Chapter 82 Materials
Chu Mingheng was still in a dream when he woke up, thinking he was still dreaming, until Lan Wu called him.
It's getting clearer now.
He listened to Lan Wu scolding him, but didn't say anything more, only asking her what time it was.
"That is roughly when His Majesty gets up on weekdays."
Lan Wu glanced at the sky outside and complained to him, "If I hadn't woken up this morning and noticed that Your Majesty was acting strangely, Your Majesty would have really lost your mind. Who told you to do that last night?"
He was already busy with work every day, attending court and summoning ministers to the Imperial Study after court. With such a heavy burden on him, he still had time to deal with her.
"Your Majesty should rest well. The imperial physicians have said that you should not overexert yourself..."
Before she could finish speaking, Chu Mingheng cut her off, chuckling with a hint of skepticism, "You mean I was exhausted last night?"
"Who has suffered this hardship?"
Lan Wu understood his words and quickly got up from him, stammering, "Your Majesty should get up. I'll go check if the medicine is ready."
"Stand still." Chu Mingheng rubbed his temples, stopping her from running away. "You come back here and get some sleep. What are you busy with before dawn?"
Lan Wu slowly moved back to the bed, reached out and touched Chu Mingheng's face, then asked with surprise, "Why isn't your fever going away anymore?"
Strange, when the imperial physician came over just now, Chu Mingheng was a bit hotter than her, and something felt wrong. But now, before she even took the medicine, her fever has gone down on its own?
Chu Mingheng took her hand, pulled off her clothes and stuffed her back into the quilt: "I'm fine, you can sleep a little longer. Didn't you keep saying you were tired last night?"
Lan Wu pouted, gave a muffled "oh," and then told him not to forget to take his medicine.
"I know."
Chu Mingheng pulled the curtain closed, but Lan Wu lifted it slightly to peek outside. There was a screen outside, and she could vaguely see Chu Mingheng's figure.
After watching for a while, Lan Wu heard the sound of the inner palace door closing, knowing that Chu Mingheng had dressed and gone out.
Her eyelids grew heavier and heavier. She thought that she would ask the palace servants if His Majesty had taken his medicine when she woke up later.
The sky was overcast today, and although it was gloomy, it was also stuffy and hot.
In the afternoon, Lanwu had someone deliver several pieces of fabric.
"Your Majesty, these materials were sent by the Imperial Household Department but haven't been used yet. What do you think of them?" Lian Qiao brought several pieces of material into the hall and placed them on the table for Lan Wu to see.
Lan Wu frowned and shook her head, thinking it wouldn't work.
Indeed, the fabrics sent by the Imperial Household Department perfectly complement her patterns. Using such fabric to embroider a purse for Chu Mingheng would be unacceptable, as it would damage Chu Mingheng's dignity.
Lan Wu thought for a moment and said, "Go to the inner palace and pick out some malachite green or white-blue material. Smoky green and malachite blue are also fine. In short, avoid bright colors and pick three to five kinds."
Lian Qiao nodded in agreement, probably guessing what she was going to do, and chuckled softly.
Lan Wu's comment to Chu Mingheng yesterday that she wasn't good at needlework was not at all modest. You can tell just by looking at the handkerchief she embroidered. Those who know her embroidered it know it's a peony, but those who don't would think it's a mess of wildflowers.
However, none of the palace servants dared to say anything when they saw it; they just kept praising Lan Wu's embroidery.
This amused Lan Wu, who said, "Do you really think I'm stupid? How can this be called good embroidery? If this is considered good embroidery, then the embroiderers in the palace would be worth a thousand gold pieces per stitch."
While they were laughing and joking around, Lianqiao went to the Imperial Wardrobe to select fabrics, and coincidentally ran into Bai Xiuyi's personal maid, Xiangyue, who was also selecting fabrics.
Lianqiao naturally wouldn't take the initiative to talk to anyone. Just as she was about to choose the fabric and leave, she saw Xiangyue approaching first.
"Forsythia, my lady." Xiangyue smiled at her.
Since she had been called over, Lian Qiao had no choice but to respond. One shouldn't hit a smiling person, so she called out to her in return.
"Is the young lady here to choose fabric for Consort Zhen Shuyi?" Xiangyue looked at the piece of fabric that she had already selected, which was being held by the little eunuch behind her. The color was rather dark, and it didn't seem to be the color that the consorts usually liked.
Lian Qiao hummed in agreement, looking at her. She was like a turtle, only responding to what others said and not saying anything more.
Xiangyue didn't feel embarrassed at all, she just sighed: "These days, Yilan Palace is really a hot commodity, I suppose it won't have any worries, unlike my master..."
She stopped there, seemingly afraid of saying the wrong thing, and smiled at Lian Qiao, saying, "Miss Lian Qiao, take your time choosing. I haven't finished choosing yet either."
After saying that, she was about to leave.
Lian Qiao turned around and looked at her back, only to see her heading in another direction.
She looked curious: Xiangyue had just said that her master had something on his mind. What kind of trouble could it be?
She didn't say much, and Lian Qiao didn't press the matter further.
When she finished selecting the fabric and was about to leave, she saw Xiangyue again.
She walked forward slowly.
...
The colors of the fabric that Lianqiao brought back were quite suitable. Lanwu saw them and had someone take out a piece of dark blue fabric and cut some out, intending to practice embroidering on it. If it didn't suit her, she would change to another color.
“Your Highness… This servant saw Consort Bai’s personal maid, Xiangyue, in the Imperial Wardrobe and heard some news from her.”
Lan Wu looked at her: "What news?"
Lianqiao looked around and whispered to her, "Xiangyue said that Consort Li is now in charge of the income of the Shanggong Bureau, and has reduced the amount of hairpins and jewelry given to the concubines in the palace according to the allowance. The other day, Consort Bai wanted to ask the Shanggong Bureau to make a gold hairpin, but Consort Li rejected it, saying that now... now the court is investigating a case of embezzlement and reprimanded Consort Bai for not being discreet."
Lan Wu narrowed her eyes, feeling that there was another meaning behind these words, and listened as Lian Qiao continued.
"Although Consort Bai didn't order anyone to break the hairpin anymore, she was still quite angry, saying that Consort Li didn't know how to manage palace affairs..."
"She said Consort Li doesn't know how to manage palace affairs?" Lan Wu knew what kind of person Consort Bai was; she followed Consort Shu and was definitely not a fool. "Is that what Xiangyue told you?"
Seeing Lian Qiao nod, Lan Wu asked her again, "Didn't you say anything else to her?"
Lian Qiao quickly shook her head: "Sister Lianxi taught me that I shouldn't talk too much in the palace, especially about things related to the Empress. I shouldn't talk about them with others casually. I've remembered all of that and haven't said anything."
"Alright, you may leave." Lan Wu became somewhat wary upon hearing her words, but this seemingly random remark also sounded like Xiang Yue speaking up for her master.
What exactly are they planning?
Could it be that they saw Consort Yue came over yesterday and wanted to use this opportunity to find out what they had talked about in the palace?
Or is he planning to use her to deal with Consort Li?
Lan Wu summoned Lian Xi and instructed her to keep a close eye on the palace servants in the coming days.
"Did you notice anything amiss with the hibiscus and forsythia?"
Lianxi shook her head: "When the two of them first entered Yilan Palace, they liked to hang out together. But after Her Majesty promoted Lianqiao, the two of them started to dislike each other. I didn't see anything wrong with them."
Lan Wu nodded gently: "Let's keep an eye on it."
If there's a real problem, it will inevitably be exposed sooner or later.
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