Chapter 3 The Empress Wants to See You
Whether Chu Mingheng believed Lan Wu or not, it was unknown, but Chu Mingheng gently pulled up her outer garment, covering the skin around her neck.
"Someone like you, what?" He seemed determined to get to the bottom of things, pressing Lan Wu to speak.
Lan Wu turned her head to the side, pursed her lips tightly, and finally uttered a few words.
"A servile servant who flatters her superior."
Lan Wu had heard far more hurtful things in her previous life. After that dance, she often heard similar remarks. She dared not vent her anger on the concubines, so she could only endure it. When she became Lady Lan, she wrote down all the people who had said such things on a piece of paper. Later, when she became a Consort, she made the concubines on the paper who were of lower rank than her kneel before her. But even kneeling did not appease her anger. When her rank rose again, she was able to restrain a few unruly concubines and slap them a few times.
But after the slap, Chu Mingheng found out what she had done.
If she had vaguely sensed before that Chu Mingheng disliked her doing evil or seeking revenge, then after that day she truly knew that Chu Mingheng really didn't like her doing such things.
That night, Chu Mingheng tied her up. While he was chanting Buddhist scriptures for her, he would occasionally slap her tender skin lightly, without letting her admit her mistake. In the end, the bedding was soaked, and he would still gently ask her with a smile if she had listened to the Buddhist scriptures.
Sure enough, Chu Mingheng frowned slightly when he heard her say those words.
He reached out and tapped the teacup on the table, indicating to Lan Wu, "Drink it."
Lan Wu was feeling thirsty, so she softly said yes, reached out and handed herself the cup of tea. She tested the temperature with her lips and, finding it wasn't too hot, sipped the entire cup of tea.
After finishing her tea, Lan Wu still didn't know why she had been summoned here today.
"Go down."
Hearing him say such a thing, Lan Wu was puzzled. She really couldn't figure out what Chu Mingheng was thinking, but since he told her to leave, of course she had to leave.
They respectfully withdrew from the palace gates and then quickly left Taiqing Palace.
After she left, Chu Mingheng glanced at the teacup Lan Wu had drunk from. The tea inside was completely gone. He wondered who taught her that; she was quite good at being charming.
A short while later, Chen Kang'an entered the hall and bowed to report.
"Your Majesty, this servant has discovered that this Miss Lanwu has been preparing for this dance for two months. According to the palace servants around her, Miss Lanwu often stays in the palace until midnight to practice this dance."
Chen Kang'an truly admired Lan Wu. Two months ago, it was still quite cold, and the music hall wasn't a place where masters lived. The dancers were lucky if they had charcoal fires to burn occasionally when practicing. Where would they find charcoal to use in the middle of the night? This Lan Wu really went to great lengths to master today's dance.
However, such efforts have unsurprisingly yielded results, and His Majesty has taken notice.
Thinking about this, Chen Kang'an guessed that the palace would soon have another mistress.
"Your Majesty, there is one more thing."
Chu Mingheng remained expressionless as he listened to him continue.
"Yu Zhu, the personal maid of Consort Li, went to the small hall to look for Miss Lan Wu, but couldn't find her and has already returned."
Of course, no one could be found. His Majesty had someone bring Miss Lanwu to this palace first. Such a secret matter could not be known to anyone other than those in the imperial court.
When Chu Mingheng heard the words "Consort Li," a deep look flashed across his eyes. He stood up and casually flicked his robe, saying, "Return to Taichen Palace."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
As night fell, the palace banquet ahead had ended, and the concubines returned to their respective palaces. However, traveling in the dark of night, unexpected events were bound to occur.
Lan Wu learned that a palace maid had died at Qianli Pond on the third day after the Emperor's birthday.
The Thousand Carp Pond features artificial hills and landscapes, and the carp in the pond vie for food in the spring, creating a lively scene. Many playful concubines would also go there to feed the fish for a while, just for the novelty.
Lan Wu heard that the newly arrived Consort Feng saw a white figure in the water, hidden in the morning mist, while feeding the fish in the Thousand Carp Pond. She couldn't see clearly and thought it was a white lotus blooming in the pond. Excitedly, she ordered someone to pick it, but unexpectedly, they pulled out a bloated corpse from the water.
Consort Feng was so frightened that she fainted. Soon, Consort Shu and Consort Rou arrived at Jinghua Palace. This was not only because Consort Feng lived in Zhihua Pavilion, a side hall of Jinghua Palace, but also because the identity of the deceased had been discovered. He was none other than Consort Li's personal maid, Yuzhu.
As early as yesterday, Consort Li discovered that Yu Zhu had disappeared.
In this palace, it is common for a palace servant to die quietly, but the death of a close maidservant of a high-ranking concubine is a serious matter.
As expected, Consort Li started making a scene.
Consort Shu and Consort Rou sat on either side of the throne, listening to Consort Li crying and begging for someone to make a decision.
To take the lead?
Currently, only His Majesty has the authority to manage the inner palace, and he has conveniently divided the power of assisting in the administration of the six palaces between Consort Shu and Consort Rou. Consort Rou single-handedly organized the recent birthday celebration, which she did exceptionally well, and she was enjoying immense popularity. However, just three days after the birthday celebration, a corpse was found floating in the koi pond. It's still unknown which day the body fell into the water. If it had happened to be on the birthday itself, His Majesty might have punished her.
At this moment, the person who is happiest is Consort Shu.
She had striking features and wore a crimson palace dress embroidered with chrysanthemums. The gold hairpin in her hair drooped slightly. Her face remained expressionless as she nodded slightly, instructing someone to help Consort Li up.
"Why are you crying? Now that we're here, we'll find out who did it."
Consort Rou slowly flicked her sleeve and nodded to Consort Li, as if in agreement with Consort Shu's words: "Yes, since we are here, we should naturally find out how this person accidentally fell into the pond."
One of them openly or covertly claimed that someone had committed the crime, while the other claimed that he accidentally fell into the water. The seemingly peaceful scene actually concealed an undercurrent of tension, and we'll have to wait and see what happens when the truth is uncovered.
Lan Wu didn't know who had died. Her only thought now was leaving the palace. She had previously tried to probe Chu Mingheng's intentions before the Emperor, but hadn't been able to discern his true feelings. Leaving the palace openly and legitimately would be ideal, but if that wasn't possible…
Are we to leave her to suffer in this deep palace for years? Who knows if she'll even live to see that day?
She thought that if she behaved herself and didn't try to climb any higher branches, Consort Li wouldn't bother her anymore. But to her surprise, seven days later, a palace maid from Consort Li's side found the music hall.
"Her Majesty has been feeling unwell lately and wishes to see beautiful women dancing. Is Miss Lanwu, who danced at Taiqing Palace last time, here? Our Majesty would like to invite her over."
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