Chapter 17 Chapter 17
The lively birthday banquet lasted until the evening. The emperor was in high spirits and did not refuse the toasts from his ministers. He looked at the treasures presented by the children with a smile, and even gave the crown prince a bottle of medicine, encouraged him with warm words, and talked with the queen about the medical skills of the second prince.
It is a perfect night for lovers to meet on a bright moon. However, the concubines also know that in the past, they could still have some hope, but now that the imperial concubine is in favor again, how can it be someone else's turn?
But there were always bold beauties who mustered up the courage to flirt with him, and some even stood up to dance and offered a glass of wine when they saw that the emperor did not reprimand them.
There was even one who performed the Lingbo dance in a unique way, with her wide sleeves fluttering, as if she had become an immortal, and her chest was as bright as a crescent moon, with a few beads of sweat on it.
After the dance, even her hair was a little messy, but her cheeks were flushed and she looked even more charming.
...Isn’t this what the imperial concubine did in the beginning?
Chen Rongshou didn't know whether there would be a second favored concubine tonight, but he knew that there was no woman in the world with a worse heart, more irritating than Concubine Wei, who did not take her own life seriously.
Logically speaking, the more occasions like this, the more careful one should be when handing over wine, especially since the imperial concubine...had drugged the emperor.
Although this matter has not been spread out, the imperial concubine has not been punished, and there will always be another person who is not afraid of death and wants to imitate her.
However, after the first cup, Emperor Yuan Shuo signaled them to leave, and the rest was self-evident.
It’s hard to say whether it’s disappointing or fortunate, because until the end of the banquet, there was no embarrassment like that time.
The emperor's ceremonial procession had already been prepared, but they could not rashly go to the Yaoguang Palace without Emperor Yuanshuo's permission.
The wine at the banquet was mostly sweet and fine. It was always unwise for the emperor and his ministers to drink freely, but it was always unwise to cause trouble. However, Your Majesty had drunk several rounds tonight, and I was afraid it would harm your sacred body. He whispered, "Can I ask the kitchen to make a bowl of sobering soup?"
Emperor Yuan Shuo looked a little tired and said, "I'll go for a walk alone."
The moonlight is bright, the Milky Way is far away, and cicadas are chirping one after another. It is a good time to relax.
The breeze blew down the leaves, making crisp sounds when stepped on. Before I knew it, it was almost the Qixi Festival.
Time flies, and people are one year older. There is nothing to be happy about. When the late emperor was alive, the palace would hold a banquet at this time every year. Later, as the day was approaching the current emperor's birthday, this event became dispensable. However, the queen would worship the moon with the concubines and princesses, and that was a lively occasion for women.
Outside the palace, the lovers still met each other, but she lost her husband in July and was reluctant to recall this festival.
He didn't have to have her. Not to mention that she was in her prime, even if she was in her eighties, there were still many concubines waiting for the king's favor.
But she was the only one who dared to embarrass him so much.
She knew everything, so she was fearless and even too lazy to act. She even played tricks on people in secret to feel satisfied.
The feeling of waiting is not pleasant. The occasional bit of sweetness is mixed with countless worries. This has far exceeded his expectations of his concubines... It is a useless thing that should be given up.
The emperor was not a man trapped by love, nor would he get drunk for this. Having made up his mind, he only admired the autumn scenery in the garden for a while before returning to Qingping Palace.
The Qingping Palace was no different that night than any other. The emperor had no intention of summoning his concubines and simply served water as usual.
According to custom, when the emperor was bathing, the eunuchs would light the candles in the study one by one, grind cinnabar first, and wait for the emperor's approval.
There were not many memorials left tonight. Because of the celebration of the emperor's birthday, there were only two or three ministers on duty at night. The palace servants replaced the strong tea with refreshing osmanthus tea, and everything went according to plan.
Chen Rongshou was not on duty at night, so a eunuch came in to take his place, but he still felt uneasy while serving.
Emperor Yuan Shuo could be considered a monarch who was easy to serve. He did not have the strange habit of torturing eunuchs and palace maids for fun, and he did not approve of the arbitrary infliction of torture. However, the lives of slaves were as worthless as ants, and their life and death were all decided by the emperor. If he was negligent for a moment, he would be expelled from the palace at any time, and his life would be worse than death.
