"Tsk, you can't even ask."

Song Qingxue muttered to herself, feeling uncomfortable all over.

The more others don't want her to know, the more curious she will be.

This is probably a common problem among humans, right?

What on earth was Xiahou Chongyuan hiding from her?

The villain in my memory was always busy with his career.

Since she is thinking about her career, what can't she tell her?

They are partners!

Now, they can be said to be working towards the same career, so why not tell her?

Could it be that the hardworking villain is no longer working on his career? Is he slacking off and thinking about other things?

Xiahou Chongyuan walked beside her, feeling speechless.

Song Qingxue never thought of him well in her mind day by day, and he could hear it all, but it would be better if he didn't hear it.

"I'm not thinking about anything, so don't think about it all day long."

After saying this, Xiahou Chongyuan quickened his pace.

…

Chang'an Palace.

The little emperor, who had no official duties to do, was talking to the empress dowager. It was a rare opportunity for the mother and son to sit down and talk like this, and both seemed to be in a good mood.

As soon as the two entered the room, the empress dowager turned her head in response to the palace servants' greetings.

Seeing this, Song Qingxue immediately quickened her pace, trotted over, and greeted the empress dowager.

"Qingxue has met the Queen Mother."

"Get up quickly." The Queen Mother reached out and gently supported Song Qingxue's arm.

As soon as the Queen Mother saw Song Qingxue, she had nothing to talk about with Xiahou Le. Not long after, the Queen Mother waved her hand and sent him away.

After sending the two men away, the empress dowager asked Song Qingxue to accompany her for a stroll in the Imperial Garden.

Song Qingxue felt that she and Zhao Wanqiu seemed to have some strange buff that they would meet each other whenever they went out. Even now, when she walked out of the palace and took a walk in the imperial garden with the queen mother, she actually met Zhao Wanqiu.

Of course, if Zhao Wanqiu could be met in the palace, Concubine Zheng would definitely be by her side.

This Zhao Wanqiu was really good at coaxing people. She had managed to coax Concubine Zheng into submission. She hadn't even married the third prince yet, but she was already running to the palace every few days.

The moment she saw Zhao Wanqiu, Song Qingxue's expression changed.

The Queen Mother noticed it and gently patted the back of her hand.

"It's okay." The Queen Mother whispered.

"Yeah." Song Qingxue was just a little annoyed by such occasions, not that she was really afraid of anyone.

It was almost the end of the year, and she didn't want to quarrel with anyone. It would be unlucky!

But as the heroine of this article, since she has met one of the villains, if nothing happens between them, it will not fit the setting of the heroine as a pitiful and white lotus.

Even though they were unwilling to face it, Zhao Wanqiu and Concubine Zheng took the initiative to walk up to her.

Women who participate in palace fighting must have good facial expression management.

Just like the current Concubine Zheng and the Queen Mother, these two old hands are truly masters of expression management.

They usually argue with each other, but now when they meet, they smile like real sisters.

"Miss Zhao has come to the palace again to accompany the Concubine Dowager. You two really get along well." After hearing so much of the Queen Mother and Concubine Dowager Zheng being sarcastic to each other, Song Qingxue was a little confused about what the Queen Mother meant.

But the Queen Mother smiled and replied, "Wanqiu is indeed a well-behaved child."

"She is indeed well-behaved, but it's a pity that she is a concubine's daughter."

After hearing these words, Song Qingxue understood everything completely.

She said, how could these two women have a good conversation when they meet.

And it seems that the Queen Mother really doesn't like Zhao Wanqiu.

It must be said that the Empress Dowager was indeed a woman with a very sharp vision. No wonder her son could become emperor.

Among the ten princes, except Xiahou Chun who deliberately concealed his edge, all of them were smart and capable. However, the late emperor only took a fancy to the youngest one, Xiahou Le.

When Xiahou Le became the crown prince, he was only seven years old. How smart could a child who hadn't even grown all his hair be? The reason why he became the emperor was mostly because the previous emperor loved him and loved his family.

If you love this woman, make her son the crown prince!

When Concubine Zheng heard her talking about a concubine's daughter, her expression changed, and Zhao Wanqiu beside her didn't look much better either.

Although Concubine Zheng had a harmonious relationship with Zhao Wanqiu on the surface, she actually still had some resentment towards her status as a concubine's daughter.

Although her third prince has never been favored, he is still a prince after all!

She never expected that Xiahou Le would appoint a concubine as her son's principal wife.

"Look at what you said, sister. It doesn't matter if she is born out of wedlock. Although Wanqiu is born out of wedlock, she is also a well-known noble lady in Shangjing City. She is much better than those women who are just legitimate daughters."

Although Concubine Zheng's words implied something about Song Qingxue, they were indeed correct.

Although Zhao Wanqiu was a concubine's daughter, she was eloquent and was able to thrive in the circle of noble ladies by virtue of her status as a concubine's daughter. She was indeed capable.

The Queen Mother heard this, but it was as if she had heard something funny. "I think the Concubine knows it best. A concubine is a concubine. Even if she turns the tables, she can only be trampled under the feet of the legitimate family."

After fighting with Concubine Zheng for so many years, the Queen Mother already knew her background thoroughly.

When she was young, Concubine Zheng used her status as a legitimate daughter to snatch the opportunity to enter the palace from her concubine sister.

It was a pity that the emperor favored her half-sister back then. Even after she entered the palace, she never won the emperor's favor for a moment in her life.

Moreover, although she snatched away her concubine's sister's chance to enter the palace for selection, she also allowed her concubine's sister to take a shortcut.

Selection is not a necessary condition for becoming a concubine. If a woman wants to be the emperor, she naturally has to be liked by the emperor.

Therefore, the concubine's daughter of the Zheng family who failed to participate in the selection was later brought into the palace and was named a lady as soon as she arrived.

Although the Queen Mother arrived at the palace too late and was unable to see the wonderful expression on Concubine Zheng's face when the concubine of the Zheng family entered the palace, she knew how Concubine Zheng sent her sister to the underworld with her own hands.

It’s a pity that even after his concubine sister died, the emperor didn’t pay much attention to her.

The emperor's heart never stays on just one person.

The late emperor did love Zheng's concubine's sister very much, but after that, he also loved many other women.

It wasn't until the Queen Mother entered the palace that he finally calmed down.

The Queen Mother was the woman he loved most and also the woman he loved until the end.

As for the issue of legitimate and illegitimate children, the two women would always discuss it whenever they met.

It was not for any other reason, but because the Queen Mother wanted to annoy Concubine Zheng.

Song Qingxue admitted that the Queen Mother was really good at making people feel annoying.

She doesn't do anything fancy, she just takes advantage of the other person's pain points and rubs salt into them.

As expected, it doesn’t matter how many tricks there are, as long as they are useful.

I learned it. I learned it.

I think Concubine Zheng herself knew that if she continued to talk about this topic, she would only become more embarrassed.

So she consciously changed the subject and said, "Sister, you are really a fool. You always like to talk about these old things. Now that things have passed, you and I are old. It's time to let go of these things and enjoy life."

"That's true." The Queen Mother was not the type to pursue the matter relentlessly. Since the Concubine Dowager had given in, she could at least give her a way out.

The two of them stopped talking, and the empress dowager was too lazy to stay with the concubine dowager anymore, which made her even more upset. So, she used the excuse of being "tired" and returned to Chang'an Palace with Song Qingxue.