Chapter 392
According to the rules, carriages entering the palace must stop here, and Xia Zi had prepared some water and pastries in advance.
Xia Zi's expression was solemn. He flicked the whisk in his hand, and for a moment he was also a little hesitant. Not only did His Majesty's and the Imperial Concubine's carriages not stop, but they were also sitting separately. This was the first time since the Imperial Concubine entered the palace.
At this moment, Fu Hai jogged over, winking at his master as he said, "Master, you'd better hurry! His Majesty was furious when he returned from the palace. Don't worry about the Imperial Concubine for now!"
Xiazi's heart skipped a beat. He couldn't care about anything else and turned to run into Yong'an Palace with Fuhai.
Not long after, news spread through the palace that the Imperial Concubine had fallen out of favor. After His Majesty returned from his palace, he immediately placed the Imperial Concubine under house arrest. It was said that the Imperial Concubine had displeased His Majesty while he was recuperating.
That night, His Majesty summoned the goddess Chongmeng to his bedchamber, and the sounds of things being smashed echoed throughout the Golden Palace.
*****
Nighttime, inside the chilling ice palace.
Kneeling before the late empress's ice coffin, Shen Man was reciting scriptures in a low voice. Her face was ashen and her expression was listless. She looked more like a corpse than the late empress lying in the ice coffin.
For the past two weeks, she has suffered both physical and mental torment. Kneeling in this ice palace every day, her knees have long been corroded by the cold, causing her great pain. The horror of the ice palace has also filled her with fear and dread.
Just as Shen Man was chanting sutras, the two palace maids guarding the door seemed to be talking about something:
"Have you heard? After His Majesty returned to the palace today, he immediately placed the Imperial Concubine under house arrest. Now he has summoned a goddess to serve him in bed. It seems that the Imperial Concubine's exclusive favor is about to be broken."
"The goddess has been in our harem for some time now. If it weren't for the presence of the Noble Consort, His Majesty would probably have already favored her. After all, the First Prince Chongmeng once said that with the goddess, the country would be prosperous and peaceful."
"You're right. With such a beautiful meaning, how could His Majesty let it pass? We still have too few mistresses in our harem. If we had more, the Imperial Concubine wouldn't be so favored..."
"Shh! You can't say that. If the master finds out, you'll be beheaded."
......
Kneeling in the ice palace, Shen Man heard the palace maid's words, and her recitation of scriptures unconsciously slowed down, but she quickly resumed her usual pace.
Right now, she no longer thinks about anything else but survives in this harem. The autumn hunt has made her much more docile.
At this moment, Zi Fei and Zi Yu walked over.
Ziyu quickly came to Shenman's side and excitedly helped her up.
She kept saying, "Consort Shen, His Majesty has just lifted your confinement. From now on, you no longer need to chant scriptures in this Ice Palace!"
Shen Man's knees were already numb, and she could only lean against Zi Yu to get up. Zi Fei was negotiating with the palace maids on guard.
When she heard what Ziyu said, tears immediately welled up in her eyes: "Your Majesty, have you really released me?!"
With tears welling up in her eyes, Shen Man had been in agony every day for the past two weeks. Now that His Majesty had ordered her release, she was both excited and thrilled.
Ziyu nodded: "It was His Majesty who personally sent someone to deliver the decree. Shen has agreed that we can go back, and we no longer need to kneel and chant scriptures in the Ice Palace."
Shen Man was excited, and she couldn't help but wonder if His Majesty's decision to let her go this time was related to the confinement of the Imperial Concubine.
Zi Fei had finished negotiating with the palace servants and came to Shen Man's side. Together with Zi Yu, she helped Shen Man back.
Shen Man returned to her residence, but without much rest, she immediately picked up her pen and wrote a letter to the outside of the palace. In the letter, she mentioned that the Imperial Concubine was under house arrest and also revealed that she herself was having difficulty moving around in the harem due to a lack of money.
Having knelt in the Ice Palace for half a month, she had given up hope of the Emperor's favor. All she could do now was survive in the harem and try to get Shen Zheng to send money in.
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