He paid attention to the ups and downs in the emperor's brow, and the ticking sound of the water clock was very quiet in this night.
Suddenly the emperor put down his pen, his face expressionless, and asked casually, "Who's on duty tonight?"
The eunuch said carefully, "Your Majesty, tonight Zhou Pushe of the Council of State and Fu Sheren of the Secretariat are on duty, and Shen Xueshi of the Hanlin Academy is waiting for orders."
When the emperor drafted a decree, after consulting with the prime ministers, it was usually written by a Hanlin scholar, who would then be sent to the local authorities through the Secretariat. However, upon hearing the names of these men, Emperor Yuanshuo showed no intention of summoning them. Instead, he frowned and asked, "Is Shiheng not here?"
Shi Heng was the courtesy name of the Duke of Yan. He was several years older than the emperor. Unexpectedly, when they reached middle age, the emperor and his subject did not become relatives, but instead became father-in-law and son-in-law. Due to this status, the emperor had not addressed them in this way for a long time.
The eunuch said, "Duke Yan has been feeling a little unwell lately and asked for leave yesterday."
Emperor Yuan Shuo took a sip of the cooked water. The rich aroma of osmanthus lingered on his lips, a hint of bitterness beneath the sweetness. The candlelight flickered, and he stared intently at the light. He actually smiled and said, "Send him in."
The imperial concubine offended the emperor, and now her father had to take the blame on her behalf. The eunuch sighed for Duke Yan, saying that even at the beginning, His Majesty had no intention of implicating Duke Yan's Mansion, so it was obvious that today's matter would not end well.
He was about to leave when he heard Emperor Yuanshuo ask, "Are all the utensils used by the imperial concubine in her daily life in the palace?"
The words were spoken calmly, but at this moment they seemed quite terrifying. The eunuch answered yes, with cold sweat on his back. It was not uncommon for a royal family to divorce their wives, let alone concubines. The previous emperor had placed several concubines in other houses in Chang'an. Although they were provided with food, clothing, shelter and transportation, and allowed to visit their mother's family, the palace no longer asked about them, and there were layers of guards outside the house, which was not far from imprisonment.
Has the imperial concubine's arrogance...displeased the emperor to this extent?
You don't even have to wait for curfew.
He hurriedly retreated and saw someone from a distance outside the hall. He almost thought he had encountered a ghost. After a moment of hesitation, he politely asked, "Why are you here, Aunt Tan Rui?"
Unlike what I remembered, Tan Rui, who was beside the Imperial Concubine, had lost her usual dignified and reserved demeanor. A closer look revealed a distressed expression beneath the lamplight. She held a wax-sealed letter in her hand and whispered, "The Imperial Concubine asked me to deliver something. Please, please, do me a favor."
The eunuch gave her a sympathetic look. He had the emperor's order, so he couldn't say much. He only said implicitly, "His Majesty will summon an external official tonight. Aunt, why don't you wait a little longer?"
What's the use of being afraid now? Although Your Majesty treats the concubines kindly, the emperor's tolerance is always limited. The king is appointed by heaven and cannot be offended.
Such punishment is not the most humiliating. Even if the emperor wants to order the concubine to commit suicide and send her naked body back home, wouldn't the Duke of Yan's Mansion still have to express gratitude and long live the emperor?
Tan Rui's face turned a little paler. Not to mention when the imperial concubine was in favor, even when she was in the temporary palace, the people in the imperial court had never been so distant from her.
She thought of the imperial concubine's frowning brows and tearful eyes, and the way she wrote and burned, burned and wrote again while working at her desk. She thought that the imperial concubine had really done something big, so she gritted her teeth and asked someone to pass on the message.
The one keeping watch outside was Chen Rongshou's godson. When he saw that it was Tan Rui who had come late at night, he heaved a long sigh of relief, went in with a smile on his face, but came out very quickly, saying in embarrassment, "Your Majesty is busy with government affairs, so please go back, aunt."
The original words are much more concise.
The emperor's eyes fell on the memorial, without even raising his head: "No."
But Tan Rui refused to leave. She waited quietly for a quarter of an hour before asking someone to pass on the message. The eunuchs who were originally easy to talk to became like wooden stakes. Just when she had nowhere to turn to, she heard footsteps in the distance.
