to take, sat down at the table, and began to grind ink.
To prevent Chu Xingmo from suddenly seeing her and catching her off guard, Li Yunyan gently pushed Chu Xingmo while humming a tune softly.
Chu Xingmo noticed something was wrong as soon as he arrived today. There was a faint fragrance in the air, a scent that clearly did not belong to him!
His expression hardened. No one was allowed to enter Feihong Tower except him. Who was the fool who sneaked in?
Just then, he heard a light and melodious singing voice coming from upstairs.
Who dares to be so audacious?!
Chu Xingmo was furious and strode up to the third floor. He stopped in his tracks the moment he saw Li Yunyan.
He could never forget those eyes.
How could it be her?
The singing stopped abruptly, and the ink stick in Li Yunyan's hand made a soft sound. She hurriedly put the ink stick back in place and stood up.
He asked with a surprised look, "Brother Guard? What are you doing here?"
Why was he also called a guard?
Chu Xingmo glanced down at his clothes.
After court, he changed into his everyday clothes. He had taken a bath before coming from the Imperial Study. The brocade robe he was wearing now had a more subtle dragon pattern than the one he wore last time.
"Don't you know where this is?" he asked in a deep voice.
This was the first time Li Yunyan had heard him speak, and she secretly praised him, thinking that his voice was so magnetic that it could make one's ears pregnant!
After a moment of infatuation, she answered calmly, "I know! Aunt Jiang sent me here. She told me to come at this time every day to copy Buddhist scriptures for the Empress Dowager!"
Chu Xingmo frowned, knowing that this must be a crooked idea that his mother had come up with!
Does the Empress Dowager really think that she would have any different feelings for this stupid girl who can't even tell the difference between a guard and the Emperor?
Thinking of what his mother had said, Chu Xingmo gave up the idea of kicking Li Yunyan out.
If one plan fails, the Empress Dowager might come up with another! Rather than going through all that trouble, it's better to just go along with the Empress Dowager's wishes.
A month from now, his mother will know his determination.
Chu Xingmo said coldly, "Then go ahead and copy it, but remember, don't go up to the fourth floor!"
"oh!"
Li Yunyan nodded, then sat down and picked up the ink stick. As she ground the ink, she asked, "Brother Guard, are you the guard responsible for protecting Feihong Tower?"
Chu Xingmo did not answer. He walked to the window furthest from her, put his hands behind his back, and looked out the window, seemingly lost in thought.
Li Yunyan had already ground the ink and picked up her brush to begin copying.
To make copying easier, she slightly rolled up her right sleeve, revealing a section of her fair wrist.
On her wrist was a bracelet that was noticeably larger, with huge jade beads swaying and colliding with each other as she moved, making a crisp sound.
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