"That's good now. I can just sit on this good leg." Song Chengze's tone was full of happiness.
Meng Qi gathered herself and looked up at him. Song Chengze was staring at her intently, one arm around her waist, the other around her legs. She clung to his shoulders, her hair falling in wisps across her chest. In her struggle, a button on her collar had undone, revealing a sliver of her delicate neck.
The newly-hanging red light outside shone through the half-open window, accompanied by a gentle breeze, making the room flicker. The two of them just stared at each other, as if time had stopped.
Meng Qi didn't dare move. She wanted to lower her head, but Song Chengze's eyes seemed to be enchanted, drawing her in. The burning sensation beneath her body returned, and she tried to stand up again, but her whole body felt limp and she had no strength at all.
This damn feeling, a feeling she had never experienced in her past or present life, made her unable to bear to destroy it.
Song Chengze wasn't much better. He didn't dare move, fearing he'd scare the little girl. He smiled bitterly inwardly, but his legitimate wife didn't dare move too quickly. He had to be patient, take his time, and not scare her. The fact that she was still holding him like this was already a huge improvement.
"I'm sure you know a little about my past with Concubine Xiu. When she first entered the palace, she worked as a lady-in-waiting in Mother's palace, and Mother liked her very much. I also know what Mother meant. She wasn't very satisfied with the two princesses I married. It wasn't that she was picky about their backgrounds, but that they couldn't handle the inner court of the palace."
As Meng Qi listened to Song Chengze talking about the past, the tension in her heart slowly relaxed, and her hands, which were tightly grasping the back of Song Chengze's collar, also softened.
Song Chengze exhaled slightly and continued, "And Concubine Xiu is good in every way. She is also the best among her group of concubines, and she gets along well with everyone. This is why she can now move around in various palaces."
Meng Qi actually admired such people very much. In Meng Wan's words, he could even send someone two miles away without eating. He was a very versatile person.
"When Mother told me about her idea, I naturally didn't object. Although I didn't have many opportunities to meet Concubine Xiu at that time, and the few times we met were when she was with Wu, but through what Mother said and what I heard, I even planned to let her help manage the affairs of the inner house after she entered the mansion."
Meng Qi clearly heard the helplessness in Song Chengze's voice, but she didn't say anything. She still sat quietly on his lap and listened. She just took her hands off his shoulders and gently fiddled with a lucky button on Song Chengze's clothes.
"Do you know how Concubine Xiu came to be employed by our father?"
Meng Qi was stunned and looked up. "Didn't you say that you met a drunk emperor in the imperial garden and the emperor..."
Song Chengze moved slightly. Meng Qi was afraid that he was tired, so she pressed his shoulder and tried to stand up. However, Song Chengze's hand around her waist pushed her back, "Sit down. No matter how heavy you are, it's not as heavy as my gun."
Meng Qi thought about the red cherry spear that Song Chengze used in the martial arts arena, which was taller than Chu Yong when standing up, so she didn't say anything.
"Actually, no, that was just something someone spread later to discredit her because they saw she was favored."
Meng Qi really didn't know about this. She stopped what she was doing in surprise and asked, "Why is that?"
Song Chengze thought for a moment and said, "I don't know the specific circumstances at the time. It was only later, when Concubine Xiu was kept in the palace and became more frequent with Mother, that she told Mother herself."
Song Chengze looked up outside. "When the girls were in the final round, which was when they decided whether to stay in the palace to serve the emperor or be assigned to other palaces, each of them was given a jade pendant with their name engraved on it. It was specially made by the Imperial Household Department after the first round of selection."
Song Chengze turned around and looked at Meng Qi's surprised expression. "This has never happened before. I don't know why their group did this. Mother guessed that this might be the last time the Emperor selected a concubine in his own name, leaving a souvenir. In any case, those who were ultimately left behind, like Concubine Xiu and Concubine Wu, each had a unique jade pendant in their hands."
"Is the problem with the jade pendant?" Meng Qi asked carefully.
Song Chengze was no longer surprised by Meng Qi's intelligence. He hummed, "Xiupin said that on the first day of their assignment, the Ministry of Internal Affairs took back their jade pendants, saying that anyone favored by the emperor would no longer receive a jade pendant."
Meng Qi's heart was in turmoil. Could it be that Concubine Xiu was framed?
"Xiupin wasn't worried because everything was ready. My mother had already informed the Imperial Household Department and the Empress, and they were just waiting for the Emperor's order. But no one expected that the next day, Xiupin's jade pendant wouldn't be returned. They said it was kept by the Emperor."
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