Very light, about four people.
The eunuch led the way with a lantern, and it was time to lock the palace. Wei Jingzhong encountered some troubles and delays along the way. He looked solemn, and only when he saw Tan Rui did he show some understanding and resignation.
Even though his daughter was disliked by the emperor, he still maintained his composure at this moment and said politely, "I will wait in the corridor to hear the announcement. Please ask the eunuch to come in and ask for your majesty's grace."
When the dust settled, the eunuch, though somewhat reluctant, returned to the palace to report, "Your Majesty, the Duke of Yan is waiting outside."
He waited quietly for a while, but before His Majesty could summon him, he heard Emperor Yuan Shuo slowly say, "Is the imperial concubine's people still in the corridor?"
The eunuch's heart was filled with turmoil, but he dared not criticize the emperor in his heart. He said truthfully, "The head of Yaoguang Palace brought a letter, saying it was written by the imperial concubine herself. The servants also tried to persuade her, but she refused to go back."
The sycamore trees are tall, their shadows covering the window, moving slowly past, revealing the coolness of the autumn night.
He was used to seeing killing in the Purple Palace, so he didn't think that His Majesty would change his mind. At most, he might be a little nostalgic.
The imperial concubine should be able to live a better life in the future than those concubines.
"Tell someone to present it."
Emperor Yuan Shuo raised his hand and pressed his brow. He could smell that she had recently preferred the scent of jasmine. She must have mixed a new fragrance and wanted to permeate even the letter.
The eunuch serving outside the door suddenly turned from a piece of wood into a living person. There was a little candle wax on the envelope that was stained with a faint floral scent, revealing a little red inside, which was very inconsistent with the simple and fresh fragrance.
The owner of the letter was also incompatible with the court. He was interesting and beautiful, but he was unwilling to compromise his feelings in the slightest, and was not even willing to try to please the court.
She told him clearly that even if the emperor gave in to her in every way, she would not give up her love for her ex-husband and bow her head.
But he is not a man who can tolerate sand in his eyes. Faced with these love entanglements, it is always easier to withdraw.
Men love their second wives, and women cherish their ex-husbands. Since she has such feelings, it is meaningless to come here by force.
But as if by some strange coincidence, he casually cut open the envelope, and out fell a piece of delicate red paper, and a peony sprinkled with gold powder, gleaming brightly under the lamp.
The writer took great pains to write on the letter paper, but there was only a short sentence on it.
"Do you still miss me?"
His heart suddenly became confused. She grew up in the mountains, and she knew that after the Shangsi Festival, when men and women were in love, the peony season would also be over.
A man and a woman were joking with each other, and one of them gave the other a spoon of medicine.
Perhaps it was God's will that she didn't know that she was about to leave him, but a blessing came to her mind and she suddenly prayed for his love and mercy.
The eunuch waited for a long time, not daring to breathe, until the emperor at the top of the table stood up, and then the waiters went to greet him.
"It's a cold night with heavy dew. Tell Duke Yan to go back to bed."
Emperor Yuanshuo pondered for a moment and then ordered, "I have just obtained a piece of calligraphy by Youjun. I will invite him to appreciate it another day."
Duke Yan was summoned in a state of confusion, then led away by the eunuchs in a state of confusion. He had to have some explanation, but after he left Qingping Gate and asked about the Imperial Concubine's recent situation, the eunuch waved his hands and said with a smile, "My Lord, the Imperial Concubine serves His Majesty. What could be wrong with her?"
If there is anything wrong with it, it's probably that I was born too late.
There was nothing to fault with the imperial concubine's background, appearance, and even favor. More than a decade earlier, Wei's luck would have been much better.
He thought of the storm that had been suppressed silently, and couldn't help but look back at the Yaoguang Palace where the star-like candles were lit.
Even now, who can say for sure?
…
There were servants coming in and out of Qingping Palace day and night. Yaoguang Palace, which had been silent for a long time, became lively again only tonight.
The eunuchs in front of the emperor hurried over to serve him. They no longer had the energy to reprimand the Yaoguang Palace for its neglect. They wished to lower their presence further and further.
When Emperor Yuan Shuo came in, what he saw was a hazy painting of a lady on an autumn night.
