Chapter 80 Pillow Wind
Lan Wu met his gaze, hesitated slightly, then got off the bed to help him undress, her expression shifting as she asked, "Your Majesty has returned so early today, are you not busy?"
Chu Mingheng gazed at her intently, wondering when he had ever seen her serve him like this before. Usually, it was only he who helped her undress.
He gave a soft "hmm" and saw Lan Wu lower her head. Her long hair was draped behind her head, softly draped against her slender back, swaying eye-catchingly with her movements.
Lan Wu had never served anyone before, and she was even clumsy at untying Chu Mingheng's belt.
Seeing that she was getting too busy, Chu Mingheng reached out and grabbed her wrist: "Stop busying yourself, go to bed and wait for me."
Lan Wu paused, then tugged at his belt, earning Chu Mingheng a faint smile.
He pinched Lan Wu's cheek and kissed her lips: "Go."
Lan Wu fell back onto the bed, turned over, and slowly pulled a ring out from under her pillow.
That day, she returned the ring to Chu Mingheng, but Chu Mingheng said he didn't want it anymore and told her to wear it and play with it herself.
She dared not play with such a thing casually, so she asked someone to bring a treasure box and put the thumb ring inside.
Now, opening it again, it's the first time I've looked at this ring closely.
The gold-inlaid jade was an extremely simple design, with no patterns woven into the circumference. The jade was of excellent quality, a deep, clear green without any impurities. However, the circumference was too large, barely enough to fit her thumb.
Lan Wu stretched out her finger and gestured. Gold and jade signify nobility and status, and it would be more appropriate for someone who is more composed to wear it. But she thought... it would look good on her hand too.
He gently pinched the thumb ring and slipped it onto his thumb, then spread the back of his hand out in front of his eyes to examine it carefully. He then turned over so that it faced the colorful painting above his head, and the more he looked at the thumb ring, the happier he became.
No, no, no, at a time like this, she should be thinking about how to talk to Chu Mingheng about Consort Yue, not being so overly beautiful.
Lan Wu patted her face, then carefully put the ring away and tucked it back under her pillow by the bedside.
It's just pillow talk, she knows how to do it.
After waiting for a while, the familiar footsteps finally entered the hall.
Lan Wu got out of bed, her eyes following Chu Mingheng's figure, but she didn't say a word.
"What did you do today?" Chu Mingheng glanced at the chaise lounge where Lan Wu usually liked to lie, where there was usually a storybook for Lan Wu to read, but he didn't see it today.
"Sleeping, eating, flower arranging, calligraphy practice..." Lan Wu counted them off on her fingers, and he didn't show the slightest impatience. So she secretly added some other things, "playing chess, making tea, embroidery..."
Chu Mingheng listened, raised his voice slightly, and gave a casual "hmm".
He walked toward the bed, not bothering to extinguish the candle. After getting on the bed, he pulled Lan Wu into his arms and repeated her words with amusement: "Chess, tea, embroidery, which of these do you know?"
Lan Wu was startled, sat up, and looked at him with hostility, as if she would ignore him if he said another word of the truth.
“Awu can do anything.” Chu Mingheng smiled, trying to make her happy. “Embroider a purse for me tomorrow.”
Lan Wu hesitated for a moment. She wasn't good at needlework; embroidering purses would only make her a laughingstock.
"The embroiderers in the palace are excellent; even I, as a concubine, cannot compare to them."
Chu Mingheng touched her forehead with his own and said with a smile, "Everyone has their own expertise. What are you comparing yourself to them for? Besides, I want the embroidery you made."
That's great! Now that we've taken her purse, she's going to start whispering sweet nothings in his ear.
Lan Wu blinked, put her arm around Chu Mingheng's neck, and pressed her face against his neck. Her long eyelashes cast shadows under her eyes. She was pressed against Chu Mingheng, and the soft flesh of her cheeks was gently pressed against him. Her voice was endearing.
"Then shall I embroider a dragon for Your Majesty?" The speaker became excited first, already thinking about what material to choose.
"Embroider anything, even just a flower, I'll love it."
Lan Wu's eyes curved into a smile, then as if she remembered something, she gave a soft "hmm": "In the afternoon, Consort Yue came to see me and brought me many flowers."
Her palace servants would go to the Imperial Garden to pick flowers every few days. When Consort Yue came this time, she also brought some flowers for her. This was more effective than sending other things. Those flowers are now displayed in the main hall.
"I know, she came to your palace." The Yue family's affairs were in turmoil, and since Yue Shi couldn't see him, she went to find Lan Wu instead. Although he was surprised, he didn't find it strange.
It was actually quite strange that Lan Wu was willing to help her.
"I know that women in the inner palace should not interfere in politics, but Consort Yue said she was worried about the safety of her family, so she came to see me... I have no parents or relatives, and seeing her like that, I think she might be a little envious..."
Lan Wu couldn't quite describe her feelings. She had grown up in the palace's music hall since childhood. There were many sisters in the music hall, some good and some bad. She was forced to memorize the palace rules when she was young, so she naturally didn't feel very happy.
That's why she fell in love with Chu Mingheng, because he was the only one willing to pamper her. Although in her previous life he had more rules and was initially fierce, she was both afraid and had no choice but to seize the opportunity to climb the social ladder. But later, he threw her a birthday banquet and showed her favoritism. He said he would abandon her if she dared to do something bad, but when she actually did it, he would restrain her, punish her, and then turn around and become the bad guy himself, cleaning up the mess for her.
He was quick to kill, and over time, the concubines could all see that His Majesty treated them differently.
That's even more dangerous.
When the other concubines realized what was happening, she was the most threatening one. After all, the eldest prince had not yet been born, and a favored concubine like her would inevitably become pregnant sooner or later.
Thinking of this, she sighed and looked at Chu Mingheng with a hint of resentment in her eyes.
He protected her like a delicate flower, but it would have been better if she had become a feared concubine.
Returning to her senses, Lan Wu coughed lightly and got back to the main topic: "Consort Yue said she only wanted to see His Majesty and asked me to pass on a message. I thought it was just passing on a message. Whether His Majesty should or not is His Majesty's business. This shouldn't be considered interfering in politics, right?"
After saying that, Lan Wu raised her head and looked at Chu Mingheng expectantly.
Chu Mingheng pinched her chin and gently scolded her: "If she comes to you today, and tomorrow Consort He, Consort Chen, or Consort Yang comes to you asking for favors, are you going to agree to it too?"
"If this continues, you'll become a little emperor in the harem."
Lan Wu paused for a moment, then quickly reacted and angrily bit his chin, saying, "Where did you get so many Zhaorong! Aren't I a Zhaorong myself!"
Chu Mingheng laughed after being bitten, pulling Lan Wu down onto the couch while holding her in his arms. He shook his head, a mixture of helplessness and amusement on his face, and said, "You really are..."
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