"It's not that Consort Zhou can't eat river delicacies, it's just that His Majesty has been quite fond of them lately, and Lady Zhou is very tolerant. She clearly can't stand it, but in order to please His Majesty, she's made a scene that she can't be seen in public now..."
When Jinzhan said this, she had a rather smug look on her face, as if to say, "Look, even a beauty like you doesn't know as much as a palace maid like me."
Huo Qinghe offered no flattery; her eyes held only cold indifference. She snapped, "Jinzhan, have you lost your mind? What nonsense are you spouting!"
Jinzhan instinctively wanted to retort: "Who's talking nonsense? Everyone in the palace knows! Only Consort Zhou thinks that no one else knows anything?"
As she said this, she cursed Huo Qinghe in her heart for being cowardly and not daring to speak up, saying that she was even worse than Huo Qinghe.
When Jinzhan spoke, she turned her back to the front halfway and stared directly at Huo Qinghe, as she always did without any decorum.
Huo Qinghe suddenly raised her hand, and all the pent-up emotions of the past few days erupted at this moment. She used all her strength.
"Smack!"
The sound was so crisp and clear that it seemed to echo for a while in the palace passage.
The slap was so forceful that Huo Qinghe's hand hurt, and her hand trembled slightly as she withdrew it: "How dare you!"
Jinzhan instinctively raised her hand to cover her face, her expression filled with disbelief: "You..."
Before she could finish speaking, she was suddenly kicked in the knee. Her knee went weak, her calf ached, and she fell to the ground, only able to see Huo Qinghe's toes again.
"The palace maids around Consort Huo seem to be somewhat unruly."
To Jinzhan, Consort Zhou's voice sounded like a demonic chant. She instinctively knelt down and begged for forgiveness: "Please forgive me, Lady Zhou. I didn't mean it, I didn't mean it."
Consort Zhou had somehow appeared behind Jinzhan. At this moment, Jinzhan's pleas for mercy turned into a different act. She kept apologizing at Consort Zhou's feet, while secretly resenting Huo Qinghe for not speaking up to warn her.
Huo Qinghe also curtsied respectfully, saying, "Greetings, Madam Zhou. I have failed in my duty of instruction; please be lenient with me."
Consort Zhou was already furious when she left Kunning Palace, and now, hearing this lowly maid talking about her appearance behind her back, especially since she was one of Huo's servants...
Consort Zhou immediately recalled Huo Yiyun's sarcastic remarks to her in Kunning Palace, which made her even angrier.
She stepped forward, her pearl-studded shoes ruthlessly stomping on the backs of her hands, which were clasped together in gold.
"Since Consort Huo doesn't know how to teach palace maids, I will teach them properly for you."
This is undoubtedly a slap in the face to Huo Qinghe.
Huo Qinghe took a half step back, her voice weak, and she lowered her head, saying, "Madam Zhou, this is unreasonable, I'm afraid it's inappropriate..."
Consort Zhou sneered. She was probably annoyed by Jinzhan's screams and finally moved her foot away leisurely: "Yuzhi, cover her mouth."
She stared at Huo Qinghe, who had her head bowed: "Huo Qinghe, if you can't even manage your own people, then shut up. Or I'll deal with you too!"
That's incredibly arrogant.
Huo Qinghe's shoulders were trembling slightly, but she remained silent.
Consort Zhou smiled contemptuously, but the next second her face seemed to itch again, so she immediately kicked Jinzhan again.
Jinzhan's mouth was stuffed with a handkerchief, but she still managed to let out a painful groan.
Consort Zhou endured the itching, ignoring Yu Zhi's dissuading gaze.
"Drag him away." Her voice was filled with boundless pleasure.
Yu Zhi was powerless to stop it. Seeing that Consort Zhou was about to take her anger out on her, she quickly waved her hand, and an eunuch dragged Jinzhan away.
The proper handling of palace maids and eunuchs ultimately rests with the Empress. However, Empress Xue is currently suffering from illness, and Consort Chi is assisting with most of the affairs of the six palaces. In a sense, this would be Consort Zhou overstepping her bounds...
However, this was not the first time Consort Zhou had overstepped her bounds, but in the past, the Empress Dowager was there, but now the Empress Dowager was not in the palace.
Yuzhi was really scared.
Consort Zhou didn't care about any of that. She turned her hand away and looked at Huo Qinghe: "You've been too undisciplined, Consort Huo. Why don't you go back and reflect on your mistakes?"
Upon hearing this, Huo Qinghe's thin shoulders trembled again, barely able to support her spring attire, making her appear even more frail: "Yes, yes, this concubine takes her leave."
She said she was leaving, but didn't dare move an inch.
The itching on her face became increasingly unbearable, and Consort Zhou felt even more irritated. She flicked her handkerchief, this time sending it straight past Huo Qinghe's nose, creating a gust of wind.
A lingering fragrance also remains.
Huo Qinghe closed her eyes, the sound of Jinzhan's painful groans still seemingly echoing in her ears.
Her shoulders were still tense; she knew this wasn't over yet.
She entered Yanxi Palace alone. When she returned to Yanliang Pavilion, several palace maids came to greet her. Not seeing Jinzhan, the maids looked at each other in confusion. Finally, it was Green Locust who asked.
"My lady, Jinzhan is..."
Jinzhan went to Xianfu Palace again? How could she let her mistress come back alone?
She suppressed her resentment.
Huo Qinghe shook her head: "Go to Xianfu Palace and tell them that Jinzhan angered Consort Zhou and was dragged away by her men."
Green Locust almost burst out laughing when she heard this. She covered her mouth and said, "Yes, yes, this servant will go right away."
After Green Locust left, Huo Qinghe suddenly asked, "Is today the fifteenth?"
Greenery agreed, but didn't understand why her wife was asking this.
On the first and fifteenth of each month, the emperor would go to the empress's palace to settle down; this was a rule established by our ancestors.
Green Locust returned quickly, but her expression was not pleasant: "My lady. Lady Yi said to calm down and that she will take care of things for you. Without Golden Cup, Lady Yi will choose her trusted confidantes to serve you."
One leaves and another arrives; this is not what Huo Qinghe wants.
What she wanted was a permanent solution.
...
In the spring, the memorials from ministers from all over the country to pay their respects were like snowflakes. When Pei Yuanhui came out of the Funing Palace, it was already dark. The chief eunuch Jin Yang flicked his whisk and shouted that the emperor should prepare to leave.
At the same time, she hurriedly followed up to His Majesty: "Your Majesty, Lady Zhou from Yanxi Palace sent someone to say that she is not feeling well..."
Pei Yuanhui continued walking: "If you're not feeling well, please summon the imperial physician. How is the Empress?"
Jin Yang quickly agreed and dared not mention Consort Zhou again.
When the Emperor arrived at Kunning Palace, the Empress was already waiting outside the main hall: "Your Majesty."
"Why did you come out? Set out the meal." Pei Yuanhui helped Empress Xue up, his tone still relatively gentle.
Xue Yinjia thanked His Majesty for his concern, and as he and Pei Yuanhui walked inside, they suddenly heard an eunuch kneeling down and shouting.
"Your Majesty, Your Highness. The Ministry of Justice has reported that Lady Zhou of Yanxi Palace has dragged a palace maid away, saying that she will be severely punished."
Empress Xue coughed twice immediately, her tone helpless: "This Consort Zhou..."
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