The Consort Shu, who usually keeps a low profile, has been making quite a stir in the past few days, and two things in particular have spread rapidly throughout the palace.
Rumors are usually exaggerated.
The first thing that people in the palace were talking about in private was that Su Tiyue had somehow managed to get Minister Xiao to personally introduce her to the Emperor.
Clearly, this was referring to the Jingxin Pavilion incident. Su Tiyue was speechless. She had been framed by Xiao Heye; she was innocent, okay? She knew nothing about it!
There's another matter concerning her moving into Tingyu Tower. Many people in the palace, upon hearing this, are all waiting to see her fail. They believe that by the side of that great demon Xiao Heye, she'll inevitably bring trouble upon herself and ultimately meet a tragic end, reduced to ashes.
Su Tiyue: ...Why can't I just hope for something good to happen to people?
Su Tiyue sighed, took a big gulp of the red date and snow pear soup that Liu Wan had just stewed, then walked to the window on the left side of the chaise lounge, stuck her head out of the window, took a deep breath of the fresh air outside, and could also take a look at the scenery of the inner courtyard of Yelan Pavilion.
After moving to Tingyu Tower, Su Tiyue's bedroom was set up on the second floor. Opening the north window, one could see the inner courtyard of Yelan Pavilion.
If by chance, Xiao Heye also goes up to the second floor of Yelan Pavilion and sits by the window enjoying tea, they can just peek at each other through the window.
But in reality, there aren't that many "what ifs".
Because of the case involving Xue Yu, the prefect of Xuzhou, Xiao Heye's decisive and ruthless actions drew opposition and impeachment from a large number of officials in the court. To silence them, he personally drafted a memorial detailing Xue Yu's crimes of corruption, bribery, and forming cliques. Although the case was supported by ample evidence and witnesses, it remained a very difficult case to handle.
Because Xiao Heye acted first and reported later, and his methods were cruel; also because... he himself was a great traitor.
In the words of those in the imperial court, "If we're talking about corruption, bribery, and forming cliques, no one in the entire Northern Liang can compare to this mad dog, Xiao Heye." However, they could only talk the talk; none of them could produce a single piece of evidence. Xiao Heye was meticulous and never left any evidence or cause for gossip. Therefore… whenever a meticulously planned and flawless tragedy occurred in Yong'an City, everyone would unconsciously turn their attention to Xiao Heye, the Grand Secretary of the Directorate of Ceremonial.
Xiao Heye has never denied this, even though he didn't do all those things.
Over time, Xiao Heye got used to it, and became increasingly reckless in his actions and killings, bearing the reputation of a villain.
Those people were all afraid of Xiao Heye and wanted to get rid of him as soon as possible, but they were all cowardly and afraid that Xiao Heye would take the opportunity to retaliate. So they could only stick together for warmth. If Xiao Heye made a wrong move, they would be like jackals and tigers in the wilderness, all of them would pounce on him and bite him, even if it meant ending up with their mouths full of blood.
In their view, anything was worthwhile as long as Xiao Heye died.
Unfortunately, they have never been able to achieve their goal.
...
Su Tiyue was unaware of the affairs of the court, but she would still frequently go to Yelan Pavilion late at night. She would crawl into his bed in the middle of the night, shamelessly snuggle up next to Xiao Heye and fall into a deep sleep, and then, fearing that the people of Jinxiu Palace would discover her, she would quietly get up and run back before dawn.
Xiao Heye is a light sleeper. Her coming and going, seemingly well-intentioned in warming his bed, actually means that Xiao Heye doesn't sleep well on any night she's there.
But he still held back.
One morning, when I returned to Tingyu Tower, I unfortunately ran into Liuwan and Qingwu, who were getting up to use the restroom...
The moment their eyes met, she really wished she could disappear into a hole in the ground.
Liu Wan knew Su Tiyue's predicament and thoughts, so she didn't say much about it.
However, Qingwu completely misunderstood.
That day, Qingwu scratched her head and paced back and forth in her room, circling around Su Tiyue several times before finally figuring something out.
Regarding her mistress, why she suddenly insisted on moving to Tingyu Tower, and why Su Tiyue ran to Yelan Pavilion in the middle of the night.
Qingwu could only think of one answer: My lady likes Master Xiao.
“Your Highness, if you truly love Master Xiao… this servant may not fully understand your actions, but you are my mistress, and I will support whatever you do. After all, feelings are something that cannot be explained.”
Qingwu scratched her head and said, "Also, Your Majesty... has your relationship reached this point?" Qingwu gently touched the index fingers of both hands together.
"Huh?" Su Tiyue looked helplessly at Liu Wan and opened her mouth. This was really not easy to explain to Qingwu... Qingwu knew nothing about the matter of Prince Rong, and she knew nothing about the deal between Su Tiyue and Xiao Heye.
It's understandable that Qingwu would have such thoughts.
Since it's impossible to explain clearly, we might as well go with the flow.
“Oh…yes, that’s true. Qingwu…but could you keep this a secret?” Su Tiyue stammered as she nodded in acknowledgment.
Qingwu rolled her eyes at her: "What is Your Highness thinking? How could I dare to tell anyone about such a big thing? If word gets out, we'll all be finished."
"Your Majesty, I just can't understand what it is about Master Xiao that you like so much?" Qingwu asked, her head drooping.
Su Tiyue hesitated for a long time, but couldn't come up with a suitable reason.
In the end, it was Liu Wan who came to her rescue: "Qingwu, you can't be so rude. Her Highness treats us well, so we should do everything we can to help her. Don't forget, she is our mistress..."
Liu Wan poked Qing Wu's head with her finger and scolded, "How dare you pry into your master's secrets?"
This chapter is not finished yet. Please click on the next page to continue reading the exciting content!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
