Chapter 12 Desire to Practice Calligraphy
The palace was busy for another half month before the follow-up matters of the Emperor and Empress's wedding were finally completed.
During this period, the Empress Dowager summoned the heads and managers of each palace separately to sort out the palace affairs. The Empress Dowager also handed over the Phoenix Seal to him, which can be considered as a partial decentralization of power.
The outer court also issued an imperial edict granting amnesty to the entire nation and reducing taxes.
The husbands of officials appointed by the emperor also began to request audiences in order to strengthen the relationship between the palace and the outer court.
Shen Mingyue was busy from morning till night every day. He was already lacking in energy, and he was even more exhausted at night. Even though he tried his best to take good care of his wife and cousin, he was powerless to do so.
His Majesty's cousin was very considerate and pitied his weak health. She was extremely gentle and restrained in that matter. However, he felt ashamed for not fulfilling his duties as Empress. He struggled with this for several days, but in the end, the teachings of "Male Virtue" over the past ten years prevailed.
After exhausting himself once again, he suppressed his sorrow and knelt beside his cousin's wife, tactfully requesting that more outstanding men be selected to enter the palace to serve her.
“No rush,” Si Ze said, stroking his hair. “We should wait until you have complete control of the harem before we talk about it.”
His Majesty's cousin was still thinking about him, and Shen Mingyue became increasingly annoyed with her own body for being so weak, and ashamed that she had only brought it up after so long because of her possessiveness.
Si Ze doesn't care much about the draft.
Feeling sorry for her cousin, Shen Mingyue tried to persuade her again.
"It's alright, I'll recruit a bedchamber attendant if needed," Si Ze said, pulling him into his arms to comfort him.
Shen Mingyue felt a pang of sympathy: those palace attendants came from such humble backgrounds; it was truly unfair to her cousin.
It's all his fault for having such a weak body!
Several more days passed, and everyone in the palace saw how much His Majesty loved and valued the Empress. The already respectful Liu Shang became even more docile in Changning Palace.
The palace attendants, who had initially held onto hope, gradually lost heart: His Majesty had probably completely forgotten about them.
——
"Gan Siqin, His Majesty summons you to the Zichen Palace tonight to serve him." That day, an eunuch came to deliver the order.
Serve him in bed!
Licorice felt a little dizzy: Your Majesty still remembers him, Your Majesty will favor him tonight!
Fortunately, I didn't give up exercising and taking care of myself during this time.
Looking at his hands, he regretted not taking better care of them, and hurriedly sent Maocao to fetch Sun Momo.
After another round of discreet and meticulous maintenance, seeing that his reflection in the water was even more perfect, he went to Zichen Palace with a feeling of trepidation.
This time, he wasn't made to wait. As soon as he entered the palace, he was summoned by the king: "Come and serve me."
Licorice quickly stepped forward.
The king sat astride the edge of the bed, his belt half-undone, his court robes loose.
As soon as he got close, he was enveloped by the familiar warm fragrance, and his heart started racing.
He knelt beside the monarch's legs and tentatively used the new technique he had learned from Momo.
"Your Majesty, is this alright?" He remembered the lesson of the thirty lashes last time, and even if he wanted His Majesty to be comfortable, he would not dare to continue without permission.
The king, already aroused and further provoked, had no choice but to press the man's head down: "Continue!"
His Majesty likes it. This realization made the young man's heart as sweet as if he had eaten honey, and his actions of serving became even more meticulous and diligent.
...
The sweltering heat of the past few days finally subsided, and Si Ze reverted to his gentle and rational self. Seeing the young man looking like he was about to break down, his tenderness returned. He wiped the corner of the young man's lips with a handkerchief and asked softly, "I heard you've been practicing calligraphy lately. How's it going?"
The young man hadn't yet recovered from the surprise of His Majesty wiping him when he heard the question. After realizing what was happening, he was overwhelmed with joy!
His Majesty knows he is practicing calligraphy, and His Majesty is still paying attention to him!
But soon, he lowered his head in shame: the results of his calligraphy practice were too embarrassing to mention.
"...Not good."
Si Ze had anticipated this situation: "Write a few more later and give them to me to look at."
Show it to His Majesty?!
The boy's heart jumped: Is it too late to go back and cram now?
That day, His Majesty did not visit him, but merely used him.
The young man's body received no physical reward, but his heart was filled with immense satisfaction: although His Majesty hadn't said it, he knew she was pleased with his new technique.
He's happy as long as His Majesty is satisfied.
The only downside was that His Majesty assigned him a writing task.
He wasn't afraid of writing, but he was afraid that His Majesty would be displeased if he saw his ugly handwriting. His joy and anxiety were intertwined, and his expression unconsciously changed from smiling to frowning, which made Mao Gen, who came to pick him up, shudder.
"What's wrong, my lord?" Mao Gen asked, noticing that his legs were still strong, and a sense of worry arose. "His Majesty hasn't favored you..."
The young man immediately glared at him sideways and said, "Shut up!"
Mao Gen immediately shut up, not daring to say anything more, but looking at his beautiful lips, a question still arose in his heart: Was he punished by His Majesty?
Those who were punished by having their mouths slapped don't have very pretty lips, do they?
The young palace servant was full of doubts, but fearing he might upset the young mistress, he dared not ask any more questions when he returned to the Imperial Bedchamber.
"Quickly, bring out the brush and ink!" Gan Cao said immediately upon returning to his bedroom.
Mao Gen became even more worried: "It's getting late now, why don't we practice calligraphy tomorrow?"
"No, I have to practice now." He said, and then started practicing on his own.
His Majesty did not specify a deadline for submission, but he dared not delay any longer. He hoped to practice more now so that his handwriting would look better by tomorrow morning.
Soon, Gan Cao took out his brush, ink, paper, and inkstone and began to grind the ink to calm his mind.
Seeing his condition, the young palace servant had no choice but to turn the lamp up brighter and take some loose silver to the Imperial Kitchen to see if there were any late-night snacks.
Gan Cao didn't notice the movement of Mao Gen; he was completely absorbed in practicing calligraphy.
He put his whole heart and soul into every stroke, but even so, the characters he wrote could only be barely considered neat.
But he had never seen good calligraphy, and the eunuch Cui who taught him could only write. Seeing that the strokes of these characters were of uniform thickness, he felt that he had made great progress, so he practiced even harder.
He practiced until the fourth watch of the night, completely ignoring the pastries that Mao Gen had placed in front of him.
Mao Gen had to remind him again: "Young Master, it's time to rest. You still have to pay your respects to the Empress tomorrow."
Greetings?
These two words were like a thunderclap, instantly waking Gan Cao up.
"Quick, get ready, wash up..." he said, his stomach growling.
Mao Gen hurriedly placed some snacks in front of him: "Have something to eat first, so you can sleep well."
Gan Cao nodded and quickly picked up the pastries, no longer caring about the eunuch Cui's instruction not to eat before bed.
After eating two pastries, he realized that his wrists were also very sore and weak.
But he couldn't worry about that now. After washing up, he lay down on the bed and said, "Wake me before dawn."
Mao Gen lowered the bed curtains as he responded.
The lights quickly went out.
Exhausted, Gan Cao closed her eyes and fell into a deep sleep.
But the master of Changning Palace was still awake.
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