Huo Qinghe remained silent, as if she were frightened. She followed closely behind Huo Yiyun, like a child who had made a mistake.
When Huo Yiyun turned around and saw it, the scolding that was on the tip of her tongue did not stop her; instead, she became even more enthusiastic.
Huo Qinghe's ears finally quieted down after the two parted ways in the East and West Six Palaces.
Patience has always been Huo Qinghe's greatest strength.
Today, Green Willow was with Huo Qinghe. Her personality was different from Green Locust and Green Cloud. From beginning to end, she steadily supported Huo Qinghe without saying a word.
Huo Qinghe had just returned to Yanliang Pavilion when she heard from Lvhuai that someone had come to the main hall, apparently sent by the Empress Dowager to speak ill of Consort Zhou.
They should arrive later than the others who went to Cining Palace to wait; I heard that the imperial physician also came.
From this perspective, it is clear that Empress Dowager Zhou was indeed very attentive and caring towards her niece, Consort Zhou.
However, if they truly cared, they probably wouldn't be willing to push their own child into the fiery pit of the palace; who knows?
"How's the search for the contraceptive?" Huo Qinghe dismissed the others, leaving only Lvhuai to ask.
Green Locust shook her head helplessly. She had tried every possible method to inquire these past few days, exhausting all sorts of connections, but it was simply impossible…
"I've inquired about it all. Although there are one or two folk remedies, they all seem to be harmful to the body if you ask too many questions. And it seems there are no usable contraceptives."
This answer was actually within Huo Qinghe's expectations.
After all, Wang Mama had already found the pipa for the task that had been arranged beforehand, but Green Locust had not come to report it for a long time, which meant that Green Locust had not handled the matter properly.
Huo Qinghe sighed and waved her hand, "If we can't find it, then so be it. Just pretend it never happened."
She glanced at Green Locust Tree lightly.
Green Locust immediately understood, and she bowed respectfully: "Yes, this servant understands, and will not divulge a single word."
Huo Qinghe turned around and looked at the pipa placed in front of the small couch. She stood up and skillfully picked up the pipa.
The commotion in the inner palace had only just begun once the Empress Dowager returned.
When the Empress Dowager returned to the palace during the day, the various palaces were quite lively. It is said that in Cining Palace, apart from Empress Xue who stayed to serve, Consort Fu was also selected by Empress Dowager Zhou to stay.
Everyone in the palace knew that Consort Zhou was Empress Dowager Zhou's niece, which led to a significant decrease in the number of people spying on Yanxi Palace.
The palaces were bustling for half a day, but by nightfall, the most important thing was whether the Emperor would enter the inner palace.
In the past few days, the green nameplates of the concubines who were menstruating, as well as those who were pregnant while ill, and Consort Zhou who was under house arrest, have all been removed. When the Imperial Household Department brought in the green nameplates, two eunuchs came in together.
At that time, the Emperor was lazily playing chess in the Funing Palace. He was playing alone, and the black and white chess pieces in his hand collided with the board, making a crisp sound.
"Your Majesty, please choose a concubine."
Jin Yang stepped forward and took one of the trays. Inside were the green plaques of high-ranking concubines in the palace.
Pei Yuanhui was playing chess, and he looked over by the bright candlelight of the glass lamp.
Consort Chi, Consort Zhuang, Consort Lin, Noble Consort Ding...
A cacophony of voices rushed into his ears almost instantly, making them ache.
Pei Yuanhui lazily raised his hand and bent his knuckles.
Upon seeing this, Jin Yang withdrew and changed the tray, which was mostly inscribed with names of lower-ranking concubines, especially the newcomers.
The Emperor's hand hovered over the green plaque of Consort Fu. After a long while, Jin Yang watched as the Emperor picked up Consort Fu's green plaque.
His breathing stopped, and he thought to himself, "This shouldn't be happening."
The next second, he saw the Emperor, with a smile on his lips, throw away Consort Fu's green plaque.
It was thrown straight down at the feet of the eunuch in charge of the Imperial Household Department, which startled the eunuch so much that he trembled.
Looking at the empty space on the tray, wasn't the green plaque originally in the most prominent and eye-catching position?
Jin Yang cursed the fool in his heart, but on the surface he didn't make a move.
Pei Yuanhui, one of the remaining rookies, didn't really remember them at this point. He was too noisy to remember, and even if he hadn't been noisy, he wouldn't have remembered much.
After a few breaths, he suddenly raised his hand and flipped over the green card on the far right.
Jin Yang cautiously raised his eyes, and at the same time, the Emperor's voice came out.
"Go and summon Xiao Huo."
Jin Yang looked in that direction and saw that it was Huo Meiren's nameplate that had been flipped over.
The two eunuchs from the Imperial Household Department behind him quickly acknowledged the order, bent down to pick up the green plaque of the Nobleman Fu, and then hurriedly retreated.
Among the rookies, Huo Meiren is probably the first to be summoned twice in a single month.
...
Huo Qinghe was somewhat surprised to learn that she had been summoned to the emperor's bedchamber, as she still remembered what had happened at Cining Palace that day.
Upon learning that she had been summoned to the emperor's bedchamber, her first reaction was that the relationship between the emperor and the empress dowager was indeed very bad.
During the day, the Empress Dowager intended to punish her, but the Emperor retorted. Now, the Emperor has summoned her, which can be seen as a slap in the face to the Empress Dowager.
The emperor was relieved, but Huo Qinghe was not so happy.
On the way to Funing Palace in the Phoenix Spring Grace Carriage, Huo Qinghe was still pondering this matter, mainly considering the pros and cons involved.
Clearly, the Empress Dowager and the Emperor are at odds, and given what happened today, the Empress Dowager probably won't like her much either. So, in order to protect herself, she has no choice but to please the Emperor.
This was also part of her strategy to win favor.
The Emperor was late in choosing his consorts today. When Huo Qinghe finished bathing and entered the West Warm Pavilion, the Emperor had already arrived and was sitting on a small couch in the outer room, playing with chess pieces. The chessboard on the small table was empty.
Huo Qinghe bowed respectfully.
The official called out, "Do you know how to play chess?"
Huo Qinghe paused, then honestly shook her head: "This concubine is dull-witted and not very good at it."
She can play simple games, but she's terrible at it.
The emperor didn't seem to care about this, and tossed the chess piece in his hand: "If not, that's fine, play a game of chess with me."
Huo Qinghe exclaimed "Ah!" and finally, under the Emperor's intrigued gaze, she reluctantly sat down opposite him.
"If you can't play chess, then what can you do?" Pei Yuanhui asked after placing a piece.
Judging from his voice, he seemed to be in a good mood.
Huo Qinghe lowered her eyes and hesitated before making her move: "When I was at home, I mostly learned needlework and embroidery, and I was not very good at anything else."
The emperor was indeed in a good mood at the moment, with peace and quiet all around him, and he couldn't hear any of the messy thoughts in his mind.
There is nothing more comforting than this.
He didn't care about Xiao Huo's answer, and after hearing it, he just said "Oh" indifferently and didn't say anything else.
There was a moment of silence inside, broken only by the sound of the two playing chess.
Soon, Huo Qinghe suddenly spoke up.
"This concubine has not yet thanked Your Majesty."
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