Heavy curtains separated a secluded world. Even the lights and candles were out. Only the moonlight was still softly shining on this cold palace-like place, illuminating the pearls on the curtains.
The glazed palace lanterns brought by the eunuchs illuminated the scroll, giving people a glimpse of the entire picture.
The beauty in the bedroom was kneeling on a couch. She was wearing a thin dress and had her hair pinned with a wooden hairpin. She was lazily drawing her eyebrows in front of a bronze mirror. On the table stood a wine pot and two small silver cups.
It's like a scene in a dream.
But the ladies in the paintings will not get off the bed barefoot just because of the sound of the viewer's footsteps, but will lightly lift up their skirts and run towards people.
Pearls and jade collided, gauze sleeves fluttered, she pushed aside layers of mist-like confusion, and the joy on her face was faintly visible.
It was not until the last piece of gauze that she suddenly stopped, and only the slight movement of the skirt covering her feet revealed her helplessness.
The autumn night was quiet, so still that one could hear each other's breathing, heartbeat... and even their gentle swallowing.
Their breaths blended, just as they had done before, soft, intense, painful, and then gave rise to an intense pleasure until heaven and earth burned.
Shen Youyi looked at him as calmly as possible. During the brief entanglement that day, she had no intention of looking at the face of a strange man.
But the situation changed, and her heart changed with it.
She had long known that the king that Concubine Wei served was quite old, and she just secretly hoped that she could see some of the prince's charm and beauty on the emperor's face, and not be so ferocious that it was hard to swallow... Even if she wanted to climb up the social ladder, she liked to pick a good-looking one.
Fortunately, the current emperor looked only a few years older than the crown prince. He was tall and had a heroic demeanor. He had strong features, with a few marks carved at the corners of his eyes, which made his eyes look deep and sharp. Fortunately, there was a layer of gauze between them. The misty clouds and moon softened the sunlight and concealed the aggressiveness of the scorching sun, making the prey temporarily lose the idea of escaping and relax its vigilance.
I even want to get closer and absorb his warmth.
Such a person can be seen at a glance as a figure from the ninety-ninth heaven. Perhaps it is because this world is too cramped. Compared with the youthful spirit of the prince, his eyes are more mature and aggressive, making people feel breathless.
But Shen Youyi could not imagine the scene of the emperor and his concubines having sex.
Perhaps it was because his chest was broad, enough to hug both of them, which made her a little curious. Just like in the secret play pictures, men and women were stacked on top of each other. Could he kiss her, or would he have to let her climb up and down?
Or is it better to be dignified at times like this, keep quiet and just focus on your work?
She lowered her head, temporarily suppressing her strange thoughts, and her eyes fell on the hand that half-lifted the curtain. The thin calluses on the fingertips were faintly visible in the alternation of light and dark. She could imagine the warmth and roughness of the touch, but it made her feel strangely numb.
Shen Youyi didn't quite understand the sudden feeling of this body. She subconsciously resisted this change, wondering if taking two steps back would make her feel more comfortable, but then she heard Emperor Yuan Shuo ask, "Are you still feeling uncomfortable?"
Compared to the helplessness of that day, it seemed to have a bit more lingering affection, gentle and low, and it sounded just above her head. Her waist was so soft that it felt a little wrong, and Shen Youyi bit her lip unconsciously.
The eunuchs holding lanterns for Emperor Yuan Shuo dared not leave without the emperor's orders. Even now, they were not sure what the imperial concubine would do next.
The beautiful and passionate imperial concubine seemed to have just drunk a pot of mellow wine. Her cheeks were flushed and extended to her neck. She shook her head gently, but the words she uttered were still irritating.
"Why are you so mean?"
She was a little angry: "I'm almost disliking you."
Zhu Miao jumped a few times in shock. The emperor did not leave in anger because of her accusation. He was silent for a while before slowly asking, "Why?"
She stood on tiptoe and put her arms around the emperor's neck, then raised her head to face him. She blinked a few times before looking down again, as if suppressing a lot of grievances. She choked out a sob and said, "Because I have always...always been waiting for you here."
The palace lantern was placed silently on the table. The eunuch took a few steps back and quietly disappeared into the vast night.
Your Majesty will not need my servants tonight, and probably will not leave.
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