"Consort Zhangjia, please come this way."
The maid slowly approached the door and saw Consort Zhangjia, who had just finished her postpartum confinement, waiting meekly in the same spot.
Although the sun was already high in the sky, making people feel irritable, Consort Zhangjia had a gentle expression and showed no signs of impatience.
Indeed, what a kind heart!
The maid sighed and bowed respectfully, her manner perfectly measured.
Consort Zhangjia also behaved appropriately. Since she was there to pay her respects to the Empress of Yonghe Palace, who was also the second adoptive mother of her son, Consort Zhangjia, regardless of what she was thinking, appeared to take it very seriously. Her attire and appearance were very proper, and even the gifts she prepared were imperial gifts from the Emperor.
To be honest, Consort Zhangjia has been doing quite well in the palace these past few years. With Emperor Kangxi's favor, most people wouldn't make things difficult for her. Moreover, Consort Zhangjia has children. Don't underestimate her just because she's a concubine; she's far more useful than those lowly concubines like the lowest-ranking ladies-in-waiting, the most elegant ladies-in-waiting, and the most noble ladies-in-waiting.
After all, in the life of the imperial harem, favor is everything; with favor comes everything.
Dressed in a qipao and with exquisite makeup, Consort Zhangjia smiled and nodded, "Thank you for your hard work."
Following the maid who was leading the way, Consort Zhangjia entered the main hall.
"This concubine, of the Zhangjia clan, greets Her Highness Consort De with boundless blessings."
Her every move exuded a captivating charm, not because Consort Zhangjia acted intentionally, but because years of being favored by the emperor had unconsciously imbued her with that quality. Otherwise, why would Emperor Kangxi favor her? All her changes stemmed from his desire for her affection.
"Please take your seat, Consort Zhangjia."
Consort De sat on the couch and waved her hand to signal the maid to bring a round stool for Consort Zhangjia.
Consort Zhangjia sat down and thanked her.
This was the first time the two met. Although Consort Zhangjia came from Yonghe Palace to serve Emperor Kangxi, when she arrived at Yonghe Palace, Consort De had already been left in the summer palace and could not return to the palace.
She used tricks, bribing the nanny in charge, to get a chance to meet the Emperor.
As a result, she was caught in a compromising situation when she first gained the emperor's favor, and was directly sued.
Of course, those were things from a long time ago. Now everything is in the past. Consort Zhangjia is still a concubine, but the Emperor's favor towards her has only decreased. She can only come to pay her respects to Consort De with her head bowed.
The two spoke in a very formal manner, with Consort De usually doing the talking and Consort Zhangjia occasionally chiming in, much like a lower-ranking concubine trying to curry favor with a higher-ranking one. Since Consort Zhangjia and her family of four were living under Consort De's watchful eye, they naturally had to be respectful.
Consort De's face was all smiles, but she was like a lifeless piece of porcelain, so fake and distasteful.
"...Alright, it's been quite a while. Consort Zhangjia still has two princesses to take care of, so I won't keep you any longer."
She beckoned to the maid waiting at the door, and Consort De rose to have her escort Consort Zhangjia away.
Consort Zhangjia dared not utter a word of complaint. She rose and bowed to Consort De, saying, "This concubine takes her leave."
After the maid saw Consort Zhangjia off, she returned to find her mistress standing in front of the incense burner adding spices.
The spices were leftovers from before they left the palace; they no longer had their original flavor, and the aroma they emitted could hardly be called fragrance.
"Your Majesty, you..."
The maid couldn't understand Consort De's purpose in doing this. Did she think she hadn't suffered enough and wanted to experience more?
"This spice was originally a gift from the Emperor, but times have changed and the flavor of the spice has changed."
Consort De said something inexplicable, then turned around, her face no longer bearing the perfunctory smile, but instead becoming even colder.
Upon hearing this, the maid lowered her head slightly and dared not speak.
Consort De sighed, "Pack them up and send them to the storeroom for safekeeping."
She missed her former life and loathed everything she encountered at the summer palace.
If possible, she would make up for all the suffering she has endured over the past few years.
Everyone holds grudges; it's human nature.
Consort De was never a magnanimous or forgiving person. She was left in the summer palace because she refused to accept her fate and wanted to take a gamble, but she lost and got herself into trouble.
But now that Consort De has returned, she has the resources to gamble again, so of course she won't give up.
Two days later, Yinxiang, who had been raised by Consort Ping, was sent to Yonghe Palace and handed over to Consort De.
Therefore, Consort De made a special trip to Consort Ping's palace to visit her.
However, Consort Ping was about to give birth and was very wary of everything around her. Consort De was unable to see Consort Ping and had to return empty-handed.
"Your Majesty, Consort Ping has gone too far."
It's not that no one in the harem has ever been pregnant; on the contrary, countless concubines in the harem have been pregnant, and many have even given birth to multiple children.
Compared to those people, what is Consort Ping? If it weren't for her family's connection with the late Empress, who would care whether she gave birth or not?
The maid couldn't help but mutter a few words, also indignant on behalf of her mistress.
Upon hearing this, Consort De smiled good-naturedly and said, "Consort Ping's situation is different from others; we should understand her."
After all, not everyone has such complicated internal strife. Before even seeing a way out, they've already started fighting on the road ahead. It's quite ridiculous, really.
Consort De shook her head, glanced at the closed main hall, and thought to herself that Consort Ping was still a bit unlucky. Not to mention the other people in the harem, just the connections left by the late Empress around the Crown Prince would not have allowed Consort Ping to give birth safely.
"Let's go back to the palace and see my youngest son."
She gained a son for nothing. Although Consort De didn't care, he was still of royal blood, so she should at least care about him.
The maid helped Consort De leave, and such trivial matters often occurred in the inner palace, which would not usually attract special attention.
...
As time went on, when the weather turned cooler that day, Consort Ping was nine months pregnant and could give birth at any moment.
Regardless of what others thought, the level of vigilance here was raised to another level.
In particular, the palace servants who served Consort Ping, even those who had been there for a long time, were checked again and again, for fear that something might happen in places Consort Ping could not notice.
Unfortunately, even with such strict precautions, it was still impossible to prevent Consort Ping from falling ill.
Those who knew the inside story were watching the spectacle, while those who didn't were wondering if Consort Ping could outmaneuver them. In any case, both sides had their own focus. Only Consort Ping truly wanted to protect the child in her womb, and she was willing to sacrifice a great deal for it.
"Wow, that's really touching."
Xiuning spoke expressionlessly, but the way she said it sounded particularly awkward.
The system advised its host to be more magnanimous, otherwise it would be easy for his mentality to become distorted.
You have to understand that these mission takers work in all sorts of small worlds year after year. With so much experience, it's easy for their mentality to break down, leading to a slump or even extreme actions. In short, they're very prone to getting into trouble.
The system thinks its host is excellent, so it doesn't want to change hosts frequently, as that would be detrimental to the system.
Xiuning: ...
"Don't worry, I know what I'm doing," she said, maintaining a calm mindset despite having gone through so many tasks (although she had been unemployed for a much longer period than before